Behan Gifford

LATEST ARTICLES ( 537 )

• Plans, the Little White Cruising Lie

  

  It’s a standing joke among the cruising community that “plan” is a four letter word. Any cruiser can tell you stories about the plans made and then revised…... Read more

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

• Lessons Learned When Naming a Boat

  

  Our first cruising boat was a Hallberg-Rassy 352 named for the co-owner. “Andrea” didn’t mean anything to us, and we were eager to have a new name put a persona... Read more

  Posted on 16 October 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• Crossing Singapore

  

  Singapore sits at the pointy southern end of the Malay peninsula. Less than nine nautical miles of water separate the island nation from Indonesia to the... Read more

  Posted on 10 October 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• The Source of Inspiration

  

  A boat we met during our Pacific crossing recently finished their circumnavigation. That happens more frequently now as we have gone slowly, and those with fewe... Read more

  Posted on 07 October 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• The Dog Ate My Clearance Papers

  

  Jamie and I co-author a cruising column for 48° North, a Pacific Northwest regional boating magazine. Our article for October offers anecdotes internet... Read more

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

• The Sleepy Village of Juara, Tioman Island

  

  When we faced changing winds that would turn our anchorage on the west side of Tioman from placid to exposed, it was an easy decision to hop a few miles around... Read more

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

• A Year in Review: from Oz to Mainland SE Asia

  

  We recently crossed the one-year mark since departing Australia, and a relatively stationary period in our floating life. It was a banner year and prompted... Read more

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

• Tioman Underwater: Better Than Expected

  

  We had surprisingly good snorkeling at Tioman Island by just jumping off the boat from our mooring near the village of Tektek. Read more

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

• Hey! Look, It’s a Kid Boat!

  

  Back at home in Puget Sound, buddy boating with another "kid boat" always made things more fun for everyone. A twist on this dynamic is common among the... Read more

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

• Keeping the Kids in Clothes While Cruising

  

  A blog reader recently asked: what clothes do kids need for cruising, and how much do they need? Before we cut the docklines in 2008, we were well supplied in... Read more

  Posted on 20 September 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• Tioman Island: Jungles, Beaches, and Creepy Crawlies

  

  Tioman island was our stunning landfall after a slightly stressful passage across the South China Sea. I learned about the lures of Tioman Island beaches when... Read more

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

• The Last Reef in Sarawak?

  

  Before taking off across the S China Sea, we anchored out near the western point of Sarawak to give ourselves an easy, early morning departure. It also... Read more

  Posted on 16 September 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA

• Speed Machines and Family Cruising

  

  Some readers may be interested in seeing images of Relapse under sail. Mark and family don't have a great internet connection in Indonesia right now, but he... Read more

  Posted on 14 September 2013 FAMILY, OUTDOORS, SEA, TRAVEL

• Pirates in the South China Sea

  

  Add caption Our recent crossing from Borneo to the Malay peninsula is probably the last multi-day passage we’ll have for a while. Read more

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

• Warning: Sharks...card Sharks.

  

  In 2010, my cousin Claire came to stay on Totem in Bora Bora. Three years later she’s back again, with the unique distinction of still being the only relative t... Read more

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

• What Makes a Good Cruising Boat? Mark Responds.

  

  Mark Edwards cruises the yacht Relapse with his family- the Young design featured in the last post. He's on limited internet access cruising in Indonesia, but... Read more

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

• Boatschooling, Part 3: Things I Wish I’d Known

  

  school We get more questions about homeschooling than almost anything else. To try and offer meatier background on our approach I've split out a few blog posts... Read more

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

• What Makes a Good Cruising Boat?

  

  In our home waters of Puget Sound, traditional boats predominate. The longer we've been gone cruising and thought about the qualities that matter to us, the mor... Read more

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

• Where Headhunting and Satellite Service Meet

  

  New places, new experiences, old friends: lots to learn about and explore around Kuching. We visited the orangutan rehabilitation center outside of town. It... Read more

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

• Swimming in a Jellyfish Swarm

  

  When we explored Malaysia's Bako National Park with our friends from Seattle recently, we started to notice the jellyfish when we were still a few miles from th... Read more

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