Customer Reviews

The American Practical Navigator: Bowditch

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Although it appears intimidating, it's actually quite readable. It happens also to be the very pinnacle of all marine navigation guides; all others refer to it and every navigator/pilot should own a copy.

But (a) it's enormous in both physical volume and weight and (b) it does get updated. What to do? ...

A search on "nga bowditch" will provide you with the current pdf version, chapter by chapter on the web.

Weighing in at a hefty five pounds plus and almost 1000 pages long, this book is as important to your boat as its keel, and almost as dense. First published by Nathaniel Bowditch in 1802 and carried on board every U.S. Navy vessel, THE AMERICAN PRACTICAL NAVIGATOR ("BOWDITCH") is the quintessential seafarer's reference.

Exhaustively encyclopedic in scope, BOWDITCH is the sailor's mentor on just about any nautical subject, and it is also simply fascinating to read.

Although online editions of BOWDITCH are constantly updated, a hardcover edition never crashes and has to be rebooted, and is never subject to the vagaries of battery failure.

Despite its heftiness, every confirmed boat handler should have a copy of THE AMERICAN PRACTICAL NAVIGATOR.

Great classic book! Even if you hardly read it this can be a good book for your personal nautical library. However, if you just want to get some technical knowledge from the book free on-line version in pdf format is available at http://pollux.nss.nima.mil/pubs/

30 years in the Navy, 13 at sea. This is the bible for all true Navy persons. I recall hours reading it, and endeavoring to absorb the wisdom of the sea as recounted by generations of those before me.

As a Commanding Officer I would put notes in the Night Orders which would cause the watchstnders to research during quiet time, usually they could find the answers in Bowditch.

A real gem, I still keep my copy close to read, when the lack of salt air causes me to feel remorse for my retired life.

Rok Kedney
CDR USN (ret)

If you love the sea and have an interest in navigation this is a must have. An incredibly vast amount of information and history in one volume. The significance of the original work is shown by the near reverence for this frequently updated title. As a reference on marine navigation it is head and shoulders above the rest. One of the joys of having a copy on the bookshelf is just opening it to a random topic.

As others have noted the book is available on the internet. However, the there's no substitute for having a real copy and the price is far below that quoted by some posters.

Sadly gps has replaced basic navigation skills among many who fly and sail with a resulting dependence that often masks a lack of situational awareness. For those whose sailing is recreational dependence on gps navigation removes one of the joys that comes from the exercise of competency in basic navigation skills.

Highly recommended.

This is the book the other navigation books keep referring to when trying to make a point or explain some fact of navigation. Might as well just get this book to start with. I just wish the first line on page 230 would have printed, I would like to know what it says.

The 2002 bicentennial edition of Bowditch's American Practical Navigator is a weighty tome prepared and published by the national Imagery and Mapping Agency in Maryland. Packed with international and foreign nautical charts, details on Logan navigation, discussions of navigation regulations and ocean chemistry and properties, and logarithm charts, The American Practical Navigator is a 'must' reference for any serious boater, and for libraries where boaters congregate.

A classic maritime reference book; although titled the "Practical American Navigator" it is much more than a basic Northern American navigation text. In fact, I would describe it more as a comprehensive academic text of applied navigation and the associated global oceanography and meteorology. As such, this book is as universal a text as the "Oxford Dictionary".

The other great thing is that the majority of the text is written in clear and plain English.

If you want to NAVIGATE this is a MUST HAVE. I have the older 2 volume set. This is the bible for navigation. This book should be on every boat that sails coastal or trans-oceantic. Everything you will ever need is in this book. Almost any other navigation book out there is just an abridged version of a chapter or 2 from this complete book. There is so much information in this book that you will never get rid of it. You will always be able to learn more each time you open it. This is the text book for navigation used at the Maritime Colleges. Every professional Merchant Mariner has and uses this book. It has everything you need to pass your USCG Masters licence exams for navigation and more. If you have a boat, you need this book.

An excellent text for the professional mariner. It's a publication I have wanted for many years and I am certainly not disappointed with the 2002 Bicentennial Edition. As a teaching aid and reference for advanced navigation principles and concepts this is an exceptional book. Our thanks to a wonderful author for his insight into the world of maritime navigation.