“Not all who wander are lost” -J.R.R. Tolkien

It all started innocently enough; a number of years ago, I got the crazy idea to build a boat.
Noooo, not something reasonable like a skiff or a pram… Nope, I was going to build myself a 40 ft. sailboat!

As usual, I dove in with both feet; I ordered books, started researching plans, joined on-line sailing forums, etc., etc., etc. and finally settled on a design that I felt met my objectives and started to put together a list of materials… long story short, instead of building, Maria and I purchased our first sailboat, an older Catalina 30 TRBS (Tall Rig with a Bowsprit) back in 2003.

No, it wasn’t quite what I had planned, but it did make sense. You see, we had never, ever sailed a boat before.
Did I forget to mention that little detail? Yep, we were landlubbers!

We spent the next couple of years learning to sail and expanding our horizons; both in nautical miles and in time at sea. We sailed up and down the Hudson River, we sailed the Long Island Sound and continued as far north as Massachusetts on our first 30 day sail. In 2006/2007 we spent a full year living aboard Rocinante as we made our way south to the Florida Keys. About half way down, we traded in our Catalina 30 for a Hanse 40 – we were hooked and decided to follow a somewhat unconventional path; we would join the small tribe known as live aboard cruisers!

We sailed North again leaving Rocinante in Maryland with every intention of selling all our belongings and sailing off to parts unknown – but the Universe doesn’t much care about the plans of man.

It’s now February, almost March of 2016 as I sit here writing this post and it’s been far too long since we last sailed aboard our beloved Rocinante. It’s time to continue on our path!

Over the next few months, we’ll take care of what we need to take care of in order to once again follow Mark Twain’s advice and throw off the bowlines, Sail away from the safe harbor, Catch the trade winds in our sails and Explore; Dream; Discover!

We will share our journey with you via this blog, YouTube videos and regular updates via social media.
Until then, sit back and enjoy as I regale you with tales of our past adventures!

Carlos & Maria
S/V Rocinante
…you may not be able to control the wind, but you can adjust your sails