Cruising outpost #23 summer 2018

SAIL AWAY WITH ALMOST 200 PAGES OF SEAFARING ADVENTURE!

CruisingOutpost.com

JESSIE'S

ATLANTIC CROSSING

WELCOME BACK

BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS! COCONUT

MILK RUN

KEEPING IT REAL IN

CUBA

BEATING TO THE

GALAPAGOS GREAT PANAMA

MISADVENTURE

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H60: LENGTH OVERALL: 59’2” | 18.05 m • LENGTH OF WATERLINE: 54’9” | 16.74 m BEAM: 17’3” | 5.26 m • ENGINE: VOLVO D3 150 hp • WATER TANKAGE: 391 gal | 1,480 litres FUEL TANKAGE: 370 gal | 1,400 litres • DRAFT: 8’2” | 2.5 m / SHOAL: 6’6” | 2.0 m DISPLACEMENT: 65,256 lbs | 29,600 kg • SAIL AREA: 1,827 sq. ft | 169.73 m²

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In th

there isis issue less tha n

33%

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And we did it O N PU Most o RPOSE! th e r boating magazin es h 65% adave over s.

Person Responsible for This Bob Bitchin bob@cruisingoutpost.com

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Many people disagree with our punctuation usage. For those people, we offer these punctuation marks to be used wherever they like!

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Contents

The first novel ever written on a typewriter? Tom Sawyer!

Issue #23 Summer 2018

13

Special Stuff in this Issue Welcome Back to the BVIs Bob Bitchin The Atlantic Crossing Jessie Zevalkink The Coconut Milk Run Bahia Todos Santos Happy Dinghy Keeping It Real in Cuba Beating to the Galopagos Islands The Fabulous Tuamotus Colorful St. Martin/St. Maarten Emily & Grace on the Great Loop Great Panama Mis-Adventure Women at the Helm Miami Cruisers’ Party

13 36 42 53 58 60 73 92 98 104 134 150 158

42

60

Regular Stuff in this Issue Attitudes Bob Bitchin Outpost News Another Way Tania Aebi What’s Out There: Monohull -Hylas H60 What’s Out There: Multihull - Bali 4.3 What’s Out There: Power Cruiser - Greenline 48 Lifestyle Latitudes & Attitudes Bubba Whartz Morgan Stinemetz Book Review Capt. James Cash Life Aboard Robin Stout Talk of the Dock Zuzana Prochazka Cap’n Cap’n I Found It at the Boat Show Weather Lee Chesneau Tech Tips Captain Pauly Bosun’s Bag Mackie White Cruisians

8 18 32 66 68 70 80 110 132 142 144 148 153 161 166 170 184 193 194

73

CRUISING OUTPOST (USPS 011-950) IS PUBLISHED QUARTERLY BY CRUISING OUTPOST, 9353 Oroville Quincy Hwy, Berry Creek, CA 95916.

Periodical Postage paid at Berry Creek, CA and additional mailing offices.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to CRUISING OUTPOST, PO Box 15416, North Hollywood, CA 91615-5416.

92

™

© 2018 The Bitchin Group, Inc.

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Cruising Outpost 5

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5/8/18 11:14 AM

Attitudes

Forget the health food. I need all the preservatives I can get.

By Bob Bitchin

Each issue I search my alleged mind for something that will give you food for thought, while at the same time explaining what it is about cruising that makes us all want to go out there. Out there, where waves try to kill you and sharks try to eat you and somehow, we still think we are having a good time!

So this month’s edification will be about equality; something we, in the States, thought we had conquered, yet it always seems to be a problem. As Tom Lehrer so eloquently put it in a song back in the sixties: “Oh, the poor folks hate the rich folks And the rich folks hate the poor folks All of my folks hate all of your folks It’s American as apple pie.”

But guess what, boats seem to be the great equalizer!

I remember one of the best New Year’s Eve parties I ever attended (key word here being “remember”) on the beach in English Harbor. We’d just sailed across the Atlantic and were buddy sailing with a 72’ custom Swan named Jugra. It was the royal yacht of Malaysia.

Really! It turned out that Idris, who at the time was the Raja Muda of Selengor, Malaysia (essentially the Crown Prince), was an avid sailor and Harley rider, two things we had in common! So we raced (lol) across “the Pond.”

Yes, he kicked my butt. Seems a Swan is a bit faster than the Taiwan Turkey I was sailing (a Formosa 56). But I digress...

So, we arrived in Antigua about eight days after Jugra made it into Barbados, where he had some meetings to attend. But, we agreed to meet for New Year’s.

A few days after Christmas, Jugra arrived in English Harbor and dropped anchor about 75 feet behind us. Perfect.

In the next couple days Idris arranged for one of the better restaurants on the beach to close for New Year’s Eve for a private party. It’s good to be the King (or Prince, in this case)!

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So, New Year’s Eve arrived (after “Christmas in the Caribbean” which, in Antigua, is better than most), and that evening we hopped into the dinghy and headed ashore to the party. At this time our “crew” consisted of myself and Jody, and our crew from the Med: a young surfer named Sean from Huntington Beach, CA, who we called “Gilligan,” and two young ladies, sisters actually, from Australia.

As we beached the dinghy and walked up the beach into the restaurant we saw it was pretty crowded. It seems Idris had made some friends in the few days he’d been on the island.

This is where it got fun. Now, try to picture two teenaged (18 & 19) sisters from Australia, a young surfer from SoCal, a Crown Prince, his “Man” Richard, his Captain and wife from New Zealand, a jolly Scotsman who owned the local pizza place, and his wife from Germany. Also in attendance were two punk rockers from Great Britain, one of whom had a Mohawk hairstyle sticking over a foot into the air, Stephan and Estelle who sailed in from South Africa, a few of the local islanders, sailors from France, Sweden, Canada, and a “professional varnisher” from Bequia. To top it all off, add a 6’4” 300-pound tattooed biker. It was, what you might call, a very eclectic group.

But ya know what? We all hit it off fine. In fact, better than fine. We had basically all “proved ourselves” by taking on the ocean on major crossings - the great equalizer.

As Mark Twain once said: “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

And in so doing, you will join the brotherhood of adventurers (and adventuresses) who have found the life at sea to be the one great equalizer. Once you have crossed an ocean, you join the less than 1% of people on Earth who will ever get to experience such an epic adventure!

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4/30/18 3:49 PM

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Scrub Island, February 2018.

SAIL BVI ONCE, SAIL FOR LIFE. Go full speed ahead and let the freedom of the British Virgin Islands fill your sail. Charter your own private exploration, with captain and chef if desired, to over 60 beautiful islands.

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Join the Outpost in Saying

“Welcome Back” to the

British Virgin Islands Join the Celebration! November 15th thru the 30th, 2018

On the following page s you will f ind spe cials on our by-the-cabin charters, bareboat charte rs, dr ink s, me als and re sorts. The BVIs are “Ope n For Busine ss” and want you to see how they have come back! www.cruisingoutpost.com

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He lp We lcome Back the BVIs

Welcome Back to Paradise!

The people of the British Virgin Islands are back, and they want to show you how they have come together to rebuild our cruisers’ paradise. Now it’s up to you! They need you, the cruisers, to come help them and celebrate their unbelievable accomplishment!

Those of you who have sailed here know that the big reason we all keep coming back is the people. Now the people are asking you to come and see the results of all their hard work! So come join us and the people of the BVIs for a two-week celebration.

This two-week “Welcome Back” promotion is being supported by the BVI Tourism board. They are offering you plenty of incentives: special rates on bareboat charters, slips, meals, resorts and rooms. Make your plans early.

Knocked Down...

The British Virgin Islands are well established as the sailing capital of the world. I think that is pretty undeniable. But recently the BVIs, as they are affectionately known by all who cruise there, have undergone some pretty horrible weather.

In 2017, Hurricane Irma was the strongest storm on record to exist in the open Atlantic region. Irma was also the first Category 5 hurricane on record to strike the Leeward Islands, with winds up to 180 mph, and the second-costliest Caribbean hurricane on record with an estimated 65 billion dollars in damages. It was followed

by Hurricane Maria two weeks later.

Maria was the thirteenth named storm, eighth consecutive hurricane, fourth major hurricane, second

BVI Welcome Back Specials for November 15th thru 30th, 2018

10% Discount Off Rally Fees!

The Salty Dawg Rally from Hampton, VA to the Caribbean Departing on 11/3, to arrive in the BVIs by 11/15. www.saltydawgsailing.org

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10% off all Instruction & licensing at the BVI base, location on Scrub Island. www.offshoresailing.com

Special rates during the event. www.proteuscharters.com www.cruisingoutpost.com

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Novembe r 15 thr u 30th, 2018

Ginger

Virgin Gorda Scrub Island

Beef island

Little Camino

Tortola

Great Camino Guana Island BVIs Looking South Category 5 hurricane, and the deadliest storm of the hyperactive 2017 Atlantic hurricane season. At its peak, the hurricane caused catastrophic damage and numerous fatalities across the northeastern Caribbean with winds up to 175 MPH with over 90 billion dollars in damages.

As you might well imagine, the damages were devastating. Whole islands were totally stripped. Jost Van Dyke had to be evacuated, as there wasn’t a single building still standing. Nothing to eat, no clothes; in general the island was wiped clean! ...But Not Out! But the folks of the British Virgin Islands came together as a shining example of how well a people can bounce back from major disaster. Stories of survival and sacrifice started coming out of the islands before

the first hurricane was even over. Now it’s time for cruisers to come back, see the results of their efforts and support their progress.

On Tortola the devastation was about as complete as it could be: electricity down, infrastructure gone, food and water in extreme short supply. But the people came together to get things up and running. As an example, all of the Pusser’s Restaurants were destroyed. So owner Charles Tobias, a decorated Marine Fighter Pilot in Korea and Viet Nam, gathered all his employees and brought them to the centrally located Pusser’s place in Road Town. Using generators and propane for boiling water and cooking, they had it up and were serving free meals to those on the island in just a couple of days.

BVI Welcome Back Specials for November 15th thru 30th, 2018

Free Night & Champagne Conch offers a “free night” stay aboard with free champagne to all charters during this event! w w w.conchcharters.com www.cruisingoutpost.com

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Aaaargh! Get your free 8oz Voodoo Rum Punch with a purchase of any food item. Ye be limited to 1 per customer, but that should do it! w w w.corsairsbvi.com

Cruising Outpost 15

5/4/18 2:00 PM

He lp We lcome Back the BVIs

Join Bob & Jody and the Outpost Staff

Hurricane History In the twentieth century the BVIs had 13 hurricanes.

They came in two groups. They had five hurricanes from 1916 to 1932, and then only one during the next 57 years.

Between 1989 and 1999, seven hurricanes struck including six in four years, from 1995-1999. Then they went another 11 years without any hurricane strikes. They experienced two in a row in 1995 with Hurricane Luis, followed nine days later by Hurricane Marilyn.

Then came 2017. Hurricane Irma was followed fourteen days later by Hurricane Maria. These last two were among the largest hurricanes on record for that area of the Atlantic.

A Little Help from Our Friends The BVIs are the most popular sailing destination in the world, deservedly so, as it is one of the most beautiful

Share The Sail BVI Nov. 17-24, 2018 Special discounted rates for the “Welcome Back to the BVI” event www.cruisingoutpost.com/sharethesail

BVI Welcome Back Specials for November 15th thru 30th, 2018

20% Discount The Nanny Cay Hotel is offering a 20% discount during the event. A great boutique hotel. www. nannycay.com/hotel

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Save $250 on any new MarineMax Vacations power catamaran vacation booked bet ween Nov. 15-30, 2018. www.marinemax.com

$200 off Cruising Outpostʻs Share-The-Sail “By-the-cabin flotilla Charter” www.cruisingoutpost.com WWW.CRUISINGOUTPOST.COM

5/4/18 2:00 PM

Novembe r 15 thr u 30th, 2018

areas to sail on Earth. It also has some of the best sailing weather for most of the year. Add to that, over the past couple hundred years the island lifestyle has become sought out as something every sailor should experience at least once in their lifetime. As a result, the people of the BVIs’ lives depend on tourism and never have we, the cruisers who love the islands, been so needed.

So make sure you are there to help the people celebrate their accomplishments. You will find discounts and specials from charter companies, resorts, events and restaurants all over the islands. Take a few days, take a week, or whatever you can do, but come join the celebration and let’s all get back to doing what we love, cruising the British Virgin Islands!

Sailing from the States? Join the Salty Dawg Rally A lot of folks sailing to the BVIs will be joining the Salty Dawg Rally. It’s been going on for a few years and gives people a chance to join and sail to the BVIs with a group. The Fall Rally will depart from Hampton, VA near the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay. The departure date is November 3, weather permitting.

The good folks at the Salty Dawg are offering a 10% discount for those who want to join them sailing to the paradise we all know as the BVIs. For more info on the Welcome Back Celebration, Share the Sail and the latest discounts, go to www. cruisingoutpost.com/BVI. Don’t dream your life, live your dream, in the BVIs!

www.cruisingoutpost.com

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Cruising Outpost News

Outposters News If It’s Gonna Happen It’s Gonna Happen Out There

Surely not everybody was Kung Fu Fighting...

Issue #23

Evening Edition

Oldest Known Message in a Bottle Tonya Illman of Perth, Australia, picked up a bottle while she and her family were going for a walk on the beach at Wedge Island in West Australia. Inside they found some paper. When they returned home they dried it out in the oven and discovered writing, which included the date of 12 June 1886 and the name of a ship, Paula.

Experts have confirmed it is an authentic message from a German ship. The note in the bottle was jettisoned from the German ship Paula, as part of an experiment into ocean and shipping routes by the German Naval Observatory. The bottle was jettisoned in the south-eastern Indian Ocean while the ship was travelling from Cardiff in Wales to Indonesia. Previously, the Guinness world record for the oldest message in a bottle was 108 years, between when it was sent and found.

Summer 2018

The BVIs Say Welcome Back!

It’s time to head back to the BVIs to see what a lot of determination and a little drive can do for people who experienced two of the most powerful hurricanes in history. They have not only survived, but brought back the world’s greatest cruising grounds, the British Virgin Islands.

Starting on page 13 you will see what great specials are being planned for those who want to come sail the islands during the great “Welcome Back” event.

There are special offers from charter companies, a Share-the-Sail hosted by Cruising Outpost, along with dozens of great deals on charter boats, resorts, rooms, meals, drinks and fun. It runs Nov. 15 thru the 30th.

Nautical Trivia So, you know that line of kelp, seaweed, and debris that washes up along the beach at the high tide mark? There’s a name for that. Anybody know what it is?

(Wanna cheat? Answer is on page 28)

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www.cruisingoutpost.com

5/3/18 5:36 PM

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4/27/18 11:12 AM 5/1/18 3:21 PM

Cruising Outpost News Good Samaritans at Sea

The Royal Caribbean cruise liner Navigator of the Seas was about 3,000kms southwest of Cork, Ireland, traveling from Miami to the Azores, when it encountered a 39-foot Norwegian yacht with three persons on board. It had sustained damage in rough weather and was unable to steer or use its sails.

The cruise ship changed course to intercept the stricken yacht and provide assistance. No medical assistance was needed but the sailboat’s rudder was partially damaged and it had run out of fuel. The crew provided the sailboat with fuel so it could motor to the Azores, Portugal.

Captain Jim is in a big regatta, and has just one question: “Am I so far in front of the pack I can‛t see anyone else, or so far in the back?”

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Just Say “Arrgghhh!”

In commemoration of the 300th anniversary of Blackbeard’s death in 1718, ferries serving the North Carolina Outer Banks will be flying Blackbeard’s flag. Thanks to an agreement between the N.C. Department of Transportation’s Ferry Division and the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, which marks the observance, the flag will fly on ferries serving the Hatteras-Ocracoke, Cedar IslandOcracoke, and Swan QuarterOcracoke ferry routes, as well as the Pamlico River route between Bayview and Aurora. Both areas have historic ties to the 18th-century pirate.

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Cruising Outpost News Sorry Heidi! - We Messed Up

In a previous issue we did a history of how Cruising Outpost came into existence after Latitudes & Attitudes was taken down. In it we forgot to mention how invaluable Miss Heidi Benson (now Mrs. Heidi Benson-Stagg) was as our General Manager for the first year, helping us get started. We could not have done it without her. She is now preparing to “head out there” and start writing about her world cruise!

Kick’em Jenny Ready to Kick Again

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English is weird. It can be understood through tough, thorough, thought though.

Officials in the Caribbean island of Grenada recently issued a warning for ships to steer clear of the underwater volcano named “Kick’em Jenny” located 8 km (5 mi) north of the island. There has been an increase in seismic activity which could indicate the start of an eruption. The alert level was raised to ORANGE, meaning an eruption could take place within 24 hours. With the increase in the alert level, ships and other marine operators are asked to observe the exclusion zone of 5 km (3.1 miles) around the summit of the volcano.

Kick ’em Jenny is one of the most active volcanoes in the Eastern Caribbean. It’s about 1300m high, and its summit is currently estimated to be about 200m below the surface of the Caribbean Sea. Scientists believe that an eruption is unlikely to produce a tsunami due to the volcano’s location and pattern of activity. However, it is considered dangerous for ships and boats since it is constantly releasing gases that can lower the density of the water, causing vessels to sink even when not erupting. For this reason, the alert level is kept at a constant YELLOW, with a permanent 1.5km exclusion zone around the summit of the volcano.

Kick ’em Jenny has erupted 14 times since its discovery in 1936. The most recent eruption occurred in April 2017.

www.cruisingoutpost.com

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Cruising Outpost News Gone But Never Forgotten!

Chuck Silvers

It is with great sadness that I have to say good-bye to one of my oldest friends, riding partners and sailing partners. Chuck Silvers, and wife Ann, have been a part of our lives for more than 30 years.

He retired that long ago and started cruising. Along the way he ended up managing a number of cruisers’ marinas, including Alameda Marina, Mazatlan Marina, and for the past 12 years, Bocas del Torro Marina in Panama. Chuck lived his life to the fullest, and will not soon be forgotten.

Chuck in 1997 relaxing on Lost Soul

When I asked you to “tie the knot” I meant it literally!

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WWW.CRUISINGOUTPOST.COM

5/7/18 12:31 PM

Cruising Outpost News Farewell to a Friend: Paul Mixon

Paul Mixon was instrumental in creating the Black Boaters Summit, which we helped promote to try and get more diversity in sailing. For almost 20 years he and Bitchin worked together, including promoting a “Sailing Diversity Seminar” at the Oakland Pacific Strictly Sail Show in early 2000s.

Paul was well known in the boating industry and will not soon be forgotten. We will miss his smile and his endless optimism!

Public Service Announcement Hey, you! Yes you. Stop destroying the Earth. This is where I keep all my stuff!

WWW.CRUISINGOUTPOST.COM

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Cruising Outpost News Hyphenated. Non-hyphenated. That’s irony.

Woody to the Rescue Twenty-four-year-old Mason Ringer and his two co-workers were refurbishing a dock on the Okatee River in South Carolina. During their lunch break, they decided to go out for a ride in a small johnboat, but the boat overturned. One co-worker was able to make the swim for shore and the other was pulled from the mud by a rescue boat.

Ringer was swimming back across the river – trying to get back to the dock – when he started cramping up. He gave up trying to swim and just kept afloat, yelling for help, when he heard a dog bark. Shortly thereafter a dog was at his side. Ringer grabbed for its tail and the dog towed him for a moment before Ringer lost his grip. Then the dog turned around and paddled back to where Ringer could reach his collar. With the help of the dog pulling, Ringer was able to reach shore and climb aboard a dock.

The dog, a seven-year-old Labrador retriever named Woody, was not a rescue dog. Woody’s owners, who live in Savannah, said they didn’t know the man Woody saved. They just happened to be visiting in the area that day.

Ringer has promised Woody a big steak!

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Cruising Outpost News

Rescue Reunion

Single-handed sailor Mervyn Wheatley was taking part for the fifth time in the Observer Singlehanded Transatlantic Race (OSTAR) to raise funds for The Royal Marines Charity when he encountered hurricane force winds and massive 15m waves in which his boat was capsized. Although it righted itself, it was full of water, the steering had failed, all the electrics had ceased and she was taking on water. This would have been his 19th Atlantic Crossing.

At the age of 73, the immensely experienced skipper with more than 400,000 miles beneath his keel, made the ‘traumatic decision’ to sink his Formosa 42, Tamarind, to prevent a hazard to other ships and to accept the hospitality of the Cunard Ship the Queen Mary 2. He was rescued thanks to “excellent seamanship” by a tender from the ship, which had been en route to Halifax, Nova Scotia from Southampton.

The Ocean Cruising Club (OCC) wished to recognize the exemplary seamanship shown

by Captain Wells and his crew, so invited him to their Annual Awards Dinner where he and Mervyn were reunited for the first time since the Queen Mary 2 docked in Halifax. Mervyn presented Captain Wells with an OCC Special Award in thanks for his timely actions. After he received his award, Captain Wells noted that Mervyn Wheatley is so experienced that it was a pleasure to come to his aid. www.cruisingoutpost.com

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Cruising Outpost News

Nautical Trivia

(Answer to the question on page 18) It’s called the wrack line. The name comes from the phrase “wrack and ruin” which is where the remains of shipwrecks are found.

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Time to Take Out the Garbage The Great Pacific Garbage Patch, which is floating halfway between California and Hawaii, is about to get cleaned up! The firstever machine to clean up the planet’s largest chunk of ocean plastic is due to set sail and will commence collecting the 1.8 trillion pieces of plastic rubbish amassed there by ocean currents.

The system uses a combination of huge floating nets held in place by giant tubes which are made out of plastic (how ironic), to suck stubborn waste out of the water. It will then transfer this debris to large ships that will take it to shore for recycling. Fish will be able to escape the nets by swimming underneath them and boats will visit to collect the waste every six to eight weeks.

The system will launch from San Francisco Bay and start working by July, with plans to keep extending it thereafter. It is the brainchild of Dutch teen prodigy Boyan Slat, who presented his ocean-cleaning machine at a Tedx talk six years ago. Slat dropped out of college to pursue the venture, raising $2.2 million from a crowdfunding campaign, with millions more brought in by other investors.

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5/3/18 5:49 PM

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Cruising Outpost News ACTIVE PIRACY REPORT from the ICC A Narrative of the Most Recent Attacks (as of press time) April 4, 2018 - Around 16nm NE of Tanjung Berakit, Pulau Bintan, Indonesia: Unnoticed, robbers boarded an anchored heavy lift vessel. While carrying out routine deck work the next day, the Bosun noticed that the paint store padlock was broken and the door left opened. Further investigation showed that the padlocks to the Garbage room, Oxygen locker, Acetylene locker and the Bunker station were also broken into and the doors left open. On investigating nothing reported stolen.

April 23, 2018 - Muara Berau, Samarinda, Indonesia: Duty AB on routine rounds onboard an anchored general cargo vessel was threatened by four robbers armed with knives. The AB managed to escape and raised the alarm. Seeing the alerted crew the robbers escaped in two boats. Nothing reported stole.

April 21, 2018 - Around 4.7nm NE of Nongsa, Pulau Batam, Indonesia: Duty crew onboard a bulk carrier underway noticed unauthorized persons in the engine room and raised the alarm. Hearing the alarm the persons escaped. On searching the vessel nothing reported stolen.

April 21, 2018 - Around 38nm SSW of Bonny Island, Nigeria: Armed pirates boarded a general cargo ship enroute from Takoradi, Ghana to Port Harcourt, Nigeria, kidnapped 11 crew members and escaped. The incident was reported to the Nigerian Navy and a patrol boat was sent to the location. Naval personnel boarded and searched the ship, and found three crew members onboard. The ship sailed under the escort of the patrol boat to a safe location.

April 21, 2018 - Douala Port, Cameroon: Two robbers attempted to board a berthed utility vessel via the scaffolding installed at the stern. The Duty Watchman noticed the robbers and informed the security guard on board who ďŹ red a warning shot, resulting in the robbers aborting the attempted boarding and escaped. Port authority informed.

April 18, 2018 - Muara Berau Anchorage, Samarinda, Indonesia: Unnoticed, robbers boarded an anchored bulk carrier, stole ship store’s and escaped. The theft was noticed during routine rounds.

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pg 31 KTI FilterBoss Ad.indd 1

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5/4/18 10:18 AM

Another Way Three days before leaving for the British Virgin Islands, I got the heads up from editor Sue: deadline was in two weeks, she wrote. Sue and I have been working together like this for twenty years. She sends email, I try not to disappoint, and this time, I figured a weeklong sail in the Hurricane Irma-ravaged islands would provide plenty of writing fodder. Now, two weeks later and making Sue happy, here is a story that began last September, when the first horrifying pictures and news started emerging from all the post-storm chaos.

In November, two months after Irma and Maria razed the BVI, I decided to support the Caribbean islands that had shown so many sailors plenty of great times, not by making online donations, but by actually going there. I booked a catamaran and planned a trip for my exclusive, boutique-sized mailing list. (Feel free to email me and sign up; I’m a good cook and easy to find when you have power, internet, a device and time—all things we take for granted.) I anticipated response from a horde that agreed this would be a good idea, until once again, it became clear we all really don’t think in the same ways. The hordes prefer their paradises intact.

However, I did fill one boat with a bunch of great people ready to be flexible about expectations and looking forward to sailing familiar and horde-less waters, while arranging flights and tracking down open hotels for the night before we boarded. According to a BVI Strong website, hammers and sweat were putting one business after another back on the map, and when our charter week rolled around, enough rooms, restaurants, supermarkets, and the SUP rental company were waiting for us to come.

I started writing for Sue in the back seat of the car when we left home at 3:30 in the morning of April 20, on snow-covered roads that didn’t matter, not even the littlest bit. Who can imagine being in a blender until actually having been in one, I wrote, your little island home, neighbors, world being blown apart by Nature?

What’s a little late-season snow compared to that?

Continuing to peck away at the writing all week, I added and deleted words all related to surviving an unimaginable storm—the sea of blue tarps for roofing we saw from the airplane over Puerto Rico, debris

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scattered everywhere, pulverized homes, shattered docks, battered cars, naked trees, crumbling walls, pitted roads, bedraggled electrical lines, wrecked boats piled on rocks and beaches, entangled in mangroves.

We sailed to Virgin Gorda, Anegada, Jost Van Dyke and Bubbly Pool, Cane Garden Bay, Norman and Cooper Island, an itinerary of familiar names from past trips to ideal cruising grounds that totally catered to the charter industry and had been getting more and more crowded.

Until this year. Online updates indicated numbers were way down, more resembling the character of the place thirty years ago. Sunhil, the man who cheerfully conned our boat away from one of the few intact and crowded docks at the trashed marina base, said they’d managed seventy boats before the storm. Every single one was gone, now replaced by forty.

The devastation we witnessed from our 2018 catamaran with working engines, water-maker, electric lights, fans, fridge, stove and a well-equipped galley was global and democratic. It was hard to interact without feeling guilty. One-percenters and hoi polloi had lost mostly everything. And, my heart ached for all the regular, hard-working people who were looking at rebuilding basically from zero, for the older people who didn’t have the energy to start over, for anyone who didn’t have homes in other places, big fat insurance checks to cash.

Everyone we met had heard the unearthly sound of that wind and water, felt the full force of Nature’s unmitigated rage and fury. Try and imagine the roof of your house, houses next door, on your island and surrounding islands, all being torn off, all contents— pictures, linens, furniture, memories—sucked out, soaked, scattered. Very few cars were undented with glass and body intact, trees were barely dressed. But, while I couldn’t stop thinking about those who could pull out of it together, those who wouldn’t, and all the stories of trauma one can never fully understand until actually living them, they’d moved on.

Driving to and from the boat on the first and last day, instead of a dystopian hopelessness, we saw plenty of hardy resilience and restoration that had already been done. And, people were laughing around barbecues, WWW.CRUISINGOUTPOST.COM

5/3/18 4:34 PM

storefronts, and worksites with no shortage of smiles.

They weren’t stuck in the past, no time for that luxury.

Meanwhile, our trip was dreamlike. Even though Irma had created a time machine, taking the cruising grounds back several decades, we still had cell service and data to answer burning questions like: what were Irma’s strongest winds?

Answer: 180-185 mph, when she made landfall on Virgin Gorda. Historically, Gorda Sound, the waters in front of the tattered ruins of Bitter End and Saba Rock, had thrummed with boats at moorings, mega-yachts anchored in the middle, dinghies and people reveling, playing and buzzing about everywhere. The silence was eerie, haunting and beautiful.

We anchored off Prickly Pear Island amid eleven other cruisers from around the world, not a single charter boat. Those guys were kindly partying over at Leverick Bay, the only restaurant and bar open in the area. We had spaghetti for dinner aboard and watched turtles surfacing around us. Three days later, we were in Benures Bay on Norman Island, with something the BVI hadn’t been able to offer in ages—a gorgeous and protected anchorage with only three boats. For one week, we cooked, we ate, we snorkeled and sailed to anchorages and mooring fields without ever worrying about space. “Idyllic” and “peaceful” are two words I would have never used to describe the madhouse sailing scene of the BVI one year ago, two words that absolutely nobody anywhere near there had been thinking seven months ago, two words that were ours for April of 2018.

At the airport, waiting to check in for the first of three flights home and filled with impressions that I didn’t know how to express yet, a guy came over to chat while eating the most delicious smelling chicken. He said he purchased it at the airport concession, confirmed it also tasted good, but his own grilled chicken was best.

“You have to come back to the Islands again and visit me so I can show you,” he said.

Then, he thanked us for coming and hoped everything would be okay in the US. I worried for his island, he worried about our country, and when it came down to what really mattered today, it was all about good chicken.

Careful what you ask for, I said, thanking him and all of the BVI for having us. Everything will be fine in the end.

If it isn’t fine, it isn’t the end, and when we returned, we’d find him for the finest chicken dinner ever.

On our first morning home, we got another inch of white snow. On April 29, you can only laugh at that.

After seven days of being around people who were happy to have us back, we knew we couldn’t have been happier to be there. For this particular ending, I realize the most used words this week were “thanks” and “happy,” the best words of all. Now that I’ve just helped Sue meet another deadline, I hope she’s happy, too.

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AT L A NT I C C R O S S I N G What it feels like to cross an ocean for the first time, double-handed across the North Atlantic

It took me five days to find my smile, sleep pattern, and energy.

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4/30/18 3:52 PM

By Jessie Zevalkink

Departure: Royal Newfoundland Yacht Club At 3:45 a.m. my alarm confirms the thing I’ve been waiting to have confirmed for five months. It’s time to sail across an ocean. I wipe my puffy eyes and stand up to turn the kettle on an arms length away, scooping generous amounts of coffee into the French press.

In need of a strong brew. Out of my peripheral vision I catch a shooting star which arcs so far across the morning sky that I have time to twist my head and follow all the way to the horizon.

I take this in as a welcome token from the sea. I thank it, and carry on with my morning regime. By 4:09 a.m. we push the bow of Desirée off of the Royal Newfoundland Yacht Club dock. No one is around to wave good bye. Secretly, I am thankful for this.

I surprise myself in feeling… nothing. As if we are departing for another day trip. I’m not necessarily thrilled. My tummy isn’t churning. I do not feel fear. I oddly don’t feel much.

Five months of anticipation and I have exhausted myself of every emotion.

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Three icebergs float the horizon and appear contradictory to the day’s temperatures. I check the water temp; its one degree above freezing. They shine shockingly white. Each one appears and disappears into the swells. They are a kind reminder to keep alert. We have 300 miles until exiting the ice limit.

I don’t notice when the coastline disappears. When I finally register that I won’t be seeing land for weeks it doesn’t bother me. I’m almost relieved. We are simply along for the ride now. I see the next iceberg on the horizon, adjust the main and the genoa, and tweak Penny (Hydrovane) the slightest bit to steer straight for it.

It takes three hours to reach the little berg on the horizon. We sail questionably close to its storybook features. It’s not little anymore. Utopian in its figure.

Classic in its coloring. Inviting in the way you envision having a picnic on its timeless slopes. I want to stay and explore. I want to peer under the sea to understand its entirety. At the same time it’s making me nervous. Its beauty intimidating, the kind that makes an entire room go quiet. I feel privileged to be in its presence. We watch it undulate in and out of the sea as long as we possibly can.

Only two out of seventeen days there was sunshine. The rest was overcast and rain.

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Crossing an Ocean for the First Time A humpback whale breaches 1/4 mile to port. It launches from the sea dropping my jaw and lifting my arm to point. My reaction startles Luke as he reckons something is wrong, but he sees it before crash landing the surface. Its size immeasurable. Its power inconceivable.

Its brief moment on stage striking.

I can’t add up the glories of day one, and I feel a very subtle shift in my gut. I know how these things tend to balance out. As my first graveyard shift begins the subtle shift takes a sharp turn. Upwards. Outwards. Stuck in between the back of my throat, threatening to come out of my nostrils. I am sick. Again. Again. And again. I put water in. It comes back up. I put a cracker in. It comes back up. Ginger ale. Comes back up. What does it want, quarters? I prevent myself from trying this. Someone has hooked up a macerator pump to my mouth and is pressing the button. Over four hours I drain my body of everything that is not securely attached to the walls of my stomach. I move onto dry heaving and count down the minutes till I can wake Luke up.

Good morning Luke. Want a kiss? Your turn.

On the 4th of July, I put on my favorite outfit and celebrated in the middle of the ocean on my watch all by myself. It was the best four hours I’ve ever had.

Becalmed

I’ve taken the days, and I’ve taken the nights, put them in a blender and hold down the “whip” button. I don’t remember their individual flavors, but together they taste of monotony in four-hour increments, with the occasional leftover chunk that requires chewing – or should I say, work.

The ocean is a very odd place.

There is a simplistic pattern in sailing the ocean. It brings you right down to basic survival needs. Safety.

Rest. Water. Food. That’s it. There is not much thinking beyond these four needs. Every four hours we go through the motion.

We are a third of the way across the Atlantic Ocean.

Tonight is blacker than a cave with no exit. No moon. No stars. Completely becalmed. It wasn’t long ago I imagined a situation like this – how nice it must be to sit in a rocking chair in the vastness of an ocean, far from your living room. To go nowhere. To ponder life afloat the deep salt sea. To rest atop a mile of water that somehow sticks to the earth. I thought this could very well be some kind of moving experience in which I would learn something important about myself, about life, about the sea, maybe find some answers in the silence to questions I didn’t even know I had – I don’t know. Here I am, the human in this so-called-beautiful situation I imagined, feeling far from peaceful and meditative. I am frustrated.

Fiercely frustrated.

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The sails flap like curtains hanging in the back yard.

Air rolls through the canvas one end to the next snapping the mainsail taut. It goes silent while the air rolls off the edges and the canvas becomes a loose T-shirt hung upon an anxious body. A swell lifts the starboard side and snakes underneath the hull until we rock back to port to compensate. All contents aboard shift with any spare space. Our first gale passed nearly 24 hours ago and we sailed swiftly downwind with just the staysail, Desirée perfectly balanced in 38 knots of wind. But the leftover swells… mmm… they are still here.

Roll. Snap. Silence. Rock. Shift. Repeat.

The hangers in the closet. The dishes in the cupboard.

The cups in their shelves. The Binoculars hanging from the lamp. The sour milk in the ice box. The fruit in the basket. The water in the tanks. The insides of my tummy.

The weight of my body. The brain in my head.

Swing. Smash. Silence. Slosh. Shift. Repeat.

You know you are becalmed when you start taking selfies.

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A T L A N T I C C R O S S I N G Phosphorescence

Mid-Atlantic sunrise and coffee. What I looked forward to the most: flying downwind under our Hyde Sails spinnaker.

Luke takes his first saltwater shower once we made it through the Labrador current. Water temp 50 degrees.

Luke wakes me at an unknown time. “Jess. Jess…

Jess. Quickly.” Off-put by being woken, I receive his voice as something urgent, but not categorized emergency. I can tell he wants me to move faster but I don’t understand why. Rain falls softly, and arctic as it meets the skin. I crawl out the companionway and crouch in the cockpit holding my knees tight, protecting myself from the swelling shivers rising from my bare feet.

“What?” I ask.

A remarkable streak of neon blue coils Desirée. I shift around my crouched torso on my tippy toes and follow the glow as it waltzes about. I am mystified.

The light dives down and dims with depth. It ascends towards the surface and sets off fireworks. Aurora Borealis of the sea. Fantasia on the big screen. Mind blowing magic tricks. Drunken neon lights. Kids playing with sparklers. Contrails of phosphorescence.

Humble mammals soaring through plankton. Dolphins and algae on fire. I could go on… and on. Three minutes is all we get. Jaws dropped. This is the greatest performance we have ever seen. We fixate on the surface until the curtains close. I thank him for waking me, crawl back into the bunk and drift asleep.

When I wake for my shift I am unsure if this was reality. It was the kind of magic you only read about in books. In fact I have read it in a book and thought to myself how lucky one must be to be an eye-witness.

To be the audience. The kind of spectacular you don’t dare to take your eyes off of to reach for your camera.

The kind of closeness with nature only documented in National Geographic. The kind of awesome that makes you feel all the decisions you’ve made up to that point – have been the right ones. I love surprises.

Blue

Dolphins joined us roughly every other day for the entire crossing.

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We survived iceberg alley. Sailed through the Labrador current. Into and out of our first gale with the second one on the way. Have stayed relatively close to an ideal course. I expected the amount of birds to lessen as the ocean widens between continents. They are still with us. Or we are with them. Aside from them, and us, there is still nothing around. Just blue.

Our watches become less diligent. Watching less, doing more. Luke has read every book on the shelf. I am still on my first. I stare westwards, backwards, analyzing the swells more often than looking ahead. I write essays and letters instead of looking at the GPS. I review the clouds. I study Luke. I listen to Desirée. There is nothing

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Crossing an Ocean for the First Time to see outside our own little world. Nothing to interrupt our path. Just blue.

For a moment I understand the legendary Moitessier, who created his own world at sea and was never able to return to the one he left.

We’ve been on the same tack for four days. Haven’t seen a ship for five days. Haven’t spoken to a soul for seven days. Minute adjustments to sails are part of each shift. Luke is far more proactive than I when it comes to sail changes, shaking out reefs, and spinnakers. He is a sailmaker, a racer, and complete madman after all. He always works to go faster, and he always figures out a way to adjust the sails to achieve an extra decimal of a knot. To him, that decimal is incredibly satisfying. I seek desperately to find an ambition to do the same. I just don’t have it in me, I have found my energy again however, my appetite, and every once in a while my motivation. It’s overcast. The air is viscous with dew and I am hanging everything out to dry purely so that the cabin has more space to breath. I have to talk myself through every task before I am able to make myself do it. Give myself a motivational speech to change my underwear. Read “Dove” to go shake a reef out. Listen to Tony Robbins to change the propane tank.

I am compelled by the desperate race to get to the other side. How wildly we want to make landfall. How there is a constant desire to go faster in a vehicle in which, we are fully aware, is one of the slowest ways to travel the globe. But for what? Why do we want to get there so bad?

When we make it, being back here in the middle of the ocean is all we are going to dream. How is it possible to want so badly for something to be over and for it to never ever end all at once? I don’t get it.

I couldn’t tell you my expectations for being 1000 miles away from land in either direction. In a small boat. With my celebrity crush. At any given moment I can feel invincible. Legendary. Within hours feel weak.

Powerless. A chicken in a slaughter house. An eternal sense of accomplishment and a constant state of physical discomfort. It’s a confusing mental state that I look forward to dwelling on in retrospect. It’s often time that helps us make sense of things. Right now, there is no sense. Just action and reaction.

I detect I will come home slightly barbaric, holding secrets not worthy of sharing. Quiet and at peace.

Waiting for the day I get to come back to sea. Where everything is just blue.

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Hanging out laundry after a fresh rain water rinse.

Our Hydro-vane, “Penny,” steered us 90% of our crossing. It was the best investment we made for this trip.

Sleet and rain…. sleet and rain… why did we take the northern route again?

Cruising Outpost 41 4/30/18 3:54 PM

t u n o c o C The n u R k Mil

Many people choosing to set off and sail full time do so with a big dream in mind, a goal that captured the imagination to the extent that it urged them on to cut the docklines. And countless of us out cruising share the same ambition: to tackle the South PaciďŹ c Ocean.

Sailing the South PaciďŹ c has the reputation of being that much further, wilder, more exotic and more remote than any previous boating a lot of us have done closer to home. From the shores of the Americas to reaching harbour in New Zealand or Australia some 7,000 miles later, the clock is ticking to explore the numerous islands 42 Cruising Outpost

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The Cruise That Has Launched More Dreams O f Wo r l d C r u i s i n g T h a n A n y O t h e r !

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The Coconut Milk Run sprinkled across this vast expanse of blue before the cyclone season comes round again. That’s a lot of water to cover in around nine months of travel and the pressure to keep moving on can make it feel like a watery conveyor belt. Those choosing to spend more than one season of their cruising adventures in this sea and dedicating several years to sailing here can be more leisurely about their passage-making, but will still need to be mindful of where to tuck into once the tropical storms start up.

This is an ocean that will test your skills in selfsufficiency as, in all likelihood, your nearest port for any major repairs or parts needed will be several weeks’ travel away. Any boat crossing from the Pacific Coast of the Americas all the way through to Australasia should be pushing off for the crossing in great shape, thoroughly well maintained, rigorously checked and carrying spares and extras of as many things as possible. This is not only in case of any repairs to damage necessary en route, but in order to allow yourself the possibility of plans changing without being limited by your stores on board.

It’s an ocean that may well require that you sail with additional crew as some of these distances are far greater and may take much longer than any the boat or her crew have previously attempted. That means that camaraderie is an integral part of a Pacific journey. It also holds some special milestones to be acknowledged. An equatorial crossing and passing the international date line may both occur on the way and it’s important to celebrate the sailing achievements that such records signify.

The reliable consistency in strength and direction of the trade winds has meant that there are certain well-trodden routes from east to west that have been traversed by sailors for several generations. Choosing the right time of year to depart is critical to a smooth passage and most time their trip to allow for their arrival in French Polynesia once cyclone season has finished.

Watching the weather to pick your window for leaving is only one element of the strategy, as a 3,000-mile trip from pushing off until making landfall in French Polynesia means taking on a good three or four weeks at sea. Making effective use of GRIB files, weathergrams, weatherfaxes, SSB radio forecasts and Pacific rally radio nets is an art form in itself. It requires a certain amount of pre-departure practice to become adept at

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The Cruise That

analyzing and interpreting this data to best serve you and influence your sail plan.

You’ll also be tangling with the ITCZ, most commonly referred to as the doldrums. What you will experience here may be a far cry from its sailing legend as being an area where you will most likely be becalmed. The International Tropical Convergence Zone is the area lying roughly over the equator where the prevailing weather systems of the northern and southern hemisphere converge. Yes, the winds may be light and the sea still in this zone, but the benign conditions in these latitudes are sharply contrasted with the short, violent squalls that you are likely to experience here too. The wind plays a fickle game of too much or too little

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H

Has Launched More Dreams O f Wo r l d C r u i s i n g T h a n A n y O t h e r !

which inevitably makes it hard going to make progress getting away from this band of weather disturbance. Though many boats may choose to loll in the slack wind, the crew even taking turns to enjoy a tentative mid-ocean dip, there are many more who cut their losses and crank on the engine in order to speed their way out of the confusion and into the steady southeast trade winds which will kick in at about 2° south.

A departure from Panama affords you the opportunity of visiting the Galapagos Islands. If taking this route then you’ll enter the ITCZ early on in the voyage, along the 500-mile stretch between leaving Panama and arriving in the Galapagos. If attempting this early enough in the sailing season, around January or February, you could even further detour your Pacific exploration by cruising another 2,000 miles on a beam reach to take in Easter Island on the way, then the relatively unknown little pit-stops of Pitcairn Island and the Gambiers before arriving in French Polynesia once their cyclone season has ended in April. Or, if sailing out from further south in South America you can even take in the Juan Fernandez Islands on the way to Easter Island.

All these interesting breaks in the journey can make for a welcome respite from a long voyage and are opportunities to experience truly unique wildlife and culture. But, as they are really only small dots in the ocean, fresh produce and provisions

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The Coconut Milk Run

The Cruise That come at a high price, so any pause here will eat into your stocks onboard. A yacht travelling along these routes south of the equator will possibly enter French Polynesia in the Gambier Islands, traverse the southern atolls of the infamous Tuamotu Archipelago and then make for the Society islands, skipping the Marquesas altogether.

Leaving from the western United States, Mexico or elsewhere in Central America will mean that your first landfall will be the Marquesas Islands in French Polynesia, after three or four continuous weeks at sea.

This non-stop route works best for later departures, leaving the Pacific Coast in March or April. The ITCZ will most likely be experienced roughly two-thirds of the way into this passage and, as always, the best strategy for negotiating it as swiftly as possible is to try to cut right across it at 90°. This more northerly itinerary across the Pacific results in a longer unbroken passage, which can be a challenge for many people and their boats. However, only this path and the one directly from the Galapagos allow the crew to visit the Marquesas, as the routes via Easter Island, Pitcairn and the Gambiers are too far south to take them in. Also, many would argue that the steep, verdant, emerald green peaks of these volcanic islands are a considerable part of the appeal of sailing the South Pacific.

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Has Launched More Dreams O f Wo r l d C r u i s i n g T h a n A n y O t h e r !

Your first Pacific landfall, wherever it may be, will also introduce you to an altogether different league of anchoring techniques. Perhaps you’re used to dropping your hook in 5-10 metre depths with skill and ease. Great. But out here, the steep peaks rising from the bottom of the ocean signify one thing: deep water. It isn’t at all unusual to find yourself needing to anchor in more than 20 metres of water out here. Lots of chain, additional kedge anchors and a backup plan if the worst should happen are a must. You’ll encounter narrow harbours where you carefully pick your way through the fleet in order to find the last remaining free spot and need to deploy a stern anchor accurately and deftly. Or you may have a nail-biting obstacle course to navigate between bommies in order to ensure your ground tackle is safely secured into a

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sandy spot, and that your chain won’t get wrapped around or jammed in any coral. Each year’s Pacific Puddle Jump fleet swaps stories of badly maintained mooring balls or last minute scrambles to release or even cut an anchor chain when boats suddenly drag.

Arrival in the Marquesas signals the end of the longest nonstop stretch of sailing that you will encounter on the Coconut Milk Run, yet it’s far from a hop to the next group of islands. The Tuamotu archipelago is another week’s passage away. These historically treacherous atolls have really, only very recently, been made easily navigable for us recreational boaters thanks to the invention and widespread availability of accurate GPS. However, the strong tides encountered in the reef passes, lagoons littered with coral heads, and incomplete charting in some areas, still make this island chain a very real test of sailing skill. Taking your time and keeping a

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The Coconut Milk Run

The Cruise That scrupulous bow watch pays dividends here. It’s humbling to remember the wisdom of sailing policies that have worked for thousands of years and to try to plan an arrival in the Tuamotus or a passage between its atolls to coincide with a full moon. However, from the Marquesas onwards you should, hopefully, be experiencing steady trade winds of a consistent 15 to 20 knots so that getting to the Tuamotu group is relatively straightforward. And, despite the cautions to be noted as part of your cruising approach, the islands of this group are some of the most unspoilt that you can ever expect to encounter in your sailing career. They make for a wonderful marine playground with tranquil lagoons rimmed by colourful reef. Any snorkeling, diving and wildlife enthusiasts on board will love the opportunities to swim and frolic as the water is astoundingly clear.

If you can manage to tear yourself away and move on westwards, then the Society Islands are just 200 miles, only a couple of days’ sail away. Tahiti will probably be the first stop and, in comparison to the rather skimpy availability and high prices of fresh produce and groceries in the Tuamotus, this seems like the promised land. Papeete is a bustling metropolis by Pacific standards and the opportunity to restock, to communicate more easily with family back home or even have visitors fly in feels luxurious. There are marinas and

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Has Launched More Dreams O f Wo r l d C r u i s i n g T h a n A n y O t h e r ! supermarkets here, you can have parts sent in if necessary, and wifi is no longer a painfully slow satellite link. Also, you’ll more than likely stumble across every other cruiser that you may know attempting the Pacific crossing that year, your Milk Run buddies, as it makes for a natural pause along the conveyor belt.

Exploring the other islands in the Society group feels easy and luxurious compared to the navigational challenges and tide timings of the Tuamotus.

Passage from one island to the next is straightforward and you will most likely feel very familiar by now with entering reef passes into sheltered lagoons.

These islands are the stuff of South Pacific fantasy and once you’ve swum with the stingrays at Moorea, gazed at the sunset from Huahine’s beaches and lounged on the white sand of Bora Bora, you should be feeling justly rewarded for all the hard work and diligent seamanship that it took you to get here. The relaxed hops from one island to the next in the Societies should be savoured as, from this point on, you’ll either be pushing out for the Cooks, which are another week-long sail and all quite far apart, or perhaps looping back towards Hawaii. This second option is the one chosen by many wishing to spend more than one season in the South Pacific and needing a good spot to spend the winter.

Setting out from Bora Bora towards the Cooks is, once again, all about timing. By this point the trade winds will seem like old friends, but you’ll most likely have become accustomed to the passing cold fronts which bring sudden rain and unwelcome westerlies. The best tactic for launching off again into the big blue is to simply take your time and choose your window wisely. We know several boats that had been hoping to make for American Samoa, but the winds forced them to opt for the more favourable passage

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southwards and they visited the Cook Islands instead.

This flexibility proves invaluable in these waters as any stubbornness to stick to schedule or to a pre-determined route may result in your battling 40- or 50-knot winds, making no headway and eventually having to retreat to the easier option anyway. Plus, any passage west of the Cooks is likely to introduce you to the SPCZ, the South Pacific Convergence Zone. This makes for abrupt squally weather, short stormy bursts and rapid changes of wind. When active, it brings heavy rains and the most sensible way to tolerate it is to stay put, collect the abundant fresh rainwater, and accept that you’ll get underway only once it passes.

From Rarotonga, Aitutaki or Palmerston Islands, the most visited by yachts in the Cooks, you can choose whether to make straight for the islands of the Kingdom of Tonga, or to have an unusual respite at either Beveridge Reef or Niue. Beveridge is a totally submerged atoll, with only a small stretch of sand visible at low tide.

Nevertheless, yachts can still stop and anchor within the lagoon, experiencing some shelter from the swell of the surrounding ocean.

The island country of Niue, by contrast, is a raised coral atoll. There is only one option for yachts wishing to stop here which is the mooring field at Alofi. Both Niue and Beveridge reef are only possible stopping points if the weather conditions are favourable; the reef provides no shelter in strong winds and Alofi is not suitable if a front comes through and the wind clocks round to westerlies.

However, both provide rare scenery, unlike any your boating life will take you to anywhere else in the world.

The Vava’u and Ha’apai groups of Tonga are some of the most pleasurable cruising grounds you can find

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The Coconut Milk Run

The Cruise That with pristine beaches, healthy corals and enjoyable, easy snorkeling to be done. The many small islands within these two groups allow for fun day-sails and laid-back discovery as you can potter about in these waters. One huge draw to this marine playground is the annual migration of humpback whales and there are many opportunities to go and see them in their breeding grounds. You may find that you don’t even need to seek them out because a quick flurry of activity on the VHF is commonplace as the boats lying at anchor alert one another to the sudden arrival of these majestic creatures into their anchorage. Remember to be respectful to the whales if you encounter one when underway; slowing your engine and not cutting across their path.

If attempting the South Pacific in one season, then by this point in the Coconut Milk Run you’ll probably be feeling pushed for time. It’s normally at Niue or Tonga that plans suddenly change as the pressure of the upcoming cyclone season dictates whether you linger somewhere or leave the tropics and the storm belt entirely. The passage to New Zealand is much the same whether one leaves from Niue, Tonga or Fiji. If wanting to visit Vanuatu or New Caledonia, then the logical stopping point of the voyage is in Australia.

Having said that, no one ever chose to travel by sailboat if they needed to go

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Has Launched More Dreams O f Wo r l d C r u i s i n g T h a n A n y O t h e r ! quickly! So, if not feeling the pressure of time, the Republic of Fiji boasts 330 islands to dawdle in. The two largest ones of Viti Levu and Vanua Levu, with their humming towns and bustling markets, are fringed by tiny, isolated anchorages and uninhabited islets, affording you a mixture of vibrant street life and idyllic seclusion as the mood takes you. The warmth, generosity and resilience of the people is so apparent in Fiji. Much like the Ni-Vanuatu recovering from the devastation of cyclone Pam in 2015, the Fijians are still picking themselves up after being pounded by cyclone Winston early in 2016, and the wreckage is clearly visible.

Yet, lying as they do in the tropical storm belt, these island nations share in an admirable spirit of unwavering resilience.

With the help of the French, Australian and New Zealand aid, they re-build their country once more.

Five hundred miles to the west and one year ahead of Fiji in their post-cyclone restoration, Vanuatu has a fascinating combination of French, Portuguese and English colonial history. Cruising the archipelago you’ll be struck by it’s volcanic peaks, crystal waters and rugged hilly interiors.

There are villages still keeping the traditional customs of dancing and ceremonies alive as far more than a mere show put on for tourists. The Ni-Vanuatu are proud of their heritage and will gladly teach visitors about the meaning of their myriad rituals.

Finally, the last stop on the run, New Caledonia, lies 250 miles on from Vanuatu and 750 miles east of Australia. It’s part of the French overseas territory and it’s mainland of Grand Terre has a mountainous spine, separating the lush green vegetation on the east from the sandy plains of the west. The Loyalty Islands are

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sprinkled to the east of this, and are home to coral caves, steep cliffs, dense rainforest and empty beaches. They are still ruled by chiefs and yachtsmen visiting these islands will soon be approached by a spokesman of the chiefdom and welcomed to introduce themselves.

Months later, your head reeling with a huge array of different island landscapes and cultures, not to mention the bulging pocket full of boat cards that you will have collected en route from your other Coconut Milk runners, you’ll most probably be tying up the docklines in northern New Zealand or somewhere along the Queensland or New South Wales coast of Australia. Perhaps you rushed through the Pacific too quickly and are already making plans for next season’s return. Or maybe you’ve sailed round circuit after circuit here as it’s easy to see how one could lose years cruising these many different islands and countries, although “losing years” is definitely not the right terminology.

The big blue that is a South Pacific sail is understandably the pinnacle of many boaters’ cruising ambitions. The sheer achievement of navigating across this ocean, rising to the huge variety of challenges that each of these environments pose, is no small feat. All those who log the 7,000 miles from the Americas to Australia should never think of phrases such as the ‘puddle jump’ as diminishing from their triumph of completing it. Sure, your boat may now need some care and maintenance in the world-class yachting centres that both countries have to offer. However, she was hopefully well-found enough and well-stocked enough to give you a comfortable and safe journey through. And, I suspect, once well rested and reprovisioned, the call of the wind will lure you back out there to tackle the ocean once more.

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5/4/18 2:14 PM

The Bay of All the Saints An Excellent Brazilian Port for Cruisers

By Ekaterina Golovina

After half a year sailing on board the 37-foot ketch Vagabond, we have finally arrived to the Brazilian state of Bahia. Here we’ll spend the next four months and thoroughly explore the seldom-visited corners of the Bay of All the Saints.

Don’t get excited if a Brazilian recommends you go to Caixa Prego. Most likely he’s not giving you a valuable tourist tip. This small village in the southern part of Itaparica Island has become a metaphor for insignificant and remote places, in contrast to the fame of Itaparica itself as a tourist paradise. On board Vagabond, I and my friend Cristiano are going to check both.

We sail northwest through the crowded Todos Os Santos Bay, the second biggest in Brazil after Guanabara in Rio. Numerous tourist boats are all around the bay – an eternal party going on aboard them. Private motor boats cross our course at full speed, causing a wave all the way down to Salvador.

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Fifteen miles away from Bahia Marina (Salvador’s main yacht club) we leave all of them behind. We round Itaparica’s cape with the Fort of São Lourenço perched on it and enter the Jaguaripe River that runs between the island and the continent.

Bip, bip, bip! – the sounder starts up. Depth is dropping rapidly: 5m, 4m, 3m... From now on it will not be deeper than that. With our 1.8m draft we have to be alert. The river is very shallow all the way and it’s necessary to know the precise route. The book “Roteiro Nautico do Litoral da Bahia” was of real help to us.

For the night we anchor next to a deserted beach.

The only inhabitants of this tiny piece of land are crabs, and we cause some panic in their number, arriving with a bottle of champagne after dawn.

The next day, to reach Caixa Prego we have to wait for low tide. Otherwise, the electric lines and the bridge that connect the continent and the island become obstacles.

This route is marked on local maps as “red” and the

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Morro de San Paolo

Fishermen of Maragojipe

Morro de San Paolo

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description warns to check the time of tides and the height of your mast to make sure it allows you to pass under the lines. We made it fine with our 11 meters.

Caixa Prego turned out to be a little resort on the tip of Itaparica, with a beach and mangrove forest, some pousadas (Portuguese name for hotels/hostels) and restaurants, but way calmer than the northern tip of the island. There’s a pier, as ferries cruise between the village and Salvador. It’s a very cozy and picturesque place.

From Caixa Prego it’s possible to navigate to the ocean, but the depths are so shallow that we would not risk it without an experienced local skipper on board.

So, we decide to head to the town of Jaguaripe – a calm countryside place with an old church.

Everyone knows that pink dolphins live in the Amazon. But we heard that in the river Paraguaçu we might find some too, if luck keeps us company.

From the north tip of the Itaparica Island we enter the estuary of the river. Paraguaçu crosses the whole Bahia state, taking its origins in the hills of the Chapada Diamantina National Park.

The first night we anchor in the estuary. Locals call this place Tubarão, “a shark” in Portuguese. Probably, millions of years ago these predators inhabited this bay.

No sharks today though, and the place is charming; cliffs come close to the water leaving a narrow strip of white sand to us. A tiny village, just several houses, sits on the cape. By the early evening we haven’t met a soul here. The sunset reminds me of those during our Atlantic crossing, when the sky was overwhelmed by fire. Here though, an oil platform in the river ruins the idyllic landscape…

The next morning we enter the Paraguaçu River in the direction of Maragojipe Town. Every year around 300 boats participate in the regatta between Aratu and Maragojipe. But today, only saveiros follow the same course. Saveiros are traditional wooden boats of the Brazilian north. There are several types of rigging of saveiros, gaff and square lateen. These small boats with little draft can carry a lot of cargo and the tradition of shipbuilding was passed from father to son for centuries.

With passing time there are less of them, but in rustic Maragojipe, fishermen still use them for their craft.

The first settlement under the name Maragojipe appeared here in the mid-17th century. Before that these lands were inhabited by Marag-gyp, “warriors of invisible arms,” a semi-nomadic tribe. Some of them never surrendered to the Portuguese when they arrived in Brazil. Today it’s a calm countryside town with a church and a market. Neighbors enjoy the last beams of the evening sun in an unhurried WWW.CRUISINGOUTPOST.COM

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Maragojipe

Ilha dos Frades

Maragojipe

Morro de San Paolo

Morro de San Paolo

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Morro de San Paolo

Estuary of Paraguacu River

Estuary of the Paraguacu River conversation. As soon as dusk falls they go to bed – work on the fields starts early.

At this point we haven’t found any pink dolphins. Is it true about dolphins at all? On the pier we interrogate some late-evening fishermen. They reply, “It used to be. But we haven’t seen them for a long time…”

The 40m-high lighthouse and thick walls of the old Portuguese fort welcome those who come to the Tinharé Island from the north. As we round it from the ocean side, the amount of people on the coast rapidly increases. These beaches attract tourists from all over Brazil to the car-free village of Morro de San Paolo.

Saveiros - traditional boats

Estuary of Paraguacu River

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In summer (from December to March) Morro de Sao Paolo is overcrowded. People come to sunbathe and have fun. Parties start after darkness, when children are taken to numerous pousadas (hotels) lined up along the coast, and clubs open their doors. When the tide goes out, the beach turns into a dance floor too. Young people love Morro, where DJs play electronic music. The closest big city, Salvador, conservatively prefers traditional dancing.

We anchor in the bay of the second beach. Tents on the beach sell the local delicacy, pastel, a pastry with various fillings from palm hearts to carne-do-sol (dried meat). We take a short walk along the crowded coastline and leave.

As many sailors do, we love to discover places less visited. We enjoy our space and companionship of nature. Anchorages close to Morro de Sao Paolo are not sheltered. Every night of our four-days-long stay around the island, we anchored at Rio das Almas, the River of the Souls, that separates Tinhare from the continent. We anchor on a calm river-side of the estuary. But just five minutes walk away is the mighty ocean tide. Tiny crabs are the only company we have here, while the party is in full play on Brazilian Ibiza.

Paraguacu

Saveiros - traditional boats

stay connected

WHEREVER YOU GO

www.mazu-marine.com GLOBAL COVERAGE

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Tales of a Happy Dinghy The dinghy is one of the sailor’s most important tools.

Whether it’s rigid, inflatable, big, small, fast, or slow – a dinghy is a vessel’s only connection to land when not tied to the dock. Spending so much time in the dinghy sure wears it out quick; the dinghy on Lady Carolina went from practically new to basically derelict in the span of just five years. Breathless – the nickname our perpetually-leaking inflatable Caribe adopted as its condition continually deteriorated – lived a happy life full of adventure...

• The time we hit a sand bank while on a full plane and, instead of the outboard getting stuck in the sand, the engine tilted upwards and the skiff skimmed/jumped over the top of the bank to deep water on the other side. All of this was quite a surprise to all passengers on board.

• The day the engine failed on our sailboat, Lady Carolina, and the dinghy pushed our baby away from the evil, menacing reef.

• You know those waves surfers only dream of riding featured in Hawaiian tourist magazines and computer screensavers?

Well, imagine a dinghy in one of those waves. Now imagine people in that dinghy wanting to stay upright. Good times…

• The hundreds of times you have taken us fishing were, honestly, fishing was a very bad idea.

• Oh Breathless, do you remember us bashing through the chop during a 40-knot windstorm in the American Samoa Harbour so that my brother and I could go to McDonald’s? I sure do; we hit one wave so hard that my face was whipped into the pontoon in front of me. I thought I broke my nose.

• All the nights we spent together using the oars to stay off the crashing reef while everybody else grabbed delicious lobsters off the sea floor.

•Do you remember when we filled you up with 500 cans of beer to bring to Lady Carolina at anchor?

Imagine if one of the pontoons had popped – chaos.

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By: Kyle Danielewicz Illustration by Rich “Magic” Marker

• You were a godsend when our watermaker failed.

I remember how, whenever we were running low on water, I would borrow all the water cans I could from all the boats in the anchorage. Then, together, you and I would carry water back and forth between the water tap on shore and the boat. It took almost a year for the watermaker to be fixed – wasn’t that horrible?

• I remember how scared I was when one day, I returned to the beach where I’d left you while doing some errands and, instead of you being there waiting for me, you were gone! Turns out some teenagers had taken you for a little joy ride – but not before they discovered the engine wouldn’t start! I found you a few miles down the beach, abandoned by the thieves.

• Do you remember going out at 6:00AM to rescue that sailor who was stranded off the island of Nuku Hiva? That was the most scared I’ve ever been in a dinghy. We never should have been out in that weather.

• Wasn’t it fun when I jury-rigged a broomstick into a mast and attached a windscoop to push us downwind?

The only issue was getting back to Lady Carolina…

• We were always so good at playing bumperboats at the busy dinghy docks. Where there was no space for anybody else to park a dinghy, we made our own space.

Our Breathless is far from what she used to be – deflated pontoons and a destroyed engine are all that remains of our marine steed. In this cold Vancouver Island water, I would never be caught dead riding Breathless farther than 50 feet offshore for fear of pontoon seams ripping or a major engine fire. I’m not actually sure what to do with you – most people think you’re a wreck but, to me, you hold so many great memories. I dread the day I must throw you in the garbage.

You will be remembered, Breathless. Thanks for keeping us safe all those years.

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5/4/18 10:20 AM

Keeping It

Real In

Cuba

By Yvonne Palkowski

I pull my bike over onto a narrow stretch of golden sand dotted with scruffy palm trees and construction debris. It’s not exactly a postcard view, but it’s the closest thing to a beach that I can find near Marina Hemingway in Havana, the capital city of Cuba, the only communist outpost in the western world.

There’s a local man spearfishing in the shallows.

“Pescado?” I say, mining my limited Spanish. “Si,” he says, showing off his modest catch. We sit on the beach for a while making small talk in few words and exaggerated gestures. His name is José and he’s 38 years old, a fisherman by trade.

He asks if this is my first time in Cuba and I shake my head. The Caribbean island has long been a favorite winter getaway for Canadians like me, lured by cheap holiday packages selling an intoxicating mix of unlimited sun, rum, and some of the best live music you’ll hear in your life.

But in my half-dozen previous visits, I’ve only ever stayed at all-inclusive resorts—manicured playgrounds for tipsy, sunburned foreigners—and I longed to see the ‘real’ Cuba. So when the opportunity arises to help move Jolly Good, my uncle’s Gulfstar 47 Sailmaster from Havana to Varadero, 80 nautical miles to the east, I eagerly hop aboard. The short passage allows plenty of time for exploring the vibrant capital and the northern coast’s sleepy towns and beaches, like the one I find myself on now with my new friend, José.

It’s late morning and the sun is getting higher, so I buy a couple of cervezas to help cool us off. José reluctantly accepts one, then abruptly disappears into a ramshackle concrete house down the beach. Was it something I said?

Twenty minutes later, just as I’m guzzling the last of my beer, he’s back with his freshly cooked catch for us to share.

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Grilled white fish drizzled with lemon and fragrant green herbs, it’s by far the best meal I have in Cuba, which, to put it politely, isn’t known for its cuisine. And in a country where the average monthly salary is just $25 USD, I’m struck by his generosity.

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Beach at the western tip of the Varadero peninsula have my fins with me and he insists I use his only set. The chop and current are against us as we swim towards the reef about 200 meters offshore, kicking furiously through cerulean blue water cresting in small whitecaps. Along the way, he points out an octopus den, and tries unsuccessfully to wrest away its stubborn occupant. www.cruisingoutpost.com

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Around the reef José has set up fixed fishing nets, a nuisance to cruisers but this man’s livelihood. Together we laboriously empty the fraying nets of seaweed and the odd plastic bottle. Tired and empty-handed, we head back to shore as the orange sun falls towards the horizon. I gather my things to leave, and José presents me with some polished conch shells and a sand dollar. “Vuelve pronto,” he says, come back soon.

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Keeping It Real In Cuba “Bienvenidos a Jaimanitas,” says the yellow and red ceramic mural welcoming visitors to the charming seaside neighbourhood just east of Marina Hemingway. I’m at the general store for provisions and I can see what I want, but it’s behind the counter with the rest of the goods. There are about a dozen people standing around waiting to be served, but there is no discernible queue. “Ultimo?”

Someone asks, and I shrug.

A man carrying a guitar across his back approaches me and explains, in English, the uniquely Cuban system for governing lines, which are as long here as they are common. You join the queue by asking who the last person to arrive was. That person, the ultimo, identifies themselves and passes the responsibility onto you. As the ultimo it’s incumbent on you to hang around waiting for the next person to arrive, to whom you bestow the dubious honour. Then you’re free to come and go as you please—to seek shade, a seat, or gossip—knowing it will be your turn after the person from whom you assumed the ultimo is served. Since we all have time to kill at the general store, the man with the guitar starts playing, serenading us with Cuban folk songs. And suddenly, waiting in line isn’t so bad.

Back at Marina Hemingway I meet Andrew, an affable fellow Canadian who’s been sailing around Cuba for the past seven winters aboard his beloved 32-foot Beneteau, appropriately named My Dream. He had bad luck this season, ending up on

A local man in Varadero asked me to pose with him and before I knew it, I was up in the air!

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Friendly coconut vendor, Havana

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Cruising in a place you thought you knew the rocks near the shore in Havana.

I can’t help but laugh as he recounts the shortcomings of the Cuban Coast Guard… how his Mayday calls were met with silence, how he waited for two weeks for a tugboat to extricate My Dream from her nightmare predicament. Not so funny is how in the interim, everything of value, monetary or otherwise, was stripped from his boat. It’s a reminder that we’re in Castro’s ideological stronghold, that deprivation makes people behave in desperate ways.

A font of local knowledge, Andrew knows all the best restaurants and jazz clubs, and how to get around on the cheap. He shows me how to get to touristy Old Havana, 11 statute miles east of the marina, by taxi in particular.

Privately owned vehicles that double as cabs, these are the cars that Cuba is famous for: big, bold, classic American automobiles—picture a red, shiny Thunderbird, or a baby blue Plymouth —that have been meticulously maintained and creatively retrofitted. They get me to and from Old Havana in style, somehow suiting the capital’s crumbling yet majestic pastel-colored buildings.

I’ve not quite had my fill of architecture, Afro-Cuban beats and mojitos when the prevailing easterlies clock southward.

It’s time to cast off the dock lines and head to Varadero.

We check out of Marina Hemingway after more than the usual amount of rubber stamping and a boarding by Cuban

Making Mojitos in Havana

Butcher selling meat at Santa Marta Sunday market.

Vendor selling bread out of the trunk of an old American car, Santa Marta Sunday market

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Cruising Outpost 63

5/1/18 4:46 PM

Keeping It Real In Cuba Jolly Good docked at Marina Hemingway, Havana

officials on the lookout for stowaways (locals are not allowed into the marina, never mind onto a boat). For a reason that evades me still, the decision is made to go overnight. We sail past the glowing, yellow lights of Havana, the dome of the famous Capitolo building like a half-moon rising in the heavens. Small fishing vessels without lights, or with the wrong lights, create a shifting obstacle course. We would pull into the Bay of Mantanzas for the night, but anchoring between the ports of Havana and Varadero is strictly forbidden (there are many rules in Cuba), so we press on slowly through the darkness. I come on watch just as the sky lightens into a violet, pink dawn. We’ve arrived.

Quaint and quiet Marina Darsena is located at the western end of the Varadero peninsula, far away in character and distance from the luxury resorts the area is famous for. We’re greeted warmly by longtime marina resident Debbie from La Vida Dulce, who’s been keeping the liveaboard dream alive after the death of her husband some years ago. The unofficial dockmaster, she gives us a quick orientation complete with a handout and map, and I can see why she’s listed in the cruising guides as a resource. Debbie knows everyone and everything in the area, and when you pull up to her docks, she takes the time to get to know you, too.

Debbie Armstrong (L) of La Vida Dulce, a liveaboard at Marina Darsena and local expert on Varadero, and author 64 Cruising Outpost pg 60-65 Keeping it real in Cuba edited.indd 6

Dancers and live music at Café Europa, Havana www.cruisingoutpost.com

5/1/18 4:46 PM

Cruising in a place you thought you knew From Marina Darsena it’s a short bike ride to the beach—a seemingly endless, blindingly-whitesand beach, kissed by crystal-clear waters that deepen to aquamarine. It’s the weekend, and there’s a nice mix of locals and travellers soaking up the sun. The Cuban family beside us is already into their second bottle of rum. They liberally pour us some shots, emptying the bottle, and we get the next one. Someone lights up a Cuban cigar. The earthy aroma of tobacco and spice envelops me and for the first time in my life, I’m tempted to take up smoking. It’s time to get back to the boat.

On Sunday mornings there’s a market in a dusty square in Santa Marta, a small town just south of Marina Darsena. Farmers travel from villages hours away to sell produce, meats, and dry goods like rice and beans—the national side dish—weighed out on old-fashioned, manual scales. All things considered there’s a reasonable selection, although the squeamish might balk at the unrefrigerated meat and misshapen cucumbers. In the middle of it all is a stall selling beer so you can drink while you shop. The vendor asks where I’m from, and half-jokingly, if he can come with me when I go. “Lo siento,” I apologize, and sip my cerveza.

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pg 60-65 Keeping it real in Cuba edited.indd 7

I’m not ready to go home just yet, even though it’s almost time and I’m sick of rice and beans. I’ll miss the sun, the rum, the music… the red tape, not so much. But things are changing rapidly here, I’m told, and in a few years this could be a very different place, which is all the more reason to hoist your sails and point towards Cuba now. Just make sure your paperwork is in order.

Cruising Outpost 65

5/1/18 4:46 PM

What’s Out There?

For many years Hylas has set the standard for a well-found cruising yacht. The new Hylas H60, by German Frers, is the quintessential modern luxury cruising yacht. When considering short-handed or twoperson cruising, this is the vessel cruisers dream about!

The H60 is perfect for a couple looking to join the modern cruising lifestyle. Designed for light work when short-handed, its uncomplicated sail plan can be handled easily. The 105% jib is standard to make tacking and gybing easy and uneventful, and the sheets lead back to the helm stations with winch controls in easy reach. The in-mast furling makes setting, furling

66 Cruising Outpost

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Cruising Monohull

and reefing the main uncomplicated. In addition, the optional self-tacking staysail means less moving around deck in heavy weather.

Other great features are the integrated bow platform, which includes a receiving case for a self-launching anchor, and the telescoping passerelle at the transom.

These bring a new level of simple elegance to cruising.

Once again, the folks at Hylas have come thru with a winning design that I am sure cruisers will be drooling over for years to come. Want more info on this totally new design? Just go to www.hylasyachts.com and tell ‘em Bob sent ya!

www.cruisingoutpost.com

5/1/18 10:12 AM

Hylas H60

Get all the facts: www.hylasyachts.com HYLAS H60 LOA

59’ 2”

LWL

54’ 9”

Draft (shoal/deep) Beam Displacement Power Fuel Fresh Water WWW.CRUISINGOUTPOST.COM

pg 66-67 Hylas H60 edited.indd 3

6’ 6”/8’ 2” 17’ 3” 65,250 lbs.

150 hp Volvo 370 USG 39 USG

Cruising Outpost 67

5/1/18 10:12 AM

What’s Out There?

The new Bali 4.3 is built for the cruiser. It features a single cockpit/saloon with a flush deck free of bulkheads, which is accessed by an entirely retractable large, glass door on electric struts. A solid forward cockpit with dining and sunbathing area replaces the traditional trampoline, and there is a second sunbathing area on the coach roof. All of this provides oversized outdoor living space, which we all know is essential for cruising enjoyment.

Inside, larges retractable windows bring fresh air into the saloon, as well as allowing for

68 Cruising Outpost

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Cruising Catamaran

panoramic views. The portlights in the hulls ensure plenty of natural ventilation, and the galley forward allows the cook a view facing the sea! The galley is truly designed for the cruising lifestyle, as is the entire boat.

The Bali 4.3 has a 720 Ah battery bank and two 60-litre holding tanks. These are all controlled via a multiplexing touch screen with integrated tutorial.

If you’d like to get more information on the Bali 4.3 or its cruising companion, the 4.5, go to www.bali-catamarans.com.

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4/30/18 3:57 PM

Bali 4.3 Cruising Cat

Get all the facts:

http://www.bali-catamarans.com

Bali 4.3 LOA 43’ LWL 41’ 4” Draft (Board Up/Down) 3’ 11” Beam 23’ 35" Power two 40-50 hp Fuel 211 gal 211 gal Fresh Water 10.3 to 15.5 ton Displacement 12 persons Capacity www.cruisingoutpost.com

pg 68-69 Bali 4.3 edited.indd 3

Cruising Outpost 69

4/30/18 3:58 PM

What’s Out There?

The Greenline 48 flybridge is the flagship of the Greenline Yachts family. What sets this boat apart is the choice of twin diesel engines (Volvo Penta, Yanmar or Cummins), or a hybrid propulsion option.

Along with a solar roof, the Greenline 48 is equipped with everything that makes a boat great for cruising: bow thruster, windlass with remote, 110/220 volt power, large fuel tank, horn, radar mast, built-in fridge/freezer, and more.

The Greenline 48 flybridge features a one level living concept ensuring movement on the deck is

70 Cruising Outpost

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Power Cruiser

safe and effortless. This yacht offers three en-suite cabins and a saloon decorated in white, oyster and golden teak with cream melange upholstery.

The interior is always full of natural light. In the owner’s cabin, the beds can be moved to create single or double berths. You will find ample AC power which allows the use of normal home appliances on board, and the solar roof makes sure you never run out of power.

If you’d like to get the latest on this powercruiser it’s easy. Just go to www.greenlinehybrid.si.

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5/1/18 2:13 PM

Greenline 48

Get all the facts: www.greenlinehybrid.si Greenline 48 LOA 49.8m’ Draft 3.2m’ Beam 15.75m’ Power Diesel or Electric Hybrid Fuel 396 USG Fresh Water 174 USG Waste Water Tankage Two 21 USG Displacement 30,423 lbs www.cruisingoutpost.com

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Cruising Outpost 71

4/30/18 4:01 PM

EXCELLENCE Runs in the Family

pg 72 Passport Yachts.indd 1

5/3/18 12:14 PM

Rhythm At Sea:

Beating To The Galapagos

By Tom Dymond

It’s 875nm as the bird flies to the Galapagos from the Las Perlas archipelago, a charming group of islands in the Bay of Panama from which we set out on our maiden Pacific Ocean passage. The thing is though, Blue Eye is neither a bird, nor does she fly. Over the course of what was at times a gruelling 12-day sail, we tacked through 1010nm to reach Santa Cruz, continually thwarted by headwinds, counter currents and Blue Eye’s unfavourable disposition to sail upwind.

As such, this can probably rank amongst the most demanding legs yet of our circumnavigation, for which we thoroughly blamed our friend and third crew member, Will. He was the bringer of headwinds on his last trip with us as well, from Morocco to the Canary Islands. Will also, however, brought with him an enthusiasm for the galley and an infectious tendency to talk in accents not belonging to him.

This allowed for many an afternoon to be spent eating homemade cake and discussing our swelling bellies in an Aussie twang.

The following is a day-in-the-life account of this three-man crew’s potterings across the ocean in a tenmetre boat, from the high highs to the low lows. www.cruisingoutpost.com

pg 73-77 Beating to the Galapagos editedR.indd 1

5:00 A.M. I wake up damp. It’s not due to any accidents on my part other than leaving the hatch above my bunk slightly open for air. Air and stray waves. Nothing like a pouring of seawater in the face to wake you up, I muse to myself as I fumble around in the dark, replacing my sodden sheet with a nearby towel so I can fall back down and steal a few more fitful hours of sleep before I must be on deck.

9:00 A.M. James and Will are both up and in full swing of the chosen dialect for the day. “Eyyyy Tommy lad, ‘ow are ye doooing?” Scottish, it would appear.

James takes the watches from 3:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. and Will then does the next two hours. He’s our designated chef for the ocean passages, so in return for cooking breakfast, lunch and dinner he’ll do shorter stints, with James and I doing five hours at a time each. Waking up to pancakes ready for devouring makes me extremely content with this arrangement, and I get the kettle on the hob to make some more coffee for everyone.

Cruising Outpost 73

5/2/18 11:50 AM

Rhythm At Sea: 10:00 A.M. The next five hours I’m on watch whilst the boys rest.

As with most mornings, our course is more westerly than southerly due to the headwinds, but at least our speed is okay. I fetch the emails from our satphone as I finish my coffee, not failing to recognise the irony of such a normal event amongst such abnormal surroundings.

In the name of restoring the desired metropolitanmarine balance, I leave the emails to download and inspect the deck for what critters might have joined us overnight. In the Caribbean Sea, a morning without peeling a dried-up flying fish from the deck was a rarity, and on one spectacular and bizarre night along the coast of Colombia, a total of 92 flying fish graced our decks, which I know because I counted them as I tossed them over the following day.

The Pacific, however, offers a different dish: squid.

Often no longer than a few inches, they might be found anywhere: in the cockpit, as two that hopped in simultaneously opted for, on top of the sprayhood or, as we discovered when shaking a reef out, even in the mainsail. They’re quite fascinating in their own slimy way, but a tendency to ink everywhere upon boarding is inconvenient in the case of the cockpit, and downright rude in the case of the once-white mainsail.

Anyway, de-squidding complete, I find we have an email from Nick, James’s dad. Nick is an invaluable, shore-based aid for us, providing both current information we might not be able to access and his own advice from a wealth of sailing experience. James reads it out and, amongst course suggestions for the now and what conditions to expect later, he recommends hand steering. For all the advantages of our self-steering Aries device, he knows as well as we do that it can’t perform as well upwind as if we were to helm ourselves. So, plugging in to some music, I take the tiller and point Blue Eye harder on the wind, leaning her over and pushing us further south.

Gradually, the wind and sea build to Force 5 conditions. Downwind it would have been glorious.

Upwind, it was decidedly unpleasant. A glance at the ship’s compass reveals that we are now heeling over at 30 degrees, and the pitching and slamming of the boat increases as the swell creates another barrier between us and the Galapagos.

I peer down into the cabin to check on things and see a sleepless and bemused James looking over at Will

74 Cruising Outpost

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5/2/18 11:51 AM

Beating To The Galapagos from his bunk. Our resident chef is covered in flour, as is everything within a metre radius of him, and he’s using his elbows to prevent baking trays and a rolling pin from joining the fray of items sliding around on the floor below.

He looks up to the puzzled face of James, then to the furrowed brow of mine, and fretfully announces, “I’m making quiche for lunch.” Then, in the incumbent voice of a Scotsman, “This was a bad idea!”

3:00 P.M. Handing the watch over to James, it is a relief that the weather has subsided slightly. Heeling over for days and days is extremely wearing, with even standing up becoming both demanding and hazardous. We are all feeling the challenge of it physically and mentally.

I go forward to lie (or, perhaps more appropriately, roll) on my bunk. Entertaining myself with sudoku puzzles, stitching an Ecuador flag and listening to Elton John, I contemplate whether being at sea disposes me toward the activities of a pensioner, or if we had indeed been on the ocean not for six days but six decades. At sea, time loses the detail that it holds on land, falling instead into binaries: day and night, on-watch and off-watch, comfortable and uncomfortable.

Such contemplations are cut short by the sudden roar of the fishing reel fizzing loudly in the cockpit. At last.

I jump up to find James already battling the fish in, so I set about gathering all the necessary items: a gaff to get it on board, gloves to handle it, and a cheap bottle of gin to splash into the gills (the quickest and cleanest way). As the fish approaches we see it is long and shimmering blue. Hauling it up we find we have caught our first sailfish, a real beauty!

Enthusiasm for the catch dwindles on my part as I attempt to gut and scale it, and two buckets are lost to the sea in efforts to collect seawater for clearing up the crime scene that has taken place at the stern.

7:00 P.M. Joy for the catch returns as the chef serves up some tasty fish burgers, tangibly grateful for a simpler task than the challenge of lunch. He then relieves James who can retire to bed. I try to steal 40 winks before I’m back on watch.

10:00 P.M. Another five hours in the cockpit, another coffee.

Two days from the Galapagos we’ll run out of gas, rather unexpectedly, and the inability to boil the kettle will be the worst part as we get by on cereal and bean salad wraps.

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Cruising Outpost 75

5/2/18 11:51 AM

Rhythm At Sea:

For now though, I can enjoy the hot caffeine hit under a clear sky of stars, rather than the merciless mid-day sun. Polaris shines up and above to starboard, whilst the Southern Cross stands over to port. Not every night has been or will be so pleasant. The weather a few hundred miles either side of the equator is renowned for its fickle and unpredictable nature, and whilst in general the winds are light, squalls are quite common.

We’d experienced this first hand on our first eve of the passage. A large black cloud loomed ahead, flashes of white permeating through it every now and then. Lightning: a sailor’s nightmare. We tried to head east out of its path, but we soon found ourselves engulfed in torrential rain with the flashes and rumbles growing nearer. A lightning strike to a boat poses little threat to its crew, but it will almost certainly do a number on your electrics. So, we gathered laptops, phones, tablets, the satphone and anything else and put them in the oven, which would act as a Faraday Cage in the unfortunate event of a strike, much to the confusion of the chef in the morning.

76 Cruising Outpost pg 73-77 Beating to the Galapagos editedR.indd 4

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5/2/18 11:51 AM

Beating To The Galapagos Tonight though, is clear and the only threat of an airborne strike is posed by one of the seven or so birds that accompany me. Fortunately, they seem more interested in the rich supply of ocean food that I presume Blue Eye is kicking up as she cuts through the water. Indeed, our excitement of nearing the Galapagos Islands, famed for the wide variety of life it hosts, has been augmented by the marine life we’ve seen so far. Not only are birds, squid and fish ubiquitous, we’ve spotted dozens of sea turtles sunning their shells on the surface of the ocean, as well as the unmistakable exhalations of whales’ blowholes, and even the eerie figure of a large shark basking in the sunshine.

As we roll gently through the calm night, a loud bang sounds down below in the cabin. I poke my head down to find the boys half-awake, half-asleep, stuffing food back into the cupboards beneath their bunks that have been opening periodically under the weight of all the stores packed into them. They give up and fall unconscious as tins of spinach roll back and forth.

3:00 A.M. James comes up to the cockpit for his watch and I retire to bed, exhausted but happy in the knowledge we’re a day closer to the Galapagos and the Southern Hemisphere. A night before our arrival, just as the sun sets, we will attend a unique, three-person strong, equator party. Watching the GPS count down - 00.00.01’ N... 00.00.00’ ...

00.00.01’ S - we’ll celebrate with a tot of rum, some strange antics in hats and, less pleasantly in my eyes, homemade sauerkraut that has been fermenting for the last week. That’s a few days off though, and for now every day blurs into one. I remember to close the hatch and fall asleep immediately.

5:00 A.M. A wave sweeps over Blue Eye’s foredeck, and some water finds its way down into the cabin below, onto the face of the sleeping sailor. Nothing like a leaking vent to guide seawater onto your face in the morning, I muse to myself. And so starts another day at sea.

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80 Cruising Outpost pg 80-91 Lifestyle edited.indd 2

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4/30/18 4:04 PM

Lifestyle A Look at Why We Do What we Do

Ever wondered why people love the boating lifestyle? Well, here in the Lifestyle section folks from all over the world give an insight into what it’s really like out there.

If you have a photo you think tells a good tale, why not send it to us? We prefer you send a digital pic, in as high resolution as you can. Tell us who took the pic and where it was taken. We will probaby throw it into our “digital pile” and pull it out someday. We won’t send you any money, but you will be famous worldwide!

Email to: Lifestyle@ Cruisingoutpost.com.

By Terry Sovil, underway

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pg 80-91 Lifestyle edited.indd 3

Cruising Outpost 81

4/30/18 4:04 PM

By Gary Peterson, Mexico

By Jim of a red sky early evening at Selby Bay

By Richard Holiman

82 Cruising Outpost pg 80-91 Lifestyle edited.indd 4

www.cruisingoutpost.com

4/30/18 4:04 PM

By Doug Shipley of daughter & friends, Annapolis

By Vinnie of Julie sailing their 1981 Shannon ketch, Free Spirit, on Lake Erie in Ashtabula

By Drew & Sharon Gober

By Jeff Reiner

Taylor Swift in Dinghy

By Chuck Cropp

By Jessica, crewing in Maine www.cruisingoutpost.com

pg 80-91 Lifestyle edited.indd 5

Cruising Outpost 83 4/30/18 4:04 PM

By Ken Anthony in the San Blas Islands aboard Sail Joana

By Deena Mitchell, passing through Angels Gate

By Chris Stokes of “the family out for a sail.�

Marla aboard S/V Long Windid, anchored in Rangiroa lagoon in front of the Kia Ora Resort

By Amy Norton, first bare boat charter

By Captain Joe of Wendy snorkling

84 Cruising Outpost pg 80-91 Lifestyle edited.indd 6

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4/30/18 4:05 PM

By Jeff Kolod of Debbie enjoying her coffee, sailing away from Ft. Jefferson anchorage

By Brian Duckett of Remi Taylor on Las Lunas, Berkely, CA

By Brian Duckett, Berkeley Marina, SF Bay, CA sunset www.cruisingoutpost.com

pg 80-91 Lifestyle edited.indd 7

Cruising Outpost 85 4/30/18 4:05 PM

By Jamie Alyssa Brown, Vis, Croatia

By John Simpson, old boy & young man

By Cheryl Bular, Chicago to Mac race

By Charles Parks, Stuart, FL

86 Cruising Outpost pg 80-91 Lifestyle edited.indd 8

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4/30/18 4:05 PM

By June Sage sailing Malia Lynn, a Rafiki 37 designed by Stan Huntingford, on San Francisco Bay

by Jim Guthormsen, Boot Key Harbor, Marathon, FL

By Tom aboard Aqua Quest, Dominican Republic

By Ben Mun, taken at JB’s Fish Camp, New Smyrna Beach, FL

By Cindy Holden of the “Gallery” in the cockpit on Tenacity in Olhao, Portugal www.cruisingoutpost.com

pg 80-91 Lifestyle edited.indd 9

By Bill Malone, Key West

Cruising Outpost 87 4/30/18 4:06 PM

By Doris Neubauer, Tuhua, New Zealand

By Frank Petty of Meg sailing on the south side of the island off Simpson Bay and setting the anchor in Great Bay

By Brent Richardson of Genissa after she stole his Founders Circle hat, San Juan Islands, WA

By Joe Pearce, Clearwater Beach at sunset

By Heather Shine, S/V Cerridwen, Benicia, CA

88 Cruising Outpost pg 80-91 Lifestyle edited.indd 10

By Ian Davies of a boat for sale - cheap!

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4/30/18 4:06 PM

By Gary Rubin, Soli in Fourche

By Bob Bear of Stephanie raising the jib on S/V Inuit, a Martin 29, taken going for a sail on Indian Arm of Burrard Inlet, British Columbia, Canada

By Daniel Padilla of Alberto Casas in the hammock...

By Giselle of Cliff sailing on their 1978 Cal 34 in the Sea of Cortez.

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Cruising Outpost 89 4/30/18 4:06 PM

You matter - unless you multiply yourself by the speed of light... then you energy!

By Jeff Poulsen, taken aboard a 21’ John Alden designed gaff rigged sloop at the Sand Bar in Kaneohe, HI

By Gail Lundstrom of daughter & friends

By Travis Blain at Mack Sails Of Captain Paul Watson

90 Cruising Outpost

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4/30/18 4:07 PM

By John Robbins on S/V Want To, Grand Turk Beach

By Dave Stahnka, New Zealand’s Bay of Islands

By David

By Jessie Mackelprang-Carter of Neil half-way between Gambier Island and Raivavae, in the Austral Islands, French Polynesia

By Gary of 25th anniversary trip to the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska with wife Shandy www.cruisingoutpost.com

pg 80-91 Lifestyle edited.indd 13

Cruising Outpost 91 4/30/18 4:07 PM

Atoll Hopping and Bommie Dodging in

Why They’re Called

92 Cruising Outpost

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5/1/18 4:12 PM

ed

the Fabulous Tuamotus, French Polynesia the Dangerous Archipelago

By Suzie Carmody

F

renchPolynesia is made up of four archipelagos. The Society Islands, which include Tahiti, are the western most island group and are the most densely populated and the most developed.

The next archipelago, which lies 200-300 nautical miles to the east, is the Tuamotu group, a series of low, sandy atolls with a central shallow lagoon surrounded by a coral reef. A further 500 nautical miles to the northeast lie the craggy islands of the Marquesas archipelago. The Austral Islands are the furthest south and most remote of the island groups.

We had arrived in Tahiti after a 26-day passage from Wellington, New Zealand.

After two months cruising in the exotic Society Islands, we felt recuperated enough to move on to the idyllic Tuamotus. We departed Tahiti in a 15-knot southeasterly breeze which was perfect for the two-day passage. We had a lovely sail on a starboard reach and entered the lagoon at Fakarava through the Passe Garve, a wide, deep pass at the northern end of the island. The passes through the reefs in the Tuamotus are infamous for their treacherous currents and standing waves, so it is a good idea to keep the tide tables handy, and if possible, get some local

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knowledge as to the best state of tide to enter a particular pass. Conditions vary from pass to pass and are also dependent upon weather conditions and sea state, so it is essential to evaluate the actual conditions before entering or leaving the lagoon.

The main industries in the Tuamotus are copra production, black pearl farming and tourism. Copra is the white flesh of the mature coconut which is left out in the sun to

dry and then shipped to Tahiti where the oil is extracted. Collecting the coconuts and removing the flesh from the husk is hard work in the hot sun for meager rewards.

While in Rotoava we met longtime pearl producers Hinano and Gunter, who showed us how the pearl is seeded and then later extracted from the oyster. The seed is carefully placed inside the gonad of the oyster and after 18 months becomes covered with

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the Fabulous Tuamotus, French Polynesia

a layer of nacra about 0.8mm thick.

The pearl is removed and a new seed is placed. This can be repeated four times and each time the seed, and hence, the pearl, is slightly larger.

Most people come to Fakarava for the diving. The sites at the northern and southern passes are famous for the hundreds of sharks that can be seen on a single dive. The coral at the northern pass was superb with interesting “tongue and groove� reefs

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to swim through, swarms of brightly coloured reef fish and a constant presence of blacktip, white tip and grey reef sharks.

We crossed the lagoon to the village of Tatamanu at the southern pass. This used to be one of the main towns in the Tuamotus, but was wiped out by a hurricane many years ago.

The ruins of several old buildings remain and the graves dating back to 1870s are testament to the original

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Atoll Hopping and Bommie Dodging in the Fabulous Tuamotus settlers of the island. At the southern pass the shark quota ratcheted up even higher. During the dive we watched a steady procession of sharks swimming through the pass.

There were never less than 20-30 sharks in the water at any moment; it was quite remarkable.

We left Tatamanu to shelter from the strong easterly winds at the stunning anchorage of Harifa in the southeastern corner of the island. This is truly a corner of paradise and Liza and Torea are lucky enough to live there. They have a small restaurant which they open by arrangement and serve whatever is the catch of the day.

The white sand beach at Harifa is very beautiful, but watch out for sand flies or no nos (short for no-see-ums, as they are known as elsewhere); they have a very itchy bite which lasts for days.

After a week at Harifa the wind swung around to the north and it was time to leave. We navigated the south pass (Passe Tumokahua) and after a squally and boisterous passage we hove-to off the east coast of Makemo to await slack water low tide. We entered the lagoon at Makemo through Passe Arikitamiro. It was a bit lumpy crossing the standing waves at the entrance, but we were soon anchored off Poiheva, the main village on the island.

Poiheva is a principal commune and, as such, is quite affluent by Tuamotu standards. It has a tarmac road, a post office, an airport and wifi (our first since leaving Papeete!). It also has the obligatory boulangerie and a couple of magazins or general stores. Supplies are brought out to the islands either by coastal freighter or by plane, so there is a bit of a scrum for fresh produce in the shops after the plane or boat comes in.

The local people in the Tuamotus carve stone, bone or wood to make various objects such as bowls, pestles, tikis and other ornaments. They create jewelry from coral, shells and pearls, but will often refuse cash if you wish to purchase anything. They prefer to trade items which are not available in the local shops, so it’s a good idea to carry a supply of reading glasses, knives, sunglasses and makeup. Sitting on the front porch bartering in broken French in the hot sun is great fun and a good way of getting to meet the locals!

While in the Tuamotus we had to be very conscientious about water usage as the islands have very little rainfall and fresh water is scarce. Rain water gathered from the roofs is stored in water tanks, and some houses have bores which provide brackish water used for the garden. Having a watermaker on board is really useful

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Why They’re Called the Dangerous Archipelago

here as you cannot rely on obtaining water from the local supply.

After a few days we moved up the coast to an anchorage on the northeast side of the island. This was our first experience of sailing “off piste” through an uncharted lagoon, so we kept a close watch for the coral heads (bommies) which dot the lagoons. On a bright day with the sun behind you, the big coral heads are easy to spot, but they vary in both size and depth and even in good light some can be quite hard to see. A constant watch should be kept at the bow or, even better, at an elevated position and moving within the lagoons in overcast conditions should be done with extreme caution.

The motu, or fringing reef, is narrow and it is easy to walk across to the windward side. What a contrast from the hot, tranquil, sandy beaches of the leeward side. The beach is a lunar landscape of sharp, grey chunks of coral debris with occasional bright

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green blotches of some hardy succulent plant. The white surf breaks on the edge of the reef and the tide swirls into orange rock pools on the reef shelf.

It is a remote, colourful, windswept scene; quite breathtaking.

We enjoyed snorkeling on the coral bommies. The coral is pristine, fish plentiful, and the water is superbly clear and aquamarine from the sandy bottom. Spearfishing is very popular with the local people and an important source of food, so you need to keep an eye out for reef sharks. They normally ignore divers and snorkelers completely, but here, the sharks hover around waiting for a catch.

At the end of October we departed Makemo bound for the Marquesas and bid farewell to the Tuamotus. Visiting these remote islands, meeting the local people and learning how they made do and were happy with just the most fundamental necessities of life, was an educative and inspirational experience.

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Cruising St. Martin /

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n / St. Maarten The Melting Pot Island

By Robert Scott / S/V Honeymoon Forever

Every once in a while, when cruising, you come across an island that is so complete in all things cruisers look for that it becomes almost impossible to leave there. I’m talking about St. Martin / St. Maarten, the half French, half Dutch island that lies in the northern part of the Leeward Islands. Although this island is barely seven miles in each direction from its center, it is perhaps the most inviting and diverse of all the Leewards: two nations, one island, three official languages - French, Dutch and English, and three currencies - Euro, ANG and the USD. All of this, combined with a population that is worldwide diversified, and you have an incredible melting pot of an island capable of fulfilling all of your cruising needs.

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Cruising St. Martin / St. Maarten

To start your stay you have many choices of marinas and anchorages. On the French side you have Marina Fort Louis, located in Marigot Bay on the northwest side of the island. You also have the entire Marigot Bay as an anchorage. It has a nice sandy bottom for good holding. You can clear in right there at Fort Louis Marina. Good wifi access is available for a fee. You are close to good shopping for food and supplies with several well-stocked markets within walking distance of the dinghy dock. Also close by is a small Budget Marine located by the Sandy Ground Bridge, and a small Island Water World located inside the marina complex. Marigot Bay can get a bit rolly and choppy in the right weather conditions, and please be sure to lock your vessel when going ashore, and secure your dinghy safely at night.

North of Marigot Bay is Baie Grand Case, which offers good anchorage and is full of great restaurants in the small town of Grand Case. North of that is Anse Marcel, a smaller bay that offers great holding and protection, although for fewer vessels. It also hosts the Radisson Blu Marina which is extremely well protected, small, and somewhat expensive as it is considered to be a 5-Star resort facility.

Travelling east around the northern tip of the island and then dropping south, you’ll come to Orient Bay and Green Cay. There, you will find excellent holding and good shelter from the winds if you tuck in on the southern end of the bay. There are some services on land outside the beach area. You should note that Orient Beach is a clothing optional beach so you may see more than you bargained for.

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The Melting Pot Island

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Continuing down the eastern side of the island you will come to Oyster Pond. It’s advisable to enter this anchorage area in the daylight hours as there are breakers on both sides of the channel. Further inside the pond you will find the bases for the Moorings and Sunsail. Five miles south and one mile east of there brings you to the city of Phillipsburg which sits in Groot Baai. This is a huge open bay and is where the cruise ships dock. There is plenty of good anchorage on the western side of the bay along with big beaches, lots of shops and restaurants, but please make note, the whole town lives and breathes by the cruise ships.

We’ve encountered times when a lot of places were not open because the cruise ships were not in port. Three nautical miles northwest of there is Simpson Bay. That completes the island loop, so let’s get back to the two main cruising grounds of the island: Marigot Bay (French) and Simpson Bay (Dutch). Internally, they are connected by Simpson Bay Lagoon.

You can enter the French side of the lagoon using the Sandy Ground Bridge (channel 16) on the south side of Marigot Bay. In there are two

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other decent marinas, Marina Port La Royale and Bobby’s Marina. The bridge opening times for outbound and inbound traffic (outbound precedes inbound) are 0900, 1430 and 1730 hours. Sundays and Public Holidays - 0900 and 1730 hours.

The French side of the lagoon is an excellent anchorage area with close proximity to all of your cruising needs. They are a just a short dinghy ride away from wherever you are anchored. Beware, at times, of the wind blowing off the Witches Tit! On the Dutch side, for anchorage areas you have Simpson Bay (north and south) and Simpson Bay Lagoon.

The French and Dutch Lagoons are separated by the Causeway Bridge. As of this writing the hours of operations/ openings for the Causeway are: Daily - 0815, 0945, 1015, 1145, 1545 and 1715 hours. Simpson Bay, outside of the lagoon, is vast with plenty of good anchorage available. It also is beachlined on both the north and south sides. It, too, can be very rolly and choppy at times and you are advised to also lock your vessel while away from it and to secure your dinghy at night.

The Simpson Bay Bridge on the Dutch side operates on the following

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Cruising St. Martin / St. Maarten schedule daily: Outbound - 0830, 1030, 1600 and inbound - 0930, 1130, 1500, 1700. It is monitored on VHF 12. It has become a spectator sport watching some of the megayachts transiting the channel here.

The Dutch side of the island inside Simpson Lagoon has several marinas to choose from that can accommodate the smallest of vessels all the way up to your modern day mega-yachts. They are (in no particular order): Palapa Marina, Port De Plaisance, Simpson Bay Marina, Lagoonies, Yacht Club Isla De Sol and a few other smaller ones.

When it comes to Chandleries and parts for your vessel new or used, the island has you covered. Just in the Simpson Lagoon area alone you have Island Water World and Budget Marine (they have places on both sides). The large box stores are on the Dutch side and the smaller outpost stores on the French side. You also have Quantum Sails, FKG Marine Rigging, Electec Electrical Services, Tropical Sail Loft and Frostline A/C & Refrigeration Repair, just to name a few! On most Saturdays, Time Out Boat Yard (French side) has a Nautical flea market and parts swap. It is a great time to find that one little doohickey you’ve been looking for but can’t find at a chandlery. It’s also a great time to meet and greet fellow cruisers. Lagoonies (Dutch side) also holds regular nautical flea markets and swap meets.

If you need anything shipped in or out of the island, your best bet for this service is the Business Point located in the Plaza Del Largo right outside the gate of Simpson Bay Marina. Hyacinth, the owner, has agents in Miami that she works with to make the process smooth and easy.

She is also a good resource for wifi hot spot rentals. She has computers for you to check email or surf the web, and she also has a great selection of books for you to book swap with. She can assist with car rentals, airline tickets, tours and just about any other service you require.

Supermarkets abound on the island on both sides, from the large box markets to small mom and pop shops. They are always a short dinghy ride and walk from wherever you are. Prices are very reasonable and selections are as good as you can get. For fresh bread, the island can’t be beat! Boulangeries are everywhere.

We could not recommend one over the other because we frequented so many of them and they were all supurb!

There are breads, pastries, pies, cakes, coffees and sandwiches galore! Watch your waistline!

While we are on the subject of food, we have to tell you that the island offers the largest diversification of restaurants that we have seen in our three years cruising the Caribbean.

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The Melting Pot Island

There is no way to recommend one over the other because during our three-month stay we have not had a bad meal!

If beaches are your thing then the island has you covered. A few notables are: Orient Bay Beach (clothing optional), Dawn Beach, Little Bay Beach, Mullet Beach, Great Bay Beach, and of course, everyone’s must visit Maho Bay Beach. I say must visit because this is the beach in which the jumbo jets fly directly overhead just a hundred feet or so above ground as they make their landing approach to Princess Juliana Airport. It’s a sight and experience to behold!

Lastly, no article about St. Martin / St. Maarten for cruisers would be complete without mentioning Shrimpy’s Laundry and Yacht Support. Now, that seems like an odd name for a place, but Mike and Sally, the owners, are the people to know if you are cruising here. They offer everything: laundry services, dinghy repair and sales, outboard motor repair and sales, spare parts - new and used, wifi services, crew quarters, storage units, and the list goes on. Mike is definitely your go-to guy for all things cruising related on the island. But to me, the best thing about them is their daily Monday through Saturday Cruisers Net at 0730, VHF 10.

It is simply the best cruisers net in the Leewards! That, of course, is a personal opinion, but it is shared by all cruisers who tune in each day.

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There is so much more to write about this incredible cruisers’ destination: the great, friendly people, the constant regattas, the live music events, the snorkeling and diving, the cruisers’ pot luck events, and the list goes on. I have a great idea. Just head there for yourself and experience the wonder and the magic of cruising in St. Martin / St. Maarten. It is an experience you will forever cherish. Cheers!

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Emily & G

race Go

Sailing

Taking On

Our decision to sail the Great Loop happened almost by accident.

Grace and I were talking on the phone the summer after we graduated from college; I was laying on the carpet of my college house and Grace was driving in the car. I don’t remember exactly who suggested it, but gradually jokes about taking a year to sail around the eastern half of the United States turned into semi-serious planning as we realized that we only had job commitments through the next summer.

Shortly after that conversation, I moved to Chicago to work in a high school, secretly spending my

free time Googling the Great Loop and feeling like I was betraying my new city. Grace was tasked with convincing her parents it would be a good idea for us to take their family boat, a Columbia 8.7, and make it fit to live aboard.

We also sent an email to the original inspiration for our trip, Katie and Jessie, full of anxieties and unsure if or what we would hear back. To our delight, Jessie replied with an inspiring, detailed message alleviating our fears. One sentence in particular stood out to me: “If you’re losing sleep over this trip, the decision is already made.”

Getting ready for the boat renaming ceremony

By Emily Gazall emandgracegosailing.wixsite.com/greatloop

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The Great Loop!

“

SHARE THE SAIL

Join the Outpost Family for the

Despite absolutely falling in love with my new job and Chicago, I was losing sleep over the Great Loop. It was calling to me.

And while Chicago would be there in a year or two, the opportunity to sail the Great Loop with my best friend was once in a lifetime.

Grace and I began our Loop mid-September from Detroit. To officially leave took months of boat preparation, during which Grace, her dad, and the entirety of Crescent Sail Yacht Club transformed the boat through painful projects such as re-bedding the starboard toe rail, replacing the lines in the head, and rebuilding the alcohol stove.

We had to learn how to change the oil, wire a radio, and fix a water pump.

We eventually realized that if we waited for every project to be complete, we’d never leave. So, one Sunday evening we had a boat renaming ceremony involving rum and a machete, and left the dock the next morning.

The first day was so surreal. It was sunny with minimal wind, so we motored up the St. Clair River and nervously sang “Hamilton” while trying to pretend we weren’t panicking about starting the trip. All the possessions we’d need for the next year were thrown in the V-berth.

Drying laundry on deck on the Illinois River

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Emily & Grace Go Sailing We’d each brought a few books, sleeping bags, and an eclectic assortment of clothes and bikinis. Apparently, we were optimistic about the weather. Grace forgot a pillow.

I felt mounting anxiety as CSYC got smaller and smaller behind us.

Were we really doing this? Was I really going to leave behind the best job in the world, a city I loved, a boyfriend, and my friends and family?

Was I crazy? And yet, how could I say no to this adventure?

That first afternoon, I called a marina to request a transient slip. I had to double check with Grace about nearly everything they asked.

“What’s your draft?”

“Grace, what’s our draft?” “Five feet, okay.” We had to contact a friend from home for advice on hailing and radio etiquette.

After we tied up to the dock that evening we breathed the biggest sigh of relief. Day one had been so stressful, and yet we had had perfect weather (no weather) and were staying at a marina. We are currently at day 95, and I want

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to go back and laugh at our day-one selves. If I had had any idea of the wild storms, late-night lock experiences, and freezing weather to come, I would’ve doubted our ability to make it this far.

Yet here we are, a few days into the panhandle of Florida, alive, tan, and happy.

I’m currently working on an application where I have to describe my greatest achievement within the past five years. I could say that is graduating from college or maybe some statistic about academic improvement within my student case load from my job last year, but honestly, making it from Detroit, MI to Mobile, AL via sailboat challenged me in an entirely different and greater way, so I think I’m going to write about that.

First of all, I’ve never been so cold in my life. Unlike many Loopers, we do not have heat on our 29-foot sailboat. This means that at the end of a day of driving through frigid weather, we cannot retreat to a warm

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Taking On The Great Loop!

Visiting with the inspiration for the trip, Jessie Zevalkink, in Northport, MI

interior and defrost. It means that we wear the same three layers of clothes for a week straight and we get used to being smelly because we don’t have a shower. We also don’t have refrigeration, so nearly all of our food comes from a can. The upside of the cold weather is that we can occasionally buy perishable food and it will stay cold enough in the cockpit to last for a few days. We have faced crazy storms that terrify us a little bit, we have perfected communication with barge captains so that they don’t run us over, and we have had to deal with situations that require fast thinking, most notably one where our anchor came unstuck and our engine decided, at that very moment, not to start.

Despite all we plan for, every day is a learning experience for which we are grateful. We’re learning to take life day by day. There is a saying that to have a schedule is the most dangerous thing you can do on a boat.

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We’ve simply found that schedules are impossible to keep. Sometimes Mother Nature disagrees with our plans, and sometimes another opportunity presents itself. Either way, we’ve stopped trying to rush places, and that has made our Loop trip all the more enjoyable. We’re now more willing to stop and explore a beautiful anchorage or join our friends for a meal of fresh food and a tour of Shiloh Battlefield.

Making friends on this Loop trip has taught us so much about the kindness of people who, just a few months ago, were strangers. Fellow Loopers are so quick to invite us over for a home-cooked Thanksgiving meal, help us fix a broken water pump, or even greet us at the dock, cheering loudly and ready to grab our dock lines. Grace and I have also learned a lot about our friendship and how to maintain it when we literally never leave each other’s side.

It’s all about balance. Sharing a tiny

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Emily & Grace Go Sailing

Approaching Chicago in 20-plus-knot winds

space with one person requires that. Balancing sleep schedules and daily tasks. If it’s cold and one of us drives all morning, then the other usually does dishes or cooks dinner. It goes unspoken, but we try to give as much, if not more, than we take, or else this way of life will fall apart.

We’ve also learned how little we really need. A couple of T-shirts. A few warm pairs of pants. We go days at a time without shoes (if it’s warm), or showers.

We cram ourselves into a tiny V-shaped bed every night and we sleep great, although I will defi nitely have back problems after this. We read books and try to stay off the Internet and sing Taylor Swift’s new album really loudly to the wildlife on the TennesseeTombigbee waterway.

We’ve answered questions we’d never thought we’d have to, such as, what are our basic needs that most need to be fulfilled? How can we better understand where this person is coming from? How many goldfish crackers can we eat in one day? How many times can people be surprised that there are no men on board our boat?

Locking through Whitten Lock

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Taking On The Great Loop!

The experiences we have had could not be taught in a college classroom. We are only a few months into our Great Loop adventure, but we know that we’ve made the right decision. Every time we get discouraged by the cold or slow progress, something reminds us that we’re having the coolest and most unique experience, whether it’s meeting a Looper with an inspirational life story, seeing gorgeous fall foliage along the Illinois and Mississippi Rivers, or stargazing on a clear night. In fact, I just got interrupted while writing this because Grace yelled out that a dolphin was swimming alongside our boat. As cliché as it sounds, it’s true that every day is an adventure, and we are so grateful for the opportunity to live our dream and sail the Great Loop.

Happy to be approaching Mobile, AL

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Confessions of an offshore sailor

By David Crafa Success always occurs in private, and failure in full view.

I

brought up passage weather. It didn’t look good. I stared at my watch. To make the weather window I would have to leave Montauk two days earlier than I had planned on if I wanted to make it to Hampton, VA, to rendezvous with the Salty Dawgs. If I didn’t leave now, I would be facing 40 knots from the southwest clocking northwest. I wasn’t ready and I knew it.

I had been mentored by the best offshore sailors out there: Steve Black, Hal Suphin, Davis Murry and Jim Tingley. I had spent several seasons sailing with Jim on a Hylas 70 sailing to the VI and back. I thought I knew what I was doing before I met Jim. I didn’t. I was now sailing my own Hylas 54 named VanishingPoint. I remember Hal Suphin saying, “You don’t get what you expect, you get what you inspect.” This, now, was reverberating through my head.

This year was different. I was still recovering from a severe concussion. Two crew cancelled at the last minute.

I was double-handing and leaving prematurely, but what could happen? It’s only 280 miles. Every year I leave Montauk with those thoughts in my head and every year I get beat up. The difference is most years I’m better prepared to get a Montauk beat down.

As we rounded Montauk point the first sign of trouble was obvious. The waves were ominous. I took a few pictures to send to my girlfriend. Look at me! I’m a bad ass! I didn’t say those words, but the sea heard me and she was about to take me back to offshore boot camp.

Within one hour my only crew member was out of the game with sea sickness. She was wearing a

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5/2/18 4:16 PM

scopolamine patch. Mr. Bad Ass wasn’t wearing one at all. Seasickness can happen to anyone under the right, or wrong conditions. It happens when you’re exhausted, dehydrated, hungry, under physical duress, hypothermic, or mentally fried. I would experience all of those conditions over the next 24 hours.

On the south side of Long Island the waves were stacking up out of the northwest. We were reefed, but I noticed the rail was in the water more than usual. I decided that it was time to reef again. I pointed VP into the wind and pushed the furler in button ... nothing. Jammed! I headed downwind to let more sail out. The jam cleared. I reefed and swung the boat back on course.

The bilge alarm came on. The float switch was jammed in the on position by debris inside the bilge. I cleared it.

The pump shut off.

It was raining heavily. I had to stay focused on radar targets. The Montauk fishing fleet was out there making crazy Ivan maneuvers that would make a Russian sub commander

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Sailing under better conditions

proud. To make matters more interesting, torrents of water were smashing onto the foredeck at flash flood speeds.

Seawater was shooting into the cockpit like a firehose.

The bilge alarm came on again. The secondary bilge pump’s float switch was stuck on again, but this time it wasn’t running. I still had the main pump, but I was bearing down on the Montauk fishing fleet so I went back on deck. The bilge alarm fired again. The float switch to the primary pump was now stuck on. I cleared it. There was water trickling down into the bilge from the port side.

Was there water on the low side of the boat?

I had the bright idea of flattening out the boat. As I brought the boat into the wind a new alarm went off. The high bilge alarm sounded like an injured animal. I could see there was a lot of water down there! Primary pumps failed! I cursed the fact that the secondary was down.

There was debris floating everywhere. I pulled the pumps out to inspect. They were fouled with sludge!

Seasickness building, I grabbed the emergency manual pump handle. I yelled for my incapacitated crew mate. She

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got up and I told her to pump. She was bewildered because instead of waking up from a nightmare, she was waking up in one.

I keep a map of the through hulls taped to the Nav desk. I know it by heart. I started at the bow and worked aft. No leaks. Dripless and rudder post bearing were good.

I decided to try a quick fix. Hammer in hand, I gave the failed secondary pump a shot on the casing and it sprang back into action. YES!! But where the hell was the water coming from? The engine was still running. The exhaust hose? I checked it. I could see water. I shut the engine down. Seasickness had set in. I was fighting it. The water stopped. I noticed that on the port and starboard sides of the exhaust hose there were plastic tubes that were intermittently streaming water. Where did they go?

The lazarettes?

Meanwhile back at the bilge, the primary pump had failed. The secondary pump that I performed CPR on with a hammer was the only pump now. I reached my hand down through the flotsam and jetsam. It was completely fouled.

I cleared it and I turned the engine back on to check the exhaust hose. No water. The engine was out of the equation.

I clipped into the jacklines and inspected hatches. The port laz was not locked down and had taken some water.

Back in the bilge I could see the bottom again, so I put the jib back out. I was exhausted and seasick. I was devolving.

Grunts and groans were all I was good for.

We were almost at the mouth of the Chesapeake and I couldn’t be more relieved. Prior to docking we found the fenders were impossibly wedged into the sail locker because it was filled with seawater. Now it was all starting to make sense. “You get what you inspect, not what you expect.” The sail locker wasn’t closed properly.

The forensics revealed that the sail locker didn’t drain because it was fouled with debris. The boat was bow heavy and taking on water with each wave. That caused the deck to be awash and the lazzerettes to take water.

The boat was heeling more because there was seawater entering the sail locker and finding its way to the low side of the boat where the bilge couldn’t be effective.

There’s more debris inside boats than one might think. If you take water like I did, you’re going to quickly find that your pumps will fail. Repeatedly. I strive to have at least as much trouble shooting skills to get out of situations as I have the stupidity to get into them. It’s important to know the boat’s not in peril when you’re exhausted, seasick, mentally fried, dehydrated, hungry, pissed, scared, you name it.

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A SAILING TRADITION OF HARD KNOCKS

By Sam Whiteleather

I

t’s just my uncle and I on the boat and even though I’ve been out plenty of times with him sailing on Lake Michigan, I still can’t remember how to raise the sail.

I feel a little guilty as my elder clamors onto the deck, fixes the lines and cranks the sail up the tall mast. But I can steer the boat and know enough to hold directly into the wind as the white sail meets blue sky. The sail bucks wildly until I roll us downwind. It gives a couple of hard slaps, then holds tight and flat as Uncle Dave eases down from the upper deck into the cockpit.

I feel the warm lake breeze hit my bare legs as the boat gently rocks up and down, tilting on a mild heel from the push of the steady wind. The bottoms of my bare feet grip the floor of the cockpit as I lean back to pull on the tiller to keep the boat straight. Many times I’ve watched Uncle Dave steer the boat by moving the tiller with the slightest pulls and pushes. I try to emulate the controlled movements, but still find myself occasionally pulling like a five-year-old child walking a stubborn dog.

When I arrived at the slip this morning I noticed small pieces of brown crumbled dirt on the deck and that a piece of trim was missing from along the outside edge of the walkway.

Normally the boat’s gel coat gleams white and broken hardware or trim is quickly fixed. This summer was anything

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but normal however, as this was the summer my grandfather passed away. I know that if it weren’t for all the time spent with Grandpa in his last weeks and managing affairs after his passing, the boat would look just as good as ever.

The very last time Grandpa was on the boat, I had to walk him down the dock holding both of his arms while he shuffled along behind me. I stood on the top of the dock ladder and Uncle Dave stood on the boat and we lowered all 130 pounds of him into the cockpit. We motored through the harbor and out past the breaker walls, but the waves were too big for Grandpa so we came back in.

I learned how to sail by sailing a mini-fish on a lake in northern Indiana that my Grandpa lived on. He’d coach me from the shore as needed, although I tended to learn my lessons the hard way. He’d yell things like “point higher into the wind” if I was having trouble gaining ground in a strong wind. Even though I was out in the middle of the lake, I could hear the heated irritation in his voice. A good half hour would go on with him yelling unheeded instructions until I would figure it out. And sure enough, Grandpa would be right. After my Grandpa passed, the mini-fish was given to me. It resides in my garage awaiting the day when my kids are old enough to try their hand at the tiller.

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Except, perhaps, for the time he went out on Mother’s Day with my cousin Darin and his wife and almost didn’t make it back. He recounts how the waves were so big that his 30-foot boat was pitching back and forth violently, and when the bow would drop to descend a big wave he Controls Odors, Bacteria & Mold wasn’t sure it would come back up again. On a couple of All Natural - Safe - Effective different occasions he and Darin had to go down below Longest Lasting Protection because the motor quit. The boat was pitching hard while Strongest Tea Tree Oil Gel Available they worked in a confined space around diesel fuel. They Lowest Cost Per Ounce took turns going down because they kept getting sick, the vomit mixing in with the diesel and the pitching boat to create a mariner’s worst nightmare. They eventually made it back to the harbor. My cousin’s wife vowed never to go www.TeaTreePower.com on the boat again. She thought they were all going to die.

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There’s really only one way to learn when not to go sailing, and finding out the hard way must run in the family. Several years ago I took my family to Hatteras Island, NC, to visit some friends. I managed to bring the mini-fish along by strapping it to the top of our SUV, looking like a Beverly Hillbilly with a sailing addiction.

On the inland side of Hatteras there is an area of water called the Canadian hole. Windsurfers and kite boarders flock there in droves for the unusually strong winds. Our last day on the island I vowed to sail in the hole. When we got there I parked our car along the road and drug the boat down to the water. My wife, Rena, found a good spot in the sand and I set up the beach umbrellas to keep the sun off the children’s skin. I quickly ate a sandwich while rigging the mini-fish. Out in the hole I watched a kite surfer zoom around the shallow water. Every once in awhile he’d pull on the line and let the strong winds sail him high into the air before splashing back down again.

“Man, that’s some wind,” I said to myself.

When I got the boat into the water I had a hard time holding the sail because it was pulling too hard in the brisk wind. I finally was able to hold the sail line down by lashing it to a small cleat. I started to go pretty good and made several short passes out and back, keeping within shouting distance of Rena and the kids.

Although the wind was starting to pick up, I felt pretty good about my ability to control the boat and

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decided to make a run down the beach with the wind at my back. I let the sail swing out and cleated the line down again. The little boat hauled ass. It was all I could do to hold on as we cut wildly through the water, the rudder cutting an impressive wake for an 11-foot boat. I felt like I was free falling from 20,000 feet and the thrill of it all overpowered any thoughts of what would happen when I reached the ground. When I made it down to the far end of the beach, there was a swarm of windsurfers darting to and fro across the water with dazzling speed and precision. I cut through the center of the swarm and felt proud to be out where the real action was.

I looked back down the beach for Rena and the kids, but couldn’t see them anymore. I begrudgingly decided that I should make a go at getting back, especially since the wind was strong as hell and getting stronger yet. When I turned the boat into the wind I was pushed sideways further down the beach. I refused to give up and kept trying to tack, but now the bow was being driven under the water. Even if Grandpa had been there to holler instructions from the shore, I’d still have been screwed.

I was soon sitting in a swamped cockpit feeling rather foolish. The wind surfers who kept racing by gave me dirty looks and I knew they wished this rummy, who thought he could sail in 25-mile-per-hour-plus winds, would get the hell off the water.

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It was at this point I realized it was too windy to be out sailing. I let the sail flail completely out of control, the boom pointing straight off the bow. I sat with bowed head as I was slowly driven off the water.

After beaching the boat, I pulled the mast and wrapped the sail around it. Throwing it on my shoulder, I walked in the North Carolina heat along the highway back to Rena and the kids. It took me nearly 45 minutes to make the walk. I’m sure the people who passed me on the busy road thought I was some kind of delusional sailor carrying a sail and mast, looking for his lost boat.

When I finally made it back, Rena looked up from her magazine and said, “Oh, there you are. I was starting to wonder what was going on when I looked up and couldn’t see your sail anymore”.

“Yeah, it’s windy out there,” I replied.

“Where’s the boat?” she asks.

“Uh, we’ll have to drive down and get it.”

She gave me a confused look as I collapsed in the sand next to her and reached into the cooler for a cold drink.

Back on Lake Michigan with Uncle Dave, we put our stern to the harbor and sail parallel with the sandy shoreline. I see the big mansions that the rich people from Chicago call lake houses, and I feel a little sick inside about how some of them probably rarely get used.

I wonder how many of these folks who own the big boats and mansions feel the same way I do about being on the water. Or maybe getting a big boat is just something you do when you have money, so everyone knows it. They probably look down on people like my uncle, who boat for the feeling they get when they’re on the water and don’t give a damn what people think about the boat they own.

The boat leaves a trail of streaming and swirling water and I know that we are moving along with good speed.

Uncle Dave goes down the steps into the cabin and hands up a can of Coors Lite, its chilled silver skin snugged in a black koozie. The beer is cold and feels good in my sunwarmed belly. We drink the beers, then have another and I notice the big white rocks on the breaker wall getting smaller and smaller.

Uncle Dave looks out, away from shore and says, “that looks like Harry’s boat.” Harry is a long-time friend of my Uncle’s who shares his passion for being on the water. We prepare to come about and I point the boat into the wind, causing the big main to buck again as we start working the winches to change the jib. I crank my winch tight, then cleat the line as the mainsail goes flat again and we start pushing towards Harry’s boat.

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5/2/18 4:19 PM

As we approach, Harry looks up from his 30-foot center console, a fishing pole in his hand. We make a pass, coming in close, but not too close, to keep from messing up his lines. Uncle Dave asks how the fishing is and Harry shouts that he’s caught a few yellow perch.

By this time we are too far away for talking, so we tack around again, coming a little closer.

Uncle Dave finishes the conversation as the two big boats part ways. He tells me how Harry was practically born on a boat. He always makes a straight wake because when he was a kid steering his father’s boat, his father would watch the wake and coach him until he laid it out straight. As we leave Harry’s boat, I take a moment to admire a guy who fishes for 12-inch pan fish out of a 30-foot center console.

The evening is beginning to wear on now, but the steady wind doesn’t show any signs of weakening. I know Uncle Dave would stay out all night if it were up to him. I’d like to keep sailing too, but Rena and the kids await our return. I mention how I want to be back in time to walk the children down to the beach to watch the sun set over the lake and Uncle Dave agrees to head back. We tack around and head for the harbor.

I see the whiteness of the sail and the boat set against the deep blue waters of Lake Michigan. I see Uncle Dave reclining with his back against the cockpit side, his eyes gazing out over the open water. I see the bow of the boat cutting and pushing a never-ending expanse of water powered by a never-ending supply of energy. I pull all these things into my brain and hold them there until they’re stuck, so I can retrieve them on a winter day when the air is cold and the skies are gray and I’m miles and months away from white sails on blue skies.

And regardless of my family’s learning methods, ours is a sailing tradition.

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5/2/18 4:20 PM

AN OLD SAILOR GETS TO CRUISE AGAIN

By Jack Mooney

s

even years ago our cruising life ended when we lost the engine on our Westerly 26 in West Palm Beach. We were on our fifth trip to the Bahamas that ended with a clunk. At 84 I couldn’t find the energy to set up another boat in the way we wanted it.

So, we were reduced to day-sailing an Alacrity 19 that we shared with the Youngs. The two John Youngs, father and son, had helped me repaint the boat top and bottom and were welcome to use it. The father, a retired cop, had sailed the Chesapeake in a Catalina 27 and his son, a recently retired Vermont State Trooper, had an Ericson 26 on Lake Champlain, so they are experienced sailors.

In the spring of 2017, John Jr. bought an Endeavor 33, Island Song, that was on the hard in Port St. Lucie on the Atlantic coast of Florida. He wanted to move it to St. Petersburg on Tampa Bay, on the west coast of Florida.

It’s a 600-mile trip. He asked his dad to crew for him and asked me if I wanted to go along. This 91-year-old sailor jumped at the chance.

I’m tired of the name problem. Only his mother can call him Johnie, and I won’t try it with a guy who has packed a gun for most of his adult life. So let’s call one Skipper and his father John. Actually, my name is John also, although only the IRS and banker use it as family

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and friends call me Jack. So maybe we should call this the Three John Cruise.

The mast was too high to get under the Makaya Bridge on the Okeechobee Waterway, so we had to go around the south of Florida. It took a few days to get the boat in the water, and when we moved the boat to the fuel dock, a cloud of smoke came out of the lazarette. On opening it we found that the exhaust line was broken at an elbow and steam and smoke were pouring out. Since there was no danger of fire we returned to the dock. When the engine cooled, Skipper took the part out and found corrosion had blocked it and exhaust pressure had broken the part. When Skipper got the replacement part installed, all was fine. That is what cruisers do; fix the boat in exotic places. Port St. Lucie is nice, but hardly exotic. Now we were free to go.

We left to motor down the Intracoastal to West Palm Beach and anchor in Lake Worth. This was a test run before trying the open water of the Atlantic. The boat ran fine. I like the fact that the Endeavour hardly makes a wake at hull speed. Bruce Kelley designed a good hull that doesn’t waste energy making waves. They were impressed when we anchored in the middle of an upscale town with lights all around.

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5/2/18 4:20 PM

I was enjoying being back on a boat at anchor. In my 25,000 nm of cruising from San Francisco to Ottawa and elsewhere, I have slept at anchor many more than a thousand nights.

It’s my favorite place to snore away.

Skipper was satisfied with how the boat handled, so we went around Peanut Island and out the Lake Worth Inlet into the Atlantic. He was reluctant to sail close inshore, but I talked him into it and he found he could get out of the Gulf Stream and maybe pick up a bit of back current.

We entered at Ft. Lauderdale and anchored in Lake Sylvia.

The Youngs were impressed with the number of mega-yachts parked along the waterway. We even dinghied over to the Raw Bar for beer and dinner, just like real cruisers.

The next day we went out into the Atlantic and south past Miami. Skipper decided to skip the Biscayne Bay route due to skinny water, so we went down the marked Hawk’s Channel that runs along the Keys about five miles inside the reef where the water is pretty smooth. The depth is around 20 feet and visibility enough to watch the bottom go by. We anchored for one night along the channel. There was a little chop that rocked me to sleep. I had died and gone to Heaven; a bit prematurely I hope.

The next day we sailed down the Keys to enter Boot Key Harbor at Marathon where we took a buoy for a couple of nights. The next morning they walked about a mile to the supermarket while the old man took a shower and socialized. That night we had dinner in a restaurant across the Key West highway. The next morning we sailed under the high bridge and entered the Florida Bay. We had 10 to 15 knots of wind with 2- to

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4-foot seas, and I was impressed how well the Endeavour handled it.

That night we anchored off the Little Shark River. There are no communities in that area and as a result, no light glow to ruin the sight of the heavens. It was clear and the stars were bright. I sat in the cockpit and reveled in the beauty that only cruisers get to see.

That’s not entirely true as I have seen the same when backpacking in the Sierras. But I got to ride here and not carry my home on my back; it’s a lot less tiring.

Our next anchorage was off Cape Romano at the north end of the Ten Thousand Islands, with another night of clear skies and lots of stars. Again, I practically slept in the cockpit. The Youngs did not like it as much as I did because of the mosquitoes. They don’t bother me much.

Maybe old blood tastes a little stale. We anchored about a mile off shore and I will never understand how the little buggers could find us.

The following two days we were back to urban cruising, anchoring in Ft. Meyers just north of the Sanibel Bridge the first night. We took the Intracoastal the rest of the way with the last anchorage in Little Sarasota Bay. Then it was into the Tampa Bay, under the Skyway Bridge to the prearranged dock in St. Petersburg where the two Sandys met us. It’s a strange group with three Johns and two Sandys, and only Skipper’s Sara to break the monotony.

That was the end of the delivery, if you can call it that as it was more of a fetching, and certainly not a real cruise. But it was great for this old man to be on the water again and sleep on an anchored boat with bright stars and a slight swell to rock me to sleep. Thanks Skipper John.

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Isla Mujeres At Carnival Time

By Rene Yap

A

fter crossing the Gulf of Mexico for three days from Fort Jefferson in the Dry Tortugas, imagine our surprise to learn that we had landed in Isla Mujeres during Carnival time! The island of Isla Mujeres is a cruiser’s paradise at any time. The harbor is well protected from the crashing waves of the Gulf, many goods are readily available, there are several places to land your dinghy, checkin is relatively easy, and there are many inviting restaurants. But to top it off, we had the benefits of a Mexican celebration.

The mood of the entire island was joyous! The general hustle and bustle of the streets was amplified by truckloads of performers moving from one location to another. Apparently the performers visit various hotels and public areas to dance, with the expectation that the viewers will provide donations that fuel the means to continue to prepare for Carnival next year.

Although we enjoyed all of the facets of Carnival, the highlight for us was the parade. We gathered intel about the details, but in typical Mexican fashion, it was like

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following a trail of gossip. The website reported the time, but not the route. Apparently, the route of the parade was so well known that everyone knew where to stand. So, at the appointed time we rushed down the street looking for signs of performers. As we walked closer to town, there were telltale signs. One side of the road had been blocked off with all of the traffic rerouted to the other side. Truckloads of performers were speeding to various locations.

We selected a place along the route to rest and prepared for the parade. Here we met a woman who had moved to Isla 10 years ago. She was able to provide us with some solid information.

Yes, the time of the parade was 4:00 o’clock, but in the past she had waited for hours for it to begin. Sometimes there was much confusion with the organization. One year the parade had two routes that were the reverse of each other.

The participants started at both ends and then got stuck along the path as they met in the middle, with very little room to pass.

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When we were told that the performers stopped in front of the ferry terminal to complete their dances, we decided to move on further into town. We had just settled into our new location at the side of the street when my pub-loving husband spied a table at a restaurant along the route. We made our way quickly to the pub, gathered the required number of chairs for our small group to have a seat and ordered our beers. A few minutes later we could hear the music of the parade as it drew closer to us. Within half an hour of our arrival, we were able to move from table to table until we had front row seats, with our waitress following our progression with beers and margaritas.

As luck would have it, we were located right in front of the ferry dock where every group stopped to

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strut their stuff. I was able to jump from my seat in the bar right into the crowd to get a close-up view of the performers. It was amazing to see that everyone was included in the parade, from the very young to the older population. Although most of the troupes consisted of females, there were some males groups included as well.

Every group had unique costumes full of color, glitter, and other surprises.

Some of the performances were more traditional while others were more of a modern dance. All were mesmerizing, especially when viewed from a short distance away. All of the participants of one group were older women in what I assumed to be more traditional costumes. They looked magnificent.

For the very first time, gringo women were part of the parade. Apparently, the name for gringo women is witches, so the dancers decided to play upon this theme, even adding brooms and mops as part of their costumes.

Elaborate costumes were part of a group of men who dressed up as women. One fellow in a white shirt begged

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to have his photo taken with this gathering. Every part of society was part of the parade.

A few days later a dance troupe came to visit our marina, El Milagro. I was charmed to see all of the troupe of older women dancing their hearts out in the foyer. The guests of the hotel at the marina streamed out of their rooms to enjoy the festivity.

Isla Mujeres is filled with many different, interesting tourist experiences such as snorkeling, swimming with the dolphins and whale shark viewing, all set in a small town atmosphere.

Even if you visit the island when Carnival is not happening you will have no difficulty in finding exciting things to do. The cruising community is enhanced by the cruisers net that takes place every morning. Help is readily available while the net controllers encourage everyone to make announcements of all of the activities taking place on the island. We enjoyed our month here, but we were absolutely delighted by the different aspects of Carnival.

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5/6/18 1:12 PM

Those fishing boats in Alaska?

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w

et Dog Saloon, Astoria, Oregon. Raining.

My old friends, good sailors, drove up from L.A. to look at a boat for sale. We’re at the bar telling stories about our first boats and our early days in San Pedro, California. Ernest Hemingway referred to his stories as “better than true.” My friends may be taking a little license with their stories, but I don’t need any for this one.

Scott was a work-place buddy. Everything was larger than life with him. Hemingway would’ve loved him.

Scott even looked a little like a young version of the Papa.

The work we did was slow in the summer. In the fall we’d all come back to the studio, happy for the work. The excitement around the coffee pot got up near party level with everybody going on about their summer: camping with the kids, remodeling the house, weddings and road trips back east to see Aunt Martha.

Scott’s stories were about kicking ass boats, suicidal weather, drinking hard, getting thrown across the deck breaking a rib, a buddy losing a finger over the side in a winch. My stories were always about my Venture 21 taking me to Catalina, the islands, and trailering to most of the major waterways of the Western United States.

Scott always listened to my stories, but pretended not to.

His body language was loud and clear however; me and my boat were low on the scale of macho.

One day he said, “Now just what kind of little boat do you have there sailor?”

I told him about it and how I romped around on summer afternoons in San Pedro Harbor when the winds came whipping around Palos Verdes peninsula. Would he like to come along? Marcie, Scott’s S.O., heard about this and came up to me in the break room, “Scott tells me he’s going out on your sailboat.”

“Yes, fabulous, he’s familiar with everything out there, it’ll be great,” I said.

“What did he say?” She asked.

“Oh, just about working on the boats in Alaska.”

She and I spoke once or twice again cordially, but the boat issue never came up again.

A bunch of us were lunching at the corner grill and

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Scott came in and sat down.

When I saw him I snapped to attention and officially announced: “Guys, my new crew. We’re going out Sunday,” patting Scott on the back, “… if he doesn’t mind my little no-frills sailboat. We’re going out from San Pedro. But first, a hardy chow at an Aussie bar where the fishermen hang out.

Launch at Cabrillo. Stretch out on the great wind that swings around Palos Verdes, do that all day. With what Scott’s been through up north, he can dig it. When the wind dies down around sunset, round up at the Acapulco for Margaritas.”

Scott was stone-faced all the while; I saw it as modesty. “As long as you can handle it, we’ll be fine,” he said.

Marcie inquired about life jackets and about when to expect him home.

In those days I bragged that at launch ramps I got my sailboat ready for the water faster by myself than any power boater, especially if the power guy had anybody helping him.

As I backed down the ramp, Scott walked alongside on the dock, taking the lines and tying them off. I parked the rig. He went off to potty.

Scott, sitting in the cockpit, looked uncomfortable, what with a little bit of a belly and the bulky life jacket he put on. I had an automatic inflatable for him, but he seemed situated so I didn’t say anything. My boat at the dock, pointed upwind, the main up and alive, jib hanked on, we were ready. I peeled away. The main slapped taut.

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We needled through ramp traffic. I yanked the jib up hard from the cockpit. My courageous little boat accelerated like a catamaran. I could hear the gurgle.

But the Palos Verdes wind was light that day as I remember, 10 to 15 knots. I squeezed everything out of that boat for the best ride we could get. Later, farther out on the bay, the wind did pick up a little and depending on our tack we could “boil the rail.” I let out a good and loud hoot! “Come on baby!” I was so in the moment.

Scott was not. Scott looked dreadful. “Oh my God are you okay? What’s wrong?”

He looked like a man-eating shark had his foot. Skin clammy, sweating profusely, teeth grinding. Moaning, growling. “Put this f… (expletive deleted)… boat down!”

His arms were stretching out along the gunwale like from some sort of medieval torture. I popped the main loose. The boat jerked upright with so much force I thought the rudder might break. I let the jib go to flap in the breeze. We were waddling in the water. Scott remained fixed in a painful state. The knuckles of his fists were the proverbial white and vice-gripped to the gunwale.

After that, I tacked back toward the ramp. It would be an hour before we got there, especially at the speed I now understood was okay with him. “Scott, talk to me. What’s going on?”

Scott was only then beginning to blink his eyes and pry his hands loose. Then it all made sense. It was 20 minutes before we spoke a word.

“Scott, I’m sorry….” I bit my lip. This was not the time for the conversation I wanted to have. With a shaking still hanging in his voice and a color more specimen than human, he tried to clear his throat, “So, how often do you come out here?”

Next morning in the break room: Marcie spots me and comes up, rather deliberate in her approach and says, “So how’d it go?”

“Oh my God, we ripped it up all afternoon! At one point, we drove right up close alongside a freighter coming in the harbor, tied in a reef and when it passed by we shot off like a pony slapped on the butt.”

Puzzled, and yet softening, “Oh really, well, that’s nice, that’s wonderful, well, I’m sure he’ll be telling me all about it.” Later, again in the coffee room, someone says, “Hey, Scott said you guys burned up the bay.”

“Yep.” “Well, of course. You know he’s been all over those fishing boats in Alaska.”

“Yep.”

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5/6/18 1:14 PM

Of Mice And Monsters

e

ven a mile away it was big. So big that the container barge on the upper Patapsco River that hot, sunny day, had a four-tug escort. Together, they occupied almost the entire navigable width of the channel near Lazaretto Point.

To the untrained eye they appeared harmless, even amusing, as they lumbered up the river with the flooding tide. But the COLREGS clearly state that in these situations a “sailing vessel shall not impede the passage of a vessel which can safely navigate only within a narrow channel or fairway.” And over the years, several scary encounters like this have taught me well: ships move much faster than little sailboats—take evasive action sooner rather than later.

With all haste I began the drill. I started the engine of our Catalina 34, Ukiyo, doused the sails and looked at the chart for a suitable parking place we could duck into to allow the leviathan to safely pass. I then grabbed the VHF and was about to hail the lead tug when a series of five thunderous “hooooooonks!” hit us like a shot over the bow, shaking me to my bones and bringing everyone on deck. It was the international danger signal, aka, the “get out of the way or you’re going to get hurt” sound.

Though still a half mile away, the pilot was taking no chances that I may not be as alert, or

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By Capt. Robert Beringer

nimble, as I was. It would have been easy to take umbrage at this auditory assault. After all, he could see I had already begun to take evasive action, but I knew these mariners were merely complying with Rule 34 which obligates them to sound this signal if they are “in doubt whether sufficient action is being taken by the other to avoid collision.” I then radioed that I did see them and would soon be out of their path. Next time, I’ll begin the drill with the radio call first.

A few minutes later the barge and its escorts quietly passed, and from our position on the sidelines I noticed that not one on the tugs was looking at us.

All eyes were focused on the river ahead and their important task of landing near Tide Point.

About two miles ahead, the naval retinue abruptly halted. The tugs adroitly danced about their charge, turning it 90° and gently pushing it to the wharf and the waiting stevedores who would unload its containerized cargo and send it off in myriad directions on I-95.

We carried on toward the inner harbor and our next anchorage, a mere mouse in a field of monsters.

All of us, however, share the same responsibility. That is, to safely navigate our respective vessels using a clearly defined set of rules.

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5/2/18 4:24 PM

The Dead Head

By Michael Harlow

m

y stomach rumbled once again. I really needed to go to the head, but I was the only one on watch. This was getting serious. I took a look down below and saw my wife sleeping peacefully on the starboard settee.

Quickly, I refl ected on our last year’s journey. We had sailed from San Diego, California, down the coast of Baja, Mexico, and up into the Sea of Cortez. Not only had we anchored at some beautiful ports along the Baja peninsula and in mainland Mexico, but we also stayed at some beautiful marinas when we had the opportunity. We wanted to leave no stone unturned, so we also drove over a thousand miles in a rented car, through the interior and coast of Mexico.

We were part of the Pacific Puddle Jump fleet and due to some unfortunate events, we were the last ones to depart from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico heading towards the Marquesas. The 2,800 mile journey from Mexico to Nuku Hiva was pretty uneventful with the exception of a few 50+ knot squalls that we had to endure and stumbling upon a possible man-made life raft in the middle of the ocean with nobody on board.

My wife, Melissa, and I spent a good amount of time hiking and exploring Nuku Hiva. I almost got killed by a huge rock that was dislodged by some mountain goats, but that’s another story. From there, we went to Ahe and Rangiroa in the Tuamotus.

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5/2/18 4:24 PM

Our 1996 Island Packet 37 handled beautifully sailing from port to port. We spent just over four months exploring French Polynesia, then decided it was time to take our boat home to San Diego via Hawaii.

Our yacht made great time from Bora Bora to Honolulu, Hawaii, in only 16 days.

However, the weather window was starting to close since it was October, and we needed to get back to San Diego before winter set in.

Everything was going great until our marine head broke.

From out of nowhere, all of a sudden, we could not flush anything down the head. No pun intended, but we had been very anal to keep our head clean and we only used fresh water to rinse our head after we used it.

When I was not on watch, I tore the head apart and rebuilt it. I had a complete spare rebuild kit, however I thought I could fix it easily without the kit, so I just cleaned out the old parts.

After the first rebuild, it still would not flush. It seemed to have back pressure and I could not figure out why. I went to the next step and rebuilt the entire assembly with the spare kit. It failed yet again.

We still had at least two weeks before we would reach San Diego. After spending more than 20 hours checking fittings, tearing the head apart and rebuilding it and putting it back together at least three times, I finally threw in the towel.

We had to move on to Plan B. Plan B is never a good idea!

We decided that we were going to sacrifice one of Melissa’s beautiful stainless steel mixing bowls and place it in the bowl of the head so we could use it for our poop.

To make the poop disposal transition even easier, we would place a brown paper bag (we had lots of them as trash bags) over the stainless steel bowl and kind of smoosh it down into the bowl so we had something to poop into.

Since we were in seas up to 14 feet, I decided that I would pee in a Costco Mixed Nut jar that was easily sealable, and I could transport my pee from the head to the back of the boat to dump it easily.

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It wasn’t glamorous, but it was the best fix we could rig with our limited resources.

Well, everything was going fine… until that one watch where I just couldn’t hold it any longer. Typically, we would wait until one or the other was on watch and we would use the head at that time for some privacy. It was getting to the point where we were trying to time our “natural functions” and, as we all know, on a boat that might not be the easiest task.

My stomach growled again.

It was time to go.

We have a standing order on our boat that when you are on watch and the other person is asleep, you must wear your inflatable life jacket PFD and be clipped in.

I looked down below once again and saw that Melissa was sleeping peacefully. Now was my chance. I unclipped my safety line from the D ring in the cockpit and slowly worked my way down the companionway trying to be as quiet as possible. I tiptoed past Melissa and opened the door to the head without a sound.

As most of us know, using the head in heavy seas is no easy task, even when the head is working correctly.

I placed my brown paper bag over the stainless steel bowl and smashed it down as well as I could. This was an emergency.

As I relaxed and let things flow, so to speak, I realized quickly that the bowl was filling towards my butt. I had a stroke of genius and reached down and turned the bowl clockwise to give some more room in the bowl.

It worked! Kind of.

I didn’t move the bowl fast enough and I ended up smearing my buttocks. Oh, gross. I gagged and forced my way through the rest of it.

It was time to clean up. Even after using half of a roll of toilet paper, I still wasn’t feeling that “Springtime Fresh.” I had an idea. I could go to the cockpit and use the outdoor shower to rinse off and clean myself. However, I didn’t want to put my pants back on because I didn’t want to ruin them. Slowly and quietly, I stepped out of my pants and underwear and peaked outside the head to see if Melissa was still asleep. She was.

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Somehow, I grabbed some paper towels and I crabcrawled up the companionway and tossed my paper bag over the side. It splashed with a thud on the water. I laid my pants down and went to the back of the boat to rinse off and clean myself.

As I stood there, with just an inflatable PFD on and nothing else, taking a spritz shower, I couldn’t imagine how I would explain this to Melissa if she woke up and saw me at this moment. In my mind, it was just too funny of a situation.

Needless to say, everything worked itself out fine, I dressed and eventually Melissa woke up and came up on watch. We had a good laugh once I told her the story.

Later, once we were situated in San Diego, I tried to fi x the head again to no avail. I was tired of this crappy job, so I eventually hired a marine plumber. He said the head hoses were clogged from years of use. It took two marine technicians 12 hours of labor to replace the hoses and it was easily the best money I’ve ever spent on my boat.

So, if you happen to be out and about and meet a guy that kind of gags when he sees a paper bag, you may be standing next to me.

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Cruising Outpost 131

5/2/18 4:25 PM

Bubba Whartz Bubba Has Legal Problems

By Morgan Stinemetz It was a hot June afternoon with a chance of rain when I ran into Bubba Whartz recently, outside the Sarasota County Courthouse.

Bubba was in a highly agitated state. He chewed vigorously on a plug of Red Man and had his red hat, the one with the “Peterbilt” emblem on it, pulled down tight over his head.

Whartz, hands deep in the side pockets of his overalls, greeted me with a cursory nod and launched a squirt of tobacco juice toward the gutter.

“What’s the problem?” I asked, not entirely sure whether or not I was venturing onto thin emotional ice.

“Trixie LaMonte is the problem,” growled Whartz. “I should have never taken her sailing.”

“Trixie –, the exotic dancer?” I queried.

“That’s the one,” Whartz shot back darkly.

“You took her sailing?”

“Yeah, in March. Now she is suing me for interfering with an advantageous business relationship, restraint of trade, gross negligence, simple assault, battery, malfeasance, misfeasance and nonfeasance.”

“Tell me what happened,” I asked, because now I really wanted to know.

“Like I said,” Bubba began, “we went sailing. And sometimes women and sailboats just don’t mix. Anyway, I met her one night where she works, and I thought any woman who has moves like she does would do just fine on a sailboat. So, while she was dancing right in front of me, and I was stuffing five dollar bills into her britches, I asked her if she would like to go yachting the next day.

She agreed. I told her I’d pick her up on the beach at 10 a.m. the next morning and I told her where to be.

“I got up kind of early the next day to see if I couldn’t shoo some of the cockroaches off the boat before I went in to pick her up, but it wasn’t any use. They just looked at me like I was nuts. They have gotten used to living with me for so long that nothing scares them much.

“Anyway, Trixie was there on the beach just like she said she would be, so I launched my inflatable dinghy and went in after her. I think you know that I’ve had a problem for some time with keeping that dinghy of mine inflated because of an air leak. I have to pump the foot pump while I row it. Anyhow, I made it to shore okay, and when I got a good close look at Trixie my heart almost stopped. She had on a light blue Spandex one-piece body suit. It was lovely. She was lovely. I was dumbstruck.

“Well, I got her into the inflatable and started back for the boat. We were about half way there - me rowing with both arms

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and pumping with one foot - when Trixie put her arms around my neck, snuggled up against my back, and told me she always thought that sailing was real sexy.

“I guess that I must have stopped rowing and pumping at the same time, because the next thing I knew we were sinking and there was no way, me being distracted and all, that I could stop it. The inflatable pretty much deflated and we had to swim for the boat.

“When Trixie got out of that cold water and up onto the boat in that one-piece body suit, it was better than all the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issues I’d ever seen. And she wasn’t even mad.”

Whartz said he went below, got a couple of towels, and came back on deck with the intention of devoting serious personal attention to drying Trixie off, but she demurred. She’d take care of it herself, she said. Would down in the cabin be okay?

“You know,” Whartz went on, “I never even thought about those cockroaches. Trixie, she primped her way down the companionway ladder and into the cabin, but I guess her eyes were not used to the gloom. So, she didn’t see the cockroaches until she had slithered out of her body suit and was toweling off.

From what I can gather, one of the roaches landed on her foot while she was in a state of undress. I immediately knew what the problem was when she let out her first scream. She hollered a couple of times more before she appeared on deck in her birthday suit, dancing around like she’s just stepped on a nest of fire ants, and screaming all the time.

“I tried to grab her but she was still wet and slippery. All I succeeded in doing was throwing her off balance. She fell and landed, bottom first, on the port primary two-speed self-tailing winch. That must have hurt, because she let out another yell, jumped up and raced forward along the port side.

“You know how I always tell people to wear shoes on Right Guard? Trixie wasn’t wearing anything, much less shoes.

Anyway, she’d gone about five feet when she stubbed her toe on a chain plate. She was reaching down to grab her foot when she fell backwards over the lifeline and into the water. I tried to get her to come back aboard, but she wasn’t having anything to do with sailboats anymore. She screamed a few phrases in my direction and swam to shore, where she found a discarded plastic garbage bag, covered most of herself up, and disappeared down the street.”

“That’s an amazing story,” I said. “But how did it end up in court?”

“Well, Trixie was hitchhiking when she was offered a ride by some lawyer. He asked her why she was dressed in a plastic bag and, on the way home, she told him her story. He took her case, for no fee. Pro bono, it’s called. He had pictures taken of the bruise she got on her bottom. He told her that she couldn’t work with a bruise like that. And she had a sore foot, so she couldn’t dance. And they sued me.”

“What are you going to do about it?” I asked.

“I’m going to stay out of lounges where they have exotic dancers who have never been on sailboats before,” Whartz said, looking at me like I was slightly cracked before he turned and walked away, hands in his pockets, shaking his head.

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5/6/18 1:51 PM

Our Great Panama M

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4/30/18 4:19 PM

a M i s ad ve n t u re I am still trying to get my head around our transit of the Panama Canal. It was the quintessential bitter-sweet experience. “Sweet” because getting to and transiting the Panama Canal just seems like a big accomplishment. I imagine most of those with an interest in sailing have always considered a transit between the two great oceans (sorry Indian, Arctic, and Southern, you gotta try harder) to be a bit of a horizontal Everest. Personally, I never thought I would be able to include it in my short list of “have done’s” (which includes such notable events as visiting the Detroit Wonder Bread factory and a tour of the estate of Samuel W. Frances, the inventor of the Spork [U.S. Patent 147,119]. But, about 10 years ago Carolyn and I decided to go cruising on Third Wish, our Norseman 447, and all of a sudden a Panama Canal transit seemed attainable. “Bitter?” Because, well, you’ll see.

The Panama Canal Authority (or “God” as they are known in those parts) scheduled us to transit the canal (and thus the continent, albeit the skinny part) on March 5, 2017. The Canal Authority requires that you have four line handlers on board to take in the slack on the lines connecting your boat to the side wall of the lock chamber as you “lock up” (rise from one water level to the next in a series of locks), or to feed out the line as you “lock down.” This is important because there can be tremendous turbulence in the locks when you combine both the prop wash from the gigantic cruise ship in front of you and the millions of gallons of water flooding into or out of the lock chamber during a transit. Thus, in the right conditions, it’s like being in a washing machine. Our only line handlers were my wife and our good friends Tom and Nick. That meant we only had three line handlers, and thus, needed to hire a fourth. For $150.00 our Canal Agent, Roy Bravo (the guy who arranges your transit with the Canal Authority), supplied us with the remaining “professional” line handler.

I am a self-described “A” type personality. Look in my wallet.

All the bills are both face up and in descending order based upon denomination. Thus, to ensure we would not be late, on March 5th I was at the dock at 5:25 a.m. to meet both Roy Bravo and our line handler, Omar Santizo. Roy introduced Omar to us as “his best man.” (Yes literary buffs, this is foreshadowing.) I introduced myself, walked Omar back to our boat, started the engine, untied the dock lines, and headed out to the prescribed Panama Canal Advisor rendezvous point. (Note: you are also required to hire an “advisor” from the Canal Authority. The advisor is the liaison between you and the Canal Authority while you are transiting. He tells the captain where to go and when to go there. (In exchange you are required to both pay him a handsome sum and feed him hot meals while he is onboard.) We spotted the pilot boat carrying our advisor about an hour after arriving at the rendezvous point. The advisor jumped aboard and we were off.

Before I go on I should explain what a Panama Canal transit entails.

It is about 45 miles from the Pacific to the Caribbean through the canal.

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5/1/18 6:02 PM

These two oceans are basically connected by a man-made lake (Lake Gatun) in the middle of the Isthmus. Think of the lake as a “water bridge” over the mountain passes that were flooded when the Chagres River was dammed. Because this “bridge” is about 90 feet higher than the oceans on either side of the Panama Isthmus, you need some mechanism to lift a boat up 90 feet to access the lake. This “lifting” is accomplished by a series of three locks on either side of the Lake. Each lock consists of a 100-foot-long chamber with 100-year-old watertight doors on either end. When locking up, the doors open, the boat pulls in, and the doors close. The lock chamber is then flooded with water, which thus raises the boat about 35 or so feet. Once fully flooded, the doors at the other end of the chamber open and the boat pulls forward to the next lock. After three locks the boat is at lake level. A boat transiting south to north (from the Pacific to the Caribbean) locks up through the two Miraflores locks and then again through the Pedro Miguel lock. The boat then motors through the Culebra Cut and out into the lake. At the north side of the lake the boat then enters the Gatun locks and “locks-down” through the three chambers in Gatun.

In its infinite wisdom, the Panama Canal Authority decided two important things regarding our transit: (1) we would be going through the locks “center chamber” and (2) we would be placed right behind a very large cruise ship with a very large propeller that would be turning each time the cruise ship had to move from one chamber to another. A center chamber transit requires that you enter the lock chamber and maneuver close to each of the chamber’s walls in order to receive messenger lines that are delivered by guys standing on the top of a wall about 50 feet above your boat who throw down a very hard rope ball (a “monkey fist”) attached to which is the messenger line. In a perfect world, your line handlers then tie the messenger line to the 100-plus-foot canal lines you rented from your agent. Those lines are then pulled up the chamber wall by the Canal Authority workers who in turn tie your 100 foot lines to large, wall-top bollards. This ballet is repeated for each set of locks (of which there are three).

Once comfortably aboard, our canal advisor asked the question on the lips of all canal advisors: “When’s

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breakfast?” It was, thus, with “Quiche Carolyn” and coffee in hand, our Advisor started us into the canal with these immortal words: “murph slouff dernfubers...” Having been in Latin American now for three seasons, I quickly realized this was not Spanish, but fractured English spoken by a man happily stuffing his face with Carolyn’s egg and bacon delight. Our confused looks caused him to swallow and try again. “See that huge cruise ship? Follow it into the first set of locks.” I looked to my left and, sure enough, there was a MASSIVE cruise ship steaming our way. Lacking an internal edit function, my involuntary response was, “ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME”?

It was at this point that I realized two things: (1) Carolyn has very strong and pointy elbows and (2) they hurt when they make contact with your rib cage. Taking the hint, I immediately followed up with, “Yes sir, I will follow that cruise ship into the locks.” Thus, we entered our first lock, maneuvered close to the starboard chamber wall and prepared to receive the monkey fists. They came down fast and furious, but our line handlers were on it. They received the messenger lines and tied them to our rented anal lines which were then quickly hauled up the chamber wall by the canal dudes. I then motored across the chamber where we repeated the monkey-fist rhumba for our lines on the port side of the boat. (Except on the port side one of the dudes on the wall hit our solar panels with the monkey fist. Fearing Carolyn’s elbows of death, I remained silent.)

Within minutes, the water level in the chamber started to rise. It’s amazing how fast the water floods in. The water level quickly rose about 40 feet, the doors at the far end of the chamber opened, and the cruise ship put power to her props and inched forward out of the first Miraflores chamber and into the second. Within an instant we were hit with turbulent, swirling water the likes of which I had not seen since that unfortunate “swirly” incident in my middle school boy’s bathroom. In spite of the churning water, our guys were able to tweak the lines to keep the pointy end of the boat facing forward.

Once the cruise ship distanced itself from us, the Canal Authority guys on the top of the wall removed our lines www.cruisingoutpost.com

5/1/18 6:03 PM

from the wall-top bollards and walked the lines forward as we motored into the next chamber.

The process repeated itself two more times; once in the second Miraflores chamber and again in the Pedro Miguel chamber. Once out of Pedro Miguel, we motored out into the Culebra Cut, which is an artificial valley cut through the Continental Divide in Panama. We motored through this eight-mile-long cut and at the little town of Gamboa, entered Lake Gatun. We spent the remainder of the day comfortably motoring through the 20 or so miles of the lake until we arrived at the Gatun locks, the literal gateway to the Caribbean.

Although we arrived at about 3:00 p.m., the Canal Authority refused to permit us to enter the last set of locks. Instead, we were directed to the “Holding Pen,” an area of the Panama Canal where boats sometimes needlessly spend the night in the lake tied to a big buoy wondering why they are needlessly spending the night in the lake tied to a big buoy. Within minutes of tying up to the big buoy, our canal advisor was picked up by the pilot boat. His parting comment was that another advisor would be at our boat at 10:30 a.m. the next day, and that we should be untied and ready to enter the Gatun locks at that time.

We woke up the next morning at 8:00, made breakfast, ate, and generally readied ourselves for our 10:30 a.m. rendezvous with the canal advisor who would accompany us through the Gatun locks. For reasons which, to this day, continue to confound us, out next canal advisor did not show up until 4:30 in the afternoon.

(Yes friends, the canal is a lot like Washington D. C.—all the friendly charm of the North coupled with the efficiency of the South.) Once onboard, he directed us to untie from the buoy and tie up to the wall in the lock entry area. Ten minutes after tying up, a canal employee appeared and told us that there was yet another change in plans. We were now to be the last boat transiting the canal into the Caribbean that day. Thus, we were ordered to untie from the canal wall, back out of the lock entry area and wait until 6:00 p.m. to enter the Gatun locks. Aside from the drama of having to back up our boat in the Panama Canal, the practical www.cruisingoutpost.com

pg 134-141 Panama Adventure edited.indd 5

implication of this plan change is that it was going to be dark when we exited the canal. To make matters worse, a norther had kicked in with 25- to 30-knot winds.

On Third Wish our policy is to never enter a marina after dark if we have never been to that marina before. The primary reason is that there are many, many obstacles in and around marinas, both above and below the water, all hard, and many pointy.

And given that marinas are located along the shoreline, you are always in a shallow water situation when you enter. None of this can be seen in the dark. Thus, night entries are to be avoided like the plague. Consequently, when we arrive to a new destination at night, we simply stay out to sea and sail back and forth in sufficiently deep water until daylight.

Not wanting to enter the Shelter Bay Marina at night, I asked our advisor if we could simply spend the night in the lake again and transit the locks in the morning. His answer was an unequivocal “no.” This prompted a call to our Canal Agent, Roy Bravo, who previously directed us to meet him at Shelter Bay Marina as soon as we arrived. I expressed both my concern about entering the Marina after dark and my desire not to do so. He first told me that it was an “easy” marina to enter at night. He also assured me that Omar, his man on our boat, has entered the marina hundreds of times in the dark. He promised us that if we followed Omar’s directions, everything would be fine.

Omar also assured us that this was not a problem (and yes, for the literarily astute, this is more foreshadowing).

Thus, against our standing policy and our better judgment, we decided we would carry on to Shelter Bay once we exited the canal.

Our trip down the Gatun locks was effortless. Although we were center-chambered, we were in front of a massive ship this time, so that the prop wash from the super-ginormous Panamax ship locking down with us was not an issue. As we anticipated, however, it was dark by the time we began dropping down in the final Gatun locks. We were, nevertheless, ecstatic when the last lock doors opened up and we were, finally, in a new, albeit dark, windy, and choppy ocean.

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5/1/18 6:04 PM

Thus, we Pacific cruisers entered the Caribbean Sea… and smack into the teeth of that 25- to 30-knot norther. Our adviser directed us to the spot where he was to be taken off our boat by the pilot boat. It was so rough and windy, it took the professional captain on the pilot boat five tries before he could get his boat in position to take the advisor off our hands. This finally being done, Omar took over as the person giving us directions on how to get to Shelter Bay. As of this writing, we have come to understand that the best way to enter Shelter Bay Marina is to motor down the channel leading from the Panama Canal until you reach the breakwater. At the breakwater, turn left into a secondary channel that takes you right into the marina.

Unfortunately, we did not have this information when we exited the canal. Instead, our agent simply told us to follow Omar’s directions, which took us on a rhumb line from the canal to the marina, presumably because he wanted to get off the boat as soon as possible and head for home.

As we neared the marina we could see both the green and red lights marking the marina’s entrance. At this point Omar told us to head closer to the green light. This, however, was exactly the opposite of what we should have done. As we got closer and closer to the green light, we similarly got closer and closer to shore due to the course he directed us to take. Soon, Omar appeared confused. He stared out over the port side of the boat, seemingly lost, and asked if we had a flashlight. At about the same time, our boat rose on a large swell and landed with a shuddering thud on something very hard. It was as if someone had plucked the boat from the water and dropped us on a concrete road bed. I immediately put the boat in reverse in an effort to pull us backwards off of whatever we had just landed on.

Unfortunately, she would not budge. I was initially mystified because the charts did not show a shallow spot where we were currently stuck. Then there was another shuddering thud accompanied by a very loud grinding noise. Clearly, we had not only hit a reef, but given the weather conditions, we had hit a reef from which we could not extricate ourselves.

The wind and waves were pushing us against the reef such that every few seconds there was another shuddering

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thud and the concomitant grinding howl of fiberglass on coral. It was the worst sound I had ever heard. It sounded like our beautiful boat was in her death throws. With every wave she started to heel over more and more; first five degrees, then 10, 20, 30.

All hell was breaking loose and this progressive listing was not stopping. When she got to 60 degrees, which happened very quickly, we made the decision to abandon ship because she would soon start taking on water over the gunwales if her hull did not puncture first. Mind you, this all happened in the space about five minutes.

Tom saw that I was becoming incapacitated with anger, and thus, took charge.

(I think what tipped him off to this was all I could do was repeatedly scream at Omar, “I am going to f***ing kill you you mother-f***er. What did you do to my boat?”) He told Carolyn to put out a Mayday call. Carolyn immediately got on the VHF radio and transmitted the Mayday with the necessary information for a rescue party to respond.

Back above-decks, we tried to launch the dinghy from its davits so that it could serve as our life boat. This proved very difficult due to the listing of the boat and the fact that we had the dinghy tied up and secured for the passage through the canal. Not surprisingly, those securing lines quickly became a tangled mess. I grabbed the sharp knife I keep at the binnacle and started to cut away the tangled lines. The dinghy’s bow was on the high side and it was cut away first. A wave immediately took the bow and flung it like a rag doll across the boat’s transom toward both the reef and shore. The dinghy’s engine was now scrapping back and forth against the transom. Tom started cutting the dinghy’s stern lines free, but for some reason the dinghy’s stern still would not lower.

The situation was deteriorating quickly. Nick jumped into the partially lowered dinghy to try to free it up.

Within seconds the dinghy was hit by another wave which simultaneously rolled the dinghy upside down and flung Nick, like a rag doll, into the dark, turbulent water.

Now, in addition to our boat being dashed against the reef and, for all we knew, in its last few minutes of life, www.cruisingoutpost.com

5/1/18 6:04 PM

we had a man overboard situation, AT NIGHT. This is exceptionally dangerous. Nick was in the water near a reef with a large swell continually rolling over the coral. Tom yelled to Carolyn to bring up a spotlight and a life vest.

Omar, at this point, was curled up in the fetal position on the seat behind the wheel rocking back and forth and mumbling God only knows what. Tom gave him the light and instructed him to keep it on Nick so that we could attempt to bring him back on board. At the same time Carolyn gave me the life vest which I flung to Nick, all the while still yelling at Omar.

Meanwhile, the scene below was chaotic. Many of the cabinets on the starboard side (the high side) were flung open due to the violent slamming of the boat against the reef, their contents being flung across the boat. Carolyn, who had received a response to her Mayday call, turned to preparing Gilligan, our cat, for the rescue.

Thankfully, our rescuers quickly showed up. It turns out that the Oyster brand of sailboat was having its roundthe-world rally, which happened to stop in Shelter Bay a few days earlier. One of the boats in the rally, Shalen, had her radio on and picked up our Mayday call. Lenny Sackstein, the owner and captain of Shalen, jumped into his dinghy and was out to our boat within five minutes of the call. This was truly an amazing act of selflessness given both the weather he had to battle and the fact that he was to be in close proximity to an unmarked reef in order to be of any assistance. www.cruisingoutpost.com

pg 134-141 Panama Adventure edited.indd 7

Lenny approached off our port bow. As he inched closer he found that he could get right under the bow pulpit on the port side, thereby allowing us to duck under the pulpit and drop about five feet into his dinghy. Naturally, Omar was the first person in the rescue dinghy. Nick, who was able to swim away from the reef, also got picked up by Shalen’s dinghy.

While this was going on, I went down below to get Carolyn.

I found her in our cabin trying hard to stuff Gilligan into her backpack. It was a lost cause. He was simply having none of it. I told Carolyn to give me the cat because it would be easier for me to carry him up to the bow and into the rescue dinghy as I have more experience carrying things while duck-walking up and down the decks. (I knew the years of practicing my Chuck Berry impression would someday pay off.) She reluctantly let me take Gilligan. It told her we had to hurry and follow me to the bow, NOW. The boat was laid over at a hellish angle as we made our way forward. With every couple of steps she would lurch and grind on the reef. The swell was breaking against her side, which was having the effect of pushing her higher up on the reef and laying her over more on her side. I felt like I was in the Poseidon Adventure, (although thankfully, I was not hampered by a tuxedo). I got to the bow, dropped to my knees with Gilligan in my arms and handed him under the bow pulpit to someone in the rescue dinghy. I turned to make sure Carolyn was behind me and I dropped down into the dinghy. I then grabbed Carolyn’s arm and helped her to drop down into the dinghy as well.

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5/1/18 6:05 PM

I felt sick as we pulled away from what appeared to be our dying boat. I had spent 10 years of my life rebuilding her, bolt by bolt, to get her ready for this adventure. I felt as though I was leaving a family member to die as I saved myself. All at once I felt selfish, incompetent, inconsolable, and through it all, intensely angry at Omar and Bravo. As if this wasn’t enough, the tear faucet then turned on and the water works started.

The dinghy ride in to the marina took no more than a couple of minutes, given that we were so close to the marina’s entrance when we went up on the reef. The scene when we arrived was surreal. The marina was filled with Oyster yachts, most of them lit up and decorated with rally banners and streamers. Because it was an official rally stop, a party atmosphere permeated the air. We, unfortunately, were about to pee in the proverbial punch bowl.

Lenny pulled the dinghy into the dock adjacent to the marina restaurant. Omar quickly got out of the dinghy and ran off into the jungle. We have not seen him since (a situation for which he should consider himself lucky).

When we got out of the dinghy we were disoriented by the cognitive dissonance that resulted from being on what we figured was a sinking boat a few minutes before, and then being dropped off in the middle of a big, joyous party the next. We were immediately surrounded by people we did not know, but who were willing to do everything they could to help. This was obviously much appreciated as we had left the boat with NOTHING: no wallet, no phone, no money,

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no identification, no passports, no dry clothing, dare I say, no Wheat Thins … nothing. Thus, we had no place to sleep and no way to pay for one.

Carolyn attacked our homeless situation while I attempted to find a way to get our boat off the reef. The Oyster folks came through with dry clothes for our crew and a place for them to sleep. I was substantially less successful in my attempts to get the boat off the reef. There were no boats in the marina that could go out at night to pull us off.

Nor could the Panamanian Coast Guard, in spite of the fact that the reef on which our boat was stranded was directly in front of one of their main bases. This was because all their boats were out on drug interdiction missions at the time.

(Thanks, super-successful war on drugs!)

My next option was to contact my insurance company, inform them of the accident, and see if they could arrange for a boat to pull Third Wish off the reef. Unfortunately, they were equally unable to help. The only option was to wait for first light and try again.

I lay awake in bed until dawn. Tom and Nick and I walked out to the point to see how our boat was doing out on the reef. The sight was heartbreaking. She had blown over the top of the offshore reef we initially hit and drifted inshore. Although she was floating, which was awesome, she was still repeatedly being picked up and then dropped on the hard bottom of the coral trough in which she came to rest. With each drop, I could see the wheel whip back and forth and her rig www.cruisingoutpost.com

5/1/18 6:06 PM

shake. I couldn’t watch. Depressed, I turned and walked back to the Marina.

We eventually located an industrial dive boat to render assistance. I got in the marina’s dinghy and went out to our boat and organized the tow lines. The lines were ferried out to the big work boat and tied off. The radio crackled with the signal from the work boat that they were ready to commence the pull. I sat down next to the mast, crossed my fingers, and held on (which is not so easy with crossed fingers). The lines went steel-cable taught. Initially, there was nothing. Then came a loud and unearthly grinding sound. Ever so slowly the bow started to pivot to seaward.

Another grinding sound. Then, forward movement. We were free!!! I ran down into the boat and looked into the bilge to see if we had any water coming in. Thankfully, no water!!! I gave the signal and the tow boat began to tow us into the marina. They pulled us into the Travelift ways and we tied off. Within minutes the Travelift crew had Third Wish out of the water. Five minutes later her bottom, and her significant hull damage, was fully exposed as she sat over the water, dripping in the slings.

The damage was substantial. Half her rudder was gone, the entire port side was heavily abraded, and big chunks were missing out of the fiberglass which encapsulates the keel. Shockingly, however, in no place was the hull holed. NOT ONE!!! It is an amazing testament to the strength of Norseman construction that she survived 15 hours of grinding on a reef in 30-knot winds and high swell without a single hole in her.

I think one of the most heart-wrenching aspects of this drama is that it could easily have been avoided. We later discovered that Mr. Bravo knew about this uncharted reef, because several months earlier another boat under his care had hit the same reef. He, nevertheless, neglected to mention the existence of the reef to us, instead simply telling us it was an easy marina to enter at night if we followed Omar’s directions. If we’d had this additional piece of important information we would have known to follow the channel, rather than Omar’s “shortcut,” and avoided the whole thing.

Third Wish now sits on the hard in the Shelter Bay Marina boat yard with me as her sole resident to oversee the repairs. The current estimate stand at $75,000.00, but that does not include any damage that may be revealed once I pull out the fuel and water tanks so that we can see the inside of the keel to hull joint and the interior bulkheads.

I look forward to the day when the repairs are done and I can go home to Carolyn. Being in a foreign country where you barely speak the language, while trying to manage a large nautical repair project, is challenging at best. Humans can temporarily endure almost anything. I keep telling myself that I can endure this. And I will. As they say, the difference between adversity and adventure is attitude. Mine is good. But I am ready to put the adventure aside for a little while and have lunch at Chipotle. www.cruisingoutpost.com

pg 134-141 Panama Adventure edited.indd 9

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Cruising Outpost 141

4/30/18 4:21 PM

communications • navigation • weather

Cruising Outpost’s Book Reviews

SSB SATFI

SAT

CELL & WIFI

Passage Planning Navigation Weather Routing NMEA Integration

by Capt. Jim Cash

The Captain’s Guide to Hurricane Holes The Bahamas and Caribbean

By Captain Dave Underill and Stephen J Pavlidis

425-466-8161 sales@sea-tech.com

www.sea-tech.com

Your Great Lakes Connection to all things boating

Pick up your FREE copy at one of the 1500 marine locations in all the coastal communities in the Great Lakes or at one of the 40+ boat shows we attend!

See the issue online at: digitaledition.greatlakesscuttlebutt.com

www.greatlakesscuttlebutt.com Great Lakes Scuttlebutt Magazine

Given the hurricane activity we had in 2017 and the predictions of those types of storms becoming more frequent in the future, we felt the timing of Capt. Dave Underill and Stephen Pavlidis’ book was rather perfect. The Introduction and Forward are key, however. Both authors make statements to the effect that guaranteed safe hurricane holes do not actually exist. What they emphasize is, we should want to have the knowledge to protect ourselves and vessels in what could be considered a good “hurricane hole” if necessary (reaffirming that this is a “guide”).

Wouldn’t we all want to know where the most secure and safe location is in the unfortunate circumstance where we find ourselves in the path of a monster storm?

This guide concentrates on the notorious “hurricane belt” of the Western Hemisphere, where a huge concentration of cruisers choose to enjoy the warm breezes, crystalline waters, spectacular diving, snorkeling, and a multitude of other reasons why we gravitate to the Caribbean and Bahamas. However wonderful the region can be, we must

@GLScuttlebutt GLScuttlebutt

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142 Cruising Outpost

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WWW.CRUISINGOUTPOST.COM

5/2/18 2:43 PM

be cognizant of the ever present threat of hurricanes during the “season” designated by NOAA as June 1st through November 31st. If you find yourself in the path of what may turn into a Cat 1 – 3 hurricane, you need to plan early and this guide is written to help you find a place to duck in. Early is stressed here.

The locations referenced are for Cat 1 – 3 storms, because there is not much else you can do but pray if you find yourself facing a Cat 4 – 5 hurricane.

The guide educates us on some hurricane history of the storms in the area, their devastating effects, and what steps to take if we want to avoid becoming a casualty of another. The authors share, from their own cruising experiences, the prime places to take shelter, starting in the northern Bahamas and working down the Caribbean through the Turks and Caicos, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Spanish, U.S. and British Virgin Islands, Leeward and Windward Islands, to Trinidad. We then travel to Jamaica, Cayman Islands and the coasts of Honduras, Guatemala, Belize and Mexico’s Caribbean coast, before finishing up with Cuba.

Each hurricane hole described is graciously supplemented with close-up charts of the area, showing the latitude and longitude coordinates and identifying the government chart where

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you will find the location. We are also given waypoints and descriptions on how to maneuver to the best position.

The ending chapters give us the optimal weather broadcasts for each area, identifying TV, Internet, and “HF Weather” if you have HAM or SSB capability. There is also a list of all the charts with location and page numbers listed to match the description in the previous chapters. Finally, there is the list of marinas with location name and contact information.

This helpful guide was being finalized for publication as hurricanes Irma and Maria were punishing the Bahamas and Caribbean. Pavlidis points out that he was “shocked at the amount of utter devastation these storms left behind and how some of the ‘holes’ so favored … lost every vessel present, while others escaped with little or no damage.” He subsequently went through this guide before publication and annotated how some of these holes survived. Pavlidis concludes his observations with their discovery that some of the best holes are not as safe as many claimed them to be, while others, perhaps not so well known, did their jobs. Bear these lessons in mind when you seek refuge.

Cruising Outpost 143

5/2/18 2:43 PM

Life Aboard

Living Aboard with a Purpose

The tiny, independent island of Dominica in the Eastern Caribbean was devastated by a category five hurricane named Maria this past September. While visiting the hurricane ravaged island we heard about a couple that lives on their sailboat and had come to the rescue, bringing many things the islanders need (to the point of almost sinking), as well as help. We wanted to learn more about this philanthropic couple.

Cruising Outpost: First, tell us about yourselves, where you are from, what did you do, are you retired, etc?

Nicki: I’m originally from the UK, but married and living in Switzerland for 24 years prior to moving aboard. My husband is Peter, Swiss born and bred. I used to teach teenagers and really loved it. No two days were alike! Peter was the CEO of a boat sharing company with boats on all the sailable lakes in Switzerland. We aren’t retired yet, but are taking a sabbatical of unknown length. Currently our plans are to sail until December 2019, when we expect to be in New Zealand. And then, if funds, health and life situation allows, we’d love to spend

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the summer months traveling around New Zealand in some kind of campervan! We’re both early 50s, so expect to (have to ...) return to a more “normal” working life before officially retiring.

Cruising Outpost: What made you decide to want to live on a boat?

Nicki: Living on a boat and traveling the world is far more my husband’s dream than mine. I love traveling and experiencing new countries, but living on a boat and a sailing boat at that, was never really on my list of things to do! However, we are very conscious of the footprint we leave on the planet and sailing around the world is the lowest impact method within our means. We had a campervan when we lived on land, so the cramped amount of limited space has not yet really been an issue at all.

Cruising Outpost: How did you find the right boat and what is she?

We have a wonderful 1996 built Dutch boat, a Contest 43 with centre cockpit. We are generally alone on board and wanted a boat which two people could www.cruisingoutpost.com

5/1/18 4:33 PM

Editor Robin Stout Aboard Mermaid

easily sail. She really does fulfill that requirement handsomely. We had a few other “musts” on our list too - I wanted a wide, comfortable bed and not one which required us to climb over each other to get in and out.

We wanted a draft of less than two meters, as Belize has always been high on our list of places to go along with many other places where a shorter draft gives us more access to beautiful places.

We absolutely wanted a centre cockpit yacht and were willing to compromise on the spaciousness of the living area to get one. Our primary concern was for safety and feeling of ease when cruising far offshore such as the Atlantic crossing. We hadn’t heard of a “wing keel” when we started looking, but that is what we have ended up with.

Our draft when upright is 1.85m, but heeled we draw around 2.10m. This is a great situation and we also feel she is more stable when sailing close to the wind than other boats we have sailed with straight keels.

Living in central Switzerland made it quite difficult to view ocean-going yachts. However, over a series of three or four weekends in January and February 2016, we made trips up to Holland and Germany and viewed a total of 15 boats. We were quite disheartened at first, as each boat we viewed was unsuitable for our needs.

The 14th boat was the closest to our expectations in most respects, but needed some significant modifications doing to it. With just one more boat to see, and an eighthour drive to get to it, we discussed what work could be done to number 14 and ran the numbers around to see if we could afford it. We decided we could, but it would stretch our budget to the very limit and would leave us with only a very small contingency pot going forward.

And then we arrived at boat number 15.

The last on our list, and as you probably already expect to hear, it turned out to be the boat we now own.

The changes we had discussed on 14 had mostly been incorporated into the original build of 15. She had been beautifully kept and maintained by the previous owners who had her built to their own specification.

It was a very emotional sale on both sides, but turned out to be just the right decision. We changed the name, had the old bell freshly engraved so that it carries the old name on one side and the new name on the other, added some additional equipment to make her suitable for blue water sailing, and here we are!

www.cruisingoutpost.com

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Life Aboard Cruising Outpost: What have you learned about making a home on the water and what surprises did you find?

Nicki: Making a home on the water hasn’t really been much different to making a home in our house on land or in our campervan. The reduction in available space ensures that clutter is reduced to the max. Tidiness is very important – something, which is harder for the captain to get to grips with than the crew! We cook simple meals using mostly fresh produce with just the occasional canned items. We only have a very small fridge, which isn’t ideal, but we have learned to work around that.

The best, and most tedious thing so far, is being together all the time. Communication is easier when we are never more than 13 meters apart (the length of our boat!), but sometimes a bit of solitude would be nice. We previously both held very hectic jobs and were out of each other’s company during the daytime.

My husband was also often busy at weekends during the sailing season with sailing community events, and so, we had grown used to living very independently from one another. Being together on the boat 24/7 has been 98% wonderful and our teamwork has improved no end since we first set sail in July 2017.

The surprise of this lifestyle, for me, has been the constant cycle of breakages and repairs. We bought a sturdy, well cared for boat and I have been quite shocked by how often things break or simply just stop working.

The environment of saltwater and constant movement, plus now that we are in sunnier climes, the effects of UV damage, of course put a massive strain on all materials all the time. But it seems that no matter how careful we are, how conservatively we sail, how vigilant we are with our checks and controls, the next breakage is only a matter of time away.

I’ve also found that professional services are no guarantee against breakage or damage. For example, we had our Volvo Penta motor serviced in Martinique just a few weeks ago. A replacement part was needed, with the resulting long wait for delivery, and yet here we are in the USVI with engine failure and another new part needed!

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Cruising Outpost: What are your favorite parts about living aboard? And what is your least favorite?

Nicki: So far, the best part about living aboard is having everything close to hand! If something goes missing (for example, reading glasses!) while living on a boat, there are a very limited number of places in which to search! I also love being able to sit outside with my morning coffee and just watch the world wake up – even in the middle of the European winter months. Swimming and snorkeling straight off the boat is high on both our lists of “best things about this lifestyle,” as is anchoring in remote and less-visited bays. In Grenada we enjoyed the morning “Cruisers’ Net” (VHF 66, 7:30am) which made it very easy to connect with other cruisers and get involved with a couple of local projects. Having time to read is fabulous as is having the chance to write a blog.

Least favorite would have to be the nights spent in rolly anchorages! To date the very worst was off La Gomera in the Canary Islands, very closely followed by Anegada in the BVI. Otherwise, I think I can say we have adapted to the way of life quite well; don’t really miss anything in particular from our old life on land.

Cruising Outpost: Tell us about the charitable work you’ve been doing and what made you want to sail away to help others.

Nicki: “Giving back” is something we aimed to do along the way, and knowing we would be spending a season in the Caribbean, giving back to a hurricane damaged island was simply logical. I heard about the shelter in Mahaut, Dominica via a Facebook page and we made a special trip to the island to meet the people and find out more about it before getting involved with fund-raising. The cruising community in Grenada came together and gave us several bags full of donations to take on that first visit, so we didn’t go empty-handed, and they continue to show an interest in our efforts.

I’ve always been involved with charity work and used to work with a charity in London helping vulnerable children.

The children at the shelter display some recognizable signs of trauma distress, but facilities for counseling simply don’t exist. I also made many items to alleviate some of the

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Living Aboard with a Purpose distress symptoms of dementia patients. To find a shelter which houses both children and dementia patients tore at my heart. They operate on a shoestring at the best of times and have now taken in families left completely without any wherewithal after the hurricane.

There’s a family of six living in one room and two families of three, where the fathers and sons are living behind a curtain in the communal dining room, while their wives are housed in a separate part of the shelter.

People of varying ages who should be housed in care homes for people with mental disabilities are being helped as well. They’re all living together in one place which, itself, was badly hit and is without a watertight roof or permanent electricity supply.

Cruising Outpost: We heard you brought so many supplies that you almost sank! Tell us about that day.

Nicki: We were finally ready to deliver the substantial amount of goods to Dominica. Our fuel and water tanks were full and we were ready to go. We had good winds and big swell and noticed that the bow seemed quite low in the water. Below, water was coming in through a cabinet.

Water was everywhere! It made no sense as the cabinet has nowhere for water to enter. We were looking out over the bow of the boat and saw waves continuously coming over the bow. The bow was lower than it should be and we worried that we were going down! Forward, I went to the anchor locker and found everything in it was floating, even things that shouldn’t float. I had to move 60 meters of anchor chain to find where the water was coming in. The water was muddy from the anchor chain so I could only work by feel. I used a bucket to bail water like crazy and found the drain to the locker was clogged. After clearing the locker, the water started emptying. That was a relief, but now I had to go below deck and work on the mess there. We had loaded the heavy supplies too forward and too much to one side, so I had to move everything while pounding through the waves. We were so very happy and relieved to arrive in port and off-load all the supplies to the island. We learned that we would be better off collecting financial donations to help in the future!

Cruising Outpost: If one wanted to help without buying a boat and crossing an ocean, how would they go about that?

Nicki: I have more details on my blog. The posts regarding the shelter are set to “public” www.sailmore. ch and then click on “blog.” Donations can be made to my fund via PayPal: nicki@leconcierge.ch and marked “For Dominica.” Pastor Lena Augustine can be reached by email: lenalynn@hotmail.com or by phone / whatsapp: +1 767 285 1288.

WWW.CRUISINGOUTPOST.COM

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Talk of the Dock - What’s N

New Technology and a Few Stats Searching for newsy bits for this issue wasn’t too hard.

I just returned from Ft. Lauderdale where my ears were nearly blown clean off as we tested a new stereo system by Fusion, and leading-edge technology was just announced as a partnership between two German giants, BMW and Torqeedo. Finally, there’s mixed news for sailors in terms of the overall market stats but depending on how you look at it, you might make out in the near future.

BMW and Torqeedo Take On the Vendee Globe BMW and Torqeedo are collaborating on a zeroemission drive technology for German sailor Boris Herrmann’s yacht Malizia that’s to be sailed in the 2020 Vendee Globe. The rigorous solo, non-stop, round-the world race is a tough proving ground but Hermann, who’s planning to race for the Yacht Club de Monaco, says he’s inspired by the prospect of carrying the emission-free concept that will also generate its own energy to be stored in specialized batteries.

BMW is no stranger to advanced technology or the world of competitive sailing. Through its involvement in the America’s Cup and its focus on lightweight carbon

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fiber polymers that are now used in their auto models, they stand to make game-changing contributions to the sport of sailing.

The plan is to replace the onboard diesel, which weighs in at around 850 pounds (including fuel). One option is to use Torqeedo’s electric inboard motor with BMW’s lightweight lithium i battery technology that has good energy density and longevity. These batteries have already been marinized by Torgqeedo so the project is well under way.

An electric motor may be added as a hydrogenerator that will create energy under sail, charging the batteries and providing power to onboard systems, electronics and the canting keel. With the race just 18 months away, this advance in offshore sailing is sure to make headlines not just in Germany, but around the world.

Sailboat Market Update So you want the good news or the bad news? Let’s start off on a happy note: Sales of new sailboats (36feet plus) increased 14.4% in 2016. Also, imports of sailboats were up 3.2%, increasing for the third consecutive year to a high of 2,344 units in 2017 (per the National Marine Manufacturers Association).

Exports rebounded too after six consecutive years of decline.

Now for the rest: Overall, new sailboat retail sales totaled 4,900 units in 2017, down almost 11 percent compared to 2016 while US domestic production of sailboats was estimated to be 3,600 units in 2017, a drop of nearly 10% from 2016. But because prices have been rising, dollar sales in 2017 were $203.4 million, which is only down 5.4 percent from 2016, or in other words, roughly half of the units sales. That’s okay news if you have a lot of money for a new boat. But look at the bright side – in 3-5 years those fantastic boats will be up for sale in the pre-owned market and if you’re ready, you’ll make out like a bandit. www.cruisingoutpost.com

5/5/18 1:48 PM

s New & What’s Goin’ On? All The Latest News That Fits Between The Sheets As an “Insider” Zuzana sees a lot of what’s happening inside the boating industry. If you are into the boating lifestyle, chances are you’d like to be privy to some of the things that will affect your lifestyle as soon as they become available. So here is some of the inside info she has found while working the boat shows and industry functions.

Fusion Stereo Leaps Ahead - Again In just 11 years, the upstart New Zealand’s Fusion has landed a spot on the majority of the boats I test (both power and sail). Driven by technology, this band of Kiwis is a bit unconventional but maybe that’s what makes them consistently deliver ground-breaking technology wrapped up in sexy products that boat builders and boaters are eating up.

During the first week of May, Fusion introduced three new products all based on a key advancement: the placement of Digital Signal Processor (DSP) into the head unit. Other companies have toyed with DSP (that optimizes the highs and lows of music for unmatched sound quality) by adding it to component parts like an amp. By placing it into the head unit, Fusion ensures the new Apollo Series RA770 and the SRX 400 don’t need ancillary equipment to sound amazing. Also, no matter where you set your volume, due to the leveling of sound, you won’t blow a speaker. I’m not a hyper-sensitive audiophile but sitting in the “sweet spot” on a boat with Dire Straits blasting clearly from 8 speakers, I felt like I was at a concert.

The RA770 ($749) has a knob, a touchscreen and a shallower depth profile. It can communicate via onboard WiFi so you can connect multiple Apollo stereos without running cables, which is great for aftermarket installations. It can also act as a router for up to four systems simultaneously. The little sister, the Apollo SRX 400 ($349), also features the line’s bonded glass technology, which means no fogging, and Fusion’s PartyBus mode that lets you sync music in the cockpit, on the aft deck and below seamlessly without any annoying half second delay.

Finally, there’s a new product for quick stand-alone installations. Fusion took their fun StereoActive portable from last year and made a flat-mount version that can play AM/FM radio, music from a USB and even tunes from your phone or a Garmin watch via BlueTooth.

It’s waterproof to IP65 standard, also features DSP and has two 3-inch speakers built in. With two AUXin connectors you can use it as a sound bar for your onboard TV. No WiFi functionality in this baby but for $399 for a complete system, I can think of three ways I’d use it and not just on the boat. www.cruisingoutpost.com

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Apollo RA770

Apollo SRX 400

Panel-Stereo All-In-One Cruising Outpost 149

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Ah, the month of February. A time for lovers and a time for‌ women to get out on the water and show us what they have! On the south shores of Florida, in a quiet little city called Fort Pierce, the women did just that as they manned their vessels and decorated the waters of the Atlantic with sails of white. No, not in protest of anything, but in a hands-on competition of wits and skill. These women were competing in the 24th Annual Betty Jo Memorial Women at the Helm Race. This long-standing, competitive race, is a www.cruisingoutpost.com

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Women At The Helm

By Jeff & Brenda Thornton

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Women At The Helm

memorial to Betty Jo Porter, an avid sailor and first female Commodore of the Fort Pierce Yacht Club.

Since its inception, the race has encouraged women sailors of all ages, to participate in the offshore rivalry.

Although men may serve as crew onboard, only women are allowed at the helm during the race.

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This year’s race started with a fleet of seven competitors, all vying for the coveted Betty Jo Award Trophy.

Mostly made up of cruising sailboats, there was also a lone catamaran, the Sea Hawk II, who was favored in the race based on her past performances.

But, never underestimate the power of a determined cruising sailboat owner.

Diane Korbey, captain of Déjà Vu, a 35-foot Freedom sailboat, took the lead early and raced with the intrepidity of a skilled skipper.

She quickly emerged from the pack and steered her course for a perfect position to tack toward the first mark.

The other skippers followed suit and the race was on! As they headed toward their first mark, Diane O’Toole, aboard Varmint, a 40-foot Beneteau, closed the distance to race neck-and-neck against Sue Bremmer, skipper of My Weigh (a 37-foot Tartan), and Janet Woodrow, skipper of Westly, a 36-foot Catalina.

As racers rounded the mark, the light winds proved to be a challenge for the heavier boats. The scene off the coast quickly became a sea of white, as the seven competitors adjusted their sails to race wing-andwing during this final leg of the race.

The other boats threatened to overcome lead vessel Déjà Vu during this final leg. But Korbey, undeterred by the competition, sailed to victory a full 3.1 minutes before her closest rival. Battling it out for second place was Janet Woodrow on Westly and Anne Kern on the lone catamaran, Sea Hawk II. In a demonstration of dexterity and skill, Woodrow squeezed out the cat, taking second place.

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5/4/18 9:30 AM

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5/1/18 3:40 PM

The World’s

Largest Boat Show

By Jessie Zevalkink

Shoulder to shoulder in Hall 8b, I was just one out of a quarter million visitors from 102 countries at boot Water Sports Show, 2018. I listened carefully for American accents. Studied those whose language I was unfamiliar with. Smelled the scents of brand new products fresh out of production.

Plastic. Rubber. Wood. Bubble wrap. And the occasional schnitzel.

I was not there because Bob Bitchin could afford to send me there. I was there because five years ago Bob hired me to write a single article for Cruising Outpost.

That single article turned into me becoming one of his granddaughters. I became part of his family. Literally, he named his cat after me.

Turns out, being one of Bob Bitchin’s bitches paid off. I met my future husband at the 2015 Annapolis Boat Show. A British sailor, sailmaker, and salesman who, lucky or unlucky for me (depending on your point of WWW.CRUISINGOUTPOST.COM

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view), is perfectly happy making no money in the sailing industry with me. This is how I ended up at boot, flying by the seat of my pants with my European sailor. Thanks Bob (DadBob / GrandDadBob).

I found curiosity to a great degree, about the quarter of a million visitors from 102 different countries, who walked the halls of the water sports industry. I was there to find a few words about the experience, capture some action on camera, and people watch.

For three days I walked each hall, pausing at the products that caught my attention, and walking right past the ones that did not directly relate to my interests or to my life, just like everyone else. A handful of exhibits stopped me in my tracks, whether it was the product itself that I quietly wanted to squander all my savings on, or the divine craftsmanship of the stand in which the product was displayed.

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Some visitors walked aimlessly, with little intent, maybe just a polite guest of a water-sports junkie. Others engaged in passionate conversations about an experience they’ve had, or one they would like to. Children played in kayaks on a man-made river, climbed the high ropes course, or surfed the “big wave.” Families piled in and out of campervans, powerboats, and sailboats searching for their dream “mobile home.” Boyfriends and girlfriends held hands, stretched across two neighboring booths playing tugof-war, eyeballing different products. And there I was, in line at the bulk candy store for the second time.

For me, personally, this entire show was a social studies experiment. I walked out of each hall with an entire new plan for my life. Exiting the houseboat section, I had firm plans to invest in a few of those houseboats, dock them on our Lake Michigan property and turn them into Airbnb rentals. Brilliant, I thought. After the scuba diving hall, I was certain that my next move was to sail to the Caribbean, get certified, and learn everything I could about the ocean.

To swim with the sharks. Brilliant, I thought. I was inspired fiercely by the underwater photography equipment, so I began drafting up plans of how I could shift my wedding photography business towards the ocean. I really slowed down through the art gallery; I had never wanted to pick up a paintbrush so desperately in my life. I remembered how I dreamed of being a painter as a little girl.

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I wanted to know what made people tick. What stopped them in their tracks, just like I did in mine. What inspired them to make changes. Decisions. Choices. What made them feel like a kid again. How was is it that they secretly wanted to spend their money, but felt too guilty to do so. How did they truly dream to spend their time when they are not at work. How did all of these people want to spend the rest of their lives. What was going through their heads and was it as wild as what was going through mine?!

I was excited. Genuinely. About life, and all of its option. As I walked, I wondered how I could want so many things at once.

I compartmentalized how I maybe could do all of these things in the next few years. I stumbled upon the bulk candy store… for the third time… and thought… “Look at all these happy kids getting their sugar fix. I am so addicted to sugar just like them.

I’m going to open a bulk candy stand.” Brilliant. I thought.

The point is, the boot experience serves a fundamental purpose. To inspire ideas, and to tap into the potential of those who are drawn to the sea. For some, the boot adventure is just enough to put their goals into perspective, and to motivate them through their cold and dark winters.

For other’s it was the purchase or awakening of something bigger, a ticket to freedom. For me, it was a source of ideas and choices. It stirred motivation. Fed creativity. I wasn’t looking for this, but aside from a purple polka dot bag of gummies, that is what I left with.

Over and out.

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Cruising Outpost 157

4/30/18 4:30 PM

18th Annual Miami Sail and Powerboat Show & Cruisers’ Party

I

t was kinda funny. As I was about to introduce Isabella Stefania, who was opening for Eric Stone and his band, I realized that she had not yet been born when Eric and I started working together doing these Cruisers’ Parties at the boat shows!

Our “Cover Girl” from the previous issue had just finished cutting her first album in Nashville, so I figured it would be great to have her open, and it was! She rocked the opening and added a bunch of new fans!

This year we moved from Bayside to Virginia Key. The night of the party things got a little “mixed up” as the Atlantica, where the party was being held, “forgot” to tell their people there was a party. So, a lot of people who showed up were told there was no party. But for the 250-300 people who actually stuck around, the party went very well. We actually had beer left over! A first! Also, this year we had hot dogs and pizza as opposed to just pizza. No one went hungry!

The raffle went well, with the Educational Tall Ship Foundation ia an ef St receiving the proceeds. The top prizes were from Forespar, who Isabella c ri E e th r fo g donated one of their new PureWater+ filter systems, and from Seaopenin Stone Band Tech Systems which donated one of their hand-held Icom radios.

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Local boaters joined in on the fun.

Conner and Adam from Edson got here sucked into helping with the tickets, Jeff! t.

Cap by d being photo-bombe Okay guys, try to relax.

ed Some of our Wounded Warriors join us as well!

Would you buy a raffle ticket from this group? LOL

Did someone say “free beer?�

Come on... try to have a good time!

The bartenders did a great job!

The Icom radio winners (center) with the new owners of Sea-Tech Systems

in These folks own the No Name Bar one! cold a for in Stop e. ustin St. Aug

Eric & Eric Stone rocking out!

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Cruising Outpost 159

4/30/18 4:32 PM

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160 Cruising Outpost

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5/1/18 3:45 PM

I Found It At The Boat Show Since we get to (have to??) spend a lot of time at boat shows, we figured we probably should do some actual work. Strangely enough, drinking Painkillers and eating show-dogs doesn’t quite measure up to what the IRS people think is work. So, in order to be able to write off all the boat show expenses, we actually have to walk around and find new stuff to feature in the magazine. It’s not an easy job, but someone’s gotta do it!

Drive-Sleek Originally designed for a car, but works best on a boat!

Yeah, this was designed for use in a car, but it is really what we’ve been needing for our boats! The Drive Sleek is the most powerful and versatile 4G cradle cellular signal booster for vehicles, but you can use the Drive Sleek in your boat to keep you connected. Place your phone in the cradle and get up to 32 times better cell coverage!

What it does is strengthen your cell phone’s data and voice connection with the latest cradle booster. A stronger signal means faster data speeds.

Some of the other benefits you’ll find are that it extends cellular signal range and gives reliable cell signal and more consistent data speeds. It also gives you faster data downloads.

It boosts the signal for all U.S. cell carriers and has friendly, U.S.-based customer support. All the components needed for installation come in one package and it is FCC Certified.

Want more info? You can go to their website and see their line-up at www.weboost.com.

Cruising Outpost Event & Boat Show Section www.cruisingoutpost.com

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Cruising Outpost 161

5/7/18 12:17 PM

I Found It At The Boat Show

Nautic Alert Keeping an eye on the boat from afar just got easier!

We all worry about security on our boats and how to monitor things when we are away from our vessel. Here is something that the folks at Nautic Alert came up with that looks like it solves this problem.

Nautic Alert learns, reacts, controls, and notifies, with the details you need to make informed decisions, with time to spare, using custom-engineered marine-grade solutions.

Nautic Alert is an advanced learning system that can tell you the second your boat develops a leak, controls your pumps intelligently, and much

more. It makes replacing or complimenting your existing bilge hardware a breeze. The X2 uses the first Smart bilge controller designed to replace or enhance a float. It also has the first microwavebased intrusion technology designed to detect an intruder before they board, and it is built to withstand the harsh marine environment.

So, if you’ve been looking for a security system you can monitor from your phone, this could be the system for you. If you would like more info on this new, improved system, contact www.nauticalert.com.

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I Found It At The Boat Show

The ScubaJet A new way to enjoy the water even more!

The folks at ScubaJet have come up with an easy-to-handle water jet for SCUBA, paddleboarding, canoeing, diving and snorkeling. In fact, it turns almost any existing water sports equipment into powerful electric gear within seconds to make water sports activities more awesome. This is the first multipurpose and travel ready water jet system, and smallest diver propulsion vehicle, on the market.

ScubaJet maximizes the fun and minimizes the effort by turning every exercise into a leisure activity. It also takes some of the most popular water sports activities to the next level, giving an extra kick on or under the water.

The unit comes equipped with adapters like a finbox adapter, dive adapter, dinghy adapter, kayak adapter, and universal adapter for boats / kayaks and canoes. It’s probably the easiest way to get your water sports powered!

This is something I think every boat should have on board. The 200 wh batteries are allowed on airplanes too, so you can take it with you on your next adventure.

No matter what your planned use of this thing might be, you have to admit this is one very kewl item to have on any cruising boat. For more info see www.scubajet.com.

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5/1/18 10:18 AM

I Found It At The Boat Show

OneUp Small, convenient and easy to use! Oh yeah, it can also save a life!

Now here is an idea that is a no-brainer, and when it comes to no brains, we got ‘em! This kewl little gadget measures only 6.8 inches and weighs only 0.8 lbs., but it can save a life!

OneUp is a MSDS and CE certified device which comes with a waterproof cover to house the life preserver, and a carabiner which allows users to clamp the device to bags and belt loops.

It was designed with the principals of speed and portability, allowing for quick action in the event of an emergency. When OneUp is needed, the rescuer simply hands or throws the device to the victim, preventing tragedy.

OneUp’s ability to self-inflate is made possible by a small salt pod and CO2 inflation sensor that is commonly used in aeronautical and naval security. Upon contact with water, the salt pod dissolves, releasing the spring which activates the rapid release of CO2, causing instant inflation. The entire process from activation to full life preserver takes only two seconds and the device is reusable with just a 60-second reset time. A single OneUp preserver can hold up to 330 lbs. of weight.

Want more info? These are brand new to the market and can be found at www.oneupsaves.com.

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www.cruisingoutpost.com

5/1/18 10:18 AM

I Found It At The Boat Show

Silwy Drinking Glasses A new way to enjoy water even more!

Okay, they’ve finally done it. These Silwy drinking glasses are the perfect system for “glasses” aboard a boat.

They are made from highly transparent, shatter-proof plastic (also available in stem glassware), and they are stable and non-slip. In fact, they use a perfectly balanced force ratio between the cups and the coasters.

The Silwy metal gel coasters are included in every set (and can be removed with no residue). Their design

and quality requirements give them an elegant look while being very practical.

The glasses themselves are entirely neutral in taste and can be filled with contents up to 212 degrees F (100 °C). These are a practical companion on the high seas or at home for families with children.

You can find more about these at their website, www.silwy.de, and unless you read German, I’d suggest clicking the “Union Jack” on the top right of the home page!

Cruising Outpost Event & Boat Show Section www.cruisingoutpost.com

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Cruising Outpost 165

5/1/18 10:19 AM

High Wind and Wave Events Crossing the Gulf Stream

Crossing the Gulf Stream, where ocean currents can exceed two knots, takes some skill and if you try it under certain weather conditions, could be dangerous for any size vessel. High wind and wave events can occur under certain conditions along the northern edge of warm, fast-moving western boundary currents like the Gulf Stream off the U.S. East Coast. Other areas with similar conditions include the Kuroshio Current near Japan and Taiwan, the Agulhas Current along the east coast of South Africa, and the East Australian Current off the east coast of Australia. There is also the Brazil Current off Brazil, but this major warm ocean current does not have a big impact on commercial shipping traffic compared to the other currents, which may explain why there have been no known major weather impacts reported.

The figure below illustrates the global depiction of western boundary warm ocean currents.

The Gulf Stream

Benjamin Franklin, in 1786, noted that “vessels were sometimes retarded and sometimes forwarded in their voyages by currents at sea.” He knew that ships coming from Falmouth, England to New York took a fortnight longer than those coming from Rhode Island to London.

Franklin consulted a Nantucket sea captain regarding this and was told that the cause was the Gulf Stream.

(Nantucket captains knew of the Gulf Stream because of the whaling trade.) That same captain marked Franklin a version of the stream on a chart along with directions for avoiding it.

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Franklin provides a crude, but amazingly accurate for its time, rendition of the Gulf Stream as is illustrated here.

Temperature, Wind and Waves: Their Interaction with the Gulf Stream During the fall, winter, and spring months, when cold air moves off the U.S. East Coast over the very warm waters of the Gulf Stream, higher winds and unusually large waves can develop almost instantly along the northern and western boundary of the stream. These events produce waves that are larger than one would expect for a given wind force and fetch (the latter defined as the linear distance the winds blow from the same direction and speed). These conditions can present severe hazards to smaller vessels. In fact, there is documentation of waves being up to five times the normal expected original “significant wave height” values (defined as the average of the highest 1/3 of the waves present). For example, 33 knots, just below gale force winds which begins at 34 knots, can generate “significant wave heights” up to 18 feet. Mix in “rogue waves” or extreme waves (the latter term as preferred by oceanographers), on occasion due to temperaturewave-current interactions, can be double (36 feet). www.cruisingoutpost.com

5/1/18 4:02 PM

The high winds and associated seas with these cold air outbreaks arise from two factors: 1. A decrease in friction as the wind moves offshore.

2. Destabilization of the Marine Boundary Layer (MBL) as cold air moves over warm water (especially if there is a 20-degree difference in temperature (Fahrenheit) between the air-sea Gulf Stream interface).

Cold Air Over Warm Water

The illustration above depicts the stylized circulation in a shallow vertical scenario when cold air interacts with warmer ocean surface such as a western boundary current like the Gulf Stream.

During the winter, as cold air moves offshore over warmer waters off the U.S. east coast, the shallow cold air is destabilized, especially over warm currents such as the Gulf Stream of the western North Atlantic. The resulting strong vertical transfer of heat destabilizes and deepens the atmospheric boundary layer and the resulting destabilization allows high wind momentum to mix down to the surface. Ocean waves build quickly in response.

The synoptic scenario would be low pressure to the north or east, and high pressure to the west or north of the Gulf Stream. The first scenario will generate NW winds that would cross the stream at a 90-degree angle to the current’s direction of movement. The second scenario is when wind opposes current (or the wind is from the NE, especially in fall, winter and spring when we have greater temperature differences between the air above and the Gulf Stream below.

Recent cruise ships have encountered winds of 127 knots, which was double what NOAA had forecast. When ocean wind or swell waves encounter a current moving in the opposite direction, the response will be for wave speed and length to decrease; wave period will not change, but wave heights will increase, resulting in higher, steeper waves, which will lead to breaking waves. This type of www.cruisingoutpost.com

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5/1/18 4:03 PM

L e e C h e s n e a u ’s M a r i n e We a t h e r event can occur in all seasons and may or may not be associated with the cold air outbreaks mentioned.

In the figures below is a schematic depicting wind against current and wind flow perpendicular to the axis of the Gulf Stream. Below that are NOAA’s actual surface pressure forecasts confirming the isobar patterns that contribute to Gulf Stream Enhancement scenarios. To the right are NOAA’s 24-Hour Wind and Wave forecasts, with the Gulf Stream boundaries overlaid, that correspond Surface Pressure Forecasts to the left that highlight the two Gulf Stream North Wall

streets” begin to form, oriented parallel to the wind flow.

Note: The closeness of the cloud streets indicates the strengthening of the winds.

Because wave movement slows when they encounter an opposing current, they also refract. Just as bends in the coastline concentrate or diffuse wave energy, bends and meanders in ocean currents similarly concentrate and diffuse wave energy.

Wind and wave refraction is one possible origin for extreme wave heights. Wind and wave-current interactions increase exponentially as the current speed increases. This effect becomes significant when currents reach speeds of 1-1.5 knots.

In the images depicted below is a QuickSCAT image from a September scenario that depicts enhancement of higher winds blowing counter to the Gulf Stream (from the NE). Note that winds are just 15-20 knots outside of the Gulf Stream compared

scenarios. Presently, NOAA is not graphically depicting enhanced winds and seas, so boaters should add their own enhancement conditions (40 to 100 percent).

The NOAA GOES-visible image above shows a pronounced area of cloud-free skies along the coast of VA-NC-SC associated with cold, dry air moving offshore from the NW. As the air moves further offshore, “cloud

168 Cruising Outpost

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The Gulf Stream to 30-35 knots inside the stream. The temperature differences are not as great as perhaps in the November through March months, so winds speeds can be significantly higher.

The QuickSCAT images indicate cold air flowing at a perpendicular direction or set of the Gulf Stream current, where one can see precisely where the enhancement of winds begins at the northern or western edge of the Gulf Stream’s wall (highlighted with the bold green line with the OPC offshore waters zones for alpha-numeric text forecasts overlaid). OPC’s offshore water forecast zones have been revised since this graphic illustration. The bulge that protrudes to the right and above the overlaid Gulf Stream is likely to be a warm eddy.

Ocean current eddies can also cause large variations in the wave height and period. There are two types of eddies. One is a counter-clockwise flow (cold) current eddy and the other is a clockwise flow (warm) current eddy, with respect to the waves they can generate. This would be especially true for warm clockwise flow eddies because its dramatic temperature contrasts between the continental shelf waters adjacent to the cold Labrador current to the north and warm Gulf Stream current to the south. The counter-clockwise cold current eddies are actually not that cold, being embedded in the Sargasso Sea to the south of the Gulf Stream.

The thermal satellite image below is a depiction of the Gulf Stream and its eddies and allows one to see the dramatic temperature contrasts between the colder continental shelf waters to the north and adjacent to the warm temperatures depicted in the Gulf Stream to the south. This sets the stage for enhanced winds and seas. Note also: The Gulf Stream is warmer than the adjoining Sargasso Sea to the south.

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Designed to fit a standard size insulated coozie (coozie not included). The Winch Wench is not just for bottles and cans, but can also be used to hold other items such as small tools or rigging tape, your favorite bottle opener or snacks. One-piece construction and no moving parts to break, this cup holder is sure to give you years of use on your boat.

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Winch Wench Ad.indd 1

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Tech Tips

from Capt’n Pauley’s Workshop There are a lot of little things that can make your boat easier to use and more enjoyable. Here are some tips from Paul Esterle, the author of Capt’n Pauley’s Workshop. More can be found at www.captnpauley.com.

Upgrading Your Bow Hatch My Columbia 26 project boat, like many others of the same age, came with a box-style bow hatch.

Typically, this style of hatch has a wood, usually teak, frame and either a plywood or Plexiglas top. These hatches are hinged and seat in a recess around a raised hatch opening. Keeping water out depends on a seal trapped between the bottom edge of the hatch and the recessed surfaces.

Problems arise as the seals deteriorate, the wood frame rots and the top surface either becomes scratched, broken or delaminated. In fact, the one on my boat was so bad it was thrown away before I acquired the boat. I decided to fill in the recesses around the hatch coaming and then laminate a flat fiberglass surface over the opening.

The new surface would form a flange to fit the hatch while keeping the strength of the coaming intact.

My next problem was to actually fi nd a hatch that fit. I began looking at hatches on eBay. I

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set up an automated search that emailed me any time a new hatch appeared on eBay. Many of these hatches were NOS (New Old Stock) and many were also rectangular. I was eventually able to buy the perfect size hatch at a very reasonable price.

I filled the recess around the coaming with pieces of mahogany. I first roughed up the surfaces of the recess with 80-grit sandpaper to provide a good bonding surface. Once they fit well and were trimmed for length, I epoxied them in place with W.E.S.T. epoxy and high density filler.

Once the epoxy had cured, I sanded the surfaces smooth and radiused the corners of the filler strips. This radius is critical in allowing the fiberglass to drape over the edge of the coaming without forming a bubble. To provide a firm base to support the laminations in this area, I made a center filler piece out of thick artist’s foam board.

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5/2/18 5:59 PM

Tech Tips from Capt’n Pauley’s Workshop

I tapered the sides of the filler piece slightly so I could followed by two coats of Interlux Perfection two-part wedge it tightly in place. polyurethane paint.

I used alternating layers of 24 oz. Double Bias I began the hatch installation by drilling the holes Stitchmat and 9 oz. fiberglass cloth for the lamination. for the hatch fasteners. Since I could get to the bottom of I varied the amount of overlap on the deck to form a the hatch fasteners I elected to use machine screws and feathered or tapered edge, making blending it into the Nylock nuts to hold the hatch in place. deck contour much easier.

After drilling the mounting holes I removed the hatch I used more epoxy and applied blue masking for the laminations as tape all around the opening.

The finished and much imporved hatch epoxy will give a stronger I placed the hatch back mechanical or secondary in the opening and traced bond than polyester resin. around it. After removing I applied five alternating the hatch again, I cut away layers of cloth and the tape under where the stitchmat. The resulting hatch flange would sit. lamination was about 3/8” I also placed a rubber thick solid fiberglass. washer on each fastener I applied a thick layer of on the underside of the epoxy filler round the edges hatch flange. The rubber of the top surface and then washers kept me from overpushed an old shelf, covered tightening the hatch and in a plastic painter’s tarp, into the uncured filler. When the squeezing out all the sealant. filler cured, it provided me with a smooth starting place I applied a generous bead of sealant on the coaming for my final finishing. and the hatch flange, put the hatch in place and tightened I did most of the final sanding with a long board the fasteners. I cleaned up the excess sealant that covered with 80-grit sandpaper allowing me to work the squeezed out and then removed the tape while the sealant surface down to a straight and level final finish. was still soft.

The next step was to cut out the center opening. After This hatch replacement process is one of a variety marking the location of the cut-out, I drilled an access of options available to anyone restoring an older boat. I hole for my jigsaw blade and proceeded to slowly cut the found it an easy process that could be broken down into a opening out. series of easily accomplished tasks and a reasonable cost.

Before final installation, I painted the deck and new The end result provided all the benefits of a modern hatch hatch coaming, using two coats of Interlux epoxy primer on my project boat.

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5/2/18 6:00 PM

1991 60’ Samson - $155,000 Neal Damron - 804.727.4787

1979 56’ Nautical Developments Corp - $179,000 Curtis Stokes - 954.684.0218

1979 44’ Cheoy Lee - $56,000 Ryan Daniels - 904.580.0559

1980 44’ Cherubini - $169,500 David Robinson - 410.310.8855

1989 42’ Catalina - $69,500 Barbara Burke - 904.310.5110

1979 42’ Pearson - $75,000 Ryan Daniels - 904.580.0559

2001 42’ Catalina - $129,900 Greg Merritt - 813.294.9288

1977 41’ Ta Chiao - $79,000 Clark and SaraNell Jelley - 561.676.8445

1985 41’ C&C - $49,900 Greg Merritt - 813.294.9288

2001 40’ Sabre - $129,000 Clark and SaraNell Jelley - 561.676.8445

1996 40’ Catalina - $126,500 David Raftery - 802.349.7200

1980 39’ CAL - $71,900 Bill Boos - 410.200.9295

To see more details about these and all other yachts around the globe, please visit our website at

www.curtisstokes.net 172 Cruising Outpost

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5/2/18 11:31 AM

Worldwide Yacht Sales Yacht Charters New Yacht Construction

1971 39’ Pearson - $34,000 Stewart Reeser - 410.924.8295

1983 39’ Corbin - $48,000 David Robinson - 410.310.8855

2008 38’ Hunter - $120,000 Barbara Burke - 904.310.5110

1989 38’ Sabre - $97,500 Ryan Daniels - 904.580.0559

1977 37’ Tartan - $42,000 Barbara Burke - 904.310.5110

1979 37’ Gulfstar - $36,500 Barbara Burke - 904.310.5110

1981 36’ Pearson - $32,000 Wayne Smith - 516.445.1932

1995 36’ Catalina - $59,500 Greg Merritt - 813.294.9288

1986 36’ Catalina - $39,995 Wayne Smith - 516.445.1932

1983 36’ Canadian Sailcraft - $37,900 Quentin Haynie - 804.577.7227

1993 35’ Hunter - $47,500 Barbara Burke - 904.310.5110

1987 30’ Sabre - $33,900 Curtis Stokes - 954.684.0218

1.855.266.5676 | 954.684.0218 | info@curtisstokes.net www.cruisingoutpost.com

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5/2/18 11:31 AM

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34’ Sabre 34 Targa 1989 34’ Ericson 34 1987 35’ Catalina 350 2008 35’ Catalina 350 2007 35’ Jeanneau 35 2003 36’ de Dood Int. 1961 36’ Catalina MKII 2005 36’ Catalina MKII 2000 38’ Alden Challenger 1961 38’ Sabre 38mkII 1995 40’ Catalina 400 2001 40’ Catalina 400 2004 44’ Catalina 445 2011 45’ Columbia 45 1971 47’ Lindgren Ketch 1936 50’ Herreshoff Sch. 1985 54’ Jeanneau 54ds 2009 59’ Perry Custom 2006

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174 Cruising Outpost

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Sold 39,900 Sold 118,000 85,900 99,900 89,700 79,000 34,700 125,000 130,000 175,000 315,900 23,900 19,900 Sold Sold 873,500

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The Leader in Sales for Pre-Owned Island Packet Yachts - Visit Us at UsedIslandPackets.com

2000 Outbound 44

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2002 Island Packet 380

1989 Hans Christian 41’

2004 Island Packet 370

2004 Island Packet 370

1992 Island Packet 44

1999 Island Packet 40

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2000 Ricker Classic 42'

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1989 Gozzard 36’

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1983 Mikado Custom 56’

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176 Cruising Outpost

pg 176-177 Whiteacker Yachts.indd 2

2000 Tayana CC 48’

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1995 Hunter Legend 43’

1996 Island Packet 37

2006 Catalina MkII 42’

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1996 Island Packet Cat 35’ Marathon, FL $119,500

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1998 Island Packet 350

1988 Island Packet 38

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Hollywood, FL $105,000

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Placida, FL $49,900

Local: 941.776.0616

1993 Catalina Morgan 38’ Apollo Beach, FL $64,900

1984 Island Packet Cutter 31 Placida, FL $41,000

1994 Island Packet 29 Englewood, FL $62,900

1985 Endeavour 35’

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Cruising Outpost 177

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3

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Wanna Cheat? Here are the answer to this issues Maritime Crossword Puzzle.

Go ahead, no one will know.. except you! on Page 191

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pg 184-191 Bosun's Bag.indd 7

Cruising Outpost 189

5/4/18 3:49 PM

The Bosun’s Bag Hard To Find “Stuff” For The Cruiser

Audio Book

Now Available!

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pg 184-191 Bosun's Bag.indd 8

www.cruisingoutpost.com

5/6/18 3:31 PM

Get the Outpost at these Local Direct Dealers

Available at Most Magazine Outlets: West Marine, Barnes & Noble, Books-a-Million, Indigo & Chapters plus these great local Marine Stores Does your local Marine Store carry Cruising Outpost?

If not, let them know that it’s as easy as 1 - 2 - 3

1. Go to our website - 2. Sign up to be a direct dealer - 3. Make more sales!

W W W. CR UIS I NG O UTPO ST.COM Merri-Mar Yacht Basin 364 Merrimac St Newburyport, MA

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pg 184-191 Bosun's Bag.indd 9

Across

1 Old pirate ships 6 Anchor 9 “I told you so!”

11 One of the Dutch Antilles 12 Piece of advice 13 Center of a storm 14 Tide charts 17 Meteorological boundary 18 For example 19 Mermaid’s home 21 Newport Beach to Ensenada, for exaple 22 Type of wave 25 Sail-hoisting ropes 28 What winds do 31 Suntan lotion letters 32 Headsail 33 Ways of doing things 34 Relaxed

1 Hire, as a boat 2 Crew need 3 _____ line 4 Lowers in strength, as a wind 5 ____ Admiral 7 Deep-sea 8 Wetland plant 10 Tequila and rum 15 Brightly-colored lizard 16 Patch up a sail, e.g.

20 Expression of comprehension 23 Turned on an engine, with “up” 24 San Diego’s state 25 Water lines 26 Sails close to the wind 27 Towels off 29 Water bodies inland 30 Start to a poker game 32 Any boat, affectionately

Down

Wanna Cheat? The answer to this are on page 189

Bocas Marina Bocas del Torro Panama

Cruising Outpost 191 5/6/18 3:32 PM

In th

there isis issue less tha n

Cruising Outpost

L i s t o f A d ve r t i s e r s

33%

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And we did it O N PURPO SE! Most

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Here is where you will find some of the smartest companies in the industry. There are others, but they just haven’t found us yet. Give ‘em time!

I prefer my kale with a silent K.

Marine Advertisers

AB Inflatables 195 Annapolis Hybrid Marine 109 AKA Clean e-marine 109 Artisan Mattress 103 ATN 115 Aumaris Jewelery 117 Bacon Sails 145 Bellhaven Yacht Sales 183 Beta Marine 123 Beta Marine J Prop 129 Blue Water Sailing School 34-35 Bocas Marina 113 BVI Tourist Board 12 Celestaire 22 Clamptite 26 CO Products -Shirts/Hats 167 CO Winch Wench 169 Conch Charters 182 Coppercoat 132 Corsair’s 16 CS Johnson 118 Curtis Stokes 172-173 Defever Rendezvous 30 Eastern Yacht Sales 174-175 Edson International 29 El Cid Marinas 65 eMarine Systems 101 eMarine Systems 145 EP Carry 124 Fly Girl 147 Forespar Whisker Poles 129 Froli Sleep Systems 145 Garhauer Marine 6-7 Great Lakes Scuttlebutt 142 Hagerty Insurance 111 Hamilton Ferris 95 HMC/Handcraft Mattress 20 Hyde Sails 52 Hylas Power Cruiser 19 Hylas Yachts 2-3 IMIS/Gowrie 131 Indiantown Marina 119 Island Packet Yachts 11

J Prop 129 Kanberra Gel 123 Key Lime Sailing Club 119 Kiwi Grip 131 KTI Filterboss/Keenan Filters 31 L&A Store 143 Lee Chesneau Weather 147 Little Yacht Sales 180 M&B SHIP CANVAS 111 Mack Sails 21 Mainsheet 147 Martek Davits 147 Mazu 57 Moorings 59 Mystic Knotwork 116 New England Rope 113 Newport Boat Show 154 Next Gen 145 NMMA Boat shows 160 NV Charts 97 OCENS 117 Offshore Sailing School 9 Pacific NW Boater 133 Passport Yachts 72 Passport Yacht Sales 178 Polyplanar 125 Port Ludlow Marina 132 Profurl 25 Proteus Yacht Charter 77 Pure Water by Forespar 133 Pusser’s 17 PYI 116 Rainman Watermakers 106 Ranger Tug 28 Rocna Anchor 127 Ronstan US 33 Royal Cape Catamarans 107 Sailcare 125 Sailrite 196 Sailtime 181 Sea-Tech Systems 142 Seafrost 94 Seaward Yachts 10 Shade Tree 127 Share The Sail BVI’s 105

South Coast Yachts 179 Subscriptions & Back issue 78-79 Summer Solstice 75 Sunsail 23 Swi-Tech 118 Tea Tree Power by Forespar 115 Two-Can Sail 109 WATT Energy 27 Whiteaker Yachts 176-177 24 Wichard

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Bellhaven Yacht Sales 183 Blue Water Sailing School 34-35 Conch Charters 182 Curtis Stokes 172-173 Eastern Yacht Sales 174-175 Hylas Power Cruiser 19 Hylas Yachts 2-3 Island Packet Yachts 11 Little Yacht Sales 180 Moorings 59 Offshore Sailing School 9 Passport Yachts 72 Passport Yacht Sales 178 Proteus Yacht Charter 77 28 Ranger Tug Royal Cape Catamarans 107 Sailtime 181 Seaward Yachts 10 South Coast Yachts 179 Sunsail 23 Whiteaker Yachts 176-177

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Newport Int. Boat Show 154 NMMA Boat Shows 160 Bircher Inc. Cork Mortor Bellhaven Yachts & Charter For Sale Boye Knives Cruise RO Watermakers Cruising Concepts.com

Advertisers: You can reach the most active segment of the boating community - In Print or On-Line.

Cruising Outpost - Winter - Spring - Summer & Fall Issues Next Issue: Fall 2018 - Ad Insertions by 7/16/18 - Art Due 7/23/18 - On Sale 9/4/18

www.cruisingoutpost.com

192 Cruising Outpost _pg 192 Ad List edited.indd 1

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5/7/18 1:06 PM

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pg 193 Mackie White edited.indd 1

Cruising Outpost 193

5/1/18 10:23 AM

* Cruisians

*A small, exclusive group of people who are mentally ill and feel, for some reason unbeknownst to anyone, that by getting on a small boat about the size of a jail cell and heading out into the most inhospitable place on Earth (the ocean), they will somehow enjoy themselves.

Brian & Stephanie are getting ready to take off for awhile. He created Solar Stik, which is a nifty way to mount a solar panel on your vessel. She pushes drugs (it’s okay, she’s an anesthesiologist)!

That’s their new South African catamaran, Senergy, behind them, and they are getting ready to sail the world.

Why doesn’t Tarzan have a beard?

Captain Bill Pinkney was the first African American to solo-circumnavigate the world via Cape Horn. He joined the Navy in 1954 and has been sailing ever since! Having sailed the Great Lakes and oceans for more than 30 years, Pinkney decided to embark on a solo trip around the globe in 1990. He skippered the Amistad and retraced the route of the slave trade for a PBS Special. Bill is an icon in the sailing world!

Aaarrgh! This is pirate Valentino de Alva. He and his folks came to the Miami Cruisers’ Party and he had a great time. Valentino likes to get out on the ocean in their boat whenever he can. Marco & Marta, his parents, like to get out there as well!

194 Cruising Outpost

pg 194 Cruisian's editedR.indd 1

This is Gary Haas.

We hate to admit it, but he’s been part of the crew here for almost 20 years!

In fact, he “loaned” us his daughter Courtney to be the hostess on our TV show! Aside from being slightly nuts, he plays the drums in the Eric Stone Band and sails his boat, Gary’s Island!

Meet Ross Carter. Here you see him running before the storm after finishing a race on Lake Michigan.

He sails “a path less salty” and is well known for his love of the sailing lifestyle!

Rodney Roberts is at the helm of his 38’ Hunter in Chicago, while Reese (6) learns the finer points of sailing. From the looks of it she seems to be picking up the best part of sailing: the relaxing part! Looks like she’s good at it!

John & Kat love to sail their catamaran, but when he left to go down and look at a boat, she said, “You better not buy a boat!” The next day he bought the Lagoon 420 in Martinique. They’ve been sailing her for three years now and love it! www.cruisingoutpost.com

5/1/18 10:21 AM

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