This week we remove the sails, survive two very wet typhoons and I get ready for a 1200 Nm adventure sailing from one end of Japan to the other, Hokkaido to Kagoshima, on a newly refurbished 28 foot Bristol Channel Cutter.
The sail from Hokkaido to Kagoshima will be a true adventure for me! I don’t like cold weather or water, it is a 28 foot traditional sail boat and we are on the wrong side of Japan with sailing through the “missile testing” grounds for North Korea.
But am determined to make the most of it. Will be a fantastic experience to sail this coast line on a traditional classic small boat.
Last tour for 2017
Wet, windy and wild weather as we try to head off for a three night sail around the western side of the inland sea of Japan.
Plans made a few weeks before certainly don’t hold up to the reality of a strong North Easterly and with the largest typhoon of the year just a couple of days away I make a dash back back to the safety of Yuge Island as soon as the tour finishes.
It was a very wet and windy few days.
I have altered my idea of an enjoyable and stress free (for me) cruising holiday around this area.
Starting next year cruising tours will be more focussed on the practical aspects of sailing. This is not only from a simple safety point of view but also to enjoy the sailing experience. Tiare is an awesome “sailing” vessel and being able to tie basic knots, know how to make off on a cleat, safe use use of a winch, as well as the physical dynamics of sailing will go a long way towards keeping safe and everyone getting the most out of their time aboard Tiare
This video is a few days early as I will be away most of next week on tour.
This week we have another group of girls onboard, we put down a new mooring (the third leg) build a couple of Fender Boards and then get Tiare ready for next weeks adventure, a sail around the western end of the Inland Sea of Japan.
Tiare is beached for a few maintenance jobs that can only be done out of the water.
I learn the meaning of patience and we also make her ready for a lunchtime cooking group.
At the end of the week I start getting ready for putting out a “third leg” on our mooring.
Tiare is not your usual production catamaran, she is a Wharram Islander 55 and has been our home for seven years. The last two years have seen us “settle” in the inland sea of Japan while our youngest son finishes high school.
Being in one place has given us the opportunity to alter Tiare to fit in to what we would like in a world cruising sailboat. And to start creating a source of income that can travel with us.
Wharram catamarans offer an affordable alternative for everyday people to cast off and cruise the worlds oceans. Where simplicity means the freedom to stay out for longer.
We hope these videos will inspire others to look at what it means and takes to live aboard while sailing the world and that Japan must be one of the most interesting cruising destinations on the planet.
Early 2017 saw 11 Canadians cruise Japan’s Inland Sea for six day/ seven nights on board our 55 foot Wharram Islander catamaran. This is short video and photo montage and shows Tiare cruising through some of the many islands that make up this amazing cruising destination, along with a few days prior as with the help of my boys we made Tiare ready.
