It was all very surreal. There we were, a mere two weeks ago, driving away from Wild Horses as we started our trek north in our rental car. We had only spent a handful of nights away from our boat, our home, in the last two years. Now we were embarking on a four-month trip back to Canada that would have us living fully on land. No more slight swaying of the hull as it rolls against the waves. No dinghy rides to shore. No more making our own water from the salty seas. Weather watching becomes more about staying dry than about staying safe. A new, but familiar, adventure awaited us in Canada ..read more

When we first arrived at Green Cove Springs Marina, we anchored in the Marina’s harbour with the plan of getting ourselves oriented and ready for Wild Horses to be hauled out of the water. You see, none of this was in our original plan for our first five years living aboard. No, the plan was to stay in the Caribbean for several years. We thought that any trips back home would be done by either Mike or myself, never together, so that we wouldn’t have to figure out the logistics of getting Ocean on a plane or finding a pet sitter. What we didn’t realize back then was how much we prefer to stick ..read more

We finally arrived at Green Cove Springs Marina last Wednesday May 22. This will be the last stop for Wild Horses for several months. We will have the boat hauled out on June 1, prepare her for a hot Florida summer and then leave her be as we drive back to Canada for a much-needed visit with family. I know what you are thinking – Wild Horses arrived at Green Cove Springs almost a week ago and I am only posting about it now? Yes, yes, yes. It has been a very busy few weeks for us. Since arriving, we have: secured a rental car for getting around the area (nothing is in walking distance of our ..read more

I will admit that when we decided to make the return trip to the US, I said “whew”. In terms of travel, all I could think about was how we would get some great sailing in the Bahamas and then we would plan a comfortable Gulf Stream Crossing, followed by a few weeks of easy motoring in the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway (AICW). I felt we had earned a bit of an easy run, motoring along and enjoying the inner coastal sights, including the bottlenose dolphins that frequent the ICW in Florida.  A sure sign that you are in the ICW are these green (and red) markers! Bottlenose dolphins ..read more

For the last few weeks, we have been carefully eyeing the weather for a possible window to make our run to the tiny island of Bimini on the outer edge of the western Bahamas and then across the Gulf Stream to Florida. Bimini is the first Bahamian island that we visited on our trip south and it holds a special place in our hearts. This time around it would be our last Bahamian island, at least for the next six months. After waiting out some strong winds over the weekend, we could finally see the weather window we were hoping for. Starting Tuesday April 30th, we had a forecast that called for g ..read more

After spending the last few months kicking around the Exumas, we have finally moved along to the island of New Providence. Our Bahamas 3-month cruising permit expires on May 14 and our move to New Providence marks the beginning of our staged departure from the Bahamas. We are currently attached to a private dock on the south of the island (Nassau is at the top of the island) waiting out some strong winds. Once the weather is favourable, we will head towards the Mackie Shoal and then onto Bimini, before we make the leap across the Gulf Stream to Florida. ​ When we left O’Brien’s Cay and the won ..read more

The last few weeks have been sheer fun. We are slowly working our way up the Exuma Cays in the Bahamas and having a blast with each stop. And, of course, it wouldn’t be as much fun if our pup Ocean didn’t also get to come along for the ride, snorkel, hike or whatever we have lined up for the day. ​Although Ocean is always suited up for a swim, some of her activities require some extra gear to get the most fun out of everything she does. Here is her Top Five list of “Must Have” Activity Gear for the Cruising Dog #1 Sunglasses These great sunglasses protect Ocean’s eyes from the sa ..read more

Bonus video! This week's blog is light on pictures. In lieu, please check out this great video by Sailing Caretta that features Wild Horses cleaning their first conch. Enjoy!  ​ Continue reading below for this week's blog from Sailing Wild Horses. BONUS VIDEO Getting Through a Weekend of Severe Squalls We had a doozy of a storm this past weekend in Georgetown. It was big. It was scary. But it was also a great reminder of the fortitude and generosity of our sailing community. ​ All forecasters were calling for a bad storm hitting the Bahamas from Friday through to Sunday. We p ..read more

Our last time in Georgetown, one year ago, seemed like a blip. We were here for two weeks but, for us, the vibe was very different. We were exhausted from constant travel, still trying to get our bearings on how to do this liveaboard thing and we were nervous about making the leap to the Caribbean. Our two weeks in Georgetown was spent stocking up, fueling up, and checking out the “you-have-to-do-this” stuff like the “Chat n’ Chill” beach and exploring the island by car. We did manage to snorkel and hike a wee bit but, truly, our minds were on weather windows, planning our route south and conn ..read more

On Monday March 4th, Wild Horses and Caretta left our cozy spots in the south Raggeds after two glorious weeks. We had to time our exit from the anchorage with high tide as the channel leading out of the anchorage can drop below 1 metre in depth. Our keel has a depth of 1.7 metres so working with a flooding tide is critical. In fact, even with high tide, our keel momentarily touched the sandy bottom. No damage was done but it did make our hearts skip a beat! ​ Our first two stops up the Ragged island chain were anchorages just a few hours from each other. The first was Double Breasted Cay (I h ..read more