Florida Keys - Marquesas Cays - Dry Tortuga Trip with Florida Yacht Charters - April 10-17, 2008 - SOLD OUT!

New trips for 2009 posted!!

Thanks for stopping by and venturing into the wide world of John Kretschmer Sailing.  First time visitors – welcome. To the rest of you, I know what you are thinking. And you’re right this update is long overdue. As you navigate through the site I hope you’ll find that it’s been worth the wait. 2008 and 2009 feature some of the most challenging and exotic sailing and travel opportunities I’ve ever offered.

At The Mercy of the Sea 

I poured my heart into this book, published in October 2006 by McGraw Hill.  It is a sad story but a good one and I worked hard to get it right.  The book traces the lives of three sailors, one my dear friend Carl Wake, who converged by fate in the tiny circle of a hellish Caribbean hurricane.  Its tragic story but also one of incredible bravery and redemption.

Peter Nichols, author of Sea Change and A Voyage for Madmen, wrote this about At The Mercy of the Sea:

“The tale of Carl Wake and the hurricane that was waiting for him goes straight to the heart of the greatest sea stories: they are not about man against the sea but man against himself. John Kretschmer’s book is as perfectly shaped and flawlessly written as such a story can be.”

Many of you have read the book and emailed your comments to me, thank you. I have posted some of them on the Books and Articles link.  Others have offered comments on Amazon and I appreciate you taking the time to post these.  They reach a broad audience and let others know about the book. You can buy a signed copy of At The Mercy of the Sea from me through this site, but you’ll save money and time by purchasing it through Amazon or Barnes&Noble. Better still, pick it up at your local bookstore. The book is widely distributed.  Bring your copy along when you come sailing with me and I’ll sign it then. And please, let me know what you think about it. 

Training Passages

 My offshore training passages of the past few years have been extremely rewarding.  Since returning from Europe, Quetzal has ranged from Trinidad to Nova Scotia, with several passages to Bermuda, the Bahamas and the Caribbean as well. We’ve encountered plenty of gales and a couple of genuine storms. My shipmates, without fail, have been sensational. They have stood watch in fair weather and foul. They have navigated when it really mattered and made some impressive landfalls. They’ve reefed the main with green water crashing over the deck and they’ve hauled in on the jib furling line with a vengeance. They have made some amazing emergency repairs, the alternator, fuel system, mainsail and running lights come quickly to mind, and they’ve washed the dishes in the cockpit while huddled beneath the dodger. And they’ve told plenty of good jokes and some bad ones too. I am proud of all of you and can’t thank you enough for sharing these adventures with me. I have been sailing more or less nonstop for 27 years and the past couple of years have been, truly, some of the best.  I am pleased that so many of you have chosen to sail with me more than once, some have made three, four, five even six passages! 

 The 2007 training passages are nearly sold out. However, I always have a few cancellations and I have also added a couple of new trips so keep an eye on the Training Passages, link.  Quetzal will be heading back across the Atlantic this May, her third crossing in two years, and my sixteenth overall, and then we’ll be based in the Med for the next two summers.  I have some great passages planned. I’ve just added a third Med trip for this (2007) summer.  From July 28 through August 7 we will sail from Genoa, Italy to Barcelona, Spain. Landfalls will include Corsica, Cannes, Ile de’Heyes, and Narbonne.  The passage will include some vigorous sailing, three overnights, great landfalls, food and wine – not a bad combination. These Med trips are really a blast. I have one opening on each of the other Med trips scheduled in September and October. If you are interested don’t tarry, they fill up fast.

Several new adventures are on line for 2008.  First, in February, I have organized a one-way charter aboard a 51 Jeanneau from St. Martin to Grenada.  This is a two-week Caribbean passage that will touch just about every island on in the Windwards and Leewards.  If you have dreamed of making a 400-mile cruise through the Caribbean this is the trip for you. In April, back aboard Quetzal, we will launch a special passage.  Beginning from the ancient harbor of Troy in Turkey, we will spend three weeks retracing the route of Odysseus. We will explore several Greek Islands, drop down to Tunisia, and then head up to Sicily and back to Ithaca.  In May, you can join Quetzal for a passage from Corfu, Greece north to Montenegro, through the Croatian islands, and across the Adriatic to Venice. In September we will begin heading back west in a series of ten-day passages. The first passage will depart Venice, round the boot of Italy and conclude in Rome.  The second passage will depart Puerto de Roma for Sardinia, then across to Menorca and Majorca.  The last passage will take up from Majorca to Gibraltar. 

On November 20 Quetzal will head for home, back across the Atlantic.  We’ll sail from Gibraltar to Santa Cruz de Tenerife in the Canary Islands.  We’ll spend three days catching our breath, making final preparations before shoving off for Antigua.  Last time we made it across in 17 days, we’ll try to beat it this time.  Take a hard look at the schedule, and then see what works for you.

Expeditions: Around The World in Five Weeks!

In mid June of 2008 we launch our most ambitious and arguably our most exciting venture, An Around-The-World sail and travel expedition. Let me explain. Of course you can’t sail around the world in five weeks, or can you?  This expedition, limited to 6 lucky people, will begin when we assemble at LAX in Los Angeles. We’ll board a plane and head west. Our first stop will be Papeete in the Society Islands.  After a day and night in Tahiti we’ll fly to Raiatea where we board a 47’, four-cabin sloop.  We’ll spend six days sailing the magical islands of French Polynesia: Bora-Bora, Huahini, and Taha.  We’ll return the boat, and fly to Sydney, Australia.  We’ll spend two days in this vibrant city before heading up to Hamilton Island in the Whitsundays. These spectacular islands are perched along the Great Barrier Reef. We will spend 6 days gunkholing through this enchanting archipelago aboard a 43’ catamaran before heading for our next destination, Thailand.  We’ll land in Bangkok and spend two days in this extraordinary city before flying south to Phuket.  There we’ll board a 50’ sloop for six days of cruising the alluring pearl green waters and gravity defying islands of Phang Nha Bay.  Airborne again, our next stop will be Istanbul, Turkey.  We will spend two days in this intriguing city before heading south to Marmaris along the Lycian Coast. We’ll spend six days aboard a 49’ sloop exploring islands resplendent with ancient ruins and peaceful anchorages.  Back in Istanbul we will fly to New York, where our incredible around the world adventure concludes.  For more details see the Expeditions link.  This trip will sell out very quickly so if interested contact me pronto.

Expedition: Working Sail in Belize

I am also continuing my quixotic quest to identify and sail the last working sailboats throughout the world. I invite you to be a part of this noble venture. This year’s working sail expedition will take us to Belize.  From December 1 – 10, 2007 a team of 12 will sail sprightly Belize sloops from their origin in Sarteneja in the north to lovely Placencia in the south. This will be an unprecedented 200-mile expedition.  The sailing is unmatched as we reach south before the northeast trades just inside the magnificent Belize reef. 

Belize sloops are jaunty, plank on frame wooden boats. They really sail, they don’t have engines, and they range from 22 – 30’.  They are the working boats of local conch and lobster fisherman. In the off-season they haul cargo to remote islands and cays. They are a viable alternative to gas guzzling outboards and heavy skiffs and typically remain away from homeport for weeks at a time. We will have a fleet of four boats, each with a local skipper who will show us how to handle the sloop in a variety of conditions. We will sail by day, and mix interesting overland excursions into the sailing schedule. Our team’s evening accommodations will range from camping on the beach to comfortable resorts along the cays that dot the thundering reef. I am very excited about this expedition and strongly suggest that you check out the Expedition link for more details and then contact me ASAP. 

Quetzal

Quetzal, a 1986 Kaufman 47 cutter, has now logged just over 30,000 miles since I launched her in June of 2003.  She has proven to be the ocean going thoroughbred I knew she’d be when I first spied her propped up in a snowy Maryland boat yard. She’s fast and has a very sweet motion in a seaway.  She has here issues but what boat doesn’t?  And like any boat she demands love and money and I have given plenty of both. I have documented her many upgrades in two Sailing Magazine features.

Workshops

 As many of you know, in addition to training passages I also conduct weekend workshops on how to buy a great cruising boat.  These workshops are hands on, and that’s putting it gently. We spend two days crawling in, through and around boats.  I limit the workshop to 8 participants so we all have room to operate.  Best of all, we have unfettered access to the boats, nobody’s trying to sell you anything. I have one workshop scheduled April 28-29 and have just added a second November 17-18.  Check the Boat Buyer’s Workshop link for more details. 

Apparel

I have finally succumbed to crass commercialism, well maybe flogging tee shirts doesn’t qualify as crass commercialism, and besides, the shirts are cool.  See the Apparel page for more details and ordering instructions. 

John Kretschmer Sailing is devoted to providing unique sailing and travel opportunities, quasi-useful information, a bit of entertainment and dose of perspective about offshore sailing and living life on your own terms.  Thanks for visiting the site and I hope that we can sail together soon.