Life’s true gift lies in your freedom to design it beautifully. With each rise of the sun, you get to chase the opportunity to fill your days with meaning—to live your life the way you choose.
For us and our new lifestyle, we simply enjoy each sunrise, look forward to the brilliance of each sunset, and find adventure every day as living on the ocean is always filled with new challenges. While we often feel we are loners, drifting along in the chaos of this expansive, watery and ever-changing world, we continue to meet new people we find we are not in fact alone. Our journey is very similar to many of the other people living this lifestyle.
As our story continues, we spent Christmas with our son Derek, and daughter and son-in-law Katie and Sean. Katie stayed an extra week while the boys returned home. Once Katie left, we had to remain another two weeks in the Nassau area to welcome aboard our oldest son Philip, his wife Shelby and our, just turned 3, grandbaby Orion. They were coming for a week’s visit, mid-January.
We had learned our lesson the hard way that you don’t sail away from any destination family is flying into. As soon as you leave, the weather will change and you will lose your opportunity to sail back in decent weather to meet them. As cold weather and heavy wind plagued us, we hung around the island of New Providence for two weeks and worked on our boat, trying to reduce the long list of repairs always present on a boat. The days ticked by slowly as we waited with great expectation to have our grandchild aboard our boat in the Caribbean.
They finally arrived at the marina via taxi from the Nassau Airport. I’m sure Orion is very confused as he keeps finding his grandparents in the oddest locations. We show up at his house, we used to live on a farm, and the last few times he has seen us has been marinas in different parts of the world. I’m sure we will always be an enigma to him, but if there is one thing he does love, it is being on the sailboat. His natural curiosity of all things with buttons wheels and things that spin and turn make the boat a veritable playground. He loved going up and down the companionway steps (much to our consternation of course) but he learned to handle them like a pro. His favorite place when we sailed was sitting at the helm with Dan and trying to steer and throttle the boat to different speeds. He especially loved just being out in the open ocean air, pointing out boats as we passed them, marveling at the moon and stars as they made their evening arrival.
As our weather luck would have it, we only barely sailed to nearby Eleuthera Island to check out the Crystal Bridge and famous pink sand beaches, when the weather turned ugly and we had to get back to Nassau. We needed to be in a well-protected, safe harbor when the heavy winds hit. We couldn’t afford to be out of the area when it was time to be back at the airport. After a quick scuba dive with Philip and a rainy visit to the Crystal Bridge for Shelby, we headed the 40 miles back to Nassau in winds that were now blowing over 20 knots.
As scared as I was about sailing with a baby in heavy weather, Orion took it like a champ. He slept for 3 hours of the trip, nestled in his mother’s arms to keep him from sliding out of the bunk. The rest of the time, he played with his toys, oblivious to the motion of the boat and happily took the helm with Dan when the urge hit.
When we arrived and anchored safely back in Nassau Harbor (our least favorite place so far in the Caribbean), I realized I had a serious problem. I had developed a UTI almost a week prior due to drinking bad, store bought Kombucha. I normally make this on my boat but had recently run out. The bacteria in the drink had caused the infection which I assumed would go away with time. It did not. In fact, after battling it for 8 days, I woke up the morning after our arrival with a 102-degree fever, pain in my kidneys and seriously nauseous. I called my daughter in California as she is our medical guru. Without hesitation, she stated, “Mom, you need to get to an emergency room immediately. You have a kidney infection and this could turn fatal.”
These were not the words I wanted to hear. My family was visiting, winds were gusting 30 knots and getting to shore would be a nightmare. Who knew what the medical care was like on this island? Decked in rain gear, we all tried to steady the raging dinghy as we piled into it, preparing for our trip to shore. I was so weak it took both Dan and Philip to get me into the dinghy. The wet, bouncing, miserable ride to shore only took a few minutes and was fortunately uneventful. I had a hard time climbing up the ladder from dingy to dock, but I didn’t have a lot of choice in the matter.
I resisted going to the ER. We asked the taxi driver to take us to an urgent care clinic. He did. They immediately sent me back out to an ER. Waste of time… and what hell waited for us at that hospital, one cannot make this stuff up! Apparently, the hospital we went to was government run and all the locals use it for any type of medical care. It was packed, wall to wall with people. When I finally got through triage and sent back to the patient area, Dan led me to a large room filled with three rows of hospital beds, about 10 across, filled with people in various states and conditions. The room temperature was frigid. People were shivering, curled up on the beds with no one attending them. Those were the lucky ones. I was sent to a room next door. The floor was peeling, the hard plastic chairs around the perimeter of the room were cracked, plaster peeling off the walls. Some people were lying on the floor moaning, others sitting, conversing with neighbors or staring blankly into space.
To make a long horror story shorter, I sat there for 5 hours. I froze, they made Dan leave, they had no food or water available. It was hell as my fever spiked, my kidneys ached and I wanted to vomit. I was sure I was going to die before they saw me. When I finally was seen by the doctor, she took me to a small room next door where she interviewed me, drew blood and put a port in a vein in my hand. Ten minutes later I was back in the mass waiting room. Finally, a rusty IV cart was wheeled in by a nurse. I was administered painkillers and antibiotics through the IV, given a prescription for more of the same, and sent home. Six hours later and a mere $50 for the experience, we met Philip and Shelby back at the dingy for the wet and miserable ride back to the boat. The good news… I survived!
Our family departed a few days later, the wind never ceased keeping our adventures to activities on the island. We did get to venture to the colossal Atlantis hotel and casino where we spent the blustery day wandering around their aquariums and outdoor exhibits. When I finally went to hug my grandchild goodbye, all my reserve went out the window. I broke down and cried. I was so sad to see my precious family leave, not knowing the next time I would see them. I couldn’t explain to the little face staring up at my tear stained face that my heart was breaking because I have traded this lifestyle for spending time with him, watching him grow and being there like a normal grandparent. My heart split in two as we waved goodbye and 
watched the taxi carry him away. Dan comforted me and talked me through my breakdown reassuring me that we would find time to see our family sometime soon. And in my heart, I know they will be back each year and get to experience a little piece of our adventures which we hope they will look back upon with great memories.
Finally, all family had visited and we were free to roam the Caribbean with no timelines, no required destinations. For the first time since we began this journey, we were free to be nowhere, anywhere. The sun shone, the breeze was great, and we found our way back to Eleuthera Island and in Governor’s Harbor in search of a bar to watch the Superbowl. As Eagles fans, there was no way we were going to miss the game. As it turned out, we met about 6 other couples that had also congregated in the same harbor to watch the game. We spent the few days prior socializing and getting to know each other.
It was thrilling to finally be part of the sailing community. New and experienced sailors ending by chance in the same harbor gravitated together, sharing stories, experiences, goals, and insights into the world that has drawn us together. The marine radio became our tool to communicate. Early in the morning, it would crackle to life with invites to outings, offers to get together. We had sundowners on one boat, fish tacos on another and even an impromptu happy hour on the beach. Many couples had similar stories of chaos and rough beginnings as they undertook the sailing lifestyle. It was comforting to hear we were not alone in our experiences. The women talked about the rigors of crossings, provisioning, and night watches, while the men talked navigation and told tales of mechanical misadventures. It was quite a surprise to learn that several of our fellow travelers were from the Philly area and also rooting for the Eagles.
The night of the game finally arrived. We had scoped out a few local bars that had televisions and could accommodate our group of about 12 people. We picked the closest bar to the harbor as we didn’t want to be traveling far to get our back to our boats after the completion of the game. We all dinghied to shore and tied our boats together at a set of stone stairs rising from the water near a cement ferry dock. The giant rock steps were slippery and there was a gaping hole in the bottom step. On exiting, we had to carefully navigate around the hole to get our group safely out of the dinghies and onto the shore. The bar was a short walk, one street over from the waterfront.
The evening was delightful. We mingled and talked at commercials and breaks, we bit our nails together, we drank the local beer Kalik, and we cried tears of joy at the miraculous victory pulled off by the Eagles. We celebrated loudly, then made our way in the pitch black back to our dinghies, tied in a great mass at the base of the stairs. I was exuberant from the thrill of the win, the beer and the comfort of having new friends. As soon as I arrived at the steps, I bound down them, wanting to help people untie and load into their boats. Unfortunately, it was pitch dark and I had forgotten about the gaping hole in the cement at the last set of stairs.
Time seemed to stop for a moment when the realization hit me like a ton of bricks that I was probably going to die. As I reached the last step, my foot dropped into nothingness. I had totally forgotten the gaping hole in the cement. My leg disappeared from view and I felt my body flying toward the dark, watery abyss, surrounded by rough stone seawall and cement. I knew in a second that either my leg was going break or I was going to bash my skull on rocks. Pain hit my ankle and upper thigh as I descended through the crack. I threw my hands forward to brace for the impending impact. Cold water shocked the upper half of my body. I desperately grabbed for purchase on any surface below me. As I was plunging forward into the black, inky water beneath me, a body suddenly appeared, flying out of nowhere. Hands grabbed my shoulder and arm, desperately pulling me back from the clutches of gravity trying to force me into the water.
While the stunned crowd above us watched in horror as the drama unfolded, one brave soul, Lacey, dove into action. She actually threw herself down the stairs after me, trying to prevent me from bashing into the rocks below and slipping unconsciously into the water. Her momentum was too great and while she prevented some of my forward motion, we were now both going headfirst into the rocks and water.
There was a mad flurry of activity as more rescuers arrived to now get the two of us out and to safety. We both were laying forward, down the steep incline, barely able to keep our heads above water. Everyone there feared for us and knew we were in imminent danger. Masses prevailed, and the group effort retrieved us from the water. Before we knew it, we were back in our dinghies and headed to the safety of our boats. I had some major icing to do on my throbbing ankle, a few scratches, and abrasions, but I felt very lucky to be walking away from the incident without another trip to the emergency room!
Everyone was overjoyed to see me out and about the next morning. Each couple thought I was going to have more serious injuries from the event. However, due to some great healing agents left by my daughter, I was able to walk on my ankle the next day with only a modicum of pain. I considered that a win! We spent the morning diving and snorkeling with our boat friends and even took a four-mile walk to an incredible park in the middle of the island. I got to see my first pink sand beach and toasted the sunset from the bar by the harbor with a cold beer and big juicy burger. It was an amazing day. I greatly appreciated the fact I was able to enjoy it.
Every day is an adventure when you live on a boat. One day will bring you chaos and challenges. Another day will bring you incredible sights and experiences. At the end of every day, as we sit in our cockpit and look out over the azure blue water and the orange glow of the sun lowering below the horizon, we ask ourselves, “Is it worth it?” The resounding answer is always, “Yes!” We are living life on our terms. We take the good with the bad and when you look at the tally, there is much more of the good. Our lives are filled with meaning. We try not to separate the “good” and the “bad”, there is only the process of living our dream, experiencing life to the fullest, and looking forward to a future filled with unknown adventures and amazing possibilities.
We now are setting our sights on the island chain just south of us, the Exumas. We have no idea where we will land, who we will meet up with, or what the fates have waiting for us. We have had helpful tips passed along to us by our sailing friends who have been there before and we hope to use that information to make our trip smoother and safer. We sat on our friend’s boat last night, Lori and Jonathon from the s/v Asteria enjoying a fresh fish dinner. Our other friends have departed for new harbors, but we decided to stay for the famous Friday Night Fish Fry hosted in this harbor. It is rich with local food, wares, music and of course, alcohol. This couple is also new to sailing and has had several rough incidents including hitting a submerged object which cracked their hull. They have also been entertaining their adult children and are just starting their sail with no more commitments. After sharing our own respective horror stories, Jonathon paused a moment and looked toward the beauty of the ocean around us. He commented, that at the end of the day, with all the hardships we have endured and the pains we have gone through, he would do it all again in a heartbeat and there is nowhere else on earth he would rather be. Well said, Jonathon, well said.
Fair winds and following seas to all our friends and family – we will update you with word from the Exumas!
Dan and Alison
s/v Equus