I am rather proud to be part of the team working on a new historical fiction book Destiny’s Gold, which is Book One in the series.
All the details are here. One thing I do know, that if you like a good read, you will love this book!
Pamela Grimm, New York commercial skipper and author, signs up SisterShip Press Ltd Pty.
Combine four women from opposites sides of the globe but connected by their passion for writing and sailing and what do you get? The ingredients for a powerful maritime novel with a strong female lead, Destiny’s Gold.
Pamela Grimm
Author Pamela Grimm combines her love of maritime history with experience as a commercial and recreational captain, sailing the waters of eastern US, the west coast of Sweden, and from Norfolk to Bermuda, to create an indomitable female character and a storyline that keeps you guessing.
It is 1820, and a young female sea captain, Jane Thorn sets sail aboard the schooner Destiny bound for the sugar plantations of Cuba and then on to the Baltic for iron. Political intrigue and mystery dog the voyage. Captain Jane Thorn is feisty, fun, and smart. She deals with men who under-estimate her skill and business acumen at their peril. This is historical, nautical fiction with a fresh new take!
Riding the front of the ‘women on the water’ wave, the SisterShip Press team are commercially qualified skippers, sailors, and authors themselves. Emerging author Pamela Grimm and her novel Destiny’s Goldepitomise all that SisterShip stands for.
‘We just had to sign Pamela up,’ explains Jackie Parry, Co-Owner of SisterShip Press and SisterShip Magazine, ‘We read the manuscript and LOVED it!
Belinda Collins, Chief Editor for SisterShip Press adds, ‘Pamela tells such a strong story, with fascinating locations and of course a marvellous heroine’.
‘There’s nothing better than working with a publisher who loves all things sailing as much as I do! My book feels like it is in good hands with the women of SisterShip Press.’ says author Pamela Grimm.
Historical maritime fiction tends to continue the dominance of nautical culture by men, both as writers and their characters. Destiny’s Gold breaks with that tradition
When asked why she is drawn to the 1820s, author Pamela states, ‘The early 19th century was an exciting time of change politically, culturally, and technologically. The Age of Sail was coming to a close as steamships became safer and more economical to run, while global forces were upending centuries of tradition leading to the downfall of monarchies and the cruel institution of slavery. Writing about a woman who leads and innovates in the midst of those changes is an exciting challenge that combines the romance of tall ships at sea with my fascination for “how things were actually done” during that era. The research phase is in some ways the most rewarding and fun part of the writing process and allows me not only to recreate Jane’s world for the modern reader, but also to provide insight into just how people solved problems before the digital revolution.’
The first in the series, Destiny’s Gold is set to be released in December.
The colour pictures and “extraordinary adventures by two ordinary people” make a wonderful Christmas gift.
Of Foreign Build, This Is It, and A Standard Journey (colour paperback) are $19.99 each (+ postage) – just click on the book for more information – and if you’d like a copy, let me know.
Cruisers’ Accumulated Acumen is selling incredibly well and has been tagged by a top sailing magazine as, “…probably the most comprehensive reference book designed for preparation for cruising life.”
Here’s an excerpt from our book – which not only includes over 1,800 tips, tricks and ideas for living on board, but also informative and fun articles such as this…
Your grab bag, ditch kit, flee bag (sounds like my old dog), jump-and-go-bag should include stuff to measure your own priorities and capabilities. What would you need? Who is on board and where you are going? Does everyone on board know where it is?
Align your inclusions with distance. Seasons don’t count, anyone on the water knows you can experience all four seasons twice in one day. However, thinking about the sea temperature is important; hypothermia has an insatiable hunger. The sea gods also have an unquenchable greed and anything in your boat that you think you need should have a piece of string (lanyard) fitted, to give you a fighting chance of hanging on to it. Common sense, speedy reaction and lack of panic should be mentioned, although I am not sure how to pack those things. The bag obviously needs to be watertight and waterproof, a bright reflective colour is a good idea (boats don’t just sink during the day).
Each to their own; some people include their obituaries – how very odd . . .! Other cruising buddies suggest a book and a mattress! All very nice, but I can think of several more important items. I’d rather have an extra bottle of water than reading material.
The Obvious
At the very least have water, flares and attention grabbers, surviving is nice, but being rescued is even better. The ditch kit should contain items for immediate use and possibly some months. Short-term think injuries, hypothermia and signalling devices. Mid to long-term survival, think water and food. Are you going to make water or catch it? Can you catch fish? Provision for prevention of sun exposure is imperative if you don’t want to end up like a crisp.
How much?
I have seen lists for short-term (minutes to hours), mid-term (hours to days), medium-term (days to weeks) and long-term (weeks to months). All very useful but how do you know which bag to collect when your boat sinks? Do you take all four? Think necessity not holiday!
Can the bag be snatched quickly? Paperwork is a good one, your passports and boat papers have to be somewhere, why not in the grab bag? Add a few dollars (American dollars are the most widely accepted if you are travelling overseas). Think of all the bureaucratic bits of paper that cause major headaches and gnashing of teeth, if you had to replace them.
As terrifying as it sounds, one day you might need it; now’s the time to think carefully about what it should contain. Grab bags provide thought-provoking conversations to all boat people. (Young, ‘Include my favourite toy’, old, ‘Put in the fine Scotch dear’), both would argue that their life depends on it.
Research suggests forgetting everything you have seen in the movies, on TV and in novels. But I tend to disagree, who’s to say what happens – survivors of course, but what of those who don’t. That monumentally dramatised scene could be precisely what happens. We’ve met a survivor whose boat took fifteen minutes to sink. He had ‘all the time in the world’ to grab stuff from cupboards. He now thinks all boats take this long to be swallowed in to the deep. Most of us know a story where a boat vanishes within seconds; those brief moments may give you enough time to grab your survival bag.
Our Bag
We have one big bag on our boat, which ideally should be split in two (1) Absolute necessities and (2) Necessities. However, it’s not and at the time of writing we are firmly welded to a mooring (for now). Our bag includes years of ideas gleaned from chatting to other people on boats as to ‘what’s in yours?’. It has (in no particular order): survival suits, sunglasses, wind up torch, handheld radio (VHF) and spare batteries, Spirulina (nutrient source in powder form), survival sheets (space blankets), hand Watermaker, toilet roll, water, string, fishing hooks/line, signalling mirror, knife, seasick tablets, First Aid with extra strong painkillers, flares, sanitary products, wet/baby wipes, tea towel, plastic bags, sea marker dye, lighter, paperwork (passports/boat papers/money), sunscreen, t-shirts, whistle, barley sugar, handheld GPS and batteries.
Diving into the bag after a year I am surprised to see that the wet wipes are still moist and the Spirulina still edible (mind you, it does look and smell remarkably like mould – even when new). Clearly, batteries should be replaced regularly, as should water in plastic bottles (leeching). Sunscreen and tablets/pills will have use by dates to be aware of too. We have spent over three weeks at sea in one go and been 1,500 miles from the nearest land, hence a fairly comprehensive bag. In compiling our kit, we gave careful thought to all the yummy stuff already included in our life-raft when it was last surveyed. Our EPIRBs are mounted in the boat, perhaps one should have been in the bag. Now, I would also include the Leatherman and some cereal bars. But the bag is heavy already.
Watermaker
Our small Watermaker was purchased in America (US$600). In Puerto Rico we met a guy who spent 66 days in a life-raft, in the Pacific Ocean, with his wife. They were attacked and holed by a pod of whales, ‘they were so lovely, riding alongside us and suddenly they turned . . .’ (Note to self: do not enjoy company of whales, turn on engine and shoot flares into water if same happens). He claims that they would be dead if they had not had the Watermaker in their grab bag. Before setting sail into the mighty Pacific, we purchased one. The emotions of coughing up the equivalent of almost a thousand Australian dollars were an odd mix; unwillingness to part with a large chunk of our cruising budget, conflicting with the thought that should we find our lives depended on it, it would seem a remarkably small amount of money. The Watermaker is still in its bag, unused and lonely, long may it remain so!
Other suggestions from friends:
My humble opinion
Chemical heat packs
Space blanket is smaller and works well
Petroleum jelly
A necessity?
Book to read
Really?
Wool and rubber work gloves
Maybe one pair
Enema sack for rehydration
I’d rather drink the water
Inflatable splints
Great idea
Repair kit
Already in life-raft
Swiss Army knife, sharpening stone, tube of oil.
Make sure knife is sharp to start with
Sextant
Way too hard to use in life-raft
Sponges
In life-raft already
Chemical light sticks
Good idea
Navigation kit
Maybe
Sea anchor
Good idea
Dried fruit and chocolate
I’d never say no to chocolate (ensure fruit is not already in chocolate – this stuff can really go off)
Survival ship’s biscuits
Good idea
Multiple vitamins
A necessity?
Small plankton net
Hmmmm
Photocopies of all essential crew documents
Yup(or the originals)
Shore survival items in case you land in an uninhabited island: waterproof matches, flint, wire saw
It’s all getting a bit much
Self-inflating foam pad or air mattress
What about a snugly blanket and a cuddly teddy bear too – really . . . !
Spare prescription glasses
Good idea – these are in our life-raft
Pack all gear into separate waterproof bags
Not a bad idea
We hope you found this article useful. It was compiled with ideas from many different cruisers and survivors. They all openly expressed their survival considerations, experience and concerns.
I produced some rather snazzy bookmarks, detailing my books/adventures. My mum hands them out to anyone she meets or whoever knocks on her front door. She’s brilliant – my No.1 fan – and quite passionate!
She has just written me a note about accosting someone famous on my behalf! She’s either brilliant or mad – but probably both. She says:
“On the way home Dad went into Sainsbury’s car park to get the papers and a few bits and whilst I sat in the car. You’ll never guess who walked passed, ONLY Paul Young!! I smashed on the window and leapt out of the car and said who I was plus you and ENPC (Enfield Chase Pony Club). I think he thought I was some mad woman accosting him. I blurted out your CV and could have kicked myself as I didn’t have any BOOKMARKS to give him. What an absolute chump am I! Anyway, I mentionedwww.jackieandnoelsjourneys.com and think he got it but he was in a hurry and had to get away.”
Mum’s not totally loopy – Paul’s daughter used to be a team member of Enfield Chace Prince Philip Cup Team and my mum and dad used to manage this team – so she did know him (and, I believe, he has sailing on his bucket list).
I was suitably impressed, as the first album I ever purchased was No Parlez. The first time I saw Paul was on daytime TV, after Rainbow, I was off sick from school – I’ve admired his work ever since.
I think Mum deserves a pay-rise, I’ve offered her double what she receives now – I think that’s fair.
I’ve offered Paul an audio, kindle or paperback book – I wonder if he’ll receive my message – perhaps he’s a little scared….. not from my mum – but selling up and living your dream is a brave step…
On the 11th November I’ll number each share and ask someone to randomly pick a number.
Here’s the blurb:
“We are from Australia, we have cash, and we have jet-lag and a desperate stare in our eye. In short, we are mugs ready to be led down the path of nautical slavery. If you can’t sell us a boat, there is something very wrong.”
The pull of the ocean was too strong to ignore any longer. Four years prior, they’d circumnavigated the globe on their 33-foot boat, Mariah. Now they wanted a new challenge.
So they sold all their belongings and flew to America from New South Wales in search of a boat.
Then Jackie and Noel set sail south, meeting descendants of the Bounty mutineers on Pitcairn, taking in the grand statues of Easter Island (the remotest inhabited island in the world) and making lifelong friends in Suwarrow.
Along the way, they lost a friend and came nail-bitingly close to losing their new boat. But they gained so much more.
This is a story of storms of emotions and oceans, travel, love, and relationships, and two people figuring out life and fulfilling their need to move and be challenged.
This is a short story on travels, boats and horses from a fellow writer and friend, Alison Alderton.
It’s very special.
To find out why you’ll have to read to the end… Here’s Alison’s pretty barge ‘Lily’
Dutch barge Lily moored at Mustadfors
What do horse shoe nails and boating have in common? by Alison Alderton
“Not a lot” I hear you reply. Well at first glance perhaps not but recently I drifted into the small town of Mustadfors on Sweden’s Dalsland Canal and made a discovery as well as a link to a friend.
The horse shoe symbol on the side of the lift bridge
On the lift-bridge by the town’s lock is a horse shoe symbol, it reflects the town’s long association with the production of horse shoe nails. In conversation with the Lock Keeper, he told how the company, which no longer works out of the town, once specialised in light weight nails. These were made from aluminium and used in the race horse industry. With a little research of my own I later discovered these are also used with shoes specially designed for trotting horses.
The entrance to the former horse shoe nail manufacturers
Mustadfors lift bridge
Mustadfors lock on the Dalslands Canal
Horse-trotting has a long history in Sweden; people have competed with their horses since the 19th century and at the nearby Amal’s racetrack there are regular events from April through to September each year.
Home, 5 horses nearby and our tents
Friends
A boating friend, Jackie Parry recently published a book about her amazing adventures with five ex-trotting horses which she and her husband, Noel rescued from an unknown fate. “A Standard Journey” is an exciting read; about how they sold up and set off with their horses to hack Australia’s Bi-centennial National Trail and brings my visit to the pretty little canal-side town of Mustadfors full circle.
I am thankful for this most unusual discovery which triggered thoughts of a dear friend.
And why is this so special?
Well, Alison’s publisher is keen for her to finish her book on her life with a rather special companion. Yes, there’s Roger, her lovely husband, but there’s also Buster the Beagle.
Boating with Buster – The life & times of a barge beagle will be a story you’ll want to read. Follow Alison hereand/orhereand try to be patient, it is a work in progress.
What I can promise you, knowing the ethos behind the story, is that it will be a book that will stay with you forever – I can hardly wait!
A few weeks ago I mentioned, on ablog here, that I had a big announcement.
I’ve let the cat out of the bag in messages on Facebook, here and there… but now the “ad” is done, it’s official.
What Ad?
The ad for our Dutch barge, she’s for sale (Rouge Corsair).
Rouge Corsair – 1920s Dutch Barge
Why?
We are heading back to Australia.
Why?
For many reasons, but as we were contemplating a change, the guy that has three of our horses offered them back. With a big skip and a little tear, we agreed (well, I agreed and then told Noel what I had done!).
So, we’ll be reunited with Charlie, Ned, and Dom.
Sweet Dommie
Ned and Charlie
Why?
Well, they’re our family, and if you’ve read A Standard Journey, 5 horses, 2 people, and 1 tent, you’ll understand the bond we created while living together and relying on each other in the bush together.
Congratulations!
Lately, I’ve received some lovely emails from professional horse trainers who use a holistic approach – they congratulated us on what we achieved. So, when we get back we’ll build on that work.
Tent!
So now we’ve finished the complete renovation on our barge and have a nice home, we’ll be heading back to a field and a tent… yes, really…
In January I will be launching the Pyewacket story. In 2009 we flew to San Francisco, purchased a sailboat and sailed back to Australia via Easter Island, Pitcairn and many other wonderful, far-flung places – over two years.
It sounds so simple when I write it now, but it wasn’t – it was a tough and emotional journey. When I trawled through my notes and logbooks and pulled the story together we were both surprised at the magnitude and variation of events – some were hair-raising!
I will be placing a full photo album on this website when I launch the book (as per usual there will be additional colour photos in the paperback edition), for now, though, here’s just a taster….
Down there is Peru! Tristan Jones inspired us to visit Lake Titicaca. From Ecuador we rode on a bus inland. This was our galley and our host!
Lake Titicaca – we learned fascinating information of how they ‘make’ their islands on the lake
Samoa – during a week-long festival – so many naked bodies, so little time!
Suwarrow – no strangers here…. A place where we picked up the threads of our previous voyage; a place where it all began to make sense….
I had a terrifying shark encounter, which I am still trying to recover from!
The adventure begins in Pitcairn!
Salt encrusted lines, via strong head winds day after day, week after week! We were close to sinking en route to Easter Island, then even closer to losing the boat at the Gambiers!
Guess where. The remotest inhabited island in the world!
A heavenly place we were blown to during a gale… a place we never planned to visit – heaven!
The book, (title to be confirmed) will be launched in January. It’ll have you gripping the sides of your armchair with fear, and clutching your stomach in laughter.
Here of course….. sailing along the NSW coast in Australia, on our way to our next adventure.
Sailing in my slippers! And Writing – this was the beginning of Of Foreign Build… Note the bikes (bike wheels upside down outside the stanchions), the outboard is under the blue canvas by my head. We were on our way!
Perhaps in a TSR (Travelling Stock Route) on the BNT (Bicentennial National Trail) with 5 horses and a tent…
Somewhere nearby there are five very happy horses, gallavanting, galloping, and rolling in the creek! Meanwhile, notes on the horse trekking book A Standard Journey started here….
What about on a 1920s Dutch barge in France? Not bad, but we were (and still are) renovating – it’s a noisy, dusty, and messy place to live and work.
Magdalena Bay, Mexico – the cafe was closed but wifi was on!
We’d recently purchased Pyewacket in San Francisco and were on our way to La Paz… but plans changed rapidly. We spent two years sailing back to Australia via Pitcairn and Easter Island, etc…. a tough journey – detail of which in my next book This Is It, out January 2016.
On a barrel in the boat yard in Panama?
Well at least I got to stay relatively clean!
Puttering along the Intracoastal Waterway of America. Near South Carolina on our 10 metre sailing boat Mariah II.
Flat water sailing – yippee!
I’m a travel writer – literally. If you want to travel and work you can – you just have to make it happen.
Where’s your favourite office? Where’s the most exotic, fun, extreme place you’ve worked?
Last week someone wrote derogatory comments about us on a forum.
What happened?
A few months back, two complete strangers told us we were not qualified to offer our new boat training service. They’d garnered this lofty view from our personal website and holiday snaps! Politely we explained our professional qualifications and experience on email, even though we didn’t have to.
It seems that wasn’t enough. So last week they voiced their concerns publicly. Others didn’t like our strong ‘come-back’. I wonder how many times they’d let someone do this to them before retaliating – twice was enough for us!
The blind
What these people didn’t see was the reams of private supportive messages that clogged our email. People who wouldn’t write publicly as they didn’t want to be ‘next’ on the target list (some had, disturbingly, already been there).
In droves, people said that this is exactly why they didn’t partake in this site any more.
The result?
Well, they say, there is no such thing as bad press and now having been on the end of it – I can attest to that!
People with fantastic websites are now linking our websites to theirs – providing us with tonnes of free advertising
Enquiries are up
Book sales have spiked
With over 300 hits on both our websites in just a few hours, Google algorithms love this – it’s a great boost!
Apology
We asked for an apology. A few people on the forum have apologised privately. The instigator has not, but that’s okay. Not because of the extra business, sales and wonderful new connections and friends we’ve made – it’s okay because they’ve shown their true colours.
In summary
I wouldn’t want to wish this experience on anyone. Initially we felt alone and bullied. But the enormous private (and some public) support was a soothing balm and a real eye-opener.
It makes you think
During our years of teaching commercial maritime and working internationally on all kinds of boats (yes, barges on canals too – sigh). We’ve learned a lot:
A broad experience is imperative – it’s about having the ability to adapt to every situation
Claiming that one-niche experience is a complete experience, is a dangerous mistake
We don’t know everything, only a fool would admit that!
You never stop learning, once you think you know it all you are a danger
We all have knowledge to impart
Win an Ebook
Our website was criticised too – here it is www.bargetraining.com tell us what you think – CONSTRUCTIVE criticism is always welcome. A free ebook (choice out of three) goes to the most crazy, funny amusing or helpful comment.
Website WIP – but here’s more info:
We’ll list a few more details on our website soon – it is a Work In Progress – but in the meantime here are a few more high-lights of our experience:
As well as the European Canals (on our boats, on commercial boats, on other people’s boat – recreationally and commercially) we have also traversed the following inland waterways/canals and rivers (and hundred’s of associated locks):
New York State Canal System
The Canadian Heritage Canals
Lake Okeechobee Waterway
Trent Severn Watery
Rideau Canal
Erie Canal
Potomac
St Lawrence Canal
Sanitary Canal
St Lawrence Seaway
The Mississippi River
The Ohio River
The Illinois River
TenTombigee
Cumberland River
Tennessee River
Lake Okeechobee Waterway
Atlantic Intercoastal Waterway
Hudson River
The Great Lakes
Missouri River
The Nile
Rivers in PNG, Borneo, Australia, Ecuador, Panama, Asia, Morocco… and on it goes…
Here’s some pics – these are mostly holiday and travel snaps, most of our professional pictures are stored away at home in Australia.
If you want more information about us just drop us a line, telephone us, call around for a chat – the kettle’s always on.