Adventures aboard Aramoana

Welcome aboard!   You'll find my personal anecdotes and photos of cruising aboard my Union 42 cutter, ARAMOANA. "Aramoana" means "path through the sea" in New Zealand's Maori language.

News: Roger & Jim's new web site coming soon! Hopefully by February.

Where is ARAMOANA?  
Boat security cameras

Cruising in BC

I've enjoyed cruising one of the best cruising grounds in the world - lots of excellent anchorages and protected from the open ocean.

From the bowsprit of Aramaoana in Porlier Pass (Gulf Islands). The wind was behind us and the current against us producing some steep waves.
(April 1994)

MORE about Cruising in British Columbia (2007-).

MORE about Cruising in British Columbia (1999-2003).

MORE about Cruising in British Columbia (1991-1998).

Life on the Fraser River

I have lived on board since 1993 in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada... more specifically, Annacis Channel which is part of the South Arm of the Fraser River. There is quite a lot of wildlife there: ducks, geese, swans, beavers, coyote, and a variety of fish. When we first moved to Riversbend Marina, the liveaboards there had a "west coast" style of living. Unfortunately, that seemed to fade away with time and subsequent marinas, like Shelter Island Marina, where it's more of a place for "cheaper" housing than a "west coast" lifestyle.

West view from the top of the mast at Riversbend marina.
(September 2001)

MORE about Living Aboard.

360° Panorama Photos!

Living aboard at...

  • Shelter Island marina (2002-present)
  • Riversbend marina (1999-2002)
  • Frank's marina (1996-1998)
  • Riversbend marina (1993-1996)

    Restoring ARAMOANA

    ARAMOANA Refit (2003-06) (Last updated: August 26, 2006)
    Back in 1992, Eric (my ex) and I were looking for an offshore cruiser to live aboard and eventually sail to New Zealand. The only way for us to afford a boat was to get one that needed work. Initially after many years of hard boatwork, we had a beautiful home in which to go cruising in beautiful places! The boat still needs a lot of maintenance, especially with the local cement plant regularly spewing caustic cement onto the boats.

    Almost finished!.
    (June 25, 2006)

    ARAMOANA Refit (2003-06).

    MORE about Restoring ARAMOANA (1992-2002).

    Preparations for our 1998-99 offshore trip (1996-98).

    2000 (Plane) Trip to New Zealand

    We weren't able to sail to New Zealand in 1999 so we decided to fly there.

    This old ferry, which is no longer in service, bears our namesake, ARAMOANA. In this old photo from a book, she dives into a trough on one of her Cook Strait crossings. Maybe that's why we seemed to encounter rough weather - it's the name!

    MORE about our 2000 Trip to New Zealand.

    1998-1999 Offshore Trip

    Our longtime goal was to sail to New Zealand where Eric grew up. We travelled down the US and Mexican coast. Crossing the Pacific Ocean, we only made it as far as 10N 121W before some gear failures made us divert to Hawaii. After repairs in pricey Hawaii, we decided to return to BC.

    We encountered one gale on our return to BC from Hawaii. Although there is a less than 5% probably of a gale in the month of August, La Niña continued to play tricks on the offshore fleet. After a year of offshore sailing, the gale was "a piece of cake". This rare photo of a breaking wave may have been triggered by our bow wave. Our position was 48N 128W, just two days away from Victoria.
    (Aug 10, 1999)

    MORE about our 1998-1999 Offshore Trip (including videos).

    Live-aboard Cats

    I currently live with two cats, Tofino (b. 1994) and Ricky (b. Aug 2000). Our first cat, Fluffy, died in an accident onboard. Soon thereafter I created the     Live-aboard Cats Web Page to help people protect their cat from the dangers on a boat.

    Ricky

    In August 2000, Ricky was born in Point Roberts and was given to the SPCA. While at a Tsawwassen pet store (South Delta Pet Foods Ltd, 1507 - 56th St, Delta 943-3654), Roger noticed the SPCA cats being temporarily shown by their foster moms. We visited Lorna Henthorne, Ricky's foster mom. We went to a room with several black male cats with their mother. Ricky, a Siamese cross, was very curious and approached Eric. That's how our choice was made.

    When we first got him, he was always hungry and always letting us know too! Both Tofino and Ricky love the cat grass (from oat seeds) which is finally getting more popular in the pet stores. We grew ours before but it's always a hassle and one batch of seeds even had weevils!
    (February 2001)

    MORE about Ricky.

    Tofino

    Tofino was named after the town on the west coast of Vancouver Island where she was found. She was given to us when a friend was leaving the country. Even though she was a land cat she managed to adapt to life on the water. We don't know how old Tofino is but she was born sometime in early 1994.

    Tofino is having a lot of fun running down the side deck while giving a big meow.
    (September 1996)

    MORE about Tofino.

    Fluffy

    This section is in memory of our beloved cat who lived a daring and adventurous life on our sailboat. Unfortunately, on June 14, 1996, her nine lives were up and we will miss her dearly. Fluffy will live on in our memories, photos, videos and this web page.

    Roger's memories of Fluffy (dated Saturday, June 15)

    Fluffy is having a great time lying on the mainsail. The orange background is a tarp before we got an awning.
    (1994)

    MORE about Fluffy.

    Out and About

    Here are some photos and anecdotes that didn't really fit anywhere.

    A student uses a sextant during a celestial navigation course Roger teaches. Point Roberts is a good location since it has a clear southern horizon from the east to the west.
    (December 2000)

    MORE Out and About with Roger and Eric.

    Teachers' Day of Protest Photos (January 28, 2002)
    Day of Protest Photos (February 23, 2002)

    Annapolis Sailboat Show (October 12-13, 2002)

    Odds and Ends

    DEEP WATER by E.M. Kahn (2005) - An engaging memoir about a gay man's love of sailing and of his sailing partner. A realistic account of the many challenges sailors face, both on and off the water. Highly recommended. Click on the book photo to go to Amazon (where I bought my copy).

    In the summer of 2001, we tracked friends who were sailing back from Hawaii (see Plotting Chart). We talked via marine SSB radio on 6206.0 kHz(USB).

    While cruising, you can find our last position via Winlink 2000. Also, we check into the BC Boaters Ham Radio Net on 147.320 MHz (+600 shift) at 5pm PDT and 3.855 kHz at 6pm PDT (summer).

    S/V Graybeard

    Named after the ocean waves that circle the southern ocean, Graybeard is owned by our friend Humphrey Killam. We have cruised and raced on it several times and had a great time.

    This was at Port Browning, Pender Island for the 1992 Round Pender Island Race. Graybeard is in the foreground and HMCS Oriole is behind her. Oriole is Canada's only training sailboat. Apparently before I had arrived, Oriole with a new crew and captain was approaching the dock but failed to turn early enough to prevent the bowsprit from getting stuck between the pilings. Oriole usually finishes last in the Swiftsure Yacht Race.
    (July 1992)

    MORE about S/V Graybeard. "Graybeard" rescue (from USCG Auxilliary newsletter)

    Information Links

    My favourite Sailing Links

    Other Sailing Links

    Some Good Causes

    Some good quotes
    My e-mail filters trash all e-mails except those that have my name ("Roger") in the BODY of the message. Also, choose your subject line carefully so I can recognize it. I'll reply back with my regular e-mail which doesn't use filters.

    Re-send your message if you don't hear from me after ONE WEEK.

    Adventures Aboard Aramoana home page:     http://www.aramoana.tk

    ©2009 Roger S. Chin. All rights reserved.
    The material in this web site is copyrighted. Copying any material without written permission is NOT PERMITTED. Photos have a hidden copyright marker. Personal viewing only; any other use (eg. government, insurance, corporate) is not authorized.


    Last updated: January 22, 2009