Two Weeks of Crazy - Part Two

You know that feeling when you're so stressed out that you feel like your head might actually pop off of your body?  That's how I felt on Friday, July 29th as we transitioned from a week of ridiculous, over the top luxury to a 45 foot space...for six people.  After disembarking from Celebrity Solstice, we recovered our RV and drove to Bellingham, WA where we provisioned for the week, did laundry, and basically got our act together for the next big thing.  Why we did these two trips back to back is beyond me.  I suppose we thought we'd be in the area, so why not. But good grief, never again.

We chartered a 45 foot monohull with the idea that we needed a good test on one.  The idea was to see whether we could live on a monohull versus a catamaran. We had really only ever considered a cat before this.   The result was, in a word, no.  Nope. No way. No, no, no.   As it turns out, I hate heeling in a boat more than I remembered.   I love to sail in a cat. Everything stays level, more or less. In a monohull, I can tolerate up to a 25 degree heel and then I want to scream.  It might have helped if I had grown up on the water, but I didn't.  My first experience sailing was at Fair Hills Resort in Detroit Lakes, MN.  On a catamaran.  We owned an 18 foot Hobie cat for 10 years and then spent that week on one last December.  Maybe if I'd only done the monohull thing first, I'd feel differently. But for me, now, there is no going back. 

Once I got over the terror of sailing it, we had a lovely time.  We got to see some absolutely beautiful places in the San Juan Islands and, as a bonus, got to be the first to try out the owner's new dinghy:

On our first day out, a pod of orcas went right past the boat!  So, already, I was feeling like the discomfort was worth it.  And a beautiful hike through the Roche Harbor sculpture garden helped as well:

Since I know that our eventual goal is to be on a sailboat, I feel like I should spent a bit more time explaining why, for me, the debate between monohull and catamaran is settled, once and for all.  I actually feel that I could get used to the boat tipping over every time the wind changes, but only if I'm on deck.  Being below and, heaven forbid, trying to cook while that's happening would make me seasick beyond words.  The rolling motion of the cat is very different.  You stay flat and hit the waves head on.  That's not always pleasant either, but at least I can retain my balance. 

Then there's the actual living space.  Even my 10 and 11 year old children said the berths were too much like coffins.  Everyone was banging their heads on various parts of the boat all week long.  Going down below for everything became not just irritating but separated all of us constantly.  Once we were all down there and eating supper, for example, it was fine. But the transitions were very tricky.  My mom actually had a mini breakdown at the beginning of the week.  We both had to have an attitude adjustment in the form of margaritas before we could continue. In short, I will never willingly do that again.   Even the RV is more pleasant, because at least you can pass each other without sidestepping and there's plenty of headroom.  Okay, rant over.  It really was a beautiful week, and I'm grateful for the chance to see the beautiful waters of San Juan Islands.

And I was left with this: Saturday, we said goodbye to my mom and to my stepson.  We likely will not see them again until Christmas.  That's a hard thing when you're used to having these people a short drive away.  Thank goodness for the internet.