Patrick Livanos Lester's Blog, page 254
September 16, 2018
Book Review: Lost Island by James Norman Hall
Published in 1944, Lost Island by James Norman Hall all is a story told by George Dodd, a dinner guest at a friend’s home in the hills of Berkeley, California. Dodd recounts how on short notice during World War II, he was sent to a small Pacific atoll to survey it for Provisional Reserve Base 9. The US military made provisional bases to establish an air route across the Pacific when Japan was threatening to control the sea.
Dodd had two weeks to complete his survey and devise a plan to build of an airstrip and the infrastructure to support the base before a freighter filled with men and equipment showed up to start work.
When Dodd arrives at the island, he finds he is emotionally unprepared for the task at hand—the complete transformation of the island and its inhabitants. Hall paints a convincing picture of how war can affect the most remote locations and uninvolved people.
Available on Amazon
September 9, 2018
Kepuhi Beach, Molokai
Kepuhi Beach on the west shore of the Hawaiian island of Molokai looks very different in the winter and summer. The winter surf is high and the beach disappears.
Kepuhi Beach February
Copyright © 2014 Patrick Lester
By May, the sand returns and the beach reappears.
Kepuhi Beach July
Copyright © 2014 Patrick Lester
Kepuhi Beach FebruaryCopyright © 2014 Patrick Lester
By May, the sand returns and the beach reappears.
Kepuhi Beach JulyCopyright © 2014 Patrick Lester
August 29, 2018
Pāpōhaku Beach, Molokai
One of the longest white sand beach in the Hawaiian Islands is on the western shore of the island of Molokai.
Pāpōhaku Beach from Above
Copyright © 2014 Patrick Lester
Pāpōhaku Beach
Copyright © 2014 Patrick Lester
Pāpōhaku Beach is usually deserted and you may be the only one on the beach. The surf is too rough to swim during the winter.
Pāpōhaku Beach
Copyright © 2014 Patrick LesterWith three miles of beach, even if there is someone else there, you won't feel crowded.
Pāpōhaku Beach
Copyright © 2014 Patrick Lester
Pāpōhaku Beach from AboveCopyright © 2014 Patrick Lester
Pāpōhaku BeachCopyright © 2014 Patrick Lester
Pāpōhaku Beach is usually deserted and you may be the only one on the beach. The surf is too rough to swim during the winter.
Pāpōhaku BeachCopyright © 2014 Patrick LesterWith three miles of beach, even if there is someone else there, you won't feel crowded.
Pāpōhaku BeachCopyright © 2014 Patrick Lester
August 19, 2018
Book Review: Landfalls of Paradise by R. Hinz & Jim Howard
Now in its fifth edition, Landfalls of Paradise is the quintessential cruising guide for the Pacific Islands. This book is filled with history, maps, weather, ports, anchorages, and infrastructure details for islands throughout the eastern and western Pacific.
This is a reference book, but a very interesting read even if you never set foot on a boat. You will learn about places you never knew existed and may only be accessed by a monthly mail boat. Pack your seabag!
Available on Amazon:
August 12, 2018
The Paddock- Aruba
The Caribbean is known for its waterfront bars. Located in the Leeward Antilles of Netherlands Antilles at Lloyd G. Smith Blvd 13, Oranjestad, Aruba you will find Eetcafe The Paddock.
The Ceiling of The Paddock,
Aruba, Dutch West Indies
Copyright © 2016 Patrick LesterThe people are friendly, and with no wifi, you may have to engage in conversation with someone from some foreign port. The ceiling is papered with currency the world over. Being Dutch, the beverage of choice is the green-bottled Heineken. Stop in the next time you're in Aruba!
The Ceiling of The Paddock, Aruba, Dutch West Indies
Copyright © 2016 Patrick LesterThe people are friendly, and with no wifi, you may have to engage in conversation with someone from some foreign port. The ceiling is papered with currency the world over. Being Dutch, the beverage of choice is the green-bottled Heineken. Stop in the next time you're in Aruba!
August 5, 2018
Movie Review: Wind starring Matthew Modine and Jennifer Grey
Photo Jeanfrancois BeausejourI saw this movie in Hawaii with probably every other sailor in the islands. A group of us were on the yacht racing circuit and this was, after all, a film about the grandest sailing race of all, the America's Cup.Matthew Modine plays Will Parker, a sailor who has an opportunity to captain an America's Cup boat. Parker has to choose between his girlfriend (Kate, played by Jennifer Grey) and the race. He chooses the race and loses to the Australians. Parker is devastated and is determined to win the Cup back. To do so, he enlists Kate and her new engineer boyfriend (played brilliantly by Stellan Skarsgård) to help design a new boat. The fact that they are building the boat on an old airstrip in the middle of a desert adds to the quirkiness of the film.
This is a fascinating peak into the world of the America's Cup, the hallowed halls of East Coast old money yachting, and sailing technology. The filming of the International 14 race and the later big boat race scenes are fantastic and very exciting.
For the non-sailor or novice, the race footage is nicely narrated and explained by Peter Montgomery, a longtime yacht racing commentator. Take a look and get up to speed. International teams are currently racing to see who takes home the America's Cup.
Available on Amazon:
July 29, 2018
Sailing Music: Boats Beaches Bars & Ballads
Back in the 1980s I was on the Big Island of Hawaii. The sea was calling and I chartered a beautiful Hunter sailboat for the day. The owners, a husband and wife came along. It was not a bareboat charter; the boat was their pride and joy. We cruised down the coast toward Kona.
After a bit the Captain asked me if I'd like to take the helm. He stood behind me and watched me carefully as I drove.
"Here, take the wheel for a moment, please," I said. I moved forward and adjusted the main sheet, the boom vang, and the downhaul and then returned to the wheel. I had been racing sailboats all my life and I could not help myself.
I took a cassette tape (remember those?) from my pocket and handed it to the Captain. "Could we put this on the stereo?"
He was still looking up at the sails.
"Huh? What's this?" He looked at the tape. It was the fall of 1985 and Jimmy Buffett had just released Last Mango In Paris. (Off to See the Lizard was still a few years away.)
"Is this Buffett's latest?"
His wife and First Mate popped up in the companionway.
"He has the latest Jimmy?"
"Yeah, and he can sail."
"Well hand me the tape and I'll put it on!"
By the end of the day I had traded three Jimmy Buffett tapes for another full-day sail. Imagine what you could trade for with the boxed set!
After a bit the Captain asked me if I'd like to take the helm. He stood behind me and watched me carefully as I drove.
"Here, take the wheel for a moment, please," I said. I moved forward and adjusted the main sheet, the boom vang, and the downhaul and then returned to the wheel. I had been racing sailboats all my life and I could not help myself.
I took a cassette tape (remember those?) from my pocket and handed it to the Captain. "Could we put this on the stereo?"
He was still looking up at the sails.
"Huh? What's this?" He looked at the tape. It was the fall of 1985 and Jimmy Buffett had just released Last Mango In Paris. (Off to See the Lizard was still a few years away.)
"Is this Buffett's latest?"
His wife and First Mate popped up in the companionway.
"He has the latest Jimmy?"
"Yeah, and he can sail."
"Well hand me the tape and I'll put it on!"
By the end of the day I had traded three Jimmy Buffett tapes for another full-day sail. Imagine what you could trade for with the boxed set!
July 25, 2018
English Harbour and Nelson's Dockyard
Located in Saint Paul Parish on the island of Antigua, in Antigua and Barbuda, is Nelson's Dockyard, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
English Harbour, Antigua
Copyright © 2016 Patrick LesterNamed after Admiral Horatio Nelson, the dockyard was a place where boats were careened. Ships sailed into the beach at high tide, emptied of all heavy objects such as canons, water, and anchors. A line was attached to the top of the mast and the ship was turned on its side. When the tide went out, the ship was left high-and-dry. It was then scrapped of barnacles, (which slow down the ship) and teredo navalis, the naval shipworm, which bores into wood and destroys it. Once the ship was cleaned and repaired, it was refloated at high tide.
An Old Whaler Hove Down For Repairs,
Near New Bedford, a wood engraving.
F. S. Cozzens and published in Harper's Weekly, December 1882.Nelson's Dockyard is also home to Antigua Sailing Week, where 150-200 yachts gather for yacht races and the Lord Nelson's Ball.
Nelson's Dockyard and The Admiral's Inn
Copyright © 2016 Patrick LesterThere is a wonderful hotel on the site. Check out The Admiral's Inn: http://admiralsantigua.com
English Harbour, AntiguaCopyright © 2016 Patrick LesterNamed after Admiral Horatio Nelson, the dockyard was a place where boats were careened. Ships sailed into the beach at high tide, emptied of all heavy objects such as canons, water, and anchors. A line was attached to the top of the mast and the ship was turned on its side. When the tide went out, the ship was left high-and-dry. It was then scrapped of barnacles, (which slow down the ship) and teredo navalis, the naval shipworm, which bores into wood and destroys it. Once the ship was cleaned and repaired, it was refloated at high tide.
An Old Whaler Hove Down For Repairs, Near New Bedford, a wood engraving.
F. S. Cozzens and published in Harper's Weekly, December 1882.Nelson's Dockyard is also home to Antigua Sailing Week, where 150-200 yachts gather for yacht races and the Lord Nelson's Ball.
Nelson's Dockyard and The Admiral's InnCopyright © 2016 Patrick LesterThere is a wonderful hotel on the site. Check out The Admiral's Inn: http://admiralsantigua.com
July 22, 2018
Book Review: The America's Cup: The History of Sailing's Greatest Competition in the Twentieth Century by Dennis Connor and Michael Levitt
Dennis Conner won the America's Cup four times (and was the first American in 132 years to lose it.) The co-author, Michael Levitt, a prolific author of sailing, joins him in The America's Cup. The narrator is Connor, filled with, let's call it passion, that leads one to win four America's cups, four Southern Ocean Racing Cups, two Congressional Cups, and many other sailing races.
Photo: David Frost, Port of San DiegoFilled with race politics, personalities, design technology, strategy, and plenty of details of racing, The America's Cup is an exciting read.
Available on Amazon:
Photo: David Frost, Port of San DiegoFilled with race politics, personalities, design technology, strategy, and plenty of details of racing, The America's Cup is an exciting read.Available on Amazon:
July 15, 2018
Book Review: And the Sea Will Tell: Murder on a Desert Island and Justice by Vincent Bugliosi and Bruce Henderson
I was living in Hawaii when I heard the story about a couple from San Diego named Mac and Muff Graham who had sailed out of the Ala Wai Canal to Palmyra Atoll, about 1000 miles due south. Their ketch, the Seawind, showed up several months later back at the Ala Wai with a new name and new paint, and a different crew.The new crew was arrested for the murder of the Grahams.
Vincent Bugliosi and Bruce Henderson tell the story.
This is a book about the trial. If you like that kind of read this is a good one, with sailing and a tropical atoll as focal points.
With photos, available on Amazon:
