First Woman of the Wind iMovie created

A year ago, I wrote about the dearth of video online featuring women's perspective of boating. Yesterday, using photos and short video shot while on vacation on Heron Island, Australia, I finally taught myself to make an iMovie. This isn't about sailing, but it conjured feelings and allowed me to slip back into the perspective on life that is intimately familiar to cruisers, farmers, gardeners and those who's land life requires and inspires close connection to nature and the humility, the now-ness, the beauty of life. Take a look and I'll start working on mini movies of women and boating.

Questions & Answers expanded

International Women Sailing Network FAQ, or frequently asked questions, have been added to this week. If you haven't been to the website in awhile, take a look. I changed the navigation, added more photos, question and answers and the wooden boat women forum. Hoping now that winter's set in, I'll have more time to write and to include more of your comments and stories as allowed.

Wooden Boat Women's Forum started

Hi all. Today, I got an email from another woman who owns a wooden boat. Like me, she's hoping to connect with other women who own, sail, maintain, are building or are otherwise engaged to a wooden boat in their lives.  Check out the Forum or if you're shy, email me your thoughts on the Contact Us link to the left.  Your email will remain private unless you give me permission to post some of it.  Happy Thanksgiving week!

Sailing into our 70s

It's never too late to start sailing, to get a Captain's license, to buy your own boat or to set off across the ocean. I first went sailing at 31 and compared to others I was meeting, I thought that was a "late" start for a circumnavigator. But Sue Hoover, a retired nurse, takes a start to sailing adventures to a whole different phase of life.  Here's an email written by her after her first single-handing journey this summer in the San Juan Islands and across the Straits of Juan de Fuca.  Sue now keeps her boat at Boat Haven marina in Port Townsend.

September 1, 2008  Email from Sue Hoover

Dear friends, I docked my boat Quantum Leap at Boat Haven, Port Townsend, at 1330 on Saturday, 8/30/08 after a wonderful trip, my first extended solo boat adventure. I was away 14 days. I motored most of the hours on the 6 days I was traveling from place to place, visiting friends north of here in the San Juan Islands, to Friday Harbor, Rosario, Bellingham, Anacortes, Decatur Island and home. That first day going north

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Spidsgatter display at Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival

Three danish designed Spidsgatters will be on display at the 2008 Wooden Boat Festival in Port Townsend. The three boats will be displayed together at center dock, at the Cupola House end of the marina. One is PAX (see photo gallery). The other two are documented 38 square meter (26 feet LOA) "klasse" boats designed by Utzon. One is Eio and the other is Pia.