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: Learning to sail

Putting the Parasailor back in the "sock" on SV Aphrodite, a St Francis 50 catamaran.
June 8, 2022July 29, 2026Lorraine Escher

Parasailor Sail on a Catamaran: Downwind to French Polynesia

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

Why the Caribbean Has Virtually No Tides

February 16, 2018October 15, 2026Lorraine Escher

Rough Offshore Sailing: A Rite of Passage in a Gale

Paul bruce van sant
August 11, 2016July 23, 2026Lorraine Escher

Bruce Van Sant: Lunch With the Author of Passages South

Beginner Sailor Departure Checklist: Photo taken under red lights to preserve our night vision on an evening departure
May 25, 2016August 5, 2026Lorraine Escher

Beginner Sailor Checklist for Leaving an Anchorage (PDF)

April 9, 2016July 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

Docking Drama in George Town, Bahamas: No Steering, Wind

April 1, 2016July 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

Sailing the Jumentos, Bahamas: Hog Cay Cut and Water Cay

Endangered Allen Cays Rock Iguana (Cyclura cychlura inornata)
February 8, 2016July 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

Allen Cay, Exumas: Iguanas, a Stingray and a 40-Knot Blow

Sailing from Florida to the Bahamas
January 27, 2016October 6, 2026Lorraine Escher

Sailing From Florida to the Bahamas: 11 Hours to Cat Cay

January 2, 2016August 4, 2026Lorraine Escher

First Sailing Passage: Fear, Seasickness and Bahamas Plans

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From the Archives

  • Boat Projects
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