SAIL.SailMagazine

Australia’s Whitsunday Islands, on the edge of the Great Barrier Reef just off the Queensland coast, are one of those “bucket list” destinations, known far and wide for great snorkeling, great sailing and some of the best beaches in the world.

I yearn to return to Tahiti. I was there in 2010 for the Pearl Regatta and fell in love with the islands. I can still hear the crash of surf outside my room that first night, smell the scent of orchids at the top of the mountain on Raiatea...

Eskimos, according to urban legend, have 32 words for snow. Or perhaps it’s nine, or 15. No matter. Tongans must have at least that many words for the color blue.

On August 23, 2011, our 35-foot Allied Seabreeze yawl Arcturus (vintage 1966) became—we believe—the first monohull to cross an ocean sporting Colligo Dynex Dux synthetic fiber standing rigging. This after a 3,000-mile passage.

The thumbnail moon was below the horizon, making it tough to see the dust devils rising through the holes in the floor of the rusty Ford Econoline van as we careened down the bumpiest dirt road I’ve ever travelled.