IT'S THE SMALL GESTURES THAT DEFINE US

By Mike Benjamin, SV Exodus, President SDSA

Last month, I wrote about the formation of our Strategic Planning and Community Service Committees and the importance of taking a hard look at where the Salty Dawgs are headed over the next several years.  Those conversations are underway, and they are thoughtful, energetic, and creative, which is exactly what they should be.  I believe we will be announcing some great new programs in the near future.

However, the future of this organization is not going to be determined solely in those meetings.

Committees set direction, establish priorities, and guide behavior.  They recommend changes.  But policies don’t define who we are, and culture is not something we declare.  It is something we practice.  Who we are is revealed on docks and in anchorages.  It happens in conversations over a sundowner…sometimes over one too many sundowners.  It happens when a new member shows up at an event not knowing anyone and is made to feel welcome.  It happens when someone asks for help with a problem, technical or otherwise, and a dozen members respond.  It happens in how we treat each community that hosts us.  In short, it shows up in small everyday actions.

2026 AZORES RALLY

2026 DOWNEAST RALLY

2026 CARIBBEAN RALLY

TWO YEARS ON FROM BERYL IN THE SOUTHERN GRENADINES

Written by Katie Bloxham, SV Persephone

On July 1, 2024, Hurricane Beryl hit the Southern Grenadines as a Category 4 hurricane, damaging most of the structures on Carriacou, Petit Martinique, Union Island and Mayreau.  While the storm was well forecast, it intensified rapidly as it crossed the Atlantic.  People on the islands never expected to encounter a storm of this severity, and didn’t really even know what Category 4 meant.  Many of us will have read stories of homes and businesses lost, and the dire need for everything from water and power to clothes and kitchen goods.  We were proud to hear how our sailing community pitched in and helped shuttle supplies from less impacted islands.  

Having sailed in the area many times, we were anxious to see how people have recovered when we returned this season.  We were impressed by the fortitude of the local people!  Of course, being heavily dependent on tourism for their income, they have worked hard to be open for business, and this article is based only on the places we visited and accounts from the people we spoke to.

MY FAVORITE ANCHORAGE:  PETITE TERRE - LITTLE PARADISE IN GUADELOUPE

Written by Mary Sherrill, SV

Every cruiser has at least one; that place you hesitate to talk about too loudly, lest it lose that magic of pure serenity and surprise that draws you in.  For us, that place is Petite Terre, Guadeloupe.

Tucked away and protected as a nature reserve, this unassuming pair of islets offers something increasingly rare in the Caribbean: a sense of protected and pure surprise.  We reserved a mooring ball here earlier this year with modest expectations and left feeling like we’d stumbled onto a secret paradise - waiting just for us.

WHY A MEDJET MEMBERSHIP IS SO IMPORTANT FOR SALTY DAWG SAILORS

Written by Tom Casey - your SDSA contact at Medjet

When you’re sailing around the world, you’re not just traveling—you’re operating beyond the safety net most people take for granted.  Yachting offers enormous freedom, but it also removes your margin for error in the case of a medical emergency.  While most responsible yachters have a first aid kit onboard, the frequency and number for local Coast Guards and rescue authorities, many don’t consider what happens beyond getting ashore if someone gets seriously sick or hurt and winds up in the hospital. Specifically, that:

• The nearest port may have limited or “not ideal” medical standards.

• Local resources may not match the quality of care you feel you’d get at home with your own doctors and your own hospital.

• The medevac benefits in most travel insurance policies are only to the “nearest adequate” hospital.

• Your travel insurance will not move you home just because you prefer to be treated in a hospital at home.

That’s Where Medjet Comes In

THIS MONTH IN PICTURES

Exumas Rendezvous

VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT:  KIMMIE AND TRACY OLIVER

We’re Kimmie and Tracy Oliver, who along with our furry crew members TiKi (dog) and Charlie (cat) spend, since 2020,  7 months a year sailing aboard our Lagoon 46, GypSea and the balance in our home in Virginia Beach.  Our travels have taken us from Maine to Cape Town South Africa and most places in between.  We’ve participated in many Salty Dawg rallies, including the Down East, Bahamas and multiple Caribbean rallies.  This year Kimmie and I completed the Caribbean rally double handed, our longest with just the two of us to date.