Overview
After four years cruising the islands of the South Pacific, Doug Austin has come home to write this delightful book about his time cruising those islands.This is not a cruising guide but a guide to cruising the islands and all the wonderful places, people and sites each has to offer.
Doug discusses not only boater's concerns such as communications, harbors, anchoring, finding food and water and blending in with the islanders, but how to truly enjoy the time spent in this beautiful cruising ground. He must have found the secret to that enjoyment or he wouldn't have spent four years Cruising The South Pacific.
This is a book everyone will enjoy, from the long time bluewater sailor to the dreamer awaiting the day to cast off the lines.
Author Biography: Doug moved to the northwest early in his life and was raised in Dallas, Oregon. He attended Willamette University for four years then went on to graduate from the University of Oregon with a BS in Mathematics and a minor in Physics. There he met and later married Jill. They have two sons Mitch and Shaun.
After graduation he became an officer in the USMC where he attained the rank of Captain. Since retiring from the military he worked in the construction industry until his full retirement.
Doug learned SCUBA diving in 1957 and started to sail in 1961. These two hobbies began his dream of sailing to the South Pacific islands. He sailed the waters of the northwest and the Virgin Islands. In 1986 he bought Seattle Star, a Morgan Out Islander, moved aboard and for the next eleven years got her ready to sail to the Islands
In 1997 Doug and Jill departed Seattle for the South Pacific where they spent the next fouryears cruising and enjoying all the Islands had to offer.
Doug and his family are now living in Coos Bay, OR where they are planning another adventure.
From the Author: In the South Pacific there are large cities like Papeete, Tahiti, in the Society Islands, small island-countries like Niue, isolated, uninhabited islands and islands with only five hundred people living on them. The islands we are primarily going to discuss are the sparsely populated islands. Each island is unique in its own way but similar when it comes to necessities — food, water and shelter. Many of these islands have no electricity, running water or modern conveniences.
In cities with larger populations, it is easy to obtain supplies and fuel. On smaller, out of the way islands, the few stores are either very small or nonexistent and fuel stops are far apart. These smaller islands may have populations of less then 500 people who have subsisted for generations on what they catch, raise or grow. Some of these islands may have a supply ship arrive every one to three months or may go as long as six months without supplies. A few of the islands have had only ten to twenty sailing vessels visit in the last fifteen years. Other islands, such as Papua New Guinea, are cruising grounds for Australian sailors. My goal is to assist you in getting the most out of your exploration of these islands without impacting the cultures.