Sept 5, 2005 - Voyages of Discovery: Local Knowledge and How We Obtain It.
by Michel & Jane DeRidder

	On the spreaders.

Much of our local knowledge is picked up from our fellow cruisers, as is always the case in this life of camaraderie. However, what is magic to us may not be equally absorbing to others seeking different facets of the wandering life, or vice versa. It is sometimes more fun to visit new places without prior expectations.

Nevertheless, before our first offshore voyage, when we were given some purple jelly-pad copies of letters written by a small group of cruisers designed to be shared by them all, we were fascinated by their adventures and local knowledge. When we sailed to Hawaii for the winter months of '65-'66, we were thrilled to meet up with some of those early SSCA "Commodores", some of whom recommended us for membership. We've been receiving the publication ever since. It has changed from being a small self-proclaimed "disorganization" to a large worldwide organization. Many of the cruising tips have changed from basic to luxury and high-tech as have the people and boats that cruise, but the fascination is still there. (Seven Seas Cruising Association - www.ssca.org, email office@ssca.org )

For instance, the July '05 issue of the SSCA bulletin tells how to go about making long-distance telephone calls from our own computer for mere pennies using dialpad.com. Since we are not online unless we take our laptop ashore, it is not as easy as it might be, but nevertheless fascinating. Then there was a letter telling how to prepare your vessel to be shipped on the Dutch DOCKWISE boat-transport. Other letters in the same issue impart much info on various exotic parts of the world. Some of it is not of great value to those of us who cruise on the smell of an oily rag - costs of marina berths, restaurants, tours - but fascinating reading. It makes us realize the massive changes taking place in an ever-more affluent world.

We have always been seat-of-the-pants cruisers, which is to say, we like to go and find out for ourselves on the spot. (There were few cruising guidebooks in the days when we started cruising, and such guides are often expensive.) We tend to look at the charts to find and check out likely looking anchorages. We've found some wonderful surprises, never knowing what to expect beforehand. Perhaps we've missed various places in this way, but I suspect that we've discovered some that others missed as well. Most important, we have allowed ourselves the time to enjoy the good places when we do find them.

The last five years' worth of SSCA bulletins.

In Hawaii we had been told that Mexico was not a great place to cruise - too many officials, too dirty...So when we next headed south from Victoria, BC, we had decided to sail fairly quickly to the Caribbean where friends would meet us. But on the way down the coast of Mexico, we discovered its charms. In Mazatlan we called our friends to tell them to meet us in Acapulco. From there we went back up into the Sea of Cortez and ended up spending nine months in Mexico before sailing on through the Panama Canal.

At one stage in our early cruising life, Michel got his private pilot's license at the international airport in St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands in the days when we could rent a Cessna 150 "wet" for $8 an hour. We used to take our charts and binoculars with us, fly over the various island groups, noting on our charts places we would later explore. We also have been known to buy aerial photographs of various islands on postcards to supplement our charts in order to suss out new anchorages.

To get a bit of height is such an advantage in estimating depths and locating channels. Having mast steps to get on the spreaders easily has been a huge boon to exploration of dicey out-of-the-way anchorages. Polaroid sunglasses are also essential. On one occasion in the British Virgins Island,s when we had penetrated the Anagada Reef all the way to the windward edge, we were surprised in the morning to see a fishing boat make its way slowly toward us. When its crew discovered that we were anchored inside the reef, they seemed quite annoyed. They had probably hoped that we had hit the reef, and expected to make a remunerative rescue. In Wallis Island the locals doubted the possibility of circling the northern half of the island inside the lagoon. However, from the spreaders it was possible to discern deep water between coral heads and we had an interesting two days finding our way around.

	Exploring ashore.

We are fortunate to have a second language (French) and a small smattering of Spanish, which means that we have found it relatively easy to get to know some of the locals in various stopovers. Since Michel is a DIY repairer of anything mechanical, he finds himself with plenty to do, fixing local problems wherever we drop the hook, which has resulted in a fascinating peek into life as it is led elsewhere.

We usually put our iron horse ashore (Honda 90 Trailster motorcycle) to explore the hinterland trails and roads, meeting people along the way. Huff the Honda has extended our cruising enjoyment immensely. We chat with folk, see their way of life firsthand, and not just the ones nearest to the docks and beaches. We provision with fresh fruits and vegetables, and more often than not we discover some unexpected and interesting sights to explore.

For many years the ham radio bands were useful to us for gathering information about various destinations. Amateur radio operators ashore and aboard yachts were always glad to share firsthand knowledge. With many cruisers talking on SSB marine radio and with email, the same sort of on-the-spot information is even more readily available now.

The problem with all of today's possible input - ham and SSB radio nets, the Internet, cruising guides, web sites, magazines and advertising - is choosing between the useful and the superfluous. Cruising could become a marathon, checking out all the options along the way, rather than the gentle happy exploration that we have enjoyed.