"I have fond childhood memories of kids messing about on the bridges of barges. I really envied them because they never had to go to school and I imagined the Rhine snaking down to the open sea and to freedom!"
After a good many years of hopping about on dry land, almost 15 of which were spent in the frosts of Canada, Erica Humbert-Droz began to taste that freedom. With a manual in one hand and the tiller of a sailing boat - a Micro-Challenger - in the other, she quickly learnt to sharpen her tactics thanks to the changeable winds of Lake Geneva. Then she went on her first Mediterranean cruise, where the dangerous sailing of a skipper on a faulty boat made her decide to get her sea-worthy licence.
One thing led to another for this registered nurse, artist peinter (creation of the "Trans-Reflexion Art"), photographer and producer of video films: the Swiss Cruising Club asked her to shoot a promotional film and offers started coming in as second-in-command for regattas and training cruises. For her, a woman, being second was unthinkable! Nevertheless, she rose to the challenge. It is only a hop from the Mediterranean to the Caribbean, and so after a sea-crossing she found herself in the West Indies.
| Having become a skipper herself in the meantime, she now shares her passion for the sea with children aged between 6 and 75 |  |
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Interested? |
Today, if you ask the so-called ‘barefoot skipperette’ what the most difficult part of sailing is as a woman, she will reply: "Although physical strength is sometimes necessary, it’s not indispensable. Confronted by the sea, I do feel quite small, but always in harmony with her and the boat. I know just how far I can go, so long as I don’t fight her. However, coming ashore without forgetting to put shoes on, or even to dress……… everything just seems so uncomfortable! I’ve already been spotted barefoot and wearing a swimsuit in the local restaurant!"
Since 2004, my husband Pat has joined me
on Yamè II
… Little
additional information
In
1960, I was Photographer. I have practiced as a registered nurse from 1965 to 1995,
in Switzerland, France and Canada. My passion for sailing took place the 1rst
time in 1985 on the Lake of Geneva (“Lac Léman”) and since, I have been sailing on Sea
for more than 19 years. I am Member of the
CCS (Cruising Club of Switzerland).
Holder of a Swiss High - Sea navigation licence. Skipper CCS training in 1990. A
Transatlantic in 1992 allowed me to discover the Caribbean where I have
organized and skipped cruises during 10 years between December and March.
A question people often ask: “… how many miles did you cover in Sea”? The
answer is, if you are also interested to know:
until today (2009) about 67’000.