The Art of Sailing

Andrew Stephens grew up living on the Puget Sound accustomed to activities on or around the water at a very young age. Today he is sharing his thoughts on sailing and the dream journey he embarked on almost a year ago.

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“Sailing has captivated the hearts of many, and I am no exception. One reason this may be that the art of sailing is one thing that remains constant in an ever-changing world. If you have ever visited a marina and strolled down a dock of boats, it is easy to become captivated by these man-made objects. Feelings of not only nostalgia but also of wanderlust surface as you gaze over all the rigging, lines, blocks and tackle that enable these vessels to harness the power of nature in order to propel them through the Earth’s mighty and majestic waters. It is because of this; I feel that sailing remains as one of the purest ways to explore this beautiful world.

It was only three years ago when I bought my sailboat “Cascadia”. She is a Cape Dory 30; a small, but stout cutter rigged sloop designed by the late Carl Alberg.

She wasn’t the largest or the prettiest boat on the dock, as she had seen nearly three decades of life at sea, but that was also three decades of memories and life changing experiences that she may have provided to anyone that was lucky enough to step foot on her deck. From that first day I took ownership of her, it is my belief that I fell in love with sailing before I had even thrown off my first dock line as I remember sitting in “Cascadia” and thinking: “This is the life for me”.

I had decided that sailing would not be a simple pastime. It would be the means in which I would discover more about life and myself than I ever could imagine. Last July, I embarked on what may be the greatest journey of my life. After 9200 miles, two continents, and countless unheard foreign lands and cultures… I can safely say that there is still more in which I wish to discover and sailing is what will help me discover it.”

Check Andrew’s latest video on sailing the last passage through the Philippines or read more about him on his blog.

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