Hobo Sailor

Moving Too Fast

2011-04-07T00:31:00.001-04:00

Sorry about the sound of the wind. Wish I could get the sound of the waves with out the wind!

Sailing to the Jumentos

2011-03-20T19:41:00.000-04:00

Short video of a nice day of sailing. Heading south to the Jumentos Islands one or two hundred miles North of Cuba.

Spear Fishing in the Bahamas

2010-11-30T21:17:00.006-05:00

Being from Michigan, I was raised around hunting and fishing, but I never really took to it. Fishing is too boring. You just sit around hoping the fish will start to bite.

Deer hunting is about the same, except that if you do shoot a deer, you are pretty much done hunting considering the rest of your day is going to be spent cleaning the deer and dragging it back to your camp or where ever.

Spear fishing is the best form of hunting for several reasons:

If there are no fish, you move on to the next spot. There is no guessing about it.
You can shoot more than one fish in a day (unlike deer hunting).
Fish can swim better than people, and breath underwater, so it's more fair.
Sharks can eat people, so it's more interesting!

Here is a video of a lobster wishing he had found a better hiding spot. We were anchored with Side x Side who had plenty of lobsters for everyone, so this guy was left alone.

Barracudas are a common sight when spear fishing. They are curious about people, attracted to shiny objects (like the stainless steel spear in your hand), and also attracted to the vibration of a speared fish.

They "stalk" divers. Which is really eerie. I typically just stare them down, and hope they go away. I've seen people charge at them to scare them off. Which I think takes balls of steel, considering they are more likely to get defensive when they feel threatened.

Normally whenever a barracuda came around, we would just go fish elsewhere. I've heard stories of barracudas attacking speared fish. Not a situation I ever wanted to experience.

This video shows a small barracuda. I tried to get a little closer but he started to swim off. As you can see in the video, they blend in pretty well. You generally don't see them until they are pretty close:

Here are a few videos of fishing with Chris and my Dad who was down for our wedding. I was after a spiny lobster. Took me a few shots:

Marc from Side by Side on the prowl:

Brian Snead from Miakoda makes a cameo as well

How to turn your laptop into a Chartplotter

2010-08-01T22:45:00.008-04:00

Chartplotters are so COOL!!

Especially the satellite radio enabled units that have weather and radar!

One of these babies will quickly make you one of the coolest people on the VHF. Call out the weather every evening, and you will be loved.

Why didn't I buy one of these?!?!

Oh yeah! because they are ... a little pricy ...

What would a HoboSailor do?

Well there is always the old standby: a paper chart. The major benefits are that they don't require batteries, and they are very cheap compared to a chart plotter. But there is another option...

If you have a laptop, then you are in luck. For about $40 you can turn your computer into a fully functional chart-plotter. Here's how:

Step One: Download this FREE program called SeaClear

Step Two: Buy one of these awesome GPS antennas that plug into your computers USB port.

Step Three: Download all of the US charts from NOAA for FREE. Your Tax dollars paid for them! How awesome of NOAA to allow us to download charts!!

The USB antenna will be plug and play. SeaClear provides instructions for how to install the charts. It's pretty easy. Look through the SeaClear user manual for the keyboard shortcuts. Those will be a big help for using the program.

That's it! A chartplotter for $40. HoboSailor style!

Cooking on a cruising sailboat

2010-08-01T21:43:00.012-04:00

When it comes to cooking on a sailboat, a propane stove-top and oven is the popular way to go. It is also probably the best thing to cook with. Propane burns pretty hot.

Here are the major drawbacks:

1. It is an EXPENSIVE setup. The oven alone is going to set you back a few thousand. Not to mention the special connections you will need to make your propane system "boat safe" - which brings me to point number 2:

2. Propose is heavier than air = BOOM! If you are going to go with propane, don't skimp. Take the proper precautions. If you have a leak, the propane will accumulate in the bilge of the boat, building higher and higher until one day you unsuspectingly light a watermelon scented candle and KABOOM! The bottom of your boat blows off.

All I am trying to say is that if you go with propane, spend the cash to do it right.

So what are the options for a poor HoboSailor? Well this is what we did....

We used a non-pressurized alcohol stove-top made by Cookmate.

The two biggest benefits to these guys are that they don't blow up, and they are cheap! They typically cost about $250.00 - which is pretty cheap compared to the $1,000+ you will spend on a propane range, not including the hose and connections.

The cookmate uses re-fillable wicks. You simply pour in more alcohol when the wicks stop burning.

Alcohol can be purchased at hardware stores or painting supply stores. Don't believe me? Read the back of the can! You will see a section titled "cooking fuel"

A lot of sailing books recommend buying high grade cooking alcohol because it burns "clean". We never had a problem with standard hardware store alcohol. I recommend you experiment and do whatever works best for you. If your pots and pans are all turning black, you have probably gotten a hold of some crappy alcohol.

If you are going for a long cruise... make sure you buy just one can to test out house it burns before you stock up with a 5 gallon jug.

The alcohol you pour into the wick will evaporate, so it is worth your while to buy these little rubber seals for the stove. These seals might come standard on a new stove. Our stove came with the boat... and it was missing it's seals, so we bought new ones.

The major draw back to an alcohol stove is that they don't burn very hot, so it takes a little longer to boil water for Ramen noodles :)

Another item that was missing from our inherited stove were these little flame diffusers.

Clearly labeled "do not remove" - the flame diffusers from our stove were missing! These probably come standard on a new stove. We ordered a pair while we were holed up during bad weather in Annapolis. I was so excited to be able to cook more than one pancake at a time!

Ready for a shameless plug?

All these things can be purchased from my friends at Mackin Marine - Why buy from a corporate bigwig when you can get what you need while supporting a few cruisers!

Don't we all wish we had LongerDays?

2010-07-13T23:51:00.001-04:00

Man how the time flys. It's been over a year since we stepped off our boat and walked away from our vagabond lifestyle.

I can tell you that re-integrating into "normal" life is just as hard as was stepping out of it.

Suddenly we "need" so many things! A dinner set for 12 people, just for thanksgiving? Sheets, comforters, pillows... for the spare bedroom. And of course we could never get by with out our trusty cell phones.

Everything we used to own would fit on the 35 foot boat... Now we have stuff we "need" so much that we shove it in Tupperware bins in the attic.

About 6 months after returning home I was thinking "oh no - this was a huge mistake." But then I remembered the key to happiness. Don't you wish I would tell you the key to happiness?!?!

Well I am going to tell you, but first I am going to delay a bit longer to really build up the suspense...

wait for it...

Are you ready?

Now I don't want to tell you because I have built up the suspense so much that I feel like I am going to let you down!

Okay here it is: the key to happiness is simple, it is doing what you love. (insert dirty joke here - I thought it was "what" but I found out it was "who" ha ha!)

So many more people would be so much happier if they would follow the simple guideline: Do what you like. Like what you do.

There are no excuses. There is no one holding you back. People take life too seriously anyhow. When it comes down to it, none of us get out of here alive! So you really have nothing to lose. We all get a handful of years that we can use however we want to. So make your life the one you always wanted!

Some people might take that the wrong way and say "well I always wanted to fly to the moon". I'm talking about simple things. Perhaps you hate your job? Get one you like! That is what I did, and it has made all the difference.

Every morning I arrive to work early, and every evening I stay late. The people I work with are brilliant, and I get immense satisfaction knowing that I am helping every one of our customers achieve things they could not have done on their own.

If I'm lucky, I'll get to work at a job I love while saving up money for a new boat to sail away. All I have to do is.... what I like!

Sailing to the Azores, Portugal

2010-06-20T16:37:00.000-04:00

I recently Sailed From Bermuda to the Azores in Portugal. This was my first Trans-Atlantic sail. Here are some videos:

Above ground... well graves I guess. In Bermuda
Our Vessel

A few hundred miles off of Bermuda this little bird flew into the cabin and landed on my shirt. Bill grabbed him and warmed him up for a while. It was a very gusty day, and we assumed the bird had been blown offshore .After seeing nothing but blue and grey for days and days and days it was really a pleasure to see some green. And on top of that, a really strange looking foreign green. All I could thing about was getting food and ice water. it was my mantra.
The restaurant by the red umbrellas had these really good shrimp pastry things called Rissóis de Camarão.
Horta, Azores - One of the few places in the world where more people arrive by sailboat than airplane.

This appears to be an abandoned church, what's amazing about it is in the next few pictures.
These flowers are GROWING. they're planted, not placed!
I've seen unique flowers in flower shops. but I've never seen them when they are actually being grown. I like the silver ones in the front.
Standing on the rim of a Volcano, or Caldera. It's last activity was sometime in the 1980's.

Lisbon, Portugal:

A website

2010-03-16T09:40:00.010-04:00

Sailors, if you are buying online, check out this website:

www.mackinmarine.com

We met the couple who run the site: really cool people - really good sailors.

They sparked the chain of events that led to LeeAnn and I getting married... and Ken taught me how to surf!

The truth about living on a Sailboat

2010-03-02T10:43:00.006-05:00

The truth about living on a Sailboat

Including our sail to Canada in 2005, LeeAnn and I have lived aboard a boat together for over two years. Not so long really. But long enough to answer some simple questions about our lifestyle that we are commonly asked:

1. It's an awfully small space... Don't the two of you get sick of each other?

LeeAnn: will answer later....

Chad: Yes. I have a can of either that I regularly use to knock LeeAnn unconscious with when I need a break. She never gets sick of me though. How could she? I'm so cute and lovable!

Serious: No, I don't get sick of LeeAnn. Sometimes we get mad at each other. But living and traveling on the boat puts us in a constant state of challenge. It's very hard to get things done when we are mad at each other, so we are normally forced to make up quickly.
For example:
We get mad at each other and go to bed. A storm comes up in the night and the anchor starts dragging. It's very scary, loud, and annoying to have to get out of bed and go stand in a thunderstorm, wet and cold, in the middle of the night. But it has to be done, and we do it as a team. Our anger becomes secondary to our goal.
It's easy to say living under such conditions has improved our relationship greatly. It's a great pre-marriage test that I would recommend to anyone.

2. How do you take Showers?
With soap and water Duh!

Actually it is a bit of a challenge. Two thing coastal cruisers will always be searching for: Grocery stores and Showers.

Three ways to get showers at a marina:
1. Fill up your gas tank and they let you take a shower.
2. Pay to take a shower.
3. somehow you acquire the combination and you sneak a shower.

options 1 and 3 are the preferred and most common.

Other ways to shower:
1. If the water is clean (like in Canada) you can take showers in the lake.
2. If you are somewhere private you can take a shower on deck with a solar shower.
3. Simply clean up inside the boat. towel off. wash hair in the sink.

3. How do you cook?

We have a single burner propane stove we can set up out side if we want to heat up a can of soup or something. But normally we just eat crackers and sardines. Sometimes we are lucky enough to catch a fish. but normally we just eat those raw like corn on the cob.

Just kidding.

We have a convection oven that runs on electricity, and we have a two burner stove top that burns Denatured Alcohol. We love to eat, and cook very good meals.

Most people have a propane oven. These are very expensive, and you have to find a place to put the propane. Not to mention you have to eventually find a place to fill the propane.
We chose the electric oven because we charge our batteries with a generator. So our evening routine is to run the generator for about 2 -3 hours during which time we cook dinner, charge the batteries, and watch a movie.

This setup works great. although if we could have afforded it we would have probably gone with solar panels, wind generator, and a propane oven.

4. Do you get seasick?

LeeAnn: No.

Chad: Offshore I pop Dramamine like candy.

The Cat: I'm ok as long as I'm with someone.

5. Are you rich?

As in money? Unfortunatly no.

6. How can you afford to do this?
We steal from old blind people.

And....
Budget, budget, budget is our mantra.
We bought a cheap boat and fixed it up, opposed to buying a new one.
We NEVER take docks. There is ALWAYS somewhere you can anchor for free.
When traveling we never eat out. And generally we don't drink either.

Also keep in mind, we have no car or house payments, or any of the standard bills, such as: cable, internet, or anything like that.

7. So how much does "it" cost?

In 2005 we didn't think about "budgeting" at all and we spent $3,000 in three months...
We spent the most in the first few weeks on nice docks and going out to eat.. Then scrapped by for the rest of the summer on hardly anything. we sailed from Canada to home on 500 dollars...

In 2007/08 our budget was $120 a week. $60 on food, $60 on Gas.
Some weeks we went way over, and some were way under. Generally it evens out.

For 2009 we plan on spending $140 a week. $70 on food. $100 on gas. Damn inflation.

None of these figures reflect repairs to the boat.
When all is said and done, we will spend $1,000 a month total. Something always breaks on the boat. Or we spend a few extra days in an expensive area (like New York) where we splurge.

8. What do you do on the boat?

It would be easier to answer "what don't you do?"
to which I would say: "watch TV or go to church."

We have a flatscreen and a DVD player to watch movies. We both like to read, and we have three shelves and a drawer full of books. We enjoy cooking very much. Lunch and dinner are highlights of the day. we sightsee. Watch sunsets and sunrises. Fix the boat, and worry about the engine. Relax, pay guitar, listen to music. Sleep.

9. How do you do laundry / get groceries?
We use cruising guides ("Skipper Bob" is a great (cheap) resource) to find out which anchorages have grocery stores or laundromats within walking distance. Generally we keep our walks under 1 mile.

10. How far from land do you normally go?
Generally not very far.

We are "coastal cruisers." However I have sailed across the Atlantic Ocean

Our goal for 07/08 was to see the east coast. We would never see it if we were sailing off out of site of land.

We made many multi-day passages in 2009

This last one isn't a question, it is actually a statement, and it drives me crazy:

11. It's good to get this out of your system / do it while you are young.
Neither LeeAnn or I see this as a temporary lifestyle. We love our lives. / Most of our cruising friends are over 50.

Additional / Answers:

12. Why doesn't LeeAnn ever give write in the blog?
She has tried it a few times. But doesn't enjoy it. I'll try to get her to elaborate herself later!

13. Where does Sushi poo?
I poo in a litter box that is tucked away in a cubby hole. Chad and LeeAnn clean it out for me every day.

14. How does Sushi deal with the boat and all the water?
Sushi: I was brought to the boat from the SPCA when I was only a few months old... so I really don't know anything different. I'm a curious cat, and I'm very interest in the water. Although I prefer to observe and play in it more than I like to be submerged in it. I enjoy playing in the rain very much.

I have free rein over the boat except for the counter tops.
I'm not allowed onto the docks.
I leave the boat on dinghy rides, and I'm very comfortable jumping into any dinghy that comes alongside the boat. But I don't really like to be on other sailboats. I'd rather spend my time hanging out in the dinghies.

15. What does the Sushi Eat?
Sushi: I've been exposed to fish, shrimp, crab, and chicken. But I've never eaten anything but my Science Diet kitten food that Chad and LeeAnn buy in bulk.

Other Posts about living on a sailboat that you might be interested in:

Sailing Books - A ciriculum to sail away

What is the food like?

How To Go Cruising Now (a step by step guide)

How To Make Money While Cruising

Boat Food!

2010-02-28T17:10:00.010-05:00

When you are a cruising sailor... your eating habits might change a little.

Some people are lucky, and have huge freezers to stock up with tasty treats.. like ground beef... and steak... Yummm!!

If you aren't one of the lucky ones... don't fret! You have lots of options:

Popcorn,
Chicken Ramen Noodles,
Beef Ramen Noodles,
Shimp Ramen Noodles,
Oriental Ramen Noodles,
Chocolate covered Ramen Noodles!

Just kidding, there are more things to eat than that...

There is also Spam!

Seriously not kidding, fried spam is delicious. Try it. It's like bacon... but more mysterious!

Forget fresh milk. Learn to live without it.

We used powdered milk for cooking. There is also some type of boxed milk (like a juice box!) that will last for months. Some people like it. LeeAnn didn't mind it, it was much better than powered milk by far. But by the time she had tried it, she had already gotten used to not having milk and decided to use the extra money for the occasional treat of ice cream!

You can do a lot with canned chicken.

For example, chicken Alfredo is good. Just use a McCormick package for the sauce, canned chicken, maybe some canned mushrooms, and a fair amount of garlic salt. This is a great meal to make in a big batch when there is bad weather. The rain adds to the flavor :)

Another canned chicken dish: Put the chicken in a bowl, adding a little mayo and all the curry powder you can handle. Toss it on a tortilla shell and you are done! MMMM mmm!

It might sound lame, and it is. But it's a change from ramen noodles.

A tip for condiments: mayo, mustard, all that stuff. Go to SAM'S Club, and pick up a box of each condiment in the little restaurant package style. Like you would get a package of ketchup at McDonalds. If you have a big boat with plenty of fridge space, this wont matter to you. If you have a boat with no fridge (many do) this will save your life!!

Here is my big finale for this post, my FAVORITE boat recipe... one I couldn't live with out.... PIZZA!!

What you will need:

Tortilla shells (You can make your own dough (we actually made our own tortilla shells!), which is fun, but use a tortilla shell if you are short on time.)

Pizza sauce (Non-perishable)

Mozzarella Cheese (buy it in blocks, it will last longer. Just cut off the mold, you will be fine.)

Pepperoni (Non-perishable, Thank God for that!)

So, make a pizza!

then put a little bit of oil in a pan, and toss the Tortilla shell pizza in the pan. Spin it around a few times so the oil coats the whole bottom.

Put a lid on a frying pan, and when the cheese melts... it's ready!

Fried Pizza = delicious

What kind of stove top did we use? An awesome non-pressurized burner that runs on alcohol. If you think you want one... buy it here. This website was made by cruisers, for cruisers.

Winter Time

2010-02-24T09:34:00.011-05:00

This time last year we were in a very different climate!

Here are some pictures of our house, and the snow fall we got last night. No schools are closed or anything. Just another day in Michigan!

Our house! The smallest one on the block!

The view from our back yard:

Yeah right! This is the part of the park behind our house. We do have a creek in our back yard though.

We live where the "A" is.
Our property stops at the creek, which in reality is only 162 feet back from the road. On the map it looks further. The picture above this one is of Ruddiman Lagoon.

I really like the area where we live. Lakeshore Drive is a very "small town" where as the rest of Muskegon is pretty much chain store "anywhere America". We have the park behind us and the creek, and Lake Michigan is just around the corner. It will be very easy to run out for a quick surf on the lake this summer. When we get our next boat, we have a large marina right up the road!

Outside of the place where I work:

LeeAnn shoveling snow while I play with the camera... Heh heh heh.

Michigan's finest. Keeping those roads safe!

My buddy Paul spinning a 500 - Photoshop by Paul

Some kid who is much less concerned about breaking bones than I am.

Somewhere that is not here

2010-01-29T08:07:00.003-05:00

Reading last night I came across this little bit and thought I would put it out into the world wide web for those who might relate to it:

Did his heart not falter as he realized--that this great and splendid place had been in its being all the years of his life and far longer, and he had been ignorant of it? This place full of wonders beyond his understanding, was in need of nothing from him, and his arrival was a matter of no importance whatsoever.

So has felt many the traveler in foreign parts who does not know what might be found...Cut down to size by a strange and marvelous place where no one even stops to notice that you stare about in awe.

How To Go Cruising Now (a step by step guide)

2010-01-16T13:55:00.006-05:00

Step by Step: From no experience, to crossing an ocean:

Even before you hit step one, I recommend you tell no one!

In my experience, most people are terrified to pursue their own dreams. To make themselves feel better they will try to hold as many people back with them as they can. LeeAnn and I call these people "Walters".

1. Get a book on sailing. I've listed some that I have found useful here.

Time frame for step 1: a weekend or two.

2. Get a small sailboat. 15 feet or less? It's up to you. You just need to get your feet wet. Learn the basics on a boat that doesn't cost a lot. A Sunfish is a very popular, fun boat to sail. Start looking here: Craigslist.com

Time frame for step two: One month.

3. Get a sail boat with a cabin. Twenty five or Thirty feet. The purpose of this boat is to take some longer trips. Learn how to anchor for the night. Learn how to sail all night. Learn what it is like to be on a small boat. Don't let the small size fool you. Many people have sailed around the world on boats less than 30 feet long. For example, The Contessa 26.

Time Frame for Step three: A year or more.

Step three is the last step. Sail the boat as far as you can, as long as you can. You will always want a larger boat, but keep in mind: The boat you have now, is the one you can cruise in now.

Buying a bigger boat means you need to save for it. Which means you cant go cruising in the boat you own now because you are busy working so you can buy the next boat!

For other opinions on this line of thinking, visit this forum: go small, go now.

How To Make Money While Cruising

2010-01-16T12:09:00.005-05:00

Option 1:

Take $100 to the bank and exchange it for dimes and quarters. Anything that was minted in 1964 or earlier is 90% silver and is worth 2 to 4 dollars depending on the price of silver.

Option 2.

Get a job and go to work.

If I can interject my opinion (and I will, because it's my blog) I would push you towards option 2. You are much more likely to actually make money.

I can read your thoughts:

"But doesn't the very definition of "cruising" imply a state of joblessness?"

To which I will reply, "In the fantasy land inside your head, yes. However here in reality things cost money. And get rid of that idea of living off the sea. Your wife won't go for it. And if you don't have a wife, you won't get one with that attitude!"

My recommendation is to get yourself a new definition for "cruising". One that includes periodic stops to get jobs. While we "cruised" or "lived aboard" we held numerous jobs, when looking back I feel in no way that the "adventure" was put on hold in anyway during these stops.

We met people that we will never forget. I instantly think of my job bar tending at the Crescent Yacht Club in New York. Doreen was the other bar tender at the club, and she will live forever in my memory standing at the back door to the bar, smoking a cigarette yelling in "Chad, poor me a shot of Sambucca!"

Doreen had a great sense of humor, but she wouldn't take shit from anybody. There is no question that of the two of us, she was the most likely candidate to end up in a brawl.

Ford Sellers became my big brother. He was probably the only reason I got the job in the first place. My favorite nights were walking home with him after the bar closed (we kept our boat at the dock behind his house). Frodo's hangover tip #1: Always eat a piece of toast, and drink a big glass of water before you go to bed.

Sure, there were bad days. But the friends made it worth it. My favorite cure for a bad day was to hang out with Kathy. I could always count on her for a Molson, chips and salsa, and being in a good mood by the time we left her place.

Our next "stop" from cruising was in Charleston, South Carolina. I cannot express how much I miss that city, or the friends we left there. I enjoyed living there so much I was tempted to stay for an additional year.

Here is a perk for you future cruisers who hate the idea of stopping to get jobs: Because of the connections I made with sailors in Charleston, I landed a job as a paid first mate on a Trans-Atlantic boat delivery. I sailed across the ocean and came back with almost 1,000 dollars in my pocket for doing it. Not to mention the connections I made with the delivery captain, and the sailing business that organized the delivery.

As a direct result of the experience I was offered a job as an instructor at Charleston's Ocean Sailing Acadamy. I reluctantly let the opportunity pass me by as I had already landed a job at the Virtual Assistance company LongerDays.com.

I know this post did not provide you with the answers you were hoping for. LeeAnn and I also preformed odd jobs while cruising. For example, in the Bahamas you can make a small illegal income cleaning bottoms. If you don't know what I mean by that... believe me it is not pleasant work, if only for this small reason:

Sharks and barracudas typically only attack humans in cloudy water. Cleaning bottoms causes the water to be cloudy! The cloud is caused by algae, which attracts small fish. Which attracts barracudas! Not to mention it doesn't take a genius to figure out why the majority of the algae is centered around the waste discharge outlet!

So there it is, you can stop in a city, make friends, money, and memories. Or you can risk being attacked by a barracuda in shit water underneath a strangers boat for the prime rate of 1 dollar a foot. That's a shitty way to die in paradise. Not to mention that if you did the same job in the States you would get double the money, and lose much of the risk of being attacked.

Sailing Books - A ciriculum to sail away

2009-09-19T09:24:00.007-04:00

I think the first book I read that really planted the dream of sailing in me was a book by John Kretschmer called Flirting with Mermaids.

I just picked it up at random in a book store, it has a good cover, a great title, and the first chapter was really easy for me to relate to.

Here are a few great quotes from the book:

"Dreams are private and fragile creations, we make them, live them, or ignore them. Dreams are, however, as much apart of sailboats as teak planks and sistered oak frames, rusty steel plates and the toxic chemicals that make up fiberglass mat..."

Or this one is great:

" If there is any advice, any lurking pearl of wisdom hidden in this book, it's something as simple as how to go sailing at all costs while steering clear of the stealthy nine-to-five routine that slyly steals the only thing you own in life: your time. You may not want your sons and daughters to read any further."

Another great book is by Paul Lutus, called "Confessions of a Long Distance Sailor".

When I first read this book it was available only in word processor format. Paul allowed people to download the book onto their computers for free. The book is still available for free online, but it is also available in paper back format HERE.

This is a great book to learn from, as it covers the authors journey from having no sailing experience at all, right up to completing his circumnavigation. It provides a very realistic insight into the day to day life of long distance sailing.

Paul Lutus designed spacecraft components for the NASA Space Shuttle, and created a mathematical model of the solar system used during the Viking Mars lander program. His best-known program is "Apple Writer" the first word processor for personal computers.

Now that I know his book is available as a book, I'll be buying it as soon as I'm done with this post!

If you are in need of a confidence boost, check out Maiden Voyage by Tania Aebi. I really didn't like this book all that much, it makes my list only because while I was reading it I realized: "if this bozo can drift around the world, I can at least make it down the East Coast!"

By the time Tania returned home she was definitely a very experienced sailor, but when she first started out, she had hardly any experience at all. Honestly I'm surprised she made it back at all.

Do not do what she did. You may not be so lucky.

These last two are more about practical education than good stories.

Sailing: The Basics: The Book That Has Launched Thousands by Dave Franzel

The title is pretty self explanatory. This book provides a very good balance between telling you what all you need to know, without boring you with minor details that really don't matter. If you don't know anything about how to sail but want to... this book is your answer.

Storm Tactics Handbook: Modern Methods of Heaving-to for Survival in Extreme Conditions, by Lin and Larry Pardey

There are many many books on survival at sea. This is the only one I have read so it is not really possible for me to compare this books virtues verses anothers. However, the Pardeys are accomplished, respected sailors, AND they write well. In many other cases it seems you only get one or the other. Their book Cruising in Seraffyn is also pretty good, but I found it hard to relate to. They are rather "old fashioned" and set in their ways. But it's still a good book.

A great book for anyone with a wandering spirit is The Beach by Alex Garland. You might be familiar with the terrible movie version of this book that stared Leonardo DeCapprio. The book is far better. It's one of my favorite books. It doesn't include anything about sailing, But it has a lot about traveling and adventure.

2009-09-02T16:43:00.002-04:00

We travel in a world tamed by paved roads and traffic lights. We watch the weather change outside our windows from our climate controlled fishbowls.

Finally an answer

2009-07-02T21:57:00.003-04:00

Ok, so I've put this off long enough:

We've given up, cashed out. We're done sailing... at least for the time being.

There are a million reasons, one big one was that, even though we were making money, and still able to save a little each year, we weren't able to put enough away for retirement. LeeAnn and I were a little worried that we would wake up one day and be 60 years old with no money and less teeth.

We had a great boat - we loved it, fixed it up, and sailed it thousands of miles. There were times I was scared for my life, but it kept us safe and never let us down once. It was our home. However, for long term sailing, we need a boat that can hold more people.... like... uhhh, kids... :)

Last but not least, we wanted to spend a little time with our families. Most people who leave home do it because they don't like where they live. That wasn't the case at all with LeeAnn and I. We liked where we were, we just ended up leaving. During the time we were gone, my Grandfather had a stroke, and I wasn't able to come home to see him. Things like that made us want to come back to spend a few more years with the people we love.

So! Our plan is to spend a few years at home.... like 10. Save up a little money for the future, buy a new boat, and have a little family time.

This won't be my last post, I hope to write a better, more thoughtful "farewell, and thanks for following along" post. But I keep putting it off because I don't really want to believe it's truly over! So for now, I hope this answer satisfies those who care to know. Speaking of which, thank you very very much for your interest. LeeAnn and I have gotten many emails asking us "What's going on?" We never knew so many people followed along, that makes it all the harder to stop! When I got an email from my big brother Frodo, I knew it was time to write something!

Questions from readers:

2009-06-21T18:33:00.004-04:00

1. If you had bought solar panels and did not have to run your generator everyday how much would that counter your operating cost?

Short answer:

installing a Propane stove = thousands of dollars
installing solar panels = at least 1,000 dollars
Total: maybe 5,000 dollars

Cost of a Generator = 800 dollars
Toaster Oven = 80 dollars
Total: 880

Long answer:

Our boat did not come with a propane stove, and they are very expensive. Our boat also lacked a way to charge the batteries. As you can see from above, installing solar panels and a propane stove would have cost thousands.

In the long run, that would have been fine, because over time solar and propane really are cheaper. But we are pretty short term cruisers. Most of our actual cruising time is only a few months at a time. The rest of our time is spent at a dock.

To this day, we have not spent 1,000 dollars on gas for the generator. So solar would actually be more expensive, and it we would still need to run a genny to cook meals.

If I were going to go cruising for 4 years straight, I would have sprung for the propane and solar. On my next boat I hope to use that setup.

If you are only going to go cruising for a year, a generator is a great way to go. When other cruisers are turning off lights to save battery power, you will be watching movies and making smoothies with your blender.

2. How did you learn to sail?

I purchased a book from Barnes & Noble that explained the basics. Then I got a small sailboat from my uncle, went down to the lake, and figured it out by trial and error. A month later I bought a 31 foot sailboat, with hardly any experience. I was 19.

Many sailors will try to make you believe that sailing is harder than it really is. Do not let them scare you. Sailing is easy. Just use your head, and always check the weather.

3. Was finding jobs while at sea difficult?

When we needed to work, we would stop and get normal jobs. This is a great way to get to know a place. When you are cruising you pass through a lot of places very quickly with out really getting to know them.

When you stop to get a job, you make friends you would have otherwise never met. You see parts of the city, and get to enjoy things other cruisers don't. I loved living and working in Charleston. I didn't want to leave.

For some people, stopping and working isn't part of the dream. But it is part of reality. Whether it is a good or bad experience all depends on your attitude.

When cruising we have cleaned boat bottoms for extra cash. I've also done boat deliveries. Many times captains will need a first mate for a delivery on very short notice. Being able to drop everything and go sailing for a month at a moments notice is something most people can't do. The draw back to this is that you will need to find a safe place to leave your own boat while you are gone.

3. Are there costs involved with going through the locks?

Yes. Most locks charge a fee. The Panama Canal has a fee. The Erie Canal normally has a fee, but for a few years (including when we went though) it has been free.

4. What type of paperwork is needed to be legal to sail around?

It's a free world. You can sail anywhere you want with no paper work at all. However if you plan on visiting land, you will want to have your passport. Documentation for boats depends on what country you live in. Here in the States your boat can be documented nationally with the coast guard, or it can be registered with a state.

5. Were you able to keep frozen meats?

Yes.... but that also meant that we would be keeping frozen milk. So for the most part we only had fresh meat. We would like to have a freezer for our next cruise, but keep in mind, having a freezer means a higher energy demand. We will need to run the generator for a longer period of time, or if we have solar panels we might have to add an extra one on, just to account for the freezer.

6. How can you afford to go sailing at such a young age? Where does the money come from?

We do a lot of tech stock investing, we got started when I invested in Apple 10 years ago, then we hit big again when we bought 10,000 shares of Google during it's IPO. Just kidding!! I'm a trust fund baby, my father is a partner at a large oil company, we get sent a check every month. No, I'm still lying.

We save. save save save. We don't go out to eat very often. We hardly ever go to the bar. Plus when you live on a boat you don't have very many expenses. There is no cable, no property tax, no phone bill or gas or electric bill. We paid 9,000 cash for our boat, so we had no loan payment. We've always got jobs near the marinas where we lived and we road bikes to get to them, so that means we have no car payments or gas or insurance to worry about.

Riding your bike to work is a great way to get exercise, and to de-stress from a hard day at work. Riding your bike in the rain is a great way to get in touch with your inner child! No adult in their right mind would go riding in the rain, or splash through puddles, but I had a good excuse and a blast doing it. If you ever want to have some fun, ride your bike in the rain.

Go Now

That is what people told us. So we went.

It doesn't matter if you have the best boat, or the newest gadget. So many would be cruisers waste time and money sitting at the dock trying to make their boat into the perfect "Around the World" cruising boat. Few people sail around the world. Be realistic about your goals. Where do you want to sail to next year? Prioritize a list of needs and wants. You don't need a 3,000 wind vane for coastal cruising and island hopping in the Bahamas. Maybe down the road you really will end up sailing around the world, and in that case you actually will need a wind vane, but that is an update you can make then.

Think about what sailors needed to go sailing 50 or 60 years ago. They didn't have anything, just oil lamps and a sextant. Figure out the bare minimums you need to go sailing now... and go. It's that simple.

Welcome home!

2009-06-10T18:42:00.004-04:00

It's been a while since I've made a post!

I have a big one coming up that will explain how and why we ended up back home in Michigan.

Being back in town, everyone has been saying to us: "Welcome back to reality!" My friend Gary sent me these words about "reality."

Those who see sailing as an escape from reality have got their
understanding of both sailing and reality completely backwards.
Sailing is not an escape, but a return to and a confrontation of a reality
from which modern civilization is itself an escape.

For centuries, man suffered from the reality of an earth that was too dark
or too hot or too cold for his comfort, and to escape this he invented complex
systems of lighting, heating and air conditioning. Sailing rejects these and returns to
the old realities of dark and heat and cold.

Modern civilization has found radio, TV, movies, nightclubs and a huge variety
of mechanized entertainment to titillate our senses and help us escape from the
apparent boredom of the earth and the sun and wind and stars. Sailing returns
to these ancient realities.

-Robert Prisig

Getting the Manatees High on pure water

2009-05-07T14:12:00.006-04:00

We were working on the boat today and it was incredibly hot, so I turned on a hose to cool myself off with. Suddenly a huge mass rose out of the water. I started yelling to LeeAnn "Come out to see the manatee!!
It turns out manatees really really like freshwater, and we were told it can give them a little buzz, just like pure oxygen can do with people.

They would suck the hose into their mouths and drink off it like a bottle.

There were 5 total, including one baby.

The manatees stuck around for over an hour while we fed them water. Then we stopped giving them water and they still wouldn't leave!

Sushi update for Aunt Joni

2009-05-05T17:02:00.008-04:00

Sushi the boat cat! here is an overview:
Sushi was born in New York State, but has traveled to three countries and into 8 different states.
Sushi has sailed about fifteen hundred miles.
She would get seasick when she was a kitten, but seems to have grown out of it these days.
The boat is like a big playground to Sush, and she climbs all over everything. She has ventured onto the dock a few times, but for the most part stays on the boat like a good cat.
Sushi liked dighy rides when she was a kitten, but like getting seasick, she seems to have outgrown those too.
Sushi is very interested in the water, she loves to watch it and play in it, but she hates to be submerged in it! She doesn't like seafood, but dolphins are a perpetual fascination to her.

Mostly she is just a lazy ass cat.

Fire in the boat!!

2009-04-29T15:51:00.003-04:00

Sailing out of the Bahamas.

We can count our time left in days. Very few days. I’ve been almost numb to it. Maybe sleep walking would be an appropriate description. I suppose it is one of those things you would rather just not think about.

We left Guana Cay today. Our goal was Green Turtle Cay, but the sail was nice, and we really don’t have anything to stop us, so we are continuing on to Great Sail Cay… The first Cay we stopped at in the Bahamas, and appropriately it will be the last.

We’re flying along. The wind is perfect, blowing just hard enough to move us along at a good clip. We have been traveling between 4.5 and 6 knots all day. At this moment we are doing 5.2. All the sails up. But the boat is only heeling around 4 degrees making this a very comfortable sail!

Our friends Lee and Trey are in front of us, and I think we are going to catch them soon, but they are only using their jib so it doesn’t really count if we pass them.

The sun was starting to go down, so I lit up some charcoal to grill a steak, and filled up the alcohol wicks to our Origo stove which ran out of fuel a few days ago. I then went outside and set about raising our big mizzen stay sail.

Before I had the sail set up just right LeeAnn asked me if I could come down below, "I'm kind of busy" I told her, "is it important?"

to which she replied "the boat is on fire..."

I dropped what I was doing and went below. The Origo stove was a blazing inferno. I opened up the lid to the stove and saw that one of the wicks had a huge flame that was burning out of control.

I grabbed a pizza pan and placed it over the round wick, thinking it would smother the fire out, which it didn't. But it did reduce the flames enough that I could put out the second wick with a towel and pull it out of the stove to prevent it from lighting up again and adding to the flames.

Then I thought that I might be able to smother the larger flames with a big towel. No luck, the towel instantly caught on fire and now we had two balls of fire burning inside our wooden boat, one of them being in my hand.

I turned and rushed for the hatch to throw the burning towel into the sea accidentally bashing into LeeAnn on the way. For a split second I saw the towel get caught in the belly of our big mizzen staysail I had just raised up, and with great terror I envisioned the whole sail going up in flames.

I quickly reasoned that the fire inside the boat was the bigger priority and I went back inside to figure out how to extinguish it when I noticed LeeAnn sitting on the bed holding a hand to her head. Apparently when I crashed into her the towel smacked her head and singed off a bit of hair, and most of her eyelashes on the right side!

I looked from LeeAnn to the fire burning in my kitchen and thought “Okay, this situation is really starting to get serious. I need to get this fire put out! Maybe water? Or hadn’t I heard somewhere that water will only spread an alcohol fire? Baking soda!” I started searching through our baking supplies: flower, salt, brown sugar, white sugar… Where the f*ck is the baking soda!"

The fire grows, and my thoughts start to blur in my panic, “Where the f**k is the baking soda!?!”

I hear LeeAnn in the background “I think you burnt off my eyelashes!” I chance a glance and see her examining the damage with a small mirror.

I finally find the baking soda and pour it on the fire..."Come on baby! If this doesn’t work we’re on to the fire extinguisher!!”

The flames go down, but not out. I close the hot lid to the stove melting the skin off my fingers, “Yes!” I think, “I can commit crimes and leave no finger prints! I am the invisible man!”

The fire goes out. LeeAnn is still on the bed with the mirror inspecting her eyelashes. She seems okay so I turn my attention to the food we had been cooking to asses the damage: Garlic and herb rice, steamed veggies, everything looks okay. But the steak!! it's still on the grill!

I rushed outside to find it a little over cooked and dry, but still edible. We dish up some sides, and go sit outside to eat. Right on time to watch the sun go down. Just chalk it up to another day in the life of living on a boat!

Hope Town // Guana Cay

2009-04-28T16:25:00.005-04:00

Lee teaching LeeAnn how to preform reconstructive surgery on our main sail.The lighthouse at Hope Town.

We only stayed a day or two in Hope Town. Just long enough to climb to the top of the light house. While we were there we met a cool girl named Ashley. She is a little quirky, but very genuine and nice. If you have ever read Harry Potter you can imagine Ashley as Luna Lovegood.

We struck up a relationship right away. She is the ONLY person we have met who is even remotely close to our own age on the whole trip! We made plans to sail to Guana Cay for the pig roast at a bar called “Nippers”.

Nippers is everything you would expect from a cliché 80’s movie with a setting in the Caribbean. A big outside deck bar with about 3 different levels. The tallest level being a big gazebo where the really sleazy guys can go to get a look down the shirts of the girls walking below.

Everything is painted pastel colors. There are two pools on different levels that are connected by a flight waterfall stairs. There are brightly colored umbrellas everywhere that were made out of the same plastic material used to make pom poms for high school cheerleaders. Women walk around in high hipped neon bikinis, again straight out of the 80’s. All the men are shirtless, as well as brainless, but they have big muscles so that must count for something.

LeeAnn is wearing a white skirt, and a bandanna for a shirt, and Ashley is wearing a faded white skirt, and a strapless shirt. They both look incredibly good and I must admit that as we walked into the bar where men out number women by 10 to 1... I felt like a total pimp! I was behind the girls as we came up the boardwalk and I watched all the heads turn. The guys don’t even try to hide it, and I even hear one them yell to a friend and point! I can feel the guys eying me, sizing me up and sending wave after wave of "cave man" competition vibes.

We dance, and have a good time. People try to dance with the girls, but for the most part they just dance with me or each other. This makes me incredibly happy... mostly because I can feel the collective saddness of the cavemen as they buy themselves another beer and pledge to spend even more time in the gym when they get home. I can almost hear their sad little thoughts: "how come little scrawny kid have two girl and I only have none? Me have big muscle! Me have big muscle!"

The party ends, we go to another bar. Dance more. Drink more. Ashley dances with the locals (depressed cavemen buy another beer). LeeAnn dances with me. The party quickly dies, and we all go home. The sun went down incredibly fast, and before I knew it the sky was black. I felt lucky to have made it through the night with out getting into a fist fight with a drunken bafoon on a testoterone high.

We all played guitar the whole night through and had a generally jolly time!

Now that you have read this far, I'm sorry to tell you that the story really had no point.

Eluthera Caves

2009-04-18T12:30:00.004-04:00

After hitchhiking for a few miles we made it to the caves:Bats!
The Caves were really cool. Over a 1/4 mile long, we went in one hole, walked a long long way, then came out another hole. It was pretty cool. I've never been in such a large cave. We had a great time.

Trespassing on private islands

2009-04-11T16:37:00.007-04:00

We've been told all beaches in the Bahamas are public. I'm not sure if that extends to private islands... but who cares. This place was too beautiful to pass up. I think it should be against the law for people with too much money to buy up incredibly beautiful natural islands and then shut out the rest of the world. Unless I become incredibly rich and buy my own island. If that were the case I would make a go-cart track on the beach that goes all the way around the island. Just like Mario Cart for Super Nintendo. And maybe I would put up a castle too. With a go-cart track on the inside, just like Bowser's Castle. way cool.

Cool Cave! We've been finding a lot of cool caves lately. There was a big one in the Jumentos that you could drive your dinghy right into. Unfortunately we never got a picture of it.

Lee inside the cave:

This picture is kinda self explanitory "She walks along the edge of where the ocean meets the land
Just like shes walking on a wire in the circus"
- Counting CrowsSo it doesn't look like she is walking on a wire in the circus - but this picture makes me think of that line. The song is called "round here" if you want to check it out.

You might have noticed LeeAnn is always in the pictures. I always ask her to take pictures of me, but she says that I'm not allowed to be in pictures unless I have taken a shower that week.

This is Lee. He has a long story and I don't know all of it. What I do know is that he ran away from home when he was 12. He hitch hiked clear across the country multiple times, even making it to Alaska. He ended up making it through college with a degree in photography. From there he back packed to various countries in Central and South America that were having wars and revolutions. I don't know if he went with the intention to become a photo journalist, but that is what he became. In other words, Lee became a War Correspondent.

He has been arrested numerous times (sometimes in America), been beaten by police, shot at, and hit with shrapnel from bombs.

Lee ended up in eastern Europe where he married a concert pianist who he could hardly communicate with, as neither of them spoke the same language. Lee started a photo agency.

Lee's photos have been on the covers and in the pages of Time, Newsweek, Christian Science Monitor, and a bunch of other newspapers that I don't remember.

He is a really cool guy, makes a killer pizza. We've been hanging out with him since Georgetown. He left for Eluthera today, and we were sad to see him go.... Where will we get our coffee fix from now??!!!??

Jumentos!

2009-04-06T15:44:00.006-04:00

The Jumentos - Almost completely uninhabited, there is only one little settlement which is located less than 100 miles from Cuba. These islands are considered remote even by Bahamian standards. Few cruisers visit the Jumentos chain, so the spear fishing and lobstering are pretty amazing.

Beach fire with our buddies from Miakoda and Side by Side

Trigger fish for dinner!!

White cliffs on Water Cay:
My monster Nassau Grouper:

To get to the Jumentos, we first had to make it through Hog Cay Cut. The tricky part about that is the cut only carries 0.9 meters (a bit less than 3 feet) at low tide. Our boat needs a little over 5 feet to float. The tides here usually fluctuate about 2.5 feet. So we had ½ a foot of wiggle room, assuming we didn’t find any rocks or mounds of sand that measured over .5 feet.

We arrived at the cut about 20 minutes before high tide. The weather was perfect. Sunny, and hardly any wind. There were hundreds of coral fans and fish in the cut. We also saw a school of about 6 stingrays. I watched the numbers on the depth sounder drop and drop and drop until they finally bottomed out at 5.4 feet. That was as low as it got, and we made it through with no issues. From Hog Cay we had a great sail down to Water Cay. Small waves, just the right amount of wind, warm sun, one of those days that most people would generally consider “perfect.”

Water cay is very long and narrow. Most of the island is made up of shear white cliffs. All very beautiful. We had a few sharks (the Jumentos are also know for the large number of sharks that come to breed in the shallow water) and barracudas swimming around the boats waiting for us to throw in some food.

The next morning we got up early to get the best of the last day of lobster season. We got skunked, only found 1! We settled for fresh fish and one lobster tail that day. As luck would have it, we later found all sorts of monster lobsters at the Cays further south that we traveled to… but it didn’t bother us too much that we couldn’t spear them. Our friends from Side by Side had been in the Jumentos for a while and had gathered up enough lobsters to share.

In general, the Jumentos were amazing. A true paradise. Beautiful untouched reefs, secluded beaches (wink wink), unbelievably clear water, tons of fish to be had for dinner…. I could go on and on. The trouble with all of this is that we found it very very hard to get comfortable. Things were perfect. So perfect that we actually started getting suspicious of our happiness. We were living the beginning of a cliché horror movie. The part where the niave kids show up to the remote island and everything is so perfect and they are so happy… then slowly the dream turns into a nightmare. LeeAnn and I both felt this way, but we told ourselves: “that’s childish and silly, let’s just relax, what could go wrong?”

We spent the next few days traveling south, and enjoying ourselves. We settled into a nice little routine. I would get up in the morning around 8:30 and read for a while. Around 11:00 AM we would go dive some of the most beautiful reefs I have ever seen to hunt for dinner. Come back around 4:00 and clean our catch. Dinner around was 5:00 or 6:00. Everyone would eat together. And that’s how it was pretty much everyday. The girls had their own routine. Swimming an exploring the islands. Combing the beach for shells. That kind of stuff.

Then one night I woke up to the sound of an engine. I assumed it was nothing but I took a look anyway. I went outside just in time to catch sight of a beat up old lobster boat leaving the anchorage. This was clearly a work boat , they didn’t have any running lights burning, but I could still make out a few shapes moving about on it. I assumed they must be fishermen looking for a place to hang out for the night. I went back to bed, and had a vivid nightmare about a freak storm coming out of no where and washing our boat up on the rocks.

I normally don’t have dreams, so I was really shook up. The next morning LeeAnn and I decided to head north. We got a lazy start and only made it about 20 miles up the Jumentos chain before we stopped for the night. There was hardly any wind, and I was really excited for a good nights rest. I was out as soon as my head hit the pillow. I was a asleep for a good few hours before I woke up, again to the sound of an engine. We had our anchor light on, so I wasn’t too worried about being crashed into. I decided I would just go back to sleep and I was well on my way to that goal when I heard the soft thud of an engine engaging and voices whispering.

I was instantly on edge, and really pissed off. I couldn’t believe that someone was getting so close to us. The island isn’t big enough for this dude? He has to anchor by us? I jumped out of bed and was about to rip the hatch open when I noticed that the voices were speaking in Spanish. I looked out the window and saw the same lobster boat from the night before. The three men I could see aboard the boat were all looking towards mine, only about 100 feet off.

Maybe it was because it was dark… and your imagination is always more powerful at night, or maybe it was because of the horror movie cliché that was still floating around in the back of my mind, but suddenly I put a few things together:

1. We were all alone.
2. Bahamians speak English.
3. Cubans speak Spanish
4. Our anchor light could easily double as a homing beacon for anyone who might be looking for a boat at night.

I quickly turned on some lights inside the boat. And our visitors slowly motored away. Maybe it was nothing, but I slept with one eyeopen for the rest of the night.

We got up early the next day and made it to Hog Cay Cut. It was a very good feeling when we made it through the cut. I felt like a kid who had just snuck into his parents bedroom while they were out for the night. Somewhere you know you aren’t supposed to be, but if you are quick enough, and don’t move anything…. You just might get away with it.

An island to ourselves:

Georgetown

2009-03-23T13:44:00.016-04:00

We’ve arrived in Georgetown, the largest settlement in the Exuma Cays. It was a bit of a shock when we first arrived. We’ve spent so much time in very secluded places where a “really crowded” anchorage might have 10 boats, and the crowd at the bar might reach 15 or 20 on a busy night. Here in Georgetown there is easily over 350 boats, and a huge crowd of cruisers to go with them.

Dinghies line the beach:

When we went to our first gathering we felt very awkward and uncomfortable. There were so many people. If there was a corner I would have stood quietly in it. But we were on a thin peninsula so no matter where we went we were surrounded.

At night the anchor lights look like a city, and because of the curve of the harbor you can’t see an end to the lights.

LeeAnn playing with the tree swing with the other kids:

The best way to describe Georgetown is “winter camp for Grandma and Grandpa”. Everything is very organized and scheduled. There is:

Dances
Volleyball
Softball
Tennis
Beach Golf
Poker
Trivia
Bachi Ball
Talent shows

As well as:

silly games, we saw one where the ladies had to put a plunger in between their legs and stand on one side of the volleyball court, the men stood on the other side of the court with a roll of toilet paper in between their legs. Then the ladies waddled across the court and stuck the plunger into the hole of the toilet paper. Don’t for get that this is grandma and grandpa… so it’s a little disturbing for us!

Another game was called “coconut harvest”. LeeAnn and I participated in this one. You get together a team of four, each person gets one flipper, and then you get into a little dinghy. The goal is to collect as many coconuts as possible. 700 coconuts were released into a small bay. A lot of the younger crowd participated in this event… and they were vicious. LeeAnn almost had her flipper stolen by another lady, but she fought back hard. When the other person couldn’t getLeeAnn’s flipper she tried to steal the coconuts out of our dinghy! Another team almost sunk our dinghy by pushing the bow under the water, so LeeAnn stole their chicken hat, and ripped a bell off a jester hat that one of their team members was wearing.

After the harvest we performed various relay races such as putting a coconut in between our stomachs and rushing to be the first across the volleyball court.

Our Coconut harvest team:
Chad, LeeAnn, Jay, and Jainie

LeeAnn and I also participated in a sand sculpting competition. My team got second place in the adult division. LeeAnn’s team got first place in the family division.

My teams sculpture:

LeeAnn's Team:

All the events are coordinated by an “event chairmen” and presided over by what I call the “camp counselors” who come complete with clipboards and megaphones.

It’s very easy to knock this place, but the truth is that after you get used to it, it’s pretty fun. We’ve meet some really great people, and had some very fun times. We’ve had campfires with guitars sing-alongs, smores, and hotdogs. There is a small grocery store in town that has a pretty steady supply of fresh meat, veggies, and even mozzarella cheese! Don’t buy the cheese in the bags though, it’s moldy, buy the blocks. Water is free, which is another great advantage.

Internet isn’t as easy to come by, which is why I haven’t posted in so long.

LeeAnn petting a stingray

Getting my haircut on the beach:

Rockin the guitar with Jay:

LeeAnn aboard "Pheonix" an Ocean Cat 49 - We were in the Georgetown regatta, but we didn't win:
Myself aboard Pheonix:
Hanging out with the gang from Miakoda:
Fresh speared lobster!

LeeAnn pointing at the Muskegon sign:

We couldn't believe that of all the places a sign in Georgetown could point to... one would point to our home town 1,485 nautical miles away!

LeeAnn signing our boat name on the Cruising board

Underfull sail:

A visit from the parents

2009-02-22T17:44:00.010-05:00

The folks flew in on the 15th and stayed for one week. It was great to have them. I haven't seen my parents in over a year!

We did everything while they were here. Rented boats, saw iguanas, pigs, got married, snorkeled everywhere. It was a great time. LeeAnn and I were very very sad to see them go.

Say hello

(Mike, Me, Shelly, LeeAnn, Ellen)

First on the list of things to do... buying groceries. Dale wonders what kind of mess he has gotten himself into.

Making Friends on the island. My dad buys friendship with cookies.

With the a rented boat we begin exploring!

LeeAnn spotted a starfish and pulled it out of the water for closer observation

The mothers Smell the starfish.Ellen making friends with a pig on Big majors

Dale taking a nap with iguanas LeeAnn feeding a cookies to a baby iguana

We went to Rachel's bubble bath where the ocean swells break over tall rocks into a deep pond. It's pretty cool.

Dale and Ellen get hit with a wave.

Mike and Shelly in the wash

LeeAnn Jumping into the surge

My mom really enjoyed combing the beach for shells, and we took to calling her "seashell Shelly"Trouble in paradise... LeeAnn got a sliver under her fingernail and had to shave her nail off with a razor.
Lee under a white cliff

The last time our parents saw the Sunset on the island.

I know a lot of great underwater pictures were taken with my Uncle Troy's camera... but I didn't have the proper card reader - so I hope to add more pictures later!!

We Got Married!!

2009-02-18T21:39:00.010-05:00

We spent all day running around looking for a place to get married. Finally we found the perfect spot after trespassing on some private property where it appeared the residents weren't home.

Our flower girls were the daughters of a fellow cruiser named Brian who we had met the night before, and we feel really lucky that we had met them. They brought a box full of beautiful flowers which added SO MUCH to the wedding. We're positive the wedding wouldn't have been nearly as beautiful if they hadn't been there, and we can't thank them enough!

Our friends Tom Karmen and Chris were in attendance, and everyone had a camera in their hands, so I will be posting more pictures when they come in from all the different cameras.

Waving goodbye to singlehood:
Waiting for LeeAnn to show up....
Getting hitched!!

Our Beautiful Flower Girls:
Ally:
Emma:
Family Picture

The Guests:Our Psychedelic recpetion

More Pictures from Karmen!!

Exploring Stainel Cay Areas

2009-02-14T09:32:00.005-05:00

We've been seeing alot of things around the Stainel Cay area. This place is amazing! there is so much to do.

A passing storm:

Sharks and Stingrays:

Just some spot.

Chris Surrounded by fishies

Being attacked by little fish outside the Grotto:

Big Majors Spot!

2009-02-14T08:39:00.004-05:00

The boat anchored at Big Majors Spot. Lots of white sails from the boat leaving!

While exploring in the dinghy we came across this really cool cave!!

In the CAVE!!
Years ago, loco Bahamians left some pigs on Big Majors. They aren't domestic, but they aren't really tame either.

Cruisers feed them, and the pigs swim out to the dinghy when they see you approaching
Life is hard for a Bahamian pig.

Shroud Cay Harbor

2009-01-27T11:38:00.003-05:00

After our first day at Shroud Cay, we moved around the corner into what's called "Shroud Cay Harbor". It's only large enough for 1 boat. You might call it a lagoon. It was very pretty, and we had our own little private beach:

Our own little beach where we hung out for two days:

After hanging out on the beach all of the first day, we came back to the boat and had a great dinner of Chicken Alfredo. Canned chicken, and powered milk to make the sauce, but it was good to me! Then we watched a few episodes of Arrested Development and went to bed.

I fell asleep fast, and slept hard. I was excited to get a good nights rest without the annoying ocean swell rocking the boat. Suddenly I woke to a loud CRASH. It was a pizza pan with some other dishes on top of it. I’m so used to things crashing at this point, so I didn’t really think much of it at first. I got up to pick up the mess, and noticed the boat had a slight tilt to it. The scenario was quickly unfolding before my tired eyes. The tide was falling and we were aground.

The optimist that I am, I thought “I’m sure the tide is low, this is probably as bad as it will get” … wrong. First I scanned the shoreline with our big flashlight. I could tell it wasn’t low tide yet, but I still clung to a hope. I checked our chart book for the tide, low was at 1:15 AM in Nassau. It 10:40 PM, and we were 30 miles east of Nassau. I didn’t know if that meant our low tide would be sooner, or later than 1:15. All I did know was that it was going to get worse before it got better.

It’s amazing how fast a tide falls.

We were already heeled over to 12 degrees. It seemed like only moment later we were at 15. Time passed, and the boat laid further and further to it’s side, drawers are falling open, plates falling on the floor. I didn't bother to clean any of this up. there was no point.

It’s very difficult to navigate a boat that is heeled over that far. I crawled around practically sideways like I was playing in a jungle gym. There was no walking. There was a strange gravity effect. Or maybe it was a trick of the eyes. But I felt a pressure in my head and I started to get a headache.

At 2:31 AM and the boat settled in at 28 degrees. It’s not really possible to sit, I’m always sort of laying down. LeeAnn is wedged against the wall trying to sleep. The water is just to the rail of the boat, and I’m hoping that we are at slack tide. There is no way I will be able to sleep before the boat starts to rise again. The waves are lapping against the hull which sounds unnervingly like the bubble sound a sinking boat might make.

I’m sad, because we had a perfect day. It was beautiful, everything a postcard tells you it should be. We found that dreamy, commercial land fairytale place. Unfortunately fate had to remind us that perhaps we were a little too lucky. Perhaps people shouldn’t be so carefree and happy. Life must be balanced by highs and lows. And thus our current situation.

I’m also sad because I think this means we will be leaving here tomorrow. That is unfortunate because high tide is around 8:00 AM, so we will have to leave early, and I’m also sad because that means we will be back out in the ocean swells and I’m again lost on my good nights sleep!

Again, you can’t have the sweet, with out the sour. Damn.

Well, I’m off to go make sure the boat isn’t sinking.

(we ended up staying in shroud cay harbor an extra day. The following is from my journal from the morning we left)

1-26-09 8:17 PM

We left the little harbor of Shroud Cay today, but we weren’t allowed to leave without a fight. I started to pull up the anchors around 8:00 AM, just before high tide. The wind was blowing from the North West which would push us right out of the narrow entrance, so I decided I would challenge myself by sailing out of the anchorage.

I raised the main, then pulled in the anchor. As soon as we were free I rushed back to the helm. The wind had already decided that we would be turning to port, so I put the wheel hard over to port to assist. We didn’t gain enough speed to complete the turn fast enough, and I felt the boat slide into shallow sand bank. “shit” I thought.

The stern of the boat was still floating, and I tried a few different sail combinations with the hope that I could use the wind to push us off. We didn’t move a bit. I called inside to LeeAnn for help. We pulled the main sail in tight to the center of the boat and started jumping up and down on the side of the boat to help it heel over as far as possible. The more we heeled the boat, the less water it would take to make it float. Despite our jumping, the boat wasn’t moving. It became obvious that we weren’t going to be going anywhere with out getting more serious.

I put the anchor in the dinghy and brought it across to the opposite side of the anchorage. Once back on the boat, LeeAnn and I started to pull in the anchor line with the hope that it we would pull ourselves off the ground. We wrapped the anchor line around the cleat once, and LeeAnn held the line while I pulled it straight up from the deck as far and hard as I could. Then I would drop the line and LeeAnn would pull in the slack as fast as should could. The motion was a lot like the big saws the lumberjacks used to use to cut down trees. Back and forth, I would pull, let go, she would pull. We worked in tandem like this for a few minutes, until we could pull the line no tighter. We weren’t moving.

We tied off the anchor line, and dropped another anchor off the stern of the boat and repeated the same process. Still no luck, both of us were getting panicky. The window of high tide was closing. If we did not get the boat off the ground we would be stuck until the next high tide which was about 12 hours away. Not to mention the boat would probably be laying on it’s side by low tide considering our previous nights experience when we weren’t hard aground and we’d nearly put the rail of the boat under the water.

Onto the last hope: We brought an anchor line to the top of the mast and pulled the line as tight as we could to pull the boat onto it’s side as far as possible. Then we put the engine on full blast in reverse, and I got into the dinghy with yet another line to help pull the boat to deeper water. Nothing, nothing, we couldn’t gain an inch. I was running out of ideas. What else could we do?

Luckily, when all hope seemed lost, another dinghy arrived, and with their larger engine we managed to get the boat floating again. Then we had the issue of dinghies floating around with lines tide to them, a line going to the top of our mast, and two anchors set. We couldn’t use our engine because of all the ropes in the water, and now we were drifting not only towards another sandbar, but also a large piece of coral.

Somehow we stopped the boat, very close to the coral, but stopped for the moment. We used the dinghies to get the anchors that had be dropped in shallow water, then as we left the anchorage. We saw a big eagle ray on our way out too!

We sailed to Black Point settlement. The first half of the sail was great. We made 6 knots easy. The wind picked up a bit much for comfort later in the day, but we were only traveling 25 miles so it wasn’t long before we were safe in a new anchorage.

Shroud Cay

2009-01-27T11:16:00.007-05:00

We spent about 3 days at Shroud Cay. It was very nice and beautiful.

There was a natural fresh water well on the island. Most people take their dinghy to the path, but we thought we would walk the shoreline for an extra adventure.

Walking to the well:

Where could it be?
We found the path!
Walking down the path:
A hole in the ground on the path:
I was thinking the well would be like, a hand pump or something. This well had fish in it. I feel bad for the old Spong Fisherman who used to get all their fresh water from this very well. The cement wall around the well was built in 1927.
Screw the well, I'm going swimming...

On this day it was LeeAnn's brothers birthday, and our friend John's as well. She made this for you three:

The Ruins of Royal Island

2009-01-27T10:53:00.005-05:00

Exploring the ruins of Royal Island:

Notices the "weeds" to the left of the picture.... perhaps this was something planted by the previous "operators" of this island.

LeeAnn and Banff:

Still no time to talk!!

2009-01-07T16:20:00.010-05:00

We're in Marsh Harbor, Abaco.

It's our least favorite of the places we have been so far. It's not very pretty, the people are a little rude, and it's very hard to get internet access!! We will be leaving here as soon as the windy conditions we are currently having pass us by.

Here are some of our latest activities:

Hope town!

Chris and leeAnn goofing off:The road ends (yep, that's the road)
Chris and LeeAnn wondering "where do we go now?"
Picture of the anchorage in Hope Town:

Dinner!

Take care, we miss you all :)

No time to talk

2009-01-05T10:44:00.006-05:00

We're sitting in a coffee shop in Hope Town. I don't have much time to talk so I'm just going to post some pictures!!

Fishing over a sunk boat in Banff's Dinghy

Chris getting ready to go spear fishing.

Banff ready to get us dinner!

Banff Shot a big Jack

Sailing on the banks:

I dove down and picked up a star fish... and this is leeann holding it!

New Years in Green Turtle

2009-01-01T18:10:00.003-05:00

When we woke up this morning we found that the anchorage had cleared out during the night. I was sad we hadn’t left too, I was anxious to get to Green Turtle. I decided we should leave right then. We packed up, and headed out. The wind was out of the west, and later switched to the North West. It pushed along at 5.5 to 6.5 knots. It was a great sail. We went from Sale Key to Green Turtle in 11 hours, which means we had an average speed of about 5.5 knots.

By the time we got to Green Turtle it was dark. We knew the channel was very narrow, and it was a little windy, so we decided we would anchor outside with the other boats, despite the waves. We made popcorn, cuddled up close, and started to watch “Galaxy Quest“. Before the main plot line of the movie picked up my patients was worn down by the waves. We were rocking like crazy. The bow of the boat was even getting wet. I didn’t have to say anything to LeeAnn, and she didn’t try to talk me out of it, we both just started making preparations.

After we had cleared the deck, and locked the cat in the bathroom, I walked to the bow of the boat to pull up the anchor. It was pitch black, I couldn’t even see the anchor line with out shining a light on it. The waves were hitting us hard, I didn’t have a chance to pull up the anchor by hand. LeeAnn sat down at the helm and put the engine in gear. The boat veered off far to the right, tugging at the anchor and point us in the direction of the other anchored boats. I called back to her “steer us to the left!” The next thing I knew we were pointing far to the left, tugging at the anchor. I called back to LeeAnn, “back to the right!” and as we came close to pointing towards the anchor I called back to her “straighten her out!” From then on we quickly adapted to that system, I would call back “a little to the left” or “back to the right.” We stayed on course enough that I simply had to pull the line on deck and wrap it up.

After we got the anchor secured we turned our attention to the more daunting task of safely arriving at the entrance to the channel. I navigated on the fly, quickly taking our lat and lon from the GPS and plotting it on the paper chart. LeeAnn was my eyes, keeping a look out for boats and watching the depth sounder while I kept my head bent over the chart.

Once we were close enough to the flashing channel markers, I abandoned the navigation. LeeAnn used our spot light to shine for the channel markers. We would pick up a green marker and head for it, then we would find it’s corresponding red. Once close enough to these markers, LeeAnn would start the search for the next set of markers. She would have to keep shining back to the markers we were passing to be sure we were still in the middle. When she took the flash light away for searching, I was flying blind. Then we would pick up another red, or green, I would head for it, and the process would start all over again.

We crept on. Suddenly we caught a break. A ferry boat was coming up behind us fast, shining his headlight. Kindly, he started shining the channel markers for us. He guided us past a few markers, then past by us. At this point, we were nearing the boats in the anchorage, we were technically still in the channel, but I didn’t want to go forward. Then wind was high, and it was very crowded.

We dropped the anchor right behind some French sailors, very near the shore, with barely enough water to float, but we made it. Exhilarated, and with adrenaline pumping, I rushed back to the cockpit where LeeAnn was standing and gave her a big hug, “We did it!” I exclaimed with a big smile on my face. She didn’t share my excitement.

I didn’t understand her attitude. We had been presented with a challenge, and we rose to it, overcame it. The anchor was down and our success was certain, what was there to be upset about?

We took in our surroundings. There were lights in the distance, and music from several parties drifted to our ears. Music that varied from happy island music with steel drums, to Cher. It was clear that many parties were underway in celebration for the New Year. LeeAnn began to dwell on her homesickness, and again I found myself mystified by our differences. Sure I missed my friends and family, and I would have liked to be at one of the happy parties, but I was just as happy, here on my boat. Reveling in our moment of success. For me, the challenge we had just over come was far more satisfying than spending the night partying somewhere. Parties are a dime a dozen. And I’ve spent so many New Years celebrations at stereotypical New Years parties. I enjoy the laughs, but the are quick to be forgotten.

The emotions we had just felt entering the harbor would be burnt into our memories. Of all the New Years I’ve experienced, and I’m sure for many to come, this one will be one I will distinctly remember. Yes we are alone, far from home, and the happy music we can hear is only salt in that wound. But we are writing the story of our lives, and parties make for boring stories.

Pictures of the New Years Day parade:

First day in the Bahamas

2008-12-30T18:07:00.002-05:00

We slept hard, and when we woke up it was raining. What a bummer! Our first day to get to play in the Bahamas and it was raining! We cheered up by making chocolate chip waffles. The rain soon stopped, and my thoughts drifted towards something I’d been looking forward to for months: swimming.

The deck of the boat was still wet from rain, and it was cold out, barely 70 degrees. Determined, I started preparing for a swim. I dug out the snorkeling gear that LeeAnn and I had bought with a gift card that LeeAnn’s brother Derrick had given us for Christmas last year. This day had been a long time coming.

LeeAnn joined me. We slowly pulled on our bathing suits and went outside. The deck had dried and it was a little warmer, but the wind was blowing harder. We looked into the water. It was alien. Who knows what was swimming around in there? Sharks, Barracuda, mutant killer shrimp?

I put on my goggles and prepared to jump in. It took me a few minutes to gather the courage, then I went in. I stayed under and frantically looked around. I couldn’t see as far as I thought I would be able to. It was all a little hazy. I kept spinning in circles, looking over my shoulder. I was scared that a shark was going to dart out of the haze at any moment. “Okay, I’ve done it. I‘m swimming.” I thought “Now I’m going to get out of here!”

LeeAnn decided that she wanted to slowly step down the ladder instead of jumping in. She got about half way down before she lost her balance and fell in, nearly pulling the ladder in with her. She rushed to get out. That was it for LeeAnn as well.

We moved onto cleaning ourselves. It was pretty cold, but it had been a while since we had a chance to wash up so we kept at it. It felt great to be clean. Then LeeAnn cut my hair so I didn’t look like such a bum when I checked us in with customs in the following days. By the time she was done the sun was high in the sky and felt warm on my skin.

I laid in the cockpit relaxing. Warm and happy. We were one of four boats and anchorage was large enough that we had a thin layer of privacy. LeeAnn came out, and we hung our foul weather gear on the lifelines to increase the seclusion in our cockpit. Then we laid naked in the sun eating grapes listening to music. We lost track of time.

When our ambition returned, LeeAnn cleaned the inside of the boat, and I cleaned out the dinghy and the outside of the boat. We decided to go for a dinghy ride to shore. We explored the shoreline that we assumed was a small coral reef for the rest of the day.

The Crossing

2008-12-29T17:57:00.002-05:00

We left West Palm Beach, Florida around 1:00 AM on 12/29/08. I tried to get some sleep before we left, but I was wide awake. I thought it was kind of funny that I didn’t feel any excitement or anticipation for Christmas this year. But as I laid in bed trying to sleep, I felt like a little kid again.

It started out a lot rougher than I hoped, and we were making really slow progress. It was pitch black out, a sharp contrast to the bright screen of the laptop I kept having to look at to make sure we were going the right direction. The screen was ruining my night vision, I started feeling sick. I was very close to turning us around. LeeAnn and I talked about it. She seemed to want to soldier on. I laid down outside in the cockpit. I reasoned that we would head out for a few hours and see if it got any calmer. As I laid there thinking I started to feel a lot better, which made me more ambitious to push on.

In the end we decided to go for it. I’m glad we did. It was a bit rough for a while, but it progressively calmed down. This morning the sun rose, and we found ourselves passing between two squalls. Nothing was moving fast, and I sat there wondering which one of the little beasts was going to hit us. The one on our right looked a lot more friendly. Then I noticed a little cone coming down from the storm on the left. I thought “man, that’s weird”. The storm didn’t look docile in any way, but it also didn’t look like the type of storm that was capable of producing a tornado. As I was thinking this, the cone grew longer, stretching out towards the water. Then I noticed water being thrown into the air, spraying about in a circle. “oh fuck” was all I thought. This thing was coming down really close to us. LeeAnn was asleep, what was I going to do? I jumped up and dropped the main. I bundled it up tight and wrapped it with bungy cords. Then I got the jib wrapped up. I looked back over and saw the water spout dissolve.

There were a lot of white caps, and whichever storm was going to hit us I didn’t want to have our sails up. So we motored on. Slow, and uncomfortable, we pounded into the waves.

After a few hours black storm cells were still circling about, but I felt that if a storm was going to hit us we could get the sails down fast enough, so we put the main back up. The boat settled into a more comfortable motion. LeeAnn came out for her watch. I told her how to spot a squall, and that if one approached we had to get the sails down. Then I went to bed.

When I woke up we were getting close to the Banks of the Bahamas. We had been in water over 1000 feet deep, and in less than half a mile (7 minutes) the water was going to shallow up to around 25 feet. It was going to be cool.

The water slowly started to turn into a brighter and brighter blue. When we looked ahead we could see a distinct line of pretty blue water that we assumed was the bank. Suddenly the depth sounder came back to life. 80 feet, dropping fast, 70, 60, 50, around 30 feet we started to make out the bottom. I looked ahead: There were black shapes all around in the water, huge black shapes. I suddenly started to get nervous. What if the black masses were coral heads? Was I sure that we were coming onto the bank in the right spot? I started double checking things. Everything looked in order. I slowed us down anyway, and kept a close eye on the depth sounder. We hovered around 25 - 30 feet. The water was beautiful. Blue water. I felt like we were sailing on liquid glass. We stared. And stared. Then we stared some more. We’ve made it. We’re in the Bahamas.

Spot Tracking

2008-12-28T18:52:00.001-05:00

Heading off to the Bahamas tonight!

We're really excited!!

We have a thing on the boat called a Spot Tracker. If you want to see where we are currently located, click the following like:

http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0qpC21dni9mXCu9qrzGGMxMqtkP5LhMBq

West Palm Beach, FL

2008-12-25T10:17:00.007-05:00

Merry Christmas!!
I hope you're having a happy holiday where ever you might be!

We're doing great down here in West Palm. For Christmas, I got LeeAnn a waterproof digital camera. LeeAnn got me a Waffle maker that i'm very excited to try out!! We couldn't use it this morning because we made cinnamon rolls for breakfast, one of my families christmas traditions. Sushi got these little fur balls that she has been chasing throughout the boat.

We've got a ham, sweet potatos, biscuits, veggies, wine, and christmas snacks. We've started watching christmas movies, and we probably wont stop for the rest of the day! Right now LeeAnn is baking a Christmas cake, and if we are feeling religious later on, we might stick 2,008 birthday candles in it, and sing happy birthday to Jesus.

We were on our second day offshore, heading down to West Palm. Coming around Cape Canaveral this submarine surfaced in front of us. It was pretty freaky! We started getting really close, and eventually had to change course to avoid a collision.

We took this picture of the sunset in St. Augustine. It was a really cool city, I wish we could have hung around longer. It was one of Spain's first American Colonies. I was impressed by the architecture, and all the bums.

LeeAnn all dressed up for her watch.

The Bahamas are just one short trip away! Only 50 miles.... 110 miles shorter than our last offshore jump. I can't wait! We will probably be leaving at the end of this week!!!

Isle of Hope

2008-12-15T13:58:00.002-05:00

We left Charleston with a forecast of North to North East winds, 10 to 15 knots, Friday through Sunday.

The sail started out great. It was sunny and warm. We had all the sails up and we were making great time.

Unfortunately a few hours after dark the weather changed. The weather bouys off Charleston and Savannah recorded winds of 55 mph and waves as high as 17 feet. The wind wasn't supposed to die down for days. We ran for shore, 8 hours away.

We pounded through the waves all night. Wave after wave swept over the boat. sometimes knocking the rail of the boat under water. The blower vent for the engine was scooping up water, funneling it down into the boat. Every so often we would slam into a wall of water that would cause the whole boat to shudder and come to a complete stop.

It was starry out, and the moon was bright. Not a cloud in the sky, but it felt like it was raining. The spray from the waves was constantly hitting us. Thick drops of water being pushed by the 40 mph winds. It was hard to see where we were going with the salt water burning in our eyes every time we poked our heads up to look out in front of the boat.

The temperature dropped into the 30's, and hypothermia became a concern.

Because of storms the previous night, we hadn't had a chance to sleep. Despite all the discomfort, we both began to dose off. Every few minutes the jolt from a large wave would wake us up.

My best description of what this experience felt like would be:

Riding a bull sideways with a blindfold on while being sprayed with a hose and shot at by paintball guns.

Then things got worse.

The waves knocked out our navigation lights. The navigation lights are designed to let other boats know where we are, and which way we are headed. We came into the busy commercial port of Savannah with nothing but a white light at the top of our mast. We were surrounded by container ships. Five or more at any one time. The closer we got to the Savannah channel, the closer these boats got to us, until we were within a few hundred feet of these giant boats. For the most part we were able to steer clear, though there was one time we came very near to being run down. We had a powerful spot light we would flash at the boats to make them aware of our position. Our calls to the large ships on the VHF radio were unanswered.

We finally made it into Savannah and dropped the anchor at the first available spot. We passed out in our bed that was soaked with salt water. We hadn't slept in nearly 36 hours.

Rockville Marine

2008-12-04T21:43:00.007-05:00

We've made a stop at Rockville Marine to get hauled out. We needed to change out some thru-hulls that had frozen shut, and we also wanted to give the bottom a good look before leaving the states.

It was a fast haul, we were only out of the water a few hours. The guys at Rockville Marine did all the work. They were great! They took a lot of care to make sure all the work was done correctly. I definitely recommend them!

They have a goose named Aflac who squawked really loud, and loved food.

Check out how close Aflac is to taking leeAnn's fingers off...Then leeAnn got tired and went to sleep on the picnic table.

Good Bye to Charleston and friends

2008-12-04T14:54:00.010-05:00

It's been nearly a year to the day since we arrived in Charleston, South Carolina. It's hard to believe how fast it has passed. Initially Charleston was just a place to stop at. Somewhere to make some money, and nothing more than that. But as time passed, and the more friends we made, the more we fell in love with the place.

I think many people have tried to describe the allure of Charleston, I don't believe that anyone has put their finger on it, my guess is that there is a mysterious tractor beam that simply sucks you in.

Whatever it is, I was happy to call Charleston home for a year, and I will always look back on it as one of the happiest times of my life. At least so far :)

It's always hard to say good bye to the friends we make.

Patrick!!

John!!
ChelseaBrad
Chris
Ted (and Bec, not in the picture)

And everyone we don't have pictures for:

Nicole
Greg and Heather
Craig
Rob
Tom
Lauren
Josh and Amy
Charley
Tom and Carmen (well see you in the Bahamas!!)
Ken and Lauren
Dillard and Abrems
Will and Newman

All the awesome people we have worked with at Victories Secret, and Longerdays.com.

Plus everyone I don't have time to list because LeeAnn wants to watch a movie... We will miss all of you, thanks for the great year!!!

And thanks for giving me a great last night!!! It made it all the more difficult to leave the next morning!!!

Marvolous Night For A Moon Dance

2008-12-02T16:00:00.009-05:00

Ready.... Set.... WAIT!!!

We're already to go, but we are stuck waiting on two things:

1. The new AutoPilot.

2. The Official Coast Guard Documentation.

The Documentation is on the way, and could be here any day. Our autopilot is supposed to ship tomorrow (12/2/08) but i'm skeptical.

Today would have been a GREAT day to leave... but sadly we are stuck here playing the waiting game.

See the ghost!!I showed the ghost picture to a old lady who later walked by. Turns out her son fell into the Ashley River and drowned years ago. She said she see him sometimes, and that this picture only re-affirms her belief that her sons ghost is haunting the Ashley River marinas.

Everything on the bed is full of food, as well as the container behind LeeAnn:

Took this picture of a dolphin jumping while out sailing with Patrick:

How to quit your job and sail away

2008-11-09T19:51:00.003-05:00

With out any notice, I submitted the following letter to my place of employment. I never went back.

Dear Daren,

After an appropriate period of deliberation, I have come to the decision to tender my resignation, effective Monday, June 30th.

Please know that I still maintain a high level of respect for you as a manager and colleague, and I thank you sincerely for the support and assistance you have offered me in each of those roles. I have been proud to work for your company; it has been a journey that has provided me an unparalleled foundation to move forward to new and exciting opportunities.

As such, I have decided to become a professional pirate. It has always been a dream of mine to live the life of a swashbuckling corsair, beholden to none and master of all I survey. Once my crew of unabashed rogues is assembled, we shall take to the capacious expanse of the high seas to pursue fortune, fame, and hair-raising adventure.

Our path may not be comforted by porcine operating partners such as yourself, but we shall nonetheless move forward to carve a name for ourselves in the annals of bold insurgency and death-defying derring-do. With keen blade at my hip and a Jolly Roger flapping high above me, I believe I will have found my true calling.

Please note that I am currently accepting applications for First Officer, if you are at all interested in applying. Me hearties would warmly welcome a scallywag such as the likes of you. I will provide a full medical and dental plan, which will offer immediate coverage of all maladies other than scurvy and the occasional bout of rickets.

Yours Sincerely,
Chad Lawie
(Hereafter to be known as Captain BoneHead)

If you ever visit Charleston, stay away from the following restaurants:
Coast bar and grill
Virginia's
Rue De Jon

Yes, I am a disgruntled employee. The asshole called me a bonehead!

and we're back!!!

2008-11-06T19:58:00.003-05:00

Hello Friends!

I'm happy to inform you that we are once again stocking up on ramen noodles and beef jerky in preparation for another poorly funded, and recklessly-unplanned cruise!

Our destination this time are the clear swimming pool waters of the Bahamas Islands.

We've slowly been preparing to leave over the last few months, but now preparations are in full swing:

We've informed our employers of our two weeks notice,
We've informed the Slip-Owner that November will be our last month in his slip,
And today we bought the first of our "Bahamas" provisions which, among other things included: a 10 pound bag a pancake mix, 500 ziplock bags, and 160 ounces of Shampoo and Conditioner for LeeAnn (as a rule of thumb I try not to wash my hair when cruising, it ruins my hobo sailor image).

We have many more supplies to buy, and the list of preparations still to be made to the boat is long. We have less than a month!

At the risk of sounding cheesy, it brings me pleasure to once again invite friends and family to read this blog, and in a sense, travel with us to where ever the breeze might take us - It's not as fun with out you!

Welcome aboard!!

Sky Valley, Georgia

2008-10-20T15:56:00.008-04:00

We went up into the Appalachian mountains with our buddy Patrick and some friends for a long weekend. It was a great time. As much as we love boating, the change of scene was a welcome one. The campfires, cold air, trees and changing leaves reminded me of home.

The photographs below are a chronicle of our high altitude adventures:

Way down yonder on the....
Never knew how much that muddy water meant to me!

They don't call them the smoky mountains for nothing

I don't recall what this place was called, but it was cool:

On the plate is a "southern chili dog" A hotdog in a bun, buried in chili, topped with cheese, oyster crackers, ketchup and mustard. Eat it with a fork and spoon.

The view from the porch:She thinks my tractors sexy.

LeeAnn and Patrick... you can clearly see, are holding up the waterfall.

Galley Rebuild (almost complete)

2008-10-20T15:39:00.002-04:00

This has been a seven month process. All the work has been in two chunks. The bulk of the work was done in March 2008. It wasn't until October 2008 that I completed the laminate counter top, and it might be another 6 months before I complete the last few finishing touches. There are other things that are more pressing that need completing.

Overall I'm really happy with how the rebuild has gone. It's turned out better than I'd hoped. Although I owe a lot of that to borrowed tools and generous help and advice from various boaters whose knowledge and skill far exceed my own!

(it might take a few minutes for all the pictures to load)

Hanna Montana

2008-09-05T17:30:00.003-04:00

We've gotten a few calls and emails from home asking us how we are doing. So I thought it would be nice to give a quick update.

We're definitely fine. I got off work early today, and LeeAnn has been off since Thursday. We've got everything tied down nice. We are all stocked up on food, water and movies from Blockbuster.

Hanna is pretty much a blow out anyway. Everyone was all worked up in the marina (including ourselves). Quite a few boats were hauled out, some people went up the river, but it appears that we are just going to get a little wind, and some rain. Not really a big deal at this point unless Hanna gets a sudden second wind.

I personally blame our good fortune on Captain Jim, who is a few boats down from us. Captain Jim is known to be a bit of a witch doctor. If you ever meet him, try not to maintain eye contact as it has been reported that he can "read you" by the colors in your eyes. I have never actually seen this done, but Captain Jim has let me in on a few "eye reading" secrets.

It is not unlikely that Captain Jim is on his boat at this very moment preforming a séance which is diverting the heading of Tropical Storm Hanna.

Captain Jim is also a bit of a ladies man. Though I am not completely sure if the women I see him with are real... or simply wizardly apparitions. The inside of his boat is decorated with statues of nude angles, both black and white. It would not surprise me if he some how bewitched these statues, kinda like that one movie "Mannequin" - starring Andrew McCarthy and Kim Catrall.
Or perhaps the angels are simply guardians.

Right now it's just a rainy day, hardly any wind at all.

The last few days have been beautiful.

Josh and Amy

2008-08-30T17:58:00.009-04:00

We anchored out with some friends (Josh and Amy) a while back:

That's right. We anchored out. Everyone jumped in the water once. Then we went home.

Cypress Gardens

2008-08-30T17:12:00.010-04:00

Cyrpess Gardens - Charleston, SC

We recently took a tour through the beautiful Cypress Gardens (Gardens is code word for swamp).

Scenes from three major motion pictures have been recorded at this location:

The Patriot - Mel Gibson civil war movie.
The Notebook - AWWWWW
Swamp Thing - They say it's still out there!!

We thought it was a very nice place, and LeeAnn and I encourage you to go, if you are ever presented with the opportunity.

It cost 10 dollars per person to get in. The attractions include a few small aquariums/live animal exhibits, a walking path, and a guided (and/or self guided) boat tour through the swamp.

The boat swamp tour is the main event, and it alone with worth the 10 dollar admission. They give you your own boat to paddle around in, Or you can take the guided tour and have someone paddle you around.

I think you are presented with a lot more information on the guided tour, but you have to squeeze into a boat with a dozen southerners, in a swamp, on a South Carolina summer day. Sounds awesome. Maybe next time....

Anyway, here are a few snapshots:

Keriikee!!!

Oh black water, keep on stagnant - Mississippi moon won't you keep on shinin' on me!

Don't make eye contact!!

These yahoos seemed to think it was a race!

Happy Birthday Chad

2008-06-25T11:26:00.009-04:00

Take One:

Take Two:

Take Three:

Birthday video from last year 2007:

Just some pictures of the boat

2008-06-06T16:45:00.008-04:00

An update, and a lizard.

2008-05-09T14:00:00.006-04:00

Nothing too exciting going on. We are halfway through our stay in Charleston. It's been a good time. We're making friends, money, and progress on the boat.
We intend to leave Charleston this winter, sometime between the end of November and the beginning of January. We will head for the Bahamas to start with, and I don't know where from there. Either the Caribbean sea, or the Gulf of Mexico.

Bad News:
My bike got stolen yesterday.
LeeAnn's drivers license is expired.

Good News:
New refrigerator installed.
New Toilet installed!
LeeAnn got over 80% in her online class (i don't know her actual score)
I found a good candy store.
LeeAnn doesn't have a car anyways!

Here are some pictures of a lizard I found on my way home from somwhere:

LeeAnn's Friend Chelsey

A profile:

2008-02-02T18:25:00.000-05:00

So we've been here for two months now, you would think I could have gotten pictures of the marina up earlier. But I live by a code taught to me in junior high: "you get more satisfaction the longer you delay." so cut up the credit card... and wait till you're married!

This here is the office. Houses the showers, laundry, and the offices.
View of Marine

Beautiful ... beautiful showers.
and yes I was naked when I took this picture.
Free laundry!

Half Head

2008-01-31T19:21:00.000-05:00

When we first got here we learned that Charleston is known as one of the most haunted places in America. Neat! I thought. But I never believed much in "ghost" stories.

I went about my business and got a job at Embassy Suites, which turns out is the old Citadel. First built as an Arsenal in 1830 then later converted into a military college in 1842. It was citadel cadets who fired shots at a Union relief vessel approaching Fort Sumter... starting the Civil War.

Well the hotel is haunted. There are places where some of the personnel refuse to go. And the hotel keeps a record of stories told by guests about encounters with ghosts. Some of these guests switch rooms. Some leave in the middle of the night.

One ghost is called "half head" or "the lost cadet.” He is young, has no head from the eyebrows up, and is often reported as a happy ghost.

Half head seems to like the ladies there are a few reports of him trying to get into bed with women: One lady was awakened by an eery feeling that someone was in the room and asked if anyone was there. The reply was, as stated by the lady, that his name was George. She then asked "George" what he wanted and he replied that he was looking for his pocket knife which he had lost. As she reached around to -touch -George, she found that his head "was not all there" as she stated later upon having her room changed to another part of the hotel.

Amazingly enough, we do have an old pocket knife in our hotel lobby display cabinet that was excavated from this site along with many other artifacts of Civil War and Colonial origin.

There are people who say they've seen men in full confederate uniforms walking around. These "ghosts" are mistaken for Civil war re-creators.

I haven't seen any ghosts... yet. but I will be keeping my eyes open!

Cool Quotes from Cool Cats

2008-01-24T12:01:00.000-05:00

The World is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page.

What if the spell of a place falls upon a youthful heart, and the bright horizon calls! Many a thing will keep till the world's work is done, and youth is only a memory. When the old enchanter came to my door, laden with dreams, I reached out with both hands. For I knew that he would not be lured with the gold that I might later offer, when age had come upon me. - Richard MacCullaugh

Life is something to be devoured because at any moment it might be snatched away. You just can't trust life. You have to seize it by the throat. You have to pursue your dreams relentlessly, recklessly. It is too much of a gamble to waste time. - John Kretschmer.

Two courses, by the chart, now lay before us: the open sea and an inside passage between successive islands and the mainland. The outside course was much longer, and dirty weather was in prospect. That was, however, was my choice, and being then at the tiller I headed seawards. -Rockwell Kent

Immerse yourself in the minutiae of [sailing] somewhere slowly and deliberately, while secretly hoping you'll never arrive. –Paul lutus.

Not all who wander are lost.

slow post

2008-01-20T10:46:00.000-05:00

Living in Charleston. We've settled into a 6 month slip contract.
I'm working banquets/bartending at the embassy hotel, and LeeAnn is working at Victoria's secret (oh yeah!).

So we are pretty settled back into a normal(ish) life, and I probably won't post much until we start moving again.

We've got a few ideas for the next adventure... U.S. West coast? British Columbia Canada/Alaska? but before anything else we hope to hit the Bahamas and the Caribbean this fall 2008. I'm sure no one really saw that coming! try to contain your shock ;)

So thanks traveling along with us so far. I'll be throwing a few posts out, but for the most part we will see you this fall!

A sad joke

2008-01-06T14:05:00.000-05:00

Homeland security?
After we all took off our shoes, and made sure our liquids and gels (3 ounces or less) fit in one-quart sized plastic, clear Ziploc bags, then I walked through the metal detector with this knife in my back pack. No alarms. I got on the plane, flew to Detroit, boarded another plane, and flew into Muskegon.

Traveling with two foreign boats, for two months down the East Coast, we saw one coast guard boat, and we were never stopped or questioned.

My resulting opinion: Homeland security is an inconvenience to the American people, and a joke to terrorists.

Ben Franklin said: "Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty or safety."

Read that again, think about it. That's quite a statement these days in our age of fear. War on terror, War on drugs, War on blah blah blah.

The Iraqi people were safe, under a tyrant. Now they are free, and dying. Keep that in mind when you hear about laws that are being passed to "protect us." (I'm not passing judgement on the war here, just making an observation.)

Freedom is not free, it costs your security. To be secure you have to give up your freedom.

Anita Ramasastry, director of the Shidler Center for Law, Commerce, & Technology at the University of Washington School of Law warned that "Indefinite detention (jail with out trial) upon secret evidence — which the Patriot Act allows — sounds more like Taliban justice than American.

Chad and LeeAnn's sailing

2008-01-05T19:12:00.002-05:00

Lake Michigan Sailing:

Chaumont, New York to New York City

Bermuda to the Azores:

New York City to Charleston, South Carolina

Twister and Baby Oil

2007-12-16T10:14:00.000-05:00

We left Charleston under blue skys, complaining of the heat. We flew into Detroit, coming down through the clouds, it was grey, cloudy, and below freezing.
"Back in Michigan!"

We met our parents (teary eyed mothers) at the airport. It was weird coming home. It took us 3 months to get to Charleston, and just 3 hours to get home. Everything is pretty much the same, which is nice because we feel at home!

Its been nice to live with out tanks for a bit. The first night at home, my Mom turned on the water, full blast, and walked away. I jumped to the sink and turned it off.
"What are you doing?" my mom asked
I was about to say "We're gonna run out of water if you let it run like that!"
then I remembered "hey, there's no tank! we've got all the water we want!"
She was trying to get hot water. On the boat we heat water on the stove.

Third times the charm

2007-12-04T23:28:00.001-05:00

So we tried to stop in Wilmington, North Carolina. No luck there. No jobs, No boat slips. We then went for John Island located in Charleston. Not bad, but 10 miles out of town, and not a very nice marina.

We are now at Ashley Marina, http://www.charlestonwetslip.com/ right in downtown Charleston. This place is amazing. We're talking prime location, free shuttle bus, free laundry, WiFi, free pump outs, free electric, and perhaps the nicest marina showers I have ever seen. When I say nice showers, I mean magazine worthy, millionaires home style showers. 5 x 5, all tile, a really nice tile, huge 3/4 inch glass doors, huge drenching shower heads. Showers on a cruising sailboat are a luxury, really nice showers are like hooking up with a super model.

So here we are. We have signed a 6 month contract, which will put us here until May. Maybe longer, because if the super model wanted you to stay.... wouldn't you?

Not to do more Southern bashing... but just some fun facts:
South Carolina was the first state to leave the Union before the Civil War.
South Carolina was the last state in the Union to abolish Segregation.
South Carolina was 68 degrees today and michigan was freezing!! HAHA!!

Wheres the good in good bye?

2007-12-04T16:17:00.000-05:00

Our good friends of the International Cruising Club (Ray, Irene, Sue, And Peter) have caught up with us for the last time. They stopped by a marina we were in to say good bye before they continued south. We had a big ol' jamboree with guitars, singing, and lots of beer.

We're going to miss them a lot, but chances are we will see Sue and Peter on their way back North. Ray and Irene have invited us to crew on their boat when they cross the Atlantic. So, although we will probably never all sail together again, all is not lost.

Things I will remember and miss:

***Meeting Ray in the middle of the night, in the middle of a thunderstorm, our boats both run aground after the mooring balls had drug.
"hi my names chad... tickle ur ass with a feather?"
"what?"
"particularly nassty weather"

***My anchor dragging down towards peter's boat during "tropical storm 15"
"hi my names chad ... your anchored in my spot."

*** backpacks shouldered, exploring streets of unfamiliar towns.

*** "Pre-Dinner Drinks," which turns into "All night Drinks," which turns into "maybe we should leave at 9:00 am instead of 7:00 am .... oh lets just stay another day"

***Riding in a car with Roman who is saying "it's a known fact Americans can't drive in snow." As he turns past "wrong way" signs posted on "one way" streets, veers off the shoulder of the road, and in and out of the on coming traffic lane... all this leading me to believe "Canadians can't drive in the sun."

*** being called "the kids" by a bunch of California Raisins.

*** Late night comedy hour on the VHF Radio:
"c-drifters c-drifters, are you monitering this Channel?"
"no"
"Irene's tatey hash was good"
"did you just say Irene's tasty ass was good?"
"steady on, tiger"

*** Ray Mctear on the VHF: "Okie Dokie"

*** Peter Burns on the VHF: "Carnation Carnation" (deviated from our name "cambryation")

*** Peter Burns on cooking "you take some butter"

*** Ray (after the cat falls in the water) "looks like you've got a wet pussy on your hands"

oh I could probably go on and on about the good times and the inside jokes that have accumulated over the last couple hundred miles. So I suppose I will just stop now. It is to say the least, that I have had a very good time, and will miss our new friends very much. But goodbyes are apart of sailing. LeeAnn cried, so did Irene, and so did a nice lady we had just met named Cindy.

Nothing makes the earth seem so spacious as to have friends at a distance;
they make the latitudes and longitudes,
though friends will stick through thick and thin,
sail on out and sail back in.

.......

Home for now

2007-12-01T10:14:00.000-05:00

Charleston, South Carolina. We're not in Michigan anymore. The first two men I met on shore complained to me that it is un-American that the federal government made the South Carolina state capitol building take the confederate flag down. I see their point, America is supposed to be a free country... He said it was "heritage." I would have liked to say "heritage belongs in a museum, not on a capitol building" but i'm not that witty, and I didn't want to make a bad impression. I did however point out to him that the confederate flag is un-American.

One of these men went on to explain to me that many black people took up arms to defend the plantations they worked on ... I'm thinking to myself "is it possible you are so ignorant?" The marina we are at was recently bought by a company in Maryland. One of these men I was talking to had a confederate flag flying on his boat. The new marina made him take it down. I hope people with these types of skewed paradigms are not the norm around here.

I've heard many people down here refer to "Yankees." It's strange, and a bit awkward. I keep asking myself "the civil war is over right?" South Carolina was the last state to abolish segregation in 1968. It is also apart of the bible belt.

LeeAnn has just finished reading a few books about racism, and I'm finishing up a book called "The God Delusion." To say the least I think we are going to have an eye opening winter.

Sushi checking out some shrimp. We paid 4 bucks for this pound of shrimp. We got well over a pound a few days later for free.

shrimp boats.

Fog creeping out from the swampy trees. This is alligator country.

Traveling down the ICW on a really calm day.

2007-11-24T22:23:00.000-05:00

Just a quick post. We have to leave early tomorrow. We made it to Southport today. it's a really nice place. very pretty. Huge trees. lots of homes built in the 1870's. They've recorded a few movies here, including that one called Cape Fear with Robert Deniro.

LeeAnn in a big tree.

Looking over the Southport Harbor. Palm tree to the left!! HAHA jack frost!

Greedy pelicans waiting for a hand out.

Movin' Out!!

2007-11-21T12:32:00.000-05:00

We thought we were going to Wilmington. I guess not. We looked and looked. Called every marina within 20 miles. They either had no space, were really expensive, or said "we don't like yer kind 'round here! Meaning live aboards.
Another problem with Wilmington is that it is a lot like Muskegon... meaning, try to get around on a bus in Muskegon. It just doesn't happen. We would have to buy a car. And last but not least... the main reason we were going to Wilmington was so LeeAnn could work at Petco. They have no work for her though, so we have no reason to stay.

We are currently at Pleasure Island. They said there was a slip available, I was excited because I wanted to stay on an island named "pleasure." How could you go wrong?

When we pulled in, Matt, our contact walked up and said "they're might be a little problem.."
He brought me over to a stern faced man who was standing at a large pile of squirming shrimp, ripping their heads off one by one, then tossing them into the water to be gobbled up by a swarm a fish.

"The committee is voting on whether we will allow a live aboard here. We already have two "no's" it only takes three" He said.
"Did that shrimp just squeal?" I wondered...
"ok" Said I, "How did you vote?
"I can't tell you" said He.
"Plop," goes another shrimp's head in the water.

I looked around. It was low tide. There was no beach, just a muddy landscape of a million dead oysters. The sun was baking a few jelly fish that had been trapped on the oyster beach by the receding tide, fish skeletons littered about, and a growing pile of severed shrimp heads.

"No worries Fellas, we were thinking of heading to Charleston anyway." Said I.
He said he would call the other committee members anyway. I asked him where is accent was from...
"New Jersey" said He
"sonofabitch" thought I.

If you click on the picture you can see it better, The tide is already up a foot, but you can still see all the land is covered by large dead oysters.

Calling marinas with no luck.

Lazy cat never lifts a finger.

I never tell a lie!

2007-11-15T16:44:00.000-05:00

Where the hell are we? We easily lose track and I am having a total blank.... Spooners Creek! I knew it would come to me. They have palm trees here! They aren't natural, but the fact that they can grow them outside is a good sign!

From left to right -- Yours Truly, Ohla, Peter, Ray, Sue, Irene, and LeeAnn

This place is pretty cool. It is a little hide away for rich people. I'm sure it pisses them off that we went and anchored our boat right in the middle of their little lagoon. They pay millions... we pay nothing, and on top of it we steal their internet signals! hehe!

Actually there is a Best Buy, Walmart, Lowes, and a lot of other chain stores within very short walking distance. Yesterday we walked to Best Buy, where I bought a WiFi antenna which now enables me to steal WiFi signals from the next rich lagoon over!!

There was an Arby's next to the Best Buy, and I was ecstatic with joy, I was so excited for a big Arby's Roast beef melt! but it was a new Arby's that hadn't opened yet. I was crushed. "sorry guys, I've had enough, I'm going home."

otherwise not much is up. We are VERY close to Willmington. About 80 miles. two days. We had to wait out today on account of some gale force winds.

Disimal Swamp, Alligator River, on to Cape Fear!

2007-11-13T09:52:00.000-05:00

or Reading!

Sorry it's been so long!! We haven't even had cell phone service.

... now I have to try to remember what's happened since we left deltaville, I don't recall where we were last night.
We left Deltaville during a small craft advisory. the winds were not so bad though, 10 to 20, gusting to 25. the waves were around 5 feet. We were running with the wind so it wasn't bad... LeeAnn's aunt and Uncle call it a "Nantucket Sleigh Ride." because you ride down the front of the waves. We left all our friends in deltaville.

We arrived in Norfolk and anchored in a large bay. We anchored in the north side, because the south side was a restricted navy base. Helicopters were taking off and landing constantly. Norfolk is the Largest Naval base in the world... or so the cruising guide says. They build navy ships there, along with ocean freighters. We sailed south past big navy ships, with big guns. Men stood on deck next to the guns staring us down.... I waved, they didn't wave back. Bastards!
We saw three aircraft carriers, a submarine, and a lot of other navy ships I don't know the names of.

You have to look close but you can see a row of helicopters.

We passed by the Disimal Swamp canal. We wanted to take it but it was closed do to low water. The swamp was dug out by the slaves. The canal was damaged beyond use during the Civil War. After it was rebuilt, Edgar Allen Poe spent a lot of time on it, writing many poems including "the Raven." The canal also inspired the play "showboat."

That night we stopped in Great Bridge. Just 20 miles from where we started. There was a big cruise ship that had run aground on the ICW, and the coast guarde wouldn't let anyone pass south of Great Bridge. We rafted up to a 60 foot schooner and ate snacks with the crew. We stayed in Great Bridge that night and spent too much on groceries.

The next day we traveled some distance down the ICW. We anchored right off the side of the canal. I put our crab trap down with some old chicken scraps, in about 5 minutes I pulled up 3 blue crabs. I accidentally dropped one when I was trying to dodge his pinchers. So we ate two.

We then sailed across Abemarle Sound. This again was a crazy ride. Strong winds, and big waves. The Sound is really shallow. the waves are steep, and steely grey, it reminded me of being on lake Michigan. We flew across the Sound and made it all the way up the Alligator River. We traveled 50 miles in 7 hours... 50 should take around 9 hours for us. we averaged 7 knots... two whole knots above our average cruising speed. Our friends Roman and Olha caught up with us on the Alligator River. They traveled a whopping 70 miles to meet up with us that night.

We next headed to Patango River. There we got our first showers since deltaville! It was a slow day... We had to traverse the Alligator Canal.. a long long, perfectly straight canal. The East side of the canal had burnt in a fire... the west side wasn't. it was an interesting contrast. We took a golf cart to the grocery store and spent too much money again... but it all looks so good! This was the first place where I felt like we were really in the "south." The main building at this marina was a big old white place. inside the walls felt like they were radiating heat that they had stored up from the summer.

Alligator Canal Looking East

Alligator canal looking West

Alligator Canal Looking South

After Patango we headed to Oriental where we are now! it is a very friendly place, so we decided to stay an extra day. I'm sitting in a coffee shop that seems like it should be on a T.V. show. Every time someone walks in everyone knows the persons name and cracks inside jokes with them. There is a lot of laughing and although everyone is involved in private conversations, there is an overall conversation going on that everyone is involved in.

Our next big stop is Wilmington on the Cape Fear River. We are sad our cruising will be ending for a while... but we are excited to get to our destination and to make some money!

Being passed by a huge boat in Norfolk.
Chatting on the handheld with Navy boats in the back ground.

OK. I've spent too much time on the computer. It's LeeAnn's turn! Take care. Thanks f

Deltavile

2007-11-06T08:43:00.002-05:00

... I have no pictures at the moment because the internet connection isn't good enough to load them... I'll get some up later!

We were supposed to leave for Norfolk, Virginia today. The winds are high and there is a small craft advisory, so we decided to stay.

Last night was crazy for us. We got to take showers. luxury. Then we ate dinner with our friends Roman and Olha on their boat Moya Mreeya. Their boat was docked in Jackson Creek. From their boat we had to walk 100 feet across a narrow strip of land to where our dinghy was docked on Fishing Bay.

To walk from Jackson Creek to Fishing Bay takes less than 5 minutes, to take a boat from Jackson Creek to Fishing Bay takes a little over an hour. As we walked I said to LeeAnn, "I bet the others on Fishing bay are still partying." We hailed them on our handheld VHF... sure enough "Hey Chad it's just us drunk people! Row over here we have something to show you!"

... LeeAnn and I were planning on an early night... we hadn't planned on dinner on Moya Mreeya, our hair was still wet from the showers... But we couldn't resist the fun. We rowed over to Sea Drifters to see what was up. Ray and Peter had picked up all the crab pots in the anchorage and taken all the crabs!! They had about 40 Chesapeake Bay Blue Crabs in a big basket. Peter was steaming them, and Ray was picking all the meat and putting it in a big bowl.

LeeAnn and I jumped in. Drinking and picking meat from the crabs. It was a great time. We stayed up until midnight, then made plans to head for Norfolk early the next morning.

An hour later at 1:00 AM the wind had picked up from the south. Our anchorage didn't provide protection from that wind, the waves picked up quick. Ray had to re-anchor, he was dragging in our direction. After that we all dropped second anchors. Ray and Peter stayed up until 3 AM to keep an eye on things. No one got much sleep in the waves.

Other Happenings:
We are almost done with the Chesapeake Bay. We are in Virginia, our 5th state. We had a court date in New Jersey for some unpaid tickets... we are now fugitives in New Jersey.

LeeAnn has moved up to drinking Vodka instead of those girly fu fu drinks. Sailing has obviously had a positive effect on her!

Our depth sounder is on the fritz. It cuts out all the time, for long periods of time. Imagine driving a car with half the windshield blocked. it's like that. But what the hell, If Christopher Columbus can find America with out a depth sounder, then I can find North Carolina with out one!

2007-11-05T14:31:00.000-05:00

Navy stealth boat. Couldn't hear this guy until he was right on top of us.
We anchored near a navy test area. Right after I put the camera away a navy boat pulled up to us and asked if we had taken any pictures. "no" i said, "we don't have any cameras on board."
this boat could really move.

Not much time.
We are in Virginia. A place called Deltaville. Tomorrow we will hit norfolk.

Here are some pictures:

Brrrr!!! it's cold!

2007-10-28T10:35:00.001-04:00

Seems all I can do these days is complain about the weather! If it's not Sunny and 75 degrees... I'M NOT HAPPY!!!

Just kidding. it is cold though. a chilly 60 degrees. Lowest high temp we have had so far. at least the sun is shining!

We have some parts being shipped in on Monday, then we are heading out of here!

Itinerary:
Head down the Chesapeake -- 3 days
Head down the Inter-Coastal Waterway -- 8 days..
Miles traveled: around 600
Miles to go: around 400

almost done. I'm excited to get moving. And I'm excited to get to our destination. There is a lot of work I want to get done on the boat. Leaks that needs fixing and hardware that needs replacing.

Here's Sushi Aunt Joni -- the little black dot in the big white sail.

LeeAnn on the boat "C-Drifters" last night. it was cold.

Jump!!

It's really hard to take a picture of a black cat on a sunny day. she just turns out as a black little blob.... but she's soooo cuuuttte!!

RAIN RAIN RAIN!!!

2007-10-26T16:40:00.000-04:00

Ok. First day of rain... ok
second day of rain.... whatever...
third day of rain.... it's getting to me.

that's right. I've been on this boat here since 2:00 PM Tuesday afternoon. It has now been 74 hours and 41 minutes. I had a little jaunt outside yesterday, I rowed (in the rain) over to a friends boat to pick up some movies. Took around 15 minutes.

Today I went outside and set up a rain trap (in the rain). We ran out of pressure water yesterday. Don't fret. our pressurized water and drinking water come from two different places. I should have set up a rain trap last night. we would have got a lot more rain.

I used a sail cover. With ropes and weights I've made a big funnel that brings the water into our tank. It's doing a pretty good job. we are supposed to get some heavy rain this afternoon and tonight, so maybe we will have a full tank tomorrow morning! We could just go to a marina and fill up... but i'm lazy, and I don't want to motor in the rain. plus collecting rain water is way more cool!

The rain is supposed to stop tomorrow afternoon. I can't wait. I've done:
22 and a half sudoku puzzles,
watched 3 movies a day,
baked pizza,
cupcakes,
cookies,
read 2 full books,
drank all the beer,
painted a self portrait,
stared at a mirror attempting to read my own mind,
and
spent 300 dollars on ebay,

74 hours, two people and a cat have made this boat a lot smaller!

all rain all day makes CHAD a crazy person!
all rain all day makes CHAD a crazy person!
all rain all day makes CHAD a crazy person!
all rain all day makes CHAD a crazy person!

I've been listening to Stan Rogers. It's very nice. you should listen to him..

Read up on Ron Paul. He is a presidental canadate for 2008. I like him. Not so much because of his views, but because he seems to be very honest. They say he has the most consistent voting record out of anyone in congress.
He has never voted for a tax raise.
Never voted for a congress pay raise.
voted against war in Iraq.

I don't know. he just seems like a good guy, even if I don't agree with all of his views.

anyway. I'm going to go cut my toe nails or something.

Singing in the rain!

2007-10-24T15:23:00.000-04:00

It's still raining out. We have the boat lit up in candles, we are watching movies and eating CupCakes.

My mother has informed me that LeeAnn's Mother, Aunt Donna, and Aunt Ann would like to have some writing from LeeAnn's prospective.... I will now let LeeAnn take the keys:

Hey guys! It's me LeeAnn! Sorry I haven't wrote before....I've just been so busy!!! I know you are probably wondering what could possibly keep me so busy... well I will tell you!

When I first got out to New York, I was very very impressed with all the hard work Chad had put into the boat. It was really amazing. I decided right then and there that I would do all I could to work just as hard as he has... I set out right away doing the most important thing I could think of, and thats making Chad as happy as I possibly could! I cook all the meals, do all the laundry, I row the dinghy to shore and walk as far as I need to walk (sometimes miles) to find a grocery store so I can cook Chad all his favorite meals.

Really I think the most important thing I have learned from this trip is that when my man is happy, I'm happy. I think ALL the ladies reading this should follow the same policy. Men have it hard enough as it is. They are always going the extra mile for you, why not go the extra mile for them? Don't just get him a beer, open it up for him! After you have done the dishes and your hands are soft from the warm water, offer to give him a back message.

I'm having a great time out here! Everything with Chad is just going great. I'm SOO lucky to be with a guy like him! he is just so handsome, charming, romantic, smart, funny, adventurous, humble, and so much more.

Anyway, I've got to run! I think Chad's waking up from his nap, I've got to finish putting on my makeup so the first thing he sees when he opens his eyes is me looking my best!!
Talk to you all later, thanks for thinking about me!
LoveLeeAnn

Sail naked... It brings color to your cheeks!

2007-10-24T10:04:00.001-04:00

So today is going to be boring. It's raining. No going to town. LeeAnn is still asleep. I got up early to put our tarp up so we can run the generator and leave hatches and windows open. Then I worked on my Spanish. Hablar, nadar, bailar, llagar, regressar, ar ar ar. I'm working on my AR verbs. What's the first letter of the pirate alphabet? RRRRR!!!

Hasta luego!

2007-10-23T22:23:00.004-04:00

Don't be fooled. That tub boat is huge. The barge is just so big it makes the tug look small! The waves these guys put up are huge.

The Bronx Zoo.
Broken down motor. Somewhere on the Hudson.
Atlantic City
Baking Cupcakes
Baking Cookies

Yada yada

2007-10-23T10:02:00.001-04:00

Met back up with Ray and Irene, and some other Canadian friends Peter and Sue. Yesterday we toured around Annapolis. It was really cool. We walked down streets that George Washington walked down. We saw America's first capitol building (the first one was in Annapolis). There is a lot of neat history in Annapolis.

We are going to be stuck here for a while. A power boat wake knocked our stove off the counter on our way to a new anchorage, breaking two knobs off the stove. So we had to order new ones. It will take three days. It's not too big of a deal though. It's dangerous to head south of Norfolk, Virginia before November 1st because of hurricanes. So if we left Annapolis and made it to Norfolk before November 1st we would be waiting around anyway.

The picture below is of LeeAnn and Irene being read to by Kunta Kinte. Remember the book Roots? Kunta Kinte's slave ship arrived in Annapolis.
LeeAnn looking at the Kunta Kinte Plaques.
From Left to right: Sue, Irene, Ray, Peter.

Life is good.

People and Places

2007-10-18T18:49:00.001-04:00

Ok. I've got some pictures and videos!

These are our British friends, Ray and Irene. We've had a great time traveling with them and Roman and Olya (the Canadians). Sadly today we parted ways. I was very bummed when we waved goodbye. These people were great fun. I think Ray is one of the happiest people I've ever met. He is always smiling and making jokes. Ray is very kind, I can't imagine him getting mad. Irene has a serious manner, but everything she says is funny. Probably because she is straight faced when she says it, and because she has that crazy British accent. I don't understand half of what she says, but I hear enough to understand what she is talking about. Ray and Irene have been dating for the last 30 years, they just got married in January. Interestingly, Irene was the instigator to their sailing sabbatical, not Ray.

Joke from Ray:
"Life's a bitch, and then you marry one."

Joke from Irene:
(speaking to Ray)
"I've spent my whole life trying to make you the man I wanted, and now I complain that you've changed!"

We are really hoping to meet up with them somewhere down the road.

I caught me a fish on the Ocean! It was a bluefish. I filleted him, and we ate him in about two hours. Talk about fresh. At 13 inches I thought he was a little small, but I was later told by local fisherman that you don't want to keep anything over 13 inches because they aren't as good to eat. Go figure. I was a little concerned about not having a fishing license, but I was later told that until January 1st you don't need one on the Ocean. I don't know if that's true. But we were in Delaware yesterday, today we are in Maryland, and tomorrow we will be in Virginia. We can't afford to buy a fishing License everyday!

The tall ship "Pride of Baltimore Two." We hung out aboard this ship in New York City. We took this picture on the bay today. This boat was designed by Tomas Gillmar, the same person who designed our Privateer 35 sailboat! It is a very rare day when two Gillmar boats sail next to each other.

Video of the anchorage this morning.... stupid video wont load.

Annapolis Kicks Ass!

2007-10-18T16:51:00.001-04:00

Right, so we just pulled in to Annapolis. I love the place already, mainly because they offer city wide WiFi for free!

So this place is packed with boats. We haven't seen too many transient boaters heading south until now. This place is packed full of them. Most of them are Canadian.

We left our British and Canadian friends behind today. They went off to Baltimore, 15 miles behind us. We wanted to go with. But we are excited to get south.

All for now!
Chad

Tropical Storm 15

2007-10-12T15:25:00.001-04:00

Still in Atlantic City. I'm at the anchorage. Somehow I've got WiFi signal. I have to be outside of the boat to get it though. That wouldn't be such an issue if it wasn't a gale outside.

No kidding. According to the radio we have been weathering out gale force winds for the last 24 hours which are being produced by tropical storm 15.

Some people say tropical storm, others say it is a tropical depression. All I know is that it's fuckin windy, "tropical storm" sounds way cooler, and I'm tropically depressed from sitting around with nothing to do all day.

A hurricane must really be a nightmare. We only have 35 to 40 MPH winds right now, and it is really not pleasant to be outside. Hurricane winds start at 75. Wow.

I wonder if I can download sudoku for my computer? To pass the time I have been memorizing Spanish cuss words. I wonder if pizza hut delivers out here?

Sailing Community

2007-10-11T12:01:00.001-04:00

We've met very few American sailors. We've traveled hundreds of miles and met only one American... And he wasn't really a sailor. Sticking feathers up your but does not make you a chicken. Owning a sailboat doesn't make you a sailor.

Most of the sailors we've met have been Canadian. We've also met a lot of Polish people, and English. One couple was from Germany.

Right now we are with an English couple, and a Canadian couple. We all have different accents, and different words. Ray and Irene, the English couple use words like "breaky, Butty, Sharabang." meaning "breakfast, Sandwich, and three dinghys in a row."
The Canadians use words like "aye?" as most everyone from Michigan already knows.
It's very fun.

Anyway here are some videos from over the past few weeks:

This is a video of our French Canadian buddy Gorden cooking dinner. He is a very goofy fun guy to hang out with. Loves a good party. Ladies man. Good cook.

This is just a video of a foggy day on the Erie Canal.

Ok so I had more videos, but I moved most of them to a spare hard drive because they were taking up too much space. So I guess I'm out of videos.

Lost My Money & My Toe in Atlantic City

2007-10-11T11:55:00.003-04:00

Lost my money, and my toe in Atlantic City. Actually it was just the tip of my toe. The money is gone, but we taped the tip of my toe back on.

When we first got here on Tuesday we picked up an empty mooring ball. I knew a storm was coming so I used the extra thick anchor line so I would sleep sound knowing we wouldn’t break free.

The wind was intense, I was wide awake, I thought for sure that someone‘s boat was going to drag and crash into another boat. I was glued to the window, all set to watch the circus that was sure to unfold.

I left my place at the window for just a few moments to make some more popcorn. When I returned I noticed two new boats where along side us. “Oh no!” I thought, “There is going to be a collision, and we are going to be a part of it!” But the boats didn’t get closer. And we didn’t move an inch. Then it hit me.. “We broke the mooring, we’re grounded.”

I rushed outside wearing only a rain coat and my underwear. The rain was coming down in big drops, the wind was roaring, and the lightning was striking.

It sucked.

I was cold.

Turns out we didn’t break from the mooring ball, we drug it across the anchorage! There was a sailboat next to us who had also drug a mooring ball. The captain was on deck, but like me there was really nothing for him to do. I dropped a small anchor and went back to bed.

When the storm eased up I went back outside. I lowered our dinghy into the water and set to work freeing our main anchor line from the useless mooring ball. Our neighbor (Ray) came out of his boat. He suggested we help each other out. I rowed over and picked him up from his boat.

We rowed out 100 feet from my boat and dropped the anchor, went back aboard and winched it down tight. We then did the same on his boat. The tide was dropping, the boats were sinking harder and harder into the mud. There was no hope of getting them free at that point. So Ray and I went back to bed.

As the tide dropped the boat tilted more and more to the side. It was like trying to sleep on a hill. I set my alarm to go off every hour. The wind was blowing us towards rays boat, I didn’t want the tide to come in and lift our boat, and then slam us into Ray. We had had enough surprises for one night.

The tide finally lifted us off the mud around 3:30 AM. Ray moved his boat first. Then I moved mine. We both learned a lesson about taking mooring balls. Had we used our anchors we would have probably never moved!

I have no pictures.

**Update:
I didn't lose any money. Just kidding. Sorry for not clarifying. As for my toe, just kicked a stupid cleat. It's not so bad.

Lots of New Posts

2007-10-07T21:58:00.001-04:00

Sorry it's been so long!
I had more questions than I expected about why I hadn't been posting. We have had no internet since Waterford, New York. I put up a lot of posts tonight. Be sure to click "older posts" on the bottom of the page so you can see them all.

Right now we are in Long Beach, New Jersey. We made it to the Atlantic ocean! It looks just like Lake Michigan...

We had a long day. I got up at 4 am this morning. By the time we got to Long Beach my legs felt like rubber. We got our first real showers in about 10 days. We can shower in the cabin of the boat. But that doesn't make you feel clean like a real shower.

I almost think that LeeAnn has fun with it actually. She kicks me out of the boat, lights candles and plays Sarah McLachlan. Gotta do the best with what you have.

I will be posting as often as the internet allows. Thanks very much for reading.

Hudson River Pictures

2007-10-07T21:42:00.004-04:00

Just some random pictures from the Hudson River.

F*ck New Jersey

2007-10-07T21:17:00.001-04:00

Yeah. so our last night in New York, heading back to the boat which was anchored in Jersey City. We had to ride the light train. We had round trip tickets we had bought earlier in the morning. Two Transit Cops got on the train, looked at our tickets, and then they asked LeeAnn to get off the train. So I got off too. They said we have forgotten to do "something" to our tickets. I thought it was no big deal. They said the tickets were no good, I was bummed, thought we were going to have to buy new tickets, costs 3 dollars. They asked where we were from, asked for I.D., they were very friendly. Then when we gave them our I.D.s they suddenly got mean, and said we were going to be fined. I asked "why?" they said "Well you forgot to stamp your ticket." I said "So I'll go stamp it right now, sorry I didn't know. Like I said, we're tourists." "No, that won't work," he said "you already got on the train." Yep, 74 dollar tickets. 150 bucks total. Sweet. Fuck New Jersey.

So, had we known what was going on, would could have
1. Never gave them our I.D.s
2. Just walked away and not rode the train
3. Told them to fuck off.
4. Pretended to not speak english

Lots of other tourists got tickets too... Looks like every now and then Jersey has a little fund raiser at their tourists expense.

So if you ever go to Jersey, stamp your ticket! I know the sign doesn't say to do it! And no New Jersey assholes will be nice and let you know. But make sure you do! Or you can be cool like us and not return to New Jersey for at least seven years... or ever!

LeeAnn: Chad forgot to mention the BEST part of this story. The fact that I got a good few other tourists, Japanese I assumed, to chant "Fuck New Jersey" with me! Oh yes, it was good.

New York, New York

2007-10-07T20:28:00.002-04:00

It was crazy to sail into New York Harbor. Talk about busy. We got to sail right past the Statue of Liberty which was very cool for us having never seen it before. We anchored just behind The Green Lady at Liberty State Park.

The city swallowed us whole. We had no plans when we walked into Manhattan, the city quickly made up our minds for us. We first went to Ground Zero. There is no longer any tribute or anything, it is just a big construction site. All the same it was strange to see a big gap in a forest of skyscrapers. I don't want to get all sappy on you, but I do want to say it was very powerful to think that 6,000 people (whether they be American or any other nationality) died in such a small area.

The pizza in New York was really great. Tastes like God. If there was nothing in New York except for pizza, it would still be worth the visit. The pizza is just that good. Yummm. My favorite part of New York was the pizza. I would really like to eat some New York pizza right now. I would like to just wrap myself up in a slice of New York pizza and eat my way out of it. I never got to try Ray's pizza.

Besides eating pizza, we went to Times Square, the East Village, The Bronx Zoo, Central Park, we saw "Rent" on Broadway (even though it wasn't really on Broadway... it was just around the corner... I don't understand how that one works, just a technicality I guess) China Town, and Little Italy. We saw a stand up comedy show with a comedian from Comedy Central (where we paid 24 dollars for 4 waters!). I was hoping to see some Sicilian Mobsters, but I didn't have any luck.

I had a good time riding the subways.
That was New York!