The Plan*

If you've seen our "The Plan" page, you know that full-time cruising isn't ALL that we're about. When we retired/quit/cast off the lines we had in mind something that was a combination of cruising and international or non-boat travel. We did a fair bit of travel with the kids over the years (they have a seriously sweet set of passport stamps!), but every trip was limited to 7-10 days due to work and school commitments. We always found ourselves craving more time in the places we were exploring. Over the years, we decided that we want to spend at least 2-4 weeks in the places we travel to so that we can really experience daily life rather than just seeing sites. We did bits of this where we could...we went to Ireland for 10 days but spent almost the entire trip in just the southwest corner of the country rather than trying to "do it all." Same in Iceland...we focused our energy on the southern coast for most of that trip. In Scotland, we stretched out a bit, but didn't hit the Highlands. I'm not too surprised that all of those are places that even the kids have at the top of their "let's return" lists! We did those countries right, taking it slow and focusing on a limited, good experience rather than a once-in-a-lifetime, cram-it-all-in slog. And then there are so many places to explore in our own country!

So I guess what I'm saying is, don't be surprised if we leave the boat for a bit! We love cruising and we certainly love our little home of a decade, but being full-time cruisers that don't have a home marina means that we are constantly stressed about the weather and have to work just a little harder to handle all of our daily tasks (food, water, waste, power)--it can get exhausting! And the boat will need maintenance as the years tick by that will just be easier if we aren't living on it. So with one crew member heading abroad and the rest of us getting vaccinated as soon as we can, it might be time to let a Boeing or a land yacht take us to windward for a change!

The kids' first trip to the Bahamas, 2008

Costa Rica, 2012

Ireland, 2014

Iceland, 2018

Scotland, 2019

As of this writing, the kids have traveled internationally to Bahamas, Canada, Costa Rica, Iceland, Ireland, Jamaica, Mexico, and Scotland, and have enjoyed lots of trips within their own country and in their own backyards as we have moved around (Maine, New York City, Florida parks and beaches, camping and waterfall hikes in Alabama, Yosemite National Park, Washington, D.C., Mardi Gras in New Orleans, Baltimore, Williamsburg, Philadelphia...the list goes on!) and sailed the coast. Live the voyage!