Becoming a Sailor

Becoming a Sailor

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

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Category: Buying a St Francis 50 catamaran

Buying a St Francis 50 Catamaran describes the anticipation of finding the right bluewater boat for our family’s adventure, the transition to life aboard, and some of the modifications that turned SV Aphrodite into a comfortable floating home and a capable chariot to sail.

Photo of Escher kids on SV Aphrodite on the Ultraleather saloon cushions after slightly less than two years of use.
November 23, 2025November 23, 2025Lorraine Escher

Succumbing to the Sales Pitch of Ultraleather on a Boat

August 22, 2015July 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

Cracking open our life raft (with video)

August 21, 2015July 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

Test sailing SV Aphrodite

April 4, 2015July 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

Getting the dirt on cleaning a used boat

Our catamaran SV Aphrodite with the team from St Francis Marine in South Africa.
March 27, 2015July 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

SV Aphrodite: The Family Catamaran with a History of Adventure

Artwork by Betty, age 9. Message = parenting fail
March 19, 2015July 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

About those snobby catamaran owners

March 15, 2015July 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

First Days with Our St. Francis 50 Catamaran: Repairs, Refits, and Reality

SV Aphrodite, a St Francis 50 catamaran and Hull #1 as seen from the Starboard side.
March 13, 2015July 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

We bought our first boat: SV Aphrodite is ours

March 4, 2015July 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

Transferring boat ownership: hire a marine documentation specialist. Get`er done.

Aphrodite, St Francis 50 catamaran
February 28, 2015July 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

We bought a boat

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This Week in Years Past

  • 10 years ago this weekFrom the Vault: Cycling 1,000 miles Along the US Pacific Coast — with a Parrot
  • 10 years ago this weekBeans! Beans! Beans! Abandoning Meat in the Dominican Republic
  • 11 years ago this weekLogistics: strategies for getting from house to boat
  • 11 years ago this weekStress-free camping? Not here.

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Checklist for the Big Move

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