Vernon has always been a legend to me. Years ago I had a massive poster of one of his Volcom adverts hanging in the hallway of my shared apartment. After a few years working in the snowboard industry I finally got the chance to personally meet Vernon and I wasn’t disappointed. Vernon is as kind as he is talented. He encouraged my in my photography and we quickly became friends.

Some years after meeting here and there, we connected again in Indonesia and Vernon and his partner, Marie (that I had the pleasure to meet for the first time and who became a very dear friend of mine), offered us to join them in their home: a sailing boat. A few months later, there we were packing our surfboards and fishing rods to fly direction the island of Rote where the couple were waiting for us on the beach with a little dingy. The boat was anchored a little bit outside the harbour to enjoy the peace of the ocean while staying by the land. “Waw!” the sailing boat was even bigger than I imagined. Of course, as four adults, we would have to manage the space, but I feel this is a perfect size for two people. What amazed me the most is that every centimetre of the boat had a purpose: storage, devices, more storage… The space was completely functional and convenient. In such a reduced space you had all you needed and more which Marie decorated with taste. Once the sails were up, every single object had to be placed in a safe space because the boat would soon heel right or left to the point where you can sit comfortably on the side of the boat. I was mind-blown. “It’s unsinkable” explained Vernon, the boat was built to race and to support rough situations. Nevertheless, you need to be a good sailor to be able to solve by yourself all kind of issues on board (electrical, craft, technical…) and to be able to understand the ocean to react quickly to the fast moods of the winds and currents. Vernon and Marie are full of amazing and scary stories from their adventures. “Yes sailing from one empty beach to another feels like paradise on earth and we are grateful for that, but as nice as it sound it can turn around quickly and become hell” explains Marie after tailing some rough situations.

Going back to the practical side of the space, you need to keep in mind that sailing means you don’t get accessibility to food and utilities for the time being between one habited island and the next one. As a good team, Vernon has the technical side covered while Marie takes over the food situation on board. She has learned how to cook bread with ocean water, how to make her own cheese out of kefir solutions, to grow some herbs and even to grow Kombucha. Marie’s little kitchen is handling more cooking diversity skills than my massive kitchen will ever have the chance to. Living on a boat also means that you need to find many alternative solutions to simple things, therefor, Marie got interested in the benefice of different plant based powder and how to heal some pains and sicknesses with oils and herbs. I have learned more in these few days about alternative medicine than I did the past years. I kindly asked her to share some of their most useful healing mixes.
When it comes to facilities, you need to adapt to the situation. Like showering for example, you dip in the ocean, soap yourself, rinse again in the ocean then have a last spray of sweet water to rinse the salt away. “Of course you shower with the most beautiful view but sometimes I admit I miss a good warm shower so I would boil some water and rinse myself with that” explained Marie with a laugh.

On the first day of our adventure we traveled on land to buy at the weekly street market all the food supplies we would need for the week. Then, we put up the sails to reach an empty island near by with clear blue water. Mattia and Vernon enjoyed some fishing and had some success that we enjoyed with a big BBQ on the beach while watching the sun set. Every morning and afternoon Mattia would go out with the dingy to catch lunch and dinner. Fresh sashimis and tender filets were our mains for the few days around the island. We were the happiest around that camp fire listening to the stories of Vernon and Marie of their night snorkels, the people they meet, the food they try…

What is the toughest for you about living on a boat?
Vernon: Not being able to just walk out the door, on the boat, you are not using your legs often.

Marie: Not being able to escape easily. You know, when you are on land, if you need to change your mind, you just pick a bag, and go for a walk or driving to nice places. On a boat, everything is less spontaneous: you need to be able to go on land, to prepare the dinghy, check if the tide will let you access to the beach at this time and for how much time to not being stuck on land… it is rarely a spontaneous and simple decision haha!

https://www.worldhumorawards.org/uncategorized/xycsengtmgd What is your best memory from your travels?
Vernon: Swimming alone with Mantas at a very remote lagoon in the Solomon Islands.

Marie: Hard to pick only one… I would say the month we spent in Wayag in Raja Ampat without internet, just snorkeling, fishing and exploring everyday. This place is one of the more crazy landscape I ever seen, and the wild life is just amazing there, the jungle, the beaches, the birds, the corals, the fishes, sharks, the mantas, the turtles. Every single day, I was feeling so blessed to have this backyard so full of life around.

https://www.goedkoopvliegen.nl/uncategorized/vgjlgata31 What is the thing you miss the most from living on land?
Vernon: The access to fresh food without having to plan it.

Marie: Having a hot shower and an immobile place to do some handcraft. When it is “rolly” aboard, every simple task can become quite hard.

Buying Tramadol In Canada What is your best skill on the boat?
Vernon: Being able to troubleshoot and fix problems.

Marie: Definitely cooking, and also making the place a bit more cosy.

https://tankinz.com/ln8trg8m9g What would you like to improve on the boat?
Vernon: Lithium batteries to improve our autonomy with electricity and a water maker because it is quite a hard job to fill up the tanks with fresh water.

Marie: Having a water maker, to be able to use a bit more fresh water and having an interior a bit more cosy…

Where would you dream to sail to?
Vernon: New Zealand, I grew up there and I would like to explore it from the sea.

Marie: I think many places are interesting to visit in a sailboat, but New-Zealand is the one I am the more attracted. I never been there, and I am curious about the place Vernon grew up, and I would like to meet Vernon’s mom.
I never sailed in a temperate country and I like nature inhabited places. I think I would be happy there, even I think we would have to think about a little heater inside.

What is so special about the method of travelling by sailboat?
Vernon: To me its about freedom, freedom to choose our location, freedom to choose our neighbours. Our floating home has everything we need, all in a small space that is completely independent. Some days we can travel quite some distance without using any sort of fuel, just powered by the wind.

Marie: I would say, living in rythme with nature. Winds, tides, weather forecast, hours of day light and hours of night have a direct impact in your life everyday. We are waking up at sunrise, go to sleep when it is dark, catching water when it rains, sailing when there is good wind… You have to follow what the nature is letting you to do and try to stay safe. It sounds challenging but in fact it is making life more easy, you take what is coming and you can’t plan too much in advance, and it is quite peaceful.

Order Tramadol Overnight Delivery What is your daily routine on Schiehallion?
Vernon: I have quite a routine, starting with coffee, breakfast of muesli and fruit. Then depending on if we are sailing or anchored in a nice place the day sort of unfolds around the weather. We try to do more physical activities early in the morning or late afternoon as these are the coolest times.

Marie: It is hard to have a routine on a boat specially when you are sailing during several days, the watch time at night, you don’t have any classic breakfast/lunch/dinner, but you are eating when you need, sleeping when you body is telling you, etc but in calm anchorages we have a more normal rhythm.

Buy Real Tramadol Online What did you learn about yourself during this sailing journey?
Vernon: I am not a very patient person, but I have had to work on that as the weather has the final say on everything. On a few occasions I’ve learnt that my reactions in times of stress are very good and I can rely on not panicking.

Marie: I learned definitely that my body is stronger that what I imagine, and I know better my limits. I also learned at what point you really not need much to be happy, and that I don’t really need people around. I am enjoying social life when I can have, but I am not dependent of it.

https://www.mominleggings.com/n9ctcxe Living in a tiny floating home on the ocean in couple can be quite challenging, how do you deal with the lack of space?
Vernon: We get along very well most of the time, we understand each other quite well and I think each have our own strengths that make up for the others weak points. I sometimes get a bit annoyed at how Marie likes to make a nest with all her stuff, she does that to feel more comfortable whereas I like everything to be put away in its place and the space very tidy. We work on compromises and in general its a very stress-free atmosphere here.

Marie: That was one of my bigger doubt when I followed Vernon to live on the boat. We never lived together before, and that was a bit a bet, but happily it works good between us. The key is to communicate a lot and not letting a bad situation during, accepting that you can have disagreements but having no bitterness, no sulk. On a boat, when you are sailing, you have to trust the other, cause you are placing literally your life between his hands. When you have bad times, you want to passing through together.

Pictures: Nicki Antognini and Vernon Deck
Watch full video on: Learning By Doing – Youtube
Buy goods with Mattia’s Kraken drawing: Vernon’s e-shop 
Thanks to: Vernon and Marie for inviting us in their home and sharing with us their sailing adventure.