CAUTION: READING THIS MAGAZINE COULD RUIN YOUR LIFE!
CruisingOutpost.com
Transiting the
Panama Canal
Cruising
Cape Cod
Taking Care of Our Oceans
Greening the Blue
Women Who Sail
Giving Back to
The BVIs
Spring 2019
BOAT SPOTLIGHT
Issue #26
From the Creators of
U.S. $9.99 / Canada $10.99
PASSPORT 545 SEAWIND 1160 ASPEN POWER CAT
Attitudes
Broken pencils are pointless.
By Bob Bitchin
Why is it that the one time you really mess up has to be some sunny Sunday returning to your slip? Or, on a busy holiday weekend at the islands, where you screw up picking up a mooring or dropping anchor? Come on, ‘fess up! We’ve all done it. In fact, you have to admit one of the highlights of cruising is sitting calmly at anchor or on a mooring, waiting for the next “newbie” to come along and entertain you for awhile. You know the scene: A beautiful day at your favorite anchorage, watching as some hapless victim drops his anchor 50 feet in front of you and drifts back to almost hit you (or worse yet, actually does hit you) and you get the thrill of feeling superior. And then a few weeks later, you are the one that messes up, and gets laughed at? Well, take heart. There are real advantages to screwing up. These are called “Life Lessons,” and they are some of the best teachers out there. The reason experienced sailors make less mistakes than new sailors is pretty easy to figure out: They have learned not to make a certain mistake now because they have already made that mistake before! Nothing can teach you about slipping anchor and drifting into another boat better than, well, slipping anchor and drifting into another boat! Making mistakes is nature’s way of teaching you stuff. Now, I am not telling you to go out and do stupid things to learn from them. It’s actually okay (and recommended!) to study and try to plan in advance for things that could go wrong. I’ve found that the old saying “Failing to prepare is planning to fail” is a pretty good guide and life lesson in and of it itself. Take, for instance, this bit of old sailors’ wisdom. Basically, it’s the rule that says, “When cruising, the only things that break on a boat are the things you don’t have backups for.” True dat! Man, I gotta tell ya, I have proved that to be true more times than you can shake a stick at! A good example is this. One day I was walking through a marine swap meet with my friend Curt and we spied a large propeller. A few months
8 Cruising Outpost
earlier we had been sailing from Palmyra Island in the Central Pacific to Hawaii when about 100 miles out of Palmyra our transmission went out—although, only in forward; we still had reverse. We were becalmed for a few days. We even tried motoring backwards, in reverse. Slow-going doesn’t begin to describe how slow a Taiwan Turkey will go in reverse. Suffice it to say, that only lasted a few hours until we gave up. But now, there we were standing at this marine swap meet, and there was a prop that was the right size for my boat, but it was a right-hand instead of a left-hand prop. Curt and I both hit on the same idea! The guy only wanted $100 for the prop (we got it for $90!). Our plan was the next time the tranny went out on the boat, we would just change props and then motor with the engine in reverse, which would drive us forward. But, I digress. The reason for this little story is, once we put the reverse prop in our bilge, it just sat there, unused for the next ten years. We never needed it. Why? That’s easy. Because we had it! If you have a spare for something, it never breaks! So, the more crap you stow, the less crap you’ll have break, or so we still believe! Actually, there is another piece of wisdom I can pass on to you. There are two types of people: people who don’t make mistakes, and people who do. The only people who make mistakes are people who actually do something! The easiest way to avoid mistakes is by not doing anything. The less you do, the less you’re bound to mess up, right? But, I gotta tell ya, the only problem with that is, it’s not a lot of fun—and you certainly won’t have any adventures if you’re out there but not doing anything! To quote Stephen Hawking, “One of the basic rules of the universe is that nothing is perfect. Perfection simply doesn’t exist. Without imperfection, neither you nor I would exist.” Cruisers exist! The proof of that is undeniable, and cruisers are not perfect. We make mistakes. Our imperfections don’t make us less, just blessed!
www.cruisingoutpost.com
www.cruisingoutpost.com
Cruising Outpost 9
e s e u g u rt
Po
n w o d k c o n K Part II
ats valkink-Ye
e By Jessie Z
YACHTING HAS LONG BEEN RUEFULLY LIKENED TO STANDING IN A COLD SHOWER WHILE TEARING UP MONEY.
From A Voyage for Madmen by Peter Nichols
This quote has come to be one of my most favored and coherent sentences. It’s sure not romantic, but it’s honest. I picture myself, standing in the rain, screaming at the sky, chucking hundred-dollar bills off the stern. Every once in a while a bill gets stuck to the selfsteering gear and I launch forward to salvage it, but I’m too late; the next gust comes and takes it to sea. So, why do we do it then? Why does sailing re-route the way we live our lives? Why do we keep coming
12 Cruising Outpost
back when we often find ourselves miserable and broke? There’s one word: grit. It’s Sunday morning. I am aboard s/v Desiree, up on chocks in a boat yard somewhere in Portugal. Things happen very slowly here. “Amanhã, amanhã,” they tend to say. After a month of slaving away in the boat yard, I finally begin to slow down, adjusting to their culture. Despite the physical and financial set-backs of being in the boatyard, I feel “at home”
www.cruisingoutpost.com
even when there is cement underneath the hull. I think back to how I got here, where I began, why I began. “Never forget why you started,” someone once kindly reminded me, and I have not. I wanted something different. Something else. Something that was my own. That something turned out to be a boat. It takes a frustratingly long length of time to find this very place. This place where I can sit and think, be perceptive in my thoughts, and understand the greater picture of what it is I am actually doing here. Candles, coffee, and quiet serve their purpose and have me right where they want me. The feral cat we have recently adopted is
www.cruisingoutpost.com
my only distraction. I thought about naming her “Bob Bitchin” in honor of the legendary man and his wife who have played an integral role in my sailing journey. But, she is far too petite and polite to be “Bob.” I started calling her “Potato” instead, and eventually, “Tato.” Tato meows at the closed companionway at the top of the ladder. She has worked out every possible exit and cries at her inability to get out when we close her in. Every day we let her walk about the boatyard to explore, and every day she comes back. And, if she’s anything like me, she just might keep coming back forever. I didn’t expect to keep coming back, to a sailboat that is. After two years on a 27-footer with my best friend, a dog, and a different cat who often peed in the forepeak, I was ready for a break. For space. For a home. For a career. It felt like I had learned all the lessons I was meant to learn. Had seen
Cruising Outpost 13
P ortuguese K nockdown America in a magical, slow, and incredible way. Had navigated rivers, lakes, swamps, and coastlines with an 11-horsepower diesel and a shitty set of sails that we only used when the wind was in our favor, which was never. America’s Great Loop was not about the boat. It was about selfreliance. From 23 to 25 years old, I got to know myself. It was a grand sense of purpose. For the first time in my life, I realized I was smarter than I thought. Upon return to life on land, that sense of purpose, that feeling of being “enough” went missing. I wanted something grander, something more challenging, something to make me feel something, anything at all. I waited and looked; waited longer and looked harder. Nothing felt good enough after getting off that boat. It was boring. Convenient. Easy. Square. It seemed like a bunch of fluff and distraction to pass the time in between sleeping and eating. It wasn’t until I met my husband and we decided to cross the Atlantic together that my sense of purpose returned. My photography career developed as a result. I was money-hungry and motivated. I wanted to sail across an ocean, and that alone, was going to take everything I had. You read about many heroic sailors who fall into deep depressions after great feats, solo circumnavigations, incomprehensible accomplishments. In my own minuscule way, I understood. I understood why Moitessier decided to keep going around the world again instead of winning the race. Why Nigel Tetley didn’t want to live anymore. Why Robin Lee Graham fell into his darkest
14 Cruising Outpost
www.cruisingoutpost.com
Part II place post-circumnavigation. These voyages serve a great purpose. When they end, you have to start all over. As a result, those who survive, just end up back at sea. Sailing represents an abundance of purposes. Selfsufficiency. Self-reliance. Self-worth. Time. Dedication. Tenacity. Stubbornness. Compromise. Patience. Money. Optimism. Risk. Respect. On top of all that, it requires a little batshit-mental, willing-to-risk-yourlife-and-get-eaten-by-the-sea kind of gumption. Or—grit. It’s the grit, the strength of will and moral fiber, that returns many of us to our sailboats and to the sea. This four letter word is one fierce motivator. It’s something physiological that exists physically while weathering storms, and emotionally while battling solitude. It’s something I want in the same way a successful CEO might want a mansion with a three-stall garage to park his/ her Mercedes, BMW, and justfor-fun Land Rover. Grit is my own version of investment. Some may say that you either have it or you don’t; I believe it’s something you work for, just like a paycheck. In the beginning, I was curious to find out if I had it. To this day, I am still just as curious, but the stakes continue to grow higher, especially when you marry a British sailor who only remains happy if he is taking risks and on the edge at all times. Discovering the strength of your own backbone is a complete addiction. What you learn is that it just keeps getting stronger. So you test it again, and again, and again to find out what it’s capable of. You’ll surprise yourself.
www.cruisingoutpost.com
Nick Bostelaar in his shop helping Luke with the repair
Cruising Outpost 15
Panama Canal Transit
By Suzy Carmody, s/v Distant Drummer
It was a bleary-eyed six o’clock in the morning and the sun was just brightening the Panama City skyline when s/v Mis Gale came along side s/v Distant Drummer to collect us for our Panama Canal adventure. My husband, Neil, and I had agreed to join our friends Gale and Slim as line handlers for their northward passage through the Canal from Balboa to Colon. We were keen to get some Canal experience before going through ourselves next year on board Distant Drummer, our Liberty 458 sloop. We first met Mis Gale in July 2018 when we were anchored in Bahia Ballena in Golfo de Nicoya, Costa Rica. As we headed south, we had crossed paths with them
46 Cruising Outpost
several times and were always happy to see Gale and Slim and share a few beers while swapping a few yarns. It was October 2018 when we caught up with them again in Vista Mar Marina in Panama and offered our services for the passage through the Canal. Preparation Full details of the documentation and procedures required to transit the Panama Canal can be found on the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) website, www.PanCanal. com/eng/. Many skippers choose to do the paperwork themselves, saying that it is not too onerous, but other www.cruisingoutpost.com
people prefer to use the services of an agent. The main advantages of an agent are that they help with completion and submission of all the documentation, provide a point of contact with the Canal authorities to help smooth the process, pay the buffer (a deposit which is refunded less any additional charges which may be incurred during the transit), and provide the fenders and mooring lines. Before passing through the Canal, a vessel must be inspected, measured, and cleared by the Admeasurer, then a date for the transit will be allocated. Yachts less than 65 feet long are assigned an advisor by the ACP who boards the vessel early on the day of the transit. Small vessels use handlines to maintain their position in the locks. The ACP requires the boat to carry four mooring lines, each at least 125 feet long, and plenty of large fenders to prevent damaging the vessel against the lock wall. Four linehandlers are also required to be onboard in addition to the skipper. Slim and Gale used an agent from the Panama Cruiser Connection (www.PanamaCruiserConnection.com). Roger was professional and efficient, very friendly and helpful, and seemed to have a good relationship with the ACP. He also provided transport around the city and was a fount of knowledge for anything we needed from laundry to solar panels to dinghy repair. www.cruisingoutpost.com
The day before the transit, Roger delivered the fenders and mooring lines to the dock at Las Brisas Anchorage and Slim hauled them aboard Mis Gale. Stephanie, Gale’s niece, and Andrew, a fellow cruiser, arrived from Houston, making up the third and fourth members of the line handling team. This was Gale and Slim’s third canal transit, and Andrew had been through several times before, so there was plenty of experience on board. The next morning when they came alongside Distant Drummer, Neil and I clambered aboard, ready for action and a cup of coffee. Balboa and the Miraflores Locks As we left Las Brisas Anchorage and rounded Isla Flamenco, a 25-knot southwesterly wind was kicking up a choppy sea, causing Mis Gale to roll steeply in the swell. We called Flamenco Signal on VHF channel 12 to let them know we were in position at La Playita to pick up the advisor but told them that the conditions were not good for a the transfer. They verified that Mis Gale was on the list for transit that day and then instructed us to proceed up to the Balboa Yacht Club and wait there for the advisor to arrive. Luckily, once we were in the channel leading to the Balboa docks, the sea conditions were eased and Harold and Joe, our advisors, were able to climb safely on board and we settled in for the trip.
Cruising Outpost 47
Panama Canal Transit
From the Balboa Yacht Club we passed under the Bridge of the Americas and through the Balboa Docks towards the Miraflores Locks, the first challenge to our line handling skills. We stuck closely to the red buoys marking the starbord side of the channel while tugs, pilot vessels, and other work boats were buzzing around us providing various services to the tankers and container ships moving in and out of the docks. As we passed the entrance to the adjacent new third lock, we watched two tug boats nudging a massive tanker into the chamber like terriers nipping at the heels of a steer. Since the Panama Canal opened in 1914, the dimensions of the lock chambers have defined the maximum size of ocean-going cargo ships, a classification known as Panamax. In 2009, expansion of the Panama Canal began and a third lane of locks was opened in 2016. The new chambers are three times larger and the NewPanamax vessels have redefined huge. Mis Gale was slated to transit the Miraflores Locks rafted up to a small passenger ship, m/v Pacific Queen. Our partner entered the chamber ahead of us and tied up on the righthand side of the lock. Slim navigated us into the lock; it was over 1000 feet long and took several minutes just to reach the front end of the chamber. We tied up to the port side of Pacific Queen with mooring lines forward and aft and two spring lines through a hawser on the starboard side. We stared at the dank green walls towering over us as the surface swirled and eddied and the chamber filled with water. As we rose we adjusted the lines as our advisor Harold instructed. In about ten minutes we were peeping over the top of the walls which had previously loomed above us. The Miraflores Locks lift vessels 54 feet in two steps. First, we untied Mis Gale and backed away to allow the passenger ship to preceed us into the second chamber after the lock gates opened. Turbulence from the prop wash of large ships is one of the hazards for small yachts in the locks. Slim had to work hard to maintain position in the churning waters while Pacific Queen slowly pulled away from the sidewall and moved ahead. Then, once they had tied up, we repeated the process again under the eagle eye of Harold. We were now old hands.
48 Cruising Outpost
www.cruisingoutpost.com
The Pedro Miguel Lock is the third of the locks on the Pacific side of the Canal and lies about a mile upstream from Miraflores. It is interesting to note that at the Pedro Miguel Lock the bouyage reverses; for northbound vessels the American convention of “red right returning” changes to green to starboard above the lock. Once again we rafted up to Pacific Queen, but this time on the left-hand side of the dock. This meant we had to shift all the mooring lines and fenders across to the port side on Mis Gale—the powers-that-be at the ACP must have been watching us on the cameras and thought we looked bored! We followed the same procedure and by lunch time we were through the locks leaving Panama City and the Pacific Ocean in our wake. The Culebra Cut and Gatun Lake The rain started as we entered the Culebra Cut; October is one of the wettest months of the year in Panama. We crowded into the cockpit and enjoyed lunch while Harold entertained us with stories about Panama and the Canal. He was full of interesting facts and figures, and every so often he would throw out a “test question” to which we provided guestimated answers. Slowly, we became experts on Canal trivia. The Culebra Cut, also known as the Gaillard Cut, is where the Panama Canal crosses the continental divide. It runs 7.4 nautical miles from the Pedro Miguel lock to a bend in the Chagres River where it joins Gatun Lake. The French began excavation of the Cut in 1881, but progress was hampered by landslides, disease, and financial troubles, and in 1904 the project was taken over by the United States. In total, ninety-million cubic metres of rock and soil were removed to lower the summit of the Culebra mountain range from 64 meters to 39 meters above sea level and create a channel 91 meters wide. Though thousands of men died during its construction, it was one of the greatest engineering feats of its time. During the recent expansion, the Culebra Cut was widened to 192 meters. As we passed through the Cut we could see the step-sided man-made hills created from the debris from the excavation. With Harold guiding, Slim steered a course close to the right-hand side of the channel, almost touching the green buoys as we went by. www.cruisingoutpost.com
Cruising Outpost 49
Greening
The Price of Convenience is Too High
52 Cruising Outpost
www.cruisingoutpost.com
the Blue
and Our Oceans are Paying for It! By Jessica Llod-Mostyn
Living on a boat certainly makes you more aware of the environmental impact that you have. A considerable benefit is that you have a chance to look at things, question them, and engage on a different level than when on land. We consider everything that we produce and consume, plus harness the power of the elements. The wind being the main source of propulsion is bound to open up a sailor’s eyes to alternative power sources. Both solar panels and wind turbines are fairly standard on long-distance sailing yachts. However, there are still plenty of boats that prefer to run generators, particularly those with freezers, watermakers, or power-hungry electronics.
www.cruisingoutpost.com
Cruising Outpost 53
What’s Out There?
C ruising Monohull
There are cruising boats, and then there are cruising boats. Passport has long been famed for their strength, sailing characteristics, and comfort over long distances. The Passport 545 Center Cockpit is one of the boats that has set the standard for safe, comfortable cruising The aft deck is large and designed as a second communal area. This works well both at anchor and while sailing. It works for fishing, sundowners, BBQ-ing, swimming, or simply hanging out. There are also some BIG lockers back there too. Forward there is also a big deck locker for storage and forward of that is the chain locker with two separate rode compartments for the double-roller system. Down below you can see Passport does NOT compromise. Both staterooms are large and have separate heads and showers. You would be hardpressed to determine which is the master because they are both palatial. The galley is huge; it has lots and lots of counter space, an abundance of lockers and drawers, and two full-sized pantries! Things like ice makers, microwave ovens, washers, and dryers all have their dedicated spaces. And there is a full-sized walk-in engine room that is to die for! This a cruiser’s dream! And did we mention it also comes in a three-cabin design?
68 Cruising Outpost
www.cruisingoutpost.com
Passport 545 CC
Get all the facts:
www.passportyachts.com
Passport 545 CC LOA
54’4”
LWL
45’7”
Draft shoal/deep Beam
www.cruisingoutpost.com
5’7” / 6’6” 15’5”
Ballast
14,700 lbs.
Power
110-hp Yanmar
Fuel
280 USG
Fresh Water
250 USG Cruising Outpost 69
What’s Out There?
70 Cruising Outpost
C ruising C atamaran
www.cruisingoutpost.com
Seawind 1600
For those looking for a good cruising catamaran, this 52-foot cat could be the one; it combines cruising comfort and performance sailing. Built using composite construction, this boat was designed for the sailor who is looking for something a little extra. With simple sailing systems, twin-protected helms, and a large, open cockpit space, its interior has been well-designed for living aboard during those long cruises and ocean crossings. The retracting daggerboard and rudder make this boat
a great sailor, but also beachable and able to enter shallow lagoons and estuaries. If you’re looking for a fast, comfortable catamaran, this could be the end of your search. See more at seawindcats.com.
Get all the facts:
www.seawindcats.com
Seawind 1600 LOA 51’8” LWL 51’6” Draft Board up / Down 2’1” / 8’6” Beam 25’10” Displacement 28,600 lbs. Power Two 57-hp Yanmar Fuel 200 USG Fresh Water 155 USG Mast Height 71’8” www.cruisingoutpost.com
Cruising Outpost 71
What’s Out There?
Aspen’s C120 is built in the Pacific Northwest by local craftsmen with three things in mind: style, ease of use, and longevity. The vessel has a hull design that slices through heavy seas effortlessly with 70% more roll stability and 50% less carbon impact. The C120 is designed to be fast and maintain the much sought after efficiency. Aspen’s patented, awardwinning hull design is powered with a Volvo D6, designed to reach cruising speeds of 16 to 18 knots with a top speed of 20 to 23 knots. Fuel economy with the single 435 is 10 gallons-per-hour at 16 knots; 50-60% less than competitive boats. Built with a large salon, roomy staterooms, heads, and cockpit, she is the first boat in this category with 600 square-feet of deck and living space.
72 Cruising Outpost
C ruising C atamaran
The modern design starts in the salon with an open window layout that brings the outdoors right to you with a 360-degree view from every seat! Each hull has a head with a shower and large vanity. Below the dinette is a queen-size guest stateroom, complete with hanging locker, portlights, and reading lights. Below the galley is a second guest stateroom with a twin bed, portlights, and reading lights. Forward is the full-width, King Island Master stateroom, hard to find in a 40-foot boat. The stateroom includes port and starboard hanging lockers, drawer sets, starboard vanity. Still wondering if this is the right boat for you? Well, in 2018, a C120 started and completed a 10,502mile voyage from the Pacific Northwest to Annapolis, Maryland. So she’s definitely a cruiser! If you’d like more info you can find it here: www.aspencatmarans.com.
www.cruisingoutpost.com
Aspen Power Cat C120
Get all the facts:
www.aspencatamarans.com
Aspen Power C120 LOA Draft Beam Power Voltage Displacement Fresh Water Waste Water Heads www.cruisingoutpost.com
42’6” 39” 13’10” Volvo 330hp 12/110 22,500 lb 100 gallons 83 gallons 2
Cruising Outpost 73
By Bob Bitchin, Bora Bora, French Polynesia
84 Cruising Outpost
www.cruisingoutpost.com
Lifestyle A Look at Why We Do What We Do
Ever wondered why people love the boating lifestyle? Well, here in the Lifestyle section, folks from all over the world give an insight into what it’s really like out there. If you have a photo you think tells a good tale, why not send it to us? We prefer you send a digital pic, in as high resolution as you can. Tell us who took the pic and where it was taken. We will probaby throw it into our “digital pile” and pull it out someday. We won’t send you any money, but you will be famous worldwide! Email to: Lifestyle@CruisingOutpost.com. www.cruisingoutpost.com
Cruising Outpost 85
By Raymond Muzika, Obertraun Austria on Lake Hallstatt
By Pierre, in Switzerland of his daughter, who wants to sail around the world and help surfers stay in shape!
By Richard Fritz, Phecal Phreak honey dipper boat in Roche Harbor, WA By Wendy Morrison in Puerto Rico
86 Cruising Outpost
www.cruisingoutpost.com
By Mike of Connie and Summer in Marathon Key
By Jeff “The Mouth that Roared” of the Winter FPYC Winter Regatta By Ron & Jackie Skelton aboard Hullabaloo, at Cove Island off the Bruce Penninsula between Lake Huron / Geotgian Bay as they begin their cruise to the Caribbean from Michigan!
By Jimmy Thom, on the San Blass Islands aboard s/v Joan
By Ken Peckham, Hurricane Hermine took a bite out of this poor boat
By John Simpson, Spirit, Scotland www.cruisingoutpost.com
Cruising Outpost 87
Why do banks charge a fee on “insufficient funds” when they know there is not enough?
By Peter Isn, Diving Saturday with the Unversity of Miami Rescue-a-Reef program off Key Biscayne. They have a coral nursery to grow coral and replant them on the local reefs
Alan Collins, Pacific Northwest, Mount Baker in the background
By Jamie Alyssa Brown, Vis, Croatia
By Mark Roozendaal, Crew of s/v Adesso and s/v Speakeasy at the summit of Isla Coronados, Coronoda
By Bob Reilly, Nancy aboard Red Sky after battening down in abundance of caution for Hermine Norwalk Islands, CT.
By Debbie Critchley, Lake Ontario
By Scott “Squatty” Nielsen, Cape Charles Cup in Southern Chesapeake Bay
88 Cruising Outpost
www.cruisingoutpost.com
By Bill Gregan, on Key Largo’s Bayside
By Capt. Jeff Inshaw, all asleep, no anchor alarm. Sitting on Daytona Beach
By Chris Hunke, a very happy Melissa Smith in Tobago Cays, Grenadines www.cruisingoutpost.com
Cruising Outpost 89
Cruising Cape Cod
96 Cruising Outpost
www.cruisingoutpost.com
d
& The Islands
By Bob Lee
O
n the southwest side of the Cape Cod elbow lays a group of islands that have long been a cruising ground for boaters: Nantucket, Martha’s Vineyard, Cuttyhunk, and a group of islands called the Elizabeth Islands. On our cruise we will visit all these islands. Our Gulfstar 44 sailboat, First Light, which we have owned for 31 years, is about to depart our home port of Gloucester, Massachusetts to cruise Cape Cod and its islands. My wife, Nancy (The Admiral), and I have stocked the vessel with food, topped off the fuel and water tanks, and are ready to head to our first port. While cruising the islands, it is important to have a copy of the book Eldridge Tide and Pilot on board, as there are many locations that have strong currents such as the Cape Cod Canal, Woods Hole, Vineyard Sound, and Nantucket Sound. This is the forty-first time we have sailed to Cape Cod. We cast off and head almost due south to Scituate, which is about 24 miles away. The wind is on the nose at 10 knots, so this leg of the trip requires the motor all the way. We have called ahead to the Satuit Boat Club to reserve a mooring. The trip across Massachusetts Bay was uneventful. Upon arrival we took the launch ashore to meet an old friend Betty at the Satuit Pub for dinner. The next day, we departed Scituate and headed for the Cape Cod Canal, a voyage of about 28 miles. The ocean water is relatively shallow on the south side of the Cape resulting in warm water by August, typically 78 to 83 degrees Fahrenheit. Because of the current, was was important to enter the canal in the right direction; in our case, west. We passed through the canal into a turbulentas-usual Buzzards Bay. Our destination was Kingman Yacht Center, four miles from the west end of the canal, where we had a mooring and dinner reservation at the Chart Room restaurant. This restaurant is a major hangout for sailors, so reservations are mandatory. The house drink is a mudslide, which we believe is mandatory for us. We then headed for the small island of Cuttyhunk, about 22 miles away. The island has a small inner-harbor with about 50 guest moorings that are rented by the town on a first-come, first-served basis. The island town, known as Gosnold, has a year-round population of 52 people served by a small general store and two restaurants. That evening
www.cruisingoutpost.com
Cruising Outpost 97
Cruising Cape Cod & The Islands
Cape Poge Beach, Martha’s Vineyard Martha’s Vineyard
we walked to the top of the island to watch a beautiful sunset. There was also a spectacular view of the boats moored in the harbor. On the way back to the boat we rewarded ourselves with an ice cream. We started the day by meeting our friends Phil and Carolyn on shore to go to the Fishing Club for a special breakfast overlooking Martha’s Vineyard Sound. That evening we were treated to a fireworks display put on by the town. We left about noon and sailed in a southwest breeze to our next port. Hadley Harbor is located across from Woods Hole on the island of Naushon in the Elizabeth Islands. It is well-protected in all weather and has a beautiful setting. There are about 30
98 Cruising Outpost
free guest moorings on a first-come basis, thanks to the Forbes trust that owns the islands. Our next destination was Vineyard Haven, a lovely 8-mile crossing. We pass through Woods Hole at slack tide. When the tide is running full it can run as high as 6 knots, so caution is always advised. We picked up a town mooring after talking with the harbormaster. Vineyard Haven has a small downtown with shops and several restaurants, including a great Asian restaurant, The Copper Wok. There is also a good-sized supermarket for the things you forgot to buy before departing. Our next destination was Nantucket. The current at the entrance to Vineyard Haven can run as high as 3 knots past the island, so it is important to exit the harbor with a current going with you. The first leg was 20 miles to Tuckernut Shoals. We started by motoring in light winds. An hour later we were motorsailing. By the time we reached Tuckernut Shoals, the wind was west-southwest at 15 knots. The next leg was a straight 7-miles under full sail to the entrance of Nantucket
www.cruisingoutpost.com
Harbor. We had a great sail making 8 knots under sunny skies. After entering the harbor we contacted Nantucket Moorings, who escorted us to our reserved mooring. We spent the next four days exploring the downtown with its cobblestone streets, restaurants, art galleries, and Whaling Museum. As far as dining out goes, you can find everything from cheeseburgers to gourmet cuisine. At the base of Main Street was the Basin Marina with 240 slips occupied by boats from 25 feet to 250 feet. We enjoyed walking the docks looking at the various yachts. On Thursday we entertained our old friends Mimi and Richard for dinner on the First Light. Friday, they reciprocated by inviting us to join them for dinner at the Nantucket Yacht Club. The food
Chappaquiddick Ferries Edgartown, Martha’s Vineyard
was great and the view overlooking the harbor spectacular. There was excellent bus service from downtown to beaches and other hamlets such as Madaket and Siasconset, each with a great beach. On Saturday evening the Boston Pops were playing a concert on Jetties Beach. The music was fantastic and the concert was followed up by a fireworks display. It was sad to leave friends, but we had to move on to the next destination.
Cuttyhunk Harbor from the top of the island
www.cruisingoutpost.com
Cruising Outpost 99
Women W ho Sail 128 Cruising Outpost
Giving Back www.cruisingoutpost.com
t
k
By Julie Thorndy
craft
to the BVIs www.cruisingoutpost.com
The British Virgi n Islands are a special place, bo th for those who live there and for thos e who visit. It is where my husband and I got our first tast e of tropical sailing. The BVI ultimat ely got us hooked into a sailing lifestyle. When Category-5 Hurri cane Irma smacke d the islands Septembe r 6, 2017 with w inds exceeding 215 m iles per hour, we worried about the devast ation and its impa ct on the people and th e island. Then H ur ricane Maria trounced the Caribbean tw o weeks later. The two hu rricanes, referred to as Irmageddon, devastated the is la nd s, including their to urism industry. This natural disa ster was unfoldin g just as the location de cisions were bein g m ade for the fourth-annua l Women Who Sa il (WWS) Rendezvous. Ove r the last couple of years, the group has take n a philanthropic focus by giving back to the areas in which we sail. After Irmageddo n, the destination choice was simple—we need ed to, had to, retu rn to the British Virgin Isla nds, which had be en the location of the fir st WWS Rendezv ous in 2015. They needed tour ists (us) to help th eir economy and help their reco very. Mahalo Sailing, the primary orga nizer of the trip, got a firm commitment from Dream Yacht Charters th at they would ha ve boats back in service by the time the event w as scheduled for May 2018. With boats secured, th e trip was a go. We sought to expa nd our impact— spending money just as tourists wasn’ t en ou We wanted to he gh. lp where it was ne eded, but everything was ne eded whether it be food, housing, fresh water—liter ally everything! Through connections on Fa cebook such as B VI AbroadHurricane Irma w e connected with One Love BVI, a charitable nonprofit that was ra ising funds for a wide variety of ne eds. We narrowed our focus to Adopt-A-Roof B VI (AAR) and st ar ted to actively solicit donations from WWS mem bers, friends, and family mem bers. AAR’s prim ary objective is to raise funds to put roofs back on houses where the hurricanes had ei ther ripped them off or damaged them. The need w as great: 80% of the homes had roof damage of so me scale. One hu ndred percent of the funds were ta rgeted for re-build ing projects. The homes selected w ere
Cruising Outpost 129
those most in need and inhabited by “belongers”—not some vacation home or vacation rental. The Rendezvous officially kicked off May 11 with an initial get-together dinner for 40 women at Island Roots Café in Road Town. To accommodate our large group, they closed just for us and prepared a wonderful buffet dinner. Xtian (pronounced “Christian”), the mixologist extraordinaire, served up the most unusual rum punches which, combined with his enthusiastic chatter, got everyone into the party mode. Opening night would not be complete without a few presentations. Chris Marshall from Adopt-A-Roof joined us for the event and shared information regarding the positive impact that our donations were having in the BVI. Captain Holly Scott of Mahalo Sailing shared the relevant logistical details for the upcoming week, and we ended the night with a few raffles from our sponsors who donate items from magazine subscriptions to plush Turkish towels. I’d be lying if I said the night ended at that point. It may have for some, but for a number of us, we stuck around long enough for Xtian to get even crazier with the adult beverage concoctions! We boarded the boats the next afternoon; three 50+ foot monohulls and two very large catamarans. Captain Sarah Cavanaugh and First Mate Anne Arey were in charge
130 Cruising Outpost
www.cruisingoutpost.com
of the largest catamaran, a brand new 47-foot Fountain Pajot Saona. Like any new boat, it had a few quirks but it made up for it with a great layout that allowed everyone to comfortably hang out on the upper deck next to the helm. We set off for Leverick Bay for the first night and then headed to Anegada the next day. We rented a couple of trucks, loaded a dozen sailors onto benches in the back of each truck, and headed off to Loblolly Bay. It was a great treat to spend time snorkeling and exploring. In our exuberance, we managed to leave one person behind and had to send a truck back to rescue our inadvertent castaway. From Anegada we headed to Marina Cay—the devastation was most sobering. And yet, the bougainvillea was blooming and sharing its splashy color with everyone. The bright red British phone booth, so familiar to locals and visitors alike, was missing but had been located in the harbor and was marked with a Clorox bottle to ensure its future rescue from the salty depths. A trip to the BVI is not complete without a stop at Foxy’s on Jost Van Dyke. Our rowdy group of 40+ women invaded the bar and restaurant for some great food and a crazy night of dancing. There were rumors that a bra was stapled to the rafters but we heard later that it disappeared. We suspect that a local needed it far more than the rafters! Win-win!
www.cruisingoutpost.com
Cruising Outpost 131
Spending the Night in Strange
Mikado 56 off Alicante, Spain
134 Cruising Outpost
www.cruisingoutpost.com
P
Places
With daughter Ivy, and husband, Rick, in Girolata, Corsica
By Glenn Patron
I had to pinch myself. It must be “The Dream.” Every sailor’s dream.
It’s my birthday, the sun is shining, 10 knots of wind is pushing my handsome 56-foot Glenn and Gail ketch (bought for a song) east through the in the cockpit famed Straits of Gibraltar with the fast flowing tide at a brisk 12 knots. “The Rock” (I mean the geological formation not the movie star) is off the port bow and the Atlas Mountains of Morocco loom through the haze to starboard. Wow! It had seemed more like “The Impossible Dream” just a month ago when we limped into Lisbon, three weeks out of Newport, Rhode Island, with a patched hull after our near-sinking after being holed by…something in the North Atlantic.
Anchored off Cascais, Portugal watching Portugese Bull Fighting
www.cruisingoutpost.com
Cruising Outpost 135
Gale, always ready for the next escapade!
Birthday Sailing through the Straits of Gibraltar
Hauling, major repairs, throwing away a thousand dollars of food, and the $600 spent on a dry-cleaning bill caused by bilge water that had sloshed into the drawers and lockers before we found the breach were major setbacks. But that was all behind us now. The straits of Gibraltar were to be the start and finish line of a 2,200-mile loop that my wife, Gale, and I planned to make along the coasts of Spain, France, and Italy, then back across the Atlantic for the long trip back home to the Caribbean. My temporary elation was tempered somewhat by my concern about arriving at our first Mediterranean marina and the challenge of performing a Mediterranean Moor. I had good reason to be apprehensive because my only previous attempt at this maneuver, in Gustavia, St. Barts, had been, though it didn’t make the local newspaper, an embarrassing disaster. The prospect of backing into a spot
in a strange marina in a 56-foot boat that prop-walked so badly she should have been called Sidewinder instead of Act III, was, to say the least, daunting. Finding our allocated space, I swung the bow out, pulled the gearshift back, and, fenders out, concentrated on slipping the stern into a space in the huge line of boats that seemed much narrower than our 16-foot beam. I answered Gale’s shout from the bow—“Hey, what about the anchor?”—with a curt “Drop it,” and was greatly relieved when the anchor snagged firmly and our clumsy ketch went, miraculously, straight back towards the space assigned to us. The seemingly uninhabited craft on either side of us abruptly came alive with people scurrying to place fenders (preferably round so they would act like rollers) against their precious topsides as we snuggled in like a piglet fighting to get a teat.
Captain Glenn and daughter Jill in Sitges
136 Cruising Outpost
www.cruisingoutpost.com
rough altar
My airs of my success, however, were soon punctured by a red-faced dockmaster in whites huffing and puffing towards us on the quay. His magnificent red mustache curled with his lip as he spit out, “Why in the bloody hell would you drop an anchor in the cable network instead of using the marina’s mooring lines? Get it out of there! Now!” I stood there in the cockpit, totally baffled, until the owner of the German boat to our port was kind enough to explain how the prepared mooring-line system, those stout lines hanging from the concrete quay, worked. My anchoring triumph was not only unnecessary, but possibly detrimental. The consensus of the small crowd now gathered on the dock was that my 60-pound plow anchor was probably deeply enmeshed in the network of steel, underwater mooring cables and I would have to dive in
www.cruisingoutpost.com
Cruising Outpost 137
146 Cruising Outpost
www.cruisingoutpost.com
300th Anniversary of Blackbeard’s Demise
By Dennis Mullen
On the morning Bath, North Carolina, 1718: home of Captain Edward Teach of November 22, The “Tri-Centennial Celebration” of the killing of 1718, Lt. Maynard Blackbeard began on a crisp and clear fall Saturday and 54 hand-picked British morning in the tiny town of Bath with a blast from a sailors sent illegally by Governor 6-pound cannon that was so earsplittingly loud it caused Spotswood of Virginia into North Carolina little boys and girls to scream with fright, cover their on two sloops, “having ears, and run away in tears. no Guns, but only small “Sir, I have cut Blackbeard’s head off, A 10-foot-tall Blackbeard Arms and Pistols,” engaged fell down. Dogs howled. which I have put on my Bowspright, in Wenches shrieked and Captain Edward Teach, aka Blackbeard the Pirate and order to carry it to Virginia.” pirates “AARRGGHH”-ed 21 of his pirates just off the their approval. Not a soul Lt. Robert Maynard, in a letter to Lt. Symond, coast of Ocracoke Island in in Bath was left unshaken. Ocracoke Island, December 17, 1718 what Naval historians have One of the organizers of described as the bloodiest, the “Tri-Centennial,” Jason most vicious hand-to-hand fighting at sea on two boats Pair, took to the stage to apologize for the cannon’s ever. It lasted less than 10 minutes. Scores died. concussion, but warned everyone there were more to
www.cruisingoutpost.com
Cruising Outpost 147
300th Anniversary of Blackbeard’s Demise
come. Jason also made it very clear that neither he, the town of Bath, nor anyone else could or would be held responsible for headaches, loss of hearing, eardrum damage, heart attack, or stroke. Then, just as things were getting back to normal (?) and the freakish 10-foot-tall Blackbeard was being helped to his feet, Captain Horatio Sinbad and his sailors (appropriately dressed in period-correct British Naval uniforms) set off another blast that was louder than the first. Down went Blackbeard again. The kids kept running. More disclaimers. Finally, Captain Sinbad agreed to cool it and not fire anything bigger than a 3-pounder. The crowd gathered around the stage, and Jason’s daughter, who wasn’t much older than the kids who were still running away, started playing a stunning version of the “Star Spangled Banner” on her violin. Things got real quiet. Hats were removed. Everyone stood. The British sailors stood at attention for the American anthem and covered their hearts with their tricorn hats, kicking off
148 Cruising Outpost
a celebration honoring the beheading of a pirate they were sent here to kill 300 years ago. Blackbeard himself (not the cartoon mascot, still struggling to get up after the second blast) was glaring at the crowd from the shadows of the stage, hands on cutlass and pistol, and no one “took a knee.” (Note: The actual first event of the Tri-Centennial in Bath was held Friday night in Washington, N.C., 15 miles up the Pamlico River from Bath. “A Taste of 1718,” focusing on Blackbeard, was an event obviously not meant for cruisers. Tickets were $100.00 per person: no dinner, no drinks. “Concessions will be available.” “HOW MUCH?” Blackbeard roared on Friday morning. “I WOULDN’T PAY THAT MUCH TO SEE ME!” Sorry, we passed). Captain Edward Teach, aka Blackbeard the Pirate, lived in Bath in 1718 with his 14th wife on Plum Point, on the west side of Bath Creek. At the same time, Charles Eden, Governor of North Carolina, lived directly
www.cruisingoutpost.com
across Bath Creek on the east side, on Archbell Point. In 1718, there were less than a dozen buildings and houses in Bath, but after Blackbeard’s death, Governor Eden disavowed any knowledge of, or any acquaintance with the pirate, even though he officiated at Blackbeard’s 14th wedding and issued his pardon. “Many towns celebrate a fictional, popculture Blackbeard,” or so claimed the town of Bath in flyers and broadsheets and on the internet advertising their Tri-Centennial Celebration, like it was beneath their town to do such a thing. I thought about this throughout the day’s events: the parade, led by the four sky-diving Blackbeards who had just landed in a nearby field; the 10-foottall Blackbeard, finally upright; enough Blackbeard imitators to set a world record; and a Blackbeard in a gorilla suit riding a bicycle. If that’s not a “fictional, pop-culture Blackbeard,” I’ll kiss your cutlass.
www.cruisingoutpost.com
Cruising Outpost 149