The Escape

The purchase went by in a blur. Did we really just spend most of our savings on a sailboat? Well, it's more than just a sailboat, it's our home now. By this evening, we'll begin the process of moving our possessions aboard a chunk of fiberglass thirty feet long by 12 feet wide. A far cry from three bedrooms, two bathrooms and an acre of land!
It was a long time coming. For years, the wife and I have shared a dream of selling off most of our worldly goods, buying a sailboat, moving aboard and most importantly, sailing to exotic places. We subscribed to all the pertinent magazines filled with glossy pages of azure waters and blue skies. We read and learned and spoke in hushed, reverent tones about the day we'll get to actually look out and drink in the beauty of the tropics.
With the obligatory Buffett blaring from the speakers, we happily loaded up. It was a week long process of sweat, smiles and sore muscles. But with every trip down the dock, we felt closer to each other than we have in years. Here we were about to embark on a journey of a lifetime with only each other to rely on. Instead of feeling hesitant or scared, I felt serene. Yes, we made the right decision.
Two weeks later, we fired up the old diesel and slipped the docklines. We were in Oriental, NC which is where we found this old boat. It is a sailing town and a natural stopover for voyages on the Intracoastal Waterway. The plan had us sailing to Ocracoke Island on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Ocracoke has a wonderful natural harbor protected from the winds on all sides. The day long trip from Oriental would serve as our shakedown cruise and allow us to fix and tweak things in preparation for the rest of the journey.
Our plan is to get down to Florida and then hop across the mighty Gulfstream to the Bahamas. Here, we would get our first taste of the tropics. Our hope is to assimilate ourselves to Island Time and slow down the hectic pace of our lives. From there, only time will tell. Maybe we'll head down island. Maybe a jouney west towards Mexico. Sound indecisive? My friend, that is the beauty of the cruising lifestyle!