Sailing Against The Wind

"Sailing Against the Wind" was written in 1980, though never published. It is an accounting of the three years the Larson family lived and traveled on a ketch rigged sailboat. The book is intended, not as an instruction manual on how to sail, but entirely as a diary of daily life and the difficulties found in close quarters while at sea. All five family members kept journals and when Toni sat down to write this, the journals gave a clear and accurate guide for her to work with. Over all the years since this manuscript was written, people have quizzed them, "What was it like? How did you do it? Was it hard? Were you scared?" The manuscript answers all those questions and has been shared with friends and family who were curious. The book does not cover the finer details of charting, trimming sails, repairing the engine, etc. Instead, it reveals how to live, survive, love and learn as a family while sailing against the wind. Now, in this era of downsizing into boats, rv's and tiny houses this diary of events may have relevance. The mid-1970s were the last years before the introduction of personal computers, the Internet, email, GPS, ATM, cell phones, and all forms of advanced electronics. Those things were not even available on the most luxurious boats at the time this adventure occurred. Navigation tools in the '70s were almost identical to that of explorers some 250 years before. However, if all those wonderful inventions had been available, it still would not have saved them from the many mishaps they encountered. And that is the lesson of this book.