Behan Gifford

LATEST ARTICLES ( 537 )

• Hauling in Thailand: Part 1- a New Bottom

  

  Southeast Asia is an appealing region for boat hauling and refits because of the combination of low costs and skilled workers. Read more

  Posted on 09 December 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• Maintenance in Exotic Locations: Preparing to Haul

  

  It's been said that the definition of cruising is performing maintenance in exotic locations. We recently hauled Totem for new anti-fouling paint, four through... Read more

  Posted on 05 December 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• Giving Back: Citizen Science Programs for Cruisers

  

  Living with a lighter footprint is one of our motivating factors to choose the cruising life. Helping our children learn about risks and realities of the... Read more

  Posted on 03 December 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• What Are the Best Field Guides for Cruisers?

  

  What kind of field guides should you bring cruising? The question of on board references came from a reader recently. It’s a good one, and it made me think abou... Read more

  Posted on 30 November 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• Thankful to Be Cruising

  

  Celebrating Thanksgiving on Totem this week, we sat around the table to talk about all the things we’re grateful for. Earlier in the day, the children had each... Read more

  Posted on 29 November 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• Everyday Cruising Life: Last Days in Telaga Harbour

  

  Our watermaker is broken, so there are routine shore runs to fill up a jerry can and keep our tanks from running dry. We have a single five-gallon capacity... Read more

  Posted on 27 November 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• There’s This Boat: Coracle

  

  The schooner America was launched in 1851, and is famous for winning- and giving her name- to the famous challenge we all know as The America’s Cup. It’s... Read more

  Posted on 25 November 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• Great Games for Cruisers

  

  Entertainment on our cruising boat is pretty low tech. Oh, we watch some of the movies and TV series, but a lot of our fun and games as a family are the kind... Read more

  Posted on 22 November 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• Tips from an Unplanned Rewiring

  

  Jamie and I co-author the cruising column for 48° North, a Pacific Northwest regional boating magazine. Our article for November is based on lessons learned... Read more

  Posted on 18 November 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• Pets on Board

  

  We're a pet-free boat. Oh, we tried, once upon a time. Hermit crabs count, right? We needed a little education before jumping into that one, but... well, they... Read more

  Posted on 15 November 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• Adventures in Duty-Free Shopping: Langkawi, Malaysia

  

  Life in Langkawi isn't all waterfall hikes and beach barbecues. This island is duty free, and while it's rustic, there are tempting offerings for our scant... Read more

  Posted on 13 November 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• Everyday Cruising Life: Langkawi, Malaysia

  

  The resort was a great interlude, but we've settled back into "normal" cruising life in Malaysia, and a decidedly different groove. We're happily catching up... Read more

  Posted on 11 November 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• How to Use Social Media to Help in a Crisis

  

  Typhoon Haiyan ran a course of destruction through the Philippines this week, cutting through the middle of the country on a westbound track. It came with... Read more

  Posted on 10 November 2013 CURRENT, FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, SOCIAL MEDIA, SOCIETY, TRAVEL

• Resort-style Cruising: Two Weeks at Rebak

  

  We like to take the road less traveled, and chose anchoring in a quiet bay over tying up in a marina, but it was a fine change of pace to soak up the resort... Read more

  Posted on 08 November 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• Joining the SAILfeed Blogger Team

  

  My first sailing magazine subscription, when I was a teen, was to SAIL. My husband started even sooner (a Christmas gift when he was 12). Times have changed, bu... Read more

  Posted on 06 November 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• Not Such a Unique Boat Name After All

  

  One of the criteria we had when selecting a name for Totem was to find something unique: we didn't want to be another Jenny in the anchorage. Read more

  Posted on 04 November 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• Halloween on a Cruising Kid Boat

  

  How do you keep holiday traditions alive while cruising? I worried about this before we took off as a family. I was afraid that our kids would someday feel... Read more

  Posted on 02 November 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• Family Visit to Totem

  

  The last ten days have been a lush departure from normal life on Totem. There may not be a great deal of predictability in our lives, but there is a rhythm. Tha... Read more

  Posted on 29 October 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• Camera Gear on Board

  

  When we left to go cruising in 2008, we had a basic digital camera. It was fine: it captured the memories, which was the primary purpose: like buying our... Read more

  Posted on 25 October 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• Vignettes on the Way up the Malay Peninsula

  

  Our journey up the west coast of the Malay peninsula was different than expected, but we made good memories with good friends. We've now got experience and... Read more

  Posted on 22 October 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL