Current To Do’s include:

• Install Jacklines
• Additional Bilgepump
• Additional Bucket
• Standard Horizon Matrix AIS/VHF
• Spotlight
• Paper Chart #’s 18020, 18645, 18649

My good friend and offshore sailing machine Brian Caldwell is at it again! After spending two months and 5,000 miles with BJ aboard the mighty Dufour 455 Froia II this past fall; I just received word that Brian is currently over in France preparing his Proto Mini 650 “433″ for a few offshore jaunts! Follow his progress at: http://bjcaldwell.wordpress.com  Good Luck Lab! I’m sure I will see you soon!

LEAVING IS THE HARDEST PART

Anchored in Vava’u Tonga, having already sailed over 5,000 solo blue water miles to date and currently preparing for another 1,800 miles to her home country of Australia, to escape the encroaching cyclone season; to say Linda Pasquerello has had a busy year would be an understatement. After finding her Pearson 33 “Yemaya” in the April 2011 issue of Latitude 38; she refit the boat in a little under 3 months time and set out on the first leg of her solo circumnavigation. But surprisingly, the hardest part for Linda hasn’t been the tiring hours in the boat yard getting the boat prepared, the lonely sleepless nights off the California coast, battling 35 knots for days in the ITCZ, or dodging seamounts on her approach into Tonga; as many a solo sailor would agree, the hardest part of any adventure is simply leaving. Pushing off the dock or weighing anchor, trading the known for the unknown, waving goodbye to helpful family and friends, has been difficult but worth it. In a global sailing community filled with a fair amount of know it alls and dockside experts, Linda is refreshingly humble about what she knows and outwardly excited about the learning and new experiences that solo sailing continues to provide.

Growing up in landlocked central Australia, it was only within the past four years the ocean and sailing have become a part of Linda’s life. Her original plan was to simply “crew hop” around the world, picking up a crew position here and there with the goal to eventually work her way around the world. However, a chance meeting with her current partner and sailing mentor Brian Caldwell in a Caribbean airport would change the course of her plans for the next few years. Not having any idea who Brian was at the time, Linda recalls boasting how she just completed an Atlantic crossing aboard a catamaran participating in the ARC rally and planned on more sailing in the future. Excited about her recent accomplishment, Brian mentioned he was a professional delivery skipper and had also racked up a few ocean miles himself over the years and was always looking for good solid crew; so if Linda had any free time in the future he would love to have her come along on a delivery. They exchanged contact information and went their separate ways.

Needless to say, Linda did contact Brian about crewing on his next delivery from Hawaii to California; and the marathon of ocean crossing experiences began. For the next few years she helped Brian deliver yachts all over the North and South Pacific; all the while stoking her new passion for sailing and bagging an impressive tally of blue water miles, on some very interesting boats, ranging in size from a Santa Cruz 70 to a Mini Transat. After a rather long delivery of a Spencer 68 “Ragtime” from New Zealand to Long Beach; Linda felt like it was time to start searching out for her own boat and getting on with her solo pursuits.

She didn’t have to search long before finding her Yemaya here in the Bay Area. As she said, “I was looking for a boat that balanced seaworthiness, comfort, and in a size range that I could physically handle in any condition.” Yemaya turned out to be a perfect fit and Linda soon found herself engaged in a flurry of boat work and preparation. “It was great having Brian with me at the start of my refit, he really helped me focus on the essentials for a safe solo blue water passage and not get hung up on things I really didn’t need. As he once said, it’s really quite simple, find the boat, fix the boat, sail the boat, GO!” So with a brief shake down sail to Monterey with Brian, Linda set off on July 10 2011 bound for Hawaii; the first step in her larger scale goal of a circumnavigation.

At the time of this writing, Linda has just made landfall in Bundaberg, Australia and plans on working up the cruising kitty in hopes of leaving in the spring bound for South Africa. When asked about some of the highlights of her trip to date, she notes“ the wonderfully generous people you meet along the way, peaceful starry nights, delightfully crisp blue skies; but the highlight of highlights has to be swimming with Humpback whales here in Vava’u. It was a life changing and very emotional experience. To be in the water with mammals of this size was surreal, but to actually witness their emotional intelligence and personality moved me to tears. Picking up and leaving each place doesn’t get any easier; but to never leave and never open myself up to the possibilities out there is unimaginable.”

For more info on the Voyage Of Yemaya check out: http://lindapasquariello.com/

Crisp Day On The Bay

“There are times that walk from you like some passing afternoon…there are things that drift away like our endless numbered days…there are things we can’t recall, blind as night that finds us all. “ –Iron & Wine

Morning Light

Low Tide

Tea Time

Evening View

Morning View

Morning Hike

Afternoon Sail

]]> http://www.oceanslogic.com/2011/07/30/oh-the-places-youll-go/feed/ 0 http://www.oceanslogic.com/2011/07/07/a-year-ago/ http://www.oceanslogic.com/2011/07/07/a-year-ago/#comments Thu, 07 Jul 2011 03:59:13 +0000 kathe http://www.oceanslogic.com/?p=685

2 1/2 weeks in....Hanalei bound!