Exploring Local: Kilisut Harbor
Making the most of a pandemic holiday, I did what sailors do — I sailed. I left Boat Haven late Friday morning bound for Scow Bay, at the southern end of Kilisut Harbor. A Gale Warning had been declared for the evening, with…
Buying a Bluewater Sailboat During the Pandemic
A Complicated Delivery, An Unplanned Adventure, and One Family’s Maiden Voyage From the January, 2021 issue of 48° North. In March 2020, the Coronavirus hit our hometown of Nelson, British Columbia, and an isolated…
A Parting Delivery
Letting Go After Three Years and More Than 3,000 Miles From the January 2021 issue of 48° North. Some say that the happiest days of a boat owner's life are the day they buy a boat and the day they sell it. I can tell you…
Destination: Home
I felt the ship dock with a gentle bump, then the engine shut down. A moment later, shouts reverberated through the metal hull, “Home! We’re at Home!” I lay in my bunk in the dark, puzzled. Home — for both me and the ship —…
Close to the Water: Fun Stinks
As a kid, I loved our family’s banana-yellow speedboat. It was the most typical fiberglass outboard boat you could buy in those days, but it was my ticket to fishing, knee-boarding, camping, and just zooming around. I…
HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS
As a cruiser, every holiday is a little different. Yet each one retains the important themes of time together (even if it’s a family of two, not twenty) and familiar traditions. When sharing an anchorage with others who are…
The Dreaded Christmas Cruise
From the December 2019 issue of 48° North. The grinchiest of pooches, Barfy the Boat Dog, might burst your yuletide bubble... or not. This twinkly, tinsel-draped, hull-decking holiday can jingle all the way to hell, as far…
Sailing Lake Chelan
Beautiful Scenery, Diverse Conditions, and Sailor Camaraderie Make for a Memorable Group Cruise From the December, 2020 issue of 48° North “Tell me in all your travels have you ever found any place better than Lake Chelan?”…
Sneaking Out: A Quick Overnight Cruise on the Columbia
Come late August, it dawned on my wife that we’d never managed to go on vacation this year. I’d been on a solo weeklong cruise, but Kate hadn’t spent a night away from home since 2019. Our college-age son had moved back…
Thanksgiving Aboard
Rewarding No Matter Where You Go or What You Eat From the November 2020 issue of 48° North. The sweet smell of pumpkin pie wafted through the cabin and out of the companionway as Jill hoisted the tasty dessert up to me.…
