The Curmudgeon

      My life-long passion has always been to see the world from the deck of a sailing yacht.  Ok, I may never get to see the whole world, but I will jump aboard a sailboat any chance I get to see whatever part of the world I can.

      Back in the summer of 2011, I and my family journeyed to the British Virgin Islands and chartered a sailing catamaran called the “Charisma” for a week, with yours truly as the captain.  You can read all about our adventures at this link:  http://www.viyachts.com/bareboat-trip-reviews/bvi-yacht-charters-woods.html

      But cruising a yacht around the BVIs is more about rest and relaxation than it is about sailing.  Even if you run into trouble, help is just a cell phone call away.  The truly big item on my bucket list was to sail across an ocean.  As in:  so far out that you cannot see land.  Man versus nature.  The ultimate adventure!

     It turns out that hitchhiking across the ocean is not that difficult.  All over the world, boat captains always need crew – and preferably, crewmen who are competent to handle a watch.  The Internet has numerous websites devoted to helping captains and crew hook up.  And that is how I found Terry Cantrell.

      Terry owns a 36 ft. monohull sloop called the “Curmudgeon.”  In April, he would be sailing from Galveston Bay in Texas, to Tampa, Florida, and needed crew.  Total distance:  about 680 nautical miles, down the Houston Ship Channel and then straight across the Gulf of Mexico.  Expected trip time should be about six days.  The crew would consist of just the two of us, plus a feeble old orange tabby named “Mister” who has accompanied Terry throughout his many journeys.

      At around midday on Thursday, April 12, 2012, we pulled out from the Houston Yacht Club. 

      But we never made it to Florida.  Here is the story of what happened.