Location: St. Tropez, France
Greetings from Argo! We picked up the anchor first thing and left the beauty of Villefranche with the sun at our backs and a nice breeze to push us along. As skipper, I got to take the helm with the sails up for the first time. The feeling of steering a 112-foot schooner being powered by the Mediterranean wind is indescribable. I have been at the helm of powerboats and small sailboats before, but the power of Argo heeled over was like nothing I have ever experienced. We had three classes while underway. The amount of heel we were getting made it tough to remain below deck, but we were able to get through the day without anyone succumbing to seasickness. In the morning, we had student leadership on deck and learned about the teachings of Lao Tzu while lounging in the sun. As a group, we discussed the tenets of Taoism and how many of them could be applied to our own tight-knit community aboard Argo. After lunch, we had an oceanography and sailing class. We learned how to plot our position using latitude and longitude on a chart. We were also taught the necessary knots to pass the MTE class, including every sailor’s favorite, the Bowline! After a 45-mile sail, we arrived in St. Tropez. The bay was packed with sailboats and beautiful powerboats, including Johnny Depp’s yacht! In the past couple of days, we have seen the most beautiful collection of boats. Despite this, I’ve already grown too fond of Argo to swap her for any boat in the harbor.