Orion and the Sea

We are having the times of our lives out here- playing in the warm turquoise water, communing with nature, setting off daily on new adventures- and we want to share this amazing experience with others! Come join us on a leg of our journey and experience the timelessness of meandering the wild blue on Orion. Life on Orion is a mix of activity and relaxation. We love to play hard and then unwind with a book…. enjoy a dinner with new friends and then sink silently into the starry sky. Everyday is new. Every day is an adventure.

Often we are located in remote places that are difficult to get to by land. These are our favorite places, so we usually don’t stay too long in busy ports after we have provisioned and done our list of civilized chores. The dates below are the times that we have set aside to ensure that we are in places that are easy for crew to get to with good surface transport such as an airport and/or buses.

Dates and Itinerary

 

March 11-18, 2017 – Start in Puerto Vallarta, end in Mazatlan, Mexico- FULL

Banderas Bay has some of the most consistent sailing wind in Mexico. This entire stretch of coast is covered in tropical beaches, great surf, river estuaries full of life, and cantinas with music and dancing. The trip will start in the historical Spanish colonial town of Mazatlan. We will head south toward a few fun anchorages off great beaches, and if ocean conditions allow we’ll head to the National Park and wildlife refuge of Isla Isabela, which has been called Mexico’s little Galapagos. We will end in the quaint little village of La Cruz, which is a short bus/taxi ride from the Puerto Vallarta airport.There are airports in Puerto Vallarta and Mazatlan.

June 22- Jul 9, 2017 – Sea of Cortez – Start in La Paz, Mexico end in Loreto, Mexico

This trip needs to be between 10-15 days as there are no towns with surface transport between La Paz and Loreto and we want to allow enough time for an enjoyable transit between the two towns. This area is hands down our favorite part of Mexico and a great time to year to explore it. There are numerous uninhabited desert islands between La Paz and Loreto with turquoise beaches, nice hikes, good snorkeling, great fishing, and secret caves. The water is calm, warm and clear, the southerly winds blow consistently. This is the best trip for exploring Baja’s remote islands, quaint little villages, and amazing marine life. On this trip we will not be scuba diving, but there will LOTS of opportunities for free diving and snorkeling in beautiful places. There are airports in La Paz and Loreto as well as Cabo with bus service between the cities, email for help in looking for the best travel plans, we have lots of good insider info.

We can take a maximum of four and a minimum of two (in addition to us). We need everyone to have the same pick up and drop off locations and times. Please email us for more information. Let us know what your interests are and a little bit about your experience on the water. orionandthesea@gmail.com (we may not be able to respond right away if we are at sea)

What About You? 

You do not need to have any previous sailing experience. We would like you to have spent some time on boats before, because a week or two is too big a commitment for you to be figuring out if you like being on boats. The most important characteristics we are looking for in crew are easy-going, adventurous, and flexible. Willingness to be flexible is a necessity on a boat since weather and wind dictate when and where we go. The scene can change quickly- from napping with a book on your chest to steering through a rough squall- so being able to roll with the punches is key to enjoying the experience. 

Life Onboard Orion

A possible day in the life is to start the day with jumping off the boat for a refreshing morning dip followed by breakfast. The rest of the morning is a paddleboard or dinghy ride to shore to stretch the legs for a little hike or to explore the village we are anchored next to. After lunch and a short siesta it’s time for a snorkel or a dive to explore the nearby reefs. We bbq fresh fish (caught by you or one of us) for dinner and enjoy sunset and then the stars out on deck. The next day we wake up to a day sailing to our next home, raising anchor and setting sails in the cool morning breeze. We reach our next destination with time for a swim before sunset, or perhaps we are making an overnight passage in which everyone has a nighttime watch under the stars.

We have a lot of fun toys on Orion that are available for use including paddleboards, surf boards for riding waves or for wakeboarding behind the dinghy, snorkeling gear, fishing gear, and games. There is plenty to keep us busy. We love music so if you are a musician we’d love for you to bring your instrument and play, and we also have guitars and flutes to share. Bring your MP3 player to share your tunes with the rest of us. We also have the occasional movie to keep us entertained on a rainy night.

We eat well on Orion, especially if you like seafood. If you don’t like seafood we have plenty of other options. We make sure to keep well stocked with fresh fruit and veggies, often have homemade yogurt, and we bake fresh breads. We are fortunate to have a fridge and freezer so we are able to keep a good supply of perishables and we have plenty in the ship’s stores (rice, beans, pasta, etc). We are able to accomodate most diets, but feel free to ask about specifics.

Some factors to consider:

-We have a young dog on board. She is medium-sized, well-behaved and friendly. But you need to like dogs and be ok with sharing space with one.

-Space is communal and shared. There are not separate staterooms with doors so your bunk is likely next to another bunk or it may even be a sitting area during the day. If you are a couple there may be a double bed for you, or you may be in adjacent bunks.

-Fresh water is used sparingly. We always have plenty to drink and cook with. Bathing is generally done by lathering up and jumping into the ocean with a fresh water rinse afterward. We wash our dishes and as many things as possible with salt water.

-We use electricity sparingly and all do our best to conserve power, with specific times for charging devices, etc.

The Boat 

Orion is a comfortable 41ft Tartan TOCK (Tartan Offshore Cruising Ketch) sailboat. She was designed for safe offshore cruising. She sleeps eight in bunks but we will have a maximum of six on board, the two of us and up to four crew. We have quite a bit of safety gear on board including a 6-person life raft, extensive first aid kit, oxygen, EPIRB, AIS, communication through SSB radio and VHF, and we meet all US Coast Guard requirements for offshore cruising. Click for Photos and more boat info. 

Your Captains

We are both USCG licensed captains, scuba diving instructors, and trained in emergency life saving techniques. Safety is our number one priority with fun being a close runner up. You will be sharing the boat with two marine biologists who love everything about the ocean and her inhabitants. We love to figure out what we are seeing underwater, observing behaviors, breaking out the microscope from time to time, turning fish filleting into an anatomy lesson. We love to teach what we know as well as learn from our surroundings and new friends. We can teach you how to sail, take you on a dive tour, or simply provide a safe, comfortable place for you to relax and marvel at the beauty of the sea. Just let us know what your interests are.

Diving

We love to dive and we love to take folks diving. It is the stoke that keeps on giving. We have a compressor to fill tanks and a few extra sets of dive gear. We require that all divers have proof of certification. Whether you are a beginner or an avid diver we can seek out locations that suit your experience level. We are both scuba instructors and enjoy helping folks feel comfortable in the underwater world. Not every place we sail is appropriate for diving, but if it is we’ll likely be doing so. Please let us know if you’d like to scuba dive with us and we’ll let you know more information about costs, etc. If you are interested in doing a specialty dive course onboard let us know and we can talk about timing.

Cost

$1000 per week per person or $150 per day per person.

Your cost includes all food and drinks, the use of our many toys, and all that goes into running the boat such as: fuel for the engine, outboard, generator, and water maker, mooring fees, customs fees, maintenance costs, and preparations. This is a cost-sharing situation and you are helping to pay the costs incurred on the trip as well the extensive costs associated with keeping the cruising yacht and all her systems running smoothly.

We require at least two passengers at a time. If you do not plan to come with another person, we will attempt to find another crew member to join the trip.

 

Not included in cost:

-Airfare

-Ground transportation to and from boat

-Activities/ food/ drinks on land

-Scuba diving is an additional contribution per tank

 

Email us for more information. Let us know what your interests are and a little bit about your experience on the water. orionandthesea@gmail.com