About us

Shawnae: 

 I am 50 years old. How did that happen? I have moved around quite a bit in my lifetime but Montana is where I call home. I have two fabulous boys, that have made my life rich. I previously worked in a health food store as a produce manager ordering only organic foods and mostly local. Since then, Mark needed help at his CPA practice so I quit my job so that we could work together. It has gone marvelously well and it makes it easier for us to go on our trips together. My love and passion is the water and the sun. If those 2 things are present, I am there.  Mark and I are a dynamic duo and have such an amazing time traveling together. The adventures that we have together just get better and better.

Mark: 

I'm a little older than that, of Shawnae . . . but not a lot!!  grin.    My days are spent at my CPA practice in Kalispell.  But evenings and weekends usually will find me on one of our boats.   Love the water and being around it.    I have been in Montana now for 27 years.   According to the old timers here that doesn't yet qualify as a "real Montanan", but I'm thinking it's getting close enough.  Four kids call me Dad , with one still at home. They frequently accompany us on our adventures.  Shawnae is an awesome "First Mate".  Although, if there is any sunshine outside, she's usually adorning the fore-deck in her bikini!

About us: 

We met online. We had both been told about the horror stories of online dating and living in small towns in Montana, we took our chances. We chatted for 3 months and then met each other in Las Vegas when Mark had a work convention. We hit it off right away. We dated long distance (6 hour drive) for a year, visiting every week. I moved to Kalispell and I have been here for 7 years now.

We live in Montana, it is 4 months of warm weather that we can have fun on the water. We experience every season which is a beauty. Though when October hits, I must say, "why do I live here?" The winters are cold, wet and down right nasty.

We learned how to sail with a friend on Flathead Lake.  We were hooked. We went in search for a sailboat all the way to Seattle and we found our 1973 Catalina 27 pretty much in our own backyard. We had a few great years with her. We refitted her so that we could trailer her to Florida and sail the Bahamas. We did just that and had an amazing trip. We got married in Hope Town, Bahamas on that trip. We have been hooked to ocean sailing since. However, it was that trip that few decided, "We need a bigger boat".

We purchased Firefly, a 2001 Catalina 320 out of Ft. Lauderdale, FL. We flew down there and gave her a sea trial to the Keys and love her. She sails marvelously and really is at her finest in heavy winds. We found a marina to leave her on the hard and we flew down 2 more times to sail her to the Bahamas. The last trip we trailered her home to Montana.

Our next trip is planned for 2018. We will trailer Firefly to Seattle and sail her through the San Juans, the inside passage of British Columbia and up through Alaska. The researching of our trips are so much fun for the building anticipation.


Long term is 4 years: We are planning on selling everything, quitting our jobs, trailer Firefly back to Florida and live in the Caribbean for 5 years. We will then sell her and buy a blue water boat and sail around the world.

And through all of this we will blog our adventures, trials and tribulations. We will enjoy sharing our experiences.