Sailing Away from Winter: A Cruise From Nova Scotia to Florida and Beyond (Hardcover)

by Silver Donald Cameron (Author)
Key Phrases: artistic conscience, dog ashore, lobster buoys, Sailing Away, Nova Scotia, United States (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
“Sailing Away From Winter might be the perfect tonic for this time of year. . . . A good book for all to enjoy curled up on the couch, in front of the fireplace, dreaming of lands far, far away.” — Halifax Daily News

“[Cameron] knows how to lace his story with a little history, interesting characters, with whimsy and a dose of good old self-deprecating Canadian humour. . . . A quiet pleasure to read.” — Globe and Mail


From the Trade Paperback edition.

Product Description
The perfect armchair sailing guide, with enough detail to set a person dreaming . . .

On July 21, 2004, Silver Donald Cameron and his wife, Marjorie Simmins, set sail from D’Escousse, in Cape Breton Island, toward the white sand beaches and palm trees of the nearest tropical islands. They were sailing an old Norwegian-built ketch named Magnus. Accompanying them was their dog, Leo the Wonder Whippet.

Leo was thirteen. The skipper was an old-age pensioner. His youthful mate was new to the cruising life. Yet 236 days later, with more than 3,000 nautical miles behind them, this distinctly trepid crew rowed ashore in Little Harbour, in the Bahamas, heading for Pete’s Pub, a palm-thatched tiki bar on the beach.

It had been quite a trip. All three had lost fat and gained muscle. They were not in debt. Friends had remarked that the skipper and mate looked ten years younger, and the ancient Leo was capering about like a puppy.
Mind you, there had been bad moments, as in Jonesport, Maine, when the skipper smashed the boat into a wharf and punched a hole in the bow, or the black night off the deadly coast of New Jersey, in a screeching gale with the boat rolling her side decks under.

But there had been plenty of thrills, too: fireworks over the Tall Ships in Halifax Harbour; careening down the East River at ten knots with Manhattan whizzing past to starboard; feasting on hush puppies and grits with chicken gravy in Georgia; enjoying the ancient streets of St. Augustine, and the dazzling opulence of Fort Lauderdale. And then, after crossing the Gulf Stream, the Bahamas, complete with coral reefs crowded with tropical fish, yellow and scarlet and black.

A long way from the snow and ice back home.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 376 pages
• Publisher: Douglas Gibson Books (December 12, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 077101841X
• ISBN-13: 978-0771018411
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.2 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #610,840 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sailing Away From Winter, March 3, 2008

By	R. Dunbar (Halifax, Nova Scotia) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Sailing Away from Winter: A Cruise from Nova Scotia to Florida and Beyond (Paperback)

Sailing Away from Winter


After reading the first page of Sailing Away From Winter I immediately realized that I had forgotten what a good writer Silver Donald Cameron is. Unlike many sailing adventure books, Cameron shies away from writing a glorified log book but rather makes the reader feel that he is in the cockpit of "Magnus" and experiences the joys of sailing in a fair wind on a sunny day to the unending frustration of a finicky and somewhat unreliable diesel engine that is maintained by a bilge dwelling scurvy crew of evil Norwegian trolls.

While slipping southwards from his homeport of D'Escousse, Silver Donald makes port in such historic Nova Scotia locales as Canso, Halifax, Lunenburg and Yarmouth and then onward to crossing the Bay of Fundy and entering our "beloved" neighbour, the United States of America. Here we learn that like most Canadians, not many Americans on the New England Coast are fans of President George W. Bush as evidenced by many bumper stickers "Needed: One florist to send two Bushes to Iraq"

One common thread in Cameron's many works is his love affair with Cape Breton. During the entire southward voyage Magnus pursues long time friend and fellow Cape Bretoner's Jim and Carol-Anne Organ, of Port Hawkesbury, aboard Seaduction. In the Abaco's the crews of the two Cape Breton vessels rendezvous and share many colourful yarns after cruising more than 3000 miles away from their beloved island. If there's one thing about Cape Bretoner's as the song goes "One thing I know wherever I go there's always friends from back home".

From a sailor's perspective I found that Sailing Away From Winter can be used as a reference book for those of us planning to navigate the Intracoastal Waterway while keeping company with the family pet, a travel guide of good marinas along the ICW, and maybe most importantly a guide for diesel engine repair. As any seasoned cruiser knows: The sailing is the easy part of the cruise, it's knowing how to fix things that really count. Well done Captain.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Misleading, January 2, 2009

By	Duffy (Boston, MA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sailing Away from Winter: A Cruise from Nova Scotia to Florida and Beyond (Paperback)

First off the title and cover are misleading because the Cameron's didn't really sail Magnus down the Atlantic coast, they drove it, not unlike an old Range Rover driving down I-95. A major reoccurring theme throughout the book is getting Leo (aka BFD), their self proclaimed old lumpy dog, ashore every 10 - 12 hours to relieve himself. If that doesn't stir your excitement the book is full of local yarns that would put even the characters they were about to sleep. If you're looking for a book about a sailing adventure do yourself a favor and keep looking.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A vividly detailed recounting of the joys and perils of navigating the ocean in an aged Norwegian-built ketch, April 6, 2007

By	Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

"Sailing Away From Winter: A Cruise From Nova Scotia to Florida and Beyond" is the true-life memoir of Canadian columnist Silver Donald Cameron, who dared to make his dreams of a sea voyage come true. With his wife and their beloved dog, he traveled more than three thousand nautical miles in 236 days, visiting towns dotting the coast from Nova Scotia to Florida, crossing the Gulf Stream, experiencing the Bahamas, and much more. A vividly detailed recounting of the joys and perils of navigating the ocean in an aged Norwegian-built ketch, the camaraderie shared with other cruisers, and much more. Highly recommended.