TimeOut

I just wandered over to the timeout section and found that Bill had been posting some of my log entries – I wasn’t aware that they were posted over here – the entries were more so that my family and close friends can keep up with progress.  All the entries were submitted via email using an hf radio – where (when I could connect at all) I sometimes got throughput as low as 100/200 baud – just like the old days!

 

In case anyone was wondering “Winston in the casket” – was my recently deceased dog.  He was the perfect ships dog and I had taken him back down to scatter his ashes.  

 

An amusing aside is that it was somewhat nerve wracking driving down through Mexico, Guatemala and El Salvador with a bag of whitish powder and then scattering it of the coast of Columbia/Ecuador.   I’m sure it’s been done before but in the other direction!

 

I do have a website http://www.indigomoth.com  where you can see some pictures and further info regarding the yacht and some of the trips we’ve made.

... as I'd really like to take a look at Panama's Pacific islands.  And then a trip across the Pacific - as  I'm trying to take the long way back to Europe.  Unfortunately I keep getting sidetracked.  So I may end up being here for a while...

Below decks are occasionally the last place you want to be - but the moment always passes!

Is this Winston? I'm sorry he's gone, he looks like a good buddy to have on trips.

At lake Atitlan in Guatemala - he really loved it there.  Getting him to pose for the shot on a rickety jetty when there was swimming to be had was quite something!

For a Californian pound dog - he did exceptionally well on the boat - If he could he would spend all day every day fishing.  He only caught one, to the best of my knowledge, a puffer fish.  He had trapped it in the shallows and was barking with his head underwater!  I had to pull him off.

He had much more luck with the hunting of crabs though...

Does anyone else have a dog that likes to fish?

... and I am also sorry to hear about Winston. But it is only justified to bring him back to the sea he loved. We did the same with some ash of our three Collies. They absolutely loved to spend the holidays on Brittany's coast, and it always seemed as if the years fell off from them when they could chase the waves and make their circles on the endless beaches. However, when we placed the three small boxes with the ashes in the water, we certainly did not have that potentially dangerous act of crossing many states' borders with white powder in the luggage behind us!!

Best regards,
Marcus

Sorry about Winston.  When I read the original post I thought it was a maritime reference that I didn't understand :-(

Beautiful Yaht.

Where did the name Indigo Moth come from?

Best, Mike

I purchased her in the US and there was no way I could fly anything but a red ensign! (the British nautical flag) - I also needed a name change (and be damned with the bad luck).  So I applied to the  British small ships register for the name Moth (I realize that lots of people think these are just bugs but I prefer to think of them as things of beauty - butterflies of the night) Anyway a couple of months passed and I got told that I couldn't have that as there was already a boat named Moth - so I then applied for Indigo as she's blue and I really like the sound of the word.  A long time passed and then I got told no that was already taken - so I put the two together and it kind of stuck.

In the US they don't seem to have the problem with duplicate names as there are at least 5 boats named "Dolce Vita" in the local marina. 

is that a month that you've choosen as your avatar?

Mike

A character that my better half (a graphics designer) was developing for a book.

Carl,

 

Having no prior knowledge of you or your seasoned sailing experience, Bills posts had me on the edge of my seat – praying for your safety.  I had visions of you sailing out into the great abyss in a small sailboat and your only link to civilization was via an archaic communication device attached to a computer.  You sounded like a madman to me…! 

 

Reading thru your web site was very enjoyable, thank you for sharing it with us.  And thank you Bill for candidly posting Carl’s adventure, it was a great read.

 

By the way Carl, do you go for swims in the Ocean when you are far off land?  Did your dog ever jump into the water after the big fish?  Was that you in the buff? 

 

Warmest Regards,

 

Helen

and it is a really eerie feeling as you peer down into the depths knowing that there is nothing for thousands of feet.

 

I used to windsurf in the North Sea - the local sea was quite brown (due to river sediment in the water) and the visibility was probably less than a foot and as a consequence I never gave a second thought to depth.  The first time I windsurfed in blue water down in Cornwall I remember the sensation of traveling across something that felt really really deep.  It's all quite irrelevant as you can drown in the bath.

 

Winston never jumped in when I was on the boat - but he did unfortunately learn that he could jump in and follow me ashore!  There was a rather memorable moment when Winston and I were looking directly down at an Orca that was had come up and was looking at us - I got the distinct impression that it was trying to work out how to get one of us off of the boat!

 

Man - you must have been really luck to spot that photo! 

Carl,

 
Don’t you worry about running into pirates?  That kind of thing is coming back into style.  Hope you have some way to protect your wife and self. 

 

Did you see the movie “White Squall”?  I like it almost as much as I like “Captains Courageous”.  Good movies like those are few and far between.

 

Helen

 

 

 

... within the cruising community there is a bit of a debate as to whether you should carry a firearm on board.  I belong to the camp that believes not. I do have a rather large machete though... 

I have seen White Squall - but I refused to watch The Perfect Storm - that was just too much.

Hi Carl,

Such wonderful trips (or a permanent trip) on board such a boat, that's heaven!!

Your boat is definitely my kind of boat!!

Enjoy and sail in safe winds.

Dje

I was hand steering, beautiful sailing weather, a good breeze and sunny, nothing on the horizon.  I was thinking to myself that I'll always be able to treasure this moment. A large wave slapped the bows sent up a wall of water and I got completely drenched in the cockpit.  I found myself grinning like a mad man - and I will always treasure that moment!

nt