Sailing between Maine and the Caribbean Sea
…Radeen taking the boom to shore… We have been dealing with the Island Packet internal boom shuttle cars for over 15 years. Guess what? They really do not work well. Just ask any two digit IP owner and they will tell you that they have a terrible time with the reefing system. Well enough is …
…the Apex Marine Dock we worked off of…. We last were in Apex Marine, Stuart Florida where Mack Sails installed our new 4G B&G Radar antenna and our new digital anemometer on top of the mast. After a day there, we moved around the corner to Sunset Bay Marina where we secured a mooring ball …
…anchored out, our first night… Immediately after we launched yesterday, we had to drive out of the Hinckley Marina because they had no slip for us. This was really unusual, but we are fine with it. We drove the boat about 8 miles around the town of Stuart Florida and dropped the anchor off Apex …
…Island Spirit heads for the water… It has been 12 days of living out of the car, hotel rooms and a time share condo. Today the Hinckley Yard launched our boat! These transitions from land to water are always exciting and always full of action. This launch was most unusual because once we hit the …
…The B&G NAC-3 Autopilot Computer… Today was day three of our rebuild / installation work and we spent all day on the NAC-3 autopilot computer installation. This required making all the connections in the sail locker while crouched in a seated position leaning back at about a 45 degree angle. The sail locker is under …
…All electronics removed and for sale… We bought our boat in 2001 and first commissioned her with our dear friend, Rob, one of the best there is in the business. Rob spent 10 weeks full time installing all our gear, which is same gear that has run us tens of thousands of miles over last …
Vacuum pack bags have made this possible! It would seem easy to move out of your house, get in your car and drive away, not returning for 6 months or more. This is year #6 that we have lived this cruising lifestyle. Maybe it is the fact that we have been here, done this, and …
…we complete our 4th year of cruising… We arrived back at our home dock, in Rock Hall, MD and there we serviced the boat with fluid changes, compounding and waxing, cleaning the hull, and varnishing the teak. After sailing a few weekends with friends, we hauled the boat out at Haven Harbour Marina and headed …
Cruising Year #3 begins at Palmetto, Florida….. We have said this many times before, but the hardest part of ANY voyage is actually leaving the dock. This sounds crazy, but it is so true. With a car and the comforts of the dock and the safety of shore, leaving is never easy, and we have …