11/06/2009

Please note the new 'Liberteeny' dinghy on the foredeck, very smart, as well as the 'Scottimini' bimini and of course, the mighty Solar Stik. And a fine, fine crew.

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11/06/2009

Bienvenidos a Mexico! Liberte is happily lounging at Marina Coral, after a day of clearing in boat and crew at the excellent facility here. Our agent with the hotel handled all the dealings and they took fantastic care of us. It's a highly recommended way to enter the country. Also, the gym, swimming pool and hot tub under the stars are mighty civilized.

A word about our route and communications: We plan to depart here tomorrow mid-afternoon, bound for two days underway to Turtle Bay, a remote village roughly halfway down the Pacific outside of the Baja. I've filed a float plan with Gartly Curtis, and will be in touch with Gartly enroute.

While we are cruising in Mexico, there are several ways to reach us. The best is e-mail, which we will be checking at regular intervals throughout our trip. We would love to hear from you at the following gmail addresses: rebeccakilmer and captaindavidkilmer. Our cell phones are on a Mexican plan and work in many places: Rebecca's cell 208.699.2789 and Dave's cell 208.699.2761. We'll want to talk fast! We also have a satellite phone on board, and that number is 881 651 455 988. This phone is not always turned on, but you may be able to leave a message. It's spendy to call. The sat phone is programmed with our Dr. Mary Duff, and the emergency numbers for the US and Mexican coast guards.

We would love to hear from you by e-mail, and we've enjoyed the many well wishes and Bon Voyage message we've received so far.

Que te vaya bueno!

Capt. Dave and crew

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11/04/2009

Yipee! The boat chores are wrapped and Liberte and crew are ready for passage south. We plan to cast off dock lines tomorrow pre-dawn for Ensenada.

Rebecca and Dave flew in from Coeur d'Alene with Samantha the boat dog comfortably under our seats on Southwest Air. Scottie had the boat looking great after her month after Harbor Island West. He's been a busy guy and accomplished a lot to get us on our way.

We've quickly adjusted to boat time, with some hottubbing at the marina pool, walks with the dog along the harbor seawall, and excursions to the marine chandlery and chart store. On Scottie's watch, or "Scout" as he is known for sussing things out, our dinghy program got a major upgrade when we welcomed "Liberteeny," our gently used AquaPro 9-foot RIB with aluminum floor. She's powered by a 2-stroke 8 horse Merc, with which Scott reports he was keeping up with the 30-mph traffic on Harbor Island Drive. Sweet!

We've also installed the "Scoutimini," our new bimini sun awning, custom-designed by Scott.

We were happy to take Rebecca, the California Girl, to In-and-Out Burger for lunch, and send her for a well-deserved massage. We're headed for the airport to pick up my buddy from Kenya days, Rick Hintz, who's just coming back from a trip doing good deeds in India. Pretty fun it worked out to see him for our Bon Voyage.

Recommended stops in San Diego: Cabrillo Lighthouse with amazing views of the harbor, Sailing Supply, Seabreeze Nautical Books, and Hector's for burritos. Harbor Island West has been a great place to stash the boat for the month, and now we're eager to be on our way.

We have reservations at Marina Coral in Ensenada, which gets great recommendations and has full services to make our stay pleasant. Scout's friend Ginjer, a Montana hardcore sailor girl, will join us there. Ginjer is handy on the boat, is fun to hang with and speaks rippin' good Spanish - in all, a fine addition to the crew.

See you down the road.

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10/17/2009

Liberte is at Harbor Island West, preparing to head south.

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09/05/2009

Liberte is headed to the Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival, and then south to San Francisco with Kilmer, Rundlett and Galbraith.

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04/15/2009

Liberte circumnavigated Vancouver Island in April-June 2009, with crew of Kilmer, Galbraith, Rundlett, Bell and Mrs. Kilmer, at various stages of the trip. We originated from Bellingham, and crossed our own track about two months later near Patos Island, San Juans. Our counter-clockwise route had us clearing in at Nanaimo and visiting LaSquitty Island, Hornby Island and Desolation Sound. We transited the rapids at Yaculta, Gillard Pass, Dent, Greene Point and Whirlpool, and had two days of fast and fun downwind sailing through notorious Johnstone Strait. We spent a week in the Broughton Islands, with excellent stops at Pierre's at Echo Cove and at Kwatsi Bay. After a delightful stop in God's Pocket, we left at dawn from Bull Harbour, navigating inside the bar. We shut off the engine after passing the bar and sailed around Cape Scott on Rundlett's 40th birthday. The hospitality at Port Alice was amazing as we waited out big winds on the outside. At Friendly Cove, we were told by the Nootka Light keepers that we were the first boat around that season. The soak at Hot Springs Cove soothed our sailing muscles and was all the sweeter by our sense of accomplishment on the journey.

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