July 2006 By Dodge Morgan The British solo sailor Pete Goss and I recently traded signed copies of our circumnavigation books. Pete’s 1996 sail as a competitor in the Vendee Globe non-stop race was a dramatically different challenge than was my solo, non-stop sail 20 years ago because it wasRead More

June 2006 By Dodge Morgan If practice produces insight, then I should qualify as a solitude guru. I have spent more time solely with myself than anyone I know, mostly at sea. The more practice I have accumulated, the further from both ignorance and knowledge I become. I am notRead More

May 2006 By Dodge Morgan Teaching yourself to sail is quite like it was when you taught yourself to walk. There is a fresh innocence about the challenge, with the very first steps being the most intimidating because the act itself then appears to be beyond the reach of possibility.Read More

April 2006 By Dodge Morgan It is daunting when your own “I remember” becomes “old history” for most others. I am not talking abstract, near-term world changes such as the Internet and fake knee joints. I am talking reverie fresh in my mind that impresses my audience as being exhumedRead More

Midwinter 2006 By Dodge Morgan Of all life’s joys, sailing is a strong No. 2 after sex. This truism becomes emblazoned with clarity during a midwinter in Maine, because sailor’s minds are diverted to memories of occasions when the lead pair of human joy – those two “S” words –Read More

October 2005 By Dodge Morgan Twenty-five years ago, Eagle was only 54 years old and I was a 48-year-old pup. The two of us were cuddled in Christmas Cove for the annual bending on of sails after another spring journey down the Damariscotta River from Paul Bryant’s Riverside Boat Yard,Read More

September 2005 By Dodge Morgan I have been fascinated with the meaning of luck since an early age, when I first become aware that I was one lucky bastard. The awareness is visceral, like when one knows when the answer will be “yes” before the question is posed or whenRead More

August 2005 By Dodge Morgan I have been often asked what differences I see in the solo sail of Bruce Schwab from that of mine 20 years ago. Both of us have accomplished a solo, nonstop circumnavigation under sail. It is interesting that the answer is a lot, yet notRead More

July 2005 By Dodge Morgan The passage from Tortola, B.V.I., to Bermuda is 830 nautical miles on a true north heading. The passage from Bermuda to Newport, R.I., is 620 nautical miles northwest or 720 nautical miles north-northwest to Portland, Maine. The purpose of the second passage is to collectRead More

June 2005 By Dodge Morgan My annual fitting-out epistletome, directed, this time, to both the do-it-yourself addict and the get-more-out-of-the-boatyard sloth. Do-it yourself addict These are generally arrogant people much like those who brag about how early they arise in the morning. There is an entire image and personality obligatedRead More