10 Questions for Brillig

Rika and Andrew have been cruising for more than a decade aboard Brillig, a 31ft “Trewis” (means nice and cosy} steel yacht built in Holland 1960. She has sailed 53,000 miles with me and will soon be ready to go again on completion of the present major refit. Andrew is an artist.

What are some of my favourite pieces of gear and why?
Andrew:  The ARIES VANE GEAR. This piece of gear is by far the most influential in our cruising life. Alice as she is fondly known has now crossed the Atlantic eight times with only the plywood vanes breaking. Each long passage the steering lines have been replaced, consequently none have broken. Alice has just had a rebuild after 53,000 miles involving replacement of the bushes, sheaves and blocks. She has performed faultlessly in extreme conditions, and can be made to steer off the apparent wind when powering out of high pressure on ocean passages at least long enough to make a cup of tea. All she asks for is regular twice daily oil and a chunk of grease on the bevel gears every few days. We only occasionally need to steer when under power or entering port, for the rest of the time this water powered wind sensitive miracle of engineering unfailingly guides us to our next anchorage. We don’t have an electric auto pilot.

My SEXTANT allows freedom to sail where you will. The GPS is on all the time we are sailing and certainly has a home aboard, however it could shut down for any number of reasons. The sextant allows us to be independent and self-contained, conditions that lie at the very core of ocean cruising. Long passages can be boring, traditional navigation is an enjoyable occupation giving an enormous sense of satisfaction even when competing with a GPS.

Grundig yacht boy radio receiver. This small radio receiver can pick up the all-important SSB weather information, accurate time signals and provide endless entertainment. When cruising the Atlantic it is very interesting to listen to weather routing for yachts, there are so many of us out there we can invariably listen in to a daily report from another yacht in our region.

Two 100m warps. One is nylon for stretch the other polyester. I love these two pieces of rope because they have got us out of trouble so many times. The 19mm nylon used to extend the anchoring depth when needed. Berthing in small fishing ports has often needed anchors and warps to feel secure when the weather deteriorates. Unexpected grounding allows me to place a kedge anchor well into deep water. Joined together they make a big enough bight to stream astern when running before the wind in heavy following seas. 200m is enough to induce a break far enough astern to avoid being pooped, most of the time!

Rika: 

1. Taylor’s paraffin (gimbaling) cooker – Always safe to put a cup of tea at sea. Without this, I couldn’t survive life on board; I managed to stay on board for 13 years because I got interested in cooking.
2. Wind vane –Let us rest and sleep when sailing. We call that “Alice”, she manages to steer Brillig as long as there is wind, very reliable gear. Andrew often oils Alice, keeping her smooth.
3. 35lb genuine CQR anchor – Always holding us, the insurance. We survived a minor flood, gales, storms.

What pieces of gear would you leave on the dock next time? Why?
Andrew:  The sheet winches. Brillig no longer has a cockpit well. The present simple winches are not big enough and do not self-tail; this makes it difficult for me to sheet in the headsail and virtually impossible for my 90lb wife.

Rika:  Aluminium oars– Totally crap! In Spain, in August 2010, our newer Avon dinghy (we had 2 the same) with outboard bracket, varnished oars were stolen and I bought cheaper aluminium ones next day. They slip, rotate and even lose plastic paddle parts when I want to row against the currant with carrying 40 litres of water!

Head sail sheets – We bought good quality sheets in America but it can’t go through on the metric English block very well!
 
Is there a place you visited where you wish you could have stayed longer?
Andrew:  The Azores. These Portuguese islands are so yacht friendly, beautiful and fascinating to cruise I could easily spend another year or six there. The major ports are full of ocean sailors while the smaller harbours are a fascinating insight into the Azorean way of life. These coastal villages are where you may need some long ropes and some short lengths of chain to prevent chafe when berthing.

Rika:  The Azores – If I didn’t have to worry about the Visa, we could have stayed longer and could have avoided the Knock-down. Those islands are so beautiful and its’ mild climate makes our life on board easier. All people we have met are sailors, many characters, very interesting to exchange the stories. There are plenty of concerts to attend, food is fantastic and lovely Azorian Portuguese people I love.

HOW OFTEN HAVE YOU FACED BAD WEATHER IN YOUR CRUISING? HOW BAD?
Andrew:  On two occasions Brillig has been knocked down on trans-Atlantic voyages. At 31’ she is a small boat and does not have wind instruments. I decide when to reef based on how the boat is handling usually when the lee toe rail is going under. The effect of increasing wind and sea is very difficult to judge especially when running down wind, one moment you are making good time the next your over. The first occasion at around 40 degrees North on the way to the Acores from the Caribbean a good summer gale struck, I kept going since it blew from the west a big wave broached us. A fair amount of water got in but no serious damage.

The second time was due to gear failure, namely the slides on our mainsail. Hove to south of the Azores in gale force conditions all was well until the top slide on the deep reefed mainsail popped with seven more going in short order. That failure sparked of a chain of events ultimately leading to a knockdown in heavy breaking seas.

Both events were bad, I felt the taste of fear, but survived and felt more confident in dealing with severe conditions. The good side of these experiences is when things begin to ease off. Fear has passed; the sea is in a grand mood offering some of the best sailing I know.

Rika: 

1. Knock-down. The article was published in Yachting Monthly November 2007. Two pressure systems (just 200 NM south of Faial, the Azores) made gale and big sea conditions more than we expected. UV damaged main sail slides popped to flap the main sail was the start, Brillig couldn’t face to the weather well and one wave rolled us from quarter port stern in the midnight, Andrew flew to the deck head and landed on my bunk. There were 10 items damaged or lost. The most serious one was drinking water. It was scarier when we realized what happened to us. 
2. The passage from Georgetown, South Carolina, USA to Tortola the British Virgin Islands, we were against the Trade wind for 2 weeks. Brillig was constantly dropped to the lower side of the waves but never stop going. We both lost weight because those impacts and motions; hitting the green water made the saucepan on the cooker jump. 
3. The last trip from Galicia to Falmouth, we had force 9 in the middle of the Biscay. We hove-to for 26 hours as Brillig didn’t slow down even Andrew changed the sail 3 times that day. However, Brillig managed to maintain her position just southerly wind area to keep going north to Falmouth. 

WHAT MISTAKES DID YOU MAKE IN YOUR FIRST YEAR OF CRUISING?
Andrew:  A lot, the worst mistake was to convince myself the land I could see was the Tiede a huge Volcano on Tenerife the Canary Islands often visible for 40 miles according to my pilot. Navigating with a sextant from Lisbon this was the longest ocean passage to date. The volcano was the object of my greatest desire. With very little wind I fired up the old Sabb and chugged towards our destination. The day wore on and more features appeared, more or less as described. Delighted to have found land I kept going confident everything was correct. When 3miles offshore breakers were spotted ahead. That was when the panic hit, this should be a clear passage along the coast to Santa Cruz no reefs were shown on my chart, in fact neither was the island seen for the past few hours. Tiredness and the overwhelming desire to get in I had made the information fit. There was a volcano and it seemed big to me. One moment confident of our position the next lost. Offshore I could see the people driving along the coast road and fishermen out working. Arriving 20 miles to the east of my position could be described as not too bad after a week at sea, Gran Canary turned out to be a great place. Exhaustion and accepting often small discrepancies in information available is how this happened. From then on I have been very careful when making landfall after a long passage, especially getting a good sleep before the last night. Even now we have GPS.

Not stowing the boat carefully enough, the first bit of rough weather demonstrates if it can move it will! Stuff banging and rattling is almost impossible to sort out at sea. It can add to the misery felt in bad weather trying to deal with this in an already difficult situation. Anything that helps the crew to keep rested and able should be done, time well spent.

Rika: 

1. When we were in Portugal before sailing to the Canaries, I was too shy to express myself; I didn’t like to socialize. I luck lots of confidence, I wasn’t comfortable enough to my English, I wasn’t comfortable to boat life; I simply didn’t know where to start.
2. Waiting forever; I have learned if I didn’t push myself, nothing would happen or come to me. When I couldn’t row the dinghy, I always had to ask Andrew to take me ashore, I didn’t have my freedom. I had to learn handling the dinghy, tying and keeping her safe until I came back; rowing, correct knots, movement of the wind and the tide; then I could go out whenever I wanted. These activities were nothing to Andrew but enormous effort for me at that time.
3. Change my mind to be more philosophical; boat is always moving even when anchored so that everything I do should be slower than usual otherwise one thing or mistake brings problems and it could make a snow-ball effect.
4. Organizing the cabin - Andrew always tells me to tidy up otherwise our cabin looks smaller and we can’t find the thing we need that moment.
5. Without any experience or knowledge, I had to believe what Andrew said about everything, but what he said and what I felt or thought were very different. He said that crossing the Atlantic would be very nice but what I felt was uncomfortable all the time. Years later, getting used to uncomfortableness and controlling seasickness I understood what he meant. Beginners never feel the same as those who went sea many times.

WHAT IS THE MOST DIFFICULT ASPECT OF THE CRUISING LIFESTYLE?
Rika:  Not only at sea, even at anchor we have to manage with what we have got because of living in the nature. Not enough water, not enough fuel, not enough food but if the weather was so bad we can’t get what we need. Always checking the weather and prepare for it. Whatever the situation would be, there seems usually a solution.

Boating, cruising is expensive for yachties. As we don’t get jobs in other countries, keeping cruising fund for unknown time schedule is impossible. Priority goes to keep the boat float and safe so we naturally save the money for food but there is limit to do this. We are lucky to have skills, Andrew paints watercolour and I play piano classical music to make exhibitions wherever we are and if these events brought us some money we could keep going for another while. I have learned how to eat with very little money. I have a book about my cruising life experience, mainly about food and cooking.

Andrew:  Changing from a life driven by the clock and schedules directed by work/family to one where the weather and seasons dictate your movements. To be comfortable with this does not come quickly, perhaps years. Once there I discovered a wonderful sense of natural order within myself and chosen lifestyle, harmony often missing in the hum drum shore life of today. Sailing for me is all about natures forces; time is determined by the passing seasons.

HOW DO YOU LEARN ABOUT THE RULES AND REGULATIONS OF YOUR NEXT PORT OF CALL BEFORE ARRIVING OR DO YOU JUST ARRIVE AND FIND OUT?
Rika:  Yes, we do just go and arrive at a new place after researching the information from cruising and navigation books then will find out how the place would be. Our cruise started, visiting where Andrew had been before. But after some years, wondering where to go next, other sailors bring us idea to visit somewhere they have been or they have heard of, to enjoy the view, culture and climate of the place.

Andrew:  Getting as much information as possible from other cruisers and pilot books is always best. Mistakes can be very stressful.

Arriving in Brazil my wife did not have the correct visa. We were told to leave within three days. Having just completed 30 days at sea with many problems, mainly the mast delaminating this was a very bad situation with the nearest port outside of Salvador Brazil around 1000 miles whichever way you went. The solution was a three day bus trip to Fos da Iguacu where Argentina, and Paraguay touch Brazil. Having the right information leads to a happy cruising couple arriving and finding out is best avoided.

WHAT IS A TIP OR TRICK YOU HAVE PICKED UP ALONG THE WAY?
Rika: 

1. To be professional foreigners; do not argue with local peoples’ traditions, not force our traditions, to learn their culture, custom, language and habit and their food, we somehow get along with natives.
2. For safety, we stow sterilized liquid (baby bottle cleaner) when we are not sure about the quality of the water.
3. It is important not to be fussy eaters and to try local recipes. It brings you problems and unhappiness if you can eat only particular food.
4. Open mind to visitors; all sailors have different points of view, different way of speech and different ways to solve the same problems. Respect each other not to criticize straight away, especially how they look like.

Andrew:  Having a strong eyelet fitted around the mainsails centre of effort.
When sailing in light conditions with any kind of swell the boom is always on a vang, this will stop you getting brained but it does not stop the main collapsing causing loss of power and a slow passage getting slower. One of the running poles is rigged in the mainsails lee and a very thick piece of bungee cord and rope joined are tied to the C.E. eyelet and hauled outboard on the pole. This has the effect of holding the sails shape when rolling and has proved very effective.

IN YOUR OWN EXPERIENCE AND YOUR EXPERIENCE MEETING CRUISING COUPLES, CAN YOU CONVINCE A RELUCTANT PARTNER TO GO CRUISING AND IF SO HOW?
Rika:  A reluctant partner was made by a wimpish captain, saying that you must learn sailing, what would you do if I were over-board? Sailing is entirely for men’s business, women I have met during my 13 years of cruise, never thought they were going to live and cruise on a yacht with their partners. The captain shouldn’t hustle their non-experience partner to become the Ellen McArthur within weeks of preparing time. Blame yourself, Captain! Also the partner should acknowledge that there is only 1 captain necessary in one boat. Andrew is the captain and he says I am the Admirable.

A good way to start learning sailing is to have very boring sailing experience; a sunny day with not much wind on a calm conditions; which gives everybody confidence on board. Living on a boat for a while makes person familiar to the facilities on a yacht. Gently and slowly start combining the life on the land and boat; the difference is huge and sailors don’t understand how the beginners feel about. Don’t read or give too much scary stories of sailing before you start your cruise.

I didn’t have time or choice to say no to Andrew when he decided to leave England. My choice was to stay with my mother-in-law until Andrew arrived at Madeira and flew to catch him up or to go with him like a passenger as he could do everything. As both seemed to hell to me I decided to go, it seemed better to try a new hell experience. I believe I was right.

Once I learned and saw Andrew’s ability to be a captain and Brillig’s integrity – trusting Andrew and Brillig after 3,000 NM, my seasickness decreased and liking travelling on a yacht grew. However, I am THE reluctant partner; I went, so anybody could. Though I am willing to take Brillig to Japan; rather hoping her taking me home. Do not compare yourself with other capable people, do what you can and be happy.

Andrew:  To leave the security of an ordered shore life when you are happy with it will lead to unbearable tensions aboard a cruising yacht. The compact living environment amplifies tension. If as a cruising couple planning to go you feel that persistent nagging sense of spiritual emptiness common in our society you may well discover things within yourself that bring harmony to your life by living closer to nature, as my wife and I have.

WHAT QUESTION SHOULD I ASK?
Andrew:  How long can you expect to sustain yourself aboard without any support from ashore? A week, a month, six months or more?

Rika:  What you have learned from sailing/living on a small yacht with your partner?
 
Sailing always shows me my weakness; life on a sailing yacht, life travelling through water by a yacht is independent, solitary, slow, tough, adventurous and dangerous. Wherever we arrived safely, it is a great achievement. I have met more than 10 people having lost their boat –a home, it can happen anytime to us. Careful preparation, loads of information and knowledge, books will help but to manage and solve problems at sea, needing mind strength to stay calm and choose a right decision in flash. Successful sailing is to choose a right vessel, this is the start.

Living and cruising on a small yacht with a partner for years makes the relationship stronger and tighter. Because we live on such a small space, we can’t avoid seeing each other, can’t keep even a small secret, we know everything and have to be honest.

Read the full interview

10 Questions for TimeMachine

Editor’s Note: There are actually 14 questions answered (my fault – the readers’ gain) and TimeMachine introduces themselves: We are Cheyenne & Joshua from s/v Time Machine. We left San Francisco in 2005 and sailed down the Pacific, through the canal, and up the Caribbean back to TX, landing in 2007. I had never sailed before but Joshua grew up in and on boats and had tons of sailing experience; his father built a 40-foot version of our boat in the late 70s-80s. Time Machine was a 31' Jim Brown Searunner (trimaran), home built out of plywood, fiberglass, and a crapload of epoxy. The boat looked kinda Star Wars and sailed beautifully. We bought it with the initial intention of toodling around the bay but that immediately turned into "Let's quit our jobs and go to Mexico!" and six months later, we did, and we just kept going. We are taking time now to raise a kid but are planning the Next Trip as soon as the toddler moves beyond the highly volatile tantrum stage and becomes more predictable. We started a blog when we purchased the boat and chronicled our trip through June 2007.

Describe the compromises (if any) that you have made in your cruising in order to stay on budget
I guess this sounds weird, but we really didn't have a budget. Cruising was the cheapest way we had ever lived, and we always lived fairly conservatively. We could easily have halved our expenditures if we had cut out the booze, but we like booze. Part of this might have been because we sailed a fairly small and spare boat: no refrigeration, no windvane, no radar, no through-holes in our hull of any kind, no SSB radio, no inboard motor (though we had a 6-horse outboard), no oven, no dodger, we did our dishes in a bucket at the edge of the boat, and we did not pull up alongside a dock or marina after leaving the US until we landed in Texas 18 months later. There just wasn't a whole lot that could go wrong. We did break the rudder though off Honduras; we jury rigged it with some rope.  

What piece(s) of gear would you leave on the dock next time? Why? I had a few things packed that I didn't end up ever using--and of course which took up precious real estate. As one example, I envisioned us dining upon Caesar salads nightly (I actually brought along a small salad spinner.. I know!) but this notion was shot all to bits when we discovered romaine to be nearly nonexistent in Mexico. Furthermore, lettuce of any kind doesn't keep worth a damn onboard in the tropics. Ditto cilantro, but that's another story. About 14 months in, we had a lot of little expired tins of anchovies to attend to... Things got creative then.  

What is the most difficult aspect of the cruising lifestyle? My absolute least favorite part about cruising was the possibility of having to pull anchor in the middle of the night and get out of there because of prevailing wind change, sudden lee shore squall, etc. For example, we were happily sleeping nestled amongst the gorgeous Murcielagos off Costa Rica when we had a sudden and alarming wind change at 1am. Fearing the start of the dreaded "papagayo" wind, we beat upwind until we were somewhat in the lee of the mainland, trying to get coffee started on a bouncing boat, all of us grumpy as all get-out (we had a guest with us).  

What are some of your favorite pieces of gear on your boat and why? Handheld backpacker's waterproof GPS (our primary). It was blue and sparkly and the size of a cell phone. It was also tough, easy to carry around with us if we felt like taking a land excursion, and it did well with batteries. Other things I could not have survived without: Really good knives and nice general galley gadgetry. It is a pleasure to cook in a confined space when you are dicing with a Shun santoku, on a beloved mesquite cutting board, with some good rum in an actual stemmed glass next to you... We went with the theory that when one is paring down to the essentials, one should select really excellent essentials. I would also have to nominate the kayak for a favorite piece of gear (we had an inflatable due to space issues). It's so lovely to be able to slink around the ocean silently, efficiently, discretely. You get to sneak up on so much wildlife this way, fit through narrow channels, up streams and rivers; the kayak was our dinghy most of the time.  

What piece of gear seems to break the most often? The citrus squeezer. Seriously; you'd think limes were made out of acid or something.  

How often have you faced bad weather in your cruising? How bad? We were very conservative sailors (my doing, most surely) and did not budge unless the weather was favorable. That said, we did not always encounter following seas and fair winds. We had 15-18' seas and a gale rounding Pt. Conception, of which I had no idea until after since it was 3am, I only had two days of sailing experience under my belt when I took over watch/driving, and all I could see anyway was glowing green foam (whoa, groovy). We got 50+ knots of wind along the Tehuantapec, which was so unpleasant I had to change clothing to skin-tight things lest I get shirt-burn (shirt burn is serious business!). We had the worst sea conditions coming around Punta Mala (Point Bad, and it was) into the Bay of Panama, where we played frogger all night long with the tankers in large and confused seas. And finally, our very last day sailing crossing the Gulf of Mexico, we got hit by the nastiest squall we had ever seen. It was raining lightning bolts everywhere and Joshua saw balls of lightning racing along the wavetops. It all sucks pretty badly while it is happening but once you are through it, you remember it as just another wild story.  

In your own experience and your experience meeting other cruisers, what are the common reasons people stop cruising? We met many people who had started off on their around-the-world cruise but had stopped along the way. Every single port we visited (starting with Ensenada) had at least one boat that just found what it had been looking for and needed to go no further. And there they stayed, three, ten, twenty years.. They always had good stories and LOTS of advice. We never met any of the people who had stopped cruising for other reasons because they had apparently gone home.

In your own experience and your experience meeting cruising couples, can you convince a reluctant partner to go cruising and if so, how? I started out being afraid of open ocean, deep water, tipping over, sharks, of being along sailing a boat at night, of sea monsters... basically everything one could possibly be afraid of on a boat. I didn't know how to sail when we left, but it turns out that it's really pretty easy, and boats like ours don't easily tip over. Once I was forced to actually do all of the things I feared: be miles offshore in the ocean in the dark at night by myself sailing the boat, with sharks and sea monsters surely lurking beneath, it wasn't actually bad at all. I had just never done it before. Joshua always said we could call it quits when it stops being fun. We decided to take our break when I discovered I was pregnant but I wouldn't necessarily say we have quit yet.  

What is a tip or a trick you have picked up along the way? You can keep cheese for a long time if you put it in a jar covered with oil. You can buy the cheapest, plainest, most tasteless white cheese, pack it under veggie oil of some sort, and after three weeks to a month, it starts to get sharp. The longer you leave it, the sharper and better it tastes. I also kept ginger in vodka for a long time (ginger always went bad immediately otherwise).  

Is there a place you visited where you wish you could have stayed longer? My favorite places were the Sea of Cortez; we were there in the winter and so had to split for hurricane season (we decided to go south). I would like to spend a spring and summer there as well. Then we loved the western Islands of Panama. So much to see and so many deserted islands. We were down to half an onion and some random tubers by the time we got to Panama City.

How do you learn about the rules and regulations of your next port of call before arriving or do you just arrive and find out? We had various cruising guides (i.e., Charlie's Charts) that listed the basics, but regulations and procedures change quickly everywhere. We always brought everything we thought we could possibly need and then expected to be directed from there. Usually we ended up crossing town a few times to visit various auxiliary offices for random stamps or additional copies, etc. We ended up with amusing stories with every check-in and check-out, so I'd say it was always worth the hassle.  

What is your most common sail combination on passage? 
I think we did them all with regularity and probably averaged 2-3 different jibs per day. Maybe we were finicky with our sails but our boat was very lightweight and touchy. We did not have a roller furling but rather a hank-on system. We had four jibs: the mule, the 170, a gennaker, and a storm jib for those exciting moments that are only really exciting when you look back later, you know, knowing you lived through it and all that.   

What is something you think potential cruisers are afraid about that they shouldn't fear? And what is something potential cruisers don't worry about that perhaps they should?
Sharks. Whales.  

What question do you wish I would have asked you besides the ones I've asked you and how would you answer it?   

What is your favorite part about cruising?

Arriving in an anchorage after a passage--more so of course if a nasty passage, but even the smoothest passages were best ended with a lovely quiet cove in which to rest. We didn't draw much so we always had the pick of the place as to where to drop our anchor. First we would sit for a moment, soaking in the calm. Then we would start wandering around the boat, picking things up, stowing the sails, tidying up things that got knocked around. Maybe jump overboard to cool/rinse off and check the anchor. Once things were relatively squared away, the rum would come out and we'd sit on the top of our cabin checking out at our new temporary home. We would talk about how to spend the remaining day, where we would go tomorrow. And plan something awesome for dinner.

Read the full interview

10 Questions for Asylum

Jim and Katie Coolbaugh are cruising aboard Asylum, a Tayana V42 (42 ft), cutter-rigged sloop hailing from Bethesda, MD, USA. They began cruising in 1999 and are still at it.

They describe their route as: Down the east coast of the US, partly on the ICW to FL; down the Thorny Path thru the Eastern Caribbean to Trinidad and Tobago; west to Panama via Venezuela and Colombia with a N/S detour thru Haiti and Cuba; thru the Canal to Ecuador, which provided a base for land travel in South America; across the Pacific to New Zealand via French Polynesia, Suwarrow Atoll in the Cook Islands, American Samoa, Tonga; then back up to Fiji, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea and soon to Palau.

Readers can learn more about their travels on their blog or via email (asyluminmates@gmail.com).

Over the time that you have been cruising, has the world of cruising changed?
We are about to pass the 12-year mark as live-aboard cruisers and as we reflected back over those years, several changes in the world of cruising came to mind:

• Cruising boats seemed to get bigger. In the early years, Asylum at 42 ft was on the high end of average boat size, but now, on average, cruising boats seem to be bigger.
• There are more cruising catamarans. In the beginning, we almost never saw cruising catamarans. They were all charter cats. Now, it’s not uncommon to have as many cruisers on cats in an anchorage as on monohulls. I even wrote an article about “catamaran converts,” people who’d switched from monohulls to catamarans after setting out to  cruise, and could have added many more to the 4 couples profiled.
• Communications are much easier, faster, cheaper. When we left, there was no sailmail or winlink, no wifi, Skype, or pre-pay cell phones that you could activate anywhere. Communications were often a time-consuming challenge and expense in the early years.
• ATMs are almost everywhere. No longer do you have to carry a wad of cash or a stash of traveler’s checks. Yes, there are still a few remote places out there without ATMs, but they’re very remote and the next town with one usually close by.
• Navigational technology gizmos have mushroomed. We left with a modest radar, a GPS, and paper charts. We now have electronic charts, a chart plotter, a forward looking sonar, and AIS—all of a relatively modest ilk. On some boats we’ve visited I feel like I’m the bridge of an aircraft carrier!
• Much more cruising information is (instantly) available. With Noonsite, SSCA on line, and everyone keeping and emailing copious notes on their routes, it’s easy to get up to the minute information about your next destination. Sometimes almost too much information…
• The world seems a wee bit more dangerous. We have read with dismay reports of growing violence and cautionary “don’t go there” tales for many places in the world. In the beginning it never occurred to us that we wouldn’t head up the Red Sea to the Med when the time came, but now the expanding range and relentless acts of piracy along that route, a route that old-timers used to rave about, are giving everyone pause. Other areas that we or friends remember fondly have had reports of life-threatening assaults on cruisers, incidents much more dangerous than a stolen dinghy or snorkel gear nipped from the deck.

What is something that you looked forward to about cruising when you were dreaming that is as good or even better than imagined?
Approaching the next anchorage and arriving to find it empty…no other boats there, having it all to ourselves! Not that we don’t love hanging out with our friends in an idyllic spot, but empty anchorages are increasingly hard to come by, so when you find one, it’s especially sweet.

Is there anywhere you sailed to that was a disappointment?
Not really. For the most part, cruising destinations are what you make them, and to the extent we’ve been “disappointed” it’s mostly been because we didn’t have enough time in a given place (like Cuba). That being said, Papua New Guinea has been something of a disappointment because of security issues. We were boarded and robbed our fourth night in the country and that made us more cautious about where we subsequently have visited than we might otherwise have been. There is considerable “don’t go there” advice even from the locals, which we respect. So our hope of exploring remote interesting villages here in PNG has been largely unrealized and therefore something of a disappointment, but we’re still glad we came.

When have you felt most in danger and what was the source?
For us, there are 3 main sources of danger out here: bad guys, bad weather, hitting something pointy that could hole the boat. Fortunately, we haven’t had to deal with the latter two. Our weather bad weather experiences mostly have been uncomfortable, not dangerous.

But we have had 2 scary encounters with bad guys, one in Colombia many years ago and one recently in PNG. In both cases, we were boarded at night by armed men (in Colombia, 5 with guns; in PNG, 2 with knives). We won’t take the space for details here; both incidents are described in our blog and on Noonsite. Frankly, the second was scarier because the guys actually got into the boat. In the first, we were able to repel them with pepper spray, but in the second, we couldn’t get at the pepper spray fast enough since they landed on top of us when we were asleep. I think the important thing was that in both cases, scared shitless as we were, we breathed deeply, didn’t panic, assessed the situation, kept our wits, and got out without injury.

Share a piece of cruising etiquette. 
Don’t anchor too close! Just because you can get your boat into that  skinny slot next to mine doesn’t mean you should. Perhaps our greatest pet peeve is how close other boats feel compelled to anchor, particularly when there’s an enormous bay of space to choose from. There seems to be a herding mentality out there that results in everyone anchoring on top of each other and we hereby beg our fellow cruisers to resist it. We don’t want you to have to listen to our generator and we don’t want to have to listen to yours. Drop your hook a healthy and respectable ways away. And if you’re the new guy on the block and someone asks you to move because you’re uncomfortably close, honor their request.

What type of watch schedule do you normally use while offshore?
After some experimentation we have landed on 4 – 4 – 3 – 3. That is, we each get an initial 4 hour sleep, and then we each get 3 hours of sleep, usually starting around 7 p.m. Because I come from a family of night-owls and it’s easier for me to stay up longer, Jim usually takes the first 4 hour sleep. It’s also easier for me to sleep in daylight, so I get the last 3 hours (which also means I can “sleep in” in the morning). During the day, we’re both up or catch a cat nap as needed.

Why did you decide to cruise?
I’ve always been one of those people who preferred to regret the things they did rather than the things they didn’t do. So, after visiting some sailing buddies who had left to go cruising a few years before we did, we pondered the notion on the flight back to Washington. I said to Jim that I didn’t want to wake up in a nursing home when I’m 85 and a doddering old fool and say, “Damn, I wish we’d gone cruising!” We love to sail, travel, dive, experience odd and out-of-the-way places, eat weird food, meet interesting and unusual people, learn new stuff; I, in particular feared ruts and routine.

Living smaller, cheaper, simpler had great appeal. And perhaps we could even do some good along the way…

In your own experience and your experience meeting cruising couples, can you convince a reluctant partner to go cruising and if so, how?
The crux of any persuasive argument like this lies in zeroing in on the source of the reluctance.

• Is it fear of pirates? Talk about the odds… (ok, well, the Gulf of Aden is a problem these days).
• Is it fear of bad weather? Talk about the odds of encountering really bad weather if you plan your routes and seasons carefully (and read the zillions of blogs and websites where cruisers routinely report that they’ve never really encountered seriously dangerous weather in all their years cruising). And of course a good sound boat is important. A line from a long-ago cruising article has always stuck with me and I quote it often: “A sailboat will scare you to death long before it kills you.” Also, read books and articles about awful weather! People thought I was nuts reading about the Queen’s birthday storm and the Fastnet race disasters (“doesn’t it scare you to read about that stuff?”), but that’s how you learn strategies for coping with those situations and how not to make the same mistakes.
• Is it lack of amenities? Figure out what’s important to you and make sure your boat has it. (It’s amazing, though, how quickly all those really important things become unimportant. I hate washing sheets in a bucket but in the end, it’s just not that big a deal.)
• Is it missing friends and family? Invest in good communications and plan your cruising itineraries to include places where you can leave the boat and fly home often. Lots of cruisers do it.

Finally, I’d say: Give it a try. You can always quit if you don’t like it but you’ll never experience the immense rewards of cruising if you don’t give it a shot.

What is something you think potential cruisers are afraid about that they shouldn't fear? And what is something potential cruisers don't worry about that perhaps they should?
Most potential cruisers seem to worry about bad weather. It’s not that they shouldn’t worry about weather, it’s just that weather shouldn’t be a crippling fear. There’s so much weather information available now—forecasts, weather patterns for every corner of the world, principles of weather systems, strategies for dealing with it—that the prudent cruiser should be able to plan around and avoid the worst of it. Most people complain about too little wind, not too much. We’ve all been caught by surprises, though, and that’s when a boat you trust and your good seamanship come into play to help allay your worst weather fears.

There is also so much advice and information out there for potential cruisers that it’s hard to imagine anything that’s been missed on the “things to worry about” lists, but one thing that does come to mind is anchoring: both equipment and technique. When it comes to anchors, size matters. Bigger is better. Everyone we know has either started out with or moved up to a bigger anchor than was “recommended” for their boat. But it’s not only size that matters; other key considerations are the type of anchor for the bottom you’re in and the type and amount of rode you carry (and deploy). We have 200 ft of chain, which, in some deep Pacific anchorages is barely enough. When it comes to something to worry about, dragging at night—or being dragged into by the other guy who didn’t worry about his anchor—is a big one.

What question do you wish I would have asked you besides the ones I've asked you and how would you answer it? 

There are so many good questions we would loved to have answered, but since we’ve spent a fair amount of time talking to each other about this issue, we’ll go for this one: With the benefit of hindsight, what
are the boat selection criteria you would use to purchase a boat for long term cruising?

If we had it to do over again, we would do more homework about the implications of boat design: construction, weight, length, waterline, rig, and all those ratios that define and explain “performance.” In
the end, it may be that we still would have opted for a safe, heavy cruising boat, but it would have been a better-informed decision than the broker-led and somewhat emotional choice we ended up making at the
time. Then we would weigh all those performance standards that are so critical for moving the boat from place to place against the equally critical comfort factor because, after all, you spend a lot of time sitting still while cruising and this is our home. In a line I’ve stolen from a cruiser friend, “I didn’t sign up to go camping.”
Implicit in all the number crunching and analysis, of course, is the issue of the seaworthiness of the boat. It won’t matter how comfortable you are if you worry that it will fall apart every time a wave slaps the hull. And “safety” includes not only sound construction, strong rigging, and rugged sails but also the ability to sail the boat with a two-person crew.

After that, the various aspects of liveaboard comfort come to play. Asylum is a 42 ft, aft cockpit boat, and much as we love and trust her, there are times we wish she was a 48 ft center cockpit boat. We sleep in the V-berth, which, on Asylum, is a bigger bed than the aft quarterberth. If we had it to do over again, we’d go center cockpit (we just didn’t like the lines of any of the center cockpit boats we looked at when we were buying a cruising boat, but we’ve gotten over that!) with a roomy aft cabin and a bed you can access from both sides. But it’s the little things you don’t think about when you’re in the flush excitement of buying a cruising boat, like a place for files and all the paper you accumulate along the way; a place for dirty
laundry; the comfort of the seat at the navigation station; plentiful, accessible storage, especially for all the tools and spares you carry; counter space around the head sink (Asylum has an airline-sized bathroom sink and counter space the size of a postage stamp). It’s hard to think about those things when you’re still living in a house and your current sailboat serves you fine for weekends when none of that other stuff matters (you take your laundry home with you and there’s a chandlery around the corner).

Yes, in 12-year hindsight we’ve decided that a little more waterline and a little more space would have been nice. But at this point, we wouldn’t trade Asylum for the Queen Mary!

Read the full interview

10 Questions for Low Key

Captain Woody and crew (Dena onboard CA to and around Australia, Tom Tahiti, Keith and Joanie Fiji, Donna South Atlantic, Jay Brazil to French Guiana, Gretchen and Rick Trinidad to ABC's, Angela ABC's to San Blas, Phil through canal, Mike Panama to Costa Rica, Terry Costa Rica) crewed on cruising boats from 1994 to 1996, began skippering in Mexico and Canada in 2002 and circumnavigated in his own boat (Low Key, a Cal 33 hailing from Manhattan Beach, CA, USA) from 2003 to 2005. He currently does deliveries. On his circumnavigation he left California and went over Australia, under Africa, through the Panama Canal and back to California. Captain Woody writes a regular column for Latitudes & Attitudes magazine. You can read articles and learn about his book on his website.

What is something you think potential cruisers are afraid about that they shouldn't fear? And what is something potential cruisers don't worry about that perhaps they should?
I learned early on that the most boats are inherently safe.  In other words, while the human passengers may be terrified during rough conditions, the boat is completely at ease.  While crossing the Indian Ocean on my coastal cruiser we had hill sized waves roll over us, Low Key and I, again and again.  The first time it happened, at night of course, I was concerned.  During the day I watched it happen again and again.  The deck and house would completely disappear under the wave. Low Key would emerge slowly, shake off the water and carry on. Structurally, Low Key seemed completely unaffected.

New cruisers concern themselves with a lot of things, most are non issues or cannot be controlled.  Something that I think they do not concern themselves with enough is boat prep.  When heading to sea everything should be secured below and nothing should be on deck. Your boat should be able to lean 90 degrees with nothing falling onto the floor.  That's for a normal downwind easy ocean crossing.  If you are travelling in the wrong season, rounding the horn or cruising high latitudes the boat should be prepped for 180 degree roll.  That's strapped batteries and oven and floor boards that lock.

What do you find most exciting about your cruising life?
The Nature mostly.  From the closeness to animals to the awesomeness ;) of the ocean itself, grinding and seething in it's day to day job of creating global weather.  Waterfalls, ecosystems, villagers and the aerodynamics and challenge involved in getting around the world on 160 gallons of diesel.  The freedom to do whatever you want and to go where you please.

In your own experience and your experience meeting cruising couples, can you convince a reluctant partner to go cruising and if so, how?
We get this question at the magazine a lot.  Men tend to take their new to sailing women out in rough conditions to prove their ability to handle themselves and the boat (or disprove same).  We suggest a 'sail' across the bay on a flat windless day to a restaurant or calm bay anchor, BBQ and overnighter.  Get her excited about pure beauty of cruising first.  At sea break-in should occur later and at a gradual pace.
I should note that it's not always the man's plan.  We had a couple partner defections on fellow cruising boats in Bora Bora.  In both cases it was the man that didn't take to cruising and headed off home leaving the women to their bliss.

Are you attracted more to sailing itself or cruising-as-travel and has that changed over time?
I don't make a secret of it.  I never cared for sailing more than other sports.  I was in it to see cool landfalls.  I didn't achieve a more heightened admiration for being at sea until I started singlehanding longer legs.  When it was just me and the boat and the sea and it's creatures ... alone at last.

What is something that you read or heard about cruising, that you didn't find to be true?
Pirates for one.  There are some tiny areas on the planet that real piracy occurs.  Smart cruisers avoid them, same as they avoid hurricane season.  Don't go there and never worry about it.  Note that if you like cruising near large cities you raise your risk of being robbed, usually when you're not onboard.

Describe a perfect cruising moment that will make cruisers-to-be drool with anticipation
Diving off the stern in any of those warm tropical islands with perfect water and white sand.
In the water feeding the rays off Moorea comes to mind.  So friendly they swam up your body.
Finally at anchor after any long bumpy passage, enjoying arrival coldies in our deck chairs forward, admiring some beautiful island, from calm flat beautiful water.

What do you think is a common cruising myth?
Travelling in a pack is safer.  Besides the possibility of night collisions, groups tend to make bad weather and routing decisions based on the needs of the group.  Real pirates would prefer to collect from 20 boats instead of one small one.

What did you do to make your dream a reality?
It was always a loose plan, in some form, since childhood.  But it doesn't get real until you make a reasonably firm departure date, even if it's years away.  I wanted to travel and figured a boat would give me more flexibility.  Over the years I acquired a usable boat, the skills via crewing, the money via skippering and finally a partner to set the date with.

How would you recommend that someone prepares to cruise?
Read everything (don't forget Cruising Low Key ;).  Get a general feel and try not to take any one source as law.  Do a sailing leg on another boat.  Maybe do a charter.  You want to figure out what your needs are and especially what you can live without.  If your funds are limited or you value your free time, don't put too much gear onboard. Every piece comes with maintenance.  Low Key was very simple.  We spent more time at waterfalls and hiking and hanging out with locals than our fellow cruisers.  And we kept a more flexible schedule as I only once waited for a part to come in (mainsail).

What question do you wish I would have asked you besides the ones I've asked you and how would you answer it?

I think you were very thorough.

People often think things will be different when they head out to cruise.  Usually we bring our shore anxieties with us.  Practice a mellow personality, easygoing-ness while still ashore as part of your voyage prep.  The sea will teach you that you really have no controlover the big picture.  It's a beautiful thing to realize.  Getting stressed is a waste of time.  Everything works out, trust the process.

Whether you're home or out there, please leave a clean wake.

Read the full interview

10 Questions for Magnolia

Bill Dietrich has been cruising since 2001 aboard Magnolia, a 1973 Gulfstar 44 motor-sailor ketch hailing from Miami, FL, USA. Over those years he has cruised the Florida Keys, Bahamas, USA East Coast, Turks, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, Leeward Islands and Windward Islands. He is single, started cruising at age 43, is now age 52, and Magnolia is his first vessel owned. You can read more about Bill on his website.

What is something you think potential cruisers are afraid about that they shouldn't fear? And what is something potential cruisers don't worry about that perhaps they should?
I guess everyone is afraid of piracy or attacks these days, with them in the news so much.  There have been some incidents in Venezuela and Honduras recently, I think, but other than that I think the Caribbean is pretty safe. If I were a potential cruiser, I wouldn't worry about that.

Maybe people worry about being seriously ill while on the boat and outside the USA.  Recently I had a kidney-stone attack while on the boat in Martinique, and I don't speak French. I spent 8 hours in an Emergency Room, got care as good as any in the USA, and the total bill was $250.  Now, being seriously ill in a more isolated place, and especially if singlehanding, would be worse. But I'd worry more about getting hit by a car in the USA than about getting ill on a boat while cruising.

People should think more about the little things that can bite you. On a delivery a couple of years ago, I slipped on a wet, rolling swim platform with no handholds, crashed down on my back across the edge of the platform, and ended up in the water.  I got away with a badly bruised back, but I could have broken vertebrae, or hit my head and drowned.  Everyday activities such as raising anchor or operating the dinghy could cause major injuries if you're unlucky.  About eight years ago, I met a couple in the Chesapeake who had sailed up from South Africa with no problems.  In the Chesapeake one day, the lady was on the foredeck to take down the jib.  A jib-sheet wrapped around her leg and yanked her into the air, upside-down.  She got away with deep rope-galls to her leg, but she could have had her brains bashed out against the deck.

What do you find most exciting about your cruising life?
The most exciting thing is just that I've "broken out of the rut" and am living a new lifestyle.  At age 40, I found myself living in apartment and cubicle, doing the same old things at work and the same mostly-fun things on the weekends.  Now, I have totally changed my life and lifestyle, am seeing new places and learning and doing new things.  And there are a hundred other possible lifestyles waiting out there if I ever get tired of cruising.  The sense of freedom and possibilities is pretty exciting.

And it's fun to hear from family and friends and strangers who marvel that I am doing this.  Some of them say "we plan to be cruising too in another 5 years or so".  Many of them have a "that's really cool, but I'm glad you're doing it instead of me" attitude.  And my Mom still thinks I'm crazy for giving up a career and paycheck and medical insurance, and doesn't see why anyone would create a web site and expose their life to the public.  But that's Mom.

In your own experience and your experience meeting cruising couples, can you convince a reluctant partner to go cruising and if so, how?
I'm not the best person to answer this, being a single guy.  I had a reluctant girlfriend follow me onto the boat for a few months, and she left both because she didn't like cruising, and because our relationship was not that solid to begin with.  I was ready to end my career, and she wasn't ready to end hers.  She had created a nice living situation back in California, and I hadn't.  She had an aging father to be with. Lots of reasons.

I'd guess your relationship with your partner would have to be pretty solid to overcome reluctance.  Of course, money might cure a lot of the problem.  An expensive boat with lots of amenities would make the reluctant partner happier.  Frequent plane-trips back to see family and friends would help.  Lots of wining and dining and excursions would help.

Be very careful in this area.  Buying and then having to sell a big boat not long afterwards could cost you a lot of money. Ending up with an unhappy wife would be very bad.  Finding that the guy loves cruising and the wife hates it may be fairly common.

Are you attracted more to sailing itself or cruising-as-travel and has that changed over time?
I'd say my highest focus is "living comfortably", followed by "seeing new places", followed by "sailing".  I'm perfectly happy spending a month or two somewhere with a comfortable and safe anchorage, nice weather, a little snorkeling, maybe some decent radio, lots of time to read books, some internet, a supermarket nearby, decent prices. I'm living my life most of the time, just being "everyday me".

But I get itchy after a month or two, and it's fun to move to somewhere new, explore it a bit, meet some new people.  So the "travel" part of it is fun, but secondary to the "living comfortably" part.  Frankly, new islands are interesting, but they're kind of limited.  Not a lot of history or museums or libraries or culture, compared to the USA.  Yes, they each have their own share of each, but not in the quantity and depth you'd find in the USA or Europe.  In my opinion, in the whole of the NE and E Caribbean down to the Grenadines, maybe the really good historic sites can be counted on one hand: old San Juan PR, the forts of St Croix, English Harbor Antigua, the fort at Iles des Saintes Guadeloupe. And the local people are nice, but frankly they're not as interesting as the other cruisers !  Many of the local people haven't been out of their own country, maybe they're not very well-educated, and they're living the conventional kind of life that us cruisers left behind.
Further down the list for me is "sailing".  Yes, it's a rush to turn off the engine and sail, and a feeling of accomplishment when you arrive. Maybe if my boat sailed better, I'd be more interested in the sailing aspect of this life.  But I probably spend 10-20 days at anchor for every 1 day moving.

What is something that you read or heard about cruising, that you didn't find to be true?
Before I started cruising, I read everything I could get my hands on, and such a variety, that I think I had a fairly accurate picture of cruising. So I can't say that I had any major misconceptions.

I will say that cruising magazines focus way too much on new boats, and cruising guidebooks focus way too much on marinas and restaurants.  Maybe I'm outside their target audience; I have plenty of money but I'm trying to live on my savings for the rest of my life, so I try to live cheaply. I suppose the magazines and guidebooks get their advertising from boat-builders and restaurants, so they follow the money.

I guess a surprise to me was how little exercise I get while living on the boat, unless I make a big effort to go exercise.  On land, I played tennis and hiked and bicycled.  On the boat, I find myself sitting and reading. Tennis is out, many island roads are too dangerous or hilly to bike or run on, and hiking is hit-or-miss.  Snorkeling isn't very strenuous.  Often the effort of closing up the boat, launching the dinghy, getting ashore, then having to reverse the process, is enough to keep me vegetating on the boat.

On the other hand, raising anchor by hand from 30 feet can leave the heart pounding, there are nice hikes on some islands, and I eat more healthily than I used to. I biked a fair amount when I was cruising the USA and Puerto Rico. I walk a lot on islands, not having a car, but distances aren't great.

Describe a perfect cruising moment that will make cruisers-to-be drool with anticipation.
I'm striking out a bit on this one.  Dolphins playing under the bow as I motored down the inside of the Florida Keys ?  Sitting in Baltimore harbor on July 4th and watching fireworks from half a dozen different cities ? Cruising down the Mississippi and feeling the Civil War history and the travels of Mark Twain ?  Anchoring my sailboat in Jamestown VA, next to the replicas of the sailboats that brought the Jamestown settlers across ? I've had those experiences.

I'd love to see whales from my boat, but I haven't.  Always wanted to see a space-shuttle launch from my boat, but I was never in the right place at the right time.  Would like to see a nuclear submarine in the wild.
Lots of smaller, quiet moments.  Nice sunset while sitting on the boat in a comfortable anchorage, full of a good dinner and a little buzzed from a rum-and-coke.  Satisfaction of figuring out something and accomplishing a repair job.  Reading a book picked at random out of a book-exchange and finding out it's a great book.  Having a really nice conversation with a couple of cruisers you just met and probably will never see again. Snorkeling and seeing squid hovering in small packs.

What has been the most affordable area to cruise and the most expensive? What was affordable or expensive about each area?
The USA was the most affordable, except that river or ICW trips mean a lot of motoring.  And of course I stayed out of marinas and off moorings.

In the Caribbean and just north of it:  Bahamas are expensive (govt fees, food, fuel, everything).  Dominican Republic has expensive govt fees.  The French islands have expensive fuel.

But you can save by being smart.  My boat has a big fuel tank and lots of storage space, so I can buy fuel and food where they're cheaper. I catch rainwater, so I don't have to buy water.  I stocked up in USA before going to Bahamas; I stocked up in St Thomas before going to British Virgin Islands.  [That's one reason it's hard to answer the "how much does it cost ?" question; some months I'll spend a lot of money while stocking up, then spend nothing for a while.]

Another big expense: plane flights back to USA a couple of times a year. They get more expensive as you get to more isolated places. And sometimes two adjacent islands will have hugely different airfares to the USA, maybe a 2-1 ratio.  [I've found I need a "vacation from the boat" twice a year: once at Christmas and once in the summer.  Great to get off the boat, to reconnect with my family, and to enjoy modern conveniences.]
The bigger factors are independent of where you cruise.  Stay out of marinas and restaurants and bars, and stay off paid moorings.  Do as much of your own repair work as you can.  Those strategies will save you TONS of money; savings on fuel and food pale by comparison.

What did you do to make your dream a reality?
I had an easier time of it than most people.  I was single, living in an apartment, with lots of money saved up.  So for me, the biggest hurdle was the sheer willpower needed to make a major change in my life.  It's a big, scary change, no doubt about it.  Ending a career, giving up steady paycheck and medical insurance, moving across the country, moving onto a boat.  I was a bit wacky, mentally, the first couple of months aboard the boat.  Had I made a big mistake?

I've met people who say they plan to cruise, and they have a family and pets and a business and two houses and mortgages and eight vehicles. I don't know if they're going to do it.  The hurdle may be too high.
And full-time cruising on a big boat is not for everyone.  There are lots of ways to have fun with boats.  Maybe day-sailing, or trailer-sailing, or kayaking.  Maybe occasional chartering.

I'm very glad I started cruising when I was fairly young, age 43.  I've met older people who want to cruise, but their health just won't allow it. And the change from conventional life to a new lifestyle can be traumatic; now I know why guys retire at 65 and die from a heart attack a few months later. I met a nice 65-ish couple on a boat in Miami harbor.  He had retired six months earlier, they'd started cruising, and then he'd had two heart attacks. Their cruising plans were in ruins.

How would you recommend that someone prepares to cruise?
I tell people: as soon as you start even thinking about going cruising, start simplifying your life.  Sell everything down to the bare minimum, and then sell beyond that.  Ideally, sell the house and move into an apartment. The process could take years.

And at the end of it, suppose your dream changes and you no longer want to go cruising ?  You now have a much simpler life, and that opens up all kinds of options you didn't have before.  Now you can decide to travel by plane or RV, volunteer a la the Peace Corps, or any other life you choose.  You are free from the burden of all those possessions you used to have.

Another thing: stop spending !  The best way to save money is to not spend it. Stop going to restaurants and bars, stop buying clothes, quit smoking, stop buying CDs and magazines and books.  Cook your own meals, drink at home, use the library, take up cheap activities such as running or hiking or bicycling.

Get a boat later, rather than sooner.  You don't want to have a big boat sitting in a marina slip for months or years while you try to sell your house and simplify the rest of your life.  A big boat demands a lot of your time; juggling a boat, house, job and family at the same time won't work. You can repair and upgrade the boat as you do your first short cruises; it doesn't have to be perfect before you can move aboard and cruise.

I took sailing lessons for a year in SF Bay, and then used the school sailboats for another year.  That was very worthwhile, and I'd recommend it.  But getting the boat to move and navigating it aren't very difficult, really.  I spend more of my time cleaning the boat and repairing things.  Now and then I hear from would-be cruisers who are nervous about navigation; they shouldn't be.

What question do you wish I would have asked you besides the ones I've asked you and how would you answer it?

What is it like to live and cruise on a boat?

It's a very individual thing, and it's what you make of it.  It depends on your circumstances (marriage, money, personality, health, skills) and your choices (location, boat, lifestyle, interests) and chance (weather, daily experiences, adventures, adverse events). Probably no two cruisers cruise exactly the same way.  And you can change the way you cruise, as needed.  Maybe you'll acquire a partner, lose your existing partner, decide to change boats, change locations, maybe decide you can afford to spend more, maybe you'll run short of money.

Some things are harder to change than others.  I dread the day I ever try to sell my boat; some people seem to buy and sell as if it's a casual activity, but selling seems really hard to me.  Money is as much of an issue for cruisers as it is for everyone else.  Your personality won't change overnight just because you start cruising; don't expect to suddenly become a "party animal".

Before I started cruising, I thought I might be tired of it after five years or so. But I've found it's getting better and better.  I'm close to the 10-year mark, and I don't foresee giving up this lifestyle any time soon.  I've seen maybe 10% of the Caribbean, so there's plenty of new territory left.  [I have no desire to cross oceans.] Cruising has lots of ups and downs, like any other lifestyle.  Sometimes it's hot and humid and buggy and the anchorage is rolly and it seems like half of the stuff on the boat is broken.  And as I said earlier, it's not for everyone.  But often it's wonderful, and it's changed my life for the better.  I'm very glad I'm cruising.

Read the full interview

10 Questions for Balvenie

Mark and Amanda have been cruising since 2004 aboard Balvenie, a Townson 47ft hailing from Auckland, New Zealand. They have traveled through the South Pacific, Tasmania, Australia, Papua New Guinea, Asia, Indian Ocean, Red Sea, & the Mediterranean. You can read more about them on their blogs (Yacht Balvenie, Balvenie Cruising Info) or contact them by email (yachtbalvenie@gmail.com).

In your own experience and your experience meeting cruising couples, can you convince a reluctant partner to go cruising and if so, how?
While in the Med we have met several males sailing with other male friends while their wives stay at home to "look after the furniture"!   Sailing, especially long term cruising definitely seems to be a male dream more than a female one and I (Amanda) have tried to convince a few wives along the way that it really is a great way of life. But it is so dependant on the person, and what sort of person they are.  If they have always wanted to travel, love the outdoors and don't have tight family ties then even if they don't like sailing there is hope.  If they love regular family get togethers, strolling through the shops every week for the latest fashion bargains and having their holidays in 5 star hotels - well no hope at all.

Share a piece of cruising etiquette
We left New Zealand and went straight to Fiji.  After recovering from the trip we started cruising the islands and in our first anchorage there was only us and a Canadian boat.  They invited us over for sundowners, so we turned up at the agreed time.  And we learnt our first piece of cruising etiquette.  BYO Drinks!! And for those of you unfamiliar with BYO it is BRING YOUR OWN.  This is particularly prevalent in places like the Pacific, Asia, Red Sea (we are still in Med so can't comment for further on).  The reason being is that in all of these places it is difficult to get supplies so you buy for your own needs because you know how much you drink, it works well and everyone does it.  We have, however, had some people quite offended in the Med when we have turned up with our own drinks, however when we explain why they all think it's a great idea.  In the "boonies" we always take some nibbles over too, its common practice.   

How did you (or did you) gain offshore experience prior to leaving?
Mark had been yacht racing for a few years so had plenty of inshore experience.  He got a crew place onboard a yacht doing the Auckland-Noumea race and also helped a friend bring his yacht back from Fiji to Auckland one year, and did any off shore races he could.  When we bought Balvenie she was in Picton at the top of the South Island so we had a 4 day trip to get her back to Auckland which was my (Amanda’s) first off shore.  We had 3 male friends onboard with us for this trip, and 2 more onboard for our Auckland - Fiji passage. 

What is the most difficult aspect of the cruising lifestyle?
Mark - Staying positive.  Of course it seems we have the most idyllic lifestyle and we do, BUT of course there are days when everything goes wrong, it's never just one little thing it will be an accumulation and often it may go on for days, normally not major things but enough small incidents often can be worse.  Then if you need things from ashore you are always in a foreign place, can't read the signs/labels, don't have a car to get to where you need to, can't find anyone who speaks English to help ....... 

Which spares do you wish you had more of? Less of?
When we left New Zealand we had spare oil filters and oil for the next oil change and that was about it.  Now we have a spare of nearly everything that moves and those that don't too!!  We have spent so much time in places that you just can't go ashore to a chandlery or even a hardware store that we are pretty much self sufficient now.  We have helped out other cruisers too by loaning spares when they have needed them, and we have been helped by others.

In your experience, how much does cruising cost?
The million dollar question!!  When we were preparing we were desperately trying to get this answer but so many people don't seem to keep tabs.  Then we were told by someone that you will spend what you can afford and this was very relevant, if you can't afford to go out for dinner, you don't.  If you can't afford much, well you share a pizza with a beer.  If you can afford it you have the lobster with a good bottle of wine.  I (Amanda) have kept exact records (yes, I'm one of these people with a notebook that logs everything - sad but true!!)  On our blog in the Labels there is one for "Cost of Cruising" which gives a breakdown of our last three cruising seasons.  Since we started, this is how it has been - these figures are in New Zealand Dollars and have been averaged out for a per week amount.

• 2004 .... From NZ to Fiji Vanuatu, Australia, Tasmania just 34 weeks  $423  this did not include fully stocking the boat before we left NZ and it was jam packed full
• 2005 .... Australia out to Papua New Guinea and back to Australia    $990
• 2006 .... Australia, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand    $767
• 2007 .... Thailand, Malaysia   $1,128
• 2008 .... Andamans, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Oman, Yemen, Eritrea, Sudan, Egypt, Cyprus, Turkey, Greece  $661
• 2009 .... Turkey, Greece, Croatia, Montenegro, Italy, Malta    $921
• 2010 .... Malta, Italy, France, Monaco, Spain    $1,149

NOTE.... no insurance is included in any of the above.  However everything else is in there, including trips home to New Zealand and England and also all our living expenses while NOT on the boat.

How would you recommend that someone prepares to cruise?
It was recommended to us by our good friend George on Moonshadow that we should take Balvenie up to Fiji for the season, decide what we needed to change then go back to NZ and implement any changes we wanted to make.  In principal this is excellent advice but in practice for us it didn't fit with our plans to circumnavigate and saying goodbye once is hard enough!  So we would say just try and spend as much time at anchor on your boat before you leave your home port, that is very different to being onboard in the marina.  Learn about as many of the systems you have as possible, do all the courses that your local coastguard offers, speed read every book and relevant website you can find and store all those relevant pieces of info away, either in your brain or a folder.  You will never ever be ready to go, so just do as much as you can, then let the lines go.
 
What are some of your favorite pieces of gear on your boat and why?
Mark - Our two autopilots, they just do their job, tirelessly hour after hour, no coffee or dinner breaks, never question my decisions

Amanda - My Sailrite Sewing Machine.  It has saved us thousands of dollars in canvas replacements/repairs. It is also great to be able to help out others using it as I don't have many other skills to share.  Our stash of books, in particular our Lonely Planets.  It is great to have them in advance so you can read up about the places you are going and be well informed.  WIFI Aerial when we left you couldn't get internet on the boat, now we get pretty grumpy if we can't.  We have a great aerial that we bought from a cruiser friend when in Malaysia and it has served us very well along the way picking up free signals at anchor often a far way off.  Don't leave home without one.

What is something that you looked forward to about cruising when you were dreaming, that is as good or even better than imagined?
For us the opportunity to travel to so many different places that many people can not reach and then to be able to stay and experience these places from the comfort of our own floating home is priceless

What question do you wish I would have asked you besides the ones I've asked you and how would you answer it?

What is the best part of this lifestyle?

The people.  We are part of a huge cruising community full of the most wonderful people from all walks of life and all countries.  We all have a common interest and are out here bobbing around, sharing our worries about the weather, the anchorages, the political state of the  countries we want to visit, whether to go east, west, north or south, or should we just stay another day or year.  We are a mobile community, spanning the globe and we are a community full of amazing people.  We have forged friendships we would have never have done at home - and that has made it all worthwhile.

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10 Questions for Arctracer

Jerry & Nina are currently cruising on Arctracer, a Fastback 43 (Catamaran) hailing from Norwich, Vermont, USA. Since 1994, they have cruised through the East Coast USA, Caribbean, Pacific, New Zealand, Australia, & Southeast Asia. They sailed a traditional 45' steel gaff-rigged schooner from Maine to Australia, and then traded it in 2001 for their catamaran. Readers can learn more about their voyage on their website or through email (ninajerry@arctracer.com).

In your first year of cruising, what transitions did you find the most difficult?
Most difficult was being away from our families and out of contact with them, especially on our first Thanksgiving aboard. We got together with other cruisers for a pig roast, but that wasn't as good as a family reunion. In those days we had no mobile phone and no email aboard. Now it is much easier to keep in touch with friends and families, so this transition should not be as difficult for new cruisers today.

How would you recommend that someone prepares to cruise?
Read everything, talk to cruisers, join SSCA and sail as much as possible. Once you move aboard you are still learning and preparing so take easy steps at first. Don't plan big adventures until you have adjusted to
cruising.  Make your lifestyle fun. You are cruising so don't adopt racing attitudes. Reduce sail in rough seas to keep things comfortable for everyone aboard. Don't get trapped into doing something you'd rather not
just to meet a deadline. (For example, sailing into weather you don't like in order to meet someone on a particular date.) We spent three years along the East Coast and in the Caribbean learning to cruise before we did any long-distance sailing.

Describe a positive experience you have had with local people somewhere you have visited?
Getting to know local people, their customs and beliefs has given us great pleasure in almost every place we have visited. We've had many positive experiences, especially on Pacific islands where we got to know the people and could help them in various ways.
Here are some examples: We shared meals ashore and on our boat in the Marshall Islands, drank kava with groups on several islands in Fiji, played with children, sang with locals, taught school children in Indonesia, picnicked with locals in the Cook Islands,  learned how to collect shellfish and prepare them the local way  in Kiribati, traded clothes for local produce in Guadalcanal, sponsored a model outrigger canoe race in the Louisiades, and repaired a solar power system and other equipment in Tikopia. We took locals aboard from several islands for overnight fishing trips, to visit their ancestral atoll in New Caledonia, took a family for two weeks to a Melanesian Arts Festival in Vanuatu and slept on crowded ferryboat decks on the Irrawaddy River in Burma.

In your own experience and your experience meeting cruising couples, can you convince a reluctant partner to go cruising and if so, how?
Most people are reluctant because they do not understand the risks of cruising and are afraid of unknowns. Education and experience are needed to change their minds. Don't push too hard. Think long-term. Read about people who have gone cruising and discuss their experiences. Gather cruising information of all sorts and make it available to your partner too. Take tiny steps if that is all your partner can handle. For example, rent a rowboat on a lake for an afternoon and you will be essentially learning to use a dinghy. Take sailing lessons in a school where everything is safe. As your partner gains skills and knowledge you can take bigger steps such as chartering a boat for a few days with more experienced friends. The key is to proceed slowly enough for you both to be comfortable with what you are doing. Consider everything to be a trial. Don't commit yourselves to doing anything for a long time until you've actually tried it for a while. Getting a really solid cruising boat can be a big factor in relieving a partner's fears.

Across a year, what do you spend the most money on while cruising?
Boat maintenance. That includes haulouts for antifouling, new equipment, new rigging and new sails.

How has cruising affected your personal relationships?
This life has greatly strengthened the relationship between the two of us. One cruiser expressed it as one brain in two bodies. We often know what the other is thinking before a word is spoken. We know we can depend on each other completely, and know how we will each react in almost any situation.

What are some of your favorite pieces of gear on your boat and why?
The electric windlass has made pulling up the anchor quick and easy, compared to the manual windlass we once had.

What is something that you read or heard about cruising, that you didn't find to be true?
That it is very dangerous. We feel cruising is less dangerous than driving on Interstate highways. We also found more food available in more places than we expected.

Where was your favorite place to visit and why?
This is impossible to answer. Almost every place where we have stayed for a while has some favorite aspect such as weather, scenery, wildlife, local people, culture, history, food, and the other cruisers who were there. We especially liked small places in the Pacific which were off the beaten path, but also liked the modern facilities of countries such as New Zealand and Australia.

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