The lessons learnt in the last 10 months are many but the one I am going to focus on today is patience and tolerance. Phew, two big words those and the lessons have been gigantic for me. You may just laugh and think it's all so crazy. Well yes this has all been pretty crazy :-)
You sitting back, you have a cuppa something to sip on? .... here we go.
Boats are incredible things, they have such character, they usually have a lifetime of history which they sail with and they usually out live their Captains if they don't sink with their Captain. On our travels we have seen, 'met' and spent time on some of the most incredible vessels of all types, sizes, ages and colours. Each vessel has it's name and it's 'birth date'. Each vessel has a Captain. And let me tell you a truth, any person can be a Captain! Sad but fascinatingly true! The age old saying 'the owner looks like it's dog?' well let me tell you, that applies to boat and Captains too.
We have stayed on 5 boats during our 9 months in the Caribbean. Each boat completely different to the other! The only common attribute is that they all float! Nothing else in common!
The SV Dixi Rollar is a pirate like boat! Just like the ones you see in the movies. The Dixi Rollar is the exact replica of the first boat that circumnavigated the globe single handed, Captain - Joshua Slocum. It's a 36ft, mono-hull. A Bruce Robert's Spray. Black steel boat, gaf rig with brown sails and old school character. A steel boat creeks and groan under one's foot steps so there was no chance of being totally quiet on this boat. Of course with a 4 year old in tow, the Dixi Rollar didn't know what had hit her. We spent 8 weeks on the Dixi Rollar, we quickly realized that sailing from Grenada to South Africa on a 36ft mono-hull with absolutely no privacy and very little space was not an option. Besides, we were not ready to sail to South Africa only a few weeks after leaving. So we had to find another boat and fast as we had been given little notice to leave the boat.
We then found ourselves on SV Inanna! Now she was a beauty. We had our own cabin, privacy at last. A place where we thought we would have time to reconnect and re-look our plan. The Inanna is a 49ft Bavaria. Also a mono-hull. Beautiful finishes inside of teak and leather. Enough space for the 1 Captain, 3 crew, 2 children and 2 chihauhaua's! Plenty of physical space yes but not nearly enough space for the extra hot and large personality of the Captain! With Joshua in mind constantly we new right away we had to find our own little boat, with our own space to ensure we remain sane as a family!
Four weeks later and we were moving onto the Raggamuffin! A very sweet but old fibreglass boat. Only 29ft. No cabins, so we slept on the fold out couches in the saloon. The wood was old and the boat was horribly dirty and unkept. No fridge on board, a small ice box but with the price of ice it wasn't worth our while. The other issue was that the fibreglass was old, so in addition to the mosquito and sand fly bites, our heat rashes, Joshua and I were also suffering with the itches from raw fibreglass. I can't say we were very happy, itching can drive a person in sane! Anyhow, the deal with the Captain was that we could stay on the Raggamuffin while we fix up the boat next door, Delfine, and once she was good to live on we could move onto her. Which is exactly what we did!
Delfine was disgustingly dirty. Old oil on the floor in the galley, pots of old food that had been left by the last 'tennants' FOUR YEARS AGO! The toilet was not working and everything had that horrible mildew smell which meant the boat had mildew too. So we spent 2 weeks cleaning Delfine and fixing her up to a liveable standard. Finally we could move our backpacks and Joshua onto the boat. It felt like she was ours. We were totally comfortable. We put up rain catchers, reconnected the solar panels, installed a brand new toilet, cleaned and filled the water tanks along with our solar shower. This was the first time in 16 weeks that we were able to take a warm shower with our own water, every day! What a pleasure! We spent an enjoyable 4 weeks on Delfine and then it was time to go sailing!
Backpacks and all, we then boarded Moonjoos! It felt like pure luxury! Clean, new, spacious and just perfect continue our Caribbean experience. Moonjoos is a 36ft Catamaran. A South African catamaran with a South African Captain! Finally a like minded person who wasn't only our Captain, he fast became Joshua's best buddy and a good friend to Barry and myself. We were able to shower indoors, cook a healthy meal once a day. There is a fridge and freezer on board so for the first time in 10 months we had access to ice cold water, beer and ice! Total luxury on the seas! We set sail on Moonjoos on the 18 August, crewing on a magical adventure from Grenada to Colombia via Venezuela.
We are still on Moonjoos. Our final day on board is Thursday, 18 January! 20 weeks on board! It has been so totally amazing in between my bouts of homesickness! We crossed big waters, experienced some intimate moments with pods of dolphins, snorkeled some of the most breath-taking spots in the Archipielago, we cooked some of the tastiest meals and drank the most delicious rum! Memories which will remain in our souls forever!
During our time on boats we have also met some of the most amazing families and single handed sailors along with their beautiful vessels! One of our favourites was a Tug Boat called the Flying Buzzard, Anchored in Grenada. On board this mega steel structure were the most welcoming people, Captain Mike, Julie, Angie, James and toby the dog. Captain Mike took the time to give Joshua lessons on Tenders. Julie always served the most delicious toast, coffee, soup or biscuits at the exact time our tummies were rumbling!
We were also honoured to spend time on the Stormvogel a 60ft mono-hull. Now she is just a beauty. We met Captain Ian and Darria in Curacao. Darria and Ian fell totally in love with Joshua. This meant he got to spend some special time with very special people on this magnificent 70 year old vessel! The Stormvogel is a famous vessel and known as the fastest sailing yacht of her time, winning many races and regatta's. She is fully restored, the woodwork is immaculate! Lucky boy our Joshua :-)
The sailing families we have met and spent time with are all on catamarans. It makes good sense! A catamaran has space, space for children, space to cook and eat together, space to play and space to sit down and do their school work. Each family has 2 or 3 children. Most of them are are home schooled and under the age of 15 years. Field Trip, Dafne, Day Dreamer and What If, are some of the most beautiful and comfortable Catamarans we have seen and been on. The families of these vessels are amazing and their stories keep you captivated and wanting to experience their adventures for yourself!
Leaving some of our good friends behind in Grenada was pretty hard. Goodbyes are never easy, especially for Joshua who made friends with all the children and the adults along the way. We were however surprised to see SV Marlin in the anchorage of Los Roques. Another warm and loving family! Natalie, Mike, Lena and Maya. Joshua is always the first to spot the boats we know so he was super excited to have friends to play with again.
In Cartagena, Colombia, we are sharing the anchorage with Dafne, Field Trip and Sea Shell. More familiar faces and good friends whom we never thought we would see again. What a nice surprise!
And so this chapter of our sailing adventure is drawing to a close. We have only 7 days left on water and then our adventure takes to land. From Colombia to Venezuela. Backpacks are packed and we are ready!
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