Sailing Vacations
A Maine Windjammer

New snow fell last night, about 1 1/2 inches on top of the boiler plate ice in the door yard. Yesterday Kaitlyn just about finished splitting the schooner wood and Paul sanded windows in the shop. I spent my day showing Paul around the global headquarters, rust busting deck lanterns, answering phone calls and e-mails, went on 3 ambulance calls, and meeting with our dear friend and former crew member Brad about building a new centerboard for the schooner. Brad has become one of this area’s trusted shipwrights. He spent the better part of a bitter winter during our 99/00 rebuild staring at and rebuilding our transom shoulder to shoulder with an older shipwright who learned his trade the same way. Brad has that rare combination of honesty, talent, self-belief, and grit. He doesn’t talk, he just does. And he has that rarest of skills, the ability to share his talents without making me, or anyone else, feel like a complete moron (which I may be by many accounts). But at least he g...