This is it! After years of preparation, we’re finally untying the dock lines, leaving our homeport, and pointing our bow south.

Our first stop is Chicago, Illinois. It’s 50 nautical miles from Racine, Wisconsin, to Belmont Harbor, where our friends Katharine and Jon have offered us the use of their mooring ball — and their apartment which overlooks Belmont Harbor! — for the weekend we’ll be in Chicago.

During our sail south, we pass our old neighborhood, Rogers Park, and reminisce about the time we spent years ago walking that same beach, looking out over the water, dreaming about living aboard our own boat one day. Now, looking back at that beach (also where Kirk proposed to me) from the water, our dream has become reality.

In Chicago, we meet up with Will and Kat from the YT sailing channel, Monday Never. They invite us for dinner, and we discuss fishing, the Caribbean and get tips for our own adventure when we reach warmer waters.

The weekend is full of festivities. Our friends and family travel to Chicago to participate in our boat renaming ceremony, to wish us bon voyage, and even celebrate my birthday.

We can’t thank all of you enough — friends, family, and all of you watching these videos —  who have helped make this sailing adventure possible.

Much love!

Lauren & Kirk

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P.S. If you’d like more Sailing Soulianis content or would like to support our video production, consider becoming a patron here: https://www.patreon.com/sailingsoulianis

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WE’RE LOOKING FOR MUSIC! If you or someone you know makes good tunes, give us a shout at hello@sailingsoulianis.com.

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Music:
On To New Adventures – Wandersound https://soundcloud.com/wandersoundradio
Smile – Dixxy https://soundcloud.com/dixxy-2
Got To Be – Ventura https://open.spotify.com/artist/6TjmxaVWCChC5Vyzm8HPSX
Diggin It-JP – Rochelle Rochelle https://jinglepunks.com
Vegas Strip – Auracle https://jinglepunks.com
Adventures – A Himitsu https://youtu.be/8BXNwnxaVQE

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Our camera gear:
Canon 80D – http://amzn.to/2D6T6kO
Canon M6 – http://amzn.to/2Dyzya0
DJI Mavic Pro – http://amzn.to/2FEiQGT
RODE VideoMic GO – http://amzn.to/2FEfOSZ
GoPro Hero 6 Black – https://amzn.to/2G3ZCtk
FeiyuTech G6 Gimbal – https://amzn.to/2JHoSfE