| Cruising aboard a sailboat is a dream for many people. | | | | This cohesiveness isn't limited by space. There are |
| After 25 years aboard boats, I can verify that some | | | | amateur radio nets around the world that exist to keep |
| parts of the dream are indeed real. Here are my votes | | | | track of boats out on the ocean and to mobilize |
| for the best parts. | | | | assistance if needed. We were part of the Pacific |
| Seeing new places. My childhood as a military brat has | | | | Maritime Net during our passage from Socorro to |
| contributed to the gypsy-like quality of my adult life. I | | | | Cocos Island. Every night we checked in with our |
| love to see new places, preferably in an "up close and | | | | location coordinates, speed, and bearing, and we were |
| personal" way that isn't usually accessible as a tourist. I | | | | able to get in touch with friends who were |
| enjoy getting to know a place from a resident's point | | | | somewhere else out on that broad ocean. It was a |
| of view, and living on a boat is a great way to do that. | | | | comfort to know that there were people who always |
| My cruising pace is on the slow side, and it's not | | | | knew where we were, and would provide support if |
| unusual for us to stay in one place for a fairly long | | | | we encountered trouble. |
| period of time-one to five months, maybe longer. I like | | | | Night time watch on a beam reach under a tropical |
| cruising this way, because it allows me much greater | | | | night sky. A steady wind, a starlit sky, and a pod of |
| familiarity with the personality and culture of the place. | | | | dolphins swimming alongside-living torpedoes made |
| La Paz and Socorro Island (Mexico), Cocos Island and | | | | fluorescent by light-reflecting plankton-these are |
| Puntarenas (Costa Rica), Balboa and the San Blas | | | | images that I remember from more than one night |
| Islands (Panama), Cartagena (Colombia), Annapolis and | | | | watch underway. There is nothing else I can compare |
| Oxford (Maryland), Charleston (South Carolina), and | | | | it to. |
| Tarpon Springs (Florida) are examples of places | | | | Sighting land after a long passage. There is nothing like |
| where I have resided for fairly long periods as a | | | | the experience of sighting a dark spot on the horizon |
| transient cruiser. | | | | after days and days of seeing nothing but a water on |
| This is not to say that I haven't also enjoyed the spots | | | | all sides. Besides looking forward to setting foot on |
| I've passed through quickly. Even just a few days | | | | land, I love the rush that comes from having navigated |
| somewhere is fun! | | | | the boat to our intended destination. |
| Meeting new friends. Whether locals or other cruisers, I | | | | Watching nature both above and below the water. I'm |
| am fortunate to have become acquainted with some | | | | a big fan of the natural environment. There are |
| great people along the way. Friendships have grown | | | | amazing things out there! Sighting a new kind of bird or |
| with folks with whom I never would have crossed | | | | hanging suspended over a coral reef watching the |
| paths back home. | | | | activity is my kind of fun. I've hiked in the Central |
| One of my favorite aspects of meeting new friends is | | | | American tropics, spotted alligators on the |
| how quickly bonds can form. The couple you nodded | | | | Okeechobee Waterway, watched herons fish for |
| at in yesterday's anchorage are old buddies by the | | | | supper at the end of the day, and observed groups of |
| time they put down their anchor near you in today's | | | | hammerhead sharks from a distance. I remember |
| anchorage. It's not long before the dinghy from one | | | | being on watch in the Sargasso Sea as we slid slowly |
| boat is tied up at the other one, drinks and food is | | | | past big clumps of floating seaweed and watching all |
| being served, and laughter and conversation is spilling | | | | the critters who called those clumps home. And I once |
| out of the cockpit. | | | | rode on the back of a giant manta ray for almost an |
| We are sometimes able to stay in touch with friends | | | | hour. Amazing. I can never get enough of that stuff! |
| by radio or email, and often catch up with folks | | | | Being independent. I am a very independent cuss. I'm |
| somewhere down the line. Notes are compared, | | | | sure that's one big reason why cruising appeals to me |
| stories are told of the adventures had while apart, and | | | | so much. Besides the element of self-sufficiency that |
| more drinks and food are served. There is a | | | | is one of the key principles of the lifestyle, I like being |
| camaraderie and bond among members of the | | | | able to call our own shots about when to leave, when |
| cruising fleet that, for me at least, hasn't existed | | | | to stay, and where to go. I love to learn, and the |
| anywhere else. | | | | independence of cruising demands learning about a lot |
| The Cohesiveness of the "Village." The bond of | | | | of different things so that prudent decisions can be |
| cruisers isn't limited to social life. There is a tacit | | | | made. I've learned about weather, the physics of |
| tradition of fellowship in the world's largest small village | | | | radiowaves, the ins and outs of diesel engines, and, of |
| that can be deeply inspiring. Ranging from standing by | | | | course, boat handling in all kinds of conditions-things I |
| to take lines for a docking boat to providing shelter, | | | | wouldn't have attempted to master if my lifestyle |
| clothes, and food to a family whose boat has been | | | | hadn't called for it. |
| dashed to bits on a reef, this is a society that selflessly | | | | Awesome sunrises and sunsets. I never get tired of |
| and without second thoughts moves to help its | | | | watching the sun rise and fall over the horizon. Those |
| members no matter how dire the situation. | | | | are some of the best shows in nature. I love standing |
| There were many times that I joined in the efforts to | | | | the 4:00 a.m. watch at sea, so that I can watch the |
| help other cruisers. A boat dragging anchor in Santa | | | | sky gradually lighten and the sun come up. And I love |
| Rosalia (Mexico), a middle-of-the-night foiling of a | | | | sitting at anchor in the cockpit in the evening, first |
| dinghy thief in La Paz (Mexico), a VHF-linked radio | | | | watching the sun set, then watching the clouds reflect |
| watch through the night among a group of us on the | | | | the afterglow. My photograph collection is filled with |
| edge of a tropical storm in Panama-these are a few | | | | pictures of sunrises and sunsets-I couldn't tell you |
| of the examples of situations where we banded | | | | where most them were, but no matter. |
| together to help the community. | | | | |