#sailing Part of the fun of cruising for the winter is the wildlife. This sea turtle swam right past our catamaran.
The dog barks frantically, telling something is amiss. I guess he’s not sure what’s in the water and so close to our boat.
lagoon 380
Dogs and Yoga?
#sailing What could be better than a downward dog to make you feel good? Farley’s answer: A downward dog on the beach with your yoga pals.
Yoga is an easy way to keep fit while cruising. If you don’t happen to have a yoga instructor handy you can bring yoga classes on an iPod and play them on the beach. You’re only gear – A yoga mat. It doesn’t weigh much and doesn’t take up a lot of room.
Doing yoga alone is okay, but it’s much more fun with friends. Farley attends regularly and find his spot near the others. If you’re not watching he’ll grab your mat before you do.
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Cruising Friends
#sailing One of the fun things about cruising is happy hour on the beach.
This is the our gang we tend to travel or buddy boat with.
Debi and Bruce on a (on left of photo) Bristol.
Matt and I (holding my lap dog – not) on a Lagoon 380 catamaran.
Sue and Paul on a Grand Banks.
Sharon (holding Cali) and Wayne on an American Tug.
Buddy boating gives us a sense of community and safety. Between the boats, we always have what we need on hand. Okay, not always, but we can usually rig something together.
Throughout the season, the boats travel to different spots and regroup as the wind takes allows us. We all like different conditions for traveling, and we all like to “bump” into each other once in a while.
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Writing in a Small Space
#writetip #sailing Continuing with my theme of writing and cruising, here are some tips on writing in a small space.
I don’t actually consider my Lagoon 380 S2 a small space. She is 38 feet long and with her two hulls, there is a lot of room. It’s just close together.
There are three sleeping cabins, a main salon and a cockpit. There is a built in desk in the starboard hull. But, and here’s the big but, It’s hard to be invisible and write. I can hear all that’s going on in the boat and around the area.
So I hear my friends launch their kayaks, heading out to explore and how to I resist? I allow myself one (okay maybe two) activities during work days (Mon – Fri). Saturday and Sunday are my weekends. I might write, but I don’t feel I have to.
That modern invention, the iPod, is a great way to tune out noise. If you can write to music, and don’t have a quite place, it might work for you.
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Trick of Provisioning
If you’ve never tasted a Florida orange or grapefruit freshly picked, you should. #sailing
The last items we provision for before we leave Florida and head for the Bahamas are oranges and grapefruit. We buy them fresh, and then here’s the trick if you want them to last..
Wrap each piece of fruit individually in foil. Then store them in a dark, dry spot on the boat. They’ll last up to 6 weeks.
When the fresh fruit and vegetables get thin on the boat, that last orange tastes amazing. After that, we know it’s time to head to civilization and find supplies.
Related articles
- Why is provisioning so tiring? (kristinastanley.net)
- Provisioning For Farley (kristinastanley.net)
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Writing Under Way
Sailing and writing together again. #writetip #sailing Off watch is the best time to write. I find when I’m on watch, there are too many distractions and I can’t focus on the words. Maybe I can do some editing ion watch, but not always.
A catamaran provides many spots to sit and write. If the seas are calm, lying on my trampoline always inspires ideas. This is where my digital recorder comes in handy.
If it’s too hot and sunny, I hide in our main salon. If the bimini is providing good shade, I’ll write while sitting in the cockpit. The one constant when I’m writing: Farley is always at my feet.
I guess the message is sailing and being underway is not an excuse to miss out on writing.
Related articles
- Writing While Traveling (kristinastanley.net)
- Preparation for Writing (kristinastanley.net)
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Why is provisioning so tiring?
Farley looks how I feel after trying to shop for six months. #sailing The hard part comes after getting back to the boat. After loading the provisions into our dingy, we to lift it onto Mattina.
Then the fun begins. We open all cabinets and storage areas and play the game for figuring out where to store everything.
Farley is left with a corner to sleep in the cockpit. Behind him you can see our cockpit cushions, shoved out of the way, so we can access spots for oil, cleaners, etc.
The question. Why is the dog exhausted when we did all the work?
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Testing: Equipment and Scenes
As we get ready to head offshore we test all our equipment. #writetip Before you send your manuscript off to an agent or publisher, you should test it too. I can’t imagine going to sea unprepared or unsure that everything, and I mean everything, is working. Here we are testing bring the sail up and down, repeatedly.
I use several test people at different stages of my novel. I have a two very important test phases.
One is at first draft. Here you need a test reader that will work with you chapter by chapter and tell you what they like and what they don’t like.
Two is at the final stage before sending. Here you need a reader that has an amazing eye for detail. This is the person that will proofread for you. The one that will find all the typos your eye can no longer see.
If I’ve significantly changed a scene from when one of my experts read it, I will ask them to read one more time. This is asking a lot, but I want to make sure I didn’t inadvertently put in a technical error.
I’m sure there are many ways to do this, but this is what works for me.
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Cruising and Dog Safety
If you plan to cruise with a dog, one thing you might want to consider is your pet’s safety gear.
Farley has his own life jacket, a gift from Chopper’s Pet Supplies in Invermere BC, but doesn’t wear it all the time. He’ll wear it kayaking in rough weather, or if we are kayaking along a rocky shoreline where he couldn’t get ashore himself.
When we are underway, Farley has his own tether and harness. He is not allowed out of the cockpit unless he is tethered to me or the boat. He has a safe spot to curl up when the boat is rocking.
We keep him in a harness instead of a collar when we are underway, so if he gets jarred his neck won’t het hurt. It also makes it easy for us to hoist him onboard if we have to.
Farley has a dog tag for each collar or harness wears. That way we don’t forget to put a tag on. His tags are engraved with his name, our email address, boat name and phone number. If he gets lost, we are easy to find. I’d love to hear about any other safety gear used by cruisers.
Related articles
- Dog Parks While Cruising (kristinastanley.net)
- Cruising with Dogs (kristinastanley.net)
- Writing and Cruising (kristinastanley.net)
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Preparations for Cruising
The boats are starting to line up in the Vero Beach mooring field. #sailing
As I sit in my cockpit working on my novel, I can’t help but stop and enjoy the view. I should really be provisioning, as this is the time of year we get ready to cross the Gulf Stream and head for the Bahamas.
It’s an exciting time to be a cruiser in Florida. Many of our friends who cruise are arriving and each day we look forward to seeing who is in the mooring field. Some have passed us already and are farther south. Some are still farther north haven’t caught up to us.
Our catamaran, Mattina, is almost ready to go. Systems have been tested and maintained. spare parts ordered. Now the big task of provisioning begins.
