Becoming a Sailor

Becoming a Sailor

More Than a Decade Afloat • Raising Sailors • Stories from SV Aphrodite

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  • Our story in six chapters, in the order we sailed it.

    See the story-map →See our entire route →

    Before We Moved Aboard

    • From House to Sailboat: How a Road Trip Changed Us
    • Buying Our St Francis 50 Catamaran
    • Learning to Sail From Scratch
    • Our Family Camping Gap Month
    • Browse all 113 posts →
    • This chapter on the map →

    Florida and the Bahamas

    • Living on a Sailboat With Kids: Freedom or Confinement?
    • Crossing the Gulf Stream
    • Off the Beaten Track Bahamas
    • Bahamas Long Reads: Exumas Stories
    • Browse all 43 posts →
    • This chapter on the map →

    The Caribbean

    • Luperón Long Reads: Boat Kids Go Local
    • Dominica Travel: If Outside Magazine Visited
    • Rough Offshore Sailing in a Gale
    • Long Reads Grenada: 6 Stories From Our Sailboat
    • Browse all 66 posts →
    • This chapter on the map →

    Panama and the Pacific

    • Crossing the Panama Canal
    • Shellback Ceremony at the Equator
    • Long Reads: Galápagos
    • Sleep Deprivation at Sea
    • Browse all 11 posts →
    • This chapter on the map →

    Melanesia

    • Heavy Weather Sailing: NZ to Fiji
    • Sevusevu Ceremony in Fiji
    • Land Diving on Pentecost Island
    • Shallow Water Blackout
    • Browse all 19 posts →
    • This chapter on the map →

    Micronesia to Southeast Asia

    • Lagoon to Table: Subsistence Fishing
    • Losing an Anchor in Thailand
    • 322 Days in a Malaysian Boatyard
    • Bangla Road Phuket
    • Browse all 26 posts →
    • This chapter on the map →

    By Topic

    • Learning to Sail
    • Downsizing & Moving Aboard
    • Sailing With Kids & Homeschooling
    • Boat Projects & Gear
    • Health & Safety at Sea
    • Food & Provisioning
    • Family, Crew & Guests
    • Writing & Creative
    • Browse all 291 posts →
  • About the CrewMeet our family of six from OttawaSt Francis 50 Catamaran Specs: SV Aphrodite, a Bluewater CatSV Aphrodite, our St Francis 50 catamaran
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Author: Lorraine Escher

Canadian writer and sailor. Honours BA in English Literature (Carleton University) and a decade as a senior technical and marketing writer at Nortel Networks and Alcatel. Since 2015 Lorraine has lived aboard the St Francis 50 catamaran SV Aphrodite, homeschooling four children while cruising the Caribbean, crossing the Pacific, and working toward a circumnavigation. Her cruising writing has appeared in SAIL Magazine, All At Sea, and Caribbean Compass.
Crossing the Gulf Stream
January 25, 2016October 6, 2026Lorraine Escher

Waiting to Cross the Gulf Stream: Excitement Builds

Storm-at-anchor
January 17, 2016August 20, 2026Lorraine Escher

Storm at Anchor: 35-Knot Winds in the Florida Keys

The hoist, being careful not to drop a battery into the water.
January 15, 2016September 1, 2026Lorraine Escher

Our Victron Boat Batteries: From Install to Thermal Runaway

AGM boat battery testing
January 12, 2016September 1, 2026Lorraine Escher

Boat Battery Testing: Why Load Tests Missed Bad Batteries

January 2, 2016August 4, 2026Lorraine Escher

First Sailing Passage: Fear, Seasickness and Bahamas Plans

Moving aboard a sailboat: A composite image that includes four checklists I created after moving from a house to a sailboat as a family of six from Canada.
December 28, 2015August 7, 2026Lorraine Escher

Moving Aboard a Sailboat: The 4 Checklists We Wish We’d Had

Christmas on a sailboat
December 20, 2015August 14, 2026Lorraine Escher

Christmas on a Sailboat: Cards by Dinghy and a Florida Storm

Offshore Medical Kit List
December 15, 2015September 20, 2026Lorraine Escher

Offshore Medical Kit List: What We Used in 10 Years Aboard

International Medical Insurance Feature Image
December 10, 2015August 10, 2026Lorraine Escher

International Medical Insurance: An Ontario Sailing Family

December 4, 2015August 4, 2026Lorraine Escher

Handwashing Laundry on a Boat: 4 Lessons & The True Cost

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This Week in Years Past

  • 1 year ago this weekBoat Woodwork Refit in Malaysia: A Full-On Transformation
  • 1 year ago this weekGrade 6 Essay Sample: Soufrière Hills Volcano, Montserrat
  • 3 years ago this weekMedical Mission in Papua New Guinea: Betty, 17, Volunteers
  • 10 years ago this weekLuperón, Dominican Republic: School Days and an Orange Wagon

Worth Reading

Managing Food Allergies at Sea
Checklist for the Big Move

From the Archives

  • Boat Projects
  • Homeschooling Four Kids
  • Early Years of Cruising
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