The Log of Hagoth

Below is a story that I wrote for Good Old Boat Magazine. While it didn't make it into the Magazine, the editor invited me to write a boat review for a Columbia 43. It could not be my own boat so...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2021/01/hot-racing-yacht-now-comfortable-fast.html

Oceanus moored in her new home, Olympia, Washington. By Brandon Ford For whatever we lose (like a you or a me) It’s always our self we find in the sea  -- ee cummings There is no bett...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2020/11/voyaging-through-life.html

Last night's sunset over Hanalei Bay, Kauai. Today we leave Kauai. We enjoyed our year on the Hawaiian islands. A fond aloha to all the good friends we made here. We are hoping for a fast,...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2017/06/aloha-hawaii.html

Before.. ...after sand blasting, epoxy filling and sanding, then three coats of epoxy primer the cast-iron keel of our Columbia 43 is ready for bottom paint. It has a complex and beautiful...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2017/06/cast-iron-keels-and-keel-bolts.html

We talked about this since Mexico; that's a year. Finally, on our most recent trip to Costco, the $100 off tipped the scale. We bought a real queen-size mattress. It is made of three layers o...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2017/05/new-luxury-aboard-oceanus-real-mattress.html

A humpback whale breaching. (NOAA photo) At the end of March, 2009, we went on a boat dive to Molokini. One of the divers complained on the way back that he hadn't seen any whales. The boat ...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2017/04/farewell-to-our-whale-friends.html

A glimpse of  blue sky through the dense palm forest created by poet W.S. Merwin. W.S. Merwin 's trees are an expression of hope and an attempt to heal the divide he sees between man and na...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2017/02/creating-paradise-poets-palm-forest.html

A big part of Maui's beauty is found underwater, like this green seaturtle or honu'. Part of what inspired us to go cruising was our first trip to Maui. The island and surrounding sea were e...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2017/01/feeling-love-on-maui.html

Columbia produced three versions of the Columbia 43: the original Mark I, a keel-centerboard version called Mark II and, after 1973, a Mark III. There's a lot of myth and misconceptions about the...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2016/10/differences-between-columbia-43-marks.html

The sunset from beautiful Kealakekua Bay. We could have stayed forever in Honomalino Bay, but there was no place to get water, so we headed to the next anchorage, Hookena. As we entered th...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2016/10/sailing-kona-coast-on-island-of-hawaii.html

Virginia takes advantage of windy Nishamura Bay on the Island of Hawaii to dry a batch of laundry. We often have people tell us, “you are living my dream!” Sometimes it feels like we ...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2016/09/cruising-isnt-all-sunshine-and-pretty.html

Oceanus anchored in beautiful Honomalino Bay. The bay could easily accommodate six cruising yachts, but we didn't have to share. If Honomalino Bay were anywhere else in the United States it ...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2016/09/riding-out-darby-in-honomalino-bay.html

Leaving Hilo. You can just make out the observatories on Mauna Loa, the largest volcano on earth. While we weren't exactly dreading rounding South Point , we were both looking forward to it ...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2016/08/rounding-scarey-south-point.html

We anchored in Reeds Bay at Hilo on the Big Island for almost a month while we waited for parts and fixing things that broke on our 22-day passage. We found the bay to be a good anchorage and com...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2016/08/hanging-in-hilo-on-island-of-hawaii.html

A squall heads our way near sundown. Time. You can cross an ocean going little more than five knots, it just takes time. For us in Oceanus it took just under 22 days to sail from San Jose de...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2016/07/sailing-from-mexico-to-hilo-hawaii.html

The view from our slip at Puerto los Cabos marina in San Jose del Cabo. The large sculpted cross puts on a light show every night. We've only been in Mexico a month, but it's already time to...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2016/05/adios-mexico-on-to-hawaii.html

Avalon on Catalina Island. The mooring field is starting to fill up for the weekend. Cruising California in the off season is the bomb. Every place we stop to anchor or tie up not only has r...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2016/04/no-crowds-during-californias-winter.html

Virginia sailing south! Waiting for a weather window paid off big time. Insted of making small hops down the coast, we were able to jump from winter to summer in just a few days. The stars a...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2016/03/finally-cruising-and-loving-it.html

Our Dickinson propane fireplace warms the boat up nicely on cold Northwet winter days. Few things make living aboard a boat in the Northwet more comfortable than a fireplace and a good galle...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2016/01/mast-pulpits-and-propane-aboard-oceanus.html

Virginia checks our position on her iPad during one of our weekly shake-down sails. Finally, after more than three years of hard work, Oceanus is ready for sea. The problem is it's now winte...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2016/01/waiting-for-window-south.html

Oceanus with her new Lofrans Tigress windlass, Rocna 25 (kg) anchor and chain. Goodlander would take issue with me using the cleat on top of the windlass (too much wracking) to take the strain...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2015/10/creative-anchor-and-chain-installation.html

Henry works on the binnacle of Oceanus to replace the shift cables. Among all the projects aboard Oceanus, changing the shift and throttle cables was not even on my radar. I've been readin...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2015/10/changing-throttle-and-shift-cables.html

Henry in his natural element. For months I've been making almost daily forays into The Pit of Despair, a.k.a. the engine room on Oceanus. Just before we bought Oceanus three years ago Jaso...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2015/09/from-pit-of-despair-to-valley-of-hope.html

Karin and Joe's Flying Sideways looking good at Marina Chiapas, Mexico. Karin and Joe from Flying Sideways, a Columbia 43 Mark III, visited the Oceanus crew on Saturday. The four of us had a...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2015/08/a-visit-from-flying-sideways.html

Sailrite, a company that we've spent a lot of money with during the boat's restoration, is having a contest and we need your vote. We entered our cushions and pillows in our main cabin. Here's ...

http://hagothlog.blogspot.com/2015/08/we-need-your-vote.html