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  • “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.” - Mark Twain

Author Archive for John Peltier

May 20, 2012 by John Peltier | 1 Comment

Like, Where Do You Keep Your Shoes?

This door is really only 15" x 30". Taken with a fisheye lens.

People (meaning women) often ask me what I do about my clothes and shoes.  Surely a 27-foot sailboat can’t hold everything I need, so I must make a lot of runs to storage when I need new stuff, right?  Well don’t let her little size fool you – this boat has more than enough room for me.  Aft of my berth and across from the head, next to the icebox, is a small locker.  The door is about 15″ x 30″.  It is deceivingly small.  In it, I have hanging a full two-piece wetsuit, dive gear (sans tank and vest), foul-weather gear, two sweatshirts, four dressy-ish short-sleeve shirts, two long-sleeve dress shirts, four pairs of pants, and four pairs of shoes (including hiking boots)…with room to spare for a few more things.  Moving forward, on each side of my berth are two storage hammocks.  In these I keep rolled-up underwear, t-shirts, shorts, socks, and exercise clothes.  Don’t believe me?  The pictures speak for themselves.  Everything I need for long-term cruising.  Back in the stern, I also have a small duffel with my trekking clothes and extra-cold clothing. Read More→

Categories : Living Aboard Tags : , ,
May 6, 2012 by John Peltier | No Comments

The Sailing Tortilleria

Getting the dough as thin as possible

In my last post, I informed you that I was going to just be buying the staples and making everything from scratch – like bread and soups.  Being a fan of Mexican food, I had to learn how to make flour tortillas.  I’m a quick learner!  These are fairly easy and only take thirty minutes from start to end, and it only requires flour, oil, water, and salt. Probably the most difficult part of it is finding a flat space large enough to roll out the tortillas on such a small boat!

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Categories : Living Aboard Tags : , ,
April 30, 2012 by John Peltier | No Comments

Photo of the Week; 4/23/12

Jewels performing with her firehoops

Boys like fire.  Boys really like girls playing with fire.  That’s what happened when the Washington waterfront held its fourth annual Beaufort County Music Festival.  Just after dusk, Hoopdrum took the stage and hypnotized young & old for the duration of their performance.  Jewels dances with fire while Scott plays his homemade drums.  They’re out of Carrboro, North Carolina but are known around the world for their performances.

90mm, ISO 1600, f/5.6, 1/8 sec.


Categories : Photo of the Week
April 23, 2012 by John Peltier | No Comments

Provisioning Practice

I never thought I’d see the day – the day I stopped buying beer at the store.  It’s a little upsetting, but I think I’ll get by.  I’m not giving it up completely; I just won’t have it on the boat.  See, I thought I’d get a head start on figuring out what I’m going to eat and drink while voyaging.  I won’t be using my refrigerator while I’m under way, and that really changes the eating habits of someone who has been with refrigeration for 31 years.  But on the other hand, Man has been without it for millennia and I’ve been on plenty of long-distance camping trips without refrigeration.  Luxuries?  Whatever.  How difficult can it be?  I have a few specific goals in mind for this “project”. Read More→

Categories : Living Aboard Tags : , , ,
April 15, 2012 by John Peltier | No Comments

Dodecual Jam

Reason #369 why living on a sailboat doesn’t suck: almost every sailor is musically inclined in one way or another.  And music makes everybody happy, especially when burgers and rum are involved.  My “musical inclination” is rhythm guitar, that is to say, I can’t sing worth a shit and I can strum about ten different chords.  Thankfully, everyone else around here has much more talent.  Using my fingers to count, I think I came up with two drummers, two bassists, one flutist, one pianist, and six guitarists – and boaters all.  Our sailing-school-turned-DJ business at the dock is our studio, and quite a crowd shows up to partake in the jamming or just listen to the music throughout the night.  A Howl is held once a month (for “howl at the moon when it’s near-full”) and the other three weekends a month we find some other excuse to party when the moon doesn’t cooperate.  And the best part about it is that I can walk the 20 yards to my boat when it’s over.  This night was the “Dodecual Jam Session”.  I heard that “dodecual” is a Catholic term, but I’m a terrible Catholic with no inkling what it might mean so I’ll just say that this night was to celebrate shorts & sandals weather.  Come on out to join us. Read More→

Categories : Living Aboard
April 1, 2012 by John Peltier | No Comments

Photo of the Week; 3/26/12

I’m in the process of replacing all of my ground tackle (anchors, chain, rope, etc).  Staring at the pile of old rusty chain and rode in my cockpit, it occurred to me that I should probably learn how to make eye splices, secure thimbles in those splices, and get smart on a variety of other “marlin spike” qualities.  Hell, I can already sew and tie a few knots, I might as well go the distance and learn how to be an expert in manipulating rope.  I’ll be glad I did when I’m floating in a remote harbor and need to jury-rig standing rigging or encounter some other scenario that is impossible to predict.  That’s where the term “jury-rig” came from, as a matter of fact – manipulating rope and spars in order to save the ship by making temporary masts, booms, and rigging.  99mm, ISO200, f4.0, 1/640 sec.

Categories : Photo of the Week
March 31, 2012 by John Peltier | No Comments

Business Decisions…Booo!

A lot of random things have been floating throughout my head day and night, about what my life will be like at sea, exploring incredible places, experiencing nature as close as I can get to it, and living like a vagabond.  I’ll be sustaining myself through years of savings & investments and photography.  There are many ways to make money in photography: prints, stock, publications, calendars, etc.  My focus to this point has been selling prints online, in galleries, and at shows.  One of these needs to fall out.  Can you guess which one?  Selling prints online is going to be a logistical nightmare while voyaging on a sailboat.  I won’t go into the details, but as of today, I will no longer sell prints online.  Perhaps one day when I stay in one port long enough I’ll give it another go, but I’m ceasing operations now so that I can focus on more suitable ways of earning an income through photography while at sea – such as stock and editorial photography.

Categories : Living Aboard Tags :
March 28, 2012 by John Peltier | No Comments

Final Destination

It’s a question I get every day: “Where are you sailing?”  Most people assume that I have a first stop in mind or a schedule planned out.  I always just answered the question by saying that I was going to take it a day at a time and see where the wind takes me.  And that’s why I’m so excited about this – a lifestyle drastically different than that of a regimented military officer – not worrying about a schedule or where I have to be next.  But I do need some direction in mind to know where to point my bow once I leave North Carolina, and I’ve had plenty of time to ponder it in the last few months.  I think I have it figured out. Read More→

Categories : Destinations, Living Aboard
March 26, 2012 by John Peltier | 1 Comment

Photo of the Week; 3/19/12

The Jeanie B arrived in the “original” Washington on March 21st, welcomed by a water cannon on a Coast Guard skiff.

This 72-foot gaff-rigged schooner has been the talk of the town for the past few months, as city council members discussed giving the vessel a home on the Washington waterfront.  The ship, built in 1985 and relatively young (younger than my boat!) still brings back reminders of the town’s history as one of the east coast’s major shipping ports.  Tall ships like these schooners were all over the waterfront between one hundred and two hundred years ago.
The Jeanie B is used for boys’ and girls’ camps, and also provides sunset & stargazing trips to anyone interested a few nights a week – the ship’s “specialization”, if you will, is celestial navigation.  The deal made with the town council offers the ship a free slip for a term of five years in exchange for a cut of its commercial profits.  The Jeanie B’s official website is at http://jeanieb.com/.

Categories : Photo of the Week Tags : ,
March 20, 2012 by John Peltier | 2 Comments

Electrical Distribution

The second switch in the bilge pump circuit, corroded from...?

Probably the biggest project of “Electrical Month” – wiring and power distribution – was finally completed today.  I’m a firm believer in the saying “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”, and some could argue that my power distribution panels weren’t broken, but I’d disagree.  To turn on the bilge pump (which had no automatic switching), I first had to turn on the “Sump Pump” breaker on the distribution panel (for the shower drain) and then pull an aftermarket switch labeled “bilge pump” bolted into the fiberglass bulkhead.  The deck light that lights up the foredeck of my boat was wired to the “Cabin Lighting” breaker and then to its own aftermarket “Deck Light” switch.  Inspecting all of these switches revealed bare wire, corrosion, and unprotected circuits – on top of no automatic bilge pump switching – that all presented a serious safety hazard.  Must rectify! Read More→

Categories : Technical Tags : , ,
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About This Website

John is a guy who gave up a career flying fighter jets so that he could live a free & simple life on a sailboat, see the world, and share his experiences. No television, no fast food, no designer clothes...just exciting adventures and interesting people! These are his preparations and travels once he sets sail. Read more.

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