Cruising World June 2015

The story of an accomplished chef’s next big endeavor really should start with the food, right? Well, by coincidence, this tale about Karl Lomax, his new Privilège Serie 5 catamaran and plans for gourmet charter vacations in the Virgin Islands did begin with a foodie twist. We met at the waterfront Hooters in Miami. It had been a confusing morning, the day after the Miami boat show, and I arrived back from my first sea trial a little late. At first I feared there’d be no time to grab a bite before joining Karl aboard Privileged One for a sail up to Fort Lauderdale. I needn’t have worried. As I scrambled around to find a boat-show workboat to give me a lift out to the handsome big cat that was…

A sailor’s most common complaint in the Falkland Islands is “too much wind!” Certainly when my husband, Thies Matzen, and I first cruised this South Atlantic Ocean archipelago in our 30-foot Wanderer III in 1998, I was convinced it blew a gale every day of the year. That was, of course, an exaggeration: Once in a blue moon it’s flat calm instead. Last summer we were helping out with the sheepshearing at West Point Island, in the very northwest of the island group. When the skipper of the transport boat was suddenly called to his father’s funeral, it fell upon us to get the shearing gang off the island, back to West Falkland. A shearing gang doesn’t travel light. In addition to jumbo-size wheeled suitcases, they had heavy shearing equipment…

Congratulations on your April issue showing boat maintenance work being done using proper safety equipment (“An Ounce of Prevention,” by Alvah Simon). I am driven wild by do-it-yourself articles in the sailing press with photos of folks in shorts, with bare feet and hands, undertaking projects requiring the use of hazardous materials. My husband and I own and maintain a wooden gaff-rigged ketch. We sweat and groan a lot in our respirators and gloves. But our health is more important than our temporary comfort. We plan on sailing in good health as long as we can. (We are both 66.) People must realize that caring for a boat is not a day at the beach. Keep up the good work. Sue Peterson S/V Star of India Dream of Future Past…

CRUISINGWORLD.COM ON TO PATAGONIA Mike Litzow and his family aboard Galactic (above) have been exploring Chile since December, and after some time spent in Puerto Montt and Isla Chiloe they are ready to press south into Patagonia. Or are they? “We consulted the graphical forecasts that we get via the radio, and thought we probably wouldn’t try to beat the approaching low. And then we saw the Armada forecast and decided we defi-nitely wouldn’t. It was calling for winds up to 50 knots, with gusts of 80 to 100. That made sitting still seem the height of sensibility.” cruisingworld.com/1506galactic THEY’RE OFF! At press time, the crew of Del Viento — Michael, Windy and their daughters, Eleanor and Frances — are en route to the South Pacific. Eight days out of…

Living with seven children aboard our 65-foot sailboat, Nadejda, we have a lot of cleaning to be done in tight quarters, and the thought of using strong chemicals is out of the question. Like many cruisers, I find vinegar to be a safe, environmentally friendly, all-purpose cleaner. The only downside is that vinegar does leave your boat smelling, well, a bit pickled. Fortunately, I happen to have a hard time tossing out what can possibly be reused. One day, watching my children peel oranges and seeing the mound of peels destined for the garbage, I thought of the tinctures and extracts I make using various herbs and spices. Then it struck me: What if I soaked the orange zest in the plain vinegar I’ve been using to clean the boat?…

Cruiser and electrical engineer Sasha Barac has created a reference book for anyone looking for more eco- or walletfriendly ways to clean and care for your boat, your home or yourself. Included are easy recipes for homemade cleansers for both interior and exterior purposes, and techniques for using them. The ingredients are all simple items that are likely stowed on your boat already. There are also chapters devoted to laundry care and even cosmetics. For boats traveling far from modern conveniences and stores, Eco World will be a handy volume to have aboard.…