April 29, 2026
The north wind had been blowing hard every day, leaving only calm, quiet nights. The forecast looked a little better, though not great, for a sixty‑mile run. To stack the odds, I set off at 12:30am—just after midnight. With a nearly full moon, it was easy to slip out of the anchorage and make the left turn. For a few…
April 28, 2026
After a nice trip north I settled in for a few days in San Juanico knowing that I had a big project to cross off the list – installing the refrigerator door frame. I enjoyed my first sunrise before spending six hours knocking out the bulk of that project. In the afternoon, to get out of the wind noise and…
April 17, 2026
Well, maybe not out of Isla San Francisco. It was actually calm on my departure from the anchorage and for the first twenty minutes or so. I could see a windline with some white frothy waves coming. Blerg. I adjusted course to point to San Evaristo which was just nine miles north should the conditions be unmanageable. I drove past…
April 16, 2026
After a few days of wind in Bonanza, it was time to move north to Isla San Francisco. With the valley’s along Espirtu Santo and Partida, I kept the main down and just used the jib and engine to propel us. It was an easy passage with not much besides nice views and a low key day on the water.…
April 11, 2026
My friend Aaron was lined up to join me for a few weeks but weather being a fickle beast, I had to take a weather window a few days earlier than he could make the trip. This meant I would be single handing. I really enjoy single handing, but prior this never had I made a multi-day passage by myself.…
December 4, 2025
It was a chill first day with calm seas and five knots of wind from behind. I’m never one to complain about motoring across the sea if it means low wind and comfortable seas. Reaching the 24 hour mark, we had covered a 136nm, not great but fine. The forecast was for some wind to kick up overnight and true…
November 18, 2025
Wind on our nose and no fish biting our lines was the theme for the trip to Candeleros Chico. On the way I pulled up the weather and was disappointed to see wind gust up to 25 knots overnight from the west. Figuring the anchorage would be a no go, we still pulled in to take a look and quickly…
October 3, 2024
We didn’t have to rush off in the morning so I started my day with a walk around Main Beach and a nice sit-down breakfast. Ah the luxury. After one last shower it was time to move Sky Pond up to The Boat Works for some maintenance and where she would be sold. It was a pretty mellow trip with…
September 28, 2024
Rain! Lots of rain overnight and into the morning. And cold. It is got down to 12 degrees (well 52 Fahrenheit) overnight and this morning it was hats, jeans, and sweatshirts for everyone. Clearly we are no longer in the tropics. A relaxing morning gave me a chance to call home and just as important have a call with a…
September 25, 2024
After midnight conditions improved to what I would call “moderate” (probably a 3 on John’s scale). My second break to sleep was not great but I did manage a few hours with an interruption in the middle to help Carl drop the main sail due to lack of wind. With arrival assured, I took to clearing out the freezers of…
September 24, 2024
The night continued to be a rough one, thankfully things mellowed a bit and by sunrise the violent waves banging the bridgedeck were starting to diminish. Our speed increased too and the arrival into Brisbane was looking like it was on track to beat the southerlies. On my morning inspection we were up to 6mm (0.25″) of salt caked on…
September 23, 2024
A bit after sunrise the winds started to creep up, once Carl came up we immediately raised the sails. The wind gave us a knot of extra speed over the engine bringing us to 6.5 to 6.7 knots. A much appreciated speed bump. For another hour things were pretty chill. The wind started to creep up and with it, an…