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Sailing Families revisited

S/V TOTEM Stevens 47 sloop - Homeport: Eagle harbor, USA


Families Revisited
12 Families
 

Behan & Jamie GIFFORD + Niall (16), Mairen (13), Siobhan (11) - The Totem family of 5 first answered our 12 questions in their second year of cruising. Now, with five more years of active cruising, they answer the questions again, reflecting on what has changed and what has remained the same.

2014 - Andaman Sea 2012 - Papua New Guinea 2008 - Mexico (La Paz)

Click on a question or scroll down this page

1. The biggest challenge you faced in getting out there?   7. How do you handle: HEALTH and SAFETY?
2. Is there a best age to take children cruising?   8. How do you handle: EDUCATION and FULFILLMENT?
3. Any modifications to the boat for the children?   9. How do you handle: TASKS and CHORES?
4. Anything you wish you had known before you left?   10. What do you like BEST / LEAST about cruising?
5. A typical day aboard? Your kids' responsibilities?   11. Has cruising changed your family?
6. A great moment?   12. A recipe for cruising families?

Learn more about the TOTEM family

About Behan GIFFORD's BOOK

See TOTEM's answers to the original 12 families questions (2010)

 

1. What was the biggest challenge you faced in getting out there?

There are many challenges to getting out there: making tough financial choices, addressing family concerns, and lining up our lives to make everything happen.

I think the hardest thing is just sticking with the commitment to go.

Often, it's years leading up to departure, with many decision points along the way that make it all too easy to delay, and delay again, and ultimately never go on this wonderful adventure.

Appreciate that nobody is ever completely ready and embrace the leap. It's a lot more difficult in anticipation than it is in hindsight!


2. How old were your children when you left? Is there a best age to take children cruising?

 
Young swimmers
in Mexico - 2008
  Getting ready to toss message in a bottle
near Sri Lanka - 2015

When we sailed away from Bainbridge Island on Totem, our kids had recently turned 9, 6, and 4; today, those cruising kid veterans are 16, 13, and 11.

Although “best age” is a very individual calculus, I think the sweet spot is with kids that are old enough to have some independence yet young enough that their life centers around their parents instead of their peers- roughly age 5 to 12.

There are a plenty of families that make cruising with babies work, but it wasn't for us. We logged thousands of miles cruising locally while our children were infants and toddlers, which mostly meant Jamie single-handing while I managed the herd. I'll never forget the shock of waking up one morning to realize that our babe had managed to climb up a steep companionway INTO the cockpit. She was looking down, laughing at us!

With teens on board, I have a newfound appreciation for the challenges we might have faced pulling them away from strong ties outside the family - to friends or sports or other activities - unless cruising was something they really wanted to do.

Niall (16)

It's better for kids to start young; kids we meet that start as adolescents don't seem to enjoy cruising as much, they have more land-based connections that are hard to leave.


All questions

3. Did you make modifications to the boat for the children? Any suggestion?

Totem needed a few modifications for our family.

•  There are five of us, but we could only fit four bodies around our table without the extension that crossed the entire cabin. Jamie rebuilt the table and settees so that we could all fit (and a guest), and improved storage areas around the settees at the same time.

 
Adding seating area: making seating on the port side more U-shaped,
and putting a bench in on the opposite side of the table

•  Two of our changes were based upon having very little ones aboard.

We modified the flush system on our aft head so that our younger girls had the reach (and the leverage) to flush it themselves.

And, because our two littlest ones often ended up in bed with mom and dad, Jamie modified the layout of our aft cabin - removing the starboard side single berth, and expanding the port side double into a wider bunk - so we could all fit.

•  We've added desk space to sit and read or study, and we added a LOT of bookshelf feet.
E-readers make a lot of those extra feet of shelf space less important in some ways, but a lot of our learning materials are still physical instead of digital.

•  Most important for families is to ensure that each kid has a space to call their own, to retreat and store personal things, even if that space carved out from within a shared area and enclosed by a curtain instead of a door.

We adapted the bunk beds in our son's cabin to make it a more kid-friendly space, and added a bookshelf and stuffed animal bin to the forepeak for our daughters.


4. Anything you wish you had known before you got started? Any advice for families?

Is there anything that you wish you had known about cruising as a family before you got started?

I wish I'd had less stress about homeschooling; it unnecessarily consumed a lot of emotional energy during our first year.

What is school? Dancing lessons on Budi Budi atoll

And, I wish I had fully appreciated what a wonderful way of life this would be for our family. I'd have put less time into homeschool research and more into organizing our lives to enable longer term cruising.

Our financial planning was based on a 3 to 5 year window. But instead of having kids that want to be “home” for high school, they love it as much as we do- we're now into our eighth year of cruising, and don't want to stop.

Mom, Dad – is there anything you'd like to tell other moms and dads contemplating this life change?

•  It really helps to find people around you who will encourage your plans. Many people will be indifferent, and some will be negative – even suggesting that it'll harm your children one way or another.
Supporters can help keep the naysayers in perspective.

• We found it helpful to do weekend/holiday cruising during the years leading up to departure. That allowed our kids to grow into boat sense from infancy, and to associate good memories of family time together with being aboard.

Kids, do you have advice for other kids?

Niall (16)

Make sure your parents know it's important to be around other kid boats… it's always enjoyable to have peers around, and it can be hard when you have long stretches without other kids.


All questions

5. A typical day aboard? What are the kids' responsibilities aboard?

A typical day at anchor

Snorkeling in Maldives- Mairen

There is no typical, but a common rhythm is to have mornings on board, and afternoons in the water or ashore. Mornings are a good time for learning in progress, whether that's multiplication tables or a good book. While the kids have quieter time, Jamie and I catch up on our own chores or boat maintenance.

This morning, that meant responding to email/comments from Totem's blog for me while Jamie worked on troubleshooting our watermaker. This afternoon, we'll take the dinghy to shore and have planned to check out an ice rink for the sheer novelty of it. At the moment we're anchored near a tuna cannery that attracts sharks, so swimming is off the agenda!

Niall (16)

The first half of the day is usually reading and writing; the second half is hanging out with our friends…doing something on shore, or getting together on another boat.

Mairen (13)

We'll swim off the boat if the water is nice, or if there's a good beach nearby, that's probably where we'll spend the afternoon!

Siobhan (11)

Sometimes it's boring if we're not with other kid boats or haven't made plans. We might go to town with other kids, plan things like movie nights, or get together with other boats for sundowners.

A typical day on passage

Lots of reading and movies on passages

Conditions at sea determine what a day looks like on passage.
We're usually pretty low key, and spend a lot of time reading, listening to music or audio files.
If the sea state is safe and comfortable, we'll often spend time in the cockpit when it's not too hot.

Niall (16)

The days are taken up by reading, movies, or helping out in the cockpit with watch…broken up by meals in between.

Mairen (13)

I read and talk to Siobhan, or listen to music; sometimes hang out in the cockpit.

Siobhan (11)

Passages are usually not very eventful, unless we see dolphins or whales- they're cool, or there was the time we saw waterspouts. That was cool but a little scary, we had three near us.

    Watching waterspouts near TOTEM

    What are the kids' responsibilities aboard?

    Niall takes the helm on watch
    Siobhan stomps laundry near a well in Chagos

    The kids really like being an active part of the crew, and even at an early age it's not hard to give them something to do: it's great learning. It helps them feel important, and it can be meaningful help.

    Our kids, like kids pretty much everywhere, are expected to help out with life maintenance - they just might be scrubbing the “grass” from the waterline instead of mowing it in the yard or polishing stainless instead of washing windows.

    The typical chores that are part and parcel of everyday life, from dishes to laundry to cleaning up, are simply done afloat instead of ashore.

    As they've gotten older, they've taken on bigger roles on the boat like keeping watch when we're on passages.

    Niall (16)

    We share duties like dishes and cabin cleanup; I'll sometimes help with bigger chores like hauling water or boat maintenance projects.

    Mairen (13)
    I help clean the bottom, and that's fun if we're in nice water and there's coral or fish. Even scrubbing the deck is fun because we can get wet and have a good time with it. I like taking care of our hamster…I don't like having to clean dirty dishes.

    Siobhan (11)

    I do things like sweeping the floor, dishes, generally tidying up, cleaning our hamster's cage. I help empty water jugs into the tanks or clean up the cockpit. Most recently I had to throw a dead fish out of my bunk after it fell down the hatch one night! That was an experience.


6. A great moment?

Niall

Being anchored in one place one day, a new place the next… not knowing who you'll meet… then within a day, making new friends that you know surprisingly well.

Like when we met Momo in Puteri Harbor, it was an instant connection.

Or Utopia; our friends had told us to look for them, and we hadn't been around kid boats much for a year, but it was still surprising to drop anchor next to them in Malaysia.

The next thing you know, we're eating together at a beachfront café and kids are playing together in the water, having a great time, and two years later, we've mostly been traveling together.

Kids from TOTEM, MOMO, CEILYDH, UTOPIA in Malaysia

Mairen

We spent a number of months in a small harbor in Malaysia while there was work being done on our engine.

Normally it wouldn't be fun to get stuck in one place, but there were islands on the edge of the harbor where we could play every day and the kids knew them better than anyone. We knew all the trails and rocks, had our special spots, built forts, we even created a theater and put on a performance of The Wizard of Oz for the boats in the anchorage.

Siobhan

I'll never forget climbing to the top of the volcano (Gunung Api) in Banda, Indonesia, because it was a huge challenge to go up- and then going down was really fun, we were sliding down the gravel on our bums and I blew out my shorts!

I also loved celebrating Halloween and Christmas with Nalukai, Sea Glass, and Muscat when we were sailing along New Guinea. They're our really good friends and it didn't matter that we were in such a remote place, we have a great time together.

Siobhan and Ryan summit Gunung Api in Banda

7. How do you handle: HEALTH and SAFETY

Keeping the kids safe aboard

•  This has evolved over time as the physical size, judgement, and boat sense of the kids has increased. What works for our family is just that! Now that all aboard are strong swimmers, we only rarely wear PFDs on Totem or in the dinghy. On passage, we wear harness and tethers.

•  One of our biggest safety factors is managing sun protection. With skin cancer on both sides of our family, Jamie and I have to be vigilant and make sure we and the kids stay protected.

•  Now that they are older, the kids are often on the boat without a parent or exploring ashore independently. We typically keep a family VHF channel for contact, and always discuss expectations around communication and timing before separating, and what do if a potential or real issue arises.

For example, if they're onboard alone and a squall hits, they know how to monitor our anchored position and use the engine to “hold station” if Totem begins to drag. Being with the kids so much we've developed a great level of trust in their abilities as well as an understanding of their limitations.

Caring for the kids offshore

PFD and tether for watchkeeping- Siobhan age 11

•  If it's been while since we went on a passage, we have a family meeting to review safety rules in advance. When the kids were younger, this would include practicing clipping in and out of the jack lines on deck, proper use of their harnesses, etc.

•  On passages, we may hang out in the cockpit in calm daylight conditions without safety gear on, but harnesses, PFDs, or both are in use when anyone gets on deck at night or in rough weather.

Nobody leaves the cockpit, ever, without telling someone else and validating if safety gear is necessary- adults and kids alike. In general, the kids spend most of their time below deck on passages. That's partly because our cockpit doesn't have great sun protection and partly the outcome from years of conditioning when the kids were more likely to stay below deck on passage for safety reasons.

Caring for the kids in rough weather

When the weather is rough, one of the most important things for Jamie and I to do is watch how we're displaying our own stress levels. The kids pick up on our emotions, and a great deal of their anxiety level is tied to ours.

As for coping mechanisms, they tend to seek out comfortable spots on the boat: it may be cross-wise on our queen size bunk in the aft cabin, or they may put pillows on the main cabin floor, and sink into a book or a movie. If it's too bouncy to watch or read, audio books are a good way to escape and help pass the time.

Keeping the kids healthy, eg getting medical care

•  Our health in general seems much easier as cruisers than it was at home; we don't seem to go through months of sniffles in the winter and aren't subjected to common colds that get passed around at the office or school. When we do come down with something, it's probably because we've been in a population center or trafficked tourist destination.

•  We've spent most of our time in less developed countries and enjoy eating locally, but haven't had a problem with food-borne illnesses (except a couple cases we've inflicted on ourselves by accident…like that bad egg I bought in Maldives, ick). We find it's a safer bet to avoid “western” or tourist oriented restaurants and head for cafes that cater to local crowds. Street food for the win!

Waiting for the dentist in Seychelles

•  We've been through 20 countries now, and routine medical care has never been a problem. People everywhere need dentists and pediatricians and GPs; if I miss an annual exam, it's probably because I was lazy, and not because there wasn't an opportunity.

This week we all had our teeth cleaned at the dentist in Victoria, Seychelles. It's a tiny country, but there's a good dentist and modern equipment and services at a reasonable cost (about $30 per person). That's pretty typical of our experience over the years.
(more: www.sailingtotem.com/tag/healthcare)

•  We carry catastrophic insurance that we hope never to touch, and pay for everything out of pocket; we have yet to spend in an entire calendar year what our premiums cost for one month in the USA…I'm much more concerned about handling medical costs when we are back in the US than I am while we're out of the country.


8. How do you handle: EDUCATION and FULFILLMENT?

Schooling

Mairen journals on a passage - 2013
She gets into flow for learning when she is in the most awkward positions

Our approach to learning on board has evolved over time. Fundamentally, it is led by the interests of the learner. I've written a lot about boatschooling on our blog.

6 months of “normal” school in Australia - 2012

In general, as the kids have gotten older, we've added more structure- but we don't use a packaged curriculum, and tend to be much more freestyle in planning and sourcing materials than most cruising families we know.

As the kids have aged, we've also moved towards more digital content, with the advent of great digital (but offline-friendly) tools like Khan Academy Lite, ebooks, wikipedia (the offline version using Kiwix) and educational videos (like Crash Course or Horrible Histories) to support printed materials and the world around us.

Friendships and social interactions

•  As the kids themselves mentioned above, being around other kids is important; peer company is increasingly valued as teens. It is not difficult to have the company of other kids, however, even on less common routes.

This year, there are 15 kids crossing the Indian Ocean- a big stretch of water, but with major ports of call; we've shared passages, met up in different ports, and had great camaraderie in the kid fleet.

Charging off on a scavenger hunt in Chagos
MOMO change their plans to head to South Africa
and come into Puteri Harbour, Malaysia

•  We have also gone for months at a time without other cruisers or kid boats nearby, and after a while, it gets old. It helps us that our kids have each other for companionship.

•  Ultimately, being around other kid boats is a choice.

If you dogmatically stick with the route you dreamed about while reading Slocum, you are more likely to find yourself alone.

If you put a little effort into meeting up with other kid boats and allow flexibility in your plans, it's not difficult to find the company of other cruising families.

Keeping the kids entertained

Squally day swimming with friends in the Spice Islands - 2013

•  The perceived burden of “keeping kids entertained” is a land-based concept that doesn't really apply to our context. We had to think about this a bit when they were younger, but at their current ages, entertainment is in their hands.

One of the gifts of cruising is that life slows down, and kids figure out what to do to instead of needing to “be entertained” by a revolving series of distractions.

•  That said, things that are most used for entertainment on Totem are the environment around us, a deep stash of books, a locker full of games, and a cache of movies for evening fun.

Personal space aboard

•  Our sixteen year old son has his own cabin, just forward of the saloon; it's pretty small, but has two bunks. We removed the door for egress safety reasons when he was 9, and are now looking at adding a curtain to provide him with additional privacy.

•  Our daughters, age eleven and thirteen, share the forepeak. The bunk is roughly queen size, and they each have similar sets of cubbies on their respective port and starboard halves for storing clothes and special things. They share a single long bookshelf and a bin for treasures.

•  Jamie and I have a master suite in the aft end of the boat. It's nice to have a little separation from the kids' zone forward of the mast, and to have two different heads!

Family back home and their concerns

My parents seemed to be in denial about our plans during the years leading up to our departure. As departure neared, they weren't too happy about our decision to go, but didn't get in our way or reject our choice outright.

We're just starting our eighth year as cruisers, so at this point, they've had time to appreciate that the kids are thriving in this way of life and the path we've chosen brings our family tremendous rewards.

It's hard for us not to see our relatives more often, but that's a reality of our finances…and we've been lucky to have some really special visitors from afar.

Rare and wonderful visit from family- Behan's cousin

9. How do you handle: TASKS and CHORES

Laundry

Laundry day in Chagos.

On Totem, we do laundry in a 5-gallon bucket, unless there's very affordable laundry service nearby.

Bucket washing can start with a soak the night before, then taking turns “agitating” with a plunger in the morning, and finally rinsing it out (this usually takes 2 bucket cycles- vinegar helps).

Clothes dry in the sun, hung on the lifelines.

It's a shared job that everyone can do.

Clean-up and daily maintenance of the boat

Kids do most of the dishes on board, usually done at the end of every meal. For the kids not on dish duty, mornings are when the floor is swept, cabin tidied, and hamster cage cleaned if necessary.

The kids keep their cabins clean on their own, but I usually have to nudge along to see who's on call next for dishes or other chores!

When it's time for a big clean on deck, we usually all get involved.

The kids are less involved in the mechanical maintenance, that's Jamie's bailiwick, but are known to help out with individual projects like outboard maintenance.

Feeding the family, nutrition and cooking

I do more of the provision planning and routine grocery shopping; everyday meal prep is shared. Breakfasts are often a serve-yourself affair with toast or cereal, unless Jamie or I are making a hot breakfast.

I tend to make most of our lunches, and dinners are split between Jamie and me, with duty occasionally turned over to the kids.

On passages, however, I do all the meals.

More at www.sailingtotem.com/tag/provisioning.


10. What do you like BEST / LEAST about cruising

Best

Behan & Jamie

  • The best part of cruising is opportunity to spend so much time together as a family, building great memories and experiences as our children grow up- these are precious years we can't get back.
  • Cruising also gives us the opportunity to constantly be challenged and learn new things, from weather and boat mechanics to new languages and cultures- I have incurable wanderlust, and this keeps it in check.

Niall (16)

Being able to travel the world! I like getting to try new food, try learning a new language, experiencing different cultures… knowing it's going to be different every time is something I really love.

Mairen (13)

Seeing new places, meeting people, eating good food!
Having all that and good friends around, like Utopia and Morning Glory, makes it great.

Siobhan (11)

Being able to see all these cool things that most people won't ever get to see. And I get to do it at a young age, like getting dressed in traditional clothes and going to the Galungan festival at an important temple in Bali. Or finding six kittens and two puppies at a shipyard in Thailand nursing them to health.

 

Least

Behan & Jamie

The constant maintenance…the occasional inconvenience of things breaking that you can't fix for a while, being unable to get a bucket of ice cream when/because you want to…instant gratifications! They just can't begin to compete with the upsides.

Niall (16)

The fact we'll meet someone new and then have to depart, not knowing if we'll ever see them again. Sometimes I wish I was in a normal school, like when we were back in Australia, and had a regular routine and met a lot of other kids… but not enough that I want to stop cruising.

Mairen (13)

It's hard saying goodbye; we've had such good friends on boats like Honey, Kristina II, Water Musick. It's not always easy to stay in touch. Of course, rough weather isn't any fun…I'll tuck into the aft cabin and try to nap or read until it's easier.

Siobhan (11)

  • It's hard to say goodbye to friends we've made in a place. Sometimes we get to meet them again, but it's highly unlikely. It helps that we stay with boats like Utopia and Momo and Ceilydh, with our friends on board. You're always moving and don't really know the place you're in; if you're not with another kid boat, I still get in a mood to get off the boat and be social and walk around…I can't just sit in one place, but if there aren't other kids I'll get grumpy. If we were in a house on land there'd be friends nearby and I wouldn't have to worry about getting lost if I went for a walk.
  • Sometimes it's hard to be far away and not able to get things we need, like in Chagos, we used coconut husks and fiberglass glue to fix someone's rudder because you couldn't go buy the normal things that were needed. Right now I need a new cover to protect my Kindle, but I'll have to wait a while for one to be sent from another country.

11. Why did you go cruising as a family? Has cruising changed your family?

Family snorkeling in the Maldives - the family that snorkels together

Why did we go cruising as a family

•  We lost Jamie's mother when she was in her 50s, before she could know our children. This was a wakeup call that turned our desire to go cruising “eventually” into a plan and a date to leave. Many people we've meet seem to regret that they didn't get to spend more time with their kids, so we're enjoying this time while we can – wrapped in the concurrent dreams of an alternative lifestyle and experiencing the world.

•  Jamie had the dream since childhood, and gave me a copy of Robin Lee Graham's book “Dove” when we first started dating. I've had travel wanderlust and a passion for sailing since I was a teen, so bringing them together was a natural progression.

Has cruising changed our family

It's hard to say how it's changed our family because we've spent so much of our life as a family cruising that we don't really have “before” and “after”. It's been more than half of our daughter's lives (currently aged 11 and 13); our youngest really doesn't remember life before cruising.

But the ideals we set out- to have more time with our kids, to raise them as broad minded citizens of the world- are goals we've achieved.

I also suspect that our children have much more patience and appreciation of what they have; instead of blind entitlement, they appreciate that we're very lucky.


All questions

12. One of your favorite quick, handy recipes for cruising families?

Fish 'cooked' in lime juice"

Fish “cooked” in lime juice is a perennial favorite on Totem. It seems as though almost every island-oriented culture has a different name and a slightly different take on this basic dish: ceviche in Mexico, poisson cru in French Polynesia, ota' ika in Tonga, kokoda in Fiji, and probably dozens of other variations.

Ingredients

 

Directions

  • Fresh fish (any firm reef fish; sierra, wahoo or mahi mahi is superb; tuna is traditional in Polynesia)
  • Lime juice (or lemon)
  • Onions, minced finely, then rinsed (to cut the bite)
  • Additional chopped vegetables- most commonly chili peppers, but also, tomato, cucumber or celery; chopped cilantro if we're missing Mexico.
  • Optional: Coconut milk (ideally freshly made; should be rich, don't use “lite”)
 
  1. Cut fish into small-bite-size pieces, and put into a non-reactive container.
  2. Add lime juice to barely cover and set aside to “cook” – I put it in the fridge. Stir it periodically to help all the fish bits get in contact with lime juice. Once it's opaque, it's done; usually a few hours.
  3. Drain and reserve the juice.
  4. Add onions and whatever other vegetables you want; season with salt to taste
  5. Add some generous dollops of creamy coconut milk. Taste and adjust, adding back lime juice if needed.

In Mexico, this would almost always include tomatoes, chilies, and cilantro, and we'd spoon it on crunchy tostadas to eat; elsewhere, it's served in individual bowls. South Pacific variations almost always include coconut milk (but never cilantro). Most memorable was the delicious Marquesan style, which includes a fermented coconut cream the consistency of thick buttermilk.

 

About the TOTEM family

Indonesia 2013- TOTEM below - Photo: Hyo-Jung Jwa.

Our children turned 9 (Niall), 6 (Mairen) and 4 (Siobhan) in the month before we moved aboard Totem, our Sparkman & Stephens designed Stevens 47.

That was back in 2008—they're now 16, 13, and 11.

We sailed south from Seattle to Mexico and spent 18 months there getting into the rhythm of the cruising life. Then we sailed across the amazing Pacific and landed in Australia at the end of 2010. After pausing from active cruising to work in Australia and top up the cruising kitty, we took off again in 2012 sailing north through Papua New Guinea, then winding our way through Southeast Asia for a couple of years.

In 2015, we're working our way across the Indian Ocean, and currently in Seychelles. We're pretty sure we'll head for the Caribbean after rounding South Africa at the end of this year, but are also thinking about getting to the Mediterranean. Only time will tell the full path of this adventure!

Our family life and cruising lessons are blogged at www.SailingTotem.com, with more frequent updates to our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/sailingtotem.

VOYAGING WITH KIDS - A Guide to Family Life Afloat
by Behan Gifford, Sara Dawn Johnson, Michael Robertson

Voyaging with Kids is a guide to help families who want to go cruising, breaking down common questions about how to live afloat for a sabbatical or the long term with tangible recommendations from a mix of viewpoints. All three authors wish we'd had a resource like this help with our own preparations for casting off to explore the world with our kids!

In addition to our own perspective, we solicited input from dozens of other cruising families; many of them wrote sidebars on topics throughout the book. It's full of color photos to provide real-world illustration from families that are out there today. We've also gathered videos, which link in context from the ebook version and are viewable from our Vimeo channel.

When Michael Robertson (Del Viento) reached out to Sara Johnson (Wondertime) and I as fellow family cruisers and writers to propose collaborating on Voyaging With Kids, it was easy to say yes! Helping other people realizing their dreams of going cruising is a meaningful motivator to me, and one of the main reasons I keep blogging and sharing our stories.  But a book like this couldn't come from one voice, and it's our teamwork that underscores what I think makes this book special: the whole premise of this book is to include myriad viewpoints into how to successfully go cruising, because no two families approach it in the same way.


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Sailing Families Revisited (2015-16)

TOTEM's answers to the original 12 families questions (2010)

12 questions to 12 sailing Families (2010)

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