Trail&Sail

I have enjoyed Ensenada for the past several months and have decided to see more of the Mexican coast. I'm going to sail from Ensenada to as far as Alcapulco, stopping at approximately 10 locations. I'm looking for one seasoned recreational sailor who has their own flotation device, harness, and safety teather, is comfortable with a day and night watches, and is ready to make the trip down the coast of Western Mexico. This trip could take several weeks. If interested respond to me at trailandsail@yahoo.com.

Before leaving Mexico, and continuing my long distance trip to Iquique, Chile, I shall once again look for two long distance blue water crew members to make that trip.

UP DATE - Equipment: B&G Vulcan 9, Garmin VHF, new custom installed Simrad TP32 Auto Pilot in stern locker, new marine music system, Safety gear, Four person Revere Offshore Commander 2.0, New Davits for dingy, three new AGM no maintenance group 31 batteries, two 120 W Solar panels and controller, I installed a 120 Volt inverter that will power up all of the outlets on my boat; DO NOT PLUG IT IN OR USE IT IF THE BOAT IS CONNECTED TO A SHORE POWER SYSTEM! A large Refrigerated icebox with large capability expandable or retractable freezer, Propane Stove, two ten gallon aluminum propane tanks, 90 gallons water with one 6 gallon backup jerry can, Special fresh water filtering system, 54 gallon fuel tank with nine 5 gallon backup jerry cans, Universal 40 diesel with two blade propeller that produces very good speed and distance at 1500 RPMs. It is Set up for single handing with a Harkin furler, one main backup sail, one backup jib for furler, one 75 oz UK Flasher with dowser for winds below 15 knots that must be dowsed before 15 knots of wind and that can be hoisted and dowsed with ease by one person, Center board recently rebuilt, my Boat draws about five feet when the Center Board is up and 7' 4" when CB is down which helps the Tartan 37 to perform very well to weather and down wind for an experienced sailor, three hundred plus feet of 3/4” rode in the rode locker with a 35 pound CQR main anchor, an additional three hundred plus feet of backup rode under main anchor rode in the forward rode locker, spare 35 pound CQR anchor in the cockpit locker, a Danforth 24 stern anchor in the cockpit locker, 300 plus feet anchor rode in the stern locker. The chain plates do not leak on my boat! The Bottom was recently professionally painted with easy to clean Epoxy paint that must be cleaned with a soft cloth NO SCRAPERS! I have lived on my boat for seven years and have had no problem single handing it on the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

I'm looking for a solid captain and crew to sail my Tartan 37CB from Ensenada, Mexico to Iquique, Chile in International Waters. However, if I am able to I shall skipper my boat. The crew members must be versed in most or all of the fields important for blue water sailing. I want an experienced Blue Water crew that can single hand my boat when they are standing rotational day and night watches and know how to set up a good rotation schedule. The jib is furled and unfurled from the cockpit, the main must be set up and and reefed from the cabin top, but is otherwise controlled from the cockpit. I have a light wind .75 oz UK flasher that must be dowsed before 15 knots of wind, and that can be hoisted and dowsed with ease by one person. The bottom of my boat was recently professionally painted with easy to clean epoxy paint that requires only a soft cloth to wipe it clean DO NOT USE A SCRAPER ON MY BOTTOM PAINT!

For customs purposes each crew member must have a flag representing the country of their passport. Illicit drugs and alcohol are not allowed on my boat. Each crew member must have their own safety gear including flotation and a safety harness adjusted to fit their needs. I want at least one crew member who speaks fluent English and Spanish. I want at least one crew member who can dive under the boat to clean it and do maintenance as necessary. I want at least one crew member who knows how to repair on board electrical and electronics, can navigate with the B&G Vulcan 9 chart plotter, and knows how to operate the Simrad TP32 auto pilot. However, I do not trust electronics when at sea, so, I also want at least one crew member with blue water navigation experience who knows how to use a sextant and read star and navigation charts.

I want at least one crew member who can plan and prepare all meals, control water consumption, and to stock my boat for this trip. The icebox has a 14” L X 10” W X 12” D “ expandable freezer area” and a 20” L X 16” W X 24” D ”refrigeration area”. The two water tanks hold 90 gallons and there is one 6 gallon on deck water jerry can, and other water capability on board. The diesel tank holds 54 gallons and I have nine 5 gallon jerry cans. I have two 10 gallon propane tanks which should be enough to operate the gas stove for the duration of the trip (I have never used the oven). I will make other additions to this plan as is necessary.

Once my boat is in Iquique, Chile I plan a short layover to visit friends and restock my boat. I then plan to singlehand my boat south along the beautiful coast of Chile to stop at every port possible, hang on a hook at the dozens of quiet spots, visit with as many friends as I can find, as far down as Patagonia for as long as the weather and conditions permit. My over all plan is to sail the coast of Chile south for the summer and north for the winter. If everything works out well with the crew members I may welcome some of them to join me to sail the coast of Chile. Otherwise they must make other arrangements for themselves.