When you’re cruising, you’re immersed in nature, and many of us enjoy watching the birds while underway or at anchor. But as a boater you’re also in a unique position to contribute to citizen science simply ...Read more]]> In the Women and Cruising blog series “Take Your Passion Cruising” I wrote about my passion: birds.

When you’re cruising, you’re immersed in nature, and many of us enjoy watching the birds while underway or at anchor. But as a boater you’re also in a unique position to contribute to citizen science simply by taking photos of the birds you see on passage and in remote anchorages.

Tropicbirds are commonly reported to the Birding Aboard project, perhaps because they are so elegant and have a habit of circling the mast.
Photo ©Ellen Massey Leonard.

Because there is so little coverage of these areas, the odds are high for a “birder aboard” to contribute notable sightings that help scientists and conservations map bird distribution and abundance.

Here are a few examples of how cruisers can be “the eyes on the water” for birds:

* Sailing vessel s/v Aventura, with the Blue Planet Odyssey through the Northwest Passage, photographed a rare white morph Gyrfalcon cliff-nesting on an island in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Their sighting adds to a lone 1999 historical report of a Gyrfalcon at the same location.

A rare white Gyrfalcon spotted among the cliffs and icebergs
of the Northwest Passage. Photo ©Doina Cornell.

* A 24-year-old who crossed the Atlantic with his father as part of the Atlantic Odyssey fleet, captured stunning photographs of a Trindade Petrel about 1,000 miles east of Martinique. A Trindade Petrel also was reported independently by Dorothy Wadlow on s/v Joyant about 900 miles east of Antigua. Trindade Petrel is a recently split species, considered vulnerable with uncertain global population and range.

A striking capture of a fast-flying ocean bird, a Trindade Petrel at home a thousand miles from shore. Photo ©Michael Sammer.

* Two homeschooled children, ages 10 and 11, logged all the birds they saw during their two-week transatlantic, scoring a Red-billed Tropicbird and Masked Booby closer to Cape Verdes than their expected stronghold in the Caribbean.

* In that same fleet, s/v Gemm and s/v Fleur de Sel documented flocks of Cattle Egrets in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, over a thousand miles from Africa or South America. The Cattle Egret has had one of the most wide-reaching and rapid expansions from its native range in Africa, spreading northward through South and North America since first sighted in Guiana in 1877. They are presumed to have flown across the Atlantic Ocean, given that immature Cattle Egrets will disperse up to 3,100 miles from their breeding area. So Lanzarote to Martinique (the Atlantic Odyssey’s passage) is just a jump across the pond!

* Circumnavigator Ellen Massey Leonard collected photos from her and her husband’s round-the-world passage on 38-foot s/v Heretic, contributing noon positions for notable sightings such as Cape Petrel further north than expected in the Indian Ocean, a Brown Noddy hitchhiker off the South African coast, and a Pomarine Jaeger near St. Paul Rocks in the central equatorial Atlantic Ocean.

A Brown Noddy claims a radome as its perch halfway between Ascension Island and Barbados. Photo ©Ellen Massey Leonard

* Birding Aboard Advisor and U.K. marine conservationist Colin Speedie on s/v Pelerin sailed through the balmy Lesser Antilles, only to spot several notable birds common to him from his northern home port! These included Great Skua, Pomarine and Parasitic Jaeger, and Cory’s Shearwater.

There were also many reports of hitchhiking land birds, such as Bobolink, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Barn Swallow, Mangrove Swallow, Caribbean Martin, Northern Flicker, and Blackpoll Warbler. These sightings reinforce recent tracking evidence that tiny songbirds are able to migrate long distances over the ocean and are not all “storm waifs.”

A tiny Blackpoll Warbler, a migrant between Canada and South America, rests in the cockpit of s/v Cinderella about 20 miles off the Florida coast.
Photo ©Jaye Lunsford.

Going forward, the project is anticipating exciting reports from Blue Planet Odyssey vessels sailing to Tokelau and Vanuatu, another season of attempts through the Arctic’s Northwest Passage, a sailboat cruising the Scandinavian Arctic, and OceansWatch Donna Lange’s solo circumnavigation. And we hope for even more sightings from coastal and offshore cruisers like you!

 The “SeaBC” Sea Bird Count is:

• A Clean Wake Project of the Seven Seas Cruising Association
• An Environmental Programme of the Ocean Cruising Club
• A Project of the Blue Planet Odyssey

For more information on how to participate, visit www.birdingaboard.org or the Birding Aboard Facebook group.

About Diana Doyle

Diana Doyle and her husband Mark write the Intracoastal Waterway cruising guide series, On the Water ChartGuides. They work- and live-aboard their PDQ catamaran Semi-Local.

Diana holds a 50-ton USCG Master’s License, but she especially loves launching her onboard kayak since it gets her closest to the wildlife.

She also writes for birding magazines and is currently the Tools of the Trade Editor for American Birding Association’s Birding magazine.

More from this website

• Diana Doyle enjoys “birding aboard” as she writes cruising guides
• Women cruisers organize seabird citizen science project, by Diana Doyle
• Chance encounters between ships and whales, by Daria Blackwell

The protected Bahamian harbour we are in with its keyhole-type entrance is adjacent to a very friendly community.

Cruisers stop here in Hatchet Bay, Eleuthera, for short or longer stays and it is a very nice mix of both residents and a few tourists. In other words this place welcomes tourists but does not exist ...Read more]]>

The protected Bahamian harbour we are in with its keyhole-type entrance is adjacent to a very friendly community.

Cruisers stop here in Hatchet Bay, Eleuthera, for short or longer stays and it is a very nice mix of both residents and a few tourists. In other words this place welcomes tourists but does not exist solely for the tourist.

This appeals to both of us, since we do not feel we can truly learn about a place and it’s culture by only visiting the normal tourist spots.

As we were planning to stay for a couple of months, I began looking for an opportunity to volunteer in the community, that was providing free of charge moorings and a safe albeit temporary home.

I have been fortunate indeed to spend two days a week at the local primary school working with kids who are having difficulty in school. The kids are polite, quick to smile and just generally fun to be around.

Initially, I wondered what I would be doing with each child, so the first day or two, we talked trying to get to know each other. We also read short books together and wrote stories. I was trying to assess what I could best focus on with each child as well as find out a little about their personalities.

This has been fun for me, and offers me a perspective on the community I would not have otherwise discovered. The school has included me in various activities with open arms. Far more children and their parents know me by name than would if I had  remained a slightly interested visitor.

Some adults have stopped me to thank me for my time! I had been wondering if I was being at all useful, if I had made a mistake entering the lives of the children for so short a time ( several weeks). This question has been recently answered for me.

One teacher says her student has improved the legibility of her writing, another is at last learning cursive writing, and two others have begun to improve their ability to read.

The thing I am happiest about, is having been able to arrange  eye glasses for a child whose parents cannot afford them. This young person will make great strides simply by being able to see her work, thanks to a kind sponsor.

It has been fun to share stories about my home with these curious children, and show them the route our boat took to travel here.

Interesting also is their reaction to learning we have things like an oven aboard, or the fact that “They let me drive the dingy all by myself.” These exchanges offer little windows into the cultural norms of the area.

It will be hard to leave these wonderful young people behind when I begin my journey home soon. Along with the fun, I have also learned things that have made me very sad, and in some cases angry. The children have taught me more than I have shown them.

Would I do it again, given the opportunity? Indeed I would, it has been worth every minute.

I feel privileged to have been allowed to participate in the community in this way. I feel like I have received much for the donation of a small amount of time.

I would encourage others to join in community ventures while cruising, when the opportunity presents itself.

An EEO (Exceptional Education Outreach Bahamas) volunteer wrote this about Ruth’s involvement for their newsletter and passed it on to Women and Cruising:

“A woman who came by boat from Canada and anchored in Hatchet Bay stopped by P.A. Gibson Primary School to see if Mrs. Ingraham, the Principal, needed a volunteer to help with children with learning disabilities.

Her name is Ruth Allen.  She raised two sons who are now middle-aged and both had a variety of learning disabilities. She began coming in on Tuesday and Wednesday to work with the EEO students that were in need of special one-on-one attention with their various disabilities.

One little girl had trouble reading and had a wandering eye which Ruth also had as a child.  She realized that the girl might need glasses.  She mentioned it to someone in her travels through the community and they offered to pay for her to get glasses. The little girl doesn’t know about this yet but will be thrilled to be able to read better.

Ruth has also taken a special interest in one little boy who she feels will do best if he is directed into some sort of technical training for his career choice.  She has offered to take him onto her boat and introduce him to various mechanical/engineering facets of boats in order to spark his interest in pursuing learning a boat-related skill.  He already shows great interest in anything even remotely associated with the sea and will be thrilled when he learns that his father has agreed to allow Ms. Ruth to take him onboard.”

About Ruth Allen

I have been living aboard Witchcraft, my Tom Colvin designed ketch for the last six years. As soon as my four children were launched my husband (Mark) and I emptied the house, and left the land behind.

We are not full time cruisers since we are not retired. I work at West Marine Canada which gives me the opportunity to combine work and pleasure.

I live in Canada and sail every chance I get. I came to sailing later in life and found a new passion.

Visit Ruth’s blog: www.mytb.org/svwitchcraft

Related articles on Women and Cruising

• Ruth Allen’s secret weapon against fear: the theme song from Gilligan’s Island
• The Knack of Befriending Locals (Gwen Hamlin – Admiral’s Angle column #57): What’s behind the knack of forging successful bonds with local peoples in the places we visit.
• Blog posts related to Volunteering
• Our Resource List on Volunteering

More Info

• Exceptional Education Outreach Bahamas (EEO) website
• Hatchet Bay Festival Committee website

How have you gotten involved in the communities you have sailed to?

Leave a comment below or email us: kathy@forcruisers.com

OceansWatch is helping to coordinate a fleet of sailing vessels to take food, medical aid, relief supplies and support to Haiti. ...Read more]]> Everyone has heard what has happened in Haiti, now a number of cruising sailors are organizing themselves into flotillas of private yachts to attempt to supplement aid being delivered by governments and NGO’s.

OceansWatch is helping to coordinate a fleet of sailing vessels to take food, medical aid, relief supplies and support to Haiti. A growing number of sailboats in Florida and Jamaica are preparing to depart in February for Haiti. They will take as many supplies as they can carry and get to them before they depart. Others will follow when the situation and security stabilizes somewhat and others are making plans for longer term sustainable aid delivered by yachts.

OceansWatch North America is working to help coordinate members, boats, donations, materials, supplies and crew preparing to shove off and deliver aid.

The 74’ Schooner WOLF (www.schoonerwolf.com) an experienced veteran at providing aid relief based in Key West, can carry 20 tons of cargo and is bound for Haiti on February 8th along with other vessels in a flotilla carrying aid supplies and volunteers.

OceansWatch member vessel 56’ TRANQUILITY is collecting food, supplies and donations to purchase more to deliver to Haiti in the next few weeks, also departing around February 8.

In Jamaica, the 52’ Ketch KARAKA is organizing a flotilla of aid vessels. They were in Ile a Vache, Haiti when the earthquake stuck and retreated to Jamaica for safety due to hoards of refugees, and also so they could stock up on supplies for a return voyage with other boats.

If you would like to support these efforts, you may make tax-deductible donations to OceansWatch and 100% of funds donated will go directly to purchase aid supplies to be delivered by yachts heading for Haiti to deliver aid.

Please use the Donation page at Oceans Watch and the link to donate from your Paypal account or by credit card. Cash and check donations can be mailed to Haiti Relief, OceansWatch North America, P. O. Box 616, Norwalk, CT 06856 USA. Please make any checks payable to OceansWatch and put Haiti Relief on the Expense/For line.

Press Release from the Conch Republic Navy:

Conch Republic Navy’s Flagship Schooner WOLF Announces Haiti Mission of Mercy Flotilla

January 21, 2010

The Conch Republic Navy is organizing a relief mission to help the victims of January’s catastrophic earthquake in Haiti. Led by the Conch Republic’s Flagship Schooner Wolf, the flotilla includes sloops, catamarans and schooners, all with volunteer crews, and hopes to carry 20 tons of relief supplies. The flotilla is planning to depart the Key West Bight in historic Old Town Key West on February 9^th, laden with a bounty of donated supplies, medicine, and tools donated by Keys residents and businesses. The flotilla vessel’s shall drafts will allow them to reach this coastal village inaccessible by larger relief ships.

“The idea is to make a direct and substantive impact in one cut off area. We want to share the compassion and aid of our island community with another island community,” stated Mary Martin who is heading up communication and general coordination of the efforts.

The Schooner Wolf, with Admiral Finbar Gittelman at the helm, is no stranger to such relief efforts. Over the years, he has taken donated relief supplies to Port Antonio, Jamaica after Hurricane Gilbert (1987), Guanaja, Honduras after Hurricane Mitch (1998), Hope Town, Abaco Bahamas after Hurricane Floyd (2004) and to West End, Grand Bahama after Hurricane Ivan (2005.) In 1998, the Wolf transported members of the Interfaith Pilgrimage of the Middle Passage to Cuba on their journey of retracing that ancient route of slavery.

Money and supply collections are underway. Donation boxes have been set up at Florida Keys Community College, Albertson’s, and Fausto’s locations. Other businesses are collecting items for the efforts include Mel Fishers, Home Depot, Mos, Ocean Key Resort, Blue Heaven, and Salute. The list grows daily. Collected items can be brought to the storage container on Lazy Way Lane across from Schooner Wharf Bar from 9:00a.m.-7:00p.m., where they will be sorted, tagged, bagged and weighed.

The Conch Republic Navy is asking for the following items: water, dry beans, rice, powdered milk, basic medical supplies, and small hand tools. Currently we are in desperate need of basic medical supplies. Water, in particular, is a critical need. Water Water at 5179 US 1 on Stock Island is matching dollar for dollar contributions for water. A $12 donation will purchase a 5 gallon jug of water. The jugs will be left behind for reuse. You may also bring in old 5 gallon jugs and Ken will clean and sterilize them for use.

For those wishing to help the Conch Republic Navy (CRN) and the flagship, Schooner Wolf but are unable to provide hard goods due to time or distance a relief account has been set up at the Key West Bank, 701 Whitehead Street. Checks can be made out to: CRN – Haitian Relief. Money donated will be used to purchase additional supplies locally to fill any gaps in any of the categories of things needed and will be taken directly to Haiti.

Contributions will be gratefully accepted and collected through February 6^th. The hulls will be loaded on February 7^th and 8th on the city dock of the Key West bight behind Schooner Wharf Bar. Expected departure of the fleet will be February 9^th.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACTS:

Julie McEnroe, Schooner WOLF
January 21, 2010 PHONE: 305-296-9694
Email: SailAway@SchoonerWOLF.com

OR

Mary Martin, Florida Keys Community College
PHONE: (c)305-304-1754. (w)305-809-3230
Email: Mary.Martin@FKCC.edu

More info:

• Visit OceansWatch North America website: www.oceanswatch.org
• Visit Schooner Wolf website: www.schoonerwolf.com
• Link to the Pimsleur Creole language download, temporarily available for free download to aid Haitian relief workers: http://promo.simonandschuster.com/HaitiRelief/
• Visit Red Cross website

Related articles

• Cruisers Give Back (Admiral’s Angle column #26)

Back in ...Read more]]> If you’re not an animal lover, you may as well skip this particular log entry.  Just go ahead and exit the site, or move on to the next post, because what I’m about to talk about will only deeply affect those who have large hearts for God’s creatures.

Here’s a story for you

Back in the fall of 1492, Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue and
happened upon Cuba, which he claimed for Spain.

Among the many things he brought ashore were his Spanish horses, beautiful creatures bred for their hardiness, endurance and courageous spirit, and with them, Columbus established two horse farms on the island.

Fast forward 400 years.

At the turn of the 20th century, the pine forest on the island of Abaco in the Bahamas, was being clear-cut, and logged.

Not having any modern machinery in those days, nor work animals on the island, horses were brought in from Cuba to drag the logs out of the forest.

Many years later when tractors became available, the horses, now obsolete, were abandoned and turned loose in the forest to fend for themselves, simply castoffs.

Bred to survive harsh conditions, they made the sun scorched island and the regenerating forest their home, and they thrived despite all odds.

Today, DNA samples prove that the wild horses of Abaco, which are now recognized by the Horses of Americas Registry as Abaco Barbs, are direct, undiluted descendants of the Spanish horses introduced to Cuba by Christopher Columbus in 1492, and brought to Abaco in the late 1800s.  There are no similar horses in Cuba today.

As of this date, only 6 horses remain from a herd of about 200, on the verge of extinction for the second time in recent years.

These beautiful creatures have become endangered by the environmental changes brought about by man; the road which cut through their forest, the relentless clear-cutting of same, the unspeakable atrocities perpetrated by men who hunted and slaughtered them, the fires which destroyed their natural grazing source, the poisonous weeds that grew up in the aftermath of bulldozing.

Against all odds, these 6 remaining Abaco Barbs, known to be the most endangered breed of horse on our planet, continue to fight courageously for their survival.

That, effectively, is the end of the story.

Most people really don’t care. The Bahamian government doesn’t seem to much care, either.

But there’s one woman here in Marsh Harbour, who lives on her boat, and who devotes her life to preventing the extinction of the Abaco Barbs.

Skip and I met with her, to see how we could help, how we could give back, how we can make a difference.

We’ll start by volunteering our time in the Buck-a-Book bookstore, where, not surprisingly, books cost a buck, and all the money generated goes to the non-profit fund for the horses.  And the fund needs money badly.

Now, if I were to ask you whether you thought you could afford to spend $10 a month on eating out, you’d tell me not to be ridiculous.

Of course you can’t eat out for $10/month.  You can’t even buy lunch for two at McDonalds for $10.  I’m not even sure that you can buy a 6-pack of Bud Lite for $10 (you definitely can’t in the Abacos), and I know for an absolute fact that $10 won’t get you more than two boxes of Cornflakes anymore.  I’ve thought about this a lot – Skip and I are on a tight budget out here – and I’ve concluded that in today’s economy, you can’t really do very much at all for $10/month.

But you could make an enormous difference for the Abaco Barbs for $10/month.

If we all did it – if everyone of us who gets this log did it, (which doesn’t include the non-members who simply log in and read from the site), we’d have generated $6750 in one month.  In ONE month!!

(Lydia originally posted this entry in the log that she sends out to friends and family. When she is counting readers and members, she is referring to readers of her log/newsletter.)

That amount of money would go a long way towards catching up the wages for the two loyal men who stand watch over the 5 miles of fence around the horses (constantly weeding around it and repairing it, among other things), who haven’t had a paycheck since July, but are still working, such is their devotion.

I don’t know how you feel about your raison d’etre, but I believe that if I see an opportunity to make a positive difference in this world, I’m obliged to take it.   I mean, really – if you are reading this log, I can safely say that we all agree with that, right?

So, for $10 every month, I am going to be a part of preserving the oldest, and most endangered breed of horse on this earth.

I’m going to help repair the damage that mankind caused these creatures; I’m going to help stave off their extinction for at least another month.  I’m doing it for the horses, and I’m doing it for my grandchildren and your grandchildren, and all their grandchildren, and for the beautiful planet we live on.

I think that most of us could scratch up $10 each month from the change under the seats of our cars and our sofas, not to mention what gets left in our pockets in the laundry hamper.  Would you help me?

Please take the time to look at the site – www.arkwild.org.

Please click the donation button.  I already have.

Love, Lydia

S/V Flying Pig
Morgan 46 #2

Related articles

• Katharine Lowrie sets sail to protect wildlife
• An Addiction: The Fascinating beauty of seashells
• Cruisers Give Back (Admiral’s Angle column #26)
• Taking Passions Cruising (Admiral’s Angle column #41)

What’s your passion? Have you taken it cruising?
Let us know. Email kathy@forcruisers.com or leave a comment below.