Welcome to Reel and Rudder, a blog for exploring a lifelong fascination with all things marine and a desire to make them accessible to everyone.

My name is Matt and I have always had a passion for all things water. Since a child, I have always had this unwavering love for swimming, boat rides, and being near water. On our yearly trip to Myrtle Beach with the family, I remember feeling so invigorated and excited to smell the salty sea air and get out on the piers for a closer look at the action. We took deep sea fishing trips as a young kid that gave me an appreciation for the vastness of the ocean (and my dad and uncle's dependence on dramamine). All in all, I was absolutely awestruck by the beauty of the ocean and inter-coastal waterways.

Life, of course, got in the way. I started my countless years of college and graduate education in Pittsburgh, PA, which is by the way 303 miles due west from the coast. I have always had this dream of living a life where I could go sailing, boating, kayaking, and diving in my free time away from the hospital. Unfortunately, I have to be in Pittsburgh for work for the foreseeable future, making actually attaining this dream seem more and more unlikely. In the mean time, I have watched countless shows on Disney Plus about living in remote ports in Alaska and spent countless hours watching YouTubers like Sailing La Vagabond or Sailing Zatara explore the open ocean. AKA despite this longterm fascination, I have never actually done anything to explore my interests or build skills that I could use once I have the ability to get to the water.

I noticed myself using the excuse that since I wasn't in my ideal location, on the coast, I would have to wait to get my feet wet (pun intended), despite living in a city literally known for its 446 bridges and three rivers. I also realized that I was only 1.5 hours away from the lake that I grew up kayaking and swimming in as a child as well as 2 hours away from one of the five great lakes, Lake Erie. It finally dawned on me that perhaps the problem was not my location, but a symptom of society's trend toward inactivity. It became clear to me that I was never going to do all of the things I had dreamed about for so long if I didn't start exploring them here and now. It was time to put the phone down, close the YouTube browser, and make some memories for myself. This blog is an attempt to keep myself accountable and share my experiences in exploring this incredible hobby. My goals are to 1. get off the couch and explore and 2. provide a kind of guide on how to get out there and start exploring yourselves. Thanks for taking the time and I hope this content is helpful for others trying to get off the couch and explore all things outdoor watersports.