Becoming a Sailor

Becoming a Sailor

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

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Category: Refits, Haul-Outs and Buying Gear

Refits, Haul-Outs and Buying Gear takes us out of the water and into the dusty world of boatyards, marinas, and anchorages with a twist of cultural differences and communication gaps roped in — all in pursuit of repairs, upgrades, and the endless quest to improve our boat.

Escher family and crew of SV Aphrodite at Lunas Shipyard prior to the launch. Paul is away in French Polynesia crewing on another boat temporarily.
May 23, 2026July 20, 2026Lorraine Escher

Catamaran Haul-Out in Malaysia: 322 Days for a Refit

Blue tape on a hyalon Zar dinghy flag leaks to prepare for a hypalon dinghy repair in Lunas Shipyard, Langkawi, Malaysia
May 13, 2026July 20, 2026Lorraine Escher

Hypalon Dinghy Repair — the Real Reason for Boat Work

Karen Escher painting the keel in Langkawi, Malaysia.
April 13, 2026July 9, 2026Lorraine Escher

Sailboat Keel Painting: Karen Paints Whale Sharks on SV Aphrodite

Karen painting the underside of our saloon table at Lunas Shipyard in Langkawi, Malaysia.
January 11, 2026July 21, 2026Lorraine Escher

Boat Interior Painting: Teaching My Teen A Useful Skill

Hands showing how the curvature of our hull impacts the amount of usable counterspace.
November 27, 2025July 21, 2026Lorraine Escher

Measuring with Accuracy: The Skill I Never Learned

A man in a yellow shirt at Brother Lim Cushion in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
November 24, 2025July 21, 2026Lorraine Escher

Brother Lim Cushion: A Fresh Start for our Marine Upholstery

Eastbay Foreman, Rashid, and another woodworker from Eastbay apply new cherry veneer to a cupboard in our saloon.
October 27, 2025July 21, 2026Lorraine Escher

Boat Woodwork Refit in Malaysia: A Full-On Transformation

Paul in Power Boat Boatyard, Chaguaramas, Trinidad with our Mantus Anchor 2017 below SV Aphrodite, our St Francis 50 catamaran.
November 5, 2017July 17, 2026Lorraine Escher

Living with Four Kids in a Trinidad Boatyard

Ladder to our boat with river view.
August 13, 2015July 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

Sleeping on stilts during a refit

August 12, 2015July 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

Successful haul-out in Tampa

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