Hobby into Profession

In this post I’m going to continue with the “How I got here” story. If you don’t feel like reading then watch a video of my sailing adventures instead.

A compilation of my time on boats up until the summer of 2011.

We left off when I was working as a Sailing Instructor at Bald Head Island, North Carolina. I worked there seasonally over the course of four summers. What a beautiful place! I have very fond memories from those years.

Bald Head Island, NC

During my time teaching in NC, I managed to find my way onto a couple yacht deliveries. Never heard of a yacht delivery? Well, basically it’s just moving a boat from one place to another. In the world of sailing though, that can mean long distances and ocean crossings. My first yacht delivery was from the eastern Caribbean island of St. Martin to Newport, Rhode Island. It’s a trip of about 1500 nautical miles in the open Atlantic. We were abroad a Cape Fear 60 custom sloop, which is a 60ft monohull sailboat specifically built for ocean passages. I was just a deckhand on this venture and I took the opportunity to absorb as much knowledge as possible from the Captain.

Leaving St. Martin – y’all dig the stache?

Quick stop at a deserted island before he head offshore.

The delivery went as planned with no mishaps and a bit of excitement. I remember being amazed at how dark the night sky is when you’re hundreds of miles from land and there isn't any light pollution of the cities. You’ve never seen so many shooting stars! I remember the roll of the boat as 20ft swells passed under our keel. Rocking back and forth in my bunk - all night long in the cradle of the sea. I also remember the calm of the horse latitudes, like a lake on a windless day. We stopped the boat and took as swim into the abyss in those calm waters. I’ve never felt so small…

The Horse Latitudes

Needless to say, offshore sailing had an effect on me. At this point in life I was still in college studying journalism. Like most college kids, I hadn’t really chosen the direction for my future yet. That yacht delivery basically sealed the deal. I participated in several other deliveries over the next couple years. Mostly between points on the US East Coast and various Caribbean islands. All of them reaffirmed my desire to make sailing into a career.

So after I graduated college, I was met with a choice. I could attempt to get a job at the local TV News station OR I could continue to make a life on the water. I obviously chose the latter. After some time off exploring the United States in a VW bus and a backpacking trip to South America (stories for another time) I accepted a job teaching sailing on the San Francisco Bay. In the sailing community, there are three places in the United States that are holy ground. Annapolis, Newport, and SAN FRANCISCO!

I taught sailing for a season based out of Berkeley Marina. While there, I met a lot of great sailors and had the opportunity to sail some amazing boats. During that summer in California I also obtained my Captain’s License, a credential for professional mariners issued by the US Coast Guard. I had officially made a career out of sailing!

USCG Captain’s License AKA Merchant Mariner Credential

So that’s all for now. In upcoming articles, I will discuss the process of obtaining your captain’s license, some finer points of sailing, and I’ll start getting into the history of some of the places we’ve travelled. Thanks for the positive feedback on my previous post, if you like my articles please follow for more!