Pisces the Catamaran - Day 2

12/25/24 Christmas Day

0614 Christmas chai on Christmas morning at anchorage!

0632 First present is opened. Easy morning with delicious boat meal (Captain OhNo speciality), thoughtful gifts, memories of Jacob

1100 pull anchor and head into the Chesapeake Bay

1150 mainsail hoisted for the first time underway!

1405 Lt. Swabs cleans the helm windows which increases visibility by 100%

1435 Wolftrap Lighthouse spotted. Captain OhNo shares about how Jacob loved fishing near this lighthouse

1614 anchor for the night in Mobjack Bay. Declare land directly off our bow “Christmas Island”. It is not an island.

1659 Stunning sunset

1701 Captain OhNo fixes a small diesel leak in the heater

1800 Lights Out

We boarded Pisces The Catamaran on December 24, 2024 and pointed her south in a part shakedown, part healing and grieving trip.    Notes are pulled from our handwritten, on board log book.  Crew are:

Captain Clay (captain and owner of Sail & Surf Adventures, married to Ally); call sign Captain OhNo

First Mate Ally (head chef & lead investigator of all maritime mysteries, married to Clay, owner of Daily Magic); call sign Captain Popcorn

Second Mate Carly (Ally’s mom, Clay’s mother-in-law, one-woman cleaning crew of Pisces); call sign Lieutenant Swabs

Dahlia (the cutest ship cat); call sign DD

* there is a very important and traumatic and magical process of getting Pisces that we are working on sharing here.  We figured if we waited to start updating until we figured out those words though, we might never start updating at all.  Know that there was a before and an after and this trip is part of our grieving process for our brother/son/friend Jacob. *

Pisces the Catamaran - Day 1!

We boarded Pisces The Catamaran on December 24, 2024 and pointed her south in a part shakedown, part healing and grieving trip.    Notes are pulled from our handwritten, on board log book.  Crew are:

Captain Clay (captain and owner of Sail & Surf Adventures, married to Ally); call sign Captain OhNo

First Mate Ally (head chef & lead investigator of all maritime mysteries, married to Clay); call sign Popcorn

Second Mate Carly (Ally’s mom, Clay’s mother-in-law, one-woman cleaning crew of Pisces); call sign Lieutenant Swabs

Dahlia (the cutest ship cat); call sign DD

*there is a very important and traumatic and magical process of getting Pisces that we are working on sharing here.  We figured if we waited to start updating until we figured out those words though, we might never start updating at all.  Know that there was a before and an after and this trip is part of our grieving process for our brother/son/friend Jacob.*

Christmas Eve December 24, 2024

1030 Blessing of the vessel by Rishi Yoga & Wellness.

1135 Sailing Catamaran (S/C) Pisces departs from home port in Wiccomico Church, Va under full power after a false start with air in fuel lines of starboard engine. Ice present on creek surface. Neighbors come out and wave us goodbye.

1308 Captain OhNo installs screecher sail on the Great Wiccomico River

1456 S/C Pisces anchors for the first time in Little Bay @ Fleets Island (Cedar’s). Anchoring system is a little tedious.

1530 Cheese, crackers and sparkling apple juice toast to successfully leaving the dock!

1620 Decorate mini tree with fish theme ornaments that remind us of Jacob

1645 Pot-pie pipping hot from the oven

1651 Stunning sunset viewed by all

1645 - 1850 Home Alone watch party

1914 Lights Out

Reading Wrap Up- 5 books about sailing for 2024

Reading is my favorite way to spend down-time aboard. Books about sailing keep me inspired on my own adventures. Here are some of my favorites from the past year :

Reading the Glass: A Captain’s View of Weather, Water and Life on Ships

A refreshing and engaging perspective on weather as it relates to sailing. Weather patterns play such a crucial role in a sailor’s life. I couldn’t help but love this narrative which is told through a series of tall ship voyages.

Mutiny on the Bounty: A Saga of Sex, Sedition, Mayhem and Mutiny, and Survival Against Extraordinary Odds

If that title doesn’t pique your interest… This book has it all, and as someone who didn’t know much about the mutiny on the Bounty before this book, I couldn’t wait to find out what happens next.

Cape Horn to Starboard

John Kretchmer is a prolific author and his stories and career have been an inspiration to me. He and his crew just rounded Cape Horn again this year, 40 years after this book’s release- but Cape Horn to Starboard remains an excellent read for an aspiring adventure sailor like myself.

Facing Fear: The First Woman to Sail Solo Around Antarctica

Lisa Blair’s account of her solo circumnavigation of Antarctica. Although the writing can be dry at times, the story of her overcoming a bombardment of challenging conditions is nothing short of inspirational. Women have been showing up big time on the sailing scene in the last decade and this story is sure to inspire a new generation of adventurous female sailors.

the outlaw ocean

A fascinating look into the cultural fringes of the seagoing industries written by a New York Times journalist-drawing on five years of perilous and intrepid reporting, often hundreds of miles from shore, Ian Urbina introduces us to the inhabitants of a hidden world.

There are several that didn’t make the list- if you want to talk sailing books, come join me aboard Galene for an adventure!

Fair winds,

Capt. Clay

What the heck is the "ICW"?

Traveling a stretch of the ICW aboard Galene

As winter settles in on the Chesapeake Bay my mind immediately wanders to places where warmer breezes blow and the days are a little longer- south. The Intracoastal waterway (“ICW”) is an inland series of bays, rivers and canals that run continuously from Norfolk, VA to Key West, FL. We are lucky to be located so close to the start of the ICW. The inland waterway allows sailors to travel the Southeastern seaboard without entering the ocean. This is especially helpful in winter when the weather in the Atlantic can be quite volatile with frequent fronts kicking up winds and high seas. Passing through locks, under fixed bridges and through drawbridges, the ICW weaves its way along the coast passing through a variety of small coastal towns and major port cities. Sailing along the ICW is an experience to remember. On December 15th, 2015 Ally and I cast off our 27’ Catalina for Key West via the ICW. We spent most nights at anchor with few or no other boats around. We stopped in charming towns along the way, visited friends and relatives, and met fellow sailors who are great friends to this day.

If you would like to experience a slice of the ICW for yourself, join us aboard Galene in March 2024 for our Coastal Passage from Beaufort, NC to Weems, VA. I hope to see you on the water soon!

-Clay