Sampson Boat Co

Billing inconsistency

Dear patrons!

Normally, as you know, your pledge is paid each time I release a video - which is usually 2 or sometimes 3 times per month. So if your pledge is $10/video, and I release ...

Marit returns!

Did I already mention that Marit is back on board now? She has been working on leathering the mast hoops - this will help protect the mast from chafe during the ocean passages that we have coming u...

High-res downloadable image.

An early morning start, as we leave Desolation Sound and start heading south again - back towards Sidney, where we will get ready to head offshore in a few weeks!

EP223. Optimistic wood-butcher attempts to work on diesel engine.

In which I attempt to adjust the valve clearances, and do some laundry.

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Music;

M.O.O.N. - Hydrogen (http...

Maintenance!

Getting into the guts of the engine for the first time - for a bit of routine maintenance. Any ideas what I'm working on here?

It was my first time doing this particular job, but it was real...

EP222. Solo Sailing through Fjords, Tidal Rapids, and Endless Waterfalls.

Visiting Princess Louisa Inlet by sail.

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Daniel Graham - Making the Tally Ho Violin / Fiddle (Part 1)

2025-07-12 16:15:35 +0000 UTC View Post

Jervis Inlet

Another photo from the recent sail up to Princess Louisa Inlet - these Fjords are incredibly beautiful, but the wind tends to blow from either directly ahead or behind, so for this passage (with th...

How it feels to wake up on my boat... next to a ferry dock (sound on!)

Music; Jazz Apricot - Joey Pecoraro

Sailing Tally Ho under full sail with just 2 people - for the first time!

Music; Wayward Jane - Brokeback

EP221. Sometimes you just have to use a bigger hammer.

In this video, I try to fix a stuck bow-roller - while the anchor is in use, I’m balancing on a chain over the ocean, and it’s pouring with rain. If you think that sounds silly, you’d be righ...

EP220. We’re going to Mexico! (and having a minor crisis)

The last two weeks have been a little bit odd, and things have changed a little bit!

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Music;

Castello Oak - Bird Creek

Bluebird - E's Jammy Jams

The Bywater - The ...

Princess Louisa Inlet

A singlehanded sail up to Princess Louisa Inlet, a couple of weeks ago now. People familiar with this area will know that this is a special place, and takes some effort to get to.

Thanks for...

A slight change of plan..

I was planning to release a video this weekend, but for some reason decided to have a minor existential crisis instead. Here are some frolicking Sea Lions to illustrate the point.

Marit has t...

Thank you all for sharing your wooden boat photos with me!

I've been overwhelmed, in a very good way, by all the responses to my post. All the ​b​oats I've seen are really beautiful and I'm inspired and heartened by seeing so many people caring for the...

Scheduled Maintenance Spreadsheet!

In the last video I showed the scheduled maintenance spreadsheet that I developed for keeping track of regular tasks on board Tally Ho. It calculates the next date for regular tasks, and there are ...

Team "Chapped Sterns"

Look who came to visit! Nic - of Argonaut fame - came up to spend a few days on board Tally Ho, and he bought his pizza oven with him too!

Nic and friends are rowing 70 miles in the seventy4...

A cosy spot...

This must be one of the most snug anchorages that we've visited. At low tide those rocks felt slightly close for comfort, but in this settled weather this was a great spot. Apparently this area can...

EP219. Anchoring a dinghy on a rocky shore….

We start this episode by anchoring our dinghy off a rocky island to search for some special wildflowers. We are given a fish, cross paths with Orca Whales, ghost underneath some huge cliffs, and ar...

Free high-res downloadable image.

These cliffs on the West Coast of Valdes Island drop straight into deep water - even this close, we had around 100' under the keel! The eroded rock-face makes a stunning backdrop to Tally Ho ghosti...

Preventative maintenance..!

It's time for a Diesel Heater service, after 1 year and 1000 hrs of use. Tally Ho's preventative maintenance schedule is real, and well underway!

I've been really pleased with this heater fr...

Rowing home after a morning exploring small islets.

A birds-eye perspective often reveals new details about our surroundings, and I love seeing how these rocks fade away into the depths. In different conditions this would be considered too close for...

EP218. Pacific Ocean to UK, by sail - revealing our plan!

In this episode we reveal which route we will be taking from the Pacific Ocean to the UK - a journey we are trying to make in time for the 2027 Fastnet race.

We also test the autopilot and t...

Hold on tight!

I'll never get tired of seeing the deck from the spreaders! One of these days I'll learn how to slide down the forestay.

Recognise any of these scallywags?!

We somehow found ourselves with a cockpit full of YouTubers 😅

Thanks to all of them for much hospitality and generosity in Gabriola.

2025-05-12 20:47:09 +0000 UTC View Post

Here'an'there.

Recently we've been sailing in convoy with a friend of ours who has a beautiful wooden yawl named HEREANTHERE. He lives on board full-time and picks up all sorts of interesting jobs as he cruises B...

Saving Sauntress?

I usually don't post about wooden boats that need saving, simply because there are so many of them out there. However, this one speaks to me.

Sauntress is a 28' Gaff Cutter - built in 1913, e...

So many seals!

Probably my favourite shot from the most recent video - so many seals! The noises they were making were other-worldy. It sounded a bit like the noise of barking dogs echoing around the anchorage. 2025-05-07 22:37:28 +0000 UTC View Post

217. Docking a 30-ton boat alone - tricks for manoeuvring heavy vessels with ease!

In this episode we talk about various tricks that can help when manoeuvring heavy vessels under power - particularly long-keel, single-screw sailboats like Tally Ho.

At the beginning of the e...

...a small delay.

I'm really enjoying learning to animate, but it's proving to add some time to the editing process! As a result, this video is delayed until tomorrow.

However, I can't complain - the wood-bur...

Orcas in the anchorage.

I'm currently working on the next video, and I think it's going to be a fun one. I'm hoping to discuss manoeuvring and mooring a heavy boat singlehanded, but we're also revisiting some footage from...