Last week, Michelle and I joined friends at the Annapolis Sailboat Show. Before the trip we joked that it would be like an RV show, just on the water. We weren’t wrong. But the cruising yachts we crawled all over were as unlike my grandparents’ camper as they could possibly be. They were party pads that slept 8-10 with ensuite baths and tablet controls. Oh, and they also sail from here to there with self-tacking jibs.
I fully understand how so many people envision the cruising lifestyle as their ultimate dream. For me, I don’t really fantasize about owning a boat like that. But to my surprise, I now think that chartering one would make a fun vacation. A workshop about cruising the small towns around the Chesapeake Bay made that sound especially attractive, and it’s close by so we might actually do it some day. And, less surprising since I went into the show with this mindset: I definitely want to learn to sail. Next summer.