A Woman’s Guide to Cruising on a Sailboat

Ok ladies, this one is for you, however, if you are a guy, I recommend that you read this too, because you may sail with women now or in your future, and this is all useful information for you to know or pass over to them.There aren’t many people who write about the more intimate topics of being a woman while cruising, so I thought I would share some tidbits from my experiences.

We’ll start out strong with the most frequently asked question: What do you do on your period?

As we all know, depending on birth controls and body types, women have a lot of variance on this topic.  Some only experience periods once or twice a year and some not at all, but the majority of premenopausal cruisers still have their periods once a month and it can be a pain to deal with while cruising. 

The biggest problem is that of waste.  Pads are bulky and shouldn’t be thrown overboard, but they can smell and take up lots of space in the trash.  I tend to avoid those.  Tampax tampons now come with large plastic tube applicators wrapped in a plastic sleeve: all detrimental to the concept of minimal waste.  If you have to change your tampon every four hours for two to seven days, it adds up very quickly.  Many women and girls have adopted the use of a menstrual cup.  This is great for reducing waste, but needs to be washed frequently with fresh water.  If you are in a situation where you need to be saving your water, this can be inconvenient or even dangerous.  Otherwise, a menstrual cup is a very good option...unless you lose it. 

Personally, I have found OB brand tampons to be the best option.  They can be found in almost every supermarket or drugstore in the US.  I haven’t searched in Europe yet because I have yet to run out.  40 come in a very small package, so they take up very little space, which is great for the boat.  They do not have any applicators and are wrapped in very thin plastic, so there is minimal waste, and you simply dispose of it in a trash can in the head lined with a plastic bag.  This has been the option that I have found of the least inconvenience to both myself and the environment.  I recommend them even if you live full time on land since it uses such a small amount of plastic.  If you do not have access to them, try and find the Tampax tampons wrapped in paper with cardboard applicators.  They still take up a lot more space and are more costly, but you will at least be more environmentally friendly. 

Ok, now on to peeing.  Isn’t this fun? Ladies, we really got the short straw with this one...(literally).  Where men have the option to pee off the side of the boat, we do not have it so easy.  I’ve met women who squat over the side, but that just doesn’t seem like a viable option for me, so I am bound to going below in the head, which is in the bow of our boat.  This was a huge problem when I would get seasick every time I went below.  I tried those funnels, but here’s the reality: they are dirty and get very disgusting very fast.  If you are in a situation where you can’t go down below to pee, then you also can’t go down below to rinse out your pee funnel.  You can imagine how gross that gets.  There is always the option of pulling up a bucket of salt water to rinse it out, but then when you go to use it next, it’s salty.  For some, that might not be a problem.  I personally don’t love being all salty down there when shaving isn’t a realistic option.  So, conclusion? When possible, pee down below in the head.  When that’s not possible, pee in a bucket.  I had a designated bucket for peeing and puking.  It stayed pretty clean because every time I used it, we just tied a line to it and dropped it over the side to let the salt water flush it out.  And an extra plus is that your quads will get some exercise from squatting!

Shaving: Don’t bother.  You could slip up and cut yourself with the razor or the hair could plug the drain. 

Showering: Cut your hair as short as you are willing to.  Less hair = less shampoo, less water waste, less knotty hair blowing in the wind, and less worry about it catching in lines.

Shower as infrequently as you can without feeling horrible.  If you are a couple, you will get used to each other’s stench, but it is still important to give your lady bits a little splash with fresh water and soap every couple days. 

Makeup: Why? Just...why? I was reading a “Woman’s Guide to Cruising” and it mentioned putting on a bit of makeup every day to “feel pretty.”  That made zero sense to me.  You are out in the ocean.  But, if it makes you feel good, I guess go ahead? It’s a personal thing. 

Ok, I think I’ve covered all the questions that I have ever been asked about being a woman aboard a sailboat for an extended period of time.  Please feel free to email us or start up a conversation in the comments.  I’d love to hear from other cruising women about their experiences and what has worked for them!

Arriving in Faial

24 days after we left Bermuda, we finally arrived in the Azores. Our first landfall was on a small island called Faial, in a port town called Horta. Horta is apparently the 4th busiest port in the world, and the way the boats were stacked alongside each other made it apparent! Horta is the first “Port of Entry” into the Azores, so you should make it your first stop in your crossing, as they have the full customs office to check into the island chain. 

Aside from the paperwork and beauty of the volcanic islands, we had some special visitors as we made our way towards land: Dolphins.

We had gone such a long time without seeing them out in the ocean, only to find them in massive numbers around these islands. 

It was impressive, and a little nerve wracking, to become so close to land without turning on our depth sounder. The islands of the Azores are volcanic and therefore are just the tops of mountains in the middle of the ocean. The steep cliff sides continue into the water at that same rate, and a few hundred feet from shore will be hundreds of feet of water depth! All you need to do is stay away from the land mass and you will find yourself safely situated in water that is over 4,000 feet deep! 

Making landfall in the Azores truely was a wonderful experience, for it signified the fact that we had made it across the Atlantic Ocean. When we set out in October 2017 from the Chesapeake Bay, the Azores was our destination. Now, (after many detours which included the Bahamas and Bermuda) we arrived in the Azores in early August 2018. 

We made it across and we made it safely. While 24 days is considered a long passage time from Bermuda to the Azores, the winds in 2018 had been rather weird. Most yachts felt the need to motor almost the whole time and averaged around 20-24 days, where usually people plan the voyage to take between 15-18 days purely under sail. We suddenly felt really good about our time as we did not motor across the ocean, since we have an electric motor. 

It is important to know how to sail when you set out for bluewater cruising, as you might not always be able to rely on your mechanical propulsion source. Another yacht in the harbor, of similar size and vintage as us left Bermuda and soon had engine failure. His diesel was dead and apparently he couldn’t sail very well because it took him 40 days to make it across! If you have a sailboat, it would behoove you to know how to sail, as your motor is considered an auxiliary power source and not the primary (which are the sails).  

Sailing to the Azores was a huge goal in our voyage, and now that we are here, we are going to enjoy the wonders that these islands have to offer and tackle some much needed boat projects. 

Civilization!

After being out at sea for almost a month, seeing the presence of other humans is oddly comforting, even for an introvert. What makes it special is when the civilization you are exposed to looks drastically different from the one you left at your stern. 

When we arrived in the Azores, the architecture was severely different from anything we had seen before. The houses all had terra cotta roof tiles and the faces of the building were either black and white or wonderfully colored. 

The homes were all very quaint and neatly kept, real estate is a premium on these small islands so homes tend to be maintained and passed down rather than being destroyed and rebuilt. That being said, some homes do fall to decay, and are rebuilt, but in a manner that accentuates the towns architectural styles rather than clashing with it. 

And speaking of architecture, European cities are known for gorgeous architecture, and these small islands are no different. When we got off our boat at the marina, these are the stairs (and fountain) that lead you into the base of the town. Everything is interesting, gorgeous, and new; all of which are much needed after the deprivation of culture that you had endured while crossing the ocean required to reach this port. 

How to make Dolphins Bow Ride

Dolphins are incredibly intelligent animals. Often, you hear people compare their intelligence to that of Humans, but I feel that dolphins are intelligent enough to be insulted by such a comparison. 

They are social animals and they seek out special ways to entertain themselves. This often means that you will see dolphins playing around your yacht as you sail, and most famously: bow riding. 

When you are sailing along at a good speed, dolphins will swim up and jump around just ahead of your yacht. You will be cutting through the waves and they will be jumping around inches from your hull. 

Thankfully, this epic display of marine mammal swimming prowess is not an uncommon sight, and dolphins seem to seek you out as a source of entertainment. Since they are intelligent and are doing this for their entertainment as well, it seems that bow riding is a two way street which requires input from the crew of the yacht to make happen.

We have found that dolphins will only bow ride if certain events occur. If any of these events fail to occur, then they will simply swim by and go on to other waters. 

First, the dolphins will spot your yacht in the distance and swim twoards it from the stern. As they approach, they will begin jumping out of the water as if you get your attention. 

Second, they will come up next to your cockpit and display their presence with amazing jumps from the water.  This is when input from the humans on the yacht becomes relevant for the game to proceed. If the humans fail to comply, the dolphins will swim on. If the humans comply, the dolphins will then proceed to bow ride.

The humans on the boat need to point loudly and shout with excitement and joy at the presence of the dolphins. It greatly helps if more crew emerge from the cabin and come out into the cockpit. This seems to excite the dolphins and more will begin to emerge from the depths. 

Third, at least one human needs to walk forward to the bow, but the more people that walk forward, the more likely the dolphins are to bow ride. 

Fourth, as the humans walk forward, the dolphins will also begin to move towards the bow of the yacht. When you are forward of the mast, the dolphins will then begin swimming inches from the bow and jumping around in the waves as your yacht cuts through them. 

Speed helps in motivating the dolphins, but if you are slow moving, the dolphins will still hang around for a while, just in a much more sedate manner. It seems that the faster you are sailing, the more the dolphins find joy in bow riding. 

Fifth, just because the dolphins began bow riding doesn’t mean they will stay around for long. To keep them there it helps to shout with joy and excitement at the different tricks the dolphins display. Cheers seem to motivate them more and will cause them to jump higher, faster, and in synchronized groups. 

Innevitably, the dolphins will tire and will move on to new waters. Your little island of a boat will once again be alone in the ocean, that is until more dolphins descend upon you. 

We have found that if you fail to carry out any of these steps, the dolphins will simply pass by and move on without putting on much of any show. Dolphins are amazing creatures, and it seems that bowriding is as much a form of entertainment for them as it is for us, so if you want to be entertained by them, you must offer some form of entertainment in return! 

Dolphins

Seeing dolphins never gets old! Cruising in the Chesapeake, we would often see pods of dolphins. As soon as we went offshore, the number of dolphin sightings decreased dramatically. Then we cruised down the ICW and saw dolphins at least a few times per week! Once we left the ICW at Florida to head to the Bahamas, the dolphin sightings dwindled away to nothing. 

We had given up on seeing dolphins as they seemed to only be living in the intracoastal waters of the United States, and not out in the open waters where you would imagine them to be! We didn’t see any dolphins around Bermuda and we figured that our dolphin days were over.

This all changed when we got really far out to sea. Hundreds of miles from any landmass, we were descended upon by a massive pod of Spotted Atlantic Dolphins.

We were just sitting around in the cockpit waiting for the impressive sunset that would occur shortly when all of these dolphins began swimming and jumping around our boat. For so long, seeing dolphins was a treat for us, but it seemed that out here, seeing humans was a treat for them!