Galley Essentials: Spuds in Spitsbergen

The first throwback of Galley Week is one of Amanda's favorite culinary memories... What to do when the officers welcoming you to a remote Norwegian port give you a giant bag of one overstocked ingredients? Magdalene Fjord,…

Spontaneity Rewarded

From the March, 2021 issue of 48° North. Reminiscing on unplanned racing, downwind sailing and idyllic anchorages turning from winter to spring

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…

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…

Neither Round Nor Rogue the County: Just Some Great Late Fall Sailing

Young Parents Take Their Fast Boat Out For a Fall Cruise With Their 10 Week Old As much as we wanted to, we didn't do Rogue the County. When Round the County was canceled, a number of racers decided to go…

Navigating a Small Boat Adventure During a Pandemic

In any normal year, I’d typically get two or three rowing trips under my belt in my home away from home, the Pacific Northwest. But the shutdown changed all of that—2020 is not a “normal” year. This year, I was grateful for…

Taking Refuge in Canada

When an emergency stop is required inbound from Hawaii, an American couple finds shelter across a closed border From the October, 2020 issue of 48° North. Five hundred lonely miles west of Cape Flattery, the sickening sound…

How have we never been here before?

Rediscovering a sense of surprise and wonder while cruising close to home From the October, 2020 issue of 48° North. I’m a little embarrassed to admit we’d never really heard about Watmough Bay near the southeast tip of…

Family Time Stateside & FAQs on Leaving Yahtzee

This post was originally published on SailingYahtzee.com... Plans are a funny thing when cruising. We've learned over the years not to make them too far in advance, and when we do, to take them as if they're written in the…

Unbelievable Serendipity

Knocking Opportunities and a Post-Cruising Miracle From the August 2020 issue of 48° North. In 2012, my husband, Wayne, and I quit our jobs; abandoned friends, family, and mainstream modern conveniences in the Pacific…