Wyndcutter's Harrowing Passage

Craig and Carol Fleetwood made a decision that changed their lives. When they sailed past us in the Savusavu, Fiji anchorage in October 2015, we were waving our hands and blowing kisses. "We'll see you down the road!" one of us said. "We'll probably turn around and see you tomorrow," Carol said in a stage whisper.

But the Fleetwoods kept going and made remarkable time to the Marquesas from Savusavu. We smiled when we found out they were sharing Thanksgiving dinner with mutual friends in Nuku Hiva. "Maybe that's what we should have done," either Jim or I said. The Fleetwoods made it look easy.

Carol and Craig at my BIG 50 birthday dinner (Sept. 2015)

Making decisions... it's one of the hardest things cruisers face when cruising.
What is the weather pattern?
Where do we want to end up and when?
How long do we have left on our Visa?
How much longer can the boat stay in the country?
Have we finished our priority repairs?

And once a decision has been made, you prepare:
Is there enough food for X days?
We carry X amount of fuel - we can use it here, here and here.
Here are our back-up supplies... just in case.
Back up charts?
If this happens, we have this...
If that happens, we have that...

But, in real life you can't plan for everything. When Craig and Carol decided to throw the dice and route their 48' Island Packet to Mexico from the Marquesas, they had no idea what they were gambling. When I read Carol's account on her blog, the hair on my neck stood on end.

WYNDCUTTER'S HARROWING PASSAGE