Featured Content
Why We Want to Sail
We traded a conventional life in Ottawa for the dream of raising our children aboard a sailboat — even though I had never sailed.
About Our Boat
SV Aphrodite is a St. Francis 50 catamaran — Hull #1 of an award-winning bluewater design. See her specs, equipment, and offshore features.
Long Reads: Galapagos
Volcanoes, sharks, penguins, sea lions, offshore fishing fleets, and a message in a bottle — the Galapagos is one of the most interesting and diverse places we have visited during…
Long Reads Grenada
A muddy hike, memory-making at Grenada Carnival, drama on a public bus, sailing passages from Trinidad to Grenada and Grenada to Haiti, and what happened when COVID-19 arrived in a…
Why the Caribbean has virtually no tides
Why Caribbean tides are tiny — and why Panama’s beaches can vanish at high tide.
Luperón Long Reads — Boat Kids Go Local
Joining a local school taught entirely in Spanish, learning baseball, making friends, and discovering how quickly the Luperon cruising community can rally when help is needed.
Luperón Long Reads — Designing and Building a Mooring for Our 50-foot Catamaran
A technical long read about how we built a three-point hurricane mooring.
Luperón Long Reads — Waiting Out Hurricane Season
A gritty, funny, and affectionate look at Luperón, Dominican Republic — from stray dogs and bureaucratic red tape to unexpected kindness, cruiser culture, and lunch with Bruce Van Sant.
Bahamas Long Reads — Exumas Stories
Isolated anchorages, tidal creeks, swimming pigs, dock drama, cruiser life, and an encounter with a wild dolphin.
Southern Bahamas Long Reads — Beyond the Exumas
New to sailing, our family navigates shallow reef cuts, spots nurse sharks and wild flamingos, and visits remote island communities in the southern Bahamas.
Latest Blog Posts
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COVID Arrives in Grenada
Reflections on how COVID changed daily life in Grenada — panic buying, toilet-paper guilt, and clashing views on vaccines and freedom.
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From Splendide to Miele: A Washing Machine Upgrade for Our St. Francis 50
After our Splendide broke down, we searched for a reliable washing machine that could handle life at sea. This post describes why we chose a Miele W1, how we shipped it to Grenada, and how it performs on our catamaran.
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End Days for Our Splendide Washer/Dryer — Built for the Landfill
Our Splendide 7100XC washer/dryer met its end after just two years aboard our St. Francis 50 catamaran. From DIY diagnostics in Grenada to a final farewell as a backyard fire pit, this post describes how we tried—and failed—to save a machine that was not designed to be serviced.
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Waiting for Gonzalo
Here we are in Grenada, watching a storm called Gonzalo. Our 12-year-old Paul keeps asking when it starts, while Rick and I ready the boat, because a storm doesn’t care if you’re tired or scared.
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Homeschooling four kids: teaching my nine-year old twins about world history
To survive the noise of four kids I divide and conquer, reading aloud while Rick tutors the rest. This week my nine-year-old twins and I were carried back in time by a history series I can’t stop recommending.
