Guest post by Jordan, be nice.
Sailing. A Han Solo story. A spin off, a broad reach off the main wind. Yet it also plays to the formulas of a classic sequel or maybe even threequel, in which you find an unlikely ally in your original former enemy: wind. It could be a costly alliance… or it could be a change for good. Character growth on both sides, a new foundation of trust. We shall see.
But yes, for many days, wind had tormented me. We both traveled amongst the desert, but I was clearly in its home court, as I still carry sand in my suitcase to this day. It once again played with our emotions in Butterfly Valley, collapsing tents and howling through the rocks dangling above our heads. And between all those days, it would consistently wreak havoc on my longer haircuts. To all this, I do as man always attempts to do. I go on a journey in an effort to harness such a powerful, uncontrollable force.
So I need to make an effort to say what needs to be said about sailing. It's great. I’ve always had battles with certain types of activities, feeling as though they are a bit too costly to explore, and that any exploration into them I would be messing around in a higher class of wealth and wouldn’t enjoy that aspect. I think some of this can certainly ring true, but I think that was an undercutting to ambition and simply trying things to see what’s out there. Or maybe, not being afraid to try things as much as possible. Some things will always be deemed as a bit of a “rich man’s sport” and that’s unavoidable. Accessibility will always change things. But sailing has given me proper hope for more creative solutions. It’s always just out there. Join a race. Sit at the docks. Be prepared to get yelled at. Maybe it’s a bit prone to be toxic and stressful? Well so is anything if you try hard enough. It all evens out in the end, because you are truly learning to understand a craft which is still a lot more resourceful than engines, albeit like aqua man, is a bit limited.
So, how did I find my way onto a vessel? I scoured facebook marketplace for over a month, messaged around 3 people a day. I used sites like crewbay and findacrew, and was wholeheartedly ready to walk up to the docks seeking those who needed help. There are ways to get out there. And eventually, with a bit of effort, I had landed a position on a boat sharing direct costs (food, fuel, marinas) for two weeks. And then got promoted to first mate during the second week, spending roughly €200 for over 2 weeks of sailing. Compared to the cost of a hostel in Athens (lowest €18) plus food for 2-3 meals a day (€15 if you tried hard) is a lot cheaper, and an incredibly unique experience where I learned a lot (and still got to explore a lot of Greece, albeit mostly the places on the coast).
I showed up ready to go. At least mentally. It didn’t take but a couple hours once leaving the dock to realize how much a little preparation of at least with a couple of terms or videos actually could have helped me before I started really luffing the jib (And that’s more of a euphemism than proper terminology). Wench, luff, hull, jib, tack, jibe, broad reach, bridle, knots, clove hitch, bowline, telltails. Who knows what else I’m missing. It was a lot for a couple days. And of course though I felt prepared, and luckily had three really experienced sailors to teach me, I know that some proper studying would have made a world’s difference for my efficiency. I have come a long way though, that I firmly believe. A day or two in, I thought that the technique of turning the back of the boat through the wind was called “jiving”. Quite the dance.
But yeah, so coming out of 2 weeks on the water, I’ve learned the basics and some more on how to sail, I've learned two new cards games, I learned how to solve a Rubik’s cube, I improved my sudoku skills, got some reading done, learned about proper use of HDR and bracketing for photography, had 50 fly bites sprawled across my body for a few days, stubbed my toes a couple times, and saw some good looking sunsets. Pretty good. Who knows how sailing, or any of this stuff really will come back into my life, but I'm sure these things will make a comeback, and I will do my best to make it happen. I like to make the puzzle pieces fit together. I like new tools for the toolbox. I like the ocean, I like Greece, and I like to sail.
So one last question, regarding expectations: Did I know what was actually waiting for me? Sailing often appears to me as an embracing of the elements, a trial of man, tackling the unknown. Maybe a “crossing” can be considered this, but while sailing in the mediterranean has the spirit of some of the elements, it was very much a “psychogeographical” stroll through the islands. As I was told by my captain, a sailor’s plan is drawn into the low tide sand. And so I kept my mind open to possibilities, as the end goal was not even to be fluent, but merely conversational in nautical terms and harnessing the winds. Whatever else happens, happens. It was a first experience of hopefully many, and I feel successful.
We perused the far less traveled islands of Greece, taking on one cove at a time. Swimming. Walking around the nearby land. Eating a meal and heading to the next one. Samothraki had an ever revolving door of waterfalls, Limnos a majestic castle viewpoint for capturing the sunset, and Lesvos has a great museum and display of their petrified forest. Every other day we would drop anchor at either the more easily identifiable towns aforementioned or any quaint village within sight. We would get to indulge in some fish, or even courtesy of my favorite stop in Efstratios, I played a bit of basketball by the beach!
And in this way, I felt the sailing knowledge was never quite overwhelming, but soaked into me with the same consistency of the ever present sun. Voyages for many can be quite time sensitive schedules, but the crew really identified with trying to reject those temptations, embracing the true sailors way. Of course if you ask me to reef, don’t time me, maybe get a quick siesta in and see how it looks after, but my bowline’s pretty good, I can read the waves pretty well, and I’m always ready for some Tacking and Jibing. I may have to relearn quite a few things next time I’m on board. But the sailor’s way sticks with you forever.
Till next time, fair winds everybody.
Jordan
love ur writing style and you’ve inspired me greatly. Go king!
And he excelled!
Fun read! Way to go Capn Jordan