Category Archives: family sailing vacations

Feb23

TENDER TUESDAYS- Prairie Girl Series #34

Posted on by
TENDER TUESDAYS- Prairie Girl Series #34

SAILING COVID-STYLE DURING the 2020 SUMMER

In spite of the pandemic and restrictions in place, the TwoCanXL became a welcome distraction from all of it.  Prairie Girl and husband would provision the boat and sail away from their marina  for 2-3 weeks at a time, without having the constant barrage of news updates invading their space each day.  Don’t take this the wrong way, they were still concerned with the progression of the Covid stats and read about it on their Globe and Mail downloads, but it just seemed easier to ignore the crisis from the deck of the TwoCanXL.  They weren’t alone in this, most boat owners made substantial use of their vessels last summer, as no one … Read the rest

Jan6

TENDER TUESDAYS-PRAIRIE GIRL SERIES #33

Posted on by
TENDER TUESDAYS-PRAIRIE GIRL SERIES #33

PACIFIC YACHTING MAGAZINE’S TRIBUTE  to their “COCKPIT CONFESSIONS” CARTOONIST –

                       DAVE ALAVOINE

Returning from an extended sailing trip in August, husband and Prairie Girl opened up their August magazine to discover the five page feature: A TRIBUTE TO LONG – TIME PY ILLUSTRATOR DAVE ALAVOINE! And when you looked in the corner of the front cover, you saw that cheeky little seagull of his, saying, “ABOUT TIME!”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dave Alavoine has entertained us with his clever cartoons found on Cockpit Confessions since 2005. He is a treasure to all his followers, and Cockpit Confessions will not have the same appeal without Dave’s wit pulling together the humour of the submitted … Read the rest

Jul11

TENDER TUESDAYS-PRAIRIE GIRL SERIES #32

Posted on by
TENDER TUESDAYS-PRAIRIE GIRL SERIES #32

         FIRST SAIL OF THE SEASON AND IT’S THE MIDDLE OF JULY!

                                                                                              -UNHEARD OF!

How could it possibly be the middle of July and the TwoCan XL had just left the dock? Let’s face it, 2020 has been a most unusual year! It’s like nothing any of us have ever experienced. You will recall Prairie Girl and husband had a shortened sailing season last summer when she tripped descending the stairs on the last night of their first sailing vacation aboard their new (older) boat- the TwoCan XL.  This meant they had 2.5 weeks on the water last June and then couldn’t get back on the boat until 6 weeks later, as the 3 broken ribs took their time … Read the rest

Jul30

TENDER TUESDAYS- PRAIRIE GIRL SERIES #29

Posted on by
TENDER TUESDAYS- PRAIRIE GIRL SERIES #29

NEW BOAT HEEBEE – JEEBEES

Did Prairie Girl have a premonition of something going awry on their virgin cruise aboard the TwoCan XL?  One might have  wondered after such a long dry spell of stories in the Prairie Girl Series. As you will recall, husband was ecstatic with his purchase of the 2006 Beneteau343 last fall.  He spent from March to mid June, getting acquainted with it- meaning – he pulled it completely apart from the V Berth to the stern, knowing where everything was on the boat and how it all worked.  Yes, he is a thorough man and has declared himself the Beneteau 343 expert in their marina. (Personally, Prairie Girl believes that he actually lives … Read the rest

May20

TENDER TUESDAYS-PRAIRIE GIRL SERIES #28

Posted on by
TENDER TUESDAYS-PRAIRIE GIRL SERIES #28

SCHOONER COVE YACHT CLUB’S

NON-TRADITIONAL SAIL PAST 2019

It is the beginning of May and Yacht Clubs all over the Pacific NW are celebrating their opening day of the boating season with a dignified Sail Past ceremony. Schooner Cove Yacht Club, located in Nanoose Bay on Vancouver Island, had such a day planned for their membership. Now if you recall from reading other Prairie Girl Learns to Sail posts and previous COCKPIT CONFESSION stories, Prairie Girl’s husband became Commodore of the SCYC in November, 2018. Of course, the Sail Past is something that all members and guests love to participate in with the dock ceremony and the parade of boats sailing past to salute the Commodore and the Commander of … Read the rest

Feb6

TENDER TUESDAYS-PRAIRIE GIRL SERIES#25

Posted on by
TENDER TUESDAYS-PRAIRIE GIRL SERIES#25

NEW BOAT DILEMMA

For those of you who follow my Prairie Girl Learns to Sail posts, you will know that husband recently decided that their 28 foot Catalina (the TwoCan) just wasn’t adequate anymore and became the proud owner of a 35 foot Beneteau (the TwoCanXL). And if you read my blog (Prairie Girl Series #23-Dec. 2, 2018), you will also know that Prairie Girl is somewhat challenged in the sailing skills department. This is noted in the author page of her book, WHO’S the CAPTAIN? that states:

“MARY LAUDIEN (alias PRAIRE GIRL) is a fair weather sailor (better known as a cruiser). She has never taken a sailing lesson or a power squadron/VHF Radio

… Read the rest
Feb2

VALENTINES’ DAY PRESSURE

Posted on by
VALENTINES’ DAY PRESSURE

TENDER TUESDAYS- Prairie Girl Series #24

Each year, husband constantly reminds his Prairie Girl  how much he dislikes Valentines’ Day.  Why, you ask? Well, the long and the short of it is that he has an issue with feeling obligated to create a ‘HALLMARK MOMENT’ when someone else deems it necessary. Prairie Girl calls it his “BAH HUMBUG” syndrome. He pretty much feels this way about any contrived gift-giving celebration.  Now don’t get the wrong impression, it isn’t that he resents giving a gift and a card, (although one might regard husband as somewhat frugal); its really about being expected to celebrate something that he hasn’t bought into.  Prairie Girl understands his sentiments, but she does not let him … Read the rest

Dec2

TENDER TUESDAYS-PRAIRIE GIRL SERIES #23

Posted on by
TENDER TUESDAYS-PRAIRIE GIRL SERIES #23

HUSBAND TRADES UP TO A TwoCan XL

It’s hard to believe when they visit the marina where husband and Prairie Girl moored their TwoCan, that it is not their sailboat any longer. How is this possible, you ask? Well, dear readers, read on…

It all started last summer when husband and Prairie Girl attended their first CATALINA RENDEZVOUS. They had a great time chatting with the other Catalina boat owners and having opportunities to board those boats of interest. Of course, the 28 foot TwoCan was one of the smallest boats in attendance. It quickly became obvious to Prairie Girl that a BIGGER BOAT for husband would be forthcoming.

After touring all the beautiful 36+ foot yachts… Read the rest

Aug11

TENDER TUESDAYS- PRAIRIE GIRL SERIES #22

Posted on by
TENDER TUESDAYS- PRAIRIE GIRL SERIES #22

PRAIRIE GIRL AND HUSBAND SAVE A SEAL PUP

Anchoring out on the serene waters of Winter Cove in July, left Prairie Girl and husband with a completely unique and endearing experience. This post is not one of Prairie Girl’s usual humorous tales… this one actually is a perfect TENDER TUESDAY post.

It all started early morning, after a peaceful nights sleep on the hook. A thumping against the hull awoke Prairie Girl, but she never thought much about it. It wasn’t until they went out to the cockpit to have their morning coffee in the blissful sunshine that they discovered a baby seal pup, sniffing and trying to suckle the bottom of their dinghy. This little seal just never … Read the rest

Apr17

TENDER TUESDAYS-PRAIRIE GIRL SERIES #19

Posted on by
TENDER TUESDAYS-PRAIRIE GIRL SERIES #19

PRIMED FOR SAILING SEASON

How did it happen to be mid-April already?   Some of Prairie Girl’s and husband’s friends already had their boats hauled out in March and have them in tip top shape, ready to sail when the weather clears up. They’ll be out on the water in a flash.

Not so for this sailor and her Captain. They’ve actually cancelled their haul- out twice now, believing they didn’t have a good weather window. Wrong! The sun shone after the morning showers and husband freaked out that he had let his coveted haul-out spot go. When will it possibly get done with the many Yacht Club executive meetings and regattas (He is a Vice Commodore, after all…) and … Read the rest