Living on a sailboat



 

Living on a sailboat….


When we left Canada in the fall of 2019 we had basically no experience sailing except for a few weekends at the Hamilton Yacht club where we got our beginners certificate. We did our navigation course. and joined a small sailing club in Ottawa…

Fast forward to February 2022….

We motored and sailed the boat from Canada to Puerto Rico via USA, Bahamas, Turks and Caicos and the Dominican Republic. It’s been quite the adventure and such a learning curve.

So now to give you a little insider information; living on a sailboat full time.

We do love living  on the boat but it can be quite challenging at times. It’s not like in the TV commercial when the lottery winner comes up into the cockpit, holding a cup a coffee, still in jammies, hair all nicely done, with the husband behind the wheel after a night watch looking refreshed and all smiles.

The reality of it is you probably didn’t sleep much, the wind was howling, the waves high, didn’t secure stuff properly below  so dishes and assorted things were flying and crashing below, frayed nerves and many nautical miles to go. Suck it up! You can’t always  pull off on the side and wait for things to calm down. Hence, pay attention and study the weather several days ahead of departure. Check possible emergency anchorage and if unsure…wait for better weather. Why put yourself through the wringer. 😰

Our  boat is 39 feet long, 12 feet wide. It might sound very small for the average person but for us, it’s roomy. Lots of storage space, more so than most sailboats and we have a flush deck so it’s extra space when we want ME time, as well as the cockpit which serves to navigate, entertain friends, BBQ, additional dining space and my favourite…watching the sunset with a glass of wine. Yes, there are bigger boats but for us, this is great. 

Shopping or going on an outing, we need to lower our dinghy “Freddy's his name” ; make sure he’s  full of fuel, (experienced already what it’s like to run out of fuel in the dark 😳) lower all our backpacks and equipment, down a ladder and off we go. Now to find parking at the dinghy dock or you might have to land at the beach….hope you’re wearing sandals and not sneakers lol.

Our poor Freddy has sprung a few leeks lately so we’re patching him with 5200 marine glue at $16.00 US a tube, because it has the word Marine on the glue tube you pay through the nose. Fortunately it’s really good quality and does the job. Mike absolutely loves it and he’s quite willing to glue everything in sight.

One of the sayings is “the definition of cruising is fixing your boat in exotic locations”. We have experienced our share of mechanical woes along the way. Luckily Mike is quite resourceful and has managed some miracles along the way. 

As a cruiser, one of the most difficult things is to have parts shipped out to you. You move around and never stay for long in one spot unless it’s the hurricane season and you obviously have no fixed address. This is when you get very creative and try to fix it until you can get the part sent to you.

So now our fuel is topped up, water tanks full, got our 2 propane tanks filled for the stove and BBQ a few days ago, and ready to push on to the next island , weather permitting of course.

Cheers,

Mike and Pierrette 


Caja de Muerto Island


Mike and Kurt , Caja de Muerto 



Dona Juana Falls





Who can resist this face 😀


Caja de Muerto Island (as known as Coffin Island)



San Juan 


    


My new baseball hat


Beautiful mountains of PR


San Juan..beautiful architecture and colours 


Open courtyard…great flowers 🌸 


Best margaritas in town 


San Juan…parking is at a premium 


Our stowaways on the bow of the boat…left us their mark lol 😂 


San Juan is very hilly


San Juan


Our new cockpit lights with Freddy and our BBQ



Puerto Patillas Beach


Puerto Patillas beach

Great refreshments after a long walk

        

No need to explain  lol 😂 

Comments

  1. MarieFebruary 20, 2022 at 1:47 PM

    San Juan's architecture is beautiful and so colourful too. Enjoy the next stage of your trip.

    ReplyDelete
  2. MarieFebruary 25, 2022 at 6:04 AM

    Tu as bien raison ,la vie de bateau c’est de l’imprévu, de l’inconnu, ne jamais faire son épicerie à la même place mais que de belles découvertes ,avoir et prendre son temps pour connaître les gens .Bonne continuité et bon vent .Marie

    ReplyDelete
  3. UnknownMarch 12, 2022 at 1:41 PM

    Hi! we're the Tayana 37 right across from you in Ensenada Honda, Culebra! So great to find your blog. My wife and I agree with everything in this post. Dan and Beth
    SV Ora Wah

    ReplyDelete
  4. UnknownMarch 14, 2022 at 6:15 PM

    Love seeing you guys having fun in such beautiful locations. Xox

    ReplyDelete
  5. UnknownApril 16, 2022 at 4:10 PM

    Oh, so nice to see you guys and read what is going on. You guys look amazing! We are moving to Rome this summer (for 4 years), do you think you will be crossing the puddle for a pasta dinner, some Tuscan wine and hugs from kids who still look longingly across the street and reminisce about Mike and Pierrette? Hugs.

    ReplyDelete

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