We came into this boat buying and cruising thing a little sideways. Neither one of us had the advantage of being raised in a boating family. While we had been on various ski boat trips, had rented boats to fish/camp with our boys, and generally loved being on the water, we were introduced to cruising through our friends Darrell and Sandy who had experienced cruising in Michigan, the BVI’s and the Caribbean. They invited us to join them, along with our other longtime friends, Craig and Jeanette, in chartering a sailboat to cruise the BVI’s. After the first night aboard in Soper’s Hole, Kathy was hooked (Okay…it really helped that we had the for’peak–Thanks guys! — was that really rocks, scissors, paper that won us that??!!)
From that point on, we were intrigued. We continued to bareboat and learn (was it really rocks, scissors, paper – again – when we were dragging at Foxies?? and I LOST?) and especially learned to love the cruising lifestyle — inspite of errors and gaffes made along the way.
We won’t bore you with all the details, but the bottom line is this whole process went on for quite a few years and we continued to be intrigued at how wonderful the cruising life could be. After many years of chartering sailboats, both monohulls and catamarans, we were given an amazing opportunity to decide what to do with our lives. I think it surprised us both when we looked at each other and said “cruise”. But the thought of cruising for the next 10-15 years on a sailboat was a bit more than we were willing to work at in our retirement years…..and then……we read Beebe….and…….Eureka! It all seemed so clear. Here was the chance to cruise in comfort, and upright and dry, to boot.
So, here we are, all these many years and miles later, cruising in comfort, still learning as we go. That dragging anchor was the first time we were entertainment for the anchorage, but certainly not the last. Our learning curve has been somewhat steep — we were newbies when we started out in 2005, and we have had so much to learn. But take heart all you other newbies, if we can do it, so can you!
And thus far, the journey has been as wonderful as we had hoped, and the payback immense, in both experiences and friends we have made along the way.
“.. if you had.. one shot, or one opportunity
to seize everything you ever wanted.. in one moment
Would you capture it.. or just let it slip?”
Eminem – Lose Yourself
