Who wants to go sailing? It’s time!
Facebook’s fashback feature presented me with the image below, taken at the Dismal Swamp Welcome Center, not long after we departed Canada on our initial trip south. It seems like so long ago, and I guess, relatively speaking, it is.
Picture yourself here!
There are a good number of people, presently following a similar path, who are sandwiched between the weather to north which is growing colder by the day, and the tail end of the Atlantic Hurricane Season which will hopefully give us no late-season storms.
The island-hopping route from North America to the Caribbean is called the Thorny Path by many for good reason. With the trade winds blowing virtually non-stop from the east, the trip is a bash to windward no matter how you approach it. Of course, this is why purchasing a boat that is already down here, one like our very own ZTC to be specific, offers a serious benefit to those who want to sail as opposed to motor.
The easterly trades seldom vary in this region!
It’s obvious that many people were uncomfortable purchasing a boat in the Caribbean during the windy season but now that it has largely passed us by, and the weather north is growing less and less favorable, we’re seriously looking for the person (couple?) who want to take ZTC sailing again. If that person is not you, perhaps you could give us a hand by sharing our PDQ 32 For Sale link to your friends, and on your social media pages.
PLEASE SHARE —> http://www.zerotocruising.com/pdq-32-for-sale/
Thank you in advance!
Sailing Antigua to Barbuda… this is what it’s all about!
Hi Mike,
Exciting stuff you’re doing.
In planning my around-the-world adventure in a few years, I am struggling with choosing the right boat. I can picture a monohull going large distances through various conditions, but I’m not sure about a catamaran. However, I want a cat because my wife dislikes the heel of a single hull.
In your May 7th post, “Dreaming big!”, you said “…We’ve proven that ZTC is a fantastic boat for cruising in the tropics. She was not designed for Patagonia though….”.
Can you expand on that? Forgive me if you already did in another post. Can you explain why a cat, or your cat for sale, is not a good choice for going around continents? Sturdiness? Twice as hard to avoid big chunks of ice?
Any info is appreciated.
Sam
Hi Sam.Yes, I have answered this on several occasions, but it’s ok. It has to do with the open concept design of the boat, and the fact that Patagonia is COLD, nothing more.
I am still on board and dreaming about buying ZTC. I would do it in a heartbeat. However, the last time I got my wife to say ‘yes’ to the idea of taking a charter, she started have panic attacks (seriously). She knows that I still have the dream, but I have backed way off of the idea to calm her down. I love her to the ends of the earth, even if I can’t sail there.
She surprised me the other day though, when she said she just bought a book on Amazon written by the wives of sailers with all kinds of perspectives, some good, some bad. Just the fact that she is gathering information means a lot to me.
My first choice would be a smaller monohull, but like Sam, my wife REALLY doesn’t like heeling. I sail Hobie Cats, so ZTC would be easy for me to pick up, I am sure.
Perhaps an island vacation with a couple of day sails might be a good first step.
Done that!