Sailing Away from Winter: A Cruise from Nova Scotia to Florida and Beyond

Gordon Turner is the author of Empress of Britain: Canadian Pacific’s
Greatest Ship and the editor of SeaFare, a quarterly newsletter on sea
travel.

Sailing off to a sun-baked island has been the theme of countless books,
and armchair travellers have never lacked for choice. Cameron’s voyage
from his Cape Breton home to the Bahamas is a thoroughly enjoyable
contribution to the genre. The leisurely journey began in July and ended
the following March, and the author relates the pleasures and
frustrations that he, his wife, and their aging dog encountered en
route. Magnus, his 1973-built 33-foot boat was powered by both sails and
an engine. Cameron relied mostly on the engine, which, unfortunately,
had a recalcitrant disposition and broke down frequently. But boat
owners are a supportive breed, always ready to help a fellow owner in a
time of need. Much of the book deals not with life aboard, but with
trips ashore in search of groceries and spare parts. Skilled mechanics,
friendly small-town residents, and sociable boat owners populate the
book’s pages, and they far outnumber the rare sour-faced
misanthropist.

Some books on small-ship voyages provide their authors with a platform
to examine their souls or pontificate on the woes of the world. This is
not Cameron’s style; he is a storyteller, although he makes the
occasional pointed observation such as “The strangest thing a
traveller ever encounters is himself.”

Sailing Away from Winter is a gentle, delightful book that can be
enjoyed by boat owners and landlubbers alike.