Trust me, one does not “saunter” through the wild Southern Ocean or the chilly Northwest Passage one “hauls ass” as quickly as possible.
The sea is my reverent place, though I would quibble here a bit. Away back in the Middle Ages, people used to go on pilgrimages to the Holy Land, and when people in the villages through which they passed asked where they were going, they would reply, ‘ A la sainte terre’…‘To the Holy Land.’ And so, they became known as ‘sainte-terre-ers’ or ‘saunterers.’ Now, these mountains are our Holy Land, and we ought to saunter through them reverently, not ‘hike’ through them.”īingo, Johnny. People ought to saunter in the mountains, not ‘hike’! Do you know the origin of that word saunter? It’s a beautiful word. That is, until very recently.Īctually, I’m being a bit disingenuous, because the word popped onto my radar screen and refused to leave many years ago after reading the following quote from noted author, naturalist and outdoorsman John Muir: The problem is, I’d never actually owned a laid-back vessel that did anything of the sort (twitchy J/24s and J/30s most assuredly do not “saunter”). Brian Megleyįor reasons that are mostly unclear, even to me, I’ve always wanted to name a boat Saunter.
As I sailed past his mooring, my mate Brian Megley took the very first photo of Saunter and me, with her new handle, soon after I’d performed the renaming ritual.
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