Becoming a Sailor

Becoming a Sailor

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

Menu Skip to content
  • About the Crew
  • About Our Boat
  • Family Dictionary: Life Afloat A to Z
  • Subscribe
  • Search

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.
Karen and Henry inspect the octopus
January 5, 2024July 24, 2026Lorraine Escher

Lagoon to Table: Subsistence Fishing in Micronesia

Teen independence run amok on the dock in Chuuk, Micronesia as we head to shore to buy diesel.
January 2, 2024July 23, 2026Lorraine Escher

Teen Independence: A Fishing Boat Scare in Micronesia

Our move from house to sailboat began with a roadtrip. Here is a photo of our kids running along the beach of Lake Superior with a banner of our tent and van with the text The Road Trip that Changed Everything, referring to the 60 day camping trip we took the summer before we bought our St. Francis 50 catamaran, SV Aphrodite.
January 1, 2024July 22, 2026Lorraine Escher

From House to Sailboat: How a Family Road Trip Changed Us

Paul in a hospital bed in Kavieng, Papua New Guinea, receiving oxygen therapy
December 13, 2023July 24, 2026Lorraine Escher

Shallow Water Blackout: Freediving to 31 Feet in PNG

A photo of SV Aphrodite anchored in Langkawi, Malaysia
December 7, 2023July 24, 2026Lorraine Escher

About Our Boat

Picture of a catamaran
December 7, 2023July 24, 2026Lorraine Escher

Bluewater Catamaran: A Detailed St Francis 50 Equipment List

October 26, 2023July 24, 2026Lorraine Escher

Medical Mission in Papua New Guinea: A Teen Volunteer

Glasses sit atop other World War II artifacts including a glass syringe.
September 18, 2023July 24, 2026Lorraine Escher

Peter Joseph WWII Museum: A Backyard Full of World History

September 16, 2023July 22, 2026Lorraine Escher

Fish Hook Injury at Sea: A Double Hook to the Face

August 23, 2023July 24, 2026Lorraine Escher

Travel Safety in Honiara: Mugged on Skyline Road at Dawn

Posts navigation

← 1 … 3 4 5 … 29 →

Word of the Hour

Lizard Chicken New word in …

Lizard Chicken

This Week in Years Past

  • 10 years ago this weekLuperón Long Reads — Designing and Building a Mooring for Our 50-foot Catamaran
  • 11 years ago this weekWhat is a .cat Domain? Why Our Catamaran Blog Uses One
  • 11 years ago this weekMedical Provisioning for Cruising: A Year’s Supply of Medication—Then What?

Worth Reading

Managing Food Allergies at Sea
Checklist for the Big Move

From the Archives

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