North Wind is a Trintella, a 29ft longkeeler with fibreglass hull and wooden bulkhead, built in 1974. Shelley bought her in The Netherlands in 2008 and started preparing the boat for ocean passages. In 2010 she set sail and spent 3 years cruising fulltime, crossing the Atlantic Ocean single-handedly and exploring the Caribbean islands.

In 2013 boat & skipper landed in Bonaire and decided to make this beautiful island their new (part-time) home. North Wind was left in Bonaire so Shelley could work in The Netherlands during the summer, escaping the cold & wet Dutch winters working remote from the boat in Bonaire.

After 5 years in Bonaire both the boat and her skipper grew restless: it was time to start sailing again! March 2018 they finally set sail to cross to the San Blas Islands. Panama is their new (part-time) home now, with lots of beautiful islands and jungle coasts to be explored during the next winters.