LESSONS LEARNED WHILE CRUISING Jamie & Behan Gifford


Buddy Boating


Sailing in the company of friends left us with memories of great times in the Salish Sea. Transitioning into a cruising lifestyle, buddy boating continues to be positive and meaningful, but there are some differences and caveats for the blue water cruiser.


Mairen (Totem) and Bryce (Capaz) relax on the beach in Makemo. Sometimes, it’s just nice to have an old friend with you to enjoy the view.


BENEFITS Whether you plan to buddy boat


or just fall into it informally, it brings welcome companionship and safety to the daily unknowns of cruising life. It's easy to meet other cruisers and close friendships form quickly. Often people come and go with each new anchorage. So when your anchorage neighbor remains the same with each new location, there is comfort in being around people with whom you have shared history. We have spent many memorable evenings with buddy boats playing cards or dominoes, or planning snorkeling excursions. Finding playmates among “Kid Boats” is another very big draw to establish a traveling partner. As cruisers, the mutual assistance


of a buddy boat can be invaluable. It may be as simple as sharing knowledge, or as significant as being able to provide a needed spare part. We spent much of the past year in company with long-time friends from Seattle, the Bakers, on their ketch Capaz. When they arrived in La Paz last fall, we helped them get oriented based 48° NORTH, SEPTEMBER 2010 PAGE 38


on our prior year of cruising in Mexico. As our travels progressed together, we shared information on everything from dolphin sightings to navigating around fishing long-lines to finding supplies in towns that we visited along the way. Sometimes, the information sharing


takes on more importance. We spent two months getting to and cruising in French Polynesia with a broken SSB radio. We did not have an alternative to the radio to receive weather data, so the weather forecasts that Capaz shared were invaluable. Even with a functional radio, weather interpretation was often better accomplished with two heads instead of one. We compared notes, shared different source data, or contemplated the best route for a given passage. Long time buddy boaters, s/v


Freezing Rain and s/v Sula have cruised in Mexico, Central America and now across the Pacific in company. Together, they were able to solve problems like acquiring critical parts for mechanical problems and staying together during a stressful engine fire. Sula was dogged


with propulsion problems during the passage to the Marquesas this year, and Freezing Rain used their dinghy as a tugboat to bring the vessel in after their long passage.


PITFALLS The benefits of buddy boating


don't come without pitfalls. Like dating or any partnership, the relationship only has a chance if both parties share in the decisions and benefits. We've seen instances where buddy boaters seemed to be together more out of habit than happiness. Sometimes it seems timelines and destinations are one sided; especially when one crew has a lot more experience than the other. Style differences, such as cruisers with schedules in company with those that don't wear a watch, can add stress. Buddy boating can also lead to complacency, a bad trait for successful cruising. It's easy to feel like your buddy always has you covered. For example, I once questioned a cruiser on why they felt comfortable going to shore just moments after anchoring. They replied


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