For the first time, it seems we are twirling around on our anchor chain waiting on the “weather window” to make our next passage, to Guadeloupe. It’s about 75 miles to Guadeloupe. With at least 12 hours of sailing, that means we’d have to be sailing overnight to arrive before dark.
Tag: sailing
Halfway to the Caribbean
After some nine weeks of travels and trials, we have made it to what I consider is our halfway point to the Caribbean, Portsmouth VA. This is the staging and departure point of the Caribbean 1500, our rally to the BVI. It’s been pretty crazy. I had this idea that I’d be able to blog about our travel south, but the long days have been filled with other more important stuff, like unclogging my kid’s poop from the head. So, apart from throwing some pictures and thoughts on Facebook, it’s been quiet. Here have been some highlights of the over 500 nautical miles from Lake Champlain to Portsmouth.
Fun With MacENC Navigation Software
After (roughly) 392 nautical miles miles of sailing, halfway down the US East Coast, the deepest we have been in has been in the first few minutes of the trip. Who-da-thunk?
What am I talking about? After considerable effort, I have my navigation instruments talking to my laptop. We have two mac’s, and the only real choices are MacENC and Polarview. I have been testing both (future post).
Lameshur Bay, Southern St John, USVI
Thursday saw us leaving Red Hook. With three kids it took a little time to get everyone fed, life jacketed and checked out with the marina. Only had one mishap when Andrew slipped between the dock and boat and hung onto the lifeline. Fortunately he wasn’t crushed as he had slipped between two fenders that were wider than he. With three kids, it’s just impossible to look on them all. Sometimes I joke that “we have a spare,” but I swear, I’ll be amazed if all three reach adulthood. Note to self, with kids, double how much time you think it will take to get out of a marina.
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Red Hook, Eastern St Thomas, USVI
Flying out of Boston, we had to get up at 3am. It was going to be a long day, but the rewards were at the end! Travelling with three children is a challenge, we joke that when you have a 3rd child, you are changing from man to man to zone defense. You are a person short to watch after them. As we drove through the New England snow, we contemplated our Painkillers and sun kissed beaches. After a stop in Miami, we were flying into St Thomas. We have found this the place to get the cheapest flights to. You can fly into Tortola which can be more convenient for charters, but its more expensive.
Sailing With Kids 