sailing

Trick of Provisioning

~ Kristina Stanley ~ Leave a comment

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.

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A Dog’s Business While Sailing

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 3 Comments
Farley on his trampoline.

#sailing The most frequent question I get about Farley is: Where does he “go” when you are underway?

He’s not allowed out of the cockpit when we are underway. If he has to “go” he stares at me. That’s his way of letting me know.

I tether myself to the boat, Farley gets tethered  to me, and then we head to the trampoline on our catamaran.

He’s chosen one corner of the trampoline as his area.

Farley will “go” on command. His command is “pay pay”. When he’s done, we use the wash down pump that is on our deck to clean the area, then I lead him back to the cockpit.

My little hero will go in any kind of weather. Sometimes he gets sprayed by a wave while he’s going, but he’s never deterred.

Writing Under Way

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 2 Comments

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.

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Why is provisioning so tiring?

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 4 Comments
Could he be more tired?

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?

Cruising and Dog Safety

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 4 Comments
Farley gets a ride

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.

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Cruising, Writing and Spreadsheets

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 6 Comments
Provisioning

Do we really need to eat this much? #sailing #writetip

I think I’ve turned into a spreadsheet junky.

I have just reached a first draft of my third novel. Now I study the spreadsheet I created as I was writing the novel, decide at the best order of scenes, where the chapter breaks should be, do I have enough scenes with the main characters, etc.

As if my head wasn’t exploding with details,  but I was feeling so productive and decided it was time to do some provisioning.  So out came spreadsheet number two. After two years of updating this spreadsheet, I know exactly how much food we eat.

Every season, I write down when we run out of food or if we have left overs at the end of the season. It’s getting pretty accurate. During the season I add lines if there is something we were missing. Last year, I didn’t bring enough honey. One little bottle. What was I thinking? I love honey.

Today it’s back to my writing spreadsheet and the hard work of editing that first draft.

Related links:

Keeping Track of Details

Preparations for Cruising

~ Kristina Stanley ~ Leave a comment
Vero Beach, FL Mooring Field

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.

Cruising with Manatees

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 3 Comments

Have you ever seen manatees kiss? #sailing Part of the joy of cruising is the unexpected events that happen each day.

There are moments in life when it’s meant to be observed: life that is. How lucky was I to spot these manatees. Being a foot away from such magnificent creates made me stop and think.

I hide my head in the pages of the novel I’m writing and enjoy every moment of it, but what am I missing? Sometimes is pays to take a break!

Genoa Rigged

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 2 Comments

When don’t you want wind for your Genoa? #cruising This morning we awoke to 3 knots of wind. Perfect for rigging the genoa. She went up without a hitch – literally (and pardon the cliché). Rigging the sail is easy on a catamaran. The wide bow with a trampoline gives us plenty of working space.

Now to rig the mainsail . . . The radar is telling us a rain storm is on they way, so the mainsail has to wait until tomorrow. Maybe we’ll get lucky and wake up to 3 knots of wind again.

Sometimes I love the rain. It gives me an excuse to stay inside and write.