Monday, August 22, 2016

Sailboats of the Caribbean

Having sailed back to our home base in the Bahamas where there is a very limited amout of interesting boats about I get a bit lonely for real boats.
Here's a few that you won't see here.


ADIX to me is the most impressive schooner afloat. She really moves along. Her owner really sails her everywhere. Wish there were more crazy successful people like him and the others to keep building these magnificent vessels.


Taz.. Boy did I have fun sailing her all over in so many races.


A wooden beauty that boat for boat did well.


Antigua is where all the row boats end up. Well there is one wrecked up In Abaco.


Our dinghy on its daily run to work passing under this dolphin striker.


Just another Perini Navi giant.


This tri flew past us on Taz in the RORC 600 doing 29 knts with only one hull in the water.


Yea..... I'd like my stern to over hang the water by 35'


TP 52' with great owners aboard. They charter to crews so you can sail a million dollar boat for a regatta but you can then just walk away afterwards. To me it's a good way to go to get this into or out of your system.


Teak and varnish keeps lots of people in beer money. Or in Antigua ganja as most of the guys that varnish down island are Rastafarians. Or look alikes. But they do great work ... Even stoned.

My favorite small Herrshoff schooner.


Nice big yawl. But needs a good breeze.


Modern day metal and wood decked yacht.


Lovely 


30' Paul Johnson Venus Ketch. These little boats really sail well but they can really hobby horse in a sea so you just hook up the vane and keep to the middle of these little go anywhere boats.


A family of four sailed this 31' steel gaff cutter from England and back.


Nice Alden schooner


A just rebuilt Kettenburg Sloop from my home town of San Diego California. The winds were light so she just cleaned up in the races doing horizon jobs.


ALFA NERO on its way into the lagoon in St. Maarten. Our daughter Kalessin and her fiancé work aboard this yacht. She's responsible for the inside and he's the chief bosun. It's 90 meters long.


Squeezing through the bridge. I am next to the green umbrellas at the yacht club telling everyone that my daughter is on this traffic stopper. Kalessin did not know I was in town as I just sailed in on a delivery. She's was so surprised when I yelled up at her as ALFA NERO slid by.


Rachel, Kalessin, Pavlo, her fiancé with me on the stern deck. Yep that's a see through pool behind us. The helicopter lands on top of this. Ya gotta have all this stuff or it's no fun being stinkin' successful.


King Crab, Princess Kalessin and the Queen Conch on the bow looking out over all the mortals in the bay.


Now back to reality and a nice Dick Newick wood Tri in Bequia.


This cat sailed into the bay under full crab mainsail and a jib. We had friends aboard and I couldn't get away to get pictures as this vessel sailed in and anchored. By the time I got away they were ashore.
The next day she was gone before I could talk to them.
What a vessel!







This is not a Wahrram Cat. It's from the South Pacific and is planked up of solid planks and woven together and also pinned with wood dowls. A true masterpiece of ocean going ingenuity.
Wish there were more people out there doing this kind of stuff.


To finish this off here's a picture sent to us of the Hogfish Maximus beating to weather in some good seas. It's windy for sure.

The thing I like about boats is you can start the whole story off with the ADIX and end with that catamaran. Lots of money and very little money. But the cool thing is we all sail the same seas breathing the same air and taking the same risks. 

That's why I love boats, it's the last thing left on earth that you build on your own and take all over the world with minimal intervention from governments.

I wonder if I'll need a permit to put a helicopter on the HFM ?

2 comments:

bro dunn said...

Enjoying your blog and posts. Nice carved fish. your lifestyle is inspiring. I'm a boat lover,sailor, drummer, artist, sailing a sandpiper 32 presto boat up here in Narragansett Bay. I'm on instagram as anxiousmandrums. Peace Bro

Unknown said...

The odd cat you saw was built by Hans Klaar, called the "Ontong Java"

he has since sold it to a young couple who refit it and renamed it ""Mareva'

https://frequenciesoflife.wordpress.com/2013/01/31/marevas-maiden-voyage/

this is their blog. I have no idea what has happened to the vessel since then. It is one of my favorites though.

I have quite a few shot of her on my pintrest:

https://www.pinterest.com/travelingjake/beautiful-sailing-vessels/

towards the bottom, and even some video of her. She was built on the coasts of Africa.