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Particular Harbor

  • Boat Life
  • Destinations
  • Money
  • Cruising Cats
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John Zeratsky

John Zeratsky

  • Money

    How Much is Enough? Building a “Someday Fund”

    by John Zeratsky May 8, 2018May 14, 2018
    by John Zeratsky May 8, 2018May 14, 2018

    We’ve written at length about how much it costs us to cruise. And we’ve shared our money plan for accumulating the assets that now support our lifestyle. But we’ve left out…

  • Money

    Our 3-Step Money Plan for Cruising

    by John Zeratsky February 21, 2018April 21, 2018
    by John Zeratsky February 21, 2018April 21, 2018

    Back in San Francisco, get-to-know-you conversation seemed to follow a script. First, innocent small talk: What part of town do you live in? How long have you been in SF?…

  • Boat Life

    Navigating Pineapple with… iPads?!

    by John Zeratsky December 1, 2017April 21, 2018
    by John Zeratsky December 1, 2017April 21, 2018

    Seagoing navigation has changed a lot since the days of sextants and chronometers. Nowadays, most cruisers have a dedicated navigation display somewhere in the cockpit. On Pineapple, we do something…

  • Destinations

    Cabo: It’s Not So Bad

    by John Zeratsky November 23, 2017April 21, 2018
    by John Zeratsky November 23, 2017April 21, 2018

    The name of a place is not just a name. It’s a stand-in for all kinds of thoughts, feelings, prejudices, and memories for both visitors and yet-to-be-visitors.

  • Boat Life

    Steam in the Exhaust: Our First DIY Engine Repair

    by John Zeratsky October 24, 2017October 24, 2019
    by John Zeratsky October 24, 2017October 24, 2019

    Last Friday, after deciding to abandon our anchorage at Smuggler’s Cove on Santa Cruz Island, we started the engine, weighed anchor, and got underway for Prisoner’s Harbor on the other…

  • Boat Life

    Earth, Wind, and Fire: Power on a Cruising Sailboat

    by John Zeratsky October 9, 2017April 21, 2018
    by John Zeratsky October 9, 2017April 21, 2018

    Everyone knows that sailboats are powered by the wind. But “powered” isn’t quite the right word. In practice, it’s just a few circumstances—mostly downwind, with somewhere between 10 and 30…

  • Boat Life

    This Particular Boat

    by John Zeratsky July 6, 2017April 21, 2018
    by John Zeratsky July 6, 2017April 21, 2018

    Of all the boats in the world, how did we choose this particular boat? (Pun intended, naturally.) There’s one simple reason. The Outbound 46 was designed for exactly what we’re…

  • Cruising Aegea

    Summer Camp at Night

    by John Zeratsky November 2, 2016July 20, 2017
    by John Zeratsky November 2, 2016July 20, 2017

    Last summer we sailed our boat to Catalina Island. After a week ashore, including three noisy nights in Avalon, we retreated to the island’s quiet northwest corner to prepare for our…

  • Cruising Aegea

    Five lessons after five weeks of cruising in Southern California

    by John Zeratsky October 1, 2015July 20, 2017
    by John Zeratsky October 1, 2015July 20, 2017

    As of October 1, we’ve been cruising Southern California for five weeks. With a little help from King Neptune and Mother Nature, we should have Aegea should be back in…

  • Cruising Aegea

    Spinnaker sailing

    by John Zeratsky September 23, 2015July 30, 2017
    by John Zeratsky September 23, 2015July 30, 2017

    Aegea came with a decent sail inventory. Older working sails: a main and 95% jib. A 120% genoa for light-air sailing. A storm jib and storm trysail we’re unlikely to…

  • Cruising Aegea

    SoCal Ta-Ta

    by John Zeratsky September 21, 2015July 5, 2017
    by John Zeratsky September 21, 2015July 5, 2017

    Last week we sailed south, on a zig-zag course from Santa Barbara, to Santa Cruz Island, to Oxnard, to Malibu, to Catalina. We were traveling with a group of 50…

  • Cruising Aegea

    Santa Cruz Island

    by John Zeratsky September 9, 2015July 30, 2017
    by John Zeratsky September 9, 2015July 30, 2017

    During Labor Day weekend, we sailed out to Santa Cruz Island (part of Channel Islands National Park) and spent two nights anchored in Prisoners Harbor. Big swells made the sailing…

  • Cruising Aegea

    The people you meet

    by John Zeratsky September 4, 2015July 5, 2017
    by John Zeratsky September 4, 2015July 5, 2017

    Last Friday, after we arrived in Santa Barbara, after we hosted an impromptu cocktail hour with Nick’s friends Paul and Ginger, after we had dinner at the yacht club, after…

  • Cruising Aegea

    “There’s kelp on the rudder”

    by John Zeratsky August 30, 2015July 5, 2017
    by John Zeratsky August 30, 2015July 5, 2017

    During our recent passage to Santa Barbara, the sail from Half Moon Bay to Morro Bay was quiet. We saw one ship, steaming north in the offshore shipping lane, and…

  • Cruising Aegea

    San Francisco to Santa Barbara

    by John Zeratsky August 30, 2015July 20, 2017
    by John Zeratsky August 30, 2015July 20, 2017

    The week of August 24, I sailed Aegea from San Francisco south 350 miles to Santa Barbara. My friend Nick Baum came along as crew, and we did the passage in…

  • Cruising Aegea

    Drinking-water safe

    by John Zeratsky August 22, 2015July 15, 2017
    by John Zeratsky August 22, 2015July 15, 2017

    After three years with Aegea, our freshwater system is finally safe for drinking water. Just in time too — we’re leaving for a two-month cruise on Monday, and I wasn’t looking…

  • Cruising Aegea

    Runabout cruise to Sacramento

    by John Zeratsky August 19, 2015July 5, 2017
    by John Zeratsky August 19, 2015July 5, 2017

    In July we took our runabout (a 2001 Sport Nautique) up the Sacramento River for a weekend in Old Sacramento. We stayed on the Delta King, a restored riverboat that…

  • Cruising Aegea

    Point Richmond

    by John Zeratsky August 18, 2015July 5, 2017
    by John Zeratsky August 18, 2015July 5, 2017

    In March we commissioned Aegea for the season and celebrated with a weekend cruise to Point Richmond. Point Richmond is in the Northeast corner of San Francisco Bay. It’s an…

  • Cruising Aegea

    Full-moon sail on San Francisco Bay

    by John Zeratsky August 17, 2015July 5, 2017
    by John Zeratsky August 17, 2015July 5, 2017

    Since moving to San Francisco in 2010, we’ve have talked about sailing the Bay under a full moon. On March 15, 2014 we found the perfect night to do it:…

About John & Michelle

About John & Michelle

We’re a San Francisco couple in our 30s, sailing south to Mexico and beyond aboard our Outbound 46 Pineapple. We left our jobs and stuff behind, but brought our cats.
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