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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Tag: Gear

The sail catches the wind and springs to life on the SV Spirit of Juno
April 24, 2015July 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

My First Sail: Seasickness and a Ripped Mainsail in Antigua

Catamaran color scheme: We toyed with Pacific Blue, but eventually picked Dark Blue
April 13, 2015September 5, 2026Lorraine Escher

Choosing a Catamaran Color Scheme: Trampoline, Canvas, Art

Cleaning a Used Boat
April 4, 2015September 17, 2026Lorraine Escher

Cleaning a Used Boat: 30 Bags of the Last Owner’s Stuff

April 1, 2015July 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

Our Move Date: 13 Weeks to Pack Up and Move Aboard

Pirate flag 1053085 m
March 30, 2015July 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

Dangers at Sea: Pirates, Storms, Guns and Capsize

Hiring a skipper comparison: Poster from the 1992 movie, Captain Ron
March 24, 2015August 13, 2026Lorraine Escher

Hiring a Skipper: Learning to Sail Like Captain Ron

Revised planning spreadsheet, budgeting information is intentionally blacked out
March 24, 2015October 15, 2026Lorraine Escher

Sailboat Refit Budget: How We Planned Our Catamaran Refit

March 15, 2015July 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

First Days With Our St Francis 50: Repairs and Reality

March 7, 2015July 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

Taking Inventory of Our Sailboat Before Moving Aboard

Passage plan: Fort Lauderdale to Bradenton
March 5, 2015July 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

Outfitting a Boat: Our Checklist Before the First Passage

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On This Day

  • 1 year ago todayGrade 6 Essay Sample: Soufrière Hills Volcano, Montserrat

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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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