Sail away: how to escape the rat race and live the dream

306 Pages·2011·102.437 MB·English

by  Johnson, Nicola

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S A
AIL WAY
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Brutus:
There is a tide in the affairs of men.
Which, taken at the fl ood, leads on to fortune;
Omitted, all the voyage of their life
Is bound in shallows and in miseries.
On such a full sea are we now afl oat,
And we must take the current when it serves,
Or lose our ventures.
Julius Caesar Act 4, Scene 3, 218–224 William Shakespeare
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S A
AIL WAY

HOW TO ESCAPE THE RAT RACE
AND LIVE THE DREAM
Nicola Rodriguez
John Wiley & Sons Ltd, Publication
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This edition fi rst published 2011
© 2011 Nicola Rodriguez
Registered offi ce
John Wiley & Sons Ltd, The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 8SQ, United Kingdom
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John Wiley & Sons Ltd, The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 8SQ, United Kingdom
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A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN 978-0-470-97976-1 (paperback) ISBN 978-1-119-95257-2 (ebk)
ISBN 978-1-119-95258-9 (ebk) ISBN 978-1-119-95259-6 (ebk)
Set in 10/12 pt Berling by MPS Ltd, a Macmillan Company, Chennai, India
Printed in Italy by Printer Trento, Italy
Wiley Nautical – sharing your passion
At Wiley Nautical we’re passionate about anything that happens in, on or around the water.
Wiley Nautical used to be called Fernhurst Books and was founded by a national and European sailing
champion. Our authors are the leading names in their fi elds with Olympic gold medals around their necks and
thousands of sea miles in their wake. Wiley Nautical is still run by people with a love of sailing, motorboating,
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Visit us online at www.wileynautical.com for offers, videos, podcasts and more.
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Contents
With thanks to vii
CHAPTER 1 Turning the Dream into Reality 01
CHAPTER 2 Saving Up to Sail Away 17
CHAPTER 3 Choosing and Equipping Your Boat 35
CHAPTER 4 Children on Board 67
CHAPTER 5 Time to Go 85
CHAPTER 6 Life Aboard 101
CHAPTER 7 Deciding Which Way to Go 129
CHAPTER 8 Blue-Water Sailing 161
CHAPTER 9 Cruising the Caribbean 173
CHAPTER 10 Hurricane Season 209
CHAPTER 11 The Pacifi c and Beyond 245
CHAPTER 12 Sailing Back 277
Picture Credits 283
Future Reading 285
Pilot Guides and Cruising Companions – a selection 287
Index 291
V
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With thanks to
John Rodriguez without whom the journey would not have happened
Miles Kendall, my editor without whom this book would not have happened.
Jack and James for reminding me of what’s important
Denise Watkins, my mother, “Shore-sure support”
Sailors of many seas
Matt and Lizzie Abbiss, Rob, Sheila, Lisa and Verity Avery, Lisa Blore, David and Susie
Baggaley, Sergej and Isabel Berenson, John and Sara Coxon, Oliver Crosthwaite-Eyre, Tom
Cunliffe, John and Lizzie Douglas, Mark and Charlie Durham presently Mallorca, Fay Garey,
Trevor and Norma Goodson, Anne Hammick, Peter and Katharine Ingram, Stuart and
Annabelle Ingram, Graham and Tanya Leech, Royston and Maureen Lloyd-Baker,
Bill McLaren, Bob Parr, Mike Pocock, Bill and Nancy Salvo, Maureen Tetley, Martin
Thomas, Charles Tougue, Jo Wallace
Reverend Michael Turner
In the Caribbean
Martin Smith (Barbados), Andrew Blatter (Antigua), Peter and Sue Bringloe
In the USA
David, Nancy, Josh and Chris Gohlke (Texas), Greta Gustavson and Gary Naigle
(Norfolk, Virginia), Greg von Zeilinski (Florida)
In Australia, New Zealand, Pacifi c, Indian Ocean
Dave (Skaffi e) Beard, Beth Bushell, Jonny and Kate Harrison, Jason and Fiona Harvey, Misty
McIntosh, Rosemarie Smart-Alecio, Graham Shaw and Lorriane Zaffi ro
Jane Gentry, Association for Brokers and Yacht Agents (ABYA), Paul Tetlow,
Cally Logsdon and Jeremy Wyatt, World Cruising Club, Richard Bolt, The
New Blue Water Rallies, Peter and Annette Seymour, The Royal Yachting Association (RYA) –
Training, and Cruising, Sail America, Yachting Australia, Yachting New Zealand
George Day and Valerie Adams Merfi tt of Blue Water Sailing, Elaine Lembo of Cruising
World, Sarah Norbury and Rob Melotti of Practical Boat Owner, Sail Magazine, Paul Gelder
and Dick Durham of Yachting Monthly, Elaine Bunting of Yachting World
VII
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VIII WITH THANKS TO
All the members of the Ocean Cruising Club (OCC) particularly Anne Hammick editor of
Flying Fish, the Royal Cruising Club (RCC), the RCC Pilotage Foundation
Circumnavigators and sailing friends – earls of the oceans and queens of the high seas – with
whom we have shared experiences
Maxine Heath, Sam Hartley and the team at Wiley Nautical
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