ASK YOUR QUESTIONS, Safety & Security
June 13th, 2010 - by Sally Erdle
Question
I have a question regarding safety while cruising. Our dream has for the last almost 20 years was to retire early and go cruising to the Caribbean aboard our 41 ft ketch.
But now, as that time is quickly approaching, I’m beginning to be afraid of the safety issues. It seems there is an increasing number of reported incidents against cruisers, whether petty theft or worse. Enough to make us wonder if going cruising is now safe.
To all of you who are living the life we are dreaming of, is it safe? Is personal safety in the Caribbean worse than cities here in the US? Am I being silly or ??? Any input would be appreciated!
Thanks,
Karen
We asked Sally Erdle, editor of the cruising newspaper “Caribbean Compass” to reply:
Dear Karen, I’d advise you not to give up your dream.
Yes, there are security issues in the Caribbean, as there are everywhere.
But recent input from active cruisers in the Caribbean might be enlightening:
…Read more
Relationships & Roles Aboard
June 10th, 2010 - by Meri Faulkner
 In April, Betsy Morris wrote about the division of boat jobs aboard Salsa (Boat jobs: Pink or Blue? Betsy Morris’ Confession). She wondered how other cruising couples divided up the jobs and whether they were happy with the result. Marcie Lynn commented here. Following is Meri Faulkner’s response.
I have considered myself ‘pink’ where the boat chore distribution is concerned, and my husband, Jim,‘blue’. I am responsible aboard Hotspur for much of what I was responsible for back home on land: grocery shopping, laundry, cooking, cleaning, bill paying, sewing, etc…
However, I got to thinking about your article and it dawned on me… not all my jobs are ‘pink’.
I think I might fall into the category of ‘violet’.
…Read more
How We Learn
June 4th, 2010 - by Kim Hess
“Tonto he was smart, one day said Kemosabe, Kiss my ass I bought a boat, I’m going out to sea.” Lyle Lovett’s, If I had a Boat
I could not wait to make this the ring tone on my phone, and I did November 20, 2009 as the selling broker and I were bringing ‘my’ boat back to her home at Florida Sea Base after the survey.
Since that day my entire life has changed. I have moved aboard, left my full time yoga teaching position in Miami Beach and am preparing to receive my first Boy Scout crew for the ten weeks I will be running at Sea Base in the Florida Keys.
…Read more
Relationships & Roles Aboard
June 1st, 2010 - by Marcie Lynn
 In April, Betsy Morris wrote about the division of boat jobs aboard Salsa (Boat jobs: Pink or Blue? Betsy Morris’ Confession). She wondered how other cruising couples divided up the jobs and whether they were happy with the result. Following is Marcie Lynn’s response.
I enjoyed reading Betsy’s article, but I guess I never had delusions (or was desirous) of being able to do all the “blue” chores that David does aboard Nine of Cups.
He’s an engineer and I was VP of marketing for a medical company. The difference in being on land versus afloat is that anything I needed to get done on land, I could hire someone to do. While at sea, it’s life critical to be able to handle everything yourself.  …Read more
Relationships & Roles Aboard
May 27th, 2010 - by Livia Gilstrap
 I am not an Admiral. I am a co-captain, a sailor, a cruiser, a wife, and sometimes a wench, but I am not an Admiral.
The word is a title of importance. It denotes authority, oversight and ultimate responsibility for a fleet.
The term has historical context which also imbues it with power. There are many Admirals in the sailing community who were pioneers simply because they, as women, left home and hearth for the open sea.
…Read more
TIPS
May 24th, 2010 - by Truus Sharp
 We have a new feature article on Women and Cruising. It arose out of a question we received from Cruising World: Have any of your contributors been involved in a galley refit project? So we asked 12 of our contributors and they responded with a gold mine of practical advice and experience. Following are five simple ideas that Truus Sharp of Key of D shared. You can read all of Truus’ ideas and those of our other 11 contributors in Refitting the Galley: 12 Experiences.
We have not had to do any major renovations to the galley on Key of D because we were very careful to design it to suit us at the outset.
However, we have owned 5 other boats and have a few ideas for some simple things that can be done in almost any galley to make it easier to use.
These are not really “renovations” just the little things that anyone can do quickly and inexpensively.
…Read more
Events and Seminars
May 19th, 2010 - by Nancy Erley
NWSA’s 9th Annual Women’s Sailing Conference (a Take the Helm® event) is only two weeks away! Come join us! It will take place Saturday June 5, 2010 at the Corinthian Yacht Club on beautiful Marblehead Harbor in Massachusetts.
Nancy Erley, two-time circumnavigator, calculates that this will be her 6th year at the conference. One year she traveled all the way from London to attend!
Why does she keep coming back as a volunteer instructor?
Nancy says: “I love being with a big group of women who all love what I love – sailing. And this is a very well organized conference at an exceptional venue. “
We asked Nancy to tell us about the workshops she will be giving this year:
This year I’m giving 3 workshops:
1. How to turn your boat around in tight spaces using spring lines:
I’ll show where to tie the line in order to drive against it and spring the boat away from the dock.
We will use a boat at the dock and flip it around every which way with whatever long lines we can find aboard.
We may be tying two dock lines together to get the length we need to turn the boat completely around at the dock without the engine.
…Read more
Books, Websites, Blogs
May 13th, 2010 - by Kathy Parsons
 As you may know, Women and Cruising co-host Gwen Hamlin each month writes a column for Latitudes and Attitudes magazine called The Admiral’s Angle.
Gwen has a group of “admirals” – women cruisers scattered around the globe who email their input to Gwen on each month’s topic. Gwen and her admirals have been doing this every month now for almost 4 years, and this month we are publishing Gwen’s 44th column!
…Read more
Cruisers give back
May 3rd, 2010 - by Ruth Allen
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. …Read more
Relationships & Roles Aboard
April 29th, 2010 - by Betsy Morris
 I have a new sailing friend, an exceptionally competent woman.
The first day we met, on a beach in the Bahamas, Doris said “I wish I’d understood when we moved aboard how uneven the tasks would seem. I wish I’d understood that my husband’s skills carried more weight than mine.”
That got us talking about how we divvy up chores aboard. Another friend, equally competent, joined us.
Neither Doris, nor Maj-Lis, nor I change the oil. We don’t know how; frankly none of us want to learn. Yet we do our share of chores.
Boat chores, like home chores, fall into categories:
- domestic (laundry, cooking, remembering to send birthday cards);
- running the boat (navigating, sail trim, helm, anchoring);
- ordinary maintenance (polish the fiberglass, teak, brass, etc., clean the bilge, annual inspection of standing rigging, sheets, ground tackle, sails, etc.);
- and extraordinary maintenance when something’s going wrong (steering cable replacement, unclog head, fix/replace water pump).
Who does these jobs on your boat? I’d like to report that I can do all those things and that I do them. But I’d be lying. …Read more
Events and Seminars
April 24th, 2010 - by Kathy Parsons
 Would you like to improve your sailing skills while meeting lots of cool women and having FUN?
Sign up for NWSA’s 9th annual Women’s Sailing Conference, a Take the Helm® event!
It will take place Saturday June 5, 2010 at the Corinthian Yacht Club on beautiful Marblehead Harbor in Massachusetts. (I will be there!)
It’s a full day of learning, sailing, sharing, networking, and good fun. You can participate in a variety of workshops for women of all sailing abilities, presented by some of the best women sailors around. …Read more
ASK YOUR QUESTIONS, Provisioning-Cooking, TIPS
April 21st, 2010 - by Gwen Hamlin
Question:
We are planning an 8 day catamaran trip to the BVI’s. This is a first sailing trip for my boyfriend and I, and my sis and her hubby. My boyfriend and I love to cook, grill, prepare, etc. My sister and her husband prefer not to bother. So here is my question, do you have some recipes that you could share that are fun and easy to prepare, but may just knock their socks off? What should we take with us that we can not purchase there but are simple to pack?
Any other advice that you have would be appreciated. We depart in just 7 days!
We forwarded Deanna’s question to Gwen Hamlin since she used to run a charter boat in the Virgin Islands. Here is Gwen’s response:
These days, most everything you could want to cook with is available in the Virgin Islands, thanks to the thriving crewed charter industry.
Your choices would be better in the US Virgin Islands, which is where I worked out of, but Tortola is pretty good too.
Road Town is the main city of the British Virgin Islands, and when I was there (a while ago now) there were two big supermarkets and a Gourmet Gallery specialty store catering to the charter boats.
…Read more
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