This is a post that Sara wrote in October of 2014. I noticed that it never got published and thought it deserved to be on here! It’s raining today so I’m working on the computer trying to get our MMSI (Maritime Mobile Service Identity). It’s like a phone number for your boat (you need one if you will be sailing internationally). We […]
It was as if all the forces of nature wanted to keep us from arriving in Virginia…
We left Colorado on a Thursday morning after yet another goodbye get together (“Here we go again on our own / drinking all the bottle of wine we’ve ever owned” – Tom Chamberlain). You can only say goodbye so many times – it was definitely time to get on the road. We said our tearful farewells to Dan and Karen, […]
Instead of tracking our potential boats on a spreadsheet, Stephane found this great little website that allows us to pin our boats to a map, adding a link and notes for each. Multiplottr is proving to be much more fun (and useful) than Excel.
Our friends came from near and not-so-near to spend time with us, wish us well, and send us off on our adventure. We spent the afternoon trying to chase the shade with Team Duck Tape: climbing at the Pool Wall in Ouray – being loud, talking more than climbing (Heidi & Lori 🙂 and enjoying each other’s company. Kirk and […]
I got back from St-Thomas/Puerto Rico. Even though Nereia isn’t going to be our boat, the trip was super productive. Here is what happened. The bones of the boat seemed bomber, but unfortunately it got broken in. Lots of equipment was stolen and the stuff that wasn’t stolen wasn’t functioning properly. Nereia still seems to be a good deal, but […]
And…just like that, our trusty truck is ours no more. We sent it on its way this morning with new owners. One step closer to departure!
Stephane left for St. Thomas on Thursday afternoon. Believe it or not, he is there with the owner of a boat we are seriously considering purchasing – this *could* be our new home! Over the past few days Stephane and the owner have been working on the boat- getting her ready to sail to Puerto Rico where they’ll leave her […]
Stephane is currently training Alan, a new pilot for CareFlight’s Durango base. Alan gave us this for luck on our new adventure. I’m not Catholic but I love the gesture and sentiment. I think we might make some room for Saint C on the boat.
One evening, our good friend Patrick (an amazingly talented surgeon) taught us how to suture. He brought over the different-sized sutures and we practiced stitching up gashes in lemons. That evening, Karen taught us how to give a proper shot (we practiced on a lemon as well). Just this past Wednesday, I gave Karen several of her weekly shots – […]
I just booked Stephane’s flights to St. Thomas! He will head down there next month to meet the owner of Nereia (latin for sea snail – LOVE it!), a Baba 35. This could be our boat. Stay tuned…
It was a breezy Saturday evening around Tom and Melisa’s fire circle on their back patio. We were having dinner and drinks and decided it was the perfect time to tell our friends of our plans to get married this summer! Upon sharing the good news and everyone checking the calendar app on their iPhones, it was quickly determined that […]
We have been reading about and looking at photos of the Westsail 32 since the start. But words and photos are one thing and getting ON an actual WS 32 is something entirely different – we want to see what one is like for REAL! While visiting family in Michigan this month, I posted a message on the Westail […]
Yeah! We took advantage of our trip visiting family in Michigan to complete our first sailing classes: Basic Keelboat Sailing and Coastal cruising on a Catalina 25. Before the actual class, the sailing school sent us a couple of textbooks to study. To get the most out of our classes we reviewed the 2 books and quizzed each other the […]
The Little House has been my home for a while now – it’s been perfect for me and Myra: plenty of room for this girl and her dog. The Little House is actually Dan and Karen’s guesthouse and is located in what we lovingly call The Village: a community of friends and homes up on Spring Creek Mesa outside of […]
Since we still live in beautiful but landlocked Colorado, books are our main way of fueling our dream. Here is the list of the books we’ve read so far: Boatowner’s Mechanical and Electrical Manual – Nigel Calder The Cruiser’s Handbook of Fishing – Scott and Wendy Bannerot The Voyoger’s Handbook – Beth A. Leonard The Cruising Life – Jim Trefenthen […]
We have been looking at and reading about sailboats for over a year now. From all of our research, we have narrowed it down to several blue water boats: Fantasia 35, WestSail 32, Tayana 37, and Hans Christian 33T. Fantasia 35: Lost our Hearts to Viking We love love love the Fantasia 35. Like all the boats we are considering, […]
Why eeeeeep.com Well, it’s a good story. Our friend Tom introduced us to a funny video. It’s the video of a Desert Rain Frog that puffs up and makes this funny noise when threatened. Next thing, as we were climbing, Sara got in a spot where she was pretty uncomfortable (scared to death), and reproduced the sound of that tiny […]
The house was the number one thing that kept us fom sailing but at the same time, after it sold, it turned out to be the number one thing that will allow us to go sailing. Sara and I worked hard at improving it. Some of he major things that we did was painting the whole inside together, I replaced […]
My journal entry… Boat show was amazing…Mrs. Westcott…private quarters…crazy cat with dialated pupils…breakfast is ready when you hear the music…butter croissants…cornbread muffins…strawberry waffles…R-A-I-N…Painkillers(2-4?)…Beneateau, Jenneau, Bavaria, Hunter, Oyster (yeah, right)…Dufour – so many! Beers @ Irish pub with Erica & Greg…seafood dinner…Mr. + Mrs. Smith…downpour!… Annapolis Day 2 Marine diesel seminar…rigging seminar…back on boats…30 feet feels big enough – maybe?..center […]
The Grizz (Winnebago View - active duty)
1,800 miles and counting
The Hungry hippo (Popup camper - retired)
1,200 miles
The Gruffalo (Tow behind camper - retired):
12,000 miles and counting
The Baby Bison (Tow behind toy hauler - retired):
7000+ miles
Maine > New Mexico + adventures in between
The Great White Buffalo (5th wheel camper - retired):
3,000 miles
Free Range (Slocum 37 sailboat - resting; getting overhauled in Nova Scotia):
Traveled 2,400 nautical miles from Oriental, NC > Antigua (end of the road).