Trips of Discovery

Make the best of your journey, make some memories.

Tagged: Boat

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How to cross the Albemarle Sound of North Carolina

Estimated reading time: 8 minutes – SBFL 22* – PLANNING TO VISIT – Perhaps I should reword the heading of this post as, “How would I cross the Albemarle Sound?” Why? It’s because on our way down to Florida following the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway (ICW), I’m not planning to take the most common route of a typical boater. Why? It’s because, given the reality of the Albemarle Sound and me, the captain of Life’s AOK, Mr. Fairweather Boater, I need to be near-shore and see land at all times. There you have it. A typical ICW traveler in Virginia going down to Florida from the North would either take the Dismal Swamp Canal down to...

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There is a battleship at the end of this road

Estimated reading time 15 minutes – SBFL 13*  – PLANNING TO VISIT – 2 Virginia towns not to miss on the way down to Florida on the ICW – Norfolk and Portsmouth. – Imagine this. You have some time on hand and are heading down south to Florida with your boat on the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway (ICW). Let’s say you left from somewhere in New York. It’s going to be a fantastic trip, of course, that is, in part thanks to the ICW, that will help you to avoid popple. However, if you are too focused on getting to Florida or just so cheap that you squeeze a quarter so tight the eagle screams, I...

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5 ways to love your woman captain at the helm – Part 3

Estimated reading time, 14 minutes – Have you heard of Anne Bonny? How about Mary Read? What about Mary Ann DeGraw? If your answer is “no,” let me introduce them to you. These are the names of three woman captains at the helm having full control. Mary Read was an English woman who led a normal life until her husband died. Then, forsaking everything to fill the void in her heart, she took to the sea. Anne Bonny was a wild, reckless, fascinating woman who was never able to deny her passions. She did whatever she pleased and took whatever she wanted.  Then comes Mary Ann DeGraw. She is another woman captain, but much, much...

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5 ways to love your woman captain at the helm – Part 2

Estimated reading time 15 minutes – For serious pleasure boaters, one of a captain’s most useful habits is to keep a log. On ships, they call it the ship´s log, the logbook, or simply the log. It’s an important document capturing a detailed record of the events related to boat management, operation, and navigation. Now, I want you to imagine that you are looking at your actual notes in the narrative log of your sailboat. “I am heading from Peterhead, Scotland to Eyemouth, England. That is about only 50 miles journey. [Depending on the winds, that is about 6 – 9 hours trip] “For Eyemouth, the cruising guide says ‘A busy fishing harbor, safe in...