01/27/2010, Zamboanga, Philippines
AHOY!! From Zamboanga, Philippines! I'm back at work for 6-weeks... I've given notice to my boss- this is my last hitch... I might be fighting fires this summer in Alaska, then setting sail for Mexico and Panama. See! cruising plans are set in jello!
I always thought it would be EASY to quit work and sail into the sunset... I tell ya what... It's not as easy as it seems!!! When you have a good paying job and life is bearable or better, it really is hard to quit for the UNKNOWN!
I have all the sailing videos, all the sailing books (JUNESSA's waterline shows how much weight is on board!) and I read (look at the pictures) of all the sailing magazines. They all have a common theme "Go NOW!" or "Keep it simple and Go NOW!" I need to heed their advice and cut the dock lines and GO!!!!!!
If you are in the same boat (no pun intended!) please leave a comment and tell us your story! What's it going to take to say ENOUGH! CAST OFF THE LINES!
Cruising isn't a sport, it's a LIFESTYLE!
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Comments [3]
01/09/2010, Zamboanga, Philippines
I got a late night call to jump on a plane bound for Philippines. I'm filling in for one of the pilots so I'm not sure how long I'll be on-duty or if I'll be back in the US before I go on my normal rotation...
Since money is a necessary evil in everything we do, the more we can earn, the more we can POTENTIALLY play with... Potentially is the key word!
Side Note: The Philippine Air force's Motto... 'DO MORE WITH LESS'..... hum Not exactly a a good recruiting slogan!!!
I'm having fun with my digital camera as always! The kids over here just love getting their pictures taken! (thanks for the great shot Bill)
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01/01/2010, Gig Harbor, Wa
This is the new Low-tech approach to navigation... the blow-up globe!!! hahaha!
Actually if I could do it all over again, I would've installed a Garmin 478 on a removable bracket outside in the cockpit and my laptop would be running one of the many navigation software programs with a gps antenna plugged into the computer. (I'm running a Apple MacBook with MacENC software... http://www.gpsnavx.com/ )
I would've installed a stand-alone radar on a swing bracket that can be viewed down below when cooking or staying out of the weather and viewed from the cockpit... (The Chart plotter takes up room, eats power and is susceptible to power spikes from lightning or operator error... that would kill the plotter and radar at same time!)
I used all five modes on my trip... Paper charts, garmin chart-plotter w/radar, garmin 478, Mac Computer with charts and the inflatable globe... After using the chart-plotter most of the way North, along the Inside Passage, I finally got the computer and USB GPS to work, so the charts on the computer were just like paper, but sooooo much easier to use! (I had paper-charts from Washington to Alaska that took up almost a four foot long travel bag and weighed in at around 75 pounds!)
I also installed an AIS receiver (ICOM MXA-5000 Dual Channel)! Now that is one really cool electronic aid!!! I highly recommend AIS!!! I was able to plug the data into both the computer and Garmin chartplotter (not at the same time tho) and see large ships and some fishing vessels OVER THE HORIZON!! Plus get their course/speed/size and most important the vessel NAME! (AIS picks up ships well before radar ever does and you know for sure where it is and which direction it's heading!)
Last comment on all the electronics available to us gadget junkies... If by chance someone decides they need our stuff more than we do... it can get VERY EXPENSIVE to replace!!!
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12/20/2009, Wrangell Narrow, SE Alaska
JULY 2009 Just left the Port of Petersburg, heading South along the Wrangell Narrows. A friend of mine took this shot and emailed it to me! thanks! :)
A quick update... I'm still working in the Southern Philippines and JUNESSA is still tied up in Gig Harbor with her Volvo motor in pieces. (Remember what BOAT stands for.... Break Out Another Thousand $$$$... I have to work to B-O-A-T for repairs,upgrades and restock the sailing kitty!)
My original plan was to be sitting at anchor in the Sea of Cortez right now sipping cold beer and fishing for dinner everyday, but as with any plan... it has to be very very flexible! (especially when it comes to cruising and boats!)
My new' flexible plan' is to get back to JUNESSA's engine room asap and finish the motor rebuild and do some sea trials in the Puget Sound/San Juan Islands area this Winter/Spring. Then wait for a weather window and make a hard Left Turn towards Hawaii or Mexico... or take the BIG STEP and point for the Marquises Islands of French Polynesia.
I'm finishing up my last YouTube video from my summer trip.... look for it here within the next couple days!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! (Erica, thanks for the great photo!)
If you don't go NOW, you may NEVER go......
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12/19/2009, INSIDE PASSAGE
Here's the last installment to my Inside Passage Trilogy! :)
I've learned alot about sailing and shooting video from this trip... I hope the next grand adventure will have alot more steady videos, different angles and underwater shots! ENJOY!
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11/24/2009, INSIDE PASSAGE
HERE'S PART 3.1 TO MY INSIDE PASSAGE ADVENTURE! The first version's audio was all messed up... This one should be in sync.... ENJOY!
I shot most of the footage with my Canon Vixia HF20 HD and a FLIP videocam. I bought a small handheld camera-stabilizer for my next trip, I found out the hard way it was way to hard to get steady shots on a moving boat! :)
(I'm using a MacBook and iMovie to do all the video editing)
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11/09/2009, INSIDE PASSAGE
Here's the second video of my round-trip passage from Gig Harbor, WA to Petersburg , AK. You can also view all my video clips on YouTube.
Enjoy!
please leave comments and ratings on YouTube... Makes my day! :)
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10/14/2009, British Columbia & SE Alaska
I made this on my MacBook with Apple's iMovie. I'm working on Part II, so stay tuned! ENJOY!
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10/11/2009, MT. RAINIER NATIONAL PARK
Here's a great shot of ME shooting the Fall beauty of Mt. Rainier!!!
This awesome shot was taken by one of the instructors, Gavriel Jecan.
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10/05/2009, Mt. Rainier National Park, WA
I've crossed off another item on my 'To-do before I die' list... I attended an Art Wolfe Photo Workshop!!! We spent the weekend up on Mt. Rainier and got some spectacular shots. What an awesome experience!!!
click the link to see some of my photos from the trip.... ENJOY!
http://web.me.com/petersonphoto/Site
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10/01/2009, Gig Harbor, WA
I was able to disassemble my Volvo Diesel in about three hours. I didn't loose any pieces-parts down the bilge, I didn't break anything, but I did have one heck of a mess when I pulled the head off the block... anti-freeze EVERYWHERE! I thought I had drained all the coolant, but after the fact, I noticed a drain plug on the side of the block that I didn't notice before. Oh well.... I went thru two rolls of towels to clean up my mess!
I should get a freshly cleaned, inspected and painted head back on Monday. The fun part will be to see if I can put the motor back together again without loosing or breaking any parts. I'll post some photos as soon as I can find my camera cable.
Thanks for all the wonderful COMMENTS left on this blog site! They really are motivating for me to keep pressing on!!!
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09/02/2009, Zamboanga, Philippines
Hi from Zamboanga, Philippines!
I'm back at work... somebody needs to pay off the Alaska Trip!!! :) I'm planning on posting a bunch of new videos, so stay tuned! (I might try YouTube as well)
Cheers!
Here's to a full sailing kitty and pay checks! :)
PS... Wow! I've had over 24,000 hits on my blogsite!!! Pretty cool!!! :)
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08/20/2009, GIG HARBOR, WASHINGTON
I FINISHED MY SHAKE DOWN CRUISE! 1700 miles, plus or minus...
I was really psyched to reach my starting point... Check that goal off the list! :)
Puget Sound was not cooperating and made the last leg pretty darn tough... strong shifting winds then nothing.... no wind... then currents not going in the direction that was "predicted"...I even launched the spinnaker to make some leeway, but I ended up motoring for two hours to get to Gig! Crazy place to SAIL!
My next priority is to fix my goof-ups on the boat. I have a mainsail that needs a patch, down-wind pole needs a new top stop and lots of paint! I also have to pull the head off the motor and get the injector sleeves replaced.
I'll be off to work next week...JUNESSA needs some repair bucks!!! haha
While I'm over in the Philippines 'working' I'll update my blogsite with more pictures and videos, so just because THIS trip is over, the website must go on! :)
I probably will have to get a haircut and shave.... hummmmm! I kinda like be Grizzly Adams!
Arrrrrrr! All ashore who's going ashore! I guess that would be ME! :)
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08/20/2009
I'm getting closer to my next Goal... The starting/finish line for this trip.
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08/19/2009
It's so awesome watching the sun go down with flat calm water! Wow! My last night in the San Juans Islands. Tomorrow I'll be back in Puget Sound.
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08/19/2009, Puget Sound
It looks like this guy is trying to ski barefoot..... :)
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08/18/2009, POINT ROBERTS, WA
I made it to Point Roberts, Washington... USA!!! Back in home waters!
I checked into customs at the end of the day, so everything was closed up... I was able to dock overnight at the customs dock... Freebee!
This is a really interesting piece of real-estate!!!! It's cut off from the US mainland because of the way the boarders were drawn bank when... If you are really board, look up Point Roberts, WA....
Looks like I'll either stop-over in the San Juans or pass them up today. All depends on the winds.
I went for a short walk to find a store and everything is locked up for a couple more hours.... so, Looks like I'll just head out while the winds are a blow'n... :)
See ya at the next rest stiop!
Cheers!
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08/17/2009
I decided to be a SAILOR and not a POWERBOAT SAILOR... so, I used the motor to get in and out of the marinas and used the sailpower as much as possible... and to add more horsepower, I flew the new spinnaker lightweight sail! Wow!!! It took me an hour to figure out how to raise, deploy and fly it correctly. Once it was up and pulling, I sped up to 8.2 knots in 12-15 knots of wind!!! It was a BLAST!!!
It had it flying for about two hours then my winds died all together... so, the kite was bagged and I rolled around in the swell for awhile. That was the only time I was feeling queezy... so, I fired up the motor and made a bee line to the nearest anchorage.
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08/17/2009, Somewhere along the inside passage
Here's a short YouTube clip from this summer. This was the first time I pulled the spinnaker out of it's bag since I bought it!!! After about an hour of scratching my head and trying different approaches to flying it, I finally got it deployed and away we went! Heee Haaa!
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08/15/2009, Powell River, B.C.
Latest drama in "Let's Fix the Motor!"
The parts showed up this morning but the SPECIAL TOOLS did not! The Volvo Dealer forgot to send with the order..... So, I was told MAYBE Tuesday will be the soonest.. Well, darn it! That's just not gonna work for me... So, I made a bunch of trips back and forth to the dealer trying to get something to work for me... In the end, the mechanic suggested just putting a copper washer down in the injector sleeve as a temp fix... It works, but I would not want to motor all day for the next 7 days to get back to Gig Harbor. Oh yaaaaa.... I have a sailboat! daaaa! Well, if the winds will cooperate with me, I'll sail non-stop to the first US port of entry.
I plan on avoiding all motoring spots and heading back to Gig... I still have to go to work at the end of the month and anymore problems could be a major pain.
I know this is all part of owning a boat... but I was having such good luck so... Oh well...
This is such a crazy marina! It's almost all stern tie or rafting with your neighbor... I've seen some very close calls with boats maneuvering around in tight spots. I had a tough time of it as well, but I didn't hit anyone or scare too many people! hahah
Cheers! from Pizza place! yum yum!
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