Guna Yala
Since we were in The Gambia, I have not needed to whittle my thoughts down to mere chapters. Moments in time are all I can share with you because, in Guna Yala, there is too much wonderful to put into…
To Panama
When the sun sets, if we're not in a harbor, we're on a mission to get to one. Although the open ocean brings a blue world steeped in natural beauty, it's also wearing. On day four, we ache. Gravity feels…
Building Bridges
Earlier today, an egg escaped from its plastic nest, jumped out of the refrigerator, and landed on the port hull step. It cracked, and its innards oozed into the crevices of the emergency hatch below. It was a classic boat-passage…
Bahamas
The Bahamas to Puerto Rico Ships log: January 28, 2024, 01:22 N 23° 35.60' W 75° 30.65' TWS 9.9 TWD 188 AWS 8.5 SOG 8.2 It’s sunny, we’re flying over smooth seas, and the captain is happy. It’s hard to…
Scorpion Stings
This morning is a Bahama best. A full moon hangs high in the northwest sky while a blazing sun wakes low in the east. The air is pinkurple. I hear nothing but Gerty's clean hulls slipping through the rippling water…
Leslie and Jeremy
Ships Log: 11/12/2023 14:45 Jekyll Island, Georgia to St. Augustine, Florida. N 30 11’ W 81 18’ TWS 17.8 AWS 8.0 AWA 175 SOG 8.0. Downwind sailing with jibes. 50 years of friendship + 2 husbands + 4 kids =…
Jenny & Domingo
Ships Log 11/03/202 13:30 N 33 09' W77 54' Hampton, Virginia to St. Simon's, Georgia. Jibed to port tack. Still wing-on-wing to avoid Cape Fear. There is no doubt that since we met thirty-four years ago at PENN, Jenny and…
Winch Service
Pink and blue are so passé. Cooking vs engine overhauling, sewing vs unclogging the head—it's all purple to us. Who am I kidding? Nobody who knows us, that's for sure. We fall into traditional roles more often than I'd like…
Electronics
The problem The Captain doesn’t trust Gerty’s electronic systems. The wiring is funky, the wind displays are fogged, the autopilot is temperamental, and the mast rotation sensor is dead and buried in a foredeck, seasalt grave. Gerty’s nearly new chart…
Tool Race
The tools burst through the starting gate this morning, and the competition looks fierce. 100' Fiberglass Fish Tape and Phillips Head Screwdriver lead the pack, followed by Rechargeable Headlamp in third place. Sekaflex, Extra Large Zip Tie, and Shop Vacuum…
She’s Fast!
Ships log September 27: Depart Liberty Island for Annapolis. A tight weather window has arrived, and the wind is blowing 15-20K from the Northeast. Although the predicted Atlantic sea state is rough, with 6 to 8-foot waves, sailboats are for…
Gerty, New York, NY
There was a hurricane outside, and now there’s a hurricane inside. After threatening us from Narraganset Bay to the Long Island Sound, Lee has finally let us be, but the whirlwinds of boat work are still dizzying us. Michael has…