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.
February 3, 2015September 9, 2026Lorraine Escher

Outsourcing Household Chores So I Could Learn to Sail

My little man awaiting stiches
February 2, 2015August 5, 2026Lorraine Escher

Family Sailing Transition: Preparation and Chaos

Marina Etiquette: Essential Knots
January 29, 2015August 22, 2026Lorraine Escher

Marina Etiquette: Good Sailing Knots Make Good Neighbours

Low-maintenance hair for sailing: Sam Shepherd washes Nicole Kidman's hair in the movie, Dead Calm.
January 27, 2015August 25, 2026Lorraine Escher

Sailing Hair: Going Low-Maintenance Before Living Aboard

Sailng-knots: Activity display of knot tying at the Canadian Children's Museum in Gatineau/Ottawa
January 26, 2015August 22, 2026Lorraine Escher

Sailing Knots: A Boring Exhibit Made Them Feel Like Crafts

Downsizing for a sailing life: Inscription on our upright piano.
January 23, 2015August 7, 2026Lorraine Escher

Downsizing to Live on a Sailboat: 220 Boxes and a Piano

Race 'big picture' view
January 21, 2015July 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

Mount Gay Rum Round Barbados Race: Following It Live

Rope burn injury due to sail handling
January 21, 2015October 12, 2026Lorraine Escher

Rope Burn from Sail Handling: How It Happens

January 19, 2015July 19, 2026Lorraine Escher

Rats on a Boat: How They Get Aboard and How to Remove Them

Hiking in Sailing
January 18, 2015August 22, 2026Lorraine Escher

Hiking in Sailing: Why Sail Racers Sit on the High Side

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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

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Checklist for the Big Move

From the Archives

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