Author Archives: Kim

About Kim

First mate aboard S/v Zingaro.

Equator Crossing – Our Promise to Neptune (Ep. 55)

Episode number 55 covers the sail from the Coco Island, entering the South Pacific and arriving to Ecuador.

When we arrived the first time we had no idea how much we were going to see and how long we were going to stay. That country is so diverse: You have the coast, the mountains, the Amazon and Galapagos Island. Truly a destination for anybody that’s interested in anything! 😀

The next couple Episodes are going to be about us sailing all over the coast and even exploring the inland with their worldclass bus system. So cheap and so reliable, it’s amazing.

As You can tell, we loved Ecuador. I’m sure You’ll love it too!

Kim

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Stories from the Boatyard | Sailing Zingaro – Ep 48

In this episode we talk about plywood catamaran problems and what work you can expect.

After sailing 700nm we finally find a boatyard to haul out Zingaro. Repairs, refit, bottom paint, and lots of fiberglass await.

When we got Zingaro on the hard all hell started breaking loose. We could see numerous dripping spots on the bottom (indication of delaminated fiberglass and water intrusion).

Luckily our boat is all Airex Foam and the water had nowhere to go. But on a few places it seeped up inside the glass layers and I had to remove big pieces. We had purchased 3 gallons worth of West System Epoxy to do the entire bottom in an epoxy/copper mix, but with this new dilemma we were forced to use 1 entire gallon on the bottom repairs.

We even removed an old through-hole that was filled with cabosil (not the correct way to fix that). All in all there were 7 big patches, and a lot more work than we though it would be.

-James & Kim

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Hello from the Gambier Islands!

After Easter Island we spent 3 weeks going around the Pitcairn Island Group:

  • Ducie – The most southern atoll in the world!
  • Henderson – The most untouched by humans island in the world!
  • Pitcairn – Home of the Bounty muntineers (and so welcoming).
  • Oeno – The most beautiful, coolest, and northernmost atoll in the group.

We have behind the scenes videos complete for you guys, and tons of pictures, BUT the internet here is so slow. Like… crazy slow. We had to bribe the cafe’s owner to keep our computer for the night to upload our new episode.

Our plan now is to stay here and see this isalnd group for two weeks until the supply ship comes, then purchase 30gal of diesel directly from the ship (at $6/gal instead of $8/gal in the store here).

Then we’re headed to Hao Island in the Tuamotos. Apparently they have cell service there, and we can use our cell phone to upload all the awesome stuff we’re waiting to show you. Cool?

Much love
James & Kim

Our dirtiest day on Easter Island

What started of as a harmless afternoon hike, soon became the dirtiest adventure of our lives. I didn’t look as bad as James, but I was just as dirty! Good thing we were able to wash off well. Thanks to our sponsor Spectra Watermakers ❤

Dirty hiking on Rapa Nui

Sailing Zingaro | Pretty dirty and happy hikers on Rapa Nui (Easter Island)

Sailing Zingaro | True adventurers need to be muddy

Sailing Zingaro | True adventurers need to be muddy

Our friend Valentina send us into the ‘Cave of Virgins’ and waited for us at the entrance, because she ‘had seen it before’ 😂. We had no clue what was awaiting us!

It took us around 2h round trip, crawling through this lava tunnel with puddles and openings in the stone sometimes as small as 30cm (~1ft).

We Made it to Rapa Nui!

It took us 18 days to sail to Rapa Nui (Easter Island) from Ecuador.

The only fish we caught were flying fish, but luckily James is getting really good at making Pizza, so we were cared for. Our autopilot broke and we had to steer Zingaro with bungee cords for 1800nm. Bummer, but we made it and couldn’t be happier!

We arrived Wednesday, March 27th, and needed to wait for the authorities to give us clearance to step foot on the island.

The next day we got the officials on the boat, but by the time we were done it was 4:00 and there was nobody around to help us get in… The surf here in Hanga Roa is crazy, and the waves (called El Cruz) break over the entrance to the harbor. We need someone to guide us this first time.

So, we’ve got some awesome footage to show you guys. A teaser reel is already done (next episode is coming soon).

Finally, on Friday, we set foot on land for the first time in 3 weeks. It was exciting! You know what’s the craziest thing that stands out in my mind? The SMELL of land after 19 days. I’ll never forget that.

So we celebrated our arrival, we met our new friend Martha and danced for hours… 💃💃🕺

Cruising to Easter Island was great

The wind came over the beam for the most part of the journey, but its strength was very variable. While we didn’t have barely any wind the first three days, we were FLYING the 10 days after that. Reefed down to the bare minimum and still surfing these waves like there was no tomorrow. Then again we were becalmed or with little wind for the last 350nm. We had some opportunities to fly the spinnaker.

So much for the wind. Now to the things that broke: Astonishingly little! Only the autopilot did, which sucked, but it doesn’t sink the boat after all, so I give it a 2 on the drama scale.

We were prepared well this time (for the first time ever, probably), we checked halyards and sheets for chafing, provisioned well… It helps to be aware of the things that could go wrong, even though I could have done with out learning that the hard way!

Over all, we loved the trip and I believe it was our best one so far.

Kim

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Reality Cruising: This Couple is sailing around the World | Ep. 37

So much action in this episode! Spearfishing, shark fishing, storm sailing, and sweet sweet sailing. If you’ve got the itch to cut the lines and head offshore, this episode will do it for you.

We’re coming at you from the Seca Islands, Panama, one of our secret spots on the world. If you all get a chance, go there. Seriously.

We really enjoyed this episode, making it and editing it. Hope you enjoy watching it. We are uploading it from some sketchy hostel, because this is the only place with internet in Puerto López (Ecuador) at night!

See You soon,
James and Kimmi

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Beautiful Ecuador – the big surprise

Of all the countries we visited so far, Ecuador was by far the biggest positive surprise.

We wanted to come down here just to jump of to French Polynesia, but we ended up extending our visas and staying for four months to explore the whole country. We had 15kn of wind from the southwest every day and lonely islands to spend the night at. It doesn’t get much better than that!

Only a few days left in Ecuador – then we will set sail for Easter Island. Our next big cruising adventure… ⛵️

Provisioning for Easter Island | Sailing Zingaro

Here’s a little peek into how we are provisioning for Easter Island. We are filling 10L/20L containers with rice, beans, quinoa, flour, lentils and popcorn. Then we put them into our buddy’s freezer for 3 days to kill any bugs/eggs (big problem here is weevils). Then we store them down in the hulls, and… pizza for months!

It’s pretty cheap this way. All of these containers were filled with various things for about $100. Yay team Z!

As we are getting ready for our longest trip we have been very busy. We will update you all on everything we’ve been doing, but first, check this vid out.

Much love! Thank you all! We cannot wait to take you to EASTER ISLAND with us!!!

James & Kim

Sailing North after the Panama Canal | Sailing Zingaro – Ep 32

Close your eyes and hold on! Shipping lane crossing at night, no fresh food, no water.

On our search for a boatyard we spend seven days sailing the southern Coast of Panama. The wind was in our favor most of the time and we had a blast. But our range without a farm and a watermaker on the boat is limited, so we had to eventually end our trip in Boca Chica.

Continue reading →

Season 1 FINALE | Sailing Zingaro Ep 29

The girls take the catamaran through the Panama Canal! We get some new linehandlers, struggle to get diesel, and finally get through the canal to the Pacific! What an adventure it has been so far.

As we say goodbye to the Caribbean ocean, we reflect on the memories we’ve made, the troubles, trials, and friendships. It’s hard to say goodbye, but exiting to start a new adventure in the biggest ocean on the Planet: Season 2 – PACIFIC.

Making this episode and looking back on the TWO YEARS we have spent cruising has touched us deeply.

Hope you guys love this episode as much as we do!

Continue reading →

Crazy sailing to mainland Panama | Sailing Zingaro Ep27

This episode we finish our charter, say goodbye to our new friends, and explore mainland Panama. We really liked it here, and stayed for quite awhile.

When we left the beautiful San Blas, we got caught in some serious weather on our passage to Puerto Lindo.

We’re running out of food, fuel, and sanity on this most difficult passage… Continue reading →

¡Adios Cartagena! | Sailing Zingaro – Episode 25

Dancing, with tears in our eyes… ¡Adios Cartagena! We’re leaving this dirty, cheap & wonderful place. But not without cruising the streets at night one last time.

Of all the places we have been on our journey so far, Cartegena stands out. So much culture offer during the day & the night and so many young people that build up their life just the way we do in Berlin or California, withstanding the troubled past and presence of their country.

So proud and so free.

Continue reading →

Aid project with a Colombian school | Sailing Zingaro – Episode 23

This is a very special one for us. After we visited the family farm (Ep 22) in Colombia, one of the brothers set us up a special show at a local school for inner-city kids affected by the drug cartel.

In this school a big part of the learning is art – specifically the native songs and dance to Colombia. We got to see how they make their instruments and got a great example of their talent. The costumes were all made or purchased by the students themselves or their families.

Continue reading →

Goodbye Panama! Off to New Shores!

Today we are leaving Panama for Costa Rica (this time for real!). We are looking back on 8 months full of adventures, doubts & challenges. The last weeks and months we couldn’t wait to get out of Panama to see different countries, but when we checked out we asked ourselves if we really had seen enough … All of the sudden it seemed as if we had so much more to do here!

And YES, there are tons of places yet (by us) unexplored places even here in this relatively small country. And yet it is time for us to leave, because there is a whole world to be seen. I guess it is like that with traveling. The more places You get to know, the more places you learn to miss.

Ahoy!
-James & Kim

The Place to be in Colombia: Tintipán! | Sailing Zingaro – Episode 20

In this Episode we find Tintipán, the most beautiful place we’ve seen on our travels so far. There’s a lagoon in this island that has one of the most dense photo-plankton occurrences in the world. Seriously it’s one of the most amazing underwater experiences. We both got naked and jumped in at night, with no moon, and it looked like we were on fire.

Continue reading →

Girls make the best crew | Sailing Zingaro – Episode 18

Girls took over Zingaro! We are exploring Colombia with our Brazilian friend Idé. She’s never been sailing before, so we wanted to introduce her to this beautiful wet world! Since Kim was on the boat long enough now, she captained the boat for a few days while James enjoyed himself. Leaving Cartagena was a good idea. We really missed the beach and some clear water …

After so many things going so horribly wrong we really needed to have some good times. And so we did!

Enjoy our 18th episode.

Captain & James 😉

MUSIC by the Fabulous NOA & the Black Loops

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