Nautical Nook
The Mahaffeys: Writing The Dream Many of our readers are well acquainted, and perhaps a bit obsessed, with dropping it all to chase the horizon aboard a wellfound vessel. “The Dream” often involves a happy couple, hand in hand, cruising from paradise to paradise and accruing stories to tell. Writers seem especially drawn to the cruising lifestyle, and to pen the adventures for others to enjoy and learn from adds a depth to the voyage as the writer-cruiser takes the reader along for the ride. Bob and Carolyn Mahaffey personify this ethos. They have written three books for boaters: Destination Mexico (1995), Cruising Guide to San Francisco Bay (1996; new revision, 2016), and Cruising Guide to the Hawaiian Islands (1998; currently being revised). Additionally, they wrote and sold for publication over 270 magazine articles that appeared in boating magazines like Bay and Delta Yachtsman, Blue Water Sailing, Cruising World, Latitude 38, Northwest Yachting, Ocean Navigator, Ocean Voyager, Pacific Skipper, Sail, Sailing, Sea, Waterfront, and Yachting over the last 30 years. Bob also wrote or co-wrote four college English textbooks. We caught up with these longtime contributors to Northwest Yachting just as their newly revised Cruising Guide to San Francisco Bay became available for an inside peek into the duo’s lifestyle, writing process, and ambitions. Q: First of all, where are you both now and what's the next adventure? We are currently in Lake Stevens, Washington in our RV, but will be returning soon to our boat in Napa, California to get her ready for our next adventure, perhaps back to Mexico or to Hawaii. Q: How did you both get into yachting/cruising? Bob has been sailing since 1969, when he bought his first
ocean-going sailboat and a book about how to sail. Carolyn began sailing with him in the mid1980s. Since then, there have been many boats and adventures afloat. We have been sailing Carricklee, our Hardin 45 ketch, for 25 years and have covered 47,000 miles since we purchased her in San Diego. Continued on Page 34
Carricklee, the Mehaffey's Hardin 45 ketch, in the single-boat anchorage of Caleta Candeleros Chico in Baja California.
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