Sail Magazine

by Jan Hein

Voice of Experience: When Ciguatera Strikes

by Jan Hein, Posted April 5, 2012

After over five months of sailing from the Pacific Northwest, down the west coast of North America, through the Panama Canal and on into the Caribbean, we were finally approaching St. Maarten. We were only 100 miles from our final destination, and a giddy feeling of anticipation had begun to set in.

A Carriacou Comeback

by Jan Hein, Posted April 9, 2010

The tiny Caribbean island of Carriacou is enjoying a welcome and raucous revival. On the beach where boatbuilding started over a century ago, the sounds of ringing caulking irons and hatchets “chopping sweet” are once again filling the air.Traditionally, the schooners and sloops of Carriacou were built for inter-island trading. Others worked the sea, setting traps or trolling with hand

Economic interlude

by Jan Hein, Posted May 19, 2009

It was January in the BVI. From our anchorage in Great Harbour, Jost Van Dyke, we watched a parade of bareboats and crewed yachts come and go, twenty to thirty every day. Business, to our eye, seemed normally robust. Why, I wondered, were people still willing to charter while the sails of the economy were losing their wind?Curiosity and my rowboat took me to seek answers that I figured

Caribbean, the Real Deal

by Jan Hein, Posted October 31, 2008

If you think a Caribbean charter is all about the perfect reach, you might be missing the boat. There’s plenty of fun to be had on shore, so jump ship and find it. Sure, you’ll have a good time at the hangouts catering to sailors and pirates, but for a true taste of island life, take a hike. Stroll to a back street, walk the beach, or climb a hill to find that little store full of nothing or a