krista schlyer
conservation writing & photography
Setting Sail
Our planned route. Just run that US East Coast line a little further north, and hopefully it won’t change much. PHOTO: Margaret Boozer-Strother
Launch is imminent. Destination flexible.
So much has changed from when we first started planning this voyage 15 years ago, even in the past few months, right down to the direction we will be going. Our hope had been to travel southward along the Intercoastal Waterway to South Carolina, then head out into the Atlantic to the Bahamas, then following a westerly route through the Panama Canal and around the world back home again. That may still happen but Covid-19 has shut down most of the countries we were planning on visiting, including our first stop outside the United States. A few countries are opening, but tentatively, and it is very uncertain how their residents feel about sailors coming to their lands from far away, especially Covid hotspots like the United States. This may change in time, but hurricane season is looming—three named storms already, which means it is likely to be a bumpy summer in the hurricane belt.
This voyage has always been about finding some peace and beauty and getting to know the world in a deeper way. Foisting ourselves upon wary islanders during intense weather seasons just doesn’t fit that goal. So we are heading….north! We’ll stay in the United States for the hurricane season and reassess in November. For now, starting at any moment when all of our final projects come together and we have all provisioning and life-ordering finished, we aim toward Maine. We’ll stop at National Wildlife Refuges, National Seashores and other natural places along the way, taking our time, listening to the sounds of the water and the life that is ever drawn to it.
As promised in my last blog, here is a tour of the SV Maggie May.
And here’s a special musical treat from our friends Blue Plains, apropos for this moment. They played this song at our going away party in February, just weeks before the world shut down. So glad we got to see so many shining, beautiful faces that day. We carry you with us.
If you’d like to follow Maggie May as she travels, follow this blog and check out our Maggie May tracking map.
12 Comments on “Setting Sail”
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Read more about Krista and Bill’s previous journeys with the Original Maggie May
Where in the World is Maggie May?
krista schlyer 
Thanks for the tour. It has enough space for the basics of life; cook, dine, sleep, read, and even it has two restrooms!
Since your original plan was to circle within the tropics, how well insulated it is for the autumn in the north? As for heading north instead, seems like a good compromise given the state of the world. The trip starts when you leave port, where you head to and how long you stay in each place is part of the journey.
By the way, mind the rebel onion, it may hit one of you on the head!
Thank you Rurik. And yes, that onion has attacked several times already.
Bon voyage, my friends. Love you guys.
Love you too Big K
Krysta
I’m excited for you, a little envious, but definitely happy you are setting sail for a long awaited adventure!
Add me to your email list, I’m ready to live vicariously!
Cindi
Hi dear Krista, I am/we are so relieved you are heading north! Yay! We keep watching all the developing hurricanes in the south, and were filled with trepidation… This sounds so right and good. Besides, this IS the time to enjoy the NORTH of North America.
I hope we will get to see you up this way.
All love to you both!
Elizabeth Knox 3117 Vermont Route 11 Peru, VT 05152
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Thank you Beth! We’re coming your way!
Wind (and sun) behind you!
Happy Sails!
Congratulations Krista! So glad you two have started your voyage.
Wishing you all the best,
Barb Baird
Thank you Barbara!
You did it! Bon voyage and tranquil seas! Will keep you in my prayers and look forward to everything you will post. (Margaret Merland on FB)