Many years ago my father had a goal of having a nice sport fisherman. As a child we would share outings to boat dealers looking at Bertrams and Egg Harbors and other makes for several years always asking the question - will this be the year. As an initial step he did purchase a Teak topped Fish Box for the dreamed of boat. That fish box say in our attic for years until one year he finally made the step - a beautiful 30' Egg Harbor. We named the boat "Fish Box".
Earlier this year BoatUS magazine had wonderful quote from Mark Twain -
"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”
I purchased Eau de Vie in 2001, a 1989 Island Packet 35 and sailed her back from Florida to her home in Rock Hall, Maryland on the Chesapeake. Since then I have had one long trip out of the bay in which I went to Long Island Sound and then on as far as Nantucket. The boat is my fish box. It is much more of a boat then is needed for the Chesapeake and the dream is to escape its boundaries and sail to new horizons. This is the story of the journey. I am prepping myself and the boat for offshore, longer voyages and to live my life before it sails past me. I share the journey with my wife Barbara who more enjoys the destinations than the trips.
In future posts I will review what I have done to date to ensure that I am ready as well as the boat. In the past I have participated as Crew in 2 Caribbean 1500's and look forward to another trip to Tortola this season. The boat has had an upgraded Radar/Chart Plotter and a new Windlass. The rigging has been inspected and we will have upgrades this winter. Photos and descriptions will be posted as we proceed. I hope you enjoy the journey as much as I will.
Dave
