a look back and a look ahead
QUETZAL is snug in a small marina tucked into the corner of Opunohu Bay on the island of Mo'orea, Tahiti’s beautiful sister island. Later this f
all we will sail back to Hiva Oa in the Marquesas Islands where she will spend the austral cyclone season. She has certainly earned a rest. We have sailed a lot of miles since I last updated the opening to the website – which is something of an understatement.
In a series of voyages that I coined, “The Big One,” we sailed from the Caribbean to the Arctic and then south to the bottom of the world. In the process we made challenging Atlantic crossings, sailed to Greenland and Iceland, explored the fjords of Norway, beat across the North Sea, rounded Cape Horn three times, fought our way across the Drake Passage to the South Shetland Islands of Antarctica, sailed the Beagle Channel, traversed the length of the rugged Patagonia Channels, and finally, blasted out into the heart of the South Pacific by way of Rapa Nui (Easter Island). And those are just some of the highlights! We completed 20 training passages and logged plenty of hard-won miles.
And while there were many highs, there were also some lows. We were rocked by days of Force 10 gales in the Bay of Biscay and endured frigid weather and in the South Shetland Islands. The lowest of the lows was when we were dismasted off Cabo Verde in January of 2023. At that moment, with the mast dangling off the port side, the Big One seemed doomed, or least seriously delayed. Somehow, with the support of many people who I can never thank enough, we rerigged QUETZAL and four months later were on our way.
88 people joined us as crew along the way and to a person they were terrific shipmates. Through calms, storms, icebergs, trade winds and head winds, and even a dismasting, we offered up serious learning opportunities and assembled a formidable collection of sea stories! The people that make their way into QUETZAL’S world are nothing short of amazing and I am grateful for the symbiotic relationship we’ve created.
In 2025 we will continue to make our way westward across the South Pacific. Sailing together with our dear friends and associates, Nathan and Vivian aboard ULTIMA, a series of training passages will take us from French Polynesia to Samoa, Tonga and Fiji. In addition to offshore passages, we have cruising expeditions scheduled in both Tonga and Fiji. In October, we will shove off on a heavy weather passage to New Zealand. While QUETZAL is currently fully booked, berths occasionally become available so keep an eye on the website and join the waitlist. Nathan and Vivian have a few openings on select passages, so check the schedule and don’t hesitate to sign aboard ULTIMA, I know you will enjoy it. Our joint passages are great fun and exceptional learning opportunities as we share pre-trip planning sessions, weather and route planning, and anchorages along the way.
CAPTAIN'S HOUR - 3 Years and Going Strong
“Captain’s Hour with JK.” is a monthly 2-3 hour Zoom meeting that allows you to ‘pick my brain’ on any sailing subject. We begin by sharing notes from our latest voyages and hard won expertise, from anchoring to preventers to worldwide route planning. Then we launch into a lively discussion with lots of interaction as I field your questions. Nathan and Vivian, and my friend Bob Pingel often join the call and Tadji is the master of ceremonies. It's a fun and lively discussion with lots of interaction. This has grown into a great community of sailors all over the world. Each Captain's Hour includes information sharing, stories, and hard-won expertise. It has grown into a great community of sailors from all over the world and the chat is always filled with insights. For more information or to Sign Up, send us a message to receive your invoice and link to Captain’s Hour.
For more information or to Sign Up, send us a message to receive your invoice and link to Captain's Hour.
WELCOME TO JOHN KRETSCHMER SAILING.
Thank you for venturing into the far flung world of John Kretschmer Sailing. If this is your first time, welcome! Otherwise, many thanks for dropping by again. For those of you meeting me for the first time, I have been sailing professionally, if that's what you call what I do, all my adult life. Doing the thing I enjoy most has never felt like a job and I have lost track of how many miles I've sailed. When my sailing odometer ticked over 400,000 - I stopped counting. It seems absurd to keep tallying miles, I have nothing to prove, and I am not convinced that miles matter very much. They define sailing as the distance between landfalls that matters, the voyage, the interlude of being at sea, that's where the magic lurks. Time slows down at sea and what is more important than managing our allotment of time?
Amazingly, I am more passionate about what I do than ever before and committed to sharing useful information and hard-won opinions about blue water and coastal voyaging. I am old enough, (and that's an understatement too) and wise enough, to realize that being aboard QUETZAL and sailing her through whatever conditions come our way, is a great gig, the joy and sense of wonder never wane. I wrote in my last book, "Sailing to the Edge of Time," that deep ocean sailing offers a powerful blend of promise, challenge, and freedom. Joseph Conrad titled his sailing ship memoir, "The Mirror of the Ocean," and I love that phrase. There is nowhere to hide at sea and the image that reflects at you from the face of a steel blue wave is brutally honest. To thrive at sea you must take stock of who you are, not who you want to be.
The ocean, the last great wilderness, is life's ultimate classroom. There's no pretending out there, no room for hubris or bluster, bullshit just doesn't float and freedom stems from that realization. The people that sail with me buy, sell, invent, teach, build, cure, and protect. In short, they shake the world when ashore but at sea, aboard QUETZAL, they feel refreshingly small and profoundly alive.
ABOUT OUR PASSAGES
I began my book, Flirting With Mermaids, "I make landfalls for a living." It's a good line, but I have come to realize that making landfalls is the easy part. Making departures, pushing off the dock, unplugging the electronic handcuffs, subverting the shore-side guilt, that's the hard part. Fortunately, that's where we can help just sign aboard QUETZAL or ULTIMA.
What can you expect for one of our offshore passages? They are rarely easy and at times downright miserable. The rewards can take their sweet time to appear, but they always do. There's something strangely compelling about standing watch night after night, under starry and stromy skies. There's a mix of terror and excitement when you scramble on deck to reef the main in a gale, or steer in big seas. And there's great satisfaction to navigate when it counts, with landfall in the offing. As part of the crew you are vested in the passage but you can also let each day unfold at its own pace. You may learn celestial navigation, how to splice dyneema, bake break or tell new jokes during Captain's Hour. One this is certain, you will have a lot of fun, laugh and make lasting friendships.
Take a good look at the site: the schedule of training passages, the workshops, the pictures, videos, books and even the poems, then send me an email, let's communicate. Sailing dreams are too important to leave for another day.
Many thanks to you, our shipmates and friends. You not only make all of our voyages and projects possible, you also make them fulfilling. The world of Quetzal is a full-blown, world-wide nautical community and we love sharing it with you. It's time, time to go sailing, time to go to sea and we look forward to welcoming you aboard.
The Sailing Schedule is posted.
Webinars Are Now Available for Purchase
New Two-part webinar Atlantic Circle –Thoughts and Strategies on How to Sail Across the Atlantic Ocean
The pre-recorded webinars are available.
The Seamanship Series Webinars are available for purchase. Each 2+ hour webinar sells for $40, and when you buy all four for $150, you will also receive the 24 pages of questions and answers that followed the live broadcasts. You will receive a link and can watch them whenever you want.
The two-part Cruising Boat Buyers Webinars is also available for $100.
The webinars are informative and entertaining. We had a great response and lots of positive feedback afterward. If interested shoot us off an email and Tadji will send the invoice and Zoom link promptly.
I confess, as most of you know, I am a hands-on, human to human person. However, I have also discovered, after recently participating in podcasts, webinars, and YouTube videos, that it’s fun and rewarding to reach a wide audience virtually, and in these difficult times, the best and only way to share what we know.
It’s also a way to stay in contact with each other and discuss something we all love offshore sailing. These webinars are not a replacement for the workshops, but they will definitely enhance them.
Nathan and Vivian's 2026 Sailing schedule aboard Ultima, is now available! Ultima and her crew have now completed over 40 passages and we've logged tens of thousands of bluewater miles sailing half way around the world. We've taken different routes to get to French Polynesia but have met in beautiful, remote locations. We are excited to keep sailing along, continuing our journeys toward the Cape of Good Hope and beyond.
I strongly urge you to check out their schedule and meet these wonderful sailors.
My latest book
Sailing to the Edge of Time: The Promise, the Challenges, and the Freedom of Ocean Voyaging
is available now.
"This book reminds me of Joseph Conrad's first book The Mirror of the Sea, which was a memoir from his life as a ship captain and a reflection on what a life at sea can teach an observant and thoughtful person. Kretsch just may be our own modern-day Conrad, which in my book is no small thing."
~George Day,
Blue Water Sailing Magazine
Atlantic Circle
Thoughts and Strategies on How to Sail Across the Atlantic Ocean
A two-part Webinar Series
Sailing through the wilderness: Interview with John Kretschmer
“I first sailed with John in 2006. I was a great lakes sailor for many years and had the urge to try sailing in open waters. Looking for an easy way to do this, I saw a three line ad in the back of a sailing magazine for an open water passage-making opportunity. I called the number in the ad and spoke with John. That was the beginning of the many sailing experiences I’ve had with him. For me, sailing with John is an excellent way to get out on the open water.
I’ve been on eleven sailing trips so far (with more to come), and most of them were on Quetzal, John’s boat. We’ve been in all kinds of weather from warm sunny days with following trade winds to battering storm conditions on the Atlantic. These trips gave me an outstanding exposure to open water sailing and what that can entail in all types of weather conditions. John’s experience is always in evidence but it really stands out when the going gets rough. His concern with the crew’s safety is paramount. Sailing in heavy weather conditions proved to me just how safe and solid Quetzal is. She is truly passage proven and I understand why John is so fond of her. Heck, over time I’ve formed quite a bond with her too.
John promotes a relaxed atmosphere on his passages. There’s no rigid daily lesson plan that one must follow but there are learning opportunities galore. John gladly spends time with each person answering questions or helping them bone up on their navigational skills. And when he’s not answering questions from the crew, John has entertaining stories he loves to share during captain’s hour and at dinner.
The sailing passages I’ve been on include: three transatlantic sails, two Mediterranean voyages as well as these wonderful passages: Ireland and Scotland; Panama to the Galapagos to Costa Rica; Gulf of St. Lawrence; Newfoundland; Caribbean; Isla Mujeres to Florida; and of course that great canal boat trip in France.
I can’t recommend enough going on a passage with John. You will have an outstanding time, learn much, have great conversations, meet wonderful people and eat well. Oh, and one last thing, you must try Tadji’s canal boat cruises – they are simply a gastric delight and you’ll visit some stunning locations.”
A Serious Ocean
by Anne Stevenson
You know it by the northern look of the shore,
by the salt-worried faces,
by an absence of trees, an abundance of lighthouses.
It’s a serious ocean.
North Sea off Carnoustie
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