Leaving Everything Behind — I Started In On June 11th, 2021, I got on my bicycle at 4am in San Francisco, California and rode north across the Golden Gate Bridge. My intended destination was Alaska, to see my 50th State. I stopped heading north when I got to the Canadian Border. Due to Covid19…

A Short-Term Cure for Loneliness — I sat perched on the stern of my ship and investigated the vast open space. I was surrounded by beauty, a seascape, desolate rolling green hills, and snow-capped mountains. Welcome to the Aleutians, a desolate group of Islands forming the eastern portion of the Gulf of Alaska. It would be…

Zero Degrees North at the 59th Parallel — Last night, we were heading zero degrees north, based on a gyro, at the 59th parallel. Traveling zero degrees north, we headed directly into the Northern Lights. Watching a dazzling display produced by Mother Nature in the ocean was awe-inspiring. It made me appreciate the subtleties of nature, chemistry, and…

What is it Like at Sea in 97 mph Winds? — Hurricane-force winds start at 74 mph. Sustained winds over 96 mph define a category two hurricane. You can learn much about life by sailing a ship through hurricane-force winds. Our ship registers our current wind speed, our maximum wind speed, and our true wind speed. True wind speed is defined…

Do You Want to Know What Working at Sea is Like? — Today was an average day for me. I work on a ferry boat in Alaska. Have you ever wondered what it would be like to work at sea? When I was a kid, I heard about kids running off to join the Circus. …

Looking for an Adventure? — It was my first time seeing the Aleutian Island Chain. I traveled several hundred miles from Homer, Alaska, to Kodiak. I had been to Kodiak, but not farther down the chain. I am working on a different ship traveling through the open ocean to Dutch Harbor this time. On our…

The Imagination Equation — It was a monster’s castle, so big and beautiful from a distance. The formation spurned the imagination. I looked again as we approached my Castle in the Sand, which transformed into a pile of rocks. My vivid imagination told me a story. It was a huge castle inhabited by giants…

Bargain Basement Brain Switches on Sale — Do you ever wish you had an off switch for your brain? When it is overloaded, too sensitive, or too tired to process more, you could flip a switch and turn it all off. Think of the joy of not thinking, overthinking, or reprocessing old memories. Last night, I had…

The Solo Traveler Experience — I arrived in Homer, Alaska via a puddle jumper airplane late this afternoon. After a full day of travel, with stops at six different airports, I arrived at my destination. Taking a cab to the hotel and ordering room service would have been easy. Most people would be tired and…