We are sailing across the Bass Strait as I write this, bound
from King Island northwest of Tasmania towards Western Port in Victoria,
Australia. We’ve had to fight the weather since we left Kettering in southwest
Tasmania. It has taken almost a month to get this far. But we definitely are on
time to share the Christmas Holidays with some of David’s family who live only
15 minutes away from the marina where we have secured a berth. He’ll get to
play granddad; I’ll get to play in a real kitchen and make rich dark fruit
cakes and enjoy the camaraderie that comes only when friends and family work
together to create a feast. I also have cruising friends who live near here.
When Peter and Jan Metherall were sailing home through the Pacific with their
three children on board back in 1985, we all became friends. In fact, their
children crewed for Larry and I when we raced in Tonga. So, we’ll have a full
holiday time, one I am sure will build more special memories.
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Sailing in the Bass Strait gave us a mixed bag
of weather – but two days were almost perfect.
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Those of you who have been following my adventures on
FaceBook or Instagram already know, my year has been a full and healthy one.
Starting with a bang, or lots of bangs I should say, from the amazing fireworks
we saw as we lay anchored amidst about 30,000 other boats in Sydney Harbour for
New Years Eve. We sailed down to Tasmania for the Hobart Wooden Boat Festival,
then around to the wild west coast to explore the magnificent isolation of Port
Davey. With Sahula safely tucked away in Kettering, 30 miles from
Hobart, we next spent two months in New Zealand – enjoying sailing on my little
Felicity while I finished the re-edit and expansion for the 3rd
edition of SelfSufficient Sailor. Then came an amazing 5 months of traveling to weddings, family affairs from
Hong Kong to Italy to France and the UK, 3 months exploring National Parks and
hidden canyons of the Colorado Plateau – a place unlike anything David (an
Australian) had seen before. I loved Mesa Verde best of all. He will never
forget walking rim to rim in the Grand Canyon. Then there was the book
launching at the Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival and later the Annapolis
Sailboat Show. It was almost a relief to be back on board Sahula in late October,
even though we had to spend a month getting her ready to go again. All new
rigging, new bimini, new cockpit floor grating. And now we have been under way
a month with our goal just one more day of sailing away.
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David loved sailing up the rivers of Europe, so
he especially enjoyed the meander along Tasmanias Tamar river up to the sweet
town of Launceston
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My favorite Bass Strait port, Stanley – just a
dozen fish boats and us and amazing sunsets.
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As I contemplate the fullness of this holiday season, I
think back to other times when, due to our cruising life, we didn’t have family
nor old friends nearby. Though I can recall a few times when, in the lead up to
the holidays I felt a twinge of loneliness and wondered if we’d have to
celebrate on our own, I can’t remember one time when we missed being part of a
proper holiday gathering on Christmas Day. It seemed someone we met ashore or
afloat, insisted we join their family for a traditional dinner. In Poole at the
south of England, the parents of the sailmaker I was working for insisted we come
to their home. Though they had only met Larry and I briefly, when we arrived
there was a pair of hand knit socks waiting under the tree for each of us. In
Brachuy, Brazil, friends met only two weeks previously insisted we pack a bag
and join them for five days at their family home on a ranch 100 miles away in
the mountains near Petropolis. We were told each person had to bring one gift
for one designated person. Our person was an aunt we were told was a bit of a
clothes horse. By good fortune I had a handsome silk sarong I’d bought in
Polynesia as a potential gift. She loved it. Larry and I were introduced to
festive foods we’d never had before and to work off the heavy mid-day Christmas
meal had a wonderful horseback ride through the tropical forest below the
rancho. Then we spent a big portion of the next days in the swimming pool to
ward off the heat. Not bad since cool drinks and lots of nice food seemed to
appear on the edge of the pool just when someone got a bit peckish.
I hope all of you are sharing your holidays with family or
friends or new found friends. And may the coming year bring you fair winds,
following seas and fine friendships.
Lin
P.S. Just a note about Larry. He has suffered another large
stroke. Due to this he has now been moved to a full hospital level care
facility. Each time I go to New Zealand to visit with him, he seems to be
content. I must say his caretakers are doing an amazing job. And I thank them
profusely.
Note - For those of you who would like to follow along on my
current sailing adventures, I update my facebook page at least once a week. (click here) If you like the page, it will appear on your
newsfeed. I also can be found on Instagram