In the ten years since Archie purchased 48-foot Island Packet sailboat Betty Ann, a lot of friends and family have had some incredible adventures and good times onboard on both New England cruises and Betty Ann’s annual trip to the Gulf of Mexico. We have seen whales, seals, scores of dolphins and porpoises, tuna jumping clear out of the water, sea turtles, and flying fish hitting our sails. We have watched some spectacular sunrises and sunsets at harbors from Maine to Florida. We have been interrogated by Navy warships and seen submarines surface. People who might never have otherwise met have developed some close bonds, over beers in Coinjock, North Carolina, or while getting sick from the chop as a north wind kicks up the Gulf Stream.

This blog is meant to be a shared space where we can tell stories about our times aboard Betty Ann. I plan to start it off by writing about my experiences, including trying to list all of Betty Ann’s voyages. Hopefully, others will jump in and contribute tales and photos about their time onboard. The more specific the memories, the better. And humor is always appreciated.

If you wish to respond to a specific post by filling in some details, you can click “reply” and your response will appear as a comment. Better yet, if you want to create your own post and tell a story, or share some photos, please do. In the above link to “How to Contribute Tales and Posts,” I provide some options on how to do so.

I hope you enjoy.