Long-term readers know I took sailing lessons after extending my year avoiding flying to more and more years, even before realizing I’d never fly again (also before Greta got a ride across the Atlantic, which somehow no one has offered me yet, though I’ve worked at it for years).

My Sailing 101 lessons were in New York harbor, which I followed up by joining a club that allowed me to join skippers for four-hour stints. It cost much less than flying and took less time, but delivered comparable life value. Still, to sail across an ocean, people told me I needed experience on the deep sea, sleeping on a boat, and all that goes with it.

I recently took my first open ocean sailing lesson. We started in Long Island, sailed past Block Island to the Atlantic, and ended up in Newport, Rhode Island. Today I’ll post pictures. Tomorrow I’ll post some reflections on the experience.

Here’s me at the helm:

One day was cloudy but with great wind due to a hurricane forming off the coast. The day before was sunny, but not much wind.

Here is Long Island Sound:

Here’s out of sight of land. I didn’t take many pictures, but it was mostly blue water beneath blue skies and white clouds.

Here’s Newport, Rhode Island, filled with boats:

Soon, maybe, I’ll sail across an ocean.

• ← This week’s selected media: September 24, 2023: Cobalt Red
• Reflections on my first deep-sea sailing trip, seeing many stars and almost no fish →