Well, here we are at the archipelago of Gambier, looking at another year in French Polynesia. Coronavirus mutations have the world on edge and borders are closed all over the place, with expectations that it could be 2022 before borders in New Zealand and Australia open with out significant quarantine and agent fees. Phooey on that.
Gambier is a lovely place, and we’ve been having a great time kite boarding when the wind blows, hanging out with our favorite kid boats. Those guys energize us!
Still, we are beginning to feel like we’re spinning our wheels, and as we’re more of the “doer” kind of folks than “spectators”, it’s time to hatch the latest nutty plan. How about this?
Sail up to Hiva Oa in late March, haul out for desperately needed bottom paint, then prepare to sail to Hawaii in April. Arrive Hawaii, get our coronavirus vaccinations (are we just dreamin’?) and after cruising there a couple of months sail for Seattle to arrive in time for Indian summer. Late July through October CAN be nice there, or it can really suck at times, but heck, it is on our bucket list to poke around the San Juan islands, at least as much as the Canadian border restrictions will allow.
Apparently the Seawind 1160 market is pretty hot right now, so maybe we want to offer JollyDogs for sale during the summer, offer test sails and guest accommodations to potential buyers, and look to seal the deal before the weather turns to crap.
Hah! Now you’re thinking, “well, what are you guys going to do for a boat/home”? Well, the best way to wander up the inside passage and poke around Alaska is on a suitable trawler, one built for colder climes and with plenty of bug screens. Maybe we get lucky and find a decent deal on a trawler, play with it for a year or so, then sell it to the next adventurous soul and then go do what’s next.
What’s next is to take delivery of our new Seawind 1370, currently planned for Vietnam, but maybe we change our minds about that. Fiji and Vanuatu are high on our cruising destination lists, so maybe we decide to take delivery on the West coast of the US or Ensenada, Mexico then cross the Pacific again with a short stop in Hawaii then Fiji then on to New Zealand, then back up to Vanuatu and on to Austraila then up to Asia. Maybe by then Vietnam will have fully opened up to cruisers, and of course Thai food is awesome, so there’s that.
We’re not really stink boat people, but an entire season in the hinterlands of Canada’s inside passage and bits of Alaska will make us wish we had plenty of heat and more indoor living space, so why not? That’s the question Isabel’s dad always asks when we pose an idea. Why not?
We ain’t getting any younger, and the world just keeps getting more complicated and polarized. Adventure awaits!
Let us know what you think! jollydogsrcc@gmail.com
Cheers,
Mark & Isabel
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