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: Wildlife while cruising

Our niece, Jorja, from Calgary in front of the Bridge of the Americas, Panama.
September 26, 2025September 26, 2026Lorraine Escher

Crossing the Panama Canal: A Different Cruising World

Karen and Henry inspect the octopus
January 5, 2024July 24, 2026Lorraine Escher

Lagoon to Table: Subsistence Fishing in Micronesia

June 8, 2023August 3, 2026Lorraine Escher

Breadfruit History: Captain Bligh, Colonialism and Fiji

Fierentino Para Anchor: Stopped sailing image
May 24, 2023July 28, 2026Lorraine Escher

Fiorentino Para Anchor: Our Overnight Stop Before Fiji

Galapagos Long Reads with a Close-up of the Feet of a Blue-Footed booby bird
June 12, 2022September 26, 2026Lorraine Escher

Sailing to the Galapagos: 5 Stories From Our Family Boat

Betty from St Francis 50 catamaran Aphrodite swimming in Chuuk Lagoon.
June 11, 2022July 30, 2026Lorraine Escher

What Lies Beneath? Barnacle Busting Outside the Galapagos at 2,000 Meters Deep

Colour striations on the Sierra Negra volcano hike on Isla Isabela, Galapagos.
June 9, 2022September 25, 2026Lorraine Escher

Sierra Negra: Hiking in Darwin’s Footsteps on a Galapagos Volcano

Betty and Karen on the Galapagos Day Trip
June 6, 2022June 6, 2022Lorraine Escher

Jumping into the Water of the Galapagos Was Like the Best Exhibits in the Zoo Had Thrown the Doors Wide Open

Galapagos Animals: Sea Lion Feet
June 6, 2022September 2, 2026Lorraine Escher

Galapagos Animals Up Close: Feet, Claws and Flippers

Shellback Ceremony Maritime Traditions and Crossing the Equator as a Family at Sea on Circumnavigation
June 5, 2022September 20, 2026Lorraine Escher

Shellback Ceremony: Our Family Swims at the Equator

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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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