Mr.
Adventure and I have been boating for about twenty years. Neither of us grew up around water or
boating. Steve started boating with friends and took a few sailing trips to the
Bahamas We started boating as a way of
enjoying family time with our three daughters.
Our first boat was a Marquis. The
second boat was a Nautique Excel, followed by a Super Air Nautique. Our daughters are all very comfortable on the
water. They ski, wakeboard, knee board
and tube. Mr. Adventure does all of those as well as ski barefoot. Several years ago we began attending boating
shows in Atlanta, Fort Lauderdale, Miami, and Baltimore. It was at these boat
shows that we learned about trawlers, and something called the Great Loop.
The circumnavigation of the Eastern United
States by water is known as the Great Loop.
This loop is from 5000 to 7500 miles long depending upon the route
taken. Most people travel north in the
spring to avoid hurricane season in the south and then head south in the fall
to avoid the frigid winter weather. The
loop is usually traveled in a counter clockwise fashion to reap the benefits of
the northern moving gulf stream and the downstream currents of the river system.
Our plan is to meander our way over the Great
Loop covering different segments of the loop over a course of a few years,
exploring the many beautiful cities and towns and villages of the United States
along the way. Mr. Adventure loves the
water and boating. I have always wanted
to travel and explore our great country.
I have often thought it would be nice to live in a different city for a
time but I never wanted to permanently leave our home in Georgia. Our plan accomplishes both my desire for
travel and Steve's desire to be near the water.
We have been asked why now? A wise
boater gave us the following advice at Trawler Fest this year:
Imagine the years of your life in terms of a measuring stick. Think of each inch as a year. Place a mark at your current age in inches. Place another mark on the age in inches that you expect to live. Use this ruler as a very visible indicator of how much time you have left to live out the life you want.
