‘Travels’ Category

  1. of Beaches and Boats

    June 14, 2011 by JillyBean

    Today I received my sticker for my ASA 110 sailing certification. This is a day sailing standard on monohull or multihull sailboats less than 20 feet in length and without a fixed, weighted keel. I don’t expect to use it much (I like big boats, and I cannot lie!) but I really enjoyed getting it since it was with Out-Island Explorers in the Exumas, Bahamas.

    Out-Island Explorers (OIE) does many sailboat and kayak trips during the year for happy tourists in the Bahamas but this excursion was sponsored by the American Sailing Association (ASA). You have to join or be a member of the ASA to go on the trip (due to the discounted rate) but in exchange a certified ASA instructor comes along and helps you along the way. At the end of the trip you can take the test for the ASA110 cert.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Overall the trip was fantastic. You sail a 21′ Sea Pearl to get to your destinations but the guide boat is always close by in case you run into trouble.  You visit 5 or 6 cays on the trip and camp on 3-4 different beaches. The weather was great for most of the trip (I think it only rained one night) with a steady wind and light waves. Although breakfast and lunch were standard camp fare the guides worked magic with dinner – most of which was cooked over a campfire – including fresh caught Mahi.  There were activities to keep you busy almost every day such as snorkeling, fishing, daysailing, swimming, hiking and more.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    OIE did a fantastic job of making sure that everyone was happy, taken care of, and as comfortable as can be on a camping trip. Tents, food, snorkeling gear, and necessities were taken care of. All you had to provide were clothing, alcohol (if you wanted it), and a good attitude. This was an active trip and I would caution you against going if you can’t swim, don’t like to camp, or won’t pee in the wilderness. I would also suggest that you do have some sailing experience, although if you don’t Out-Island Explorers will make sure that you are put in a boat with someone who does.

    If you have taken ASA course stateside this will not be the rigorous program you are used too. I don’t think that had much to do with OIE and more to do with the ASA instructor that was assigned to our trip; I heard that the previous week the instructor was more involved. As the ASA is fond of saying, “remember that your sailing education begins, not ends, with your earning the certification sticker”.

    If you have the opportunity I highly recommend you try Out-Island Explorers for a trip. Whether or not you attend the ASA Flotilla sail or just attend one of OIE standard excursions, I am sure you will have just as much fun as I did!

    Category Hobbies, Travels | Tags: ,, | No Comments

  2. Off The Grid

    April 28, 2011 by JillyBean

    Where I will be staying

    In about 36 hours from this post, I am heading off for a week long sailing trip in the Bahamas.  It is sponsored by the American Sailing Association (ASA) and hosted by Out-Island Explorers.

    Here is what the brochure says:

    “Spend 6 days/5 nights on the water exploring the Exuma Cays with fellow ASA Members. Earn certification in ASA’s 110 course while sailing your own 21′ Sea Pearl. Enjoy exploring caves and grottoes, stargazing, bonfires, great food and all the while improving your sailing techniques”

    Which sounds great, right?  Then I got more information about the trip and read this:

    Once you leave your hotel in George Town, you won’t see a bathroom, shower, or air conditioning until your night in Staniel Cay at the end of the week.

    Suddenly I am not as excited to take this trip :)

    Honestly though I am not too concerned about “roughing it”.  I have camped before, I know my way around a fire, and I have seen the cats use the litter box enough that I am pretty sure I know how to poop in the sand.  What I am most concerned about is being “off the grid”

    Usually when I go on vacation I have a laptop, cell phone and access to internet. I can instantly find out what’s going on half-way around the world no matter what beach I am sitting on or check my email regardless of the timezone.

    I won’t have that opportunity on this trip and even if I did I don’t know how good the reception will be in such a remote location.  I will not even be bringing my laptop. I haven’t been able to give up my cell phone and although I am going to try and keep it off I did borrow a radio from my sister that allows me to charge it via a handcrank.

    What am I scared of? I’m not sure really. Maybe being out of touch? I think this is even harder since its not only no internet access but I will also be without my friends and family so I’m feeling like I’ll be completely alone. 

    So depending on how strong my will power is and how bad the reception is, you may or may not hear from me for the next week.  And if I don’t go native, I will definitely post pictures once I am back to civilization!

    The type of boat I will be in - 21' Sea Pearl

    Category Hobbies, Philsophy, Travels | Tags: ,, | No Comments

  3. My First Bareboat Charter!

    February 13, 2011 by JillyBean

    For those that don’t know, I have been taking sailing courses through the American Sailing Association. I have taken (and passed) ASA 101, 103, 104, and 105.  In summary it allows me to navigate and sail a boat up to 50 ft in near coastal waters during the day.

    On a recent trip to Florida to visit some family I took the opportunity to get in some sailing.  I chartered from Sara-Bay Sailing School on City Island in Sarasota.  The Captain recommended a 22 Catalina since I was unfamilar with the waters (some locations in the bay are VERY shallow) and this boat had a centerboard I could pull up if I ran aground.

    We sailed on Saturday 1/8/11 and it was a beautiful day. About 70 degrees with winds around 15 knots and 2-4ft seas with the Bay and inland waters being calmer. 

    As we drove to the dock I started to get nervous. What if I couldn’t remember what to do?

    We had a little trouble finding the place but in the end we got there and met the Captain and he showed us the boat. The Catalina 22 we sailed was called “Puff”. It was a pretty basic boat – sloop rigged, tiller, open cockpit, etc. but thats ok – I felt more confident once I saw what I had to deal with.

    The Captain told us about the boat and some good places to sail in the bay. We boarded and began our prepations to sail. Once on board I got more confident. We had some issues with the outboard motor – it started fine but I could not figure out how to get it in gear. Luckily there were some nice fisherpeople on the dock who figured it out – then we were on our way!

    We motored out of the harbor and up the channel and headed into the bay. Once I felt we were clear enough I turned the boat into the wind and raised the mailsail. It stuck a bit, but eventually we got it raised.  After that, we picked a course and once I got it dialed in we prepared to raise the foresail.

    This was a bit nerve wracking – the foresail was harder to raise then the mailsail and I wasn’t prepared so I didn’t have the winch handle ready – I did the best I could to pull it up. I thought it was all the way up, but when we tried to trim it we realized it wasn’t. I frantically looked for the handle, which K eventually found, and got the foresail raised the rest of the way. Then I realized that the jib sheets should have been on the outside of the mainstays, so I let K steer while I ran around on the front of the boat adjusting the lines.

    Success! We were all set so we shut off the motor and started our sail. I was the helmsman and K trimmed the sails. We headed out into the bay, picked a course and set off.  The night before I had spent a couple hours plotting a course on the charts but once we were out there and saw the conditions and traffic we just decided to go where the wind took us.

    We stayed on the southeast side of the bay and would sail northwest for a while which is when we had the best wind. Eventually we would come up near a warning ATON and we’d tack and head back in the other direction. However heading southeast we had much less wind so it was slower going but still fun. Once we’d get close to our starting point we’d jibe and repeat.

    On our third trip we decided to to take a slightly different heading so we could sail off farther into the bay. Everything was going smooth but then the wind gusted and the water turned a dark blue and all of a sudden we were heeling pretty far over – so much so that K jumped over to the high side of the boat cause it felt like we were going to tip. I turned the boat into the wind to slow it down and stop the heel but it was still pretty rough going so I had K prepare for an emergency tack.  We changed course and headed back south into the bay.

    About halfway back the boat was still very hard to steer even though the wind had died down a lot. I looked astern and noticed that the rudder had tilted up – probably during the heel. At this point I freaked out a little and let go of the rudder with the idea that the boat would turn into the wind by itself and come to a stop. What actually happened was the boat spun around in circles until K asked what I was doing and kinda jerked me back to reality.

    We set a course to hold the boat steady and I let K have the tiller while I leaned over the back of the boat to push down the rudder. There was a close call with the boom when the boat was turned unexpectedly but otherwise we were able to get the rudder back into its proper place and the boat was much easier to steer after that :)

    At this point we had enough adventure for one day and decided to head back into the harbor.  We dropped the sails, started the motor, found the channel markers and set our course.

    Now at this point I tried to figure out a way to get K to helm the boat.  I have never actually docked a boat outside of practice where there was nothing around me so  I was nervous I wouldn’t be able to do it. K, however, knew this so he resisted my attempts to hand the boat over to him.  It was a pretty dismal docking, but for my first time I was pretty proud of myself. In reality, I was super far away from the dock and had people not be there to throw ropes too we would have floated across and into the boats next to us.  But for a first time I consider it a success!

    After that we cleaned up the boat, put everything away and headed off. :)

    Category Hobbies, Travels | Tags: , | 2 Comments

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