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Carlson and O'Keefe try "the hardest outdoor discipline to learn"
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| James Rexroad (2) |
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Grunt work: Waight and O'Keefe
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Access+Resources
Belize is a Breeze
The Season: The best time of year to go to Belize—or anywhere in the Caribbean—is January through April. But June–July is the best bargain: It's rainy season (but with an average eight to ten inches per month, not that rainy) and thus less expensive, and the trade winds keep temperatures, in the nineties,
bearable.
Getting There: American (800-433-7300) and Continental (800-523-3273) both fly to Belize City, the country's biggest metropolis with a population of 75,000, as does the South American airline Taca (800-535-8780), for about $840 during the high season, late December through early January and February through April. Fares
during the rainy season are about $795 round-trip. From Belize City it's a short puddle-jumper flight to Ambergris Caye on Tropic Air ($84 round-trip; 800-422-3435). TMM (800-633-0155) has connections with a wholesaler who can get good discounts on airfare.
The Fleet: TMM has about 15 boats, all catamarans, ranging from 35 to 46 feet. Our 42-footer had four spacious cabins with doubles and two cabins with single berths. Prices range from $4,190 to $6,650 per week, depending on the season. The 35-footer holds two couples comfortably and costs from $2,200 to $3,650. There was
nothing "bare" about these boats: Ours had GPS, radar, autopilot, a water purifier, a generator, refrigeration, and a dive compressor. All other boats in TMM's fleet are similarly equipped.
What to Pack: You won't need much in the way of clothing: bathing suits, shorts, flip-flops, and T-shirts—and long-sleeve cotton shirts and pants if you're sensitive to the sun. Bring the best polarized sunglasses you can afford, but you can go cheap when it comes to raingear: A lightweight vinyl foul-weather jacket is
all you'll need. A handheld VHF radio is handy for communicating with the mother ship when you're exploring by dinghy. Bring your own mask, snorkel, and fins.
Stocking Up: If you're more concerned with relaxation than expenses, TMM will stock the boat for you for $22.50 per person per day. We did our own provisioning, which took extra time and legwork on the sand-paved streets of San Pedro, but we got to explore the markets, shopping for indigenous fish and succulent
lobster. —L.C.
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The Bareboat Way of Knowledge
Learning to become the captain of your own fate
I once heard sailing described as the hardest outdoor discipline to learn. As a lifelong sailor I'd never thought much about it, but it's true: Other sports don't require the same breadth of technical and practical knowledge as offshore sailing. While you don't need a captain's license to charter your own boat, bareboat companies will expect
at least one member of your group to be able to trim the sails, navigate (via charts, instruments, compass, buoy systems, and currents), and be versed in other aspects of basic seamanship such as anchoring, line handling, weather forecasting, heavy-weather sailing, as well as basic boat maintenance like diesel repair, plumbing, and electronics
troubleshooting. However, big cruising catamarans, like the one we rented, are so easy to handle that most crew members can be neophytes. If you're an entire group of beginners, hire a captain.
Bareboating Schools: It used to be that the only way to learn the ropes was to be born a blue-blood yachtie. Good offshore cruising instruction has, however, become more accessible in recent years. The American Sailing Association (310-822-7171; www.american-sailing.com) can put you in touch with more than 150 ASA-certified schools around the country that offer classes in bareboat chartering.
Captains for Hire: Most bareboat companies have staff captains you can hire for $100 to $200 a day. They not only teach skills that will make you a more capable sailor when you're on your own, but also share inside information on the best sailing routes and places to dive and explore. —L.C.
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