Chatham couple sells everything to sail, only to meet Florence
A couple left for the Caribbean six weeks ago to live a new life, but the deadly storm made them pause
As Hurricane Florence devastated the North Carolina coast, a Chatham couple hoped the storm wouldn't reach them as they hid out in a Delaware marina.
Tim Labute and his wife Candice Pletsch sold everything for a new start — where they plan to sail to the Caribbean — but the storm put a slight pause on their dream life.
"If things do go wrong, we can step off the boat and go to a hotel," said Labute, who's six weeks into his journey.
Luckily, the storm weakened, and on Saturday, they were able to continue their journey to their next stop, Annapolis, Md.
The boat he's on is about 35-feet-long, one smaller than some of their companions at the marina, he said.
But even with the threat of the storm, Labute doesn't have any regrets.
He described their desire to travel in a way that didn't consume many resources. As a sailor — though not one who had previously sailed in the ocean — a boat seemed to just make sense.
While some people would have had lots of trouble selling off their possessions, it wasn't the case for Labute.
"It was so freeing to watch the TV go, and watch the couch go, and watch all the kitchen stuff and you just feel so light," he said.
The hard part was actually the commitment and the worrying about whether they'd planned enough for the trip ahead.
Meanwhile, the couple is keeping family and friends up-to-date on their whereabouts through a website and a Facebook page.
They hope to reach Fort Lauderdale before sailing to the Caribbean.