Herman and Meredith both graduated to a job free status in early 2023 so that we could sail Tieton around the world. We spent most of 2023 getting the boat and ourselves ready including getting our two homes ready to rent. We cast our lines on September 12, 2023 and made it to San Francisco on September 18.

From there, we meandered down the California coast to San Diego, where Tieton had some rigging work. We sailed to Mexico in late December, staying most of the winter in the Sea of Cortez. In April 2024, to departed for the South Pacific, where we’ll stay until November when we got to New Zealand for the season.

For insurance purposes, we were asked to provide our first year’s itinerary, which is now here for the world to see!

As you might imagine, planning and preparing for a trip like this is a huge stretch. We plan to take three years and expect that we may take much longer. Since we plan many weather-related pauses, we expect to return to the states a couple times a year to visit friends and family, plus we may also explore land-based venues of the countries we’re visiting. As long as we’re enjoying ourselves and our health holds out, we’ll keep going. We are grateful we’re able to take this journey together and hold in our hearts those who can’t be with us.