Shanachie offshore

Old SALTS

Grab a cuppa and follow these links to some marvelous writing, insights, and photography from the websites and blogs of fellow salty sailors that we’ve met along the way (listed by boat name). Some are young, some are old, some sail with kids (*marked with an asterisk), and some have sailed solo around the world—and every one of them have amazing stories to tell!

[UPDATE: Several of these folks have moved on since this list was originally created… either to another boat, or, they’ve swallowed the anchor and are now living ashore. Their writings are still a wealth of insight, entertainment, and information and so, the links remain here as long as they remain unbroken.]

PHOTO ABOVE: Shanachie beating to weather on one of our early ocean passages—with original hanked-on jib sails, long before roller furling became the preferred choice of cruisers.

Winds Will
WINDS WILL …the smallest boat we ever met that attempted a circumnavigation of the planet. We met Bill Dunlop on his 9-foot sailboat in 1984, already having sailed from Maine, USA, and here shown tied to the quay in Papeete, Tahiti, shortly before we both headed further westward. We were amazed that the gear we both carried was virtually the same—but ours was spread out over nearly 50 feet to his 9 feet! Unfortunately, Winds Will was lost at sea in a gale off the Cook Islands, nearly 800 miles away from Papeete. Shanachie’s route was much further north during the southern ocean winter in late June/early July, but we were hit by heavy winds and seas from the same storm on our way to the island nation of Niue.
For those interested in more of the story, here’s a link to an article that appeared in 2009, noting the 25-year anniversary of the disappearance of Bill Dunlop and his tiny boat, Winds Will.