From Horses to Catamarans - Take The Kids With You

We have a small problem. My wife of two decades has fallen for horses as hard as I fell for boats back when I was a kid. Now we have to figure out how to move a horse farm with 8 of our horses, 15 boarded horses, 65 lesson students and a 12 stall barn onto a boat.

You see, the two boys, Ian 15, and Ryan who just turned

9 want to go sailing on a catamaran. Ian was born in Tortola British Virgin Island and spent his first five years aboard our thirty-six foot aluminum sloop NAIAD.

He has dim memories of jumping off the stern with a waist inflatable ring tied to a long rope. I have vivid memories of watching the tidal currents snatch him at three or four knots until the rope came up tight and I would haul him back in to do it all over again. And again. And again... If that rope ever broke...

Ryan knows nothing about boats, but has the urge from listening to us tell stories as we flip through the gazillion photos we took back then. Remember when you actually kept the pictures somewhere other than your hard drive?

As the boys have always been homeschooled we decided now was the time to go back to sea. Ian might not be with us that much longer as the fumes will soon get him. Per-fume and car fumes that is.

Mom agrees but what do we do with the horse farm? We can't leave the horse business in someone else's hands. I can see it now. I get an emergency message by bottle in the Sea of Cortez that my farm manager has abandoned the horses and we have to save them. Not.

Still, Mom is upset already. She understands we need to find a catamaran and go, but it certainly doesn't make it any easier. With much research - (sheesh I wish we had internet the first time I did this!) - we have agreed a catamaran about 40 feet is the way to go.

Boys on one side, us on the other, dogs and cats wherever. I am drooling over the possibilities with a forty-two inch draft.Think of all the places in the Bahamas we could never go with our previous six foot fin keel. We used to call it STK- that stands for Shine The Keel. And it was shiny I promise you!

So lookout! We are coming back! It has been ten years since we sold NAIAD and moved back ashore. Collecting the junk we have was easy. Getting rid of it all will not be. I am eager to teach my boys as much as I can about the cruising life. I cannot think of a better way to complete their education into men. And have a ton of fun doing it!

Miami istrading their horse farm business for a cruising catamaran sailboat to call home for the next' big adventure in their lives! Follow along at:

http://how-to-charter-a-catamaran.blogspot.com

http://www.highcountrystables.com