Bull Canyon: A Boatbuilder, a Writer and Other Wildlife

by Lin Pardey

Overview

Lin Pardey and her husband Larry are internationally famous for their sailing adventures. In Bull Canyon Lin’s multiple award-winning retelling of Larry's careful coaxing of rough-sawn timber into the beautiful boat, Taleisin, is a funny, tender, and an engrossing tale. Now available for the first time in paperback.

Fresh from an eleven years-long sailing journey, where they forged the early years of their marriage on high seas and in exotic locales -- they came to California looking for a good spot to build a boat, test Lin’s skills as a writer and taste the apparent security life ashore could offer.

Nestled in a rocky outcropping of winding, sparsely populated dirt roads, 60 miles from the sea and 50 miles from Los Angeles, Bull Canyon would seem an unlikely place for boat-building. But when Lin and Larry set eyes on the abandoned stone cottage at the top of a rutted, dusty lane, it was love at first sight. The house was certainly a fixer-upper, but there was plenty of room to build a boat, not to mention peace, quiet, and an abundance of natural beauty. They knew they'd come home.

Bull Canyon would bring them joy, victories and failures but also packrats in the pantries, flooding rains, the occasional cougar, and an oddball collection of neighbors as ready to assist these hapless newcomers as they were to occasionally cause trouble. It would be a life lived close to the land. Life in the canyon would prove daunting, gritty, and dangerous, and a tougher bargain in the end than what they'd signed up for. But as tough as life could be there, Bull Canyon was, indeed, the place where dreams could come true.

It was here that Lin and Larry tapped into the affirming core of their marriage, accomplished back-breaking physical feats, and grew to love the magical environment. In the tradition of Under the Tuscan Sun and A Year in Provence, and more recently A Place in the World: Finding the Meaning of Home and My Twenty-Five Years In Provence Pardey takes readers on a voyage landlocked, but a voyage nonetheless of the heart, sharing candidly and with great humor the four years she and her determined husband spent in Bull Canyon.

Finalist, 2012 WILLA Literary Awards, Creative non-fiction Finalist 2012 IPBA Next Generation Literary Awards, Non-Fiction Finalist 2012 IPBA Next Generation Literary Award - Memoir

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781929214327
Publisher:	L&L Pardey
Publication date:	12/03/2024
Pages:	304
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Lin Pardey was born in Detroit, Michigan, and Larry in Victoria, British Columbia. They met in California in 1965 and were married in 1968. Lin and Larry Pardey lived the life many sailors aspire to. They circumnavigated the globe two times, more than 200,000 miles, on boats that they built with their own hands. Both boats were made of wood and were less than 30 feet in length. Neither boat had an engine or GPS. It is a remarkable story, which saw them both accepted into the National Sailing Hall of Fame in Newport, RI in 2022. Lin has written 12 books, and countless articles, while giving hundreds of lectures and producing instructional films. Sadley Larry died on July 27, 2020. Since that time Lin has remained an active sailor. She is a regular at US & Canadian boat shows and will announce the coming release of her new book at the 2024 Annapolis Sailboat Show in Annapolis, MD.

Editorial Reviews

Soon after meeting, Lin and Larry Pardey (The Cost Conscious Cruiser), two free and kindred spirits, set sale in "Seraffyn" from California, ultimately spending 11 years traversing the globe, writing articles about sailing to supplement their income. Back in southern California, their lives took a dramatic turn when they decided to take root in dry, brush-filled Bull Canyon, in a region prone to wild fires, and build a new boat—out of very flammable wood. With a cat named "Dog" to help manage their rat problem and a dog named "Cindy" running security, the Pardeys spent three years building the 29-foot sailboat, Taleisin, selling off Seraffyn, which had taken them around the world, to buy time. But Lin immediately felt cheated; was ,000 "enough to compensate for the freedom I'd given up?" This idea of freedom vs. security is like fuel for Bull Canyon; it practically runs on it. Their first two years in the canyon Lin spent countless hours getting phone lines installed, a crucial stepping stone toward electricity, which she achieved in their third summer (it too brought some regret). Occasionally Lin's musings meander into somewhat outdated realms (early feminism, for instance), but their accomplishment is significant, highly Romantic, and admirable. With many homespun snapshots included, readers may feel as if they're following the fantastic adventures of an old friend. Photos. (June)

Publishers Weekly