{"id":542,"date":"2015-11-09T01:02:37","date_gmt":"2015-11-09T06:02:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/activeseniorsdigest.ca\/wp_activeseniorsdigest\/?p=542"},"modified":"2015-11-09T01:02:37","modified_gmt":"2015-11-09T06:02:37","slug":"hitting-the-high-seas-setting-sail-to-panama-for-retirement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/activeseniorsdigest.ca\/wp_activeseniorsdigest\/?p=542","title":{"rendered":"Hitting the high seas: Setting sail to Panama for retirement"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Ace<\/a>
Former GM worker Ace Pixley and his dog Marion hit the high seas earlier this year, making their way down to Panama, where Pixley is planning to retire. Speaking prior to his departure, Pixley says the adventure he was about to embark on has been years in the making.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

By Graeme McNaughton<\/strong>\/Active Senior’s Digest<\/p>\n

By the time you read this, Ace Pixley will be long gone from Canada \u2013 he\u2019ll be well on his way to Panama. And he\u2019s not coming back.<\/p>\n

\u201cI sold my house on Kijiji, paid off all my debt and I\u2019m taking the boat and taking off,\u201d Pixley said while talking with Active Senior’s Digest at the Whitby Marina, where he kept his boat, prior to his departure.<\/p>\n

The decision to make the big move to Panama \u2013 Pixley says he plans on retiring there \u2013 has been decades in the making.<\/p>\n

\u201cI worked at General Motors for 30 years and I\u2019d been researching Turks and Caicos, Belize, Costa Rica, Ecuador and all of the above of where to go and what kind of benefits they offer to retirees,\u201d Pixley says, adding that Panama appeared to offer the best options. \u201cI wanted some place off the beaten path, not in the city, what for theft and everything else.\u201d<\/p>\n

While many people, if retiring to a tropical paradise, would pack their suitcases and hit up the airport or make a road trip out of it, Pixley chose to do things a bit differently.<\/p>\n

The now former Canadian resident hit the open waters at the end of the summer in Neptun IV, which he had invested thousands of dollars into making worthy of a 5,000-plus-kilometre trip.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat haven\u2019t I done,\u201d Pixley replies after being asked what he had done to upgrade the ship. \u201cEverything from upgrading electronics to an extra chart plotter, radar, new dinghy, new motor\u2026forward-seeking sonar; you name it, it\u2019s been done. Everything\u2019s been checked, making sure it\u2019s OK. I\u2019m pretty mechanically inclined, so if something goes wrong, I should be able to repair it, and I\u2019ll have extra money in case something really goes wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pixely is making the trip alone, having never been married or having children. He did, however, give a warning to his girlfriend when they first met a decade ago that he didn\u2019t plan on sticking around Canada once he retired.<\/p>\n

The move to sailing eight years ago was a big jump for Pixley, who was more used to the motorized variety of water transport.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve had powerboats all my life, but I can\u2019t retire on a powerboat,\u201d he says. \u201cI figured, you know what, I\u2019ve never sailed in my life. Just decided to go, do it, and I started doing it. Before you know it, I was out on the lake and learning that way.\u201d<\/p>\n

For the trip to his new home \u2013 Pixley is making his new home in the villas at Red Frog, outside of Bocas del Toro \u2013 the future retiree said his plans are to get to New York City before putting up the masts, and then making his way down to Cuba before heading west to Panama.<\/p>\n

The trip, Pixley says, will be taken at a leisurely pace.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll see where it goes. I\u2019m retired, I\u2019m in no hurry. I\u2019ve got my medical (coverage) for 180 days,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Pixley says there will be a few things he\u2019ll miss about Canadian living.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s like starting a new life. It\u2019s a new chapter, but it\u2019s a new life. It\u2019s entirely different. I won\u2019t have my friends and that,\u201d he says. \u201cI\u2019m going to miss hockey. I played hockey for 50 years, but I\u2019ll be taking my sticks and skates, although I probably won\u2019t see much ice outside of a drink.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Graeme McNaughton\/Active Senior’s Digest By the time you read this, Ace Pixley will be long gone from Canada \u2013 he\u2019ll be well on his […] Read More<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":477,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nHitting the high seas: Setting sail to Panama for retirement - Active Senior's Digest<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/activeseniorsdigest.ca\/wp_activeseniorsdigest\/?p=542\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Hitting the high seas: Setting sail to Panama for retirement - Active Senior's Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Graeme McNaughton\/Active Senior’s Digest By the time you read this, Ace Pixley will be long gone from Canada \u2013 he\u2019ll be well on his […] Read More\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/activeseniorsdigest.ca\/wp_activeseniorsdigest\/?p=542\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Active Senior's Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2015-11-09T06:02:37+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/activeseniorsdigest.ca\/wp_activeseniorsdigest\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/ace_pixley_main.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"720\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"480\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"active\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/activeseniorsdigest.ca\/wp_activeseniorsdigest\/#website\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/activeseniorsdigest.ca\/wp_activeseniorsdigest\/\",\"name\":\"Active Senior's Digest\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"http:\/\/activeseniorsdigest.ca\/wp_activeseniorsdigest\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-CA\"},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsdigest.ca\/wp_activeseniorsdigest\/?p=542#primaryimage\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-CA\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsdigest.ca\/wp_activeseniorsdigest\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/ace_pixley_main.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsdigest.ca\/wp_activeseniorsdigest\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/ace_pixley_main.jpg\",\"width\":720,\"height\":480,\"caption\":\"Ace Pixley\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsdigest.ca\/wp_activeseniorsdigest\/?p=542#webpage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsdigest.ca\/wp_activeseniorsdigest\/?p=542\",\"name\":\"Hitting the high seas: Setting sail to Panama for retirement - 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