Tim Forderer's Photo Journal

2011-10-16T01:09:00.000-07:00

NORTH CAPE SAILING SCHOOL FUNDRAISER

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2011

TRAVELS AROUND THE WORLD WITH PROFESSIONAL SAILING CAPTAIN TIMFORDERER

WELCOME BACK TIM FORDERER! FROM THE FOUR CORNERS OF THE EARTH TIM WILL PRESENT HISSAILING AND GOODWILL TRAVELS DOING WHAT HE LOVES CIRCUMNAVIGATINGTHE WORLD ON THE 90 FT YACHT VIVID. SOME OF THE DESTINATIONS INCLUDE THAILAND, INDONESIA, NEW ZEALAND,AUSTRALIA, INDIA, GALAPAGOS, CUBA, GREENLAND, THE MEDITERRANEAN AND MANY MORE.

JOIN US FOR DINNER AND A GREAT PROGRAM FEATURING ADVENTURE,SAFETY, PREPAREDNESS AND LIFE ON A 90 FT SAILBOAT.

Dinner – 6:30-7:30

Presentation – 7:30 – 9:00

Menu – Low Country Shrimp Boil,Bread, Salad, Dessert

Price - $20.00 adults (includesprogram)

Kids (under 12) - $10.00

Program only no food - $10.00

RSVP greatlyappreciated to Leslie Hill @ mjmom57@sbcglobal.netor 419.350.9000.

All proceeds benefit the NCYC Junior Program!

Athens Greece Street Art

2011-08-14T07:08:00.000-07:00

Love it or Hate it... It is ART.

Recently I spent an exhilarating day immersing my self in the underground world of the Athens Greece graffiti. I ran around the city with one of the underground world's well known "writers" and learned all about the culture, the psyche of the "writers", the different graffiti styles, and the strategy used to do the big pieces and to tag trains.

Since my days living in Venice Beach California, I have always been drawn to graffiti. The colors, the styles and the mystery of how it takes place. That curiosity found my self wandering the streets of Athens mesmerized by all of the graffiti. I stumbled on a "graffiti shop". A shop that supplies high end spray paints and supplies to the street artists. After convincing the store owner that I was not a cop, and that I wanted to learn more about the graffiti world in Athens. He agreed to introduce me the following morning to the hottest young graffiti artist in town, Asod.

Together Asod and I walked, ran, rode buses and trains and weaved in and out of ghetto neighborhoods looking at graffiti. The whole time he would be telling me about the various artists, crews, styles etc. One of the most interesting stories was how they disable the train systems electric to shut it down for a few minutes to do a piece. In the same story he shared that one of his mates died last month being run over by a train because he did no stop painting in time as the train started up again.

The graffiti in Athens is sometimes dark and sends a strong message of the current situation in the city. One difference between a "normal" artist and a street "writer" is that a normal artist may work on a piece for weeks in the secure comfort of the studio. A street writer averages 5 minutes or less on a piece with the threat of being caught at any moment and going to jail, or get run over by a train. This is the buzz for the street "writers"...

Enjoy the photos.... Love it or hate it...it is ART!

Three Somali Pirates Face Death Penalty Responsible for SV Quest Killings

2011-07-13T02:13:00.000-07:00

Three Somali Pirates Face Death Penalty
Saturday, 9 July 2011

Three of the suspected Somali pirates alleged to be responsible for their part in the death of four US citizens onboard the US yacht, SV Quest, are facing the death penalty; according to press reports from Saturday, 9 July. It was reported that Ahmed Muse Salad, Abukar Osman Beyle and Shani Nuraniu Shiekh Abrar were originally charged with piracy and kidnapping which has a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. However, a new indictment against the suspects carries fresh charges alleging that the suspects were directly responsible for the death of the US sailors. The new charges carry the death penalty, and the suspects face arraignment on 20 July.

SV Quest was hijacked approximately 400 nm east of Salalah on 18 February with four US citizens onboard. A boarding team from a US frigate was dispatched on 22 February when gunfire originating from onboard the yacht was heard. However, when the team was able to board SV Quest, they discovered that all the hostages had been shot. Four pirates lost their lives during the incident and a number of pirates were detained. Eleven other suspects involved in the hijacking have reportedly pleaded guilty to piracy which carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

Facebook!

2011-07-02T09:42:00.000-07:00

My blog writing has take a back seat to the ease of quick posts on Facebook!

This site is evolving into more of a photo journal and Facebook is taking its place for easy and random text updates to friends and family.

If you are enjoying the photos and would like to know when I update them and follow my sailing travels feel free to add me as a FB friend at Timothy J Forderer. Just send a message with the friend add request that you are following the Photo Journal.

Thanks!
www.facebook.com

Pirate attacks hit an all-time high worldwide

2011-04-14T19:28:00.000-07:00

Piracy hit an all-time high worldwide in the first three months of 2011 led by a surge in incidents off the coast of Somalia.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/42584628/ns/world_news-africa/from/toolbar

Pacific Ocean Navigation Hazzard

2011-04-12T22:37:00.000-07:00

Massive floating rubbish islands from Japan tsunami spotted on Pacific

Massive floating rubbish islands of houses, cars and bodies almost 70 miles in length from the Japanese tsunami are causing chaos in the shipping lanes of the Pacific Ocean as it heads for the west coast of the United States.

Cars, tractors, boats and the occasional entire house have been spotted floating on the surface of the Pacific Ocean in the aftermath of the March 11 Japanese tsunami triggered by a 9.0 magnitude earthquake.

The largest "island" of debris stretches 60 nautical miles (69 miles) in length and covers an expanse of more than 2.2 million square feet, according to the US Navy's 7th Fleet, which is closely monitoring the floating rubbish.

"It is very large and it's a maritime hazard," Lieutenant Anthony Falvo, deputy public affairs officer for the US Navy's 7th Fleet, told the Daily Telegraph.

"The damage it can cause is anything from piercing the hull of a ship to leaving dents or getting wrapped up in propulsion systems."

Experts have reportedly estimated that it could take up to two years for the floating tsunami debris to hit Hawaii and three years for the West Coast.

The US navy is currently working with civilian construction companies from Japan on attempts to start removing the floating debris from the ocean.

Read the rest of this article at The Telegraph.

Yacht Aid Global - Video

2011-03-18T23:25:00.000-07:00

YachtAid Global
http://vimeo.com/20002328

About this video:
"The mission of YachtAid Global is to use luxury yachts to move school and medical supplies to locations worldwide that need the help. We engage Captain, Crew, Owners and Guest to meet our objectives. Produced by Praxis Universal."

Nice mention of Vivid and Yacht Aid Global's Komodo Village School Fence project. (about 1 minute into video)

YachtAid Global from Praxis Universal on Vimeo.

Piracy strikes close

2011-03-01T01:04:00.000-08:00

It is with great sadness that I learned about the SY Quest crew. This hits very close to home. The SY Quest was anchored 300 meters from us three weeks ago prior to there departure for Salah. The Adam's where members of the Del Rey Yacht Club in Marina del Rey where I was sailing out of for years while living in Los Angeles.

The piracy situation in the Indian Ocean has become extreme in the past three months with the area of attacks increasing to the shores of India, and more importantly the tactics used now include attacking private yachts and killing crew. This has many yachts that I have personally talked with in the past few weeks abandoning there sailing plans for going west and shipping their vessels.

Pirates Kill Four Captives Onboard Hijacked SV Quest
Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Pirates onboard the hijacked yacht, SV Quest, killed all four of its captives in the early hours of Tuesday, February 22, according to a statement from the US Central Command. SV Quest was hijacked by pirates approximately 400 nm east of Salalah on February 18 as she was underway from Mumbai to Salalah with four US citizens onboard; Jean and Scott Adam, and Phyllis Mackay and Bob Riggle. According to the US Central Command statement, four US frigates were assigned as a response force to aid the stricken yacht;USS Enterprise, USS Leyte Gulf, USS Sterett and USS Bulkeley. It was reported that one of these frigates had been tracking SV Quest since she was hijacked.

Reports have indicated that a boarding team from the US frigates was dispatched at 0600 UTC when gunfire originating from onboard the yacht was heard. A gun battle ensued when the team attempted to board the yacht in which two of the assailants were killed. However, when the team was able to board SV Quest, it was discovered that all the hostages had been shot; two of which died instantly and two others, despite first aid given at the scene, succumbed to their wounds. Reports have also indicated that 13 pirates were detained by the US forces, and the remains of a further two pirates were found onboard. This suggests that 19 pirates were involved in the hijacking of SV Quest, including two pirates who had been captured earlier.

The nature of the incident highlights the complex debate over the use of force in rescue operations at sea, and is reminiscent of the events that occurred when SY Tanit was hijacked in the Indian Ocean on April 4, 2009. On that occasion, the French yacht SY Tanit was under the control of pirates for six days until French forces boarded the vessel. During an exchange of gunfire, four of the hostages were secured, two pirates were killed and three were detained, but the skipper of the yacht, Florent Lemaçon, died in the incident. The advice for yachts transiting the region is co-ordinated between the UK Maritime Trade Organisation (UKMTO) and the International Sailing Federation (ISAF), and is promulgated via the Maritime Security Centre Horn of Africa (MSCHOA). Any yacht transiting the region should inform the MSCHOA, and ensure that anti-piracy measures are robust and comprehensive.

Mumbai, India

2011-03-01T00:49:00.000-08:00

We are in Mumbai India now and it is a real shocker. Unlike anyplace that I have been. I have been fortunate to travel and get in deep to many remote places, but this is different. The wide spread poverty is hard to digest. The general overcrowding of people. The infrastructure reminds me of Cuba, A place that once was grand and then was left to decay with no maintenance or upgrades.

There are 20 million people in Mumbai (Bombay) India, and 4 million are homeless. To put that in perspective; in the whole country of Australia there are 21 million people and Australia is the size of all of India.

Life is very much "in your face". Yelling, pushing, begging, touting, if you have personal space issues - this is not the place for you! Driving is insane, I would not even think of renting a car or motor bike here. It is common practice to use your horn as much as you use your brake pedal and it is grid lock stop and go traffic here with incessant horns. It can drive you mental after about a 15 minute taxi ride. The accepted practice if there is a car crash is that you get out and beat the person that was wrong. Makes me wonder if California was on to something with "No Fault Insurance". The hustling, scamming and touts ashore wear you down. The Lonely Planet warns of scams to lure you to a family restaurant, drug you and then steal your vital organs for resale on the market. Nice.

It is like a scene out of a disaster movie, how the world tries to cope after being nuked. It is the worst place I have ever seen for negative impact on the environment.
You can barely breath here, and visibility is usually less than one mile due to pollution. There are days where the pollution smog is so thick that large ships use restricted navigation (fog) signals in the shipping lanes. We had to replace a microwave and I asked the guy to take it away and dispose of properly and he said "just throw it off the back of the boat"! A navy ship sank last week here a few miles from us and dumped tons of diesel and oil into the water and they did nothing to contain it. People piss and shit any where they can, in plain sight. The smells here will never be forgotten. I have photos of gross child labor that I will not post out of respect for the victims involved. The scenes of human rights violations and living conditions for the poor will be etched in my mind for ever.

On a positive note the experience is sensory overload so much color, texture and contrast. Standing with a camera you are so excited with everything surrounding you being a great shot. I am trying to work out how to take scratch and sniff photos to really share the experience with every one. This is a place where people are very industrious and make use of everything, nothing gets thrown out. I walked down streets of people selling what we would consider to be junk and lines of people where bartering for it and carting it away. Made me think of my Dad's garage and all the "junk" he collected, He would enjoy these junk streets.

I hate being negative about a place, but I can not wait to leave here and get back into clean air, clean water, and a more "serene" environment.

Indonesian Yachting's Banyan Tree Award's 2010

2011-01-06T23:26:00.000-08:00

I am very honored to have received The Indonesian Yachting Associations - Banyan Tree Award for Captain of the Year.

CONGRATULATIONS to all the award winners, I am humbled to be in your company! Keep up the GOOD WORKS in Indonesia!!!!

22 November 2010 - Banyan Tree Awards 2010 winners announced

the Indonesia Superyacht Association has announced the 2010 winners of their annual Banyan Tree Awards. The Banyan Tree Awards are presented annually to companies or individuals who provide exceptional service and commitment to the superyacht industry within Indonesia.

Awards were handed out in five categories at the recent BaliMoon Superyacht Rendezvous held in Bali, Indonesia. Categories cover Superyacht of the Year, Captain of the Year, Charity Personality of the Year, Service Provider of the Year and a Lifetime Achievement award.

Captain Ralph Lucas receives Seljm's award, presented by ISA chair,
Dewi Wati Annalisah

Superyacht of the Year went to S/Y Seljm for exceptional commitment to charities during their third circumnavigation of the Globe and in particular to Yacht Aid Global and a local soccer team in Lovina, North Bali. The award was accepted by Captain Ralph Lucas on behalf of Captain Steve Ray.

Dewi Wati Annalisah presents Nila Tanzil with Tim Forderer's award
for Captain of the Year

Captain of the Year went to Tim Forderer of S/Y Vivid, represented by Nila Tanzil, for his continuing support of remote village school, Arte Moris in Dili, East Timor and his Do What You Love high-school presentations.

Tanzil received an award herself for Charity Personality of the Year for her work as founder of the Rainbow Reading Gardens project that creates small reading libraries in remote villages to encourage leisure reading outside of school hours.

Captain Cuanna Butterly receives the Service Provider of the Year
award on behalf of Indo Yacht Support

Service Provider of the Year went to Indo Yacht Support, represented by Captain Cuanna Butterly, for tireless efforts to promote Indonesia as a superyacht destination and providing exceptional shore support to visitors.

Captain Cilian Budarleigh receives his Lifetime Achievement Award.

The Lifetime Achievement Award went to Captain Cilian Budarlaigh, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame and who has spent more than five years assisting superyacht visits, helping local charities and lobbying the government to relax the Maritime Tourism Regulations.

An extra award was added to especially recognise a leading luminary of Indonesian yachting who, sadly, passed away this year. The Distinguished Service Award (Posthumous) went to Bapak Kus Projolalito, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame and who worked for many, many years assisting yachts in obtaining the cruising permits (CAIT) necessary to visit Indonesia.

IM

Related links
Indonesia Superyacht Association | website

NaCL 7 C's

2010-07-03T22:10:00.000-07:00

I was about 17 years old then, and now today sitting in Palau Micronesia, I can clearly remember a day working in my Dad's pharmacy. That day at Drug Corner Pharmacy in Toledo Ohio, my Dad's Partner and lifelong friend Derek Duckworth handed me a riddle scribbled on a piece of paper that read:

NaCL7C's.

It's funny how simple random events years ago can make such an impression or randomly have some effect on the course of your life.

NaCL is the Chemical formula for Salt or Saline - - hence the answer to the riddle was:

Sailing the Seven Seas.

This past week with a transit of the Sulu Sea under my belt and the sailing we have done over the past two years I have completed sailing all Seven of the Seas.

The memory if Derek's riddle just popped randomly into my mind today.... and I sit and marvel once again at how select events are mysteriously planted in our subconscious and some how take part in our life's journey.

In Colonial times, the Seven Seas refereed to the Clipper Ship Tea Route from China to England was the longest trade route in the world. It took sailors through seven seas near the Dutch East Indies: the Banda Sea, the Celebes Sea, theFlores Sea, the Java Sea, the South China Sea, the Sulu Sea, and the Timor Sea.

Adding the Sulu Sea to the list of Seas that I have sailed was a part of our recent trip from Kota Kinabalu, Borneo to Palau, Micronesia. The trip here from Borneo was 1300 nautical miles that transited 5 Sea's: The S. China Sea, Sulu Sea, Bohor Sea, Philippine Sea and the N. Pacific Ocean.

First impression of Palau... Amazing! I look forward to meeting the people and exploring the island over the next month.

Here are a couple of Palau videos you may enjoy:

A Piece of Wall - The Story and Street Art of East Timor

2010-06-19T20:11:00.000-07:00

I am very proud and excited to be sponsoring Chris Parkinson's Exhibit at the 2010 Art San Diego Fair.

Check out Chris's book and photo expose of East Timor here: http://peaceofwall.blogspot.com/

My sister Ann is the CEO of the fair and a huge supporter of my friends at Arte Moris in Dili East Timor. www.artsandiego-fair.com/
Together with a growing group of others our goal is to raise awareness and corporate sponsorship for a larger Arte Moris presence at the 2011 Art San Diego Fair.

I am also very happy to announce that Arte Moris has just received an endorsement letter from Dr. Jose Ramos-Horta 1996 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and President of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, fully supporting and endorsing Arte Moris's 2011 participation in the Art San Diego Fair!

I encourage you to check out and learn a bit more about Arte Moris. It's hard not to see and get excited about what this group is doing for the youth in E. Timor. Simply amazing work!!

Check out Arte Moris at www.artemoris.org/about_us.htm

Yacht Aid Global...."Just Do It!"

2010-06-09T23:22:00.001-07:00

Thank you Yong Tze Yee, Manager of Eatons Book and School Supply Store in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia.

Your very kind and generous donation of: 100 educational laminated wall charts and about 100 hardback educational books for young children will go a long way in the remote fishing village schools of Indonesia.

By simply going into the School Supply store here in Borneo and requesting an impromptu meeting with the store manager we where able to get these supplies on board and bound for Remote Islands in Raja Ampat Indonesia. After a few minutes of sharing the YAG mission and the purpose for the books and materials, the manager was more than happy to clear out some of his back room stock.

Be Proactive! Just Do It! YAG! Yacht Aid Global http://www.yachtaidglobal.org/ Drop me an email at tforderer@msn.com and I would be happy to share with you how easy it is to get involved.

After our trip through Raja Ampat, Irian Jaya - West Papua this year I hope to supply YAG and the folks at Indonesian Yacht Services with some reliable contacts for boats going that way in the future to get involved.

What Color is Your Parachute for Teens!

2010-06-07T02:47:00.000-07:00

http://parachute4teens.com/around-the-world.html

Check out Carol Christens Blog. Carol is the Author of the Best Selling Book "What Color is Your Parachute for Teens!"

She has a very nice entry on my Do What You Love program! Thanks Carol!

This book is amazing, I wish I had it when I was in high school in Toledo Ohio.

With Carol's help, I have just ordered a case of books. I will keep the books on board as we sail around the world and I will distribute them I meet with high school teens, encouraging them to Do What They Love!

Please also check out Carol's Facebook page it is loaded with Career Advice for Teens,

*Top 10 Career Books of 2007 (monster.com)

Website: http://www.parachute4teens.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/What-Color-is-Your-parachute-FOR-TEENS-Defining-Your-Future/386987411662?ref=ts

Blogsite: http://www.parachute4teens.com/blog.html

Do What You Love - Shan Tao High School

2010-06-02T20:00:00.001-07:00

Had an awesome "Do What You Love" session with the graduating class at the Shan Tao High School in Kota Kinabalu - Borneo.

Here are some photos: http://dwylmentors.blogspot.com/

If you or anyone you know is really "Doing What They Love" and would like to participate in my webpage with a personal biography please let me know....

Palawan - Birds Nest Sentry

2010-05-07T21:31:00.000-07:00

This young kid Stays on the sheer side of a limestone mountain, guarding the entrance to a cave. Inside the cave small swallow like birds make nests of saliva. The nests sell for big bucks to make birds nest soup.

A quick update!

2010-05-07T21:03:00.000-07:00

Its been way to long since I have wrote on this blog. So many miles, so many great experiences over the past few months.

All going back to late November with my friends at North Cape Yacht Club where about 200+ people git together on a clod November night over the Thanksgiving weekend to reunite and raise some money for the NCYC Sailing school. Words can not explain what an incredible night it was for me personally to be back where I learned to sail and grew up.

We spent Christmas and New Years Eve crusing the Langkawi and South Thailand area. This was my second Thai New Years, the magic of the thousands of rice paper sky lanterns floating through the air highlighting the warm nights wind currents is a sight that sticks fondly in your mind.

I took a week and explored the temples of Cambodia, then back to the boat and on to the Philippines.

We just finished a great cruise in the Palawan area. Probally one of the nicest cruising areas I have been too. A combination of the limestone casts of Raja Ampat and the beautiful Anchorages and Diving of Komodo. Spectacular... I look forward to returning some day soon.

For now we are taking advantage of some down time in Kota Kinabalu Borneo. A time to get completely organized for our next 5 months out away from any marina "luxuries" like power. water and the security of being tied to a dock. Out there were we have to be completely self reliant...

International Superyacht Society Crew of the Year Award

2009-10-16T17:38:00.000-07:00

I just recieved this email from my friend and founder of Yacht Aid Global, Mark Drewelow

Big news,,,, the International Superyacht Society has awarded all Captains and Crew that participate in YAG activity, the ISS crew of the year award. I will be in Florida on Oct 29 to accept the award on behalf of all Captain and Crew that participate.

We have been partnering with Mark and YAG with the yachts good will efforts as we travel from place to place. Mark and I collaborated on the hugely rewarding Komodo School Fence Project as well.

More from Mark Drewelow 30 October at 13:58
It is very late at night on Thursday, actually it is now Friday. I am back from the International Superyacht Society Awards Gala. This is an annual event where awards are presented for Design and Leadership. One of the awards is called the Distinguished Crew Award. YAG was awarded this on behalf of all the Captain and Crew out there that YAG.

There was a 3 minute introduction by Gary of Westrec with a series of YAG slides on two huge screens. I then went on stage to receive the award and say a few words. There were a few tears shed in the audiance. The combinate of the intro, slides and my jumbled words on stage apparently made a powerful impact. YAG stands alone in our industry.

Stay tuned for more information.
Best regards
Mark

I hope that by the ISS recognizing the handfull of yachts that are really making a goodwill effort as they travel, that more and more yacht crews and owners will become proactive in the communities they travel to.

Get involved at what ever level, whether it is contributing clothing or school supplies, cleaning a beach, volunteering at a school or hospital, teaching skills or building a fence it all takes so little time and effort and the reward for all involved is immeasurable.

As a boating community I feel that we generally "take" from the areas we cruise and do not necessarily leave a positive footprint. I believe in Karma as a Captain and I have seen and felt first hand the good coming back to us in direct proportion to the good we give.

I can only imagine what the reception and attitude towards cruisers would be like if the majority rather than just a few of us found a way to contribute in the areas we get so much from.

Tim

Komodo Island School Fence Completion Report

2009-10-10T00:40:00.000-07:00

I. Project Description
School Fence Completion Report
Project Title Location Work Volum Source of Budget: Tim Forderer, C2C and Philip Palmer
Project Timeline: 3 ‐ 15 Sept 2009

II. Narative Description
Background.
There are a total of four villages inside Komodo National Park. Komodo Island has one village; Rinca Island has two villages named Rinca and Kerora; and Papagarang Island has one village. Komodo village is the most populated among the four villages. As of 2009 (August) a total of population of Komodo Village is 1368 residents. Although there is primary school in Komodo village since long time ago, but only 70 percent of children completed their six years of primary school. Less than 25 percent of those who finish primary school continue onto junior high school in Labuan Bajo or other town. However, since mid of 2008, a junior high school class has been started by using primary school buidling. Junior high school building is now under construction and need to build a ring fence.

The reason why need fencing.
The Junior high school building is located next to primary school building that has already been fenced. The two building are located in the area of Komodo National Park where the wild animal ; Komodo Dragon (Varanus komodoensis) run wild freely but tightly protected. Komodo Dragon is a dangerious predatory animal and can attack not only prey but also human. Thi is the basic reason why the school buildings should be fenced. The fence is intended to prevent komodo dragon entering from the school area with 89 student, so teaching and learning process can take place in a safety condition.

The fence building was already discussed with the vice headmaster together with Tim Forderer. They committed to commence the fence improvement after Ramadhan holiday. The bamboo fence has been successfully built by involving local people including youth organisation, teachers and also students. This fence is very useful to protect a number of 90 students and several teachers from dragon attack that can happen at any time and in any place. All materials for this fence were imported from Labuan Bajo, Flores Island using traditional boat. Some remaining materials (bamboos) will be used to improve and replace some part of the old fence behind the elementary school.

Renold Ch Manalu
Community Development and Outreach Manager
Gang Mesjid Kampung Cempa, Labuan Bajo, Manggarai Barat, Flores-NTT, 86554, Indonesia T: +62-385-41448, +62-385-41328 F : +62-385-41225 | M : +62-811-385-1696 rmanalu@putrinagakomodo.com | gokomodo.org | komodonationalpark.org
PT. Putri Naga Komodo is an enterprise partnership between The Nature Conservancy, the Global Environment Facility and the International Finance Corporation

North Cape Yacht Club Sailing School Benefit

2009-10-01T16:28:00.000-07:00

I am super excited to be going back to Toledo Ohio over Thanksgiving this year. This is where my love and passion for sailing all started. It started with my Dad teaching me to sail in #100 Interlake (a 18 foot centerboard sailboat) off of my Grandfathers dock in Lost Peninsula on the Ottawa River.

Its always very, very special for me to go back to Toledo and see my friends here. This is the place that I have very strong personal connections to for many reasons, this is the place that I call home. When you only spend three weeks a year in the USA, I think the place you call home is a pretty "strong call."

Here is the information for the NCSS Benefit. If you are in or near Toledo over Thanksgiving weekend I would love to see you! Below is also a number for RSVP.

Thanks Leslie Hill and her "crew" for putting this all together - I am very grateful, humbled and EXCITED!

_____________________________________________________________________________

THANKSGIVING WEEKEND
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 28, 2009
THE North Cape SAILING SCHOOL PRESENTS:

TRAVELS AROUND THE WORLD WITH PROFESSIONAL SAILING CAPTAIN TIM FORDERER

FROM THE FOUR CORNERS OF THE EARTH TIM WILL PRESENT HIS SAILING AND GOODWILL TRAVELS DOING WHAT HE LOVES CIRCUMNAVIGATING THE WORLD ON THE 90 FT YACHT VIVID. SOME OF THE DESTINATIONS INCLUDE THAILAND, INDONESIA, NEW ZEALAND, AUSTRALIA, CUBA, PAPUA NEW GUINEA, GREENLAND AND MANY MORE.

JOIN US FOR DINNER AND A GREAT PROGRAM FEATURING:

Junior Program – 5:00 – 6:00
Dinner – 6:00 – 7:00
Presentation – 7:00 – 9:00
Menu – Clam Chowder, Crab Cakes, Bread, Salad, Dessert
Price - $12.00 adults (includes program)
Kids - $5.00 (Pizza included)
Program only no food - $5.00

Reservations for dinner are greatly appreciated. Contact Leslie Hill at 734.243.1222.

All proceeds benefit the North Cape Sailing School.

Arte Moris (Art Lives!)

2009-10-01T16:23:00.000-07:00

Right now we are underway from Dili East Timor to Ambon Indonesia. Just about 150 nm to go. The coolest thing happened in Dili over the past three days.

First take a second and check out www.artemoris.org just read the quick history about the group.

So about Arte Moris, I stumbled on this place while out taking pictures in East Timor. The vivid colors of the wall murals and graffiti stood out boldly in an other wise colorless roadside.

As I walked to the entrance I had an immediate strong sense that I was entering someplace very special. At first I thought it was just another broken down and abandoned building complex. Quickly I realized that this was an artists sanctuary. This place was a safe haven, a place of peace and harmony, a place for freedom of expression and an incubator for creativity and personal growth. Every place I looked was art and young Timorese kids working on their creations. This was the first place that I walked in Timor where every one seemed chilled, happy and with moving with a sence of purpose. The positive energy and vibe that was generating from the people and this place was very strong and I could feel it.

If you have never been to Timor, this place is the worlds newest democratic and free country. It did not become this with out a heavy social impact. It took years of struggle and violence and that is not over. Timor is a place that is in general grossly impoverished, barb wire and high prison like fences around every building and home, UN Police and western military on constant patrol, homeless children, kids working in a dry river bed from sun up to sun down sifting stones for building material and earning $12 a truck load..thats about 4 usd a week. The real victims in all of this have been the Timorese youth.

Amidst all of this is Arte Moris a colorful sparkling vibrant gem. Basically a free art live in community for refugee children. Simply amazing...

I was emotionally moved and motivated with in 5 minutes at this place. I wandered around, soaking up the vibe letting my heart lead me. I knew I had to find a way to connect. I knew that my brother Chris would love this place and that sister Ann and brother Matt would as well with their deep Art involvement and passion.

At the back of the compound I met the young Timorese director Iliwatu and Charline. They could see my enthusiasm immediately as I was having trouble getting clear understandable sentences out. I had 30 questions all coming out of my mouth simotaniusly and squeezed in that endless stream of questions I kept muttering WOW! This Place is Amazing....

We spent about an hour together and I had some ideas taking shape. In this hour I learned a great deal about the history, the people involved, the strong life changing impact that Arte Morsi was having on the kids that come through. I learned of an international exhibit they did in Australia. I learned the far reaching benefits (to all involved) of their international exposure. I shared with them Ann's recent hugely successful project "Beyond the Borders" http://www.beyondtheborder-art.com/ I shared with them Matt's collaborative projects with the Paint Night Group. www.mattforderer.com

I went home that night buzzing and could barely sleep. I had an idea shaping and that was not going to let me rest.

The next morning I put my "smart" duds on and walked confidently up to the American Embassy. I walked up and handed the emotionless embassy security my passport and I said.."I would like to see the US Ambassador for Timor!". With a little finesse about 10 minutes later I was sitting in a comfortable room with the US Ambassadors' Public Relations Director. I shared my initial vision of getting a group of Arte Moris Artists and their works to the United States for a cultural, educational experience and a art exhibition in San Diego. I was met with open minded, support. The US Embassy knew very well of the group and was a fan. The embassy was also keen to show the American Public a positive Timorese image. I suggested the biggest help they could provide would be handling all of the Visa paperwork and in the air transport to and from for the artists and their exhibit. On the spot he offered an initial green light of support and a general commitment to modest financial support. Ok so now I am really buzzing.

I shot out to the Arte Moris compound and shared the news with them. I shared with them the vision of the USA opportunity, which was really the sum of their "wish list" from my conversation with them. It was a shared vison and it was becoming a reality. Understandably, they where cautiously enthusiastic, yet fully on board in concept.

The next piece of the puzzle was to get Ann on board. I had sent her a link to the Arte Moris website the night before to prime her mind. When I talked with Ann about the opportunity and to get her input, she was already 10 steps ahead of me in the project planning process, spitting out bullet points of what "Beyond the Borders" and she could do to make the effort a reality. Amazing such automatic synergy on this effort with each person approached. To me, a concrete sign that this is VERY WORTHWHILE effort!

The next day sitting on the front porch of the Arte Moris compound. People where coming and going, puppies barking and playing, in the adjoing room - a cartoon art class is being led by visiting American Cartoonist, Mike Loew, Charline, Iliwatu and I sit huddled around a cheap Nokia Cell phone set to speaker phone talking to Ann at home in San Diego California and talk for almost an hour.

The outcome; true shape and shared vision of the cooperative effort between East Timor's Arte Moris Art School and USA Beyond the Borders Art Fair. On the call the vision gained life and momentum, and specific next steps agreed to, to make this a reality.

The target date to have the Arte Moris Timorese group and exhibition in San Diego USA is the beginning of September 2010

We hung up the call with Ann, the three of us pushed back in our ratty rattan seats, sat silently for a minute and then all just started laughing with excitement of what had been created and given life to in 24 hours from the time that we met and I randamly stumbled upon and wandered the Arte Moris Compound shooting photos. So cooooool.

Pretty cool!

Komodo School Support Program

2009-09-17T23:30:00.000-07:00

Below is great information from "Gooch" the Captain of SY Bristolian, about supporting the Komodo Village School.

One only needs to spend about 3 minutes in Komodo to realize how far any help from the outside goes...

KOMODO SCHOOL SUPPORT GROUP

Photo by Timothy Forderer

During “Bristolian’s” recent cruise to the island of Komodo in the Indonesian archipelago, we found a local school that could use some help. The remote location of the islands makes aid difficult and is easily overlooked. However the remoteness adds to the spectacular allure of a pristine cruising ground combined with the fascinating Komodo Dragons makes it a must for a Superyacht destination. This gives the visiting yachts an opportunity to lend a hand to the local school, there are limitless ways on how you can help the kids on Komodo. We have contacted The Rotary Club in Australia who looking to assisting by supplying English books for the school; Captain Timothy Forderer of “Vivid” has just been in Komodo building a fence for the school. You might not be handy with a hammer but you might have the contacts that can make a difference.

WHO IS THE KOMODO SUPPORT GROUP

- A network of people who have a desire to give the kids on Komodo better learning conditions and opportunities for their future.

- Anyone who wishes to join in no matter how large or small.

HOW TO ASSIST

- You can use your own ideas or sphere of influence to make a difference.

- Pass information on captains and crews sailing to Indonesia so they are aware of the “Komodo School Support Group”.

- Captains may wish to involve their Owners, guests and crews in their next cruise to the Komodo’s and deliver the supplies to the school themselves. It would be one of highlights of the cruise.

- Contact Cilian Budarlaigh at Indo Yacht Support, Bali cilian@indoyachtsupport.com for more information.

- Visit Yacht Aid Global’s web site www.yachtaidglobal.org and check if there are other schools in the region you are cruising that might also need a hand.

KEEPING IT SIMPLE

- When provisioning in Bali stock up on school supplies and fun things for the kids and delivered it to Komodo.

Links

- www.gokomodo.org

- www.yachtaidglobal.org

- www.timforderer.com and click on the "goodwill" picture on the left

- http://www.vote7.com/n7w/nature/finalists

“Komodo finalists on the New7Wonders of Nature currently under vote”

Thanks for your time.

Gooch
Captain S/Y Bristolian

Dragon Fence

2009-09-17T21:05:00.000-07:00

I have had the great personal pleasure in the past two weeks to be involved with a very worthwhile project at Komodo Island Village

Below is a post by Mark Drewlow, Founder of Yacht Aid Global, describing the project.

www.yachtaidglobal.org You can also find and follow YAG on Face Book

September 16 - Dragon Fence Update
To members of YachtAid Global - a charitable organization

Mark Drewelow 17 September at 11:48

Imagine being a child. You wake up and start your daily routine. Clothes, food, out the door to school. School is fun. You are with friends and you get to learn new things every day.

Classes are in session and you need to use the restroom. You venture outside very very carefully. The buddy system is required, bring a friend in case there is a dragon attack one of you can go for help.

That has all changed. Tim as you know, is the Captain of the sailing yacht VIVID. During a school supply delivery several weeks ago Tim recognized the need for a fence that would alter the daily routine of the school kids. After careful planning and execution, Tim made it happen, he provided funding and man power, C2C and the Drewelow family provided funding too.

Nice to be part of such an interesting project.A simple project, and at the same time has a meaningful positive change in the routine of those kids. Imagine the stress level of a child always having to watch out for those pesty dragons. Now the kids can stay focused on being students, and enjoy their childhood a bit more with their friends.

Best regards to everyone and hoping you all can figure out some creative ways to get out there and YAG. Mark

Doing Good Deeds While Traveling

2009-09-16T22:59:00.000-07:00

Guest Post by my friend Nila Tanzil

http:://www.nilatanzil.blogspot.com/

Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Doing Good Deeds While Travelling

In the past two and half months, I've been living in West Flores, Indonesia. If you remember my videos, titled "Flying with Manta Rays (Part I and Part II)", shot in Komodo Island, that's where I've been spending my days now. Not on Komodo Island itself, but in a small town called Labuan Bajo (it has an airport, so no worries, I still could travel around, if I wanted to!) :D

Staying in such a small city, which there's only one main road that goes around the whole city, is a new thing for me. After living in big cities -- Jakarta, Amsterdam and Singapore -- now I'm experiencing a lifestyle of a small town. There's no shopping mall, cinema, theatre, spa, bar, let a lone a night club. Suddenly my lifestyle changes in a blink eye. Usually, in Jakarta or Singapore, I meet up with my friends in a restaurant/cafe/bar that's located in a high rise building and/or spend hours in a shopping mall with full air-conditioned. But this time, I spend hours chilling in a simple local restaurant that ice cream is considered as a luxury thing. A big change, that is.

During my stay here, I've met so many interesting people. Different professions from different countries. From local fishermen, scuba-divers, backpackers, journalists, businessmen, lawyers, bankers to a famous French actor! Spending time with people with different characters is one of the things that entertain me every single day. I've learned a lot from people's experiences and always amused by the way their live their life.

However, there's one person that makes me ponder by what he does. He's a private yacht captain. Tim Forderer is his name. He's been sailing all over the world for more than 10 years, going from one beautiful place to another. Many people envy him, of course. But what makes me envy him the most iswhat he does whenever he visits a place. He's not only enjoying the beauty of the place, but also doing a good deed for the locals. What does he do?

Ok, here's the explanation. One day, he asked me to join him going to a local school in Labuan Bajo. He needed a translator as he was going to give a presentation for the students. I nodded. To cut the story short, he shared his life story in front of around 150 students and managed to make everyone enthusiastic. What's so special about this presentation?

He told the students to Do What You Love. By doing what we love, we would be more likely to succeed and "rich". Not necessarily rich in material, but most importantly rich at heart :). He asked the students to think: "What do you enjoy doing most? What do you love to do in your spare time? What are the things that you're really good at?". The answers might lead us to the ideal profession in the future. Basically he wanted to encourage these high school students to do what they love to do and inspire them to make it comes true.

He said, "When I was a kid, I always loved sailing. My Dad taught me how to sail. When I was 8 years old, I won a competition as the best junior sailor in all over United States". Students got excited. "Also, when I was in college, I worked hard and became a top college sailor". "Whoaaaa...", I heard them mumbling with amusement...

"In my spare time, I always go on the boat and sail. That's all I did when I was young. But.. suddenly.. all my dreams of sailing fell apart". What happened?

"I was 18 years old by then and my girlfriend got pregnant". Sometimes we have to make a decision, in which, is contrary to what we'd love to do. "I had to drop all my dreams of sailing the world, took the first job I could get and be a responsible father for my kid. Years gone by, I ended up working as a sales person in the same company for 13 years!"

"Then my Dad passed away. I loved him dearly". Apparently, the death of his father, made him realized that life is too short to be wasted by doing something that he didn't really enjoy. He realized that he always wanted to sail the world. So, after discussing it with his Mom and family and got support from them, he decided to pursue his sailing career and be a full time sailor! Until now.. he's been sailing to cool places, such as Galapagos, Maldives French Polynesia, etc etc... and he's enjoying every minute of it...

In the past two months, he decided to start giving something for the society. How? By giving presentation on Do What You Love and encourage the youth to reach their dreams, also by visiting schools in remote areas and giving some donations -- books, pens, medicine, etc. I accompanied him going to 2 schools in 2 different villages nearby Labuan Bajo, Flores. And I'm glad I did. I was so overwhelmed to see the facial expressions of the teachers whenreceiving the donations. They didn't expect the visit or the gifts! And the kids? Ohhh.. they're sooooo lovely! They greeted us as if we're big time celebrities! :D

The first school was SDK Roe at Roe Village. When we got there, the teachers were having a meeting with teachers from some other schools. We only talked a bit with the school headmaster, before being invited to have a cup of coffee and taro cake (it's a traditional cake from West Manggarai, Flores) in a cute corner with wooden bench and a stone table under a tree. So cute! What a lovely coffee break! At the far end of the yard, there's a cute pink house, very clean and neat. It's a house of the school headmaster. I wonder whether pink is her favorite color! Once I had a dream to have a pink house, but I dropped it down coz I thought it would be too tacky. Hihihi... but the house in front of me was definitely cute, it looked like a Barbie house with a lot of green plants in the terrace :). She definitely lives in her dream house, I thought. And I wonder whether her husband complaint at the first place, for the idea of living in a pink house! :)

We continued our trip to SDK Pusut at Pusut Village. We parked the car nearby the school. There were some students playing around in the school yard. As soon as we stepped our feet on the big open space school yard, hundreds of kids running toward our direction! Wowwww... "What's going on here?", I thought. Soon after, we were surrounded by hundreds of kids who were starring at us as if we're aliens coming from planet Mars. Some of them starred at us without blinking, some of them smiled, some of them were brave enough to greet us and said, "Hello...". We greeted back, "Hello... apakabar?" (apakabar = how are you). It was such an overwhelming feeling to be surrounded by hundreds of kids. I loved it.

The school was having a meeting with students' parents in a meeting hall. There was an Indonesian Catholic priest, who has been living in Australia for 8 years, sharing his experiences to the locals on his views of living in Australia - the good and sad stories, lessons learned, etc. Everyone, including students on the 6th grade, listened to him carefully. Sometimes they nodded, too. Captain Tim and I joined the session for a while, before taking a walk to the rice field. Surprisingly, when we returned from the rice field, a bunch of teachers had already gathered in a house and they invited us to have lunch together! Wow... so nice of them! They welcomed us and expressed how happy they were to have us there. So sweet, isn't it?

I felt like I was invited to a small feast. A table full of different local dishes looked very tempting to me. They also gave us a glass of local wine. "Drinking local wine in such a hot day? Maybe not", I thought. Apparently, serving local wine to guests is part of their culture. It's a symbol of respect. I tried a sip, but unfortunately didn't like the taste. It tasted a bit sour, pretty strong, with a bit of coconut flavour.

We had a good time chatting with the school headmaster and teachers there. I asked what was needed for the school. Computer and sports uniform for the school's sports team were on the top priority list. When we exchanged numbers, I asked the teachers, "Do you have email address?". They smiled and said, "That's the thing, Mbak Nila (mbak means sister). We have no computer here, let alone having internet access". I felt so stupid after asking that question. Shoot!!! Silly girl.

The visits to these schools made me ponder... We could help others who are in need anytime and anywhere. Even when we're travelling. We could spend a few hours of our trip to visit remote places and plant some good deeds. A small thing for us could mean the world for someone who needs it. Let's make the world a better place to live in...

I was so glad to witness that good people still exist. Thanks for sharing your wonderful experience with me, Captain Tim. And thank you for your efforts in making this world a better place for us to live in... :)

Three Little Birds, Beside My Doorstep...

2009-05-01T05:27:00.000-07:00

Last year in Sorong Papua (Irian Jaya) I was asked by our local ship's agent, Whahid, to come and speak English at a local school. To be honest, I had a full-on morning ahead of me trying to depart Sorong for Borneo. With fueling, the grueling customs and immigration process and welcoming two security specialists aboard as crew for this passage I reluctantly agreed to go with her.

We sped off on her motor bike and soon in a cloud of dust, pulled up to the school. Instantly I knew this was going to be something special. Instantly all of my other distracting thoughts faded away.

In Sorong, there are very very few white visitors, so just because of my different looks, language and cultural background I stick out like a sore thumb and attract a unsettling amount of attention. A bit like what a celebrity must feel like when he or she goes out in public to a Starbucks for a coffee.

Crammed into the room and lined outside the classroom windows were more school children then I could count. It was a bit overwhelming, and this is coming from someone who spent the majority of his 10 year corporate life presenting in front of groups.

Wahid asked me to just speak English to the class. Ok, so now I have a hundred plus young students looking at me and waiting for me to speak English...

With Wahid translating I began to "speak English".

The first words that came out of my mouth were "when I was your age...." what followed was a shortened version of my life story. The message was, how at their age I discovered what I loved (sailing) and by pursuing that dream - I made it half way across the world to their classroom in Sorong.

As I told this story of my passion for sailing at an early age and "doing what you love", I could see a few of the kids really connecting with the message. . .

The children ended the session by singing me a song that they learned for me in English. This was very moving...

Wahid then asked the class if anyone had any last questions for me. From the back of the room a very small shy young girl stood up, raised her hand, and asked me in English "could you please sing us a song?"

Well I am the furthest thing from an American Idol contestant that you can imagine. I don't even sing in the shower, because I know my singing is that bad. And now I have all of these student chanting for me to sing...

No running here, no where to hide got to suck it up.....So here we go... What suddenly just appeared in my mind was Bob Marley's "Three Little Birds"

So I began with:

Rise up this mornin',

Smiled with the risin' sun,

Three little birds

Beside my doorstep

Singin' sweet songs....

and by the end of my frightful rendition of Bob's song the whole room was singing...

"Don't worry about a thing,

Cause every little thing,

gonna be all right..."

I got to tell you I walked out of that school yard on air.

This really got me thinking for the next several months. To make a long story short this day has turned out to be the conception of a new passion that I have, and that is spreading the message of "Doing What You Love" to school kids around the world.

In the past three days I have presented to about 300 students in Male Maldives. It was a very positive and well received experience.

I am currently recruiting mentors. People that are really Doing What They Love and are willing to accept and answer emails from students around the world about what they do and how they achieved that goal.

I am developing a Do What You Love Mentor website at the moment. It is in the very early stages of development:

http://www.dwylmentors.blogspot.com/

Tim

Hauling the Net - Sri Lanka

2009-04-08T08:53:00.000-07:00

Copy and paste the link below to see a video clip of the Net Hauling in Galle, Sri Lanka. Be sure to have your volume on the chants are great!

http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/timforderer/HaulingTheNetSriLanka?feat=directlink#5322369126669150562

Phuket to Male with a pit stop in Sri Lanka

2009-04-08T02:30:00.000-07:00

0500 6 April The lumen of Male Maldives is pulsing on the horizon. Van Morisson's "Enlightenment" is playing off the Ipod connected to the yachts stereo. Seeing the first signs of land after a long passage is always a very welcome and affirming sight.

Male is the capitol of the Maldives and the Maldives is an archipelago of about 1190 islands grouped in natural coral atolls. The Maldives straddle the equator and lie just outside the Indian Ocean Cyclone belt. The Indian Ocean has two seasons the North East Monsoon and the South West Monsoon. We are right on the cusp of the season change... On our Max Sea Electronic Chart Program I am looking at my latest downloaded GRIB weather forecast model. In about 5 days from now a strong low pressure system is set to develop just over the route that we have sailed and in its path the Monsoonal prevailing seasonal winds appear to change. What this means is that we just made it! If we waited another week to leave Thailand we would be pounding and beating into strong headwind's and seas to make our South Westerly target of Male. I love it when a plan comes together.

This trip is special for me as my brother Chris is aboard as our fourth crew member. Its been about ten or fifteen years since we have really spent any quality time together. The last time we sailed together was when Chris crewed for me delivering a boat from St. Thomas USVI, to Los Angeles California via the Panama Canal. So we have had a great trip bonding and learning to sail together again.

On this Indian Ocean passage have been treated to an small Owl landing on the boat for rest and shelter a pod of about ten 15 meter whales, several dolphin encounters and escorts, and our share of thunderstorms, squalls. This trip is 1600 miles and we pretty much had to motor sail the whole way as when we had wind it was light and dead behind us. Our range for motoring is 1400 miles.... so we needed a pit stop and Galle Sri Lanka was right on our rhumb line to Male.

Sri Lanka is an experience. The Galle harbor was attacked by Tamil Rebels in 2006 and then of course the kamikazi attacks in Columbo last month so they have a very heavy military guard up now. This is evident by the Gun Turrets and barricades to the harbor entrance.

We arrived at 1300 and by 1700 and refueled from a motorized cart with 5 barrels holding 1000 liters of fuel that was hand pumped into Vivid. An painfully tedious process to say the least. We had a few hours on the town to get the feel. Our Tuk Tuk (three wheeled taxi) Abdul shared very emotional stories of the Tsunami that hit here a few years ago. He spoke of how 2000 of the cities residents where killed that day including 7 of his personal family members. He took us to his house that is in shambles from the waters force and told us of how the United States military helped with the recovery effort. While at ground zero for the Tsunami landfal we where lucky to watch the local villagers hauling a net in. An amazing sight to see everyone pulling and chanting and anticipating the size of the days fishing effort.

0700 We are entering the Male harbor. On the port side is the city of Male. It is a compressed little city with as many high rises as Downtown Toledo, all compacted into one square mile. The huge Maldivian Flag flies high with the Gold Dome of the Cities main Mosk in the background. We anchor in the quarantine anchorage and await the immigration, customs, health and navy to come aboard and do the required checks and paper work authorizing our stay in the Maldives. We'll get to work on cleaning up and then get some rest tonight!

Thoughts on Long Passages

2009-03-04T06:45:00.000-08:00

It has always been my passion and dream to sail full time - to somehow find a way to make a living doing what I love. I've found that if you do what you love, it does not seem like work, not to mention the huge personal satisfaction.

My first long haul was a Transpac Race, with my good friend Seth Radow. The Transpac race from LA to Hawaii is 2300 miles. We did this in a 40 foot boat. The race is basically a 10 day, full on, big wind, big wave, down wind spinnaker surfing adrenaline rush. Midway into this race, during a pitch black night, on the leading edge of a nasty squall, surfing down a wave, wheel vibrating in my hands, the keel humming, my eyes glued to the wind angle indicator, doing my best to sail deep but not crash, I was caught somewhere between I can't breathe; it's so intense, crapping my pants, and holy s**t this is frigging amazing. This was the point - I was hooked on blue water sailing.

Promptly, after arriving back in LA, I quit my suit and tie gig in the wireless service provider industry, which I had been landlocked in for ten years, and took the plunge into professional sailing.

In the next four years I would rack up seven crossings back and forth from California to Hawaii on 40 foot boats, a few Caribbean/Newport, Newport/Caribbean milk run's, and pick up my first USCG Captain's License.

9 years later, I have surpassed the 100,000 mile mark as Captain, sailed half way around the world, and recently received my MCA Masters 3000 GT Unlimited License.

In my fourth year now as Captain of SY VIVID, I have been extremely fortunate to be working for an extraordinary owner with a passion for sailing "off the beaten path."

During my interview for SY Vivid, the owner turned his high tech cell phone to me, displaying a photo he took from the airplane. It was a picture of the ice pack in Greenland. He looked me in the eyes and said...""Would you like to sail here?" I said, without hesitation...absolutely. My heart started pounding with the excitement of early explorers and my mind was moving at 100 miles per hour working the checklist of what I would need to do to prepare for this expedition style passage and cruise. A month later we were sailing past icebergs on our way to Disko Bay, Greenland.

Since then, we have sailed in off-the-beaten path places like Cuba, Galapagos, Tonga, Papua New Guinea, Raja Ampat, Borneo, Burma, and Andaman. In a few of these places it is true Magellan-style navigation, as many areas are unsurveyed or very poorly charted and GPS datum's are always off by about two-tenths of a mile. So yes, the paper charts, parallel rulers, dividers and hand held compass, depth sounder and eyeball navigation get used often.

The life style:
As a professional yacht captain, the toughest part of the job for me is being away from friends and family and the difficulty in maintaining a steady relationship.

Circumnavigation sailing to me is a complete commitment- a marriage to the lifestyle and the adventure and full acceptance of the rewards and the sacrifices. When I am in the middle of the ocean I want all of my energy and attention focused on the job at hand, not distracted by nagging thoughts of whether or not I should be there in the first place. Having said this, long passages are awesome for the person who is at peace with his own thoughts.

To keep in touch with friends and to attempt to share my experiences, I have created a Photo Journal at www.timforderer.com and have become addicted to Facebook.

I am very fortunate to have the support of my family and friends who know me the best. They know me; they know this is what I love and this is who I am, and I hope that even though I am not there physically - they know the value I place on my relationship with them.

I also am fortunate to have the support of the yacht owner to bring family aboard and cruise one week each year, to have a month off each year, and to bring along long-time sailing friends as delivery crew.

Psyche and Safety:

In grade school, I would stare at the clock, willing it to go faster because I was bored out of my mind and could not wait to get out and dinghy sail. On a long passage, watching the clock or the ETA calculation on the GPS will drive you crazy.

I remember the feeling of butterflies before the start of that first Transpac. In hindsight, the knots in my gut were very natural, caused by the unknown, the what lies ahead? How will I perform when the shit hits the fan? Will the boat and crew perform harmoniously? Will the water maker work? What will day seven of dehydrated food be like? ...

Today, long passages are routine. We do an owner's trip, and a week later we are sailing 1500 - 2500 miles to the next cruising destination. They are routine because of our routine.

The LD Passage routine begins with an obsession for safety, planning, and preparation. This includes:

- A Detailed Passage Plans including contingency plans.
- All required research on the destination and its pre-arrival requirements.
- The compilation of several sources for weather data, including professional weather routing. I have had a long and useful relationship with Commanders Weather.
- An extensive pre-departure checklist for all gear, rigging and systems.
- Crew briefings and debriefing.
- Solid standing orders, so that I can confidently sleep and know that I will be called if any issue in the standing orders arises.
- Absolute safety rules like; life jackets and harnesses after dark, no body goes forward unless they have a spotter and are clipped in, minimum CPA's of three miles...

I have 100% support from the owner and management company when it comes to my decisions on weather and safety of the crew and yacht. Meaning, there is no pressure for me to place schedule over safety.

The psyche today is all about getting the yacht and crew there safely, minimizing risk and enjoying the trip. I feel very strongly that the success of a long distance passage is in direct proportion to the preparation for the passage.

A huge part of my psyche that keeps me grounded and safe is an enormous respect for Mother Nature and the risks involved in Long Distance Passages. I do not confuse long passages being routine with over confidence, complacency, or easing up on the safety focus. I learn every time I do an LD passage. Only nine years into a professional sailing career, I am very humble and aware that I am just scratching the surface with all there is to learn about World Cruising and Long Distance Passages. I know that I will be challenged and I will learn every day and that is a huge part of the allure of long distance blue water sailing to me.

For me the private and personal sense of accomplishment after each of these long passages is as fresh and sincerely meaningful as the finish of the first Transpac when a beautiful Hawaiian girl, complete with Hula Skirt, placed a powerfully fragrant lei around my neck and gave me kiss on my salty cheek. Come to think of it, it would be nice to have that at the end of every Long Distance Passage!

The Crew

The chemistry among a Long Distance passage crew or race crew is absolutely critical. I can fix a generator that goes down in the middle of the Indian Ocean, but fixing a personality conflict amongst the crew is much more challenging. Nothing can undermine all of your preparation more quickly than a crew conflict or a crew member who is not "rowing in the same direction" as the rest of the crew. In normal life if you have a conflict, you can walk away from it. At sea when the closest land is 1000 miles away and the furthest you can get from the other person is 90 feet, the issue must be resolved.

Chances are you would not have this issue with a permanent crew; if it is a risk - take care of it before you go offshore...

Not everyone is cut out for long passages. I have a few horror stories of my first Hawaii to LA deliveries as Captain. Back then I did not have the budget to hire professionals, I would get willing "bodies" that would do the trip for the experience and a plane ticket.

The bottom line lesson learned for me was this, when the shit hits the fan, or on day 6 into a 15 day passage a person's true colors will be
revealed. Who they really are, will surface; do they have a solid personal character or do they have "demons" in the closet or a few screws loose.

On these trips, after several days, when a person's normal sleep pattern is turned upside down, their equilibrium is confused and trying to adjust to the constant motion of the boat, after a few challenging issues have arisen, after personalities of the crew have had a chance to gel or conflict....The true person is revealed. Good Chemistry is critical among all crew on a long passage...

Cancelling Stop in Sri Lanka

2009-02-25T10:33:00.001-08:00

To be safe; to minimize the risk to the crew and yacht, we have decided to avoid Sri Lanka the same way we would sail around a potential hurricane.

Prior to the recent escalation and southward spread of the civil war in Sri Lanka, Galle was a safe option for us to stop on our route west, as the conflict was isolated completely in the north and the history of the conflict showed that it was localized.

Now, the recent events show that the conflict does not have borders. They are using air strikes with an air force...Kamikazie style. They could easily get to Galle, which by air would be about 15 minute away from Colombo. Columbo is a major shipping port for the country and could be a logical target if a Tamil goal is to hurt the infrastructure and close off access to the country.

"Error on the side of safety always; live to sail another day"

Here is the News Story:

02/21/2009 13:36
SRI LANKA
Tamil Tiger kamikaze aircraft shot down overnight while attacking Colombo
by Melani Manel Perera
The two Zlin-143's went down under anti-aircraft fire near the general headquarters of the Sri Lankan Air Force and the Katunayake air base. The crew on board the planes were killed, as well as two people in the spots where the planes fell. 56 people were injured. It is the ninth aerial attack by the Tamil rebels.

Colombo (AsiaNews) - Tamil Tigers attack Colombo from the sky, and anti-aircraft guns in the capital knock down the two planes. Last night, two Zlin-143's belonging to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) flew over the city in the southern part of the island, to carry out kamikaze attacks on strategic targets.

The two planes were Czech-made light civilian aircraft modified by the rebels to carry bombs. They were shot down while they were trying to carry out their suicide mission. The first was hit at 10:20 p.m. local time near the Inland Revenue Department, a building in front of the general headquarters of the Sri Lankan Air Force in the capital. The second fell under anti-aircraft fire at 10:45 p.m., near the air base of Katunayake. As a safety precaution, various parts of Colombo were put under blackout. In addition to the crews of the two Zlin-143's, two other people died after being hospitalized. Many have been injured: 50 at Inland Revenue, 6 in Katunayake.

It is the ninth aerial attack attempted by the Tamil rebels since 2007. Before this, the small squadron of LTTE planes had tried to strike a variety of targets, with varying results: Katunayake (March 26, 2007); Palali (April 24, 2007); Colombo (April 29, 2007); Anuradhapura (October 22, 2007); Welioya (April 26, 2008); Trincomalee (August 26, 2008); Vavunya (September 9, 2008). The most recent attack by the rebels was on last October 28: two planes struck the Thallady military camp in Mannar in northern Sri Lanka, and a power station in the suburbs of the capital.

The attack prevented by anti-aircraft fire comes as the government says that it has reduced the area in the north under the control of the LTTE to 103 square kilometers, and after the announcement of the destruction of six enemy aircraft discovered during military operations in Vanni.

"ya don't see this everyday!"

2009-02-25T10:09:00.000-08:00

Wow, the Andaman Islands of India. Only 400 miles west of Thailand you feel as you are on the other side of the world from South East Asia and Indonesia. The guests aboard have had an amazing trip. We've seen an elephant walking down an amazing beach at sunset, swam with giant Manta Rays, Sailed by an active volcano then swam and dove at the base of the Volcano.

More to come. I am looking forward to editing and posting my photos.

Safety, Safety, Safety....

2009-02-25T10:03:00.000-08:00

This happend a few days ago at our marina in Thailand. VERY, VERY SAD...

Unconfirmed reports suggest that a crewmember knocked the throttles of the yacht while putting a cover on the controls, causing the yacht to surge forward and snapping the bow mooring line, which in turn hit dockside spectators.

It is believed the yacht in question was the 50m Hakvoort MY JeMaSa, which was launched in 2006.

Here is the News Story as reported in the Australian.

A DARWIN teenager has lost her fight for life after a freak boating accident in Thailand.

The life-support system keeping 16-year-old Ali van Os alive was turned off last night, five days after she received massive head injuries when she was struck in the head by a snapped mooring line.

Ali, the daughter of author Joanne van Os and prominent Darwin barrister Lex Silvester, was in the north of Phuket island as part of a round-the-world sailing trip when the accident happened.

Passionate about yachts and the sea, Ali was at the Yacht Haven Marina, admiring a 50m super-yacht, when it is believed someone knocked the boat's throttles.

The boat surged forward, snapping a hawser and causing a 10cm-wide kevlar-composite rope to strike her across the face and head, throwing her into the air and on to the jetty.

Van Os and Mr Silvester rushed to their daughter's aid, joined by medical staff from other yachts at the jetty. They tried to control the heavy bleeding and to keep Ali breathing, before an ambulance arrived at the remote jetty about half an hour later.

Ali was taken to an emergency clinic at Thalang before being transferred to Bangkok Phuket Hospital.

Her mother, whose 2005 memoir Outback Heart told of her marriage to Rod Ansell, the man who inspired the character Crocodile Dundee, said she took solace in the thought her daughter's final moments were spent around the sea.

"We take some comfort -- a lot of comfort -- that she was doing something she loved and did the best at that moment, talking to someone and getting an invite on board a boat, making the opportunity to meet new people and make new friends ... something we all know Ali did better than anyone," she said.

Van Os said the US company that owned the superyacht had been supportive and a full inquiry was under way.

Friends of the gregarious teenager gathered for a farewell ceremony in Darwin last night. Her life support was turned off at 7.30pm (AEDT).

Message in a Bottle

2009-01-24T00:24:00.000-08:00

I am knocked out of my chair reading the email below. I am reading this from the warmth of my hotel room overlooking the frigid, gale tossed English Channel. This email was sent from a tropical South Pacific Tongan beach area...

Hello,We have found your bottle on a beach in the north of Eua (Tonga) the 23rd December 2008 at 10.30 AM (local time). A long way...We hope that the champagne was good !Virginie & Fabien from France

This bottle and its contents where thrown to sea on 7 June 2007, at the half way point on passage from The Galapagos Islands to Nuka Hiva Marquesas (a 3000+ mile passage).

The bottle was found on 23 Dec 2008, it traveled 4,200 miles and was discovered 17 months after it was ceremonially jettisoned. Pretty darn COOL!

Burma and the Murgui Archipelago

2009-01-10T19:26:00.000-08:00

Dec 30 2008 0430

My alarm goes off, 0430 is a rough one. We are anchored in a glass calm very protected inlet between Hastings and Barnell Island in the Murgui Archipelago. I pick up the anchor at 0500 while the guest and crew sleep. With no wind and glass calm conditions this is easy to do single handed. As the anchor lifts off the bottom the yacht slowly drifts towards the open water with the ebbing tide.

The early morning horizon is brightly lit with the lumen of a 100 squid boats. Above them is a thick blanket of stars including the Southern Cross. This is the first time that I have seen this majestically symbolic combination of stars since leaving the Southern Hemisphere a few months ago. It brings back many memories of the past year, and with the new year two days away, sparks the self reflection and goal setting inward thought process.

I slowly idle past the long tail fishing boats anchored along the sides of the inlet respecting thier last hour of sleep. Soon they will be up and buzzing around with the days chores at sea. We are on the way to Kawthong, Myanmar Burma to clear out of the country and make our way back to Phuket Thailand for the New Years Eve celebration off of Surin Beach.

I weave my way through the maze of squid boats as the carpet of stars overhead are slowly washed out by the first signs of daylight. I really love this time of day, it is very special to watch the night transition to day in a place like this. The rising sun over Burma highlights the rolling landscape, layers fog accentuate the horizon.

This is a country that is equally as beautiful and rich in resources as it is complex with corruption and gross human rights violations and oppression. You can learn more here: http://ethnicvoices.civiblog.org/

Cruising the Murgui Archipelago is really amazing. The Mergui Archipelago, is located in southernmost part of Myanmar (Burma), comprises over 800 beautiful islands. Due to its virtual isolation, the islands and surrounding seas are alive with an amazing diversity of flora & fauna and very beautiful underwater scenes and marine life. If I ever take a lap around the world in my own boat this is a place I would like to stay for several months.

The only human inhabitants in the area are sea gypsies, namely Salon in Myanmar. They live on boats during dry season and remain on land during rainy season. They still practice the same fishing and boat building techniques used for generation. http://www.mergui.org/

Burma Human Rights Violations

2009-01-07T03:37:00.000-08:00

Reprinted from Reuters. This is an example of the human rights violations that are happening routinley in Burma. This happened last September and the Junta where not able to "contain" the story.

10/03/2007 11:33 AM
BURMA'S BRUTAL CRACKDOWN CONTINUES
'They Come at Night and Murder the Monks'
By our correspondents in Yangon

In Yangon the killing goes on. Opponents of the regime and monks are falling victim to the junta's special forces by night. Diplomats assume that several hundred people have already been killed. Now even China is putting the military under pressure.

Riot police and military personnel crack down on the protests in Yangon last week. There are reports of a brutal crackdown at night, with hundreds of people killed.
It is 9.15 p.m. on Tuesday evening in Yangon, the time of day when the stranglehold of fear settles across the city. The first heavily armed soldiers take position outside the few restaurants that still serve foreigners. Curfew starts at 10 p.m. After that, anyone who is still out on the streets is risking their lives.

"Take a bicycle to the street to grab a taxi," the manager of L'Opera, an Italian restaurant, yells into the kitchen. The foreigners, waiting in the courtyard, can't find any more rental cars. Someone dashes out to look for some kind of transport.

It is completely quiet for a moment in the car park. Then a young man emerges from the darkness. He was obviously waiting for a chance to be alone with foreigners. He is poorly clothed, but speaks English that is somewhat understandable. "Please don’t believe what the junta says," he whispers. "The repression is continuing every night. When there are no more witnesses, they drive through the suburbs at night and kill the people."

The young man wanted to tell his story quickly. He knew that he couldn’t let himself be caught doing so -- otherwise he could soon find himself in jail or dead. He comes from South Okalapa, a huge township east of Yangon, where there is hunger and misery. Most of the monks who demonstrated against the regime last week came from there. After the junta's troops finally crushed the unrest in the city center on Saturday, they took their brutal revenge in Okalapa on Sunday.

It was around midnight when the long convoy of military vehicles drove into the district. They contained police officers from the anti-insurgency unit and the so-called "Lome-Ten," a unit of gangsters and ex-convicts, who do the regime's dirty work.

They surrounded a monastery on Weiza Yandar Street. All the roughly 200 monks living there were forced to stand in a row and the security forces beat their heads against a brick wall. When they were all covered in blood and lay moaning on the ground, they were thrown into a truck and taken away. "We are crying for our monks," said the man, and then he was gone.

Four days have passed since the last shots were fired in central Yangon but normality has yet to return to Burma's largest city. Most shops remain closed today and the human rights violations continue. Horrifying rumors and news of further repressive measures continue to leak out.

These rumors are difficult to confirm as journalists are not allowed to work in the country. The few correspondents who are left in the country on tourist visas are being observed day and night. Secret service spies waylay them at their hotels. And even if the regime doesn't dare to execute another foreign journalist following the death of the Japanese photographer last week, it's still impossible to conduct normal reporting and research.

Every Burmese whose name appears in the international media has to fear for his life. Even foreigners living in the country are opting for silence, for fear of persecution. But the rumors and stories circulating in the city paint a horrible picture. It's clear that Yangon has done away with almost all of its monks.

In the huge monastery complex under the Shwedagon pagoda, only the red and saffron coloured robes of the holy men are left to blow in the wind. There are no traces of the several thousand monks and novices that once leant this place its unique and peaceful air.

A deadly silence has also settled into Yangon suburbs like Okalapa or Takada, where young monks from other provinces can normally come to learn to read and write at small religious institutions. But these have been shuttered, their entrances barricaded with iron doors and rubbish is piling up on the premises. The monasteries, temples, schools and orphanages in the surrounding area are empty.

"We are assuming that the number of victims among the monks and protesters last week goes well into the hundreds," says one diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity. Clearly security forces in both suburbs have engaged in major crackdowns. As the junta's henchmen tried to remove the monks on Sunday and early this week, residents of both districts resisted, and many of the demonstrators are believed to have been shot.

"Our students have gone back to their home villages for the time being," the abbot of one Okalapa monastery says. But that's only half true. Diplomats here have fairly reliable information that the junta has built at least three internment camps in recent days in Yangon, where it has placed opponents of the regime.

One is located near the old British horse race track, between Yangon's 50th and 51st streets. Another camp is located near the Mingala international airport. The worst conditions, though, are to be found on the grounds of the Yangon Institute of Technology.

In the north-western part of the former Burmese capital, very close to the notorious and overflowing Insein Prison, about 300 cells have been erected in recent days -- each measuring 3 meters by 3 meters (9.8 by 9.8 feet). Close to 800 monks have been imprisoned there. Sanitary conditions are atrocious and the monks are engaging in a hunger strike. Just as they did during their protests, the monks are refusing to accept any food handouts from the military. Meanwhile, the armed soldiers have stopped locals from trying to bring any food to the monks. And if the authorities don't provide international organizations with access to the camps soon, it will be a matter of time before there are further deaths.

But although the situation appears hopeless, the British ambassador -- of all people -- sees a first glimmer of hope in the chaotic situation. Mark Canning sits in his high security office with a view of Yangon port. He is a large man with a youthful face, and wears a white shirt but no jacket or tie. He is surely not a typical representative of the Foreign Office. Canning appears to regard finding a solution to the conflict in the country, which was once Great Britain's wealthiest colony in Southeast Asia but finds itself today in abject poverty, as his own personal mission.

Canning exploits his room for maneuver right up to the limits of what is possible for him as a diplomat. During the uprising, the ambassador constantly gave live interviews to the BBC about the situation in the country. "If the events achieved one thing, then it is the fact that the international community is now united in its condemnation of the regime," he says.
He repeats the word "revulsion" several times. It was the word used by the otherwise very reserved ASEAN, the community of the Southeast Asian states, to condemn its member country Burma over its crackdown on the uprising.

For that reason, Canning believes that the process of dialogue which the United Nations has initiated with the Burmese military regime could soon show its first results. After his arrival in Burma on the weekend, the UN special envoy for Burma Ibrahim Gambari met with opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who is under house arrest. Then he met Tuesday morning with junta leader Than Shwe in the new capital Naypyidaw.

Canning pins particular hope on the Chinese. The generals could not survive for long without the economic assistance of Burma's northern neighbor. "The Chinese have made it clear to Burma that they want stability and peace on their southern border," says Canning. Admittedly the Chinese aren't talking about democracy, Canning says, but perhaps they can help to establish dialogue between the military and Aung San Suu Kyi. That way, the hunger and misery in Southeast Asia's poorest country could be alleviated -- which is exactly what the demonstrating monks had been demanding from the junta.

Editor's Note: For security reasons we are not naming our correspondents in Burma

Life on an Very Large Container Ship

2008-10-20T17:35:00.000-07:00

Guest Post From Zac Watson: Zac is a good friend who has sailed with me from Hawaii to Los Angeles and From Galapagos to Marquesas. He is in the process of completing his Maritime Academy Studies and currently doing a practical and internship aboard a Very Large Container Ship. I've always wondered what life is like on these monstrous vessels as the pass by on the ocean. Zac provides a nice perspective and insight into life aboard....

One hundred and five days. That's long enough to become accustomed every creak and groan of the ship's roll, to know the shudder she makes when she pitches forward and the prop comes near the water's surface. Long enough to only slightly wake when the engine goes into an automatic slow down, sending vibrations through the steel hull, or to know how to step when a wave breaks into the bow and in a revolt of momentum she bodily staggers and everything not fixed by at least two corners shifts.
My room is beige and has alternate layers of bleached white streaks where rags have been wiped across in a rush, black soot, and cigarette smoke stain. There are two outlets on every wall, so at no point are you more than an arm's length away from plugging something in, which I find handy, but a little strange. I have a rotary telephone that rings every morning at seven twenty and I answer with 'Cadet,' and the A.B. on watch tells me that 'it's zero seven-twenty' and I say 'Yes, thankyou.' And then I climb back into the warm covers of my bed and wait for my watch alarm to go off in ten minutes, and then I either lay there for a half hour rocking with the ship, or get up and brush my teeth, then head down to breakfast.
I have oatmeal almost every morning now, I've lost interest in trying to come up with strange things to have the cook prepare. I don't even know what eggs florentine are, but that's about the only thing I haven't ordered. I keep thinking one of these mornings I will, but I've taken a liking to my morning oatmeal.
I eat with the Chief Mate, Captain and Chief Engineer, and I don't say much at breakfast. They'll ask me things occasionally, but rarely do I engage in conversation, my brain is still idling and not at full temperature to engage the gears yet.
Then up to the bridge for coffee and to check our position on the world. I like having to look at a chart encompassing the entire North Atlantic to figure out where I am. This trip back we went through Pentland Firth, which means we went up and over England and through the Isles of Scotland. I didn't see any of it, crossing through the Firth at five in the morning there's only a few flashing lights to witness, but it's an interesting route on the chart and I like having been this far North. No iceburgs though.
Then I head down to the Chief Mate's room and ask him what the plan is. Every morning for the past sixty days or so I've done just that, knocked on his office door as a courtesy, step into the office whether he responds or not, and I yell into his connecting room “Hey Nick. What's the plan for today?”
Nine times out of ten it's simply to just go out and check the reefer temps. We carry about a hundred refrigerator units aboard and every morning we have to log the temperatures. That's my job, walking around with the log book and a mechanical pencil so I can write small enough to get the temps in the little boxes.
It takes an hour and half, and it's one of my favorite parts of the day. The idea of it makes me recoil and dread it. Putting on my carhartt jacket and red wool winter cap, lacing up my work boots and pulling the legs of my jeans down over them. It's cold and damp and the wind can snap back at you with malice, like it's angry I'm out here under the power of engine and not canvas.
And the containers all have strange smells, rotting vegetables mixed with transmission fluid and stale air. And the reefers all whir and are constantly in states of kicking on or shutting off and they spit water the wind whips up and pelts into your eye.
But it's me and Nick out there, and we inspect everything regardless of the weather. And I'll stop and look out, look up from from my log book with the broken left hander's handwriting that looks like a five year old filled it out holding the pencil in a fist, and I'll lose my breath in the horizon.
I forget where I am, the vastness of the ship and the duties required while working don't allow for much time to be outside looking at the horizon, and I'll go long stretches in the day where I don't look up. And then like a beautiful woman is walking by, my head lifts up and I follow with my whole being the contour of the horizon.
I really am too sentimental. Out here with all these rough characters, never read a poem in their lives and here I am, this tender hearted poet sailor who is overcome with the beauty of a horizon. I don't know why I chose these jobs. Its firefighting all over again. All these tough guys who see this tree hugging hippy with bags more full of books than clothes or work gear, and they all think I won't last a week. They thought that when I was a firefighter, didn't expect me to be able to work past the first fire. By the end they were calling me a badass.
Same out here. The captain at the beginning of the trip was only on for five days, and he said I didn't stand a chance. Three months later he came back from his vacation, and I'm still here, not only surviving, but thriving. He acted pretty surprised when he asked me if I was ready to get off and I told him I'd rather stay aboard than go back to school.
But I'm ready to get off. It's time to see the family, have a beer, wink at some girls, go snowboarding with my buddies.
I've been standing the eight to midnight watch. Standing in the light of radar screens telling stories with the AB and the third mate. Keeping quiet and watching the dark go by. It's been about twenty thousand miles since I've slept on land. When Frost wrote that he had taken “the road less traveled by and that has made all the difference” I have no doubt this is what he meant.

________________________________________________________________

I'm in Holland right now. Just spent the first part of October steaming across from Norfolk, and here I am tied up at the dock. Actually, sitting in a bar in Brielle, near Rotterdam.

This has been an excellent trip so far. I've put in a few days with long hours, but nothing bad. It's mostly doing paperwork and chartwork and that sort of thing, so it's not like it's exhausting or anything. But I get a call at 7:20 a.m. every morning, and then eat breakfast and get ready and am ready to work by eight.

The Chief Mate and I walk the decks checking lashings and temperatures for reefer containers, and that takes about an hour and a half. We carry containers, lots of them, back and forth between the U.S. and northern Europe on this 950 foot long ship.

It's a comfortable ride, even in some ten foot swells it doesn't rock or roll bad at all, just a nice gentle shift at most. It's warm, quiet at night, and full of reclining chairs in the lounge and good food and a refrigerator full of icecream whenever I want. It has a weight room and exercise bikes and a bowflex. It has an elevator that stops at all six decks including the engine room.

Really this is a posh ship compared to anything I've seen on the lakes. The guys aboard have all been good. I got a lucky crew in that the Chief Mate is a great guy who's good to work with from 8 to 11:30 every morning, and then I eat lunch. Then I head up to the bridge and work with the 2nd mate standing a 12 to 4 watch. We do chart corrections and plot positions and courses and calculate speeds needed and propeller efficiencies and take weather reports and stand around telling sea stories.

The 2nd is a curmudgeon who's been sailing for 45 years and is really a walking encyclopedia. He doesn't just know something about everything to do with ships, he's been there and used them and has a story for anything I've been able to think up to ask.

The 3rd mate then I only really see when we're each off watch. So far we've been playing basketball (yeah, there's a basketball hoop welded up on main deck) every night after I get off watch. He's just a few years older than I am, and we get along well. He bought a Wii at the last port in the states and we've been getting into some fairly intense tennis games. I'm afraid someone's gonna get hurt because we're both a bit competitive.

Life is pretty good. I've dabbled at my sea project, not doing as much as I'd like to be doing, but I'll get to it.
Not too long ago was a full moon in the middle of the Atlantic. It's easy to get lost in the beauty of this world. Maybe I'm a touch sentimental, but I get overwhelmed by how expansive and powerful and gentle this world can be. Soft moon glow lighting up the sea from horizon to horizon, reflecting and refracting so even the crisp night wind seems to be made visible in the luminance.

Whales and dolphins are as regular a sight out here as deer and squirrels are back home. I've seen a flash of something jump or a white spout every day I've been on deck.
And coming through the English Channel, we had a clear warm sunshine, which I'm told is pretty rare, and The White Cliffs of Dover were shining in the sun. I've always read about them and heard about them, watched scenes in movies with them, but they really are something special. France on one side of me, England on the other, wind ripping twenty-five knots tearing at my hair and clothes, I just felt envigorated and fortunate and excited to be alive.

But make no mistake, this is no pleasure cruise. It's a floating factory. It spews out diesel exhaust and soot and there's always somebody running a grinder on something, and it stinks of chemicals and toxic substances, and there's grease on every chain, turnbuckle, holding rod and deck shoe can see. Which in turns means there's grease on you, which means it's on everyone else, which means it's worked it's way onto and into everything on the ship. My shower handles have black grease on them right now. There's no getting away from it.

There's 23 men aboard and they all have jobs that require constant awareness and care. There's a professional manner projected at all times, and no one forgets that a mistake at sea means there's no doctors to help you, limited medical supplies to help you, and however many days of being in pain before we even get to a place where getting you to a hospital is possible.
Someone said they'd like to be in my shoes. Yes, I love where my shoes are and where they've been, but out here, I'm wearing work books and stomping around in rain, wind, sea spray, whirring container fans, clunking metal joints stressing and popping against each other, creaking turnbuckles that weight 25 pounds each, and however untold many amount of stuff to be careful about I can't even describe.

But it's a good experience for me. The knowledge and hands on experience is truly awesome, and though at times I'm really missing home and the fall colors changing, I'm out here with the wind and tides and I can't help feeling that all is as it should be.

Zac zacinthewind@yahoo.com

Selemat Hari Raya Kemerdekaan’

2008-08-17T23:53:00.000-07:00

17 August 2008

Indonesians celebrate the proclamation of independence from 350 years of Dutch colonial rule.

The Indonesian Declaration of Independence was officially proclaimed at 10.00 a.m. sharp on Friday, August 17, 1945. The declaration marked the start of the five year diplomatic and armed-resistance of the Indonesian National Revolution, fighting against the forces of the Netherlands until the latter officially acknowledged Indonesia’s independence in 1949.

Its Indonesia's' Independence Day today. The people of West Papua are celebrating their Independence The main festivities will be at the parade field. All around town for the past few weeks preparation and practice has been taking place for today. A mass cleaning and painting has occurred along the main pot hole studded route that the President's motorcade will travel to the main event. Indonesian Red and White flags have been placed every where. Festivities abound in cities and villages alike, organized by the government, neighborhood community associations and organizations.

I am stoked for a great photo outing. I do my prep the night before clean my lens , charge my batteries, set everything out so I can get up early and get out there and get some good "behind the scenes" shots of West Papua at its best.
I arrive at 0703 and the area is packed already with about 50 different parade troops all assembling in their various areas. Every branch of the military is represented, police honor guard troops, dance troops and schools are represented. Important military and government officials are taking there front row seats under the only covered area. Many High Ranking Military, with weathered faces and chests full of medals take the prime seats.

I am clicking away, the photo ops are every where. I am wandering through a troops of military cadets all with automatic rifles (I am pretty sure they are in safety lock mode) and getting great close up shots as they march in formation right by me. I am grabbed by two guys...one on each side, each with a firm, squeezing grip on my arm, steadily increasing their grip to get my attention. They are swiftly ushering me out of the street and telling me I cant take pictures.

I react calmly and cooperatively to the plain clothed Secret Police's control of the situation...wisdom gained from leaning the hard way how to react in a situation like this.. About ten years ago in Cancun, Mexico, I was grabbed from behind, and with a much more aggressive reaction I turned with a round house punch. The punch landed squarely on a 300 pound Mexican Federalie's jaw. What happened after this is a 24 hour very uncomfortable and unpleasant story...This scene flashed though my mind as I was being ushered off the parade staging area street.

So the parade is starting and so is my drama with the Indonesian secret police. Who am I, why am I taking pictures, what agree the pictures for.... To make matters worse I forgot my passport on the boat. Now I am detained behind a fence with four guards on me. I am told I need to wait until immigration officials arrive. In the mean time I call our local, ships agent "Whaid" She can vouch for me and help translate to me what is going on and what I can do to diffuse the situation.

Fast forwarding four hours after being taken away in a immigration police vehicle, missing the ceremony, I am questioned, forced to delete all of my photos, and had to sign a statement that said "I am sorry for taking pictures and forgetting my passport, I will not do it again"! Seriously, this is what I had to say and sign a statement before they would let me go.

I was waiting for the Immigration chief to ask me to write it out 500 times on the black board.

When in Indonesia, do as the Indonesian's do...

2008-08-17T00:28:00.000-07:00

I am driving back from my morning detention with the Indonesian Immigration and Secret Police. All around town festivities and Independence day celebrations continue on. On the left I spot a very large gathering at a Police/Military post. The attraction is two greased telephone poles, each with a prize carousel at the top. Men from two competing villages are trying to reach the top and score the prizes by building a human pyramid. As if having the pole covered in grease was not challenging enough, he poles are set in the middle of a mud pool.

I spent about ten minutes watching and photographing this. Keep in mind I am the only white person in town so I am getting a lot of attention. I watch these guys try and fall, then pick themselves out of the mud, rally and try again, only to fall in a heap of grease, mud covered bodies.

For some reason I got the urge to do this, I actually thought that with my help we could do it!

This was much harder than it looks. First of all you can barely breath because of the body order of your team mates, then you can barely get your footing in the mud, then you get the first guy on your shoulders, his feet are covered in a coarse sand/mud mix that immediately starts to work your skin like 60 grit sandpaper. Now you have to plant your self, wrap your arms around the grease covered pole, like a wrestler going for a single leg take down and hold on, block out the pain in your forearms and shoulders, forget your legs trembling as the third layer of people go up.

Then it happens, a weak link gives out, with out warning, and everyone comes falling down on top of you.

Well by the third go of this, I had the battle going in my mind should a quit or stick it out. I quit, I could not do it! I was sore, my skin was shredding and I was afraid that someone was going to fall on my neck and that might be the end of the day.

Covered in mud and grease I do walk of defeat off the field. I have not quit many things that I have started, but I am pretty sure I made the right decision here!

Now time to find a hose and rinse down. I am out behind the Military Police barracks grimacing in pain as I rinse the ground in sand out of my shoulders and clean off all of the mud.

Walking out of the office door next to me strolls the same Secret Police guy that grabbed me in the morning. Both with complete suprise, I look at him, he looks at me...and we both just start shaking our heads and laughing!

Great Barrier Reef coral in crisis

2008-08-07T03:34:00.000-07:00

Global Warming, more acidic oceans cited; 'pretty scary' findings, one expert says
By Miguel Llanos

The rate at which corals absorb calcium from seawater to calcify their hard skeletons — and thus grow — has declined dramatically in the last two decades and signs point to manmade greenhouse gas emissions as the culprit, according to a study of samples from Australia's Great Barrier Reef.
Researchers with the Australian Institute of Marine Science looked at the skeletal records of porites corals collected over the years at 69 reefs along the 1,600-mile-long Great Barrier Reef. Those corals, some 400 years old, showed that calcification declined by 13 percent between 1990 and 2005.
"The data suggest that such a severe and sudden decline in calcification is unprecedented in at least the past 400 years," the researchers stated in the study, published in the peer-reviewed journal Science.
A reef expert not involved in the study described it as "very important." In a commentary posted on newsvine.com for msnbc.com, John Bruno added that "the findings are frankly pretty scary."
"Slower growth might not seem like a big problem, but reef scientists are concerned that this will exacerbate the impacts of other threats to coral reefs," said Bruno, an associate professor of marine ecology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. "For example, it will slow the vertical growth of corals, making it harder for them to keep up with rising sea levels.
"It could also slow recovery from other disturbances such as coral bleaching episodes and destructive storms," Bruno added. Bleaching occurs when corals expel the organisms living inside that create the colors found on reefs.
The study's authors themselves wrote that "precipitous changes in the biodiversity and productivity of the world's oceans may be imminent" given how central coral reefs are to marine ecosystems.
Changes tracked via skeletal ringsThe researchers sampled porites coral, which can grow over centuries into massive boulders. Porites also lay down annual growth rings, making it possible to compare specific years to water temperature records and other data.
Several potential causes were ruled out by the researchers, among them sewage and other runoff since many samples were originally far from the coast. Disease was also ruled out because the samples were all from corals that had been healthy.
That, they wrote, left "two most likely" factors, both tied to carbon dioxide emissions: warming sea temperatures and more acidic oceans as CO2 raises the pH levels of the seas.
The researchers noted that their findings confirm lab experiments and computer models predicting negative impacts of rising carbon dioxide on corals.
"If temperature and carbonate saturation are responsible for the observed changes, then similar changes are likely to be detected in the growth records from other regions and from other calcifying organisms," they warned.
How fast can coral adapt?Bruno noted that "we will almost certainly see this problem grow over the next few centuries" due to greenhouse gas emissions. "The only questions are by how much, how quickly corals can acclimate to climate change and what the broader impacts will be."
Bleaching has also been tied to warming waters, and adds to the pressure on corals. The Great Barrier Reef saw severe bleaching in 1998 and 2002 — the two hottest summers on record there — and officials warned that the northern end of the reef could see severe bleaching again over the next few months during the Southern Hemisphere's summer.
Bruno warned that while corals are not widely visible their role is critical. "Corals create the physical structure that thousands of other species depend on," he said. "They play a role analogous to trees that create forests. When corals die, so do the fish and invertebrate animals that live on reefs."
© 2008 msnbc.com Reprints

Back in Time...Papua New Guinea

2008-08-02T00:46:00.000-07:00

Papua New Guinea in general gets a bad rap, for its crime and various very harsh issues in the cities like Port Moresby. In general the cruising in Papua New Guinea is like nothing you can experience any other place in the world. When you are a custom to a world of Starbucks, ATM's, on line shopping, SMS, blah blah blah...It is simply amazing to see such insular and primitave living.

Their really are not any cruising guides for this area. You come here and you are on your own. You need to be self sufficient, 100%. Most areas are not even surveyed or charted. Charted areas the GPS Datum's are way off (GPS shows you about two tents of a mile off your actual position!) Daylight navigation in the coastal areas is critical to see the reefs.

As soon as your anchor hits the bottom near the villages you are greeted by dug out canoes. Many just want to have a look - very few yachts come this way. We may be the only big sailboat this year. For some of the children we may be the first white people they have seen. The stares of curiosity are unnerving.Papuan villages are so insular that 750 different dialects are spoken in PNG. Backpacker and traditional tourism is non-existent without any road infra structure. The only way around the country is by boat or by air. In general PNG only gets about 15,000 tourists a year. Mostly coming to trek or dive.

Very few private yachts make the effort to cruise these areas. In a way, I hope it stays this way. Their are not may places in the world where life goes on as it did 1000 years ago. Can you imagine a culture where money has no real value...a place where neighbors live cooperatively, working together to exist off the land and sea. As monetarily and creature comfort deprived as the Papuans are these are some of the most kind, innocent and proudly contented people I have ever come across.

Making the effort to cruise PNG is incredibally rewarding....

The Betel Nut Rage

2008-08-01T00:26:00.000-07:00

The first thing that you notice about the people of Papua New Guinea is they all have red mouths. A bit strange at first until you discover the major addiction and favorite past time of incessant Beetle Nut chewing (and spitting). You really have to watch where you walk so you don't step in Betel nut slop or get spit on...

The stimulant combo is Betel Nut, Coral Lime powder and Mustard plant. These are all chewed together and apparently they get a super caffeine like buzz from this! The three ingredients are the most readily available thing in PNG. Every market you will find 70% of the vender spots selling Betel Nut.

The lips teeth and gums are permanently stained and major tooth and general mouth decay takes place. I also heard that some find this look attractive! About 90% of the population from children to invalids chew. I decided to take a pass on this one...did not want to end up looking like this guy...

Depth Survey the "Old School" Way...

2008-07-27T04:08:00.000-07:00

Motoring back from the Market in the tender to our anchorage off Noosa Island I see a dugout canoe and a outboard powered boat working together in the channel. I was very curious what they where doing. The guy in the dug out canoe was dragging a line while being slowly towed by the outboard powered Panga.

I slowly pulled up and realized that they where doing a depth survey of the channel. Doing this with a lead line! I asked how long it usually takes to sound the channel and he showed me his hand sketched chart with soundings already
collected and said about one week.

I showed them that I had a digital depth sounder on board the tender, and their eyes lit up like the light bulb was discovered. I invited the chief surveyor aboard with his clipboard and we where off, zig zaging up the channel.

After one hour of readings we had finished what would have taken them a week the "old school" way!

You dont see this every day...

2008-07-27T03:44:00.000-07:00

We are anchored stern to the pebble beach, our stern is 6 meters to the shore and tied off to a Betel Nut Palm tree. We are anchored in Dinah's Cove. We are told the story of the Skull Cave. Apparently their are piles of human skulls laying in testament to bygone rituals.

The story goes that when a warrior died the victim would be buried up to his neck in a crouched position with a clay pot covering his head. When the neck was soft enough the head would be twisted off and presented to the widow. She would then put the head in the eaves of her home for three weeks and then the skull would be ceremoniously placed in the cave.

We had to check this out... The local guide that told us this story leads the way...Sure enough a cave full of skulls. Standing over the pile of human remains, pretty speechless, the guide breaks the silence and picks a small child like skull up and says "you can take one if you want..."

Malaria was not in the plan...

2008-07-26T03:57:00.000-07:00

Wikpedia: Malaria is a vector-borne infectious disease caused by protozoan parasites. It is widespread in tropical and subtropical regions, Malaria parasites are transmitted by female Anopheles mosquitoes. The parasites multiply within red blood cells, causing symptoms that include symptoms of anemia (light headedness, shortness of breath, tachycardia etc.), as well as other general symptoms such as fever, chills, nausea, flu-like illness, and in severe cases, coma and death.

The anti-Malaria pills do no good sitting in the medicine chest.... My "it wont happen to me" attitude regarding Malaria changed quickly after my blood test results at the Kavieng Hospital. I had been suffering from severe headaches and fever for about seven days. Being on a guest trip I worked through it popping Advil like M&M's. This is not to sound macho, the truth is I had no idea why I had the headaches and fever and I had no where to go to get it checked out until, the guest trip ended in Kavieng.

The Kavieng hospital is a whole other story in itself. A very basic facility tending to everything you can imagine. I was very concerned with leaving with more than I came in with. A few days later Lisa and I visited the Hospital and handed out some toys and small stuffed animals in the Pediatric ward. This was very uplifting for the kids in the ward, with not enough beds or doctors...

After a week of various medications to kill the parasite in my blood I was coming back to life and regaining my strength. Moral of the story, Malaria pills in the medicine cabinet are like a life jacket in the bottom of the boat...they do no good unless you use them....

Kavieng (PNG) 50 Year Catholic Jubilee

2008-07-23T13:36:00.000-07:00

Guest Post by Father Bruno Junalie

Towards the end of July 2008 the Diocese of Kavieng (New Ireland Province - Papua New Guinea) staged a series of events to celebrate some important ocasions. The Youth Cross programe comes in line with the World Youth Day gathering in Sydney Australia during July 2008, where youths from around the world met with the Pope and other world church dignitaries. Thirty nine local New Ireland Province youths along with two Diocesan priests from the Diocese of Kavieng attended the world event.

The youths coming back from Sydney WYF08 arrived back to Kavieng on Friday 25th July to meet an jubilant and enthusiastic crowd at the Kavieng Airport, followed by a welcome Mass and dinner. On Saturday 26th July the youths from the Kavieng Deanery (Church District) enthroned or stationed the Diocesan Youth Cross on the hill adjacent to the Cathedral. This youth cross has been going around the Diocese for two years.

Then on Sunday 27th July, the Catholic Church in New Ireland Province which includes; Manus and the Duke of York Islands, celebrates its 50 year anniversary as a Diocese (Church Province). The whole week-end celebration was in line with all these events.
Dignitaries from the New Ireland Council of Churches, The Provincial Government, and other Christian Denominations and the Catholic faithful came together to celebrate this memorable occasion.

Their was an open air celebration of the Holy Mass presided over by his Lordship Reverend Bishop Ambrose Kiapseni MSC DD along with six priests and a Uniting Church Paster Concelbrating.

Light refreshment and lunch was served for guests and the public followed by speeches with the noted address from Bishop Ambrose and the Honorable Governor of New Ireland Province, Sir Julius Chan OBE CMG.

Singing and dancing came towards the later part of the day, with a display of many different cultural dances from the islands such as New Hanover, Tabar, Lihir and Tanga and some from the New Ireland mainland including Livitua, Lamusmus, Lemakot and Lamasong. Judging front he intensity of the displays of various dynamic and colorful dances, the performers have obviously put s lot of effort into preparation.

The vibrant and joyful atmosphere could be very profoundly felt even by those who came into just to observe. The singing and dancing continued well into the evening where every one was very tired. Eventually some have to travel back long distances by land and sea to their homes.

Father Bruno Junalie
Diocese of Kavieng
PO Box 49
Kavieng N.I.P
Papua New Guinea
diokug@global.net.pg

Father Bruno approached me as I was roaming around taking pictures of the event and asked if I would share them with the Church and local media. Obviously I was more than happy to do this. After about 3 hours in the "digital darkroom" I edited about 275 shots down to about 65 "keepers".

I met with Father Bruno the next day to give him the photo discs and look at them together. Father Bruno fired up the diocese computer, I think I could hear the tubes in the machine warming up, the donated relic from the Melbourne Australia Rotary Club, complete with floppy disc drive (pre cd drive circa). I'm glad I brought my laptop...as the floppy drive was obviously not going to work for the Photo DVD that I had burned with Picasa. Crowded around my laptop in the stifling hot room where several of the youths and the priests that attended the World Youth Program in Sydney. It was very rewarding to view the photos and see their reactions first hand.

After the slide show we talked about their trip to Sydney. Keep in mind that none of these guys have ever been off of the Island they live on, let alone on a long plane flight. It was very moving to see the strong emotions as they attempted to describe something that so awesome for them. To see their eyes well up and and hear their voices shake, as they described being apart of something so large, in an amazing city was very special.

Another one of those experiences that makes me really appreciate life, and the experiences that I am fortunate to have...

Click on the picture to the left of the "Cross Ceremony" to view a slide show of the finale event for this Celebration.

Papua New Guinea Arrival

2008-07-12T13:58:00.000-07:00

6 July 2000
We are motor sailing up the China Strait of South Papua New Guinea. We have been underway for 3 days crossing the Coral Sea from Australia. Its been a quick ride here, about 20 knots of true wind on the beam. With two reefs in the main and big jib we averaged about 10+ knots the whole way. Along with this fast ride where some pretty big seas so our bodies and equilibriums welcome the flat water inside the reefs of PNG.

The China Straight is intricate, winding through various New Guinea out islands like: Rogea, Samari, Ebuma, Bilo Bilolo, and Igwali. Its dark now so we find our way through here relying very heavily on radar as we slowly make our way against a 5 knot head current.

Standing outside, on the back deck, I'm privately soaking in this new place, The landscape is very green, rain forest mountains reach into the sky, their tops are hidden by the low clouds and moisture that they are self generating. They say that most of this rugged mountain land has barely been touched by humans and that there may be 100's of flora and fauna species that have not been discovered here, as it is impenetrable for the most part. The smell of cooking fires coming from the villages dotting the waters edge is thick in the air. This combined with the moist earthy smell is very distinct to the nose after three days of pure sea air.

This is a special landfall, a far away, rugged, well off the beaten path place that very few yachts venture to. I enjoy the solitude of the sea and the job, but moments like these are the times that I wish I had my friends and family with me to share and enjoy the experience.

11 July 2300 Latitude 10 35.001 S Longitude 150 41.8233 E

We are anchored off Tobai Island, in Possession Bay, named by Captain James Cook. Its a perfect anchorage; mirror flat water, great all around protection, good holding and a post card perfect setting of several palm thatch huts sitting under a perfect row of coconut palm trees, with an inviting powder sand beach plunging into the coral lined turquoise water.

We were warmly greeted by the Chief of Tobai- Simon. He had not had visitors from a yacht in years so where a novelty for the kids and his family. He proudly showed us around the village and explained how they are self sufficient. I enjoyed listening as he explained how he had lived in the city (Alotau) for a few years then moved back here because the city was to stressful. He said "when I live in the city I have to much stress because I have bills for rent and electricity....here on Tobai, we grow our own vegetables, catch our own fish, we own the land, I wake up when I want, I swim when I want, and I'm the Chief." Not to shabby...

Tobai is a typical PNG out island. The land is owned by the families that have inhabited it for long periods of time. Tobai is 4 miles long, 1/2 mile wide at its narrowest point and 2 miles at its widest. In all their are 20 villages on the island. Their is a co-op relationship amongst all of the villages to pool their resources, and various skills. On the island there is no electric, no plumbing, no Starbucks or 7 - Eleven's. They live off the land, the sea and their gardens. The only store bought items that they consume are rice, flour, soap and kerosene for the lanterns. When they need money the take fish and garden vegetables to the market in Alotau (about 30 miles away).

Simon and his two children have paddled out in their dug out outrigger canoes to visit. Simon with his, bushy afro, big smile, and Beetle Nut red stained teeth goes on (see post on Beetle Nut). He tells the story of how Captain James Cook came to name the bay, Possession Bay, He speaks like a proud ambassador and family historian, with strong English learned from 12 years of school.

What's compelling to me about the story of Possession Bay is that it was Simons ancestors that first met Captain Cook. Cook was the first "white guy" to discover most of the islands and countries that we have sailed in the last two years. The story goes that back in the 1600's Cook anchored the Endeavor to replenish stores and water. His crew took ashore a few hundred iron banded wood barrels for storing fresh water. When they returned to shore a day later they found Simons relatives happily sharpening their new machetes and knifes. Cook seeing this realized that many of the iron bands where missing from the wood kegs. Cook was upset that the iron bands where stolen, to teach Simons kin about "possessions" he in turn took a few hostages and held them until his property was returned.... In the end, after his lesson stunt, Cook gave the islanders back the tools they had forged and also gave them proper axes, knives and machetes from the Endeavors stock.

Simon also shared how cannibalism was a very real way of life here in this area and all of PNG just 100 years ago. Simon explained that at night the villagers would sleep in the mountains of Tobai Island to avoid the night beach attacks of rival tribes in search of dinner. In fact the Jeffrey Dhalmer diet was still practiced up until the 1960's in the Highlands of mainland PNG. No need to go into any more colorful detail here....Witch craft was also practiced and today, however illegal, sorcery is still practiced in remote areas of PNG. I'm pretty sure we are not in Kansas any more.

Before Simon and the kids left the boat we gave them a brand new soccer ball and a few other toys that we have packed for sharing with children along the way. They lit up.

Picking up the anchor the next morning to the sound of the roosters, I could see and hear a group of the Tobai village kids playing already...strange they would be up so early...they where laughingly kicking their new soccer ball around. On the beach Simon is waving his arms good bye to us. We give him a toot on the ships horn and return the waves in appreciation for a memorable anchorage and close up insight to life on a PNG island.

Click on the Papua New Guinea Images to the left for a slide show

The Great Barrier Reef and Dwarf Minke Whales

2008-07-07T15:03:00.000-07:00

4th of July 2008 It is only 1900 and above their is already a star speckled dark Australian night. Their are no city lights to wash out the stars this far north in Australia. We are about 130 miles north of the closest real city.

The fireworks would be starting about right now if I where back in the States. Technically not, as it's only 3 July in the USA right now. Over the past five years I have been treated to some amazing front row-on the water fireworks vantage points. I love fireworks... I hope that I never get to a point that I don't get totally jazzed up about a good fireworks display. I miss them tonight.

Their is plenty to keep me busy tonight on the 4th of July as I navigate through a narrow section of the shipping lane that runs inside the Great Barrier Reef. With the stark darkness outside, I rely totally on the MaxSea chart platter and the Furuno radar to guide us through the tight pass. On one side of the pass is Mt. Thomas - a large mountain jutting up from the waters edge, and one half mile across from that is the hungry Gibbon Reef, lurking there static, ready to snare a lazy navigator.

Their is fishing vessel off the starboard side in the pass, I grab the binoculars, step out side the protection of the pilot house to have a better look. I'm immediately hit by a blast of the Coral Sea's stinging salt spray. Since we left Lizard Island we have been laboring through 30 knot apparent winds and 1.5 meter stubborn seas - on the nose. I am reminded how spoiled we have been with our circumnavigation route that is routed and planned with the worldwide seasonal wind patterns (trade winds) working in our favor. Pushing us downwind to our next destination rather than clawing upwind against them.

We are heading back to Cairns after an amazing 5 days out on the Great Barrier Reef. We are going backwards to clear customs out of Australia bound for Papua New Guinea. I dropped the owner of the yacht off on the private postcard idyllic beach at the Lizard Island resort this morning by tender. Zipping across the various shades of blues and coral patches to the beach the private plane we have chartered for him flies in for a landing, every thing for the owner and guests are synchronized like a fine Swiss Watch. I mention to the owner "you know your in an amazing place when you step off your tender in to ankle deep sand with the sound of your private plane waiting on a run way only a 5 minute barefoot walk through a grove of palm trees". He smiles widely acknowledging a great trip so far. That genuinely sincere smile is one of the acknowledgements and rewards of the hard work that goes into it all.

During this GBR trip we where the first private yacht to be granted the use of a Minke Whale Permit. In order to do this we took on a live aboard guide, agreed to follow strict whale interaction protocol, and participate in the on going research data collection.

Dwarf Minke whales where first recognized as a distinct form of whale in the mid 1980's and there is still little known about them. They attracted attention in the northern Great Barrier Reef waters because they regularly approached close to boats and swimmers. While many countries have banned programs where visitors can swim with whales, a swim with whales industry has developed here in the northern GBR based on voluntary approaches of the Dwarf Minke Whales. To ensure the encounters have minimal impact on the whales, research is being focused on learning more about the whales interactions with swimmers. The goal of all the research is to manage the interaction between the dwarf Minke whale and humans so that it is ecologically sustainable.

To put it simply this swim with the whales program is all about the Dwarf Minke Whales interacting with humans on their terms, at their pace and at their choice. Quite opposite from other whale watching/swimming programs where you have several boats aggressively looking for whales speeding over to their location, hovering over them, ambushing them with a bunch of swimmers jumping in the water....

We arrive at Light House Bommie, a very large coral head located near Ribbon Reef #10. Its important to say as well by securing the permit and taking part in the research every spot we went to we had to our selves. This privacy in such an amazing place is hard to put into words- you really forget for while that their is a whole other world on the other side of the reef. This is a spot that the Minke come back to each year. As we arrive to the mooring, dead on the waypoint bullseye. it is magical, immediately several large Minke are surfacing around the boat. Their is no doubt that they are calling us out to play.

We start off by trailing a 30 meter polypropylene line that has about 7 bicycle inner tubes tied into it and equally spaced. Trailing behind the boat, the plastic line floats on the surface we don our wet suits, masks, snorkels and fins and then one by one gently enter the water and take up our position on the line. Within minutes we had company. The first Minke starts down the line coasting one meter from each persons face, making direct eye to eye contact. As you are looking ahead at one passing whale, another surprises you - a 20 footer, 3 ton whales coasts right under neath you, you do your best to keep your fins up so they do not graze him. You are speechless, in awe, stricken with admiration and the realization that you are having a completely natural encounter with several whales.

At first its a "wholly shit" reaction, a reaction of disbelief that something so big, from a world relatively unknown is coming so close to you. Then the emotions shift to a more powerful deeper experience... as you study them you see their grace, their curiosity, their complete trust in you, you feel a connection as you look eye to eye... The most powerful emotional experiences that I have ever had where the birth of my two children and the death of my father, this day is now in at number four.

When you are out at the Great Barrier you literally are "out there". Over a hundred miles from any real civilization. The trade winds blow a steady 20 25 knots from the South East. The seas outside the reef are running about two meters. You anchor or moor behind the reef for some resemblance of protection but that is diurnal at best. When high tide arrives the reef is awash and you are much more exposed. We had our share of dragging anchors and broken mooring lines, enough to make for very little sleep and 24 hour anchor watches.

PS - It's 0630 8 July. I am finishing this GBR journal anchored in Alotau Papua New Guinea. Arriving here after a 500 mile 10 knot beam reach across the Coral Sea. Its a little surreal as I sit outside typing on my Sony Vaio Laptop computer drinking nice bold coffee from my ceramic Starbucks Mug, listening to Jack Johnson's - "Thicker than Water" CD. I am surrounded by about 35 local handline fisherman in dug out log canoes, wild dogs going crazy barking to the left, three little barn swallow birds are sitting on the running back stay line chirping away, the odd rooster that's waking up late is carrying on, the lingering smell of cooking (and rubbish) fires all against the stunning back drop of the lush rain forest mountain peaks.

Click on the Great Barrier Reef Image to the left to see a slide show.

Triton Megayacht News - Greenland Aritcle

2008-06-25T15:42:00.000-07:00

This link will take you to a nice article of our Greenland Cruise, written by Lisa Jouris and printed by the Trtion - August 2007 Edition.

http://www.the-triton.com/megayachtnews/index.php?news=1840

THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED

2008-05-15T15:59:00.000-07:00

Guest Post by Lisa Jouris

This past trip took me from the busy metropolis Auckland, New Zealand to the "road less traveled" into Far North Queensland (FNQ), Australia. It like felt an incredible release to get away from the city and to be immersed into pure natural splendor.

It seemed that no matter where we turned, beauty surrounded us. Our little private bungalow was off the beaten path in the rolling hills of Julatten. We were surrounded by wild birdlife that provided a non-stop concert throughout the day and into the night. Even our daily trips into the resort town of Port Douglas took us past endless rows of sugar cane that seemed to stretch for the sky.

The real discovery of this incredible region really began when we left the paved road behind and took the 80 km off-road journey through the World Heritage Rainforest of Cape Tribulation/Daintree via the Coast Road. We meandered along the rugged roads through intensely lush forests and rocky creek with the windows rolled down. Ah… fresh dewy earthy air.

After briefly visiting the quaint historical town of Cooktown (James Cook discovered it in 1770, while seeking as a safe Haven for his damaged HM Endeavour), we took the Mulligan Highway back to our destination. The 265 km road seems to stretch for miles through open grassy fields and high mountains. We stopped at the Annan Gorge to listen to the roar of the rushing water just at sunset. After the sun dropped, our ride home presented a new challenge for us city folk. Cattle roamed the vast open land freely and into the roads. It slowed our travels down a bit, but this was all part of the experience in the great Outback life of Australia.

Our trip to FNQ, Australia presented an opportunity to re-connect to Mother Nature and explore the great Australian Outback. It is a trip worth taking if you get out this way to the land “Down Under”.

Crossing the Tasman Sea

2008-05-02T16:03:00.000-07:00

0700 04/04/ 08 Position 29 49S 162 25E

We are currently midway between New Zealand and Australia traversing the Tasman Sea.

This is my third time crossing this body of water in the past three to four months. We've sailed from Auckland to Sydney, Sydney to the Marlborough Sounds in South Island New Zealand and now from Auckland to Queensland.

This morning the sun is rising over the eastern horizon, bursting light over the mixed swells and storm tossed Tasman. The first light of the day is spotlighting three intense water spouts (mini water tornados) just off of our port beam. In the darkness before sunrise we navigated around this strong squall line by watching it on our radar monitor. Sailing just south of it to avoid the high wind, and now we can see three water spouts! Good call to divert a few miles!

It really is an amazing sight, I guess mother nature is ever changing the seascape and horizons for us and that is one of the strong allures this occupation has for me.
It's so close yet we are out of harms way. One of the water spouts is a fierce solid dark column, absolutely exploding the oceans surface as it moves across it. Another water spout extends down from the squall clouds to the sea. It has a wicked arc to it...its building power, defining its shape, size and direction...it is twisting, bending and curving like a cobra ready to strike its prey.
To the right of this spectacular nature show is a SOLID wall of rain, none of the mornings powerful first light can penetrate this. Those sun rays that are making it above the horizon paint a bold yellow, gold and red background, creating an erie background for all of the action on our immediate horizon.

This stretch of the Tasman Sea between Cape Reianga NZ and Queensland Australia skirt two prevailing weather systems. Their are highs and lows coming over Australia and tropical lows forming in the north and piping out of the New Caledonia area. This morning we are splitting - aka "threading the needle" between two very powerful systems. A strong high pressure system (rotates counter clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere) that originated in Tasmania and a Tropical Depression - Low pressure system (rotates clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere) that is moving very quickly out of Caledonia.

It's perfect sailing weather for us on this 1800 mile transit. We are scooting along at an easy 10 knots, rolling down 2 - 3 (6 to 10 feet) meter seas, broad reaching with the wind off of our port aft quarter.

To make the trip even more interesting and special, I am sailing with long time friend and mentor Murray Jacob. Murray is about as Australian as can be! He is chock full of knowledge and one of those few people I would trust my life with when in the s*#t on the high sea.

We are leaving Auckland "the City of Sails" just as signs of the Southern Hemisphere winter are revealing themselves. We have spent the last 5 to 6 months south of latitude 23 degrees south to avoid Cyclones. This is the same as the boats in the Northern hemisphere staying out of the Caribbean until November to avoid Hurricanes.

In this time we have hauled the 28 meter/90 ton yacht out of the water and completed an extensive refit. The goal of the refit is simple: to keep the 7 year old yacht in as close to "new" condition as possible and to ensure all systems are mechanically sound to insure our self sufficiency as we continue to circumnavigate the world.

Official Piracy Report Maps

2008-05-01T15:42:00.000-07:00

Piracy is not just "Pirates of the Caribbean" Piracy is a real issue. One that requires planning and due diligence to avoid putting the guests, crew and vessel in harms way.

I feel the best strategy, the same as my storm strategy, that is avoidance! Go around it when ever possible! On top of that preparation, training and a solid security plan is essential.

PS I did not take the picture here. I hope and pray never to get this close to a real pirate.

To see the real picture of the actual attacks and attempted attacks as tracked and published by the International Maritime Bureau, check the links below.

The links are interactive you can zoom in and out and click on a specific attack to get the details.

2008 http://www.icc-ccs.org/extra/display.php?yr=2008

2007 http://www.icc-ccs.org/extra/display.php?yr=2007

2006 http://www.icc-ccs.org/extra/display.php?yr=2006

Somalia Piracy

2008-04-29T17:26:00.000-07:00

This account is from a previous Captain of the Yacht that I now run. It tells the real story of what is going on in the Somalia region.

S/y Dolphin
Gulf of Aden, 22 April 2008
0030hrs (local time)
Latitude 12º 49´N
Longitude 047º 15´E

Report from “Pirate Alley” (Gulf of Aden).

Yesterday afternoon we received phone calls over the Satcom from relatives of some of the crew, living in Germany and Austria. They were concerned as to our well being since hearing on the local news of a reported “pirate attack” in the Gulf of Aden, the report said a commercial tuna fishing vessel was boarded and hijacked by a gang of pirates. This attack happened in close proximity to our location. The report was correct, but that attack was only one of FIVE during the last 24 hours.
Yes, pirates do still exist, unfortunately though they are not as charming and sympathetic as a certain Captain Jack Sparrow, the personification that most people associate with pirates nowadays. Piracy on the high seas, especially this part of the world is nothing new. Ever since the collapse of the Soviet Union and their satellite communist regime in Somalia, in the 90’s, there has been a regular pattern of pirate attacks. I sailed through here, December 1998, as Captain on Geraldo Rivera’s sailing yacht “Voyager”. We were chased by pirates, the duration of a night, in the Strait of Sucatra. Only two weeks ago, April 4th, the French sailing yacht “Le Ponant” was attacked and hijacked in the same area as the tuna boat. Over 30 crew, mainly French and Ukrainian citizens were held hostage onboard, while the pirates took the vessel to a Somalian port. One week later the French government paid a ransom of $2.000.000, the vessel and its crew were released. Soon after four French assault helicopters, one warship and French Special Forces launched an attack, killing eight pirates, arresting the rest and recovering most of the ransom.
April 12th, before setting sail, on our return journey from the Maldives to the vessels home port Palma de Mallorca Spain, we contacted the IMB (International Maritime Bureau) Piracy Center in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. They informed us that since the “Le Ponant” incident there had been no other attacks reported, as CMF (Combined Maritime Forces) had sent additional warships to patrol the area. The CMF consists of Spanish, Italian, American, British, German, French and Australian warships.
But that report was two weeks ago………
April 20th and all hell broke loose here.
It started 20.35hrs (local time) with a Mayday call on the VHF radio. “Faisal Mustafa” a small traditional wooden cargo ship, a common vessel in the Middle East known as a “dhow”, was en route from the Red Sea to India. As it turned out their position was only four nautical miles off our starboard side. We witnessed four small speedboats (dinghy type) quickly approach the ship. The last radio transmission, from the captain, was “Merciful God, can somebody help us, the pirates are boarding, merciful God, help us please!” There was a commotion of screaming and shouting in the background, then the radio went silent. We changed course immediately, contacted CMF and made radio contact with an American warship in the vicinity. They advised us to head south westerly at full speed, to get away from the pirates as soon as possible and in the general direction of a British warship “HMS Chatham”, 30 nautical miles from our position. They also launched a helicopter to meet us. The helicopter soon arrived and stayed over us until “HMS Chatham” had us plotted on their radar. Meanwhile the American warship was steaming towards the distressed vessel to help in some way. We still do not know the outcome of that situation.
Later the “HMS Chatham” Operations Officer advised us to continue towards our destination, Djibouti, on a westerly course leading us into an area patrolled by the German warship, frigate “Emden”. Sailing along through the night and 7 hours later we once again heard the heart wrenching “Mayday, mayday, pirate attack”. This time the call for help was from “Takayama”, a Japanese oil tanker en route from Japan to the Suez Canal. “Takayama” was under attack and only 25 nautical miles ahead of us, on our intended course.
From out of nowhere a small fast (appr. 30knots) fiberglass speedboat came alongside the tanker and opened fire with machineguns and RPG:s (Rocket propelled grenades). With the intention of stopping the tanker, they fired at the tankers rudder, she was badly hit along the whole portside, the lifeboat was shot to pieces, and the fuel tank was penetrated, causing heavy fuel oil to spill into the sea.
The captain of “Takayama” went full speed ahead and changed his course to North West, in the hope of reaching the German warship “Emden”, in the vicinity. “Emden” launched a helicopter which was on site within approximately 10 minutes and the pirates subsequently broke off their attack, we later found out that they returned to their “mothership”. By then “Takayamas´s” portside resembled Swiss cheese, with fuel pouring out of it. “Emden” finally reached the tanker and helped temporarily patch the leaking fuel tanks. She is now 30 nautical miles in front of us slowly limping towards the port of Aden, Yemen, for repairs, escorted by the German frigate.
During the attack, we were advised to change our course to a north westerly course so we could catch up with the tanker and safety of the German frigate.
At that point everyone thought it was over, there couldn´t possibly be more pirates out there. We were sadly mistaken as at 12.28hrs it was time again for “Mayday”, this time another small cargo ship, en route to Somaliland, was attacked and boarded close to the Somalian coast, 12nautical miles. As of yet we have no further information regarding that incident. It was time again, at 13.05 another Spanish commercial fishing vessel, approximately 100 nautical miles east of our position, was also attacked and boarded. They are now hijacked and the vessel is on its way to Somalia, with pirates in charge and the crew is held as hostages.
We are now slowly steaming westwards (8 knots) with our eyes glued to the radar, and constantly scanning the horizon with binoculars. All ships are on high alert and airing to the side of paranoia, changing course as soon as anything suspicious or unrecognized appears on the radar or horizon. Everyone is just listening to the radio dreading the next “Mayday”. Hopefully, Insh´Allah in this neck of the woods, it will not be us making that call………
Insh´Allah, God willing we will reach Djibouti, in one piece, within the next 36 hours, where we will bunker diesel, hopefully get fresh food and rest our minds of the mental stresses endured sailing through the Gulf of Aden.
Our only comfort at this point is seeing helicopters flying overhead, once in a while and the occasional warship. In fact we have a helicopter over us right now seemingly leading us in a westerly direction.
Whilst floating here feeling like sitting ducks, we could not help but wonder. “Is it not about time that the rest of the civilized world dealt with this Somalian issue?” “Is it not possible for either, if not all of these organizations UN, NATO, EU to develop a plan of action and resolve the instability of this poor country?” After all NATO intervened with Kosovo, Bosnia and Afghanistan.
If there is one place on earth that has been truly forgotten, it is Somalia, a country where the poor starving population has no human rights, no functioning infrastructure with no justice system, no police and where the law spells AK47, a weapon readily available and cheaper than a pair of tennis shoes. Where RPGs sell by the dozen, where very few journalists dare to go and foreign aid workers can not go for knowing they would most definitely be kidnapped on setting foot in Mogadishu. Where food aid shipments need naval escorts to guard their cargo being discharged and where fishermen become pirates at night. Something is definitely wrong when a blind eye has been turned and this has been accepted for decades. The only viable looking option is military intervention and I mean something more than the few thousand, poorly equipped, troops from the African Union (mainly Ugandan troops) stationed there right now. One would think it would be in the interest of the international community to see peace and stability here, since most of the Persian Gulf oil and commodities from the Far East must pass through the Gulf of Aden to reach their destinations in Europe and the east coast of North America. If this “piracy enterprise” continues as is it will definitely lead to many more deaths, hijackings, kidnappings, burning oil tankers and sunken ships. These pirates are desperate, they have nothing to loose and they are prepared to risk their lives for daily luxuries most of us take for granted. If they could have had peace, stability and prosperity sooner, they would most probably never have resorted to piracy on the high seas. With a form of central government in control the pirates could be stopped, even before they step into their boats.
So, politicians of the world, do something! Only you have the power to devise a plan and implement it. Only you can make it happen. The chaos in Somalia is so far gone and beyond control that there is no possibility that they themselves can bring anything about to resemble peace in the foreseeable future. Many Somalis, I am sure, would be forever grateful and thankful to the international community if we were to help their country become civilized and peaceful. Many mariners out there on the high seas would also be very grateful for any kind of normalcy. Instead of worrying our selves to death over pirates we could instead concentrate on the usual nautical factors like the weather and wind…

Whilst translating this report from Swedish (my native language), it was our turn to call “Mayday”. At 16.51hrs only 28 nautical miles off the Yemeni coast, Pos. 12º 22´N 045º 17´E, a crew member spotted two small speed boats, 4 nautical miles ahead and fast approaching from either side. We immediately sent out a “Mayday” and made a full speed U-turn. Our call was received by Spanish warship “Mendez Muñez”, approximately 15 nautical miles from our location and a U.S Marine Corps surveillance plane was in the vicinity. Within 9 minutes the plane flew over, circling us and the pursuing boats at very low altitude, the pursuers stopped and turned south. The closest they got to us was 0.8 nautical miles (1.5km), but even that is to close for comfort…..

Johan Lillkung
Captain S/y Dolphin
Satellite tel. +870-764061860
Email: captain@sydolphin.com

Dolphin is a 27 meter long, private sailing yacht, currently returning to Spain having spent the northern hemisphere winter cruising the Seychelles and the Maldives islands.

Dolphin crew:
Johan Lillkung, Sweden
Lionel Laboureur, France
Rene Paganetti, Germany
Sarah Fitsch, Austria
Julietta e Silva, Britain
Gordon Henderson, R.I U.S.A.

The Amazing 2008 Sydney Fireworks

2008-01-02T22:26:00.000-08:00

The harbor and shores swelled with 1 million people. All eagerly awaiting the fireworks extravaganza. We had our position in the harbor, sighting straight down the line of 6 fireworks barges, the Opera House and Harbor Bridge and Downtown Sydney all in clear sight. The count down to 2008 begins....

All I can say is this experience should be added to your "things to do before I die list". Simply spectacular!

Check out the videos to the right...

Sydney to Hobart Race 2007

2007-12-26T22:35:00.000-08:00

It is Boxing Day in Sydney Australia. The day after Christmas celebrations. The day the infamous Rolex Sydney to Hobart Race starts.

It's only 1000 and the race, several hours before the 1300 scheduled race start time. Already there is a steady procession of boats heading for the spectator areas. This day for local Sydney folks seems to be steeped in as much tradition as is opening presents and spending time with family on Christmas morning.

One hour to go before the start. Thousands of spectator boats of every shape and size crowd the tight spectator lanes that fringe the first leg of the race. The fleet will start upwind and sprint for the Sydney Harbor Headlands and the entrance to the Tasman Sea. From hoist their spinnakers, hook in to the Australian Current (similar to the Gulf Stream off Florida) and point their bows toward Hobart Tasmania - which lies about 600 miles south.

It's just not the same being a spectator in a major sailing event like this....However I know very, very well the feeling that all of these guys have prior to the start. The feeling you get before starting a long distance race is a mix adrenaline, butterflies, the breakfast you had a few hours ago, and the anticipation for the unknown that lies ahead.

Today I temper my racing energy with aggressively defending my spot on the spectator line. I have staked out a spot sighting directly down the starting line.

It is a great start with one boat over early. He is bumming as it will be very difficult to turn around - crazy to be over early in a long distance race....

The race is off as is the spectator fleet following, the harbor is extreme kaos to say the least!

I have always dreamed of doing this race, I am so close I can taste it. Some day I'll be on the other side of the spectator line defending my spot on the real starting line of the Sydney to Hobart Race. I chalk today up as a scouting mission for the future...

Check out the photos on the left by clicking on the Sydney (or any other) Photo....

Weather Prudence and Patience

2007-12-18T21:43:00.000-08:00

It's always better to wait for a proper weather window...

Here is the story of Maximus, http://www.supermaxi.co.nz/ one of favorites for line honors in this years Sydney to Hobart.

They left Auckland bound for Sydney about 10 hours before my earliest departure option for the same route.

My weather data and the consultation from Commanders' Weather Consultants http://www.commandersweather.com/ showed a deepening low pressure system being followed by a very strong high pressure system - the conclusion was to delay 48h to avoid very rough conditions in the middle of the Tasman Sea.

Maximus departed Auckland to keep their schedule for race prep and got caught in very rough weather and suffered keel damage.

I am very grateful for the full support of the owner and yacht management company on the weather and safety decisions for the yacht that I captain.... Here is the story as reported on the Rolex Sydney Hobart website

DISASTER AVERTED
Sydney, Australia (December 17, 2007) The New Zealand 30m
maxi yacht Maximus will be lifted from the water Monday to have its keel
damage fully assessed, which was sustained during its delivery voyage from
Auckland, NZL. Maximus left Auckland on Wednesday and was in the final stages of
the delivery trip to Sydney on Sunday when the crew heard a loud bang. It
was when they sent a diver overboard to investigate that the cracked keel was
discovered. The Rolex Sydney Hobart entrant limped into Sydney in the
early hours of Monday, motoring with the Sydney Water Police vessel Launch Alert
as escort for the final 78nm in case assistance was required. It has not yet
been disclosed as to what may have been the cause of the damage. –
http://www.rolexsydneyhobart.com

Around the World....by plane

2007-12-05T21:28:00.000-08:00

Its Dec 6 2007 I am just returning to the yacht in Auckland New Zealand after a month long flight around the world. My travels originated in Auckland New Zealand and would take me to Thailand, Malaysia, Italy, Amsterdam, Michigan, Florida and California.

In Thailand I began my humbling learning curve with kite boarding. Based in Phuket, I ventured into the water daily to forcefully get drug around through the murky water by an enormous untamed kite. I have a saying on the boat regarding being in control while driving "is the dog wagging the tail, or the tail wagging the dog...? Well this saying went through my mind like a broken mantra record for the first several days. By the fourth day I was getting up on the board and able to stay sailing for 10 minutes at a time. I have a long way to go with this sport.... but what an amazing adrenaline thrill when you get it dialed in and are flying across the water and have moments of literally flying through the air.

On to Milan Italy, actually my first time in Europe. I was here to meet with a yacht designer for a future project. Being my first time to Italy, I was really captivated by the architecture, culture, fashion, food and preserved history of the area not to mention meeting and working with a legend in yacht design.

From Milan to Amsterdam to attend the 2007 MET'S show. This is the annual international Marine Equipment Trade Show. Acres of booths manned by all of the top marine equipment manufactures. Everything was represented, from generators, to carbon fiber masts to communications and navigations equipment to...if it goes on a yacht it was there. In the three days visiting the show I must have walked 15 miles, learned about many new products and emerging technologies and made numerous valuable contacts for the future.

While in Amsterdam, I drove south about one hour to Medemblik to tour the Jongert yacht building facility. www.jongert.com It was apparent here, why the Jongert name has such a strong pedigree in the sailing yacht builder world.

From Amsterdam I flew through Michigan. I met my good friend Sam (who recently sailed with me 3500 nm from Galapagos to Marquesas) at the Detroit Airport and was the comfortable guest at his home in Toledo Ohio for the next two days. That evening was a highlight of my travels, Sam and his wife Maggie organized a get together of about 50 friends. It was very good to see all of these people and re-connect even if only for a brief evening. Toledo and this group of people are very important to me, these are the people that I learned to sail with, race with and who my passion for this lifestyle originated. Many, many, many very good memories...many warmly relived this night.

The next morning was Thanksgiving, I joined my friends Dick and Steven, Jim and Norm and Scott for the "Turkey Day Sail" at North Cape Yacht Club in Lasalle Michigan. This is where I did a great deal of sailing and lived right down the break wall from the yacht club. This was a special sail and day for me as my Dad (who passed away 13 years ago) founded the event about 22 years ago. The tradition lives on, a few hearty-die hard sailors keep their boats in the water after all others have pulled out for the season, anticipating the winter freeze. Come Thanksgiving morning they all rendezvous, suit up in warm weather gear, sip warming beverages and venture out on to Lake Erie. This Turkey Sail, I sail on Norms boat - Norm and Jim where locally know back in my racing days at NCYC for their "post race debriefs" that ceremonially began with the ringing of the ships bell inside their boat. True to Turkey Day Sail form we sailed in snow flurries and about 25 knots of breeze - I was about as far from the warm South Pacific breezes that I had just spent the last 6 months sailing in as I could be - but I was very warm inside being around my friends and sailing where I grew up.

From Michigan to Ft Lauderdale Florida for one more class for my MCA Class IV Captains License. The highlight of my Florida trip was reuniting with my good friends Dan and Pat who traveled to Ft Lauderdale to meet up.

From Florida to California for time with my Son Alex and my Family. Short but very nice....

Back to Auckland and completion of flying around the workd - now time to get back to the business of sailing around the world.

Through out all of my travel over this month the tough trade off with my lifestyle realy hit home...Its hard to be away from family and friends for long extended times.

Greenland in summer: Icebergs, snow-covered mountains

2007-08-02T01:00:00.000-07:00

Reprinted from the Triton Mega Yacht News.
http://www.the-triton.com/megayachtnews/

Greenland in summer: Icebergs, snow-covered mountains
August 02,2007 By Lisa Jouris

Aug. 3, 2006 00:00Imerigsoq Island, Greenland (Just off the coast of Disko Island)
I am sitting here in the protected warm pilothouse during my anchor watch. The midnight sun lights the sky in soft blues, yellows and faded reds. The yacht is gently swinging on the anchor, giving an incredible view of the two narrow openings leading out to Disko Bay. It is hard to believe that at this hour it has the lighting of a typical 8 p.m. New England summer sky. The air is just about 40 degrees F and the water is only a mere 46. The visibility reminds me of a clear fall day with the crisp lines defining the objects surrounding you.
In the distance, peeking above the surrounding low-lying islands, are giant luminescent icebergs in various sizes and shapes extending to the height of New York skyscrapers. Not one berg is the same as another and the shapes are reminiscent of artwork gently floating by, like a parade for our viewing. They look so docile as they gently drift in almost predetermined course from their origination of the Ilulisaat Ice Fjord, which is our next scheduled destination.
Location: Latitude 69º01.07’ N, Longitude 53º17.17’ W.
Conditions: Light wind of 5 kts from W/SW at 259 True.
Aug. 4, 2006 15:35Entrance to Ilulisaat, Greenland
Our approach took my breath away, both by sight and the frigid air temperature. Capt. Tim Forderer slowed the engines down to almost neutral. I awoke, quickly got dressed, and ran up topsides. I was surprised by what I saw… 360 degrees of pure white walls of beautiful sculptured icebergs. There was barely enough patches of dark midnight blue water for a yacht our size to squeeze through. It was spectacular and intimidating at the same time.
We could see our final destination of Ilulisaat, but the walls of the ice blocked us from a direct approach. Tim directed the yacht with finesse, weaving in and out of the clusters of ice for the next 10 miles to the opening of the harbor. The size of these "mountains" made any vessel look like a peanut that could easily be crushed. Even so, the dangers of the soaring icebergs didn’t seem to bother the local fisherman as they proceeded with their typical day of catching cod, halibut, shrimp, and seal.
Perched up on the gray rocky mountainside, little wooden houses in hues of brilliant red, bright yellow and electric blue sat with smoke circling high from their chimneys. This is a pleasant welcome to any cold mariner. An eerie distant noise grows louder and louder. It becomes clear it is the howling of hundreds of sled dogs in unison. Supposedly, it is a common call in this town, where hunting with dogsleds is still an integral part of the Inuit lifestyle in the harsh winters.
The local fishery, Royal Greenland, was gracious enough to free a dock area for our use while staying in Ilulissat. Finding dock space here is like trying to go to a busy mall a couple of days before Christmas. This is one place in the world where a fishing boat won’t hesitate to pull alongside you and raft up without giving it a second thought. Fishing is their source income and here boats outnumber the spaces available. On any given day, there will be a "parking lot" of fishing and/or harpoon boats of various bright colors and size, five to six deep from the wall. Imagine how long it would take for the most-inside boat to get out of this congestion to go fishing?
This town was one of the busiest ports that I have visited. Due to the midnight sun, there is a constant stream of fishing boats entering and exiting the waterways. I experienced one of my favorite memories during my iceberg watch at four in the morning. I had already been sipping on my mint orange tea and enjoying the sun "rising." The air was cool and the water in the port was almost like glass. It was totally peaceful and most people were nestled in their beds.
I faced out toward the mouth of the waterway and watched the icebergs float effortlessly by with a backdrop of painted skies with a whispy stroke of clouds. On the edge of the bay appeared a small open fishing dinghy slowly breaking the water to cause a small ripple. The fisherman stood tall while slowly maneuvering the boat into the harbor. He was clothed in warm overalls and a snug wool hat.
When he was within a boat length away, I could see two hunted seals that he proudly presented. A lot of thought was put into the precise positioning of the seals on each beam of the boat. As he passed, he noticed me and we exchanged a simple nod. He smiled proudly and returned to his dock.
Seeing this gave me a whole new appreciation for their time spent on the water and the risks they incur to make a living. They survive off the broad open ocean, since the country’s rocky land doesn’t provide vegetation possibilities. The Inuits have survived many generations from their traditions and will continue to do so for years to come.
Location: Latitude 69º13.71’ N, Longitude 51º11.96’ W.
Conditions: Light wind of 5-8 kts from S/SE at 173 True
Aug. 13, 2006 15:48Ten miles off of Taupagssuit, Greenland
To our port side are beautiful snow-peaked, jagged mountains with the sunset glow upon them. The mountains slowly slope down toward the water’s edge where there are grassy fields. The water is almost like glass, interrupted by the small ripples of the five-knot breezes moving across surface. There is a single fishing trawler off in the distance, slowly dragging his nets for his daily catch. Every once in a while a little dark seal pops up to play peek-a-boo and then dives down again.
Just when the sea seems so calm, a burst of white cloudy mist rises 15 feet in the air just off our starboard bow, 10 boat lengths ahead. Another one appears within seconds. Our attention is captivated by whales "grazing" the Greenlandic waters at a casual pace.
Knowing they would eventually cross our bow, we throttle back to neutral and coast to view them without endangering them. They approach within a boat length. Their large figures seem to break the surface effortlessly without even a wake. Tim quickly grabs the camera and leaves the warm pilothouse to capture the next couple of minutes on film.
After surfacing five times for air, the whales take their last breath and slowly descend. The first tail rises out of the air and we smile to see the white markings. The white patterns clearly designate these as humpback whales. The second joins the other and "waves" its tail. What an incredible experience to witness two humpback whales traveling northbound with a backdrop of calico, snow-laden mountains.
Location: Latitude 65º27.71’ N, Longitude 53º34.52’ W.
Conditions: Light winds of 5 kts from N/NE at 356 True.

Re-connecting on the Pacific

2007-07-08T19:22:00.000-07:00

By Sam T - on "re-connecting while sailing from Galapogas to Marquesas......

Departure. There's nothing like that word. It can be filled with day-dream inducing connotations - travel, adventure, exploration, vacation - in summary, a point of separation from the mundane. Of course in my life (and for most others) it usually has quite a different flavor - business travel, work, stress, deadlines - in summary, a pain in the arse.

For the first time in my life, this word has taken on the former definition in all its potential grandeur. I am off on a true adventure. The “stated” goal of this adventure is help a friend deliver a 90' sailing vessel from the Galapagos Islands, Ecuador, to the Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia. The friend, Tim Forderer, is one of my oldest companions - we lived in the same neighborhood and ran in the same pack in high-school; sailed and roomed together in college; and shared many a wild time aboard the racing vessel Group Therapy, a J-29 based out of North Cape Yacht Club on the Western shore of Lake Erie. I use the term “stated” as making this transport is actually Tim's job - he is full-time, professional captain - and in proper terms, I am being hired by him to help crew a 90' sailboat - safely - across 3,000 miles of open ocean.
But like most things centered on Tim, the stated goal is more of a cover-story. The real goal is to reconnect with a close friend who was as important to me in my formative years as any family member. It was Tim that helped to re-introduce me to competitive sailing during our college days at the University of Toledo - which began after an abortive attempt at the University of Texas - but that is another tale. Along the way, he helped me re-learn some of the lessons of childhood learned in junior sailing: try to leave the boat in better condition than you found it, always pitch-in and help when something needs doing rather than waiting for it to be requested, be courteous and helpful to your crewmates, always keep a level head in emergencies, and most importantly, always take the positive view and make the best of any situation.

......

As anxious as I am to be on my way home, I hate goodbyes and I hate to see the crew break up. As I've mentioned several times before, this crew has great chemistry. I've heard many stories of crews and even good relationships being destroyed by the close quarters required by these types of trips. For us, this has been the exact opposite and one of the most positive experiences of my life. I consider Zac, Gordon and Lisa to be, at the very least, a part of my extended 'sailing family,' and I'm certain that TF and I have accomplished our goal of 'reconnection.'
Obviously, these are more than just “sailing” lessons. Many of them sound like those you learned from your parents… or in catechism… or the Scouts, and ultimately, the inherent messages really are the same. However they came to you, for me they came through sailing (or really through my parents who insisted we all learn to sail). The reasons I had to re-connect with these lessons are many and varied but they may have a bit to do with my particularly unruly teenage years.

TF asks a really good question, “What is your highlight of the trip?” I struggle for an answer to this as a dozen thoughts spring to mind - the pod of whales, the sunset with the wave after wave of dolphins, reaching an “understanding” at the wheel of Vivid, a deep-woods trail, a near decapitation by a rabid frigate bird, the flying fish shoals, a possessed winch, any number of late-night conversations, green flashes at sunset, and that is what occurs to me in just a moments thought.

Lisa makes pretext of using the restroom I think to give TF and me few more moments alone - five minutes to discuss family, friendship, what it all means… I don't think either of us has the answer, but I do tell Tim that I think he has found his place and calling. That 'place' isn't fixed on a map, but rather at the helm of a boat, on the open seas. I promise to be an ambassador for him to recruit more friends and our extended sailing family to join him for one of these trips.

Radar blurps and Ipod music

2007-07-07T19:10:00.000-07:00

By Zac W. on sailing with us from Galapogas to Marquesas 3400 nautical miles.

Half of it, is the feeling when you're off the boat. It's not ego. When people ask how the trip was, when they are in awe of the distance traveled; it does feed the id, but that's not what what this is about. This is about knowing in yourself that you've done something beyond what you thought you'd ever get to.

Maybe it's that old tale of Achilles. He was given a choice between living a long, happy life; raising a son, being married to a beautiful woman, living with a small fortune; or he could live a short life, fighting and killing princes and kings, bedding their wives the queens and princesses, and be remembered forever.

It's not the glamour we seek, it's the sense of going beyond what is expected. Reaching for what, at some point in our lives, we believed to be impossible. Every time I step aboard a sailboat, there's the idea that this is something unexpected. I never thought I'd be here, it never occurred to me that in my lifetime I would cross the Pacific ocean. It wears off of course, the monotony of meals and sleep and radar blurps and Ipod music, but then without really thinking you find yourself behind the wheel, directing a spinnaker like a chorus, and you are aware of every dream you've ever had. You can feel the balance of wave and wind and boat, and as you work to keep those aligned, in yourself you feel the alignment of dreams and spirit and mind.
Of course it's complicated, and I wish I could give you more detail than these abstract words provide...

I ship out on the "Anderson" on Friday. A seven hundred foot boat that's been around over fifty years. It's the boat that turned back to look for the Edmund Fitzgerald the night it sank. A strange history, but I'm excited to be aboard.

Illegal Fishing Threatens Galápagos Islands Waters

2007-06-05T13:49:00.000-07:00

Great article from National Geografic that documents the fish kill that is happening in Galapogas (as well as around the world). Ironically the main attraction for diving tourism in the islands are the sharks.

by Jennifer HileNational Geographic On Assignment
March 12, 2004

Jennifer Hile, a correspondent for National Geographic On Assignment, traveled to the Galápagos Islands to investigate illegal fishing and shark fin harvesting by poachers. Here she reveals the difficulties faced by the park rangers fighting the problem.
The 100-foot (33-meter) Guadalupe River patrol boat plows through the southern seas of the Galápagos Islands Marine Reserve, kicking up heavy spray, as rangers scan for poachers.
I thought I was coming to one of the world's most protected and pristine environments. After all, 97 percent of the Galápagos Islands, 600 miles (965 kilometers) from Ecuador, is designated park land: 3,000 square miles (7,880 square kilometers) of land scattered between 13 large islands, six small ones, 40 islets, and countless humps and bumps.
The islands themselves are encircled by a colossal moat—50,000 square miles (129,499 square kilometers) of the surrounding sea is protected as a marine reserve, one of the largest in the world.
About 90 percent of the reptiles, half the birds, and one-third of the plants here exist nowhere else. There's so little fresh water and the volcanic landscape is so inhospitable, only a narrow, unique spectrum of creatures thrive. Deep-diving marine iguanas and tortoises the size of dinner tables gives the islands a fairytale quality.
Cordoning off the islands as parkland was intended to preserve this place, freeing it from the crushing pressures of a burgeoning human population. But within days of arriving, one of my first impressions was of how much impact humans are having on this fragile ecosystem.
Underwater Gold Rush
When the reserve was created by Ecuador in 1959, hardly anyone lived on these islands. An illegal fishing boom beginning in the early 90s changed that permanently.
As more accessible, coastal waters off South America were overfished and emptied, commercial boats zeroed in on the protected waters of the Galápagos.
Fishermen from Ecuador poured in with dreams of easy money, encouraged by commercial boats from Asia paying big money for high-end delicacies like shark fins and sea cucumbers.
Unfortunately, the Ecuadorian government did little to intervene; the problems of such a remote province were easy to overlook.
The local park staff had too little money and too few people to deal with the growing conflict on their own. The aluminum-hulled Guadalupe River was donated in 1995; its clunky engines guaranteed the rangers could never catch anyone.
A grant from United States Agency for International Development (USAID) provided new engines and some modern radar equipment, ensuring rangers now move as fast as the poachers. A new seaplane acts as a spotter, scouring vast stretches of sea in a matter of hours, keeping in touch with boat-bound rangers by radio. A California-based conservation group, Wild Aid, helps train and finance rangers.
I'm out on patrol with them to witness the challenges they face and the otherworldly beauty they're protecting.
Patrolling Paradise
For one week, we motor through some of the most inaccessible corners of the Galápagos. It's a journey which reveals both its beauty and its problems. Even with new equipment, trying to patrol such a vast area of ocean is incredibly difficult.
We head for the island of Isabella, considered ground zero for illegal fishing. Much of what rangers do is basic detective work. We jump onto small dinghies and go ashore constantly, looking for camps.
Most of our time is spent cleaning debris from camps where illegal fishermen have already come and gone. We're consistently a few paces behind the people we're supposed to be policing. We collect rusting oil drums, discarded clothes, and rotting batteries from fragile mangroves and lava beds that shatter under our feet like broken glass.
The westernmost island, Fernandina, is considered one of the most pristine islands in the Pacific Ocean. We head for the west coast and hike into the type of wild landscape I've dreamed of experiencing since I was a child.
Sea Sanctuary
Protected lagoons are filled with baby sea lions. They swim right up to my feet, checking me out—the curiosity clearly mutual. Flightless cormorants are building nests of red sea weed on black rocky ground. Green sea turtles rest on the shore and penguins are waddling off for a swim.
All of them are vulnerable to the illegal long lines that crisscross this watery park like spider webs.
These translucent fishing lines, secured with buoys that float at the surface, can stretch as much as 80 miles (130 kilometers), and dangle with hundreds of baited hooks. Long lines are menacing because they are so indiscriminate: Almost any animal will take the bait.
On average fully half of the animals caught on long lines can't be sold and are thrown away—manta rays, sea lions, sea birds. That quickly drains the life from an ecosystem.
But long lines are cheap and easy to use, so they are a tool of choice for fishermen worldwide and illegal fishermen here.
They are hardly visible at the surface, making them incredibly difficult to detect. We didn't find anything along the park's western edge, so we headed for the northern islands of Darwin and Wolf, a favorite haunt for both sharks and the people who hunt them.
Scouring the Seas
At Wolf there is a stunning surprise. Hundreds of dolphins surround our boat. Their abundance is a reminder of how wild these waters still are, but also of what will be lost if this place is over fished. Large populations of dolphins need a lot of food. If what they eat is exploited, their populations also crash.
We finish our patrol on the eastern side of the park. The rangers constantly scan a vast, moving sea with binoculars and find nothing.
Back at park headquarters on the island of Santa Cruz a few days later, the director, Edwin Naula, throws open a shed holding some of the 4,000 shark fins confiscated just in the last year. Galápagos sharks, hammerheads, blues, duskies—all of their distinctive fins are jammed into black burlap sacks that pile to the ceiling.
Shark fins are worth as much as U.S. $80 per pound. The contraband at park headquarters has a market value totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars. With that kind of money at stake, fishermen are not going to back out of this reserve quietly.
Three weeks after I arrive in the Galápagos, local fishermen go on strike. They are demanding that long lines be legalized, and threaten violence if it doesn't happen. In the meantime, they've wrapped barbed wire around park headquarters, shutting down patrols.
That leaves the islands completely unprotected.
Whether the Galápagos will remain one of the world's last great pristine places or something closer to a commercial fishery remains to be seen. The current illegal fishing involves too many people fishing too small a place—without any controls, the entire system will crash.
That's what happened in mainland Ecuador, driving people into the Galápagos reserve in the first place.
The same mistakes are now being made in the Galápagos. More money can be garnered over the long run by leaving this place alone and cashing in on tourist dollars, but fishermen who don't speak English and don't stand to profit from tourism are more interested in their immediate survival.
Their determination to peel back the protected status of this place, and the lack of alternatives that makes them so committed to their goal, puts the future of the Galápagos up for grabs.

Isla Isabella - Galapagos

2007-05-21T22:30:00.000-07:00

We are anchored next to a massive volcano about 3600 meters high on Isla Isabella. Isabella is positioned right on the equator. Our Galapagos cruise has had us cross the equator three time now. This volcanic landscape makes for a dramatic back drop for the yacht in the setting warm sunlight.
We take a dingy ride around the anchorage riding very close to the rock walls. We see Penguins, Blue Footed Boobies, Sea Lions, Land and Marine Iguanas, Marine Turtles. We see all of this in the first ten minutes. The Galapagos Islands are preserved. Kept sacred and protected from man. It is amazing to see the amount of LIFE here.
The penguins are the highlight of this dinghy ride. About 10 of them come whizzing around a rock corner in the surge over a boulder shallow. They bob, weave and flow like white water rafters bouncing at the mercy of a class 5 river.

2007-05-20T18:26:00.000-07:00

20 Shearwaters fly by. Their aerodynamic bodies are black on top, and as they bank away synchronized, like acrobatic Blue Angels, they expose their white bellies. It's very foggy. The water temp, even though we are near the equator, is between 19 and 20 c. We are approaching Roca Redondo to dive. This is the area that Master and Commander was filmed. Redondo Rock is 20 juts out of the water 20 meters high. It is the tip of an active volcano. Sulfur bubbles that have made their way up from the bottom are natures way of reminding us that this Volcano still has some life in it.
Now there are about 100 Shearwater birds around us. We anchor in the axis of the strong currents that wrap around both sides of Redondo. one boat length behind us is a group of about 60 sea lions "cooling". They chill out by floating on the surface with one fin in the air, its quite a sight. Simutaniously to port, close enough to touch, a group of about 20 large Bottlenose Dolphin are lolly gagging by in the current axis looking for lunch to come their way. In the surf break off the point of the Roca, Sea Lions float and wait like territorial surfers guarding "their" break. They wait for the big one and then body surf as far as the surf will take them.
Redondo is covered with birds of every type. They swarm the island like pissed off bees after a few mischievous kids played pinyotta on their hive.

Crossing the Equator

2007-05-06T18:26:00.000-07:00

The water outside is like pools of olive oil. The sky is absolutely cram packed with stars. The breeze is turned off as we transit the ITCZ, Inter Tropical Convergence Zone - AKA the Doldrums. The southern cross is in full sight.
We are all gathered in the Pilot house watching the GPS count down to 0 00 Latitude and switch from the Northern Hemisphere to the Southern Hemisphere. It's exactly the same feeling as a new years eve countdown.
At 2300 we cross the equator for the first time. We stop the boat and drift. We throw gifts to Neptune. toast the occasion and silently each in our own way ask for protection and safe passage in the vast open waters of the Southern Pacific Ocean.

The Buses of Colon

2007-04-09T18:57:00.000-07:00

Colon Panama is a scary place. A place that you would not even consider walking around with your guard down or after dark. There are areas that are extremely unfriendly to outsiders. The poverty is apparent, the living conditions are terrible. Amidst all of this are the Buses of Colon. They jump out at you and provide color to an other wise dreary landscape. They are expressions of the creativity and the driver’s personality. They display graffiti as art.

Walking around Colon I am escorted by a 250 pound taxi driver that seems to know everyone. I am paying him to watch my back as I try to capture the contrast between the depressing gritty feel of Colon living and the colorful upbeat buses.

As we leave Vatican City (in Colon) he decides to tell me that on the same basketball court I was taking pictures two people where killed the night before. Time to move on....

Check out the pictures by clicking on the "The Buses of Colon" to your left.

Panama

2007-04-07T21:02:00.000-07:00

The Panama Canal....

We are curretnly docked at Shelter Bay Marina. Shelter Bay Marina is the new alternative to docking or anchoring near Colon Panama while waiting to transit the PC.

Located only a few miles across the the harbor from Colon it is a completely different world than the dangerous, dirty, decrepid streets of Colon and the Panama Canal Yacht Club.

We are staged to begin our South Pacific Sailing. We have sailed 9000 miles aboard Vivid in the last 11 months. Lot's of miles, experiences, and learnings.

Before we tranist the canal we will sail the San Blas Islands, home to the Kuna Indians. The smallest human beings - I think tied to the pygmees. I can relate to them as I was always the shortest kid in my class.

This will be my second transit of the Panama Canal the first being 5 years ago aboard a 55 foot sailboat. It's an advantage having been here before. You know what to expect interms of the admisitrative hoops and requirements for tranisitg. This time we hire an agent, Panama Agencies. They are invaluable to assisiting with all fo the logistics. This frees me up to focus on the yacht and the details of the owners trip.

Global Warming

2006-08-10T18:56:00.000-07:00

Kangerlua has been a Unesco World Heritage site since 2004, the bay's mouth is filled with bergs the size of apartment blocks or whole towns. There's no sight more mesmerizing than gazing upon these monsters and listening to the thunderclap roars when they fissure or explode under the heat of the summer sun. Here the effects of global warming are evident. The ice is melting and receding faster than ever according to the locals.

We've learned that this glacier has receded almost one mile in ten years. In ten more years it could be gone. We have also learned that we are one of only four private yachts that have made the trek to Greenland this year. More importantly we learn that only three are leaving...this glacier claimed a French sailboat a few days earlier. Apparently they where to close to it when it calved, and it sunk the yacht and miraculously all crew where rescued by a nearby local fishing vessel.

At anchor tonight we keep a 24 hour anchor watch to fend off growlers and floating bergs by the boat. We keep a long fiberglass telescopic pole that I bought at Home Depot on deck for fending off the ice. When I get up I can see it's time to go as the ice is getting much thicker.

Our original change of itineraries has now put us at the end of the safe cruising season in Greenland and 900 miles north of Cape Farvel. Cape Farvel can be like Cape Horn. Essentially we have missed our seasonal weather window to continue on to Iceland, England, and on into the Mediterranean. The issue is the frequency of the very strong lows that come sweeping across from Labrador and Canada. This time of year the break between systems is only about 24 hours. So after consulting with the owner and our Commanders Weather www.commandersweather.com/ we decide to head back via the Labrador Coast, and retrace our steps back to the USA. Someone made the Greenland cruising and Climbing Mt Everest analogy to me, they said getting to the top is one thing and getting down and out is another.
So we sit and wait out a few cold 50 knot gales and look for our weather window.

Sled Dogs

2006-08-09T18:53:00.000-07:00

We have a day off and are trekking for the Kangerlua Glacier. Walking through town we pass through a long rocky valley that is essentially a large dog kennel during the summer months. It is unsettling and disturbing. Here the "working" dogs are kept until the winter. It is a very eerie sound when a thousand dos start howling at the same time. When they howl you can feel their pain. I have learned that hundreds of animal protection organizations in more than 58 countries have started campaigns to help the sled dogs of Greenland which are being neglected and abused. I took the time to sign several online petitions and made a donation to the effort. http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/GreenlandSledDogs/

Illulissat

2006-08-08T18:48:00.000-07:00

Heading for Illulissat we have been weaving in and out of the big icebergs like a kick off re turner dogging tacklers as he tries to break for daylight, eyes focused on the opposing teams endzone. We are 3 miles from the entrance and all I can see is a solid white wall from horizon to horizon. The radar screen reflects the challenge ahead. I back her down as we approach the ice wall between us and our destination. the next three miles will take us three hours. It is a tedious process of finding a path through the ice maze

Disko Bay

2006-08-07T18:45:00.000-07:00

Disko Bay is amazing. We arrive in the bay in the fog at 0430. I have been weaving in and of house size icebergs seen only on radar for the past two hours. As the fog lifts I can see the Goliath iceberg I am rounding giving it a 100 yard berth, I make my turn towards the island we will anchor.
We make our approach into the entrance of the island in dead fog. I see the water on the depth gauge go shallow fast and I bring the boat to a stop. In this case enough to put us in an area of rock pinnacles. No way out but by brail, I station Lisa on the starboard side and Gordon (our Chef) on Port Side. The water is so clear that you can see the rock heads. The posts are my feelers, and eyes for the next 30 minutes they tell me right or left , using the thruster and the engine we slither out of the potential danger. We will later discover an error in our GPS Datum and the Chart Datum for the area that shows us on our electronic charts about 100 yards off.
We anchor the yacht in the most amazing setting. We are completely alone. Not a man made sound to be heard. The silence is deafening. Looking out through the entrance to our anchorage you see a steady parade of the gigantic ice structures that we came this far to see. We are at Latitude 69 N. At this Latitude it is day light nearly 24 hours a day.
We go ashore and explore an abandoned fishing village. We see the tilting racks that were once used to dry cod, we walk through an abandoned school house, and hike to the top of the hill to over look Disko Bay.. The sight is spectacular. The bay is covered by the newly calved very large icebergs. Seeing this sight I can put into perspective what I navigated through in the fog using only radar.
We are headed for Illuisat the only harbor in Disko Bay. The greatest tourist attraction in all of Greenland is the jaw-dropping Ilulissat Kangerlua (Ilulissat Icefjord), a berg-packed bay fed by the 3mi wide and 3608ft thick glacier Sermeq Kujalleq. The glacier flows an average of 82ft daily and it is the world's most prolific outside Antarctica.

Inuit

2006-08-02T17:51:00.000-07:00

As we tie up we rig our lines and fenders against the very industrial pier to accommodate the 20 foot tidal swing. We eagerly head out to explore Greenland's "largest" city. The roads do not go further the five miles fro the center of town. It takes us about 30 minutes to go from one side of town to the other. In the winter Dog Sleds are the preferred mode of transportation. Now in the Summer months the dogs are basically tied to rocks and fed dried cod for the summer months. It's a sad sight for a dog lover like my self. But I am told that these are "working: dogs are not pets and that is different.
Their are two groups the indigenous Inuit Indians and the Dutch professionals that are their working in various businesses. The Inuit (Eskimo like) have a very weathered look to them. These are a people that live off the land. They need very little to get by. Their primary source of income is from hunting and fishing. They hunt seals from their boats with rifles. A seals head pops up and you here a rifle shot. The seals skins are sold and the meat is eaten. http://www.wbur.org/special/dispatches/greenland/inuit/

Land Fall Greenland

2006-08-01T17:49:00.000-07:00

The heaters on board are now earning their keep. The warmth and comfort of the heated pilot house are very nice as we near our first landfall in Nuuk Greenland.
The water temperature is about 5 c (convert). PFD's (Personal Flotation Devises) with harnesses are mandatory now any time you leave the safety of the Pilot House. We know and respect that falling into this cold water would be gravely bad. We know that falling overboard at night their would be about a zero percent chance of being recovered and surviving.
As we approach Nuuk Greenland the fog begins to lift and unveil the rocky snow caped mountainous landscape. It really is an amazing sight. A sight that only about three private yachts a year see. The outlying coast is dotted with rocks and precise navigation is critical. We line up on the outer marks and head in.
When we arrive in Nuuk we proceed to the main commercial fishing pier. We have a reservation arranged by our agent in Greenland - Blue water. I turn the boat in the tight basin and settle in behind the mammoth Russian fish killing machine. These large fishing vessels drag three ton shovels across the bottom of the ocean, essentially plowing the bottom, and picking up every thing in their paths. They are destroying the echo-system on the bottom of the ocean and contributing to the extinction of many species in this area. The same thing happened in St Johns Newfoundland and the result was shutting down the entire Cod industry in a desperate effort to reverse the damage.

Departing St Johns

2006-07-20T07:50:00.000-07:00

We depart St Johns Newfoundland bound for Nuuk Greenland. Our original plans to cruise the Prins Christian sound are scuttled by ice. We have learned from Illiusat Control that Air reconnaissance and ground reports show the are completely iced in. This alters our cruise plans significantly, we will now sail approximately 700 miles further north towards 70 N to the Disco Bay area.
Departing St Johns we are armed with the Canadian Ice Reports. These are maps that show the number of large icebergs in a certain lat/long grid. The data is collected by satellite images, air reconnaissance and compulsory ship reporting. We plot a course swinging wide of the densely ice populated areas. Even with the ice data at hand we must be very diligent in our watch keeping. The further north and east we go the more danger their is of ice. The icebergs that show up on the Ice Reports are no the primary concern, these are the size of large houses. These are picked up clearly on radar and also cause a noticeable drop in the water temperature as you close on them. The real danger is the ice that is the size of Volkswagens Bugs.. If we hit one of these doing 9 or 10 knots we will be scrambling for our Ice Immersion Suites and Life Rafts as they will most likely rip a hole in the hull. To be safe when in near any ice threat we slow way down, with the option of heaving to in dark. I would much rather arrive one day latter than take a cold, deadly swim.
The further we go the further we get away from the well worn path of man the more wild life we see. It is common to see whales every few hours, this is a treat. No matter how many you see, you do not get spoiled. It's automatic to stop the boat and admire their massiveness and respect their space. The show lasts until you see their tail go into a "terminal dive" this is the classic photo shot of the wails tail as he waves good bye.

Photo Shoot

2006-07-01T07:23:00.000-07:00

First a photo shoot with Onne van der Wal then bound for Newfoundland and Greenland. Onne is one of the top yachting photographers www.vanderwal.com. As we powered down the New York City's East River through Hells Gates past the UN, under the Brooklyn Bridge we are on time for our rendezvous at the Statue of Liberty. We make contact with the helicopter arriving from Newport Rhode Island on VHF Ch 9. We time the approach and hoist the spinnaker for the classic shots of the yacht sailing by the timeless landmark of New York Harbor. The first time I sailed past this I was 18 years old delivering a 35 sail boat from the West End of Lake Erie to the Chesapeake Bay. It was very special then and it is very special now

Ciao Bella - Maine - Cruising World Arricle

2004-02-16T19:48:00.000-08:00

Reprinted from Cruising World Magazine February 2004

Meatloaf Cordon Bleu was the Maine Course

The luxurious five-day crewed charter along the Maine coast on a 64-foot Swan was pure decadence, but it took some strategically timed diner chow to put the venture over the top04-Feb-2004By Nim Marsh

As Maine basks in the soft light of a fall afternoon, Ciao Bella's crew seeks the seclusion of Seal Bay wherein to lay on a romantic dinner for their guests.

"Repeat after me," Captain Tim Forderer said to my fiancée, Naomi, in responsorial increments: "It's OK . . . for me . . . to be . . . decadent." Naomi dutifully followed her prompts-although not fully convinced of the righteousness of the mantra-and the skipper of Ciao Bella, the 64-foot Swan we were chartering-complete with first mate/chef-hugged her as though reinforcing one of the 12 steps of Self-Reliants Anonymous. Two days out of Camden, Maine, anchored in placid Smith Cove, south of Castine, we'd been breakfasting in the cockpit, and Naomi had wished out loud for paper napkins so we wouldn't have to soil the cloth ones. Overhearing her, Captain Tim had then sidled over and conducted her pledge of allegiance to this reverse spiritual awakening.
It was hard for Naomi, a mother of three with a full-time job, not to consider such things. And it was impossible for me to feel like some grand old man of cruising who'd paid his corporate dues and was getting his just rewards. Heck, just seven years earlier, I'd hitchhiked around the Atlantic on seven different boats-how else would a journeyman editor see the world?-and here I was stepping aboard a year-old spit-and-polish Swan for a five-day, 150-mile, late-summer, crewed charter in midcoast Maine.
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This wouldn't be a simple change of mind-set, but once it had been methodically effected, miraculous transformations would result. For the two of us, this would be a lesson in letting go-in allowing others to do our daily chores, in transferring responsibility for all logistics from our shoulders to those of the crew. Ciao, Ciao BellaFor Naomi, it was her first luxury charter, first domestic charter, first monohull charter, and inaugural Down East cruise-and it would add five more days of sailing to her burgeoning résumé. For me, this would be a homecoming of sorts. I'd lived in Camden in the 1970s, in a Victorian house in the shadow of the Camden Hills, and I'd explored Penobscot Bay in a variety of boats and seasons. Visiting my old haunts was a goal we'd noted on the pre-departure questionnaire about destination, food and drink, and lifestyle preferences. But more important, the next five days would allow me, a dedicated minimalist, to put a handle on the crewed-charter experience.

We joined Ciao Bella at Camden's Wayfarer Marine on a brilliant, fall-like day in mid-September. Tim and his first mate/chef/significant other, Lisa Jouris, greeted us warmly and hefted our duffels aboard. "Ciao Bella is actually a Swan 60," Tim explained during his introductory tour of the boat, "but she has an extended transom, all above the waterline, for more room on deck and more stowage below."

On entering our aft-cabin quarters, Naomi was bowled over by splashes of white, purple, and red in a vase of lilies beside the center-cabin double. "They opened just before you arrived," Lisa offered, as though she'd planned it that way-and she probably had! "How about a Diet Coke, caffeine-free?" Tim asked Naomi, who melted then and there, for this was her soda of choice. Tim knew that. It was on the questionnaire. "The key to a crewed charter," Tim explained, "is the quality of the communication before the charter begins."

Some good crewed-chartering karma was going down, and we hadn't yet left the dock. But after the usual crunch liberating ourselves with clear consciences from our respective offices, the five-hour drive from Rhode Island to Camden, and rapid immersion into a new lifestyle, those vibes needed more time to percolate in the two pilgrims from the south. This was no surprise to Tim. "When guests arrive," he said, "they're still in the mode of their usual lives-furrowed brow, stressed out. In 24 hours, they've shed that skin. By the end of the trip, they're mush."
We cast off, consumed home-made cream-of-broccoli soup and chicken sandwiches on the run, and set sail for Seal Bay, a nearly landlocked anchorage on the east side of Vinalhaven island. During the 20-mile passage, Tim told us about a 16-day windward delivery he and Lisa had made from Hawaii to Los Angeles. "That was our first date," he said as though they'd gone around the corner to Starbucks to get acquainted. Their relationship progressed-Lisa greeted Tim at the finish of a West Marine Pacific Cup race between San Francisco and Hawaii wearing a sundress and a few dabs of intoxicating perfume-but when she met him after the return trip clutching a home-cooked meatloaf, their partnership became a done deal. Tim's very favorite meal, you see, is meatloaf.

Eagle Island PerspectiveWhen I lived in Camden, occasionally I'd volunteer my services to Captain Erland Quinn, who delivered coal and appliances to Penobscot Bay's island residents with his canoe-sterned freighter, Hippocampus. On one such run, in the same season as our charter, we off-loaded coal on Eagle Island, just east of North Haven Island, for a Mrs. Howard, who served us tea and biscuits in her kitchen. I recall looking out a window over the panorama of islands bristling with red and white spruce and remarking how beautiful it all was. "Oh, you should have been here 30 years ago when they logged the islands," Mrs. Howard said. "Back then, without all the trees, you could see forever."

As Ciao Bella reached in a light northeasterly between Bald and Eagle islands and into East Penobscot Bay, I warmly remembered that eye-opening lesson in perspective. The sun was nudging the tops of the evergreens on Vinalhaven as we negotiated the keyhole into Seal Bay and anchored just south of a cruising catboat, a fiberglass sloop, and what appeared to be a classic spoon-bowed wooden Casey yawl rafted up in the middle of the anchorage.

The 80-foot, 121-year-old centerboard schooner Grace Bailey-veteran of the West Indian trade, a timber and granite freighter until 1939, and since then a passenger-carrying windjammer-was tucked up against the east shore of the bay. At dusk, a pulling boat cut a silver ribbon across the mirrored mahogany surface, a spell was cast, and despite the mercury hovering in the high 40s, Naomi and I asked for cocktails in the cockpit. Gin and tonics, cheese and crackers, and a blanket promptly appeared in the companionway, and we quickly warmed up to the temperatures and the concept of a crewed charter.

It was so still and quiet in the bay, it was hard to believe that, in 1880, about 3,300 people (more than twice the current population) lived on Vinalhaven while granite was being cut in its quarries for construction of the Boston Museum of Fine Arts and New York's Brooklyn Bridge. And it seemed miraculous that a direct link to that era lay proudly at anchor beside us; well over a century earlier, the Bailey carried Maine granite to city construction sites to the south. After dinner with Tim and Lisa-steak, caramelized onions, sweet-potato mash, asparagus, and fruit-of-the-forest pie, all washed down with a fine red wine-we dragged ourselves aft and, while musing on how decadence can grow on one, crashed.

Our second day's destination was Castine, on the Bagaduce River, a 25-mile sail to the north, and I was on a mini-mission. I have a treasured volume-Maine: A Guide Downeast-with the inscription "To Nim Marsh, shipmate, aboard the State of Maine for OpSail '76. Regards, M.C. Hill, Master, 6/24/76." Castine was picked not only for Ciao Bella to hole up in a protected anchorage should the remnants of Hurricane Isabel pass through but also for me to rendezvous with the State of Maine, the Maine Maritime Academy school ship, on which I'd accompanied the Tall Ships fleet from Bermuda to Newport, Rhode Island, a quarter of a century earlier. But a full day of exploring lay between Ciao Bella and her just-in-case hurricane hole.

After a breakfast of cereal, fresh fruit, and strong coffee, we sailed-again in a light northeast wind-to the Fox Islands Thorofare, which cuts between North Haven and Vinalhaven, scattering rafts of puffins as we approached them. Ciao Bella motored to the roadstead off North Haven village, where we anchored as a small Murray Peterson schooner ghosted through under sail, its solo crew facetiously waving a seat cushion at the mainsail to conjure a zephyr.

A Fox Islands DeceitFox Islands was the name given these two islands by English explorer Martin Pring in 1603, and this moniker, I'm ashamed to say, in the 1970s inspired two young Maine editors with too much time on their hands to contrive a deception. Both of us worked with the late John Gardner, revered dean of small-boat evolution, design, and construction, who was always discovering, in fields, barns, and tidal creeks, missing links between obscure traditional boats-say, a stem rabbet that might relate a Peterborough plank canoe to a Rushton Canadian Model. The links were often so esoteric we wondered if any of National Fisherman's readers would notice if we slipped a totally bogus design into one of John's columns. Thus was born the Fox Islands Carry Boat, a sailing barge, the story went, that removed the excess fox populations from North Haven and Vinalhaven and took them to the mainland for disposal.

"Who'd ever question it?" asked my partner in crime. The statute of limitations on such publishing transgressions has long since passed, so I now could freely admit guilt, if indeed we'd done the deed. But we never did, a decision that I now applauded as I stepped ashore at the little village of North Haven, population 381, and one of the first summer communities in the country. The earnest and pristine Fox Islands didn't deserve association with such deceit. The Rockland ferry, Capt. Neal Burgess, had just departed its slip, and as the rumbling of its big diesel dropped away as it left the thorofare, the village was quickly transported to a century past.

Naomi and I followed the unmistakable aromatic amalgam of paint, varnish, pine tar, and bedding compound down Main Street to its source-J. O. Brown and Son Yacht and Boatbuilder, Est. 1888-where an old coasting schooner was being rebuilt in one of the sheds. Backtracking, we ambled past the ferry slip and followed Main Street up the hill and into a neighborhood of Maine farmhouses with filagreed porch pillars. Returning to the harbor, we stopped on Church Street, where, to capture the feel of a 19th-century community, we spread wide our sensory wings and gathered only the rustle of gentle breezes filtering through the leaves of the honey-locust trees.
After serving home-made pizza and vegetable soup in the cockpit, Lisa hauled up the anchor with the windlass, Tim drove Ciao Bella out the thorofare, and we set sail for Castine in about 12 knots of wind that had by now clocked to the southwest. The National Weather Service informed us that Isabel, packing 50-knot winds, had just arrived on North Carolina's Outer Banks. With Naomi and me getting lots of time on the wheel, we broad-reached at close to seven knots between Butter and Bradbury islands, spotting seals, puffins, cormorants, and loons along the way. We gave Green Ledge, southwest of Cape Rosier, a wide berth, then bore off to the northeast on a course for Castine Harbor. We ran down past Maine Maritime Academy (MMA), the old State of Maine, and the MMA sail-training vessel, the schooner Bowdoin, veteran of 26 voyages to the Arctic. Then we short-tacked into Smith Cove.

Our Hurricane HoleLate in the afternoon, under gathering clouds and a rising wind, we joined six sailing vessels and a trawler yacht already anchored under the lee of Holbrook Island Sanctuary. Among them were three charter boats from my home port of Newport, Rhode Island: the Swan 48 Yellow Drama, the Farr 72 Starr Trail, and the 173-foot Perini Navi megayacht Independence. As Ciao Bella's summer base is Jamestown, Rhode Island, across Narragansett Bay from Newport, this was like the beginning of Old Home Week for the crew of the 64-foot Swan.

Before we went below for a nap, Captain Tim overheard Naomi challenge me to a "one-sump-pump-button" shower the following morning. Sensing his guests were losing the luxury-charter perspective, he donned his figurative captain's hat, told us we'd never use all the water Ciao Bella's 30-gallon-per-hour watermaker could generate, and ordered his recalcitrant charges to get in the shower and stay there until cocktails. Or at least until we were wrinkled like prunes. "You're on a crewed charter. That means you can be totally decadent," he said. "If you were on a bareboat, because of all the work involved, you could be only semidecadent at best."
Despite the worsening weather, the well-scrubbed guests again had their G&Ts in the cockpit, then headed toward the companionway for dinner. Naomi peered through the translucent Lexan hatch, then turned back to me, horrified. "They've only set two places!" she blurted. "Do you think they're annoyed with us?" No, the captain and first mate/chef weren't agitated; they simply wished for us a romantic candlelit dinner of grilled salmon with a pasta dish called puttenesca orzo, mesclun with arugula, cranberries, and goat cheese, and a brownie sundae à la mode for dessert.
That night, we were wakened in the wee hours by driving rain and 25 knots of wind moaning through the rigging, causing Ciao Bella to heel and tug at her rode. By morning, the blow was well on its way east toward Nova Scotia, but with a big sea running outside in the bay, Captain Tim decided to remain in Smith Cove for another day.

A Day AshoreThere was a third reason Tim and Lisa had chosen Castine as a port of call: It was an interesting place for charter guests to be during inclement weather. So rather than killing time on the boat until conditions improved, as we would have had we been sequestered in some remote anchorage, Tim ferried us into Castine in Ciao Bella's RIB, and we spent several hours idling along quiet streets lined with elm, locust, and basswood trees, stopping in small shops, and acquainting ourselves with the town's long, convoluted history.

No tours of the State of Maine were scheduled while we were in town, so I sadly shelved my visit to the vessel that had given me such a Masefield experience so many years ago. Instead, we hiked with Lisa and Tim in Holbrook Island Sanctuary, on the west side of the cove, foraging for treasures with which to fill a shadow box. As I write, displayed under glass in my living room are a crab shell baked orange by the sun, a pair of bayberry-blue mussel shells, two deep-mahogany pinecones, a couple of sleek conjoined acorns, a heart-shaped striped lucky stone, and a natural birchbark scroll on which Lisa inscribed, "Ciao Bella, Maine, September 17-22, 2003."
In late afternoon, Tim took us back to Ciao Bella, then mysteriously sped off toward town. Within an hour, he returned, gleefully bearing eight freshly cooked pound-and-a-quarter lobsters for our dinner. After dinner-two lobsters apiece!-Naomi leaned back, took a deep breath of satisfaction, and sighed, "This certainly has been a full day . . . a wonderful day."
Tim smiled and said, "When the weather's bad, we try to be somewhere where our guests can do other things." And Lisa makes it her business to know what activities are available-kayaks, shopping, museums, hiking-thus, our full day. None of us noticed that we didn't go sailing.
Our fourth day broke with a blanket of fog rolling up Smith Cove, obscuring all around us. But the wind and seas were down, and we hauled anchor, cranked up the 150-horsepower Yanmar Turbo, and with the Furuno radar and B&G GPS showing the way, we backtracked south, our destination the WoodenBoat School of Boatbuilding, established by WoodenBoat magazine in Brooklin, 30 miles to the east as the boat plies.
This was a pilgrimage to our Mecca; during the past two years we'd restored, "by the seat of our pants," a 55-year-old lapstrake English sailing dinghy, and we wanted to learn what we'd done right.

At a point east-northeast of Seal Bay, where we'd spent our first night, we hooked a sharp left and entered narrow Deer Island Thorofare with barely an eighth of a mile of visibility.
Not to worry: At Ciao Bella's port wheel was a KS Bootronik SeaBook M12 cockpit display with Nobeltec electronic-charting software, and at her starboard helm was a Furuno/Navionics radar/ chart plotter with B&G Hydra 2000 series instruments. Not only could we see precisely where we were at any given time in relation to any hazards and how we were being set by the currents; we also knew the ebb and flood times for the tides and their heights and velocities.
All this technology pleased Naomi and me no end, for Don Johnson's Cruising Guide to Maine, Volume II: Rockport to Eastport (1995; Wescott Cove Publishing Company, $35), which our charter broker, Ed Hamilton, had kindly sent us, said about the thorofare: "The main channel is well buoyed, and if you pay close attention to the chart, you should have no problems. However, in fog, with a complete lack of visual reference, it is not as easy a passage as Eggemoggin Reach." Our electronics gave us that visual reference.

A Thorofare GamAs Ciao Bella approached the thorofare's entrance, a sécurité signal bearing a familiar name burst over the VHF. It was Morgan's Cloud, the 56-foot aluminum McCurdy and Rhodes cutter sailed in the high latitudes by CW authors John Harries and Phyllis Nickel (see "Weather To Go in 30 Minutes," December 2003), who'd recently logged a rough Atlantic crossing against the westerlies.

We slowly approached the Billings wharf until Phyllis-standing on it taking lines from John-materialized out of the soup. We learned they were decommissioning Morgan's Cloud at Billings Marine on Moose Island while they attended to land affairs after their four-year voyage. John and I conducted some Cruising World business over the VHF ("We're a relentless lot," I told him), and Ciao Bella continued on her way toward the WoodenBoat School in Brooklin.
Lisa was on lobster-pot watch on the bow, Naomi and I were port and starboard boat spotters in the cockpit, and we ran the gauntlet toward the east end of Eggemoggin Reach in a true Maine "thick o' fog." We anchored just north of Babson Island, and Tim drove us in to one of the WoodenBoat wharves, navigating with a compass on his watch. As the gift shop was about to close, we hit it first, pored over the neat books, woodworking tools, and clothing, grabbed a catalog so we could mail-order for some of it later on, and then headed anxiously for the boat shops and sheds.

Eating Major RavenNow I've eaten a lot of crow in my life, and for me to arrive at WoodenBoat magazine headquarters wide-eyed and hyperventilating is akin to consuming major raven. When the magazine was launched in 1974, the inaugural issue was passed around my Camden editorial office, and I pompously noted something like: "Will never make it. Worships at altar of wood." Nearly three decades down the line, I walked onto the grounds of WoodenBoat magazine, circulation 105,000, and its WoodenBoat School as a zealot within the cult.
For a couple of hours, Naomi and I swooned over Norwegian prams, Swampscott dories, yacht tenders, sea skiffs, Haven 12 1/2s, and kayaks and canoes in various stages of construction, and we were smitten by a 14-foot version of our 10-foot sailing dinghy, Frith. To Naomi, the uncompleted boats seemed even more beautiful than their finished counterparts because you could see the thought and craftsmanship their builders were investing in them. We grabbed a course catalog in the event we'd like to one day build the 14-footer, and Tim ferried us back to Ciao Bella and a dinner of pork chops, squash au gratin, and sautéed spinach, with peach strudel for dessert.

On September 21, two days before the autumnal equinox, we received a sneak preview of fall. Dawn broke with a west-northwest wind, a clear sky, and, with no fog, an entirely different view of our anchorage. Moored just inshore of us were Beetlecats, Haven 12s, classic white Maine launches with bright coamings, a Rozinante yawl, three lobster boats, and assorted dories and tenders, and in the crisp air, the mirage of the Deer Island Bridge loomed surreally over Eggemoggin Reach to the west.

Outward BoundWhen I lived in Camden, I knew the Hurricane Island Outward Bound School (HIOBS) director and several of the instructors and their wives, but I never visited the island. So on the last full day of our charter, we retraced our course through Deer Island Thorofare in 12 to 15 knots of wind, bound for Hurricane, close to 30 miles to the southwest. Long, undulating strings of white-winged scoters skimmed past us as we tore through the thorofare, and our exhilarating reach rendered Stonington village a palette of red, green, yellow, and white splashes.

Captain Tim gave me the helm, and he and Lisa adjusted the sails to course changes and the vicissitudes of the land-distorted breeze, the pawls of our winches emitting staccato protests as sheets were trimmed. Tim, a champion dinghy sailor in his youth and an inveterate racer; Lisa, his disciple and avid sail-set tinkerer; and Ciao Bella, inspired windship with a Class C second-place finish in her first Swan Regatta in Newport, Rhode Island, last summer, were reveling in the lively passage. So were their guests, who still couldn't believe their good fortune.
We picked up a mooring in front of Outward Bound and dinghied in to the old quarrying wharf as three generations of a Massachusetts family drifted in with their tanbark-sailed English Drascombe Lugger. Climbing the long weed and barnacle-encrusted ladder, Naomi and I walked over to the school's main house, thinking about the World War II British program that in 1964 inspired HIOBS. By 1941, so many young British merchant mariners had already died in survival situations after their vessels were sunk by German U-boats, an Outward Bound School was established in Wales to mentally callus new recruits.

Aside from the school, the island is wild and uninhabited today, and it was surprising to learn that by 1880, it was a major granite-quarrying site with a population of 1,200 Italian and Irish immigrants and, according to Taft and Rindlaub's exhaustive and entertaining A Cruising Guide to the Maine Coast (4th edition, 2002; Diamond Pass Publishing, $55, $42 softcover), "It had a post office, six boardinghouses, 40 cottages, a pool hall, bowling green, bandstand, company store, two major quarries, and several smaller ones scattered throughout the island."
Cape Codders on the RocksLisa and Tim followed us off the wharf, carrying curiously bulging knapsacks. They led us to a trail that wound around a sylvan pond and up a gentle incline to a ledge on the island's southwest corner. As we emerged from the underbrush, unfolding before us was a 180-degree panorama of bay and islands, rafting and flying seabirds, lobster boats hauling traps, and a couple of windjammers. We were speechless.

To complete this spectacle, a bald eagle soared over to Little Hurricane Island and lit theatrically on the top of a spruce tree, leaving Naomi and me to wonder how much of this sideshow Tim and Lisa had actually planned.To cap the moment, Lisa then spread the knapsacks' abundant contents on the ledge: Cape Codder sandwiches (turkey, stuffing, and cranberry sauce), chips, fruit, cookies, and soda-a Ciao Bella picnic.

A Worthy Endeavour"A crewed charter is an amazing way to see out-of-the-way places," said Tim. "If you rent a cottage on the Maine coast, you'll watch the same sunrise and the same sunset for two weeks, but on Ciao Bella, you can have a different view every day, often from a place you can only reach by boat. It's an ever-changing adventure-different places to hike, islands and towns to explore. And the crew does all the worrying."
Our last night on the Swan would be spent in Pulpit Harbor, 10 miles away on the north side of North Haven and an eight-mile hop to the base in Camden Harbor. Ciao Bella motored up Hurricane Sound, through Leadbetter Narrows, and out into West Penobscot Bay. The Camden Hills lay spread before us in the rich, late-afternoon light-lush green in the foreground changing to dusky purple, then coal gray, as they rolled down toward Lincolnville. As we glided into Pulpit Harbor's entrance in a gossamer northerly, the 130-foot J-class sloop Endeavour ghosted down the bay, dropped her sails outside Pulpit Rock's 150-year-old Osprey nest-this day occupied by a bald eagle using it as a fishing camp-and joined us in the deep, protected anchorage.
The jolly crew of the lobster boat Susan Marie, on a Sunday busman's holiday, circled Endeavour in the fading light, offering good-natured jibes to her well-heeled charter guests, then swung over to Ciao Bella and chanted in singsong cadence to her bemused crew, "Their boat's bigger than your boat. . . ."

Well, the Susan Marie crew was right, but 64 feet proved optimal for the two minimalists from Rhode Island on their sailing vacation of a lifetime. After our last dinner aboard-meatloaf (the skipper's favorite, you recall), mashed potatoes, salad, and blueberry pie-Tim raised himself ceremoniously from his chair, looked down at his guests with a Cheshire Cat grin, and said quietly (and smugly, I might add), "You are now in the mush state. The meatloaf was the knockout punch."

We were.

And it was.

Nim Marsh, CW associate editor and ascetic, lives under his upturned 10-foot dinghy on the muddy margins of Narragansett Bay. He accepts no alms.

Back and Forth from Hawaii to California

2002-05-17T16:22:00.000-07:00

Reprint from Sailing Anarchy. Written By Seth Radow, Owner of Bull and Glama that I worked with for four years and had some absolutely amazing experiences including three Trans-Pacific Races and Four Hawaii to Los Angeles Deliveries. That is a total of a 16000 hair raising Pacific Ocean miles on a 40 foot sailboat!

http://www.sailinganarchy.com/fringe/2002/bull_summer.htm

Well Scot... another summer and a lot of dollars to be spent on another Pacific Ocean crossing.

Bull Racing has been out of commission most of the year. The boat made it back to MdR from Hawaii in November 2001 after having spent the summer racing the boat in Hawaii. Some of the best and most consistent ocean sailing on the planet is in Hawaii. Pity it's not like that ev
erywhere.

Having changed firms earlier this year, my business life has been keeping me off the water and I have not had much time to get the boat and the crew anywhere near the water this year. I have been pulling 90-hour weeks since February. If it were not for my wife throwing me out of the house and off to Hawaii this summer, I would probably still be in the office 15-16 hours a day. That having been said, we have been able to put together a few practices with the crew. It appears we may be a bit rusty. We will be getting to the water 2-3 days a week until we leave so we should be back up to speed in short order.

After Transpac and the summer's races, we learned that Bull could undoubtedly be faster. Fresh out of the box… any boat can be faster. We knew we had to redistribute some of the boat's internal components to get some weight out of the stern. We did that. We realized we had a few areas where we could take some weight out of the boat... a little here, a little there and before you know it, you have a bit over a hundred pounds of nothing. We knew we needed to reinforce a few areas. Those have been reinforced. We found a few leaks during the summer's races... those have been plugged. We had a few plumbing issues... those have been replumbed.

When you look at a boat, system by system, you can always find a way to improve those systems. On a big, or even a mid sized offshore yacht, there are a heap of systems. Detailed notes in the log from last summer's racing has given us a punch list of well over 100 items to address. It sounds like a lot, but in reality, there is nothing all that extraordinary... just a lot of little things (but they seem to cost a small fortune to correct). Let's be real... the boat goes well... very well. But the fact is that if one is competing against the likes of Pegasus and Zephyrus one needs to mind every single detail. Save a half a second a mile here and half a second a mile there and next thing you know you can pull nearly half a dozen seconds out of your hat. Am I really talking about saving SIX seconds a mile??? It is not improbable and certainly possible. Saving weight, redistributing weight, optimizing systems, improving the sail plan, working on the bottom... sure, you can get at least 6 seconds per mile. It cost a lot of money to pull all this off, but recall what I stated last year about race preparation before Transpac, that "80% of the race is won before you leave the dock". If I am right, then this should be money well spent.

Regarding the sail plan. I have no reason to mess with a very good thing. Halsey Lidgard is as good as anyone and in my mind, the best if the business. Dave Armitage, lead sail designer for Halsey Lidgard, is as good as they get... PERIOD. Andy Halsey, owner of the Halsey half of the loft, is the most honest and ethical guy in the business and he knows the business as well as or better than anyone. He knows cloth better than anyone… PERIOD. Andy is cofounder of the company. He is a true "Class Act".

Bull will sail with a predominantly CF and Carbon upwind inventory and asymmetric kites downwind. We will have no symmetric kites aboard... in fact, I haven't even made one for the boat. It is my experience that a full inventory of asymmetrics are faster that a symmetric inventory for downwind on all points of sail when using articulating spinnaker poles. We are doing a new main for the boat. We have a few thoughts to improve this sail over the previous one. We have been working with Cuben Fiber to improve the fabric for mid size racing applications, particularly for mainsails. We are taking the lead from Playstation in using a Cuben Fiber/ Carbon blend. This should prove to be a bit lighter and a bit stronger… though a bit less durable. We are making a few small changes to the shape too. We should see a bit more power with this new sail and it should save us some time on the racecourse. All other sails will remain the same. We've taken digital photos of every sail on the boat and they all look as good as new. The Cuben Fiber is truly a remarkable material.

Pacific Cup is a bit interesting in that Nor Cal PHRF does the ratings. They do things a bit differently than we do in So Cal. First, they rate boats for 18 knots of wind as opposed to 10 knots in So Cal. Secondly, if you limit headsail size to 125% you get a six second credit. In Pac Cup, you only use the headsails for the first day and maybe the second depending upon conditions. You get a six second credit on your rating for the entire 2000 miles though you really only need headsails for the first 200-400 miles. The whole thing makes very little sense to me. I believe it is a serious disadvantage for any region not to have random leg and off wind ratings for boats.

It is my understanding that very few boats take the big headsails for this race. This saves the 6 seconds and, depending upon inventory, a handful of weight and space. My thoughts for BULL... take the 6 second credit limiting the headsail to 125%, save the weight of the Light #1, Medium/Heavy #1 and the Jibtop leaving them ashore. I am betting for a first few hundred miles of 16-18+ knots of breeze. If we can get that, I will look like a genius for the Pacific Cup sail selection. I guessed right last year (the crew wanted to leave the light #1 on the dock), bringing everything we own in Bull's sail inventory... we used every sail in the inventory at least once. Last year we shifted gears often… very often! In light shifty conditions, you have to be a quick and nimble… doing everything possible to gain an advantage.

Regarding the crew. Most of last year's Transpac winning crew was committed for the summer. This was my fault in starting on the program so late. Although the Transpac crew was busy, I have been able to pull together a strong crew from the rest of the Bull Racing Team. The team has enormous depth in terms of talent and experience. I suspect that this year's team will have more talent in some areas and less in others. The key for me, as skipper, is to put the crew together in such a manner that they remain performance driven for the full 2000 miles, that the crew can work synergistically. Remember, we are all amateur racers. To win, we have to sail like pros. The only way to do that is to have the crew create it's own synergy. They have to be able to sail better together than they can as individuals. The chemistry has to be just right. Having most of us as good friends that have sailed together for years, we definitely have a winning chemistry aboard. Now we have to keep that going for 2000 miles. There is no better feeling in this world to know that you and your friends put together a terrific effort and to know that each and every one aboard contributed to that effort. Winning a race like Transpac is big… and one man cannot do it alone. If any one man on the team did not pull his own weight and a bit extra… there is no way we could have won that race. Now we will have to do it again.

So here's the crew, some of So Cal's finest. Once again, we have a solid amateur crew with exceptional depth in driving and trim. The list follows:

We have Rick Valdes out of Costa Mesa who will be returning this year. He will take over duties at the front of the boat for Mark Van Gessel. He will also drive, offering tremendous talent and experience in that position and well as sail making experience. One thing I have learned... you have to be out of your mind to race offshore without a sailmaker aboard. Sure you can do it... but you cannot win. Doing a race like this without sail making skill is like doing an automobile race without an engine mechanic. You just don't do it.

Dave Clarke of Long Beach has been sailing with me for years and will be a lead trimmer and driver. Dave will pick up for Rick as Rick moves forward on the boat. Dave may be the nicest guy in So Cal sailing and without question, one of the best trimmers. Dave was in charge on entertainment on last Pacific Cup. He did such a good job of entertainment that half the crew forgot we were racing. Dave has been instructed to leave all entertainment at home for this race.

Beau Gayner out of La Jolla will also be a lead trimmer and driver. He will fill in for Vince Valdes. Vince has only recently joined the team late (very late)… I will comment later in the article. Beau has a cast iron stomach if the seas are rough... which is a valuable asset if some of the crew goes down to "mal de mare". Beau raced for USC on the college circuit years ago and brings enormous talent to the boat.

Tim Forderer, a friend of mine and long time sailing partner out of Venice Beach will be trimming, driving, crew chief and watch captain and really anything else he wants to do. Tim is a terrific well-rounded sailor who has really come into his own in big boat offshore sailing during the last few years. He has years of experience in smaller boats and raced on the Mid West College circuit during his college years. Tim has more Pacific Ocean crossings than I do since he's been bringing my boats home for a few years now. Tim will fill the hard to fill shoes of Lee Lewis, one of the best drivers in all of So Cal. Tim knows Bull as well as anyone. Tim has been running the Bull program this season and has been heading up all work on the boat. With Peter Franzen out of town, as the shipwright in charge of Brad Van Liew's Around Alone campaign, Tim has been trying to fill those very big shoes this season. He's been doing a solid job bringing in the right specialists when necessary. I am looking for Tim to fill a handful of shoes this year, including my own, as I have been overloaded at work. He is, has been and will continue to impress all of us on the Bull Racing Team. Tim recently passed his 6-Pack and is now a licensed Captain. A hearty congratulations from each of us for that accomplishment.

We had our Pitman drop out this morning... NOT GOOD (name need not be mentioned). He just had a baby and his wife is not too excited about the prospect of him being gone for a few weeks at sea. We were counting on him as a very solid driver too. We do have a list of backup people for the race and the crew will try to draw a consensus during the next few days.

Last year's Pitman, Joe Dervin is off to Australia and New Zealand with his wife. Off to the Southern Hemisphere with a beautiful lady or stuck as sea with a pack of filthy sailors… it's a tough call!!! Joe is still the best Pitman I have ever sailed with... very tough shoes to fill. The team has had a big loss here with the loss of the current pitman and with Joe being gone. I need to pull a rabbit out of the hat... one that can handle pit, trim and drive... and I need to do it in the next few days.

Regarding navigation... well you didn't like my selection last year and Steve Steiner proved to be "The Man". I would love to have him back again, but Steve is donating a heap of time and effort to Marina del Rey's Leukemia Cup, scheduled for this summer. He will be assisting Lee Lewis (a key driver during Bull's 2001 Transpac campaign). The Leukemia Cup will take both Steve and Lee. For a cause such as that, I don't mind giving them up (what am I saying... yes I do)... but they are both going to be very tough shoes for anyone to fill. These guys are terrific sailors and have a great attitude. You can't replace guys like this using conventional wisdom. (I am hoping that Tim will fill Lee's shoes... I suppose this is somewhat conventional.)

For the Navigator's role, I am using the "less conventional" wisdom. For this year's race, we are going to Hawaii for a Navigator. I figure if he really likes where he lives, misses his family and friends... maybe he'll be in a hurry to get home! Ev Flanders comes so highly recommended by so many people and I have been so impressed with his early work that I am absolutely thrilled to have him. Though I don't know Ev on a personal level, we have mutual friends that speak so highly of him that I am led to believe that he may walk on water. As I understand it, Ev may have more Pacific Ocean crossings than the rest of the crew combined. If he can point us in the right direction and I have every reason to believe that he can, I am confident that the rest of the crew can be very competitive this year.

The one wild card is the Pit position, which we are in the process of filling. This could be our "Achilles Heel".

Other than that, we have been following the weather for the last 4 weeks, at least 3 times a day. I have been routing 3 times a day. The rest of the crew has been following my lead. So long as everyone aboard takes the race seriously, we can and will be competitive. We are going to be exceptionally strict with the weight reduction program this year. Clothing, food and gear will be strictly limited. If every pound off the boat is a minute off the racecourse, then we will be watching every single pound. To compete with the best, you have to think like the best.

Can we win... sure. It's going to be a very tough race with some very tough boats. TP 52's, Pegasus, Zephyrus, Mari Cha III... the list goes on. It looks like we will be the scratch 40 footer, so the goal it to try to out sail the best of the SC 50's and 52's. Don't know that it's possible, but if we can do that then we will win. As I see it, we will have to benchmark ourselves against the larger, faster boats and shoot to beat them boat for boat. Now I know that these boats are faster than Bull, but if we can out hustle the bigger boats, we will have a shot. Trying to benchmark Pegasus and Zephyrus is impossible. They will be so fast on the water that they will be a blur.

The key is to get out of the Bay as quickly and efficiently as possible, crack off a bit and begin the sleigh ride to Hawaii. This race is not nearly as technical as Transpac in that you only have a day or so of upwind work as opposed to three days of upwind work. You have to win the race on the upwind leg but this leg is so short, you really don't have much room to work here. Remember, you win races on the upwind legs... tactics getting out of the bay and to the Farallons will be critical because the passing lanes close quickly as soon as the sleigh ride begins. In Transpac, if you are first in class and first overall by the end of day three, the fleet will have a tough time catching you. By the end of day three, the passing lanes get very narrow and don't open up again until the final approach to the Oahu (the decision as to whether to go north of south of the rhumb line). During Pac Cup, it's a different ball game. The accuracy (or should I say inaccuracy) of handicap ratings play a bigger role here as so much of the race is downwind. Nor Cal PHRF ratings are typically for buoy courses. This is an off wind race... so the ratings seem to be a bit out of whack from what we would expect to see in So Cal. Given that I am no fan of PHRF for races of this magnitude, a single rating system is the worst of all worlds. Granted Pac Cup uses their "formula" to determine the Pac Cup rating... but this is still pretty much nonsense and very much "Mickey Mouse". I would love to see what the ratings would look like under IMS and the new Americap II. Dan Nowlan has all that data. Maybe we can get it. Downwind oriented boats really do have a gift in Pac Cup, at least as I see it.

So... what do I think? Zephyrus and Pegasus will be incredibly tough to beat. Both of these boats will be sailing in Turbo trim... They will be wicked fast. Bull's sail designer, Dave Armitage has been sailing aboard Farr 40 OD, Barking Mad, and will be sailing aboard Zephyrus for this race. Dave is widely considered to be one of the best sail trimmers in the world. He was main trimmer on the NZ America's Cup team that won in SD. He was offered, but turned down the main trimmer spot on Alinghy. Pegasus and Zephyrus will have world-class crews for this race. Both boats can cover this course in under a week... If there is a good blow, I suspect that Zephyrus can cover this course in 5 days and Pegasus in 6. In optimal conditions, Bull can do it in less than 9 days.

I don't know the handicaps for these two boats, nor for the TP 52's, but this course is made for these boat (or really visa versa), and Bull is much better suited for the upwind work on the Transpac course. Bull is optimized for a course content of about 50:50 (upwind:downwind), maybe 40:60. The Sleds (52's, 70's and 80's) are about 20:80 (upwind:downwind). The more upwind work we get on a course, the better we can do. I am not trying to make excuses early, but I am certainly trying to be a realist. We race to win... and we will push the boat hard... very hard, but we have to know the limits of our potential. Bull is not a 40-foot sled. If the course, for some strange reason, turns into a longer than usual upwind slog at the beginning of the race, Pac Cup will be more competitive for Bull. On the other hand, if we dig deep and sail hard, if the wind is just right and the handicappers in Nor Cal did their stuff just right... then this, being "sailing"... anything can happen. Two in a row??? Now that would be nice!!! We were the underdogs going into last years race... we will be the underdogs going into this year's race. I much prefer to be the underdog than the favorite! The pressure is on our competition... not on Bull. That's just about how we like it!!!

5/30/02: Some late breaking news for the team. I sent a rough copy of this to the crew last night. Vince Valdes, trimmer and driver from last years Transpac winning effort has been able to shake free from his previous commitment and is available to race in Pacific Cup. Vince will fill the Pit position for Bull. Vince is the consummate journeyman. He can and did do it all for us last year. A strong trimmer and driver, Vince also offers very solid shipwright skills. Vince is so good and was so valuable to the Transpac effort last year that I would be out of my mind to leave him off the boat. Vince is an "A" team player. He was offered a spot on Bull from day one but back out gracefully. He was forced to decline due to other commitments. That he has been able to shake free is a huge plus for our effort this summer. His re-entry to the team has really pumped the team up. Losing a crewmate this late in the game can be demoralizing. Pulling an "A" team player out of the hat gets everyone right back in the game.

See you on the water!

Seth A. Radow