Aleria's Adventures

Alex and I sailed away from the US 11 years ago - amazing. We've been back for short stints to visit family but not for prolonged periods. We've always been amazed at how much things change in a short period of time - cars, tolls, supermarkets, shops, technology all march along at a rapidly increasing pace. But this time, I've been here for three weeks and I've become acutely aware of one major difference since I left - massive consumerism. I didn't think it could get more acute than it was but it certainly has. The fruit salad display. Lots of packaging. Little work. I've been amazed by the availability of goods in stores (Wegemans, CVS) and the quantity of stuff people buy. I am also astounded by what people throw away, just because something new becomes available. Yet all profess to be environmentally conscious. I believe that everyone should be made to live on a boat for at least a month. Once you shlep all the ingredients, discard all the packagi...

Sailing 'fun'damentals! Yesterday I made a prediction that the next generation of sailors is already in the making through the effects of the new Disney classic Moana. I also made a plea not to turn kids off when they show up to sail training by forcing them into racing. Today, I am going to continue to expand on my writings about the shortcomings of how sailing is taught for the most part in sailing clubs around the world. In 2015, I wrote a piece for Yachting World about how making sailing programmes fun can help keep more kids sailing. I'd written similar pieces for magazines on both sides of the Atlantic before that. It's sadly not a localised problem. Somehow, we've allowed racing to define sailing. Last month, a series in Scuttlebutt tackled the issue of keeping kids in sailing and gave several great examples of how some clubs have managed to increase retention significantly through "Adventure Sailing" programmes. Can it be true? Is the con...

A Polynesian island I have a theory based on my grandnephew Ziggy's propensity to navigate the seas to Te Fiti, the legendary island from which the demi-god Maui stole the heart gemstone. Ziggy gets in his boat (a cardboard box with a noodle mast) and uses his oar (a plastic shovel) to navigate to the place where the sky meets the sea. Ziggy is not quite three years old. We haven't figured out a sail yet but he wants the sheets to pull on like Moana does in the movie . The entire time  we are 'sailing' he sings the last two lines of the refrain in an indistinguishable language ad nauseum until he reaches the far shore. Polynesian canoe When we reach the destination (I am his navigator but he says I can't be because I'm Nana not an alligator!), we get into the dinghy (a wooden box) and I have to paddle ashore and beach the boat. Then Ziggy has to run around the island searching for the place where the heart fits before we set off and do it again. Hal...

I've been corresponding with Susanne Huber-Curphy who is sailing solo in the Longue Route. A few days ago. I noticed she was heading way east in the South Atlantic. So I asked her if she was heading to France with the rest of the fleet. I got an answer yesterday. She is following the track of the Longue Route as Moitessier did in the original Golden Globe Race when he continued sailing to Tahiti, even though he was winning the race, 'to save his soul'. She is heading into the Pacific. She is just short of crossing her track off South Africa today, which is her 200th day under sail. Keep in mind that she and s/v Nehaj started from Maine so she's already sailed more than a circumnavigation and she's been leading the pack the entire way. She's pulled a Moitessier!!! Or maybe a Nehaj !!! The name Nehaj comes from the Croatian term Ne hajati [nɛ xajati] which means as Susanne puts it, "I named her NEHAJ , that translates to: 'Feel safe here, Do not be a...

We have all made New Year's resolutions that we have more often than not given up on. But the best resolution for cruisers is to remind ourselves not to be complacent and to refresh our diligence about safety consciousness aboard. So here's my list of resolutions for cruising in 2019.  1. Adopt the 'astronaut training' mentality when underway. Always ask yourself 'what if' in preparation for the worst things that could happen. For example: What if someone falls overboard? What if the mainsail halyard jams while hoisting? What if the anchor drags on a dark and stormy night? What if the engine quits in a busy thoroughfare or crowded marina? What if a windward shroud snaps while beating? What if the backstay parts while sailing downwind? What if the spinnaker jams while dousing? What if we hit an object in the water?

The sheets were frozen hard, and they cut the naked hand; The decks were like a slide, me boys, where a sailor scarce could stand; The wind was a nor'wester, blowing squally from the sea, And cliffs and spouting breakers were the only things a-lee.

This is so interesting. It was used in an ad to promote National Book Tokens and giving books as gifts in Ireland. It took me a while, but I realized that it's written mostly with the titles of books. How clever!  The copywriter has to be a sailor to have crafted something so meaningful to adventure sailing.