I am proud to call myself a circumnavigator. I was a crewmember aboard a 43-foot sailboat on a 30,000-nm around-the-world-voyage, an expedition of Reach the World. While serving as Director of Field Expeditions, I also carried out the responsibilities of an active crew—the equivalent of a second full-time job. My duties included navigation, standing watch, dinner (galley) duty, and regular maintenance and repairs.
Extended offshore sailing is the ultimate test of self-reliance and resourcefulness. Teamwork takes on elevated meaning when the safety of your vessel and crew are what is at stake. Living aboard a 43-foot boat with four other crewmembers demands interpersonal skills of the highest order. The slightest foul mood can upset crew morale, which is equally a measure of safety. Ocean sailing is an experience in living with and living without. Living with four other crewmembers in confined quarters and the threat of storms and equipment failure. Living without privacy, the convenience of grocery stores, and creature comforts like freshwater showers.
Traveling by boat, we entered foreign countries at a grassroots level, through ports, communities unto themselves. In port, boat duties came before tourist activities. Carrying out routine tasks—taking on fuel and fresh water, shopping for food provisions and supplies, or tracking down parts and mechanics for repairs—we connected with locals. whom we wouldn't otherwise have met as ordinary tourists. It is people who make places, and these connections afforded us truly authentic experiences and a glimpse into the human experience in its myriad forms and landscapes.
