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By Kim Kavin — Fall
2004
KEY WEST, FLORIDA—It’s late morning here in one of America’s great cruising destinations. The docks are just starting to rustle after a long night of revelry in Mallory Square, where jugglers spin on unicycles, shirtless men eat fire, and boaters blend amid the green flash of Heineken bottles and the bronzed flesh of barmaids. I confess to having done my share of imbibing last night on nearby Duval Street, but after an evening of Buffett cover bands followed by a decisive cruise-ship invasion this morning, I’m ready to cast off in search of what many fellow voyagers seek: sweet solitude. For me, that salvation lies a few hours’ cruise to the west, in the Dry Tortugas.
As we prepare to leave Conch Harbor Marina bound for today’s sunset, I realize I am living in the spirit of the new Voyaging. In this, the first of our redefined and redesigned quarterly issues, we bring you great destinations like the one that will be in my log book today, along with all the information you need to chart your own course to wherever your cruising paradise may be.
We’ve got great new columns such as “Living Aboard,” in which a couple whose home is a 50-footer reveal what actually happens to folks who move their lives onto the water. “My Story” is by boaters with an interesting tale to tell, such as this issue’s Florida couple who trailered their Grady-White 270 all the way to Alaska’s Inside Passage. On our back page you’ll find Peter Nichols, author of the bestseller A Voyage for Madmen, writing about the fascinating history of a commonly cruised area. His first waypoint is in Maine’s Frenchman’s Bay, where boaters meander each summer—never knowing Nazis crept along the same coast.
On the hands-on side, we’ve got renowned electronics expert Ben Ellison’s “Helm Shot,” which focuses on one boat’s electronics setup and how it suits the owner’s cruising needs. We’re also introducing “Geared Up,” in which longtime boater (and frequent chandlery customer) Charles J. Doane shops for great stuff that’s new or just plain cool. “The Hot Sheet,” by do-it-yourself expert Paul Esterle, offers maintenance tips and nationwide cruising news, while “Coast Guard Debrief”—written by members of the U.S. Coast Guard and its Auxiliary—provides seamanship advice based on real events.
Voyaging also now offers some of the most in-depth North American cruising features you’ll find on any newsstand. In this issue, we visit towns as small as Fish Creek, Wisconsin, and cities as big as Seattle, Washington. Our writers and photographers will get you excited about cruising in their paths, then provide everything you need to do so yourself, from local knowledge to charter options to expert opinions about the boats we travel aboard. To keep your brain fully engaged in the boating idyll, we’re also including one exotic yet easily doable destination, such as this issue’s look at .
We’re also thrilled to introduce “Dream Come True,” in which we use our industry connections to help you live the dreams you conjure while cruising. Have you always wanted to troll for big game aboard a custom sportfisherman, or refit a room on your boat, or propose marriage during a private cruise, or have an electronics expert reorganize your helm? Tell us about your dream in a letter or e-mail, and you could be the star of our next story—just like this issue’s 15-year-old Connecticut reader who dreamed of riding aboard a Cigarette he saw during a day of cruising with his dad.
There’s much more to the new Voyaging than I have space to tell you about here, but as you enjoy the following pages, I hope you will feel the same love and lust for every aspect of cruising that our writers, photographers, and I share.
On that note, I’m casting off from Key West for the Dry Tortugas. The sun is shining, the seas are flat, and I’m eager to see what great experiences await during my own next few hours of voyaging. |
