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Admin | Thursday, July 15, 2010 at 10:13AM Clea : « Aujourd’hui, j’etais un pirate et j’etais gentille avec les autres pirates. »
Felix : « J’etais aussi pirate pour le defile du 14 juillet. On a marche dans la ville avec nos deguisements et j’ai bien aime quand on m’a filme. »
Victor : « Hi ! For the first time of my life I participated at a parade. And nearly all my boat friends were there. We had fun ! »
Admin | Thursday, July 15, 2010 at 10:11AM Les plaisanciers du monde (et presents a Bora) se sont regroupes pour participer sous le drapeau du Bora Bora Yacht Club au defile du 14 juillet.
Beaucoup d’enthousiasme, beaucoup de sourires et de bonne humeur.
(voir aussi quelques portraits polynesiens sous « Pacific crossing »)
Salut des drapeaux et bon 14 juillet a tous !
Admin | Tuesday, July 13, 2010 at 6:47AM Nous sommes a Bora Bora depuis vendredi. La pluie joue a cache-cache avec le soleil, nous offrant de magifiques arcs-en ciel.
Nous sommes alles voir les chants et danses du Heiva (competition qui deroule dans toute la Polynesie). Soiree tardive de vendredi pour les enfants mais spectacle a la choregraphie impressionnante.
Reveil matinal a bord de Merlin en ce dimanche 11 juillet. Greg et les enfants partent a 6h chercher des baguettes fraiches pour aller prendre un petit dej sur la plage du Motu Ahuna. Le dimanche c’est Nutela ce qui rajoute a l’excitation de l’equipage. Mais le grand bonus de ce matin est l’eclipse solaire (totale vers les Tuamotus et « seulement 97% a Bora) et nous souhaitons en profiter pleinement. Pares de nos lunettes, des tartines plein les mains, nous expliquons aux enfants le phenomene, nous admirons, nous nous extasions et nous sommes heureux d’etre la, tous les cinq, sur cette petite plage a partager un tel moment.
A 9h nous partons au Yacht Club de Bora Bora pour aller voir la fin de la finale de la coupe du monde de foot (ce sera notre unique match vu a la tele !).
Bora Bora est un peu comme Panama un lieu de rendez vous avant une nouvelle traversee. La prochaine a plutot mauvaise reputation en ce qui concerne la meteo. Nous revoyons ici plein de bateaux copains et les rencontres se transforment en grande reunion de plaisanciers...au grand bonheur des enfants qui ont retrouve plein de leurs copains de voyage.
Admin | Sunday, July 11, 2010 at 3:56PM We were asked to participate in a survey on cruising families.
Here are our replies (soon check on http://www.womenandcruising.com/)
A. QUESTIONS TO HELP FAMILIES GET STARTED:
What was the biggest challenge you faced in getting out there? How did
you deal with it?
It took us a while to find the right boat as there were not so many boats for sale in South Africa. We weren’t sure of spending some money traveling to find one. We would do that now: fly to the Caribbeans and look at the boats for sale there!
At the end, we bought an empty hull of a 44ft catamaran. Finishing our boat wasn’t part of the project. We don’t regret it at all as Gregory knows Merlin by heart and we have on board what we wanted and the way we wanted. However it took us much longer than we thought (18 month so complete the boat) and we learnt to be very patient with our boat builder and his team!
How old were your children when you went cruising?
Victor was 8 year-old when we left, Félix 6 and Cléa was 2 ½.
Is there a best age to take children cruising?
We think between 4 and 12. You don’t ha
ve the baby naps any more (and no more nappies to keep during a long passage) so you can move around during the day. The kids are still happy to spend so much time with their parents and schooling is not too challenging.
What about babies, teenagers.?
Babies demand more attention and need to be entertained more. Their sleep pattern can be disturbing to visit around (one or two nap(s) / day). However, there is no school to do.
Teenagers are eager to meet other teenagers and need to have some social life which can be difficult to realize. From time to time, we haven’t met any kids and the kids we are meeting are usually younger than 14 y-old.
Did you make modifications to your boat (before cruising or underway) so that it would work well for your family?
The boat was built specially by us for the trip so we have what we wanted on our boat. During the build process we had three focus areas: firstly an efficient sailing boat, secondly energy efficient and thirdly a layout and storage that works for family cruising.
Gregory: I am a racing sailor at heart so I wanted our cruising catamaran to sail at its best. Folding props were fitted which possibly make the biggest difference in speed. One electric winch at the steering position makes short handed sailing a dream. Our kids can easily handle the spinnaker halyard while I deal with the rest of the spinnaker stuff on the bow. All the main working ropes lead back to this winch such as both genoa sheets, the main halyard and spinnaker halyard. We have no winches on the mast so time out of the safety of the cockpit is reduced. Our spinnaker guys also lead back to the cockpit winches for easy control. Our main and spinnaker halyards have quality Harken blocks all the way, including the top of the mast, as these are the two items that are pulled up a lot when cruising. The sails are of the best material available which should result in the sails still having a perfect shape in 5 years time and lighter to lift. Our symmetric and asymmetric spinnakers, with socks, are both used extensively. Our mast section is a little larger allowing us to get rid of the inner forestay that makes tacking much easier. Weight saving was always a focus and was saved where possible. All our doors are made of the latest honeycomb cardboard construction that saves about 60% of the weight of a standard door. The inflatable has an aluminum hull made by AB which is one of the lightest for its size.
We wanted to charge with the motors as little as possible. To enable this we fitted 210amp quality alternators on each motor and installed 760watt of solar panels. The Sanyo solar panels are 190watt each and operate at 110volt which the Outback regulator brings down to 12volts. Every light in the boat including all navigation lights are LED lights and in the saloon we have dimmers that when turned down only use 0.1amp for 6 lights. So lights left on are not a stress for us. For water we went for the Spectra Newport 4000 MKIV unit as this was the most efficient 12volt unit on the market for the capacity we needed. With the water maker running, fridge, two freezers, autopilot and full sailing instruments the solar panels will cover that power need and have extra for charging the batteries. This combination result in us not needing to charge with the motor on some days even with a 125L freezer and a fridge running full time.
We built in extra storage space so that we would have a place for things like toys, tools, spares, food etc. Living with a family on a boat and doing ocean passages is very different to doing a one week charter.
We feel that all these small changes makes for an easier and more fun family sailing experience.
Do you have suggestions for boat features or modifications that are particularly applicable for cruising families?
We would recommend trying to find a spot in your boat for a washing machine (water and energy efficient). Don’t go for marine washing machine as they are much more expensive or a light water hungry top loader, front loaders are best.
As we have a catamaran, we have more space. In the galley, we have a normal house gas stove, which is great as our oven is really big so we can bake 3 breads and 1 pizza at the same time!
The features we love are the water maker, the solar panels, the fridge and the 2 deep freezers. On the entertainment side, we have a TV screen (plus a navigation screen inside) and a hard drive player for movies. The kids can operate these by themselves (great when we are doing long passages).
To save some water we have a system which adds air in the water at the tap end or shower head. It helps but a foot pump on some taps would be a good idea with kids.
We have an electric toilet, so there is no pump problems, especially with the younger kids…however they must not swallow some fruit pips as it can quickly turn the skipper’s mood at the sound of the rattling toilet.
Our primary communication in the open ocean is our sat phone, but an SSB is key for keeping in touch with other boats and for the kids to chat to their friends.
If something breaks buy an extra spare as it will most likely break again. This policy has worked very well for us.
Is there anything that you wish you had known about cruising as a family
before you got started?
Nothing in particular. Everybody finds his own cruising way of living. Advice is good but be yourselves.
Do you have any advice for families that are considering going cruising?
Get out and do it.
It is important to realize your dream and doing it with your kids is something really special. It can be for a year or for 10 years. The most important thing is to try, to face all the challenges, to be proud steering away, and to be out there as a close and united family.
You don’t need the perfect boat to do it as we have seen all kinds of boats out here, so just get the boat within your budget and go sailing.
Take some toys: watermaker, washing machine, deep freezers, fridge and a kayak or two.
But don’t take all the toys. We have on board 5 bikes, 3 kayaks and a sailing dinghy. It is nice to have all these, but we don’t use them as much as we thought.
There will be some hard times but you’ll remember only the best ones.
It is not easy and happy every day. However, it is a strong experience as a family so it is worth the daily efforts.
Kids, do you have advice for other kids? Mom, Dad, same question - is there
anything you'd like to tell other moms and dads contemplating this life
change?
Gregory: Get out there and enjoy the open ocean and new faces. Planning destinations, boat maintenance and exploring new places with the family will keep you busy enough; you won’t be bored even on the long passages.
Emmanuelle : it won’t be like in your dream and it is not a pleasant dream everyday. There are some fears, stresses, tensions and fights. Try to take a deep breath and re-evaluate the situation when there are some problems. They are always manageable.
Victor: Think of taking some card games and from time to time it is nice to ask for your grand mother to come and play with you.
Félix: Life on board is great. Think of taking your best toys …and some sun cream lotion!
Cléa: (she smiles but can’t find an answer)
B. WHAT'S IT LIKE ABOARD?
Tell us about a "typical" day at anchor.
The kids wake up early. We have breakfast together. School starts around 8:00 – 8:30am and goes on until lunch time. We usually do a small break. We have a light lunch (usually salads or sandwiches). The sun being too high, we then have a quiet time inside (reading, playing quietly). Then it is time to have fun: exploring around the anchorage, going for a swim, a snorkel, playing with friends. When we don’t do school, we go and explore the island/town the morning or for the full day. While Emmanuelle is busy with the school, she also does some cleaning and cooking. Gregory is then busy with some maintenance/repairs jobs or goes shopping (so we don’t have to do it when we have some “free” time). We might have some friends on board or we might go and visit some friends for a drink the evening (the kids love that as it is play time for them usually latter than their normal bed time). Otherwise, we have a quiet evening. The kids go to bed quite early (7:30pm). We might watch a movie or read. There is always something to do on board!
Tell us about a "typical" day on passage.
The day usually starts the same way. If the seas are not too rough, we still do school on board during passages. The kids are then occupied and don’t get bored! The afternoon, we play games (Monopoly, Clue, card games), watch a movie, start some family cooking.
On very long passages (Atlantic crossing or between the Galapagos and French Polynesia), Emmanuelle’s mother joined us. She is not at all a sailor but is not scared of the boat life. Her help regarding the cooking, entertaining the kids and the watches gave us less stress, more sleep and we were under less pressure to do everything (especially for Emmanuelle who does all the schooling and cooking on board).
How involved are the kids in the boat?
We try to ask the kids to be a little bit involved. The boys are doing the dishes and sweep the floors every morning and at lunch time. They have to tidy their cabins. They also help when it is time to clean the deck or even scratch the hulls. On the sailing side, they help putting the spinnaker up and down. Victor is now asking to do some watch so he might do an hour per day on our next passage.
Victor helps from time to time with the fishing activities (getting the lines ready)
Cléa can be a great mechanical assistant to Gregory when he fixes something. She is really good with all the tools names.
Félix likes being involved in the galley.
Kids, what are your responsibilities aboard? What do you like doing? What don't you like doing?
Victor : When we have porridge for breakfast then I do the morning dishes and I sweep the floor at lunch time. If it is cereals, I do the lunch dishes and I sweep the floor in the morning. I must look after my brother and my sister when my parents leave us alone on the beach or on Merlin. I must check all the hatches before we go sailing.
Félix : When Victor does the dishes I sweep the floor and when he sweeps the floors I do the dishes. I go with a kayak to see if there are other kids around the anchorage to meet new friends.
Cléa : I am setting up the table for lunch and dinner.
If something comes to mind, tell us one small story - an incident that
captures the best of cruising as a family for you.
In the Tobago Kays, the kids enjoyed the clear blue water and the marine life. One day, they spent 6 hours jumping in the water and snorkeling with the rays just off our boat. They had their lunch at the back of the boat, still wet, and ready to jump back in.
In Las Aves, the boys went to the beach with their kayaks and played by themselves for hours. They were pretending to be the Robinsons, were building huts with palms leaves, were trying to catch small fishes, …. They did the same in the Marquises, but that time took their sister on their kayak.
C. HOW DO YOU HANDLE ..?
Health and Safety: HOW DO YOU HANDLE .?
Keeping the kids safe aboard
We have nets all around the boat. It gives a feeling of safety. The kids know the rules : usually they stay inside when we anchor in a difficult spot, they won’t run around.
Caring for the kids offshore
If the kids go outside the cockpit they have to wear a life jacket and hook themselves on the life line. This often happens when we see a school of dolphins. It could be fine for the boys now but the rules have to be the same for all so if Cléa wears a life jacket her brothers do so too.
Caring for the kids in rough weather
They can’t go further out than the cockpit. But we haven’t had such bad weather yet.
Keeping the kids healthy, eg getting medical care
Since we left we haven’t had any disease. Life at sea and on board is a really healthy life.
We have on board 3 big boxes full on various medicines. Emmanuelle established a long list of medicines before we left and our GP came on board to re-evaluate it again, knowing our medical past. We have broad range medicines for major problems.
We would recommend a good antibacterial cream as the little cuts take a long time to heal.
Emmanuelle did a “ship captain medical course” where she learnt for example how to do some stitches or put a drip. We have some dentists and doctors friends who reply via email to all our medical questions when we have some.
The DAN evacuation plan is good for cruisers at a reasonable price.
Education and Fulfillment: HOW DO YOU HANDLE .?
Schooling
We do the schooling in French and are using a corresponding system called CNED. We have all the books sent to us (which is a little tricky when we are moving all the time). The kids have some tests to send back about every 3 weeks and then we have reports on their tests send to Emmanuelle’s mother in France.
We try to be regular with our school time. Holidays depends on the stops, so from time to time there is no week-ends but other times they will have lots of free and exploring time.
Emmanuelle is supervising the school work. Victor is working by himself most of the time and Felix can do all his maths without any help. They work very independently but need someone to be around otherwise they play around and nothing gets done.
Friendships and social interactions
If there are kids around, we always make the effort of meeting them. It is not always the best friends, but kids are kids and they need interactions.
If the relationships are great between the kids and the parents, we try to sail together for a while.
Keeping the kids entertained
The kids are very good for that. They have loads of Legos and spend hours building various spaceships, boats, houses, … They have lots of books and from time to time we try to organize some book swaps with other kids. Electronic games soak up lots of time, but we need to limit the hours spent on them.
Personal space aboard
When we don’t have visitors on board, we all have our own space being one cabin per child. Lego can cover the bed without disturbing anyone. This is also the luxury of a catamaran but it is nice for the children to have their own space. However, too often we still walk on a little square piece of Lego or slide on a little car.
Family back home and their concerns
We do regular emailing, via the satellite phone, especially on long passages and we try to keep regular updating on our blog. By keeping in touch and feeding them news seems to keep them happy.
Tasks and Chores: HOW DO YOU HANDLE .?
Laundry
We have a washing machine (normal front loader washing machine with a 9kg capacity) on board and we are very happy to have it. This is a must for a family. We don’t spend hours cleaning, rinsing or looking for a laundry place. It is not too greedy in water and by reducing the amount of rinses (only 2 instead of 4) we use only 60 liters. We do about one load per week. On long passages, we wear few cloths. On the boat the kids are only with their underwear so we don’t have too much to clean (weather permitting of course).
Clean-up and daily maintenance of the boat (inside and out)
Clean up is done on a daily basis: a bit every day (floors, galley, heads) and from time to time we do a big clean up (usually after a passage).
Feeding the family, nutrition and cooking
We eat 3 meals a day and we don’t skip meals. Often we might have one or even two snacks during the day. We try to have a healthy diet like we have ashore. It is not always easy to find everything but we haven’t being stuck without tins!
Because it is hot during the day and because of the school work in the morning, lunches are simple. Very often it is a salad (for example rice or pasta salad, or toasted sandwiches with row veggies), a fruit or a yoghurt. The evening meals are more elaborated.
We bake our bread when we can’t find fresh bread.
We do our own yoghurts. We have a yoghurt machine (all it does is keep the right temperature) and are eating yoghurt nearly every day, which is a nice way to have some calcium. We use powder milk for that.
We also like our sprouts. We use all kind of seeds (soy, beans and lentils). The kids are not fond of them but we add them in the salads or in the sandwiches that they eat.
We have a blender and do “milkshakes” (smoothies) often, especially when the fruits are getting ripe too fast. All kind of recipes have being tried. A favorite one is mango, banana, honey and milk.
We always have the basics on board: tuna, corn, green beans, pasta, rice, flour, cheese, eggs. The kids favorite are home made pizzas or pancakes.
It might be boring and repetitive from time to time but we try to eat healthy and try the local products (ask the locals for their recipes)
D.BIG PICTURE
For each family member, what do you like best about cruising (or cruising
as a family)?
Gregory: I like exploring the different islands above and below the water.
Emmanuelle: I love all the sunsets we are watching all together calling for the green flashes (we saw quite a lot of them), the beautiful landscapes we are encountering and the great people we are meeting. I like seeing the kids grow in such an environment.
Victor: I love swinging, meeting friends, snorkeling and driving the dinghy.
Felix: I love playing a lot of games, crossing oceans, taking my kayak around to explore and to other boats. I also love diving with Dad.
Clea: I love meeting friends and playing with them. I also like playing with the game boy and swinging. I like doing the dishes with Felix and setting the table.
For each family member, what do you like least about cruising?
Gregory: I don’t like blowing my asymmetrical spinnaker and I really don’t like motoring.
Emmanuelle : I don’t like going too fast (more than 12 knt) with Merlin. I don’t like cutting everybody’s hair! The schooling is from time to time a task that I would leave to someone else with pleasure (but I am the one speaking French and they do all their school in French). I miss my free space and own time.
Victor: I don’t like doing my school and polishing the stainless steel.
Felix: I don’t like cleaning around. I hate eating fish but I do a little bit because my mum wants me to.
Clea: I don’t like to swim when there are big waves and I don’t like when Daddy goes too fast with the dinghy.
WHY did you go cruising as a family? And how has that panned out so far?
We wanted to spend time together.
We do spend time together! Sometimes too much time together and sometimes difficult times together. But most of the time, we spend great times together exploring and discovering … we only remember these good times!
Has cruising changed you/your family? How?
We find it is difficult to reply for oneself.
Gregory : Emmanuelle wants more simple things now.
Emmanuelle : Sailing is really Gregory’s life. He is so happy to be on the water, work on the boat, and fiddle with the sails. He is so much himself.
If you have gone back to shore, how was the transition back to land?
We are still at sea.
E. A RECIPE..
Finally, everyone loves recipes. If you are inspired, share one of your
favorite quick, handy recipes for cruising families.
“Far Breton”
250 gr of flour
250 gr of sugar
1 liter of milk (works very well with powder milk)
4 eggs
Dry/canned fruits (pineapple, peaches, raisins, prunes work well)
Put the flour in a bowl..
Add one by one the eggs and mix well (so no lumps)
Add the sugar.
Add the milk and mix.
Add the fruits.
Pour into a big flat glass container (like thise for lasagnas) with a little butter at the bottom.
Put in the oven for 45 minutes (the knife must get out “dry” )
F. AND NOW A LITTLE ABOUT YOU: (IN A PARAGRAPH INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING)
Who is aboard, ages of children?
Gregory 42 year-old, from Cape Town (South Africa). Started sailing when he was 5.
Emmanuelle: 41 year-old, from Strasbourg (far away from the sea, in France). Sailed when she was a teenager but spent time at sea as a marine biologist.
Victor, 10 year old
Felix: 8 year-old
Clea: 4 year old.
For long passages, Anne-Dominique (Emmanuelle’s mother): 61 year-old, from Strasbourg (France).
What kind of boat do you have?
Dean 44ft catamaran, made in South Africa. A strong fast cruising catamaran.
Where have you sailed? Where did you start out?
We left Cape Town (South Africa) in November 2008, crossed the Atlantic. We spent a year in the Caribbean. We transited through Panama in March 2010 and are now sailing in French Polynesia.
How long have you been cruising? How old were the kids when you started?
It has been 21 months.
The kids were 2 ½, 6 and 8 when we left. And 2 years younger than that when we bought the hull.
Admin | Friday, July 9, 2010 at 1:26PM We are in Tahaa since Sunday and we haven’t really been discovering the island (only some motus)! We are taking our days as they come, easy, enjoying having all that time in such beautiful places. We’ve tried few anchorage spots. Some were perfect for kids diving, so Greg took the boys for another lesson.
We’ve been spending time with friends, new and old. We have tried some more kite surfing (it was Emmanuelle’s turn to go on Ted’s back for a try) and we’ve played with the mini training kite from Verite.
Some more diving, some snorkelling, and some playing. Clea was introduced by Felix (who is constantly looking for players!) to play Monopoly…and she won!
Greg has been busy looking at numerous ways of having a good weather forecast for our next passages (and enjoying a good internet connection).
Time for another sunset over Bora Bora…(here is the one from yesterday!)
