FUBAR Odyssey: Presented by San Diego Yacht Club and Mexico Tourism Board

SWEDE DREAMS

BOAT NAME: Swede Dreams BOAT TYPE: Northern Marine 64 LRC SKIPPER: Melvin Carlson EXPERIENCE: 40 Years CLUB: Seattle Yacht Club BUILT: 2001 PURCHASED: 2006
FAVORITE DESTINATION: There are actually too many to name but Tracy Arm in Alaska was very special. Being able to travel up a beautiful, narrow fjord-like inlet to a glacier surrounded by numerous floating "bergs", some the size of houses, takes your breath away.
FAVORITE BOATING EXPERIENCE: We love cruising everywhere in the Pacific Northwest but exploring the Queen Charlotte Islands tops the list. We fished off Langara Island and along the entire west coast of Graham Island. After traveling through the channel north of Morsby Island, we spent the next several weeks in Gwaaii Haanas National Park Reserve. It is so remote and beautiful!
ABOUT THE CREW: I am a pediatric ophthalmologist and my wife is a dentist. We have been cruising in the Pacific Northwest every summer since 1982, having been to Alaska 6 times. We are bringing along as additional crew our French bulldog, Swedie (ChouChou), and our cat, Valentino. Another crew member is Ron Peterson, a retired dentist who has cruised with us in the past. He lives in San Diego and operated a charter boat called the "Reel King" for many years. He has his 100 ton captain's license and has fished as far south as Magdalena Bay and in the Sea of Cortez.
WHAT'S IN A NAME: "SWEDE DREAMS" My parents were born in Sweden and I owned numerous boats with them over the years. My father was very proud of his heritage and when we bought our 42' Uniflite in 1984, the name seemed to be a perfect fit. We have kept this name with our newer boats ever since.
REASON FOR PURCHASING THIS BOAT: I had always been impressed with the design and quality of construction of every Northern Marine vessels I had seen. The fact that Bruce Kessler would purchase the first one, after owning a similar fantastic vessel built by Delta, was the best recommendation I could think of.
PREVIOUS BOATS OWNED: 17' Norseman, 19' Pacific Mariner, 26' Cruisers Chalet Vee, 42' Uniflite DC, 58' West Bay.
INTEREST IN THE FUBAR ODYSSEY: This is the beginning of an extended cruising adventure we expect will last for the next several years. We look forward to meeting others who share our passion for being on the water. We plan to continue south after FUBAR, eventually transiting the Panama Canal and heading up the east coast of the United States. Who knows, the Med may be next!
BOATING STORY: When cruising in the Northwest I usually tow a 17' Boston Whaler to use as a water taxi and for fishing. I had anchored in Prudeaux Haven and pulled up my anchor to leave. As we were passing other boats in the harbor, we noticed that everyone was wildly waving at us. At first I thought they were just being friendly until I realized that they were saying that my Whaler was sinking. I forgot that I had rafted my Whaler with the stern toward the bow of my boat so water was coming over the transom. Fortunately Whalers are 'unsinkable" and I was able to bail out the water while everyone had a good laugh.