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Meet Tim & Donna

Two careers. One catamaran. A whole lot of ocean.

Our Story

We didn't plan to become sailors.

Honestly, we kind of stumbled into it. Tim had a career in medicine. Donna had a career in law. We sailed recreationally for years — small cabin cruisers, racing dinghies, our lake-bound 35' monohull, the occasional bareboat charter — and somewhere along the way, the seed was planted. What if we went bigger? What if we expanded our fleet and went all in?

We did a lot of research. We went to the Miami International Boat Show (wow — just wow). We took a few more charters on catamarans. We had a lot of honest conversations about what we really wanted retirement to look like. And eventually, we bought a brand-new 42-foot Leopard sailing catamaran and based it in the British Virgin Islands through the Moorings program.

We named her the Irish Wake.

That decision set off a chain of events that has taken us around the Caribbean and the Med and soon to French Polynesia...and beyond. We've sailed with close friends who had never set foot on a sailboat. We've watched people who were convinced they'd be seasick discover they weren't. We've had crew members who arrived skeptical walk off the boat two weeks later talking about buying their own cat.

This is how Blue Horizon Adventures was born — not as a charter business exactly, but as a way to spend time with friends and make new friends who want to see what charter sailing is like from the inside.

Captain Tim McNamara on a beach in the BVIs
Meet your captain

Captain Tim

Skipper · Navigator · Resident Knot Enthusiast

Tim spent his career as a physician and healthcare informaticist and brought the same meticulous, evidence-based approach to becoming a competent sailor. He holds a current international sailing license (SLC) and has accumulated a sailing resume and logbook that are available upon request to any prospective guest.

What that means in practice: Tim takes safety seriously, plans passages carefully, reads the weather obsessively, and generally has everything under control — while also making sure everyone on board is having an unreasonable amount of fun.

He makes good coffee. His sailing playlist leans heavily on Cartman covering "Come Sail Away." He will try to teach you to tie a bowline whether you want to learn it or not...but can read the room and knows when you're probably more into NOT than KNOT.

  • ✓ International Sailing License (SLC) & relevant credentials
  • ✓ Sailing logbook & resume available upon request
  • ✓ Decades of sailing experience across multiple vessel types
  • ✓ Retired physician — serious about health & safety protocols
  • ✓ Has sailed the BVIs, Croatia, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Greece, Sicily & more
Admiral Donna McNamara at The Baths, Virgin Gorda, BVI
Meet your admiral

Admiral Donna

Admiral · Co-Founder · The Reason This Trip Actually Works

Donna spent her career as an attorney and brought the same organizational precision and strategic clarity to life aboard the Irish Wake. The Admiral title is fully earned — and not at all ironic. She knows the ropes — literally — and can confidently handle everything that comes up while underway. But, in all honesty, she'd be just as happy to hand the lines to an enthusiastic new crew member, provided they are comfortable with the tasks that need to be done. (She's always happy to guide, coach, and help if needed.)

As Admiral, she provides the final sanity check on any of the Captain's schemes. She's the one who helps make the strategic go/no-go call if there is any doubt about the weather or conditions.

Her favorite spot underway is the forward cockpit with the beanbags, watching the bows part the water. She has successfully used the scopolamine patch for seasickness on every trip. She is excellent at trivia games and will absolutely beat you.

  • ✓ Retired attorney with decades of professional experience
  • ✓ Chief Trivia Officer — undefeated, unapologetic
  • ✓ Shapes the guest experience from first inquiry through final day
  • ✓ Veteran of sailing trips across the Caribbean and Med
  • ✓ First-hand experience managing & overcoming seasickness concerns
Come along

Come Join Us

If the vibe of our charters resonates with you, we'd love to chat. We'll be casting off whether the boat is full or not. If you'd like to join one of these trips, give us a ping.

Send us a note →
Tim and Donna together on a white sand beach in the BVIs
Our philosophy

How we run our charters

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Safety First — Always

We don't push boundaries with weather or conditions. If conditions are rough, we find somewhere beautiful to anchor instead. We carry full safety equipment and run a thorough briefing on day one.

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Your Preferences Drive the Itinerary

Every evening we hold an informal crew meeting to plan the next day. Want a quiet beach day? Done. Want to push on to a new destination? Let's go. This is your trip.

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Honest Information

We'll tell you what it's really like — the spectacular parts and the unsexy logistics. If catamaran ownership or chartering is on your mind, we'll give you a real picture, not a sales pitch.

Ready to meet us?

The best first step is a conversation.

Drop us a note and tell us a little about yourselves — where you're dreaming of sailing, what questions you have, and what's on your mind. We write back personally.

Get in Touch See Available Dates