It has probably become obvious to the alert reader that I’m partial to full-keel, heavy, gaff-rigged boats.  After all, my own boat Ganymede epitomizes that design; I’ve captained a 37-ton steel schooner; I’m rigging a 97-ton tall ship at the moment—most of my seafaring has been done in that sort of boat.  So it was … A Foray into the Fast Unknown Read More » The post A Foray into the Fast Unknown appeared first on Cruising with the Zartman Family ..read more

When we first rigged Ganymede’s light-pole mast back in 2009, we used Vectran-cored rope for standing rigging.  Of the other options, Kevlar was too curmudgeonly, PBO was too expensive and short-lived, and Dyneema as a standing rigging fiber was still in its infancy.  The Vectran was easy to work with, affordable, and most of all, … A Synthetic Rigging Upgrade: Vectran to Dyneema Read More » The post A Synthetic Rigging Upgrade: Vectran to Dyneema appeared first on Cruising with the Zartman Family ..read more

The surest way to get any project over with quickly, I’ve found, is to attack it with singleness of purpose, disallowing all but the most pressing distractions.  That’s how we got Ganymede originally from bare hull to launched in just over three years, and cruising a couple months after that.  Not so with our latest … Refit and Relaunch Read More » The post Refit and Relaunch appeared first on Cruising with the Zartman Family ..read more

We didn’t spend a whole lot of time in Aasiaat.  To begin with, it wasn’t nearly as charming as Sisimiut, and we had a few stops to make in Disko Bay before settling the boat into Ilulissat for a two-week stopover.  Then of course Rudy and Renan, the camera guys, were keen on getting some … The Treasures of the Snow Read More » The post The Treasures of the Snow appeared first on Cruising with the Zartman Family ..read more

And if I haven’t had time to update this blog lately, dear Reader: be comforted!  It’s because I’ve been so busy doing things to blog about now.  You remember the fairing that was going on in the last blog post; you’ll be glad to hear that by now it’s mostly done, by dint of chipping … Believe in the Method Read More » The post Believe in the Method appeared first on Cruising with the Zartman Family ..read more

For the enthusiastic boater, that last little bit of autumn when the daytime temperature still gets above fifty degrees is always a rush.  As long as paint, resin, varnish, or fairing compound will cure, it’s a great time to get a head start on things so that next spring the launch can be earlier, or … Winterin’ Read More » The post Winterin’ appeared first on Cruising with the Zartman Family ..read more

I wondered, as Polar Sun rolled downwind across the Beaufort Sea along the cold, cold northern coast of Alaska, whether integrating back into normal life after the Northwest Passage would be easy.  I could see it both ways: perhaps just to arrive, unpack, fire up the truck and head off to the boatyard to rustle … Returning to Normal? Read More » The post Returning to Normal? appeared first on Cruising with the Zartman Family ..read more

It was as if the world had run out of interesting, that week or two after we got out of the ice at Pasley Bay, and tied Polar Sun up inside the harbor of Gjoa Haven, a little sandy inlet in the greater sandbar that is King William Island.  We now had to do some … The Final Push is Half the Battle. Read More » The post The Final Push is Half the Battle. appeared first on Cruising with the Zartman Family ..read more

We weren’t expecting to get out of Pasley Bay on our last day there, and we very nearly didn’t.  The wind had died in the night, and the small bits of open sea between the floes were skinned over with ice.  The air was warm though, with strong sunshine.  By a stroke of luck we … A Farewell to Ice Read More » The post A Farewell to Ice appeared first on Cruising with the Zartman Family ..read more

“Well,” we thought.  “Here we are again!” I’m talking, of course, about the south arm of Pasley Bay, where the pack ice closing up in the last blog post had herded us as neatly as if it had been planned.  There was nothing to worry about, really; the pack was busy filling up the northwest … Foolish, Careless, or Unlucky? Read More » The post Foolish, Careless, or Unlucky? appeared first on Cruising with the Zartman Family ..read more