Christmas Day on the Picton Castle was a happy affair from start to finish. And what a thrill to have Christmas at sea! The early morning sky was a baby blue. The sun seemed to reach its arms through puffy white clouds to cast its long shadows on the deck. The waves rocked us gently …
No doubt about it, the holiday season has descended on the Picton Castle – and we are all the happier and the heavier because of it. A few weeks before we reached Bali, Jan approached me with a request. In Holland, where he hails from, the Dutch are visited on December 5th by a fatherly …
When the Picton Castle headed out of Benoa Harbour the humidity still hung in the air like wet woolly blankets hang on the clothes line – low and heavy. Within a few days and after some squally weather, the humidity had dissipated and we turned off the rumbling diesel engine and set all sails. We …
The crew also found inner balance during their stay – by exploring Bali, while exploring their own passions. Frankie went diving near Lembongan and discovered a reef still rich and teeming with life. Joh, Brad, Dave, Shawn and Siri continued their bargaining spree in Mas where they found sea chests and commissioned carvings and tools. …
When the Picton Castle crew described their stories to me they all expressed a similar awe that they were able to find peace in the midst of chaos. Kuta, for example, is absolute insanity. It is a mecca for tourists and partygoers and shopaholics and surfers. During the day the shops regurgitate their wares onto …
The Picton Castle and her crew stayed in Bali for 12 wonderful days. Since then I have been striving to find connections to link the stories of adventure and relaxation the crew have been regaling me with since we left that beautiful island. It turns out that the key to my own brief writer’s paralysis …
The sea has been a sheet of sheer calm for the past few days. It is so unperturbed, so unruffled, that it acts like a mirror – reflecting the clouds, sun, moon and stars and creating an illusion that we are sailing through the sky and not over a great ocean. The only wind we …
What started out as a discussion between Paul and Nadja (about auctioning off the overflowing lost & found bin) hatched an idea which grew up to be bizarre. A Bizarre Bazaar that is! You see, we keep a lost & found tote in the salon. People inevitably leave a book on the foc’sle head when …
The temperature in the Coral Sea continued to escalate. The sun bit down ferociously and we responded in turn by smothering our skins with sunscreen and wearing progressively bigger straw-brimmed hats. Captain is always telling us to wear shirts. Squalls frequently moved in on the ship with little forewarning – and provided a strange kind …
We learn a great many skills on the Picton Castle. Some we expect to learn and others, perhaps not. We learn how to set sail, take in sail, furl sail, unfurl sail, brace the yards, wear ship and tack. We learn how to box the compass, how to be a good helmsmen and how to …
