APR - SEP ‘24

Setting sail from Juneau in April 2024, we cast off the lines and turned north into Alaska’s wild outer coast. We threaded through Prince William Sound’s maze of fjords and tidewater glaciers, explored the rugged shores of Kenai Fjords, and circumnavigated Kodiak Island before crossing the Gulf of Alaska back to Southeast. By autumn, the voyage carried us south through the misty passages and mountainous inlets of British Columbia, where the rhythm of life under sail truly began to take shape.

OCT - NOV ‘24

Autumn brought stormy seas and long weather waits as we worked our way down the rugged coasts of Washington and Oregon toward warmer latitudes. Eventually, Southern California emerged from the horizon, now rediscovered by sailboat rather than road. Along the way we anchored in quiet coves, explored the Channel Islands, and completed our first scuba dives from Arcturus beneath the kelp forests of Santa Cruz Island and the clear waters of Catalina’s famed Casino Point.

DEC ‘24 - FEB ‘25

We reached Mexico in December 2024 and spent a couple of weeks tracing the remote coastline of Baja before slipping into the Sea of Cortez. Here, desert mountains met turquoise water, cactus-lined ridges glowed beneath painted sunsets, and the sea seemed endlessly alive. The season gifted us rare encounters with both blue whales and whale sharks, the worlds largest whales and fish respectively… moments of awe that reminded us how small we are within the vastness of the natural world.

MAR - JUN ‘25

In March 2025, we crossed the vast open Pacific, making landfall in the Marquesas Islands and entering the Southern Hemisphere for the first time. Over the following months, we journeyed westward through more than 25 islands and atolls, navigating coral passes, reef anchorages, and lagoons scattered with emerald motus. French Polynesia became both a dreamscape and a classroom, teaching us the rhythms of the tropics and the quiet intuition required to travel safely through reef-bound seas.

Jul - Aug ‘25

Our passage to Tonga was accompanied by humpback whales migrating through the South Pacific, an unforgettable welcome into these tranquil islands. Though still surrounded by tropical seas, Tonga carried a distinctly different rhythm: quiet villages, palm-fringed beaches, and sheltered anchorages shaped by deep cultural roots. Even small details, like cars driving on the left side of the road, reminded us we had entered an entirely new corner of the world.

SEP - OCT ‘25

S/V Arcturus went on the hard for a six week refit at Vuda Marina: a full exterior paint job, rigging checks, and general tender loving maintenance. What began as “a month of maintenance” became a true labor of love: long, grueling days spent grinding rust to bare metal, sanding until our arms ached, and priming every exposed curve and contour. The equatorial sun was merciless, and we learned firsthand that a hull forged for Alaskan ice bears little fondness for tropical humidity.

Nov-Dec ‘25

For six weeks, we wandered the edges of New Zealand’s North Island, pleasantly surprised for the depth of its beauty. Dense forests, volcanic landscapes, and subtropical coastlines unfolded beside a culture deeply shaped by Māori heritage and storytelling. The island carried a quiet magic to it, a place where nature and history seemed woven together into the rhythm of everyday life. The Southern Hemisphere spring unfolded with green rolling hills and native wildflowers.

Dec ‘25 - Mar ‘26

The fjords of New Zealand’s South Island revealed some of the wildest landscapes we had encountered. Towering peaks rose sharply from dark waterways, waterfalls spilled from hanging valleys, and dense forests crowded the shoreline in every direction. From Milford Sound to the remote reaches of Preservation Inlet, each passage felt more untamed than the last. Traveling up the east coast, we visited city centers like Dunedin, Oamaru, and Lyttleton/Christchurch, which boast gothic revival architecture and friendly atmospheres.

APR - NOV ‘26

After completing our figure-eight circumnavigation of New Zealand’s North and South Islands, we returned to Alaska for a seasonal pause from the voyage. While Arcturus waits in New Zealand, we are spending the summer working, creating, and preparing for the next chapter of the expedition. In November 2026, we will return to the South Pacific and continue westward into the unknown once more.