S/V Aphrodite

We are back on the boat and happy to be able to return to this lifestyle. Life on land is so different, but without a home base with connections, it seems empty of purpose. We spent wonderful time with the kids and other family members, especially my mom. We were at her place for about [...]

Happy Easter
During the past 18 months we have raised and lowered the courtesy flags of 9 different countries. I have been able to take you with us through most of our wonderful and challenging experiences. Cloud 9 is now back in the waters of the U.S.A., anchored off Key West, a wonderfully colorful town. I [...]

We left the Rio Dulce about 2 weeks ago, after being there for about 2 weeks. There is so much to see and do there, I could have spent a lot more time there than we did. I really loved it. There is something very exciting about cruising down a narrow river and not being [...]

We have really been covering some ground (or sea, I guess) lately. If you look at a map of Central America and run your eye from Cartagena, Columbia to the Rio Dulce, in Guatemala you can get an idea. We left Cartagena 1/16/05 and have traveled 1,080 miles in less than a month. We are [...]

We departed Cartagena Columbia, bound for Isla San Andreas, Columbia, on Jan. 16th. San Andreas is one of two Columbian islands off the coast of Nicaragua, the second is Isla de Providencia. The weather forecast indicated that we had a 2-3 day window to make the anticipated 48 hour trip, so we took it. There [...]

Cloud 9 leaves Columbia with stories to tell
Well, it seems that many cruisers have stories associated with their passage through or around Columbia. In that light, we are no different than anyone else. The “drug lord” system of doing business is pervasive, seemingly part of the normal everyday life of everyone. Everyone expects a “regala” [...]