Ocean Watch

When I was a child, Thanksgiving began in my family with each member stating the one thing he or she was most thankful for. It was OK to be thankful for several things, but you had to choose just one to top the year's list.

This year, the answer came easy: my sailboat.

Ranking a recreational vehicle that high might seem shallow, but the boat is more to me. Honu is my rocket ship, and together we're blasting my middle-age blahs right out of the universe.

We started this okole-kicking last January. I didn't know where I was going at the time, but I knew that even if I just sailed to Molokai, the boat needed most of its aging systems repaired or replaced.

The hardest part of the refit was making the appointment for the haul-out. I walked in the office with sweaty palms and immediately got stumped by the questions the yard manager asked.

Number of stays? Um. What kind of keel? Um. How tall is the mast? Um. And so on. That was the first of dozens of trips to the boat's manuals to look things up (18 stays, fin keel, 54 feet).

After that, I lay awake at night dreading the day I had to drive the boat over there and get started. If I didn't humiliate myself by crashing it into the dock, I would surely be embarrassed while working with a bunch of men on a boatload of systems I knew little about.

The day came, and sure enough, I drove the boat poorly and the workers intimidated me. More than once I retreated to my car to fight back tears.

Then my nautical angel, Gerard, showed up, and things got better. Gerard is a retired boat-yard worker and a genius with boat systems. This Frenchman is picky about the work he does now and doesn't take the dirty stuff.

He saw my situation, however, not to mention my French boat, and kindly adopted us. For months, Gerard and I worked together. Well, Gerard worked and explained while I watched and took notes.

We made a wiring diagram of the boat and created a procedure manual. I hauled him up the masts; he called me up with purchase lists.

Often we weren't sure what to do. Cut the wire or save it? Keep the old pump or install another? Gerard's favorite expression became my battle cry: "We are not afraid!" Snip.

Months later, voila! We had the boat in sailing shape. But I was still afraid to dock it. So Craig, my husband and Honu's co-owner and former captain, offered to give me driving lessons.

Craig made me drive around the harbor for about two hours -- backward. I thought he was nuts when we started, but he said if I could master that, I could put the boat anywhere. I did -- and he was right.

After a few day trips, I was ready for the real test offshore. Several friends worked hard to get the boat loaded with food, fuel and a hundred other things, and off we went.

We fumbled a bit, but we made it safely to and from Kauai, Molokai, Maui and, last weekend, Lanai. Next week, I sail to the Big Island, where biologist and friend Alex Wegmann and I will set off for Palmyra.

Did I say I'm most thankful for my sailboat, Honu? That's not quite right. This year, I'm most thankful for the people who helped make Honu my starship.

We are not afraid.