Island People

Two retired schoolteachers, former Peace Corps Volunteers, have finished their careers in Western New York public schools, and after having explored the Great Lakes and Eastern Seaboard, they have sailed to the Caribbean. It is in the British Virgin Islands, at Nanny Cay, where they are challenged with the idea of a crossing. Their boat, Tapestry is a nine year old Nauticat from Finland, they had bought used and had fixed up to meet surveyor's demands for insurance. In Florida they added dinghy davits and did what they could. They contacted Herb for help with weather and made the plunge, not the Gentleman's Passage, but right off shore from Staniel Cay in the Bahamas, bound for Saint John in the U.S. Virgin Islands. It is here in the Virgin Islands that our story begins. "A sequel?" I hear you ask. It is really. Island People: Finding Our Way is the title of the first book. Island People: Deep Water Dreams picks up with Hank and Julie as they, after sailing briefly in the Caribbean, prepare their boat for an Atlantic crossing with the Atlantic Rally for Cruisers, or ARC. What would they need? Who would go with them? Would they do it by themselves? Was their boat adequate? Was it ready? Were they ready? What if the GPS failed? They had a sextant, but could they use it at sea on a rolling boat? These were all very real questions upon which their lives would depend.Imagine a marina with a bar at the end of the dock, where these two intrepid Americans would try to install a generator and water maker as curious patrons looked on. Imagine finding capable help, people who knew electricity and plumbing, in this land of sweltering heat, this place where most folks came to relax. Suppose on the shake down cruise, things didn't quite seem up to par. What then? Whom could they trust? If repairs were inadequate, they might die. Suppose those they chose to do the work didn't speak English well? The Rally, actually a race, begins in Antigua. Picture a perfect night at sea, the constant lookout for ships, three hour watches, routing, checking, cooking and eating. See beautiful Bermuda Imagine sailing for Eight hours in winds approaching 50 knots, then come The Azores, and finally, after crossing the Continental Shelf, destination England With the boat 'on the hard' in Rota, Spain, back in the U.S., Julie is diagnosed for a second time with Breast Cancer. Surgery, discomfort, but courage is here. Could they? Back on board, Gibraltar and Morocco in Northern Africa are calling. The Costa del Sol is followed by the Balearic Islands. Stunning beauty, raging wildfires, screaming winds embrace them in Sardinia, and, unlike Homer, they went way in to the harbor on Corsica, much to their peril. Rome, Siena, Florence, Venice come before returning to Tapestry, year three. The south of Italy calls with volcanos and the Isle of Sicily offers magical Taormina, Siracusa and Etna, the one eyed monster that hurled rocks at Odysseus. Bounce off the boot to Greece; island hop, the Corinth Canal, Delphi, lovely ancient and not so ancient islands. Sail on to Turkey; Marmaris, a medieval city, a modern marina, powerboat races; tasteful restaurants, reasonable prices. Myriad islands and coves. Magical Istanbul, and home. Year four is the Eastern Mediterranean Yacht Rally, a tour of the middle east, but wait. Health issues call again. Ambulance, sirens, hospital, surgery. A hospital deep in Alanya, Turkey. Is this a dream or a nightmare? Read this memoir and experience those from our world as they deal with these two retired Americans.