Passage: Columbia River Bar to Newport, Oregon Lord Horatio Nelson, famed British admiral, wrote, “I am ill every time it blows hard and nothing but my enthusiastic love for the profession keeps me one hour at sea.” Lord Nelson served in the British Navy from 1771 to 1805, when he was killed by gunfire in battle. DuringContinue reading “The Seasickness Struggle”
Author Archives: mapachecaptain
¡Bienvenidos a Mexico!
If you have been following along, you know it has been a struggle for us to get down the western U.S. coast. We made a lot of mechanical repairs, battled seasickness, waited in ports for rough weather to pass, cursed the lack of wind on days we felt comfortable going out, and rescued several disoriented/smoke-sick birds. AndContinue reading “¡Bienvenidos a Mexico!”
How to be Invincible
A childhood diet of superheroes, Nancy Drew, and Harrison Ford (he played Han Solo and Indiana Jones) instilled a dream of invincibility in young me. It wasn’t until this adventure that I thought about what invincibility really means. It is not an innate characteristic that ensures you are bulletproof or will never lose. It is something that is grown fromContinue reading “How to be Invincible”
Assholes and Elbows
One of the best things to come out of our journey so far is consistent evidence that people are good. We have experienced unsolicited kindness in every place that we have stopped. Complete strangers have loaned us their marina keys until we were able to attain our own, offered use of their vehicles, helped push us offContinue reading “Assholes and Elbows”
Making Memories
A friend of mine told me a story about her friend, an experienced river rafter, taking another friend out on a particularly rough river. At one point in the trip, the seasoned boater asked the friend, “Are you having fun?” His response was, “No, but I’m making memories.” That statement is universally applicable. It is the hard timesContinue reading “Making Memories”
The Start: The Graveyard of the Pacific
The start of our adventure was really marked by us cutting our dock lines at the marina, where we had lived for three years. We literally cut the dock lines (with a machete), because one of many sailor superstitions directs that failure to do so will cause you to return with the journey unfinished. And, as one newContinue reading “The Start: The Graveyard of the Pacific”
Almost Famous
We were interviewed by Public Radio Correspondent Tom Banse, and he published two stories about us: one written and one radio. The radio story will air on National Public Radio’s Morning Edition or All Things Considered or both on Monday or Tuesday in Washington, Oregon, and northern California. Check out both pieces here. We areContinue reading “Almost Famous”
The Tortoise Race
Rob always describes sailing with other sailboats as a tortoise race. And much of sailing, especially our type of sailing—in a heavy ocean-going boat—is slow. Our hull speed (the optimal fast speed for the boat) is 7 knots, which is a little over 8 miles per hour to you landlubbers. We don’t move fast, and when fighting currentContinue reading “The Tortoise Race”
Smoke Refugees
When we planned to start our trip in 2020, we never imagined that it would correspond with such huge and devastating events: first the Corona Virus pandemic, then the escalating tragedies leading to Black Lives Matter, and now the massive wildfires in Oregon and California. As many of our friends and their families are being evacuatedContinue reading “Smoke Refugees”
More to Come
More of Mapache’s adventures will be posted here soon. We just started down the coast of Oregon, destination Mexico. We are racing the weather to get south and will catch up on posts as soon as we catch a break (hopefully somewhere with less wildfire smoke and confused seas). Mapache’s crew is thinking of allContinue reading “More to Come”