Caribbean Compass Yachting Magazine - March 2020

— Continued from previous page
Compass contributors range from established authors to previously unknown
amateurs whose writing can be so good that, as Nicola Redway once said, “It makes
the hair on the backs of your arms stand on end.”
Having Mick Stevens
offer us cartoons
was like having
Mick Jagger offer to
sing with your band.
The internet has been a mixed blessing. Being able to send and receive articles,
photos and ads electronically, and read Compass online, makes everyone’s life easier.
But we miss the lively old debates that used to appear in the Readers’ Forum — now
cruisers seem to prefer to yell at each other on Facebook cruisers’ groups!
Cartoons have always been part of Compass, from the early “Landra’s World”
series by Landra Bench to the score of cartoonists whose work we’ve featured in
recent years. Having well known New Yorker cartoonist Mick Stevens walk into the
Compass office unexpectedly one day and offer his cartoons was, for me (a cartoonist
before I became an editor), like having Mick Jagger show up and ask if he could
sing with your band. An anniversary is time for fun, and on this issue’s cover we
present a celebratory take on our usual page 3 map by our newest cartoonist,
Sarah Steenland.
As we go into our 25th year of publication, we
continue to look forward to the lift we get when a
new article pops into our e-mail and we think, “Wow,
Compass readers are going to love this!”
All Aboard
Compass is pleased to be able to provide a platform
for contributors, readers, government agencies and
advertisers, providing linkages toward greater understanding
across the Caribbean recreational marine
scene. A few years ago we were talking with Fatty and
Carolyn Goodlander about our writing and publishing
goals, and Fatty remarked, “Aha, the Compass is
a community-building project!” Well, we’d never quite
thought of it that way before, but it turns out, judging
from many of the comments from readers and writers
you’ll see spread throughout this issue, that Fatty
was right. Caribbean Compass is a successful business,
it’s a popular publication, and yet — thanks to
you all — it’s become so much more.
Looking back, we are blown away.
So here’s to everyone who ever said, “Hey, I can do
that!” and went cruising, started racing, joined a
rally, wrote an article, opened a marine-related business,
supported an organization, or otherwise got
involved in the fascinating Caribbean marine scene.
Past, present and future, we’re all part of it.
We’ll continue celebrating Compass’s Silver
Jubilee Year throughout 2020 with notable articles from past issues,
“then and now” follow-ups, and more anniversary fun. Stay tuned!
Primitive promotion. One of
our early illustrators, Guy
Dean, painted this barrel in a
Carriacou rum shop in 1999.
Getting My Compass Bearings
The Caribbean Compass provides not only an excellent forum
for sailors to exchange valuable information, but also a platform
for aspiring writers. Most who step aboard a boat instantly
know they have the potential for a bestseller.
The then-pristine Virgin Islands captivated me in 1978: the vistas
with countless shades of blue, plus friendly people, great food,
and the clear sea. I couldn’t return to the gray, half-tone cities
and bone-numbing cold more for than a third of the year. The
Caribbean is an addiction that evolves into a lifestyle identity.
My first extended down-island voyage on my trusty trawler, the
Sea Cow, was in 1994. Equipped with a bulky Brother word processor,
I began documenting my landfalls. Moving south, I
fished and dove every island, made friends over pool tables.
From bar stools, I listened to mucho salty tales. Each new port
had off-the-wall characters comprising the flotilla of Caribbean
boozers, losers, and cruisers. Everyone had a story and some
were true. The Caribbean Compass began printing my articles
in 1998. Another Compass writer, Ed Teja, with his then-monthly
“Float Street Notes,” inspired me.
After months of exploring new places, all with smiling faces, I
dropped the hook in Admiralty Bay, Bequia, and spent six
months scouting the Grenadines, then on to Trinidad and
Venezuela. Canouan had only gotten electricity a few months
before and Mayreau still lit up by generator. The Compass continually
published my travelogues. Fish, dive, and write, and for
the next 20 years I touched every saltwater rock from Aruba to
Cuba, and the Compass was gracious to print my safe miniadventures.
Cuba and Carriacou still remain as gems where
time has slowed almost retaining the true, sweet essence of the
late-great Caribbean.
The camaraderie and friendship of the Caribbean Compass
instilled confidence, and I continued to write. Some Compass
issues had three of my articles. I’d swell and beam when I’d
enter a watering hole and see my “The Caribbean Bar Hall of
Fame” on the wall, or someone would comment, “Oh, you’re
Ralph! You write for the Compass. Hey, I like your stuff.”
Now, I’ve found enough time and have five books on Amazon
based on my Caribbean mishaps. I owe my literary insight and
regimen to the Compass. Every issue is a pleasure to read as
new authors relate their nautical tales.
Please stand by; my next book will be a bestseller!
Ralph Trout
Freelance feature writer
On the move
march 2020 CARIBBEAN COMPAss pAGE 25
Inspired by Latitude 38
Heartfelt congratulations on the publication of the 25th anniversary
issue of Caribbean Compass!
In the 40 years following my founding Latitude 38 sailing magazine
in 1977, the publishers of no fewer than eight marine publications
from Hong Kong to Turkey reported they were to at
least some extent inspired by Latitude 38. Of these, Caribbean
Compass has been the longest lasting and my favorite.
I have no idea how the Compass Crew deals with the logistical
problems of selling ads and delivering magazines across the
entire Eastern Caribbean crescent and beyond, but I’m
impressed. What I do know is that they have worked tirelessly to
produce a unique and interesting publication in times when the
publishing business is more difficult than ever.
Well done. May the Compass always guide readers
in your direction.
Richard Spindler, Founding Editor
Latitude 38
USA