We have sailed Willow from the NW, to Hawaii, Palmyra Atoll, back to Hawaii, and then on back to Bellingham. That was the summer of 2004, sort of the shake down cruise I suppose. I will put up some pictures from that trip later, for now I want to focus on the recent past and present. Last year we cruised down the west coast of the US, eventually making our way into the Sea of Cortez and mainland Mexico. Many good friends were made and many beautiful things experienced. Then, well, we had to go back to work. Willow was hauled out and put in dry storage in the town of San Carlos, MX (about 4hrs drive due south of Tucson, AZ). A bus and two airplanes saw us back to Bellingham where we very quickly got on other airplanes headed for Alaska and our labors. But that is all in the past. We earned our dollars and pointed our noses south again.
It all began in Bellingham, WA, with our old and trustworthy car, Thor. The only car I have ever owned, it has served me well over the years. This car was my grandfather, Nelson Trenner's, and he chose very wisely when buying this car in 1977. We needed to get from Bellingham, through the mountains and deserts of the SW United States, fully loaded, cross the border and make it safely over a few hundred miles of Mexican highways. No problem. When talking to a friend, a much better mechanic than myself, about his thoughts on whether-or-not he thought the car would make. He simply replied, “sure it will make it, just keep putting gas in it.” He was right.
Here we are in Seattle with our best of friends, Jim LaGasse. His home has been the launching point for countless adventures beginning in Seattle. My new hairstyle was sculpted for the most comfort in the heat we were headed for. The drive would be about 1,800miles, ending in SanCarlos, Mexico.
