🎉 🎂🎈 BIG 50 TODAY 🎈🎂🎉

Birthdays Adrift: 4 Nights of Strangers, Laughs and Candlelight!

One of the best parts of sailing around the world is the people. Strangers turn into family overnight through shared experiences, and before long you’re sharing meals, laughter, and stories that shine like polished brass in the sun. Birthdays out here aren’t about big gatherings—they’re about connection, especially since I’m sailing solo. Each friendship glows like bioluminescence, turning solitude into unforgettable memory.

2022 – Bay of Islands, Fiji (47th Birthday)

My first birthday out was in the Lao group, Bay of Islands in Fiji. Picture it: remote limestone cliffs crowned with lush green trees, a crystal-clear bay shimmering below—almost uninhabited, and breathtakingly beautiful. My friend Dylan and I went poking around in the dinghy and stumbled onto the perfect anchorage. There we found SV Ripple Effect, rolled over, chatted, and next thing you know we were invited for sundowners. One of us must have let slip it was my birthday, because when we came back that evening they surprised me with a cupcake, a candle, and a chorus of strangers belting “Happy Birthday.” Simple. Unexpected. Perfect. Like winning the lottery, but the jackpot was kindness.

2023 – Lombok, Indonesia (48th Birthday)

The next year I was in Lombok, at Marina Del Ray on the island of Gili Gede—a place I love. Remote from most of civilization, yet central for diving, surfing, and exploring between Lombok, Nusa Penida, Bali, and the Gillies. I met a kind family on a catamaran there, and my friend Sebastion with his wife and daughters on SV Bliss. They had left the day before for some exploring, but came back specifically so I wouldn’t be alone on my birthday. I was so stoked I even got dressed up like it was prom night at sea! Earlier that week I’d gifted one of the bartenders my guitar, and that night he strummed away while we all sang. The whole island was blacked out—no lights anywhere—but there we were, cake and music and laughter, glowing brighter than the missing grid. Once again, strangers-turned-friends made sure I didn’t spend the day alone.

2024 – Nosy Be, Madagascar (49th Birthday)

Last year I was in Nosy Be, Madagascar. SV Ayla, SV Atlas, and SV Champagne were anchored nearby. I’ve become good friends with all three of these boats—comrades forged in the same foxhole, bound by the trials of crossing the Indian Ocean, the most notorious passage on this route. So few attempt it that everyone out there ends up sharing hard-won knowledge and carrying the unspoken bond of those who’ve faced it together. Their kids went all out for me—baked a cake, decorated it, made me cards, and sang Happy Birthday. The whole place was magic—jungles, lemurs, colors straight out of a dream—but it was the people who made it unforgettable. Kind, generous, larger-than-life—the type of friends you never expect to find, yet somehow do, bobbing at anchor in the middle of nowhere.

2025 – Shelter Bay, Panama (50th Birthday)

This year I’m celebrating the BIG 50 at Shelter Bay Marina in Colón, Panama. The plan was to have a bit of din-din with some friends I’ve met along the way. My buddy Sam and his crew, who I first met last year in Langkawi—we’ve since crossed paths in Mauritius, Martinique, and now here again—were supposed to be there. My good friend Russ, someone I’ve been talking with for about three years, has also popped up in places like Sorong and Madagascar. He came too. Unfortunately, B3 was struck by lightning last night, so the boys weren’t able to make it. Still, I had a great dinner with Russ—we talked boats and tales of the sea, and afterward the staff brought out a birthday sundae with a sparkler and sang Happy Birthday. Low-key and great—the kind of birthday that proves the universe keeps sending me the greatest people.

Also, before I left the States last week to come back down here, I had a birthday steak dinner and cake with my parents in South Carolina. Mom wasn’t about to let me leave without a little celebration. No photos were taken, of course—we always forget.

I’d be lying if I didn’t say I miss having my family and friends from back home here with me today—or perhaps even a special woman to share it with. Maybe I’ll stumble across one in the marina who’s looking for a salty sailor and a life of adventure. Doubt it. 🤔 Still, here I am, surrounded by awesome humans who always turn my birthdays into nights worth bottling. Out here, the sea takes a lot, but it sure gives back in people, and that’s more than enough to raise a glass to. ❤️❤️❤️

Days Sober: 2,087

Today, that sober count holds a special weight. Looking back on the 25

years that preceded it, the odds of me ever seeing 50 were about as good as a popsicle surviving in a sauna.

Milestones like this make me stop and laugh as much as they make me reflect—the wild things I’ve done, the ridiculous scrapes I’ve survived, the incredible people I’ve met, and the hard-won lessons I’ve somehow picked up along the way. I’ve been absurdly lucky with the human beings I’ve been surrounded by, and I sure as hell wouldn’t be here without each and every one of you.