imras
Ian & Marlene Rasmussen Joined: October 19th 2008
Logged in: January 18th 2012
Logged in: January 18th 2012
We have a CS 34 sailboat that we have sailed from Lake Ontario to Wiarton, where we enjoyed 7 great seasons sailing around Georgian Bay and the North Channel.
In October 2008 we trucked "Gust O'Wind" to Deltaville, Virginia - planning to take her south to the Florida Keys and perhaps the Bahamas.
This blog will help those interested in our travels track our progress.
Once in a while when Gust O'Wind is on the hard we will record some of our land travels here too.
Travel Blog Posts
the old set up
This is just a quick update to give you a look at our new and improved "Gust O"Wind" after a major overhaul completed before we left the storage yard at Fort Pierce last week. Joe Gooch of Riverside Marina was the artisan who created the new arch (of marine grade aluminum) to replace our davits and solar panel mount which we had used for the last 5 years. He did a great job and was able to customize a number of features that we wanted included (bbq mount, outboard motor lifter arm, large solar panel installation.) We plan to hang out here in Stuart for another 5 weeks or so, whittle down our jobs list and enjoy the great winter weather - beautiful 25c most days so far, then we plan to cross to the Bahamas ... read more
this little piggy.....
For the first time in 10 years we spent the summer at Sauble - it was busy but lots of fun with several visits with Kim, James and Lukas; then the Canadian 'rewedding' of Pat and Claire with a pig roast and 60+ guests; and the birth of our second grandson Joshua as the highlights. Late in October we set off on a road trip with friends Ross and Brenda for a golfing and biking holiday - first for a week in Virginia, then Hilton Head Island, South Carolina for 2 weeks - followed by a week back in Fort Pierce, Florida to check on Gust O'Wind. Remember to left click on the first photo to get into the slide show.... read more
Notre Dame
Our flight home from South Africa took us through Paris - so, why not stay a few days? Brother Garry and his wife Jan were also planning to spend some time in Paris before their river cruise and week in the French countryside - so we arranged to stay in the same hotel. We did LOTS of walking around this wonderful city and saw all the highlights we could in 4 days. A highlight for me was a Seine River cruise with 3 course gourmet lunch, to celebrate my birthday. The first time I have spent my birthday with my brother since leaving Australia 43 years ago. (It sure beat marking for EQAO as we have done for the past 10 years on my birthday!) Within a city block of our hotel there must have been ... read more
Camps Bay villa
After Mashatu we flew from Joburg to Cape Town where 8 of us had rented a villa with spectacular ocean and mountain views.Each of the five days was packed full of touring this beautiful, historic part of South Africa. The home security was not as obvious as Joburg and we had no worries about walking around at night. We had both read Nelson Mandela's book "Long Road to Freedom," .... everyone should! so really wanted to see Robben Island where he was incarcerated for most of the 27 years he spent in various prisons. Our guide had spent 5 years there following the Soweto riots and was able to give us many insights into prison life. Our next leg took us back to Joburg for just one day - where Jonathan & Gaye took us to ... read more
sp?
Just 2 days after the wonderful wedding, 17 of us set off in 4 cars on a 5 hour drive to Botswana and Mashatu Game Reserve where we were to spend almost 5 days of the most unforgettable experiences we have had in our lives. It was so difficult restricting the number of photographs as we went on 8 game drives and saw all the game Mashatu had to offer. A typical day began with a wake up call from the ranger outside our tent at 5.30am, followed by a light breakfast then into one of 3 open Toyota Landcruisers with a guide/driver and a spotter high in the back. Each drive was about 3 1/2 hours with a short break for tea in the morning and sundowners in the evening. After the morning drive we ... read more
Shepstone Gardens
On April 6th we flew to Johannesburg via Amsterdam to attend the wedding of son Pat to his fiancee Claire. Brother in law Tim, Marlene's brother Gerry & friend Beth also flew in from Canada. Ian's brother Garry and his wife Jan travelled from Australia on their first leg of a round the world trip. The big surprise for Pat & Claire came when sister Kim and her husband James arrived with us!- they flew to Africa and back for the wedding - and Kim is 5 months pregnant - it was a complete surprise - both were honored to be included in the wedding party. The setting was magnificent and everything went off perfectly thanks to the meticulous planning of Claire's Mum Gaye, her Dad Jonathan and her sisters Amy & Robyn. Jonathon & Gaye ... read more
up the mast
We can now understand why a lot of cruising folk (especially seniors) retire from the anchoring - out life and tie up in a marina for the season. It is worry free - even storms are not to be feared - there is always someone with a taller mast nearby - you can't get lost or run aground or run out of beer! Although we are living the life of pot-luck dinners every Tuesday, aquafit and yoga, tv on the boat (Yes! - we bought a 15" flat screen which fits nicely on our chart table) - and Happy Hour 3 - 7 pm at Wahoo's Pub & Grill - we are not quite ready to surrender to this version of the cruisers' life just yet. The pig roast was a great deal - free - ... read more
'gator alley
After 9 months ashore it is great to be back aboard our second home, Gust O'Wind again. There was a major cleanup to be done before we could get under way. We had been warned about mud daubers in this part of Florida but now have first hand knowledge of the little brutes! They are wasps that squeeze through the tiniest of spaces to build mud nests - some as large as an orange - in the deepest, darkest cavities of the boat. We thought we had plugged up all entry points with screening - Wrong! We found at least 50 of them - fortunately all uninhabited as the kids and parents had all moved on. The upside was that GOW is cleaner than ever after 3 full days of labour. Crossing Lake Okechobee was very ... read more
rainbow lorikeet
We tried to cram as much family time as possible into the last 2 weeks of our visit - including a Christmas celebration knowing it will be a couple of years before we can get back. The panorama of Bondi Beach at the beginning of the blog is a first. For those of you not into family pics, give this entry a miss!... read more
on the harbour
Back in Sydney! Not a lot has changed since we were here 4 years ago - we planned this trip to spend some time with Ian's mother Joy, his family Garry, Jan & their son Jarrad (daughter Tracey is in the US now) and with some old friends. As usual, the photos speak for themselves. From here, we return to Canada for a family Christmas, then back to Gust O'Wind for one last season down south.... read more
