Wanderlust's Maiden Voyage

When learning something new, everyone starts from zero. Last week we left zero behind and began with one; One super important, life changing sail!

After weeks of preparation and repairs, we were able to take Wanderlust on our maiden voyage. And man, it was a truly ground breaking day!

On the day of our voyage the winds were 15-20 knots, which is high for beginners, so we invited our good friends Tom and Deb from the marina here in Key West to go with us on our first sail. Tom is a shipwright, and knows all there is to know about sailing and sailboats. He was the surveyor on Wanderlust, so he is familiar with our engine, sails and the overall condition of the boat. His wife, Deb, is a former sailing instructor, and a wealth of knowledge. I really don't think we could have paid to find better coaches for our first sailing experience! But Tom and Deb wouldn't accept payment, and just wanted to share their love of sailing with us.

We set out for a short and sweet sail, just to practice the basics, which included motoring out into the channel, raising the sails, trimming the sails, cruising for a few minutes, tacking, and then lowering them and heading back in. To our surprise, everything went as planned! We learned about our sails and the capacity, and how to manage the lines and sheets. We reefed the sails when the wind started to overpower, and we learned about manouvering in high winds. Tom and Deb did a lot of crewing in addition to coaching, and we were so very thankful they agreed to come with us!

The feeling of navigating your very own vessel in the open sea is almost unexplainable! When we finally got our sails raised and trimmed, and turned off the engine, our boat cruised perfectly at 5-7 knots, which is quick! We could tell the boat was totally in its element. It was doing what it was made to do. We fell in line, feeling at home underway on our sailboat. We felt as if we and our boat were meant to be together for this journey, and the experience pumped us up with exhiliration and ambition! It was as if we could go anywhere in the world, and it wouldn't cost us a penny! All we needed was a good breeze, this wonderful sailboat, the pup, captain and first mate (and maybe some rum)!

After we returned to dock, we thanked Tom and Deb and gave them big hugs. The euphoria began to slowly wear off. We remembered that although we had just fallen in love with sailing, we still had much practice before we were ready to set sail on our next destination. But we also realized all of the sudden that we were, by all definitions, sailors! We were DOING it. We understood that to be a sailor, one does not need to be an expert, one only needs to love it, and practice it, and just DO it with passion!

Since that day, Ben and I have taken advantage of every good weather day we can to go sailing. Every morning, we make breakfast, then check the weather and wind to decide if it will be a good sailing day. In just a week or so, we've sailed to the Eastern Dry Rocks reef off of Key West for snorkeling (where I was attached by jellyfish), and practiced mooring in the Western Sambos reef. Some days we just cruise Hawk Channel, sunbathe, and watch for dolphins. In the coming weeks we hope to provision for a weekend sail up to Boca Grande, and at some point soon, leave the comfort of the dock and head north towards Marathon.

Our maiden voyage addressed some doubt we've been hiding in the back of our heads for weeks. "Are we doing this right? Was quitting our jobs to buy a sailboat the right life choice for us?" After that wonderful life changing day, there is no question. We are doing what is exactly right for us.

Thanks for Reading,

Ben, Quinn and Ruca

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