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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Category: Caribbean

Caribbean includes blog posts from the West Indies and Haiti, though we briefly touched down in Jamaica. We spent seven years in the western Caribbean. Each country has a different flavor, and it’s definitely not vanilla.

September 11, 2021September 11, 2021Lorraine Escher

COVID in Grenada, 2021: Lockdown Seen From Our Sailboat

July 25, 2020July 28, 2026Lorraine Escher

Preparing for a Tropical Storm: 4 Methods Sailors Used

Why the Caribbean has no tides
February 21, 2019August 1, 2026Lorraine Escher

Why the Caribbean Has Virtually No Tides

Christian missionaries in Haiti: at the church they built which doubles as a hurricane shelter
May 7, 2018July 29, 2026Lorraine Escher

Christian Missionaries in Haiti: Church on Île-à-Vache

May 2, 2018July 29, 2026Lorraine Escher

Destination Île-à-Vache, Haiti: Voodoo, Fear and Fascination

February 16, 2018October 15, 2026Lorraine Escher

Rough Offshore Sailing: A Rite of Passage in a Gale

January 30, 2018July 30, 2026Lorraine Escher

Leaving a Trinidad Boatyard and Night Sailing to Grenada

December 30, 2017August 1, 2026Lorraine Escher

Christmas in Trinidad: A Glorious Night with a Local Family

All At Sea Caribbean magazine cover, December 2017.
December 20, 2017December 20, 2017Lorraine Escher

Family Cruising Crew and Port of Spain Market: Two Articles

December 18, 2017September 20, 2026Lorraine Escher

Boat Repairs in Trinidad: Two Months in a Chaguaramas Yard

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From the Archives

  • Boat Projects
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