Author Judith Bauer Gilman was born on January 12th, under the sign of Capricorn, in Rome, New York. She graduated from Utica School of Commerce, and was employed as an Executive Secretary and Administrative Assistant for companies in New York, Ohio and Florida. With her former husband, Judi owned and operated several companies in Central Florida before marrying Daniel Trimble Gilman III in 1971.

Following a severe slump in the Central Florida economy in the mid-1970 and the collapse of their Real Estate business, Judi sailed away to the Bahamas with her husband on their aging wooden sailboat, Capricorn. After a close brush with death in a boating accident in the Exumas, the couple made their way to St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgins, arriving in 1977, where they found work in the crewed charter industry, taking guests aboard their boat for week long cruises through the British Virgin Islands. In 1980 they sold their sailboat and purchased a classic 1947 Trumpy Motor Yacht to continue their charter career.

From 1980 until 1999 Judi owned and operated a Charter Tour Company in the British Virgin Islands with her husband. Their luxury yachts provided crewed vacations for guests from around the world, and guests often returned to cruise every year. Guests referred to Judi’s cooking as “Great Cuisine of the Sea”, raving about the delicious meals that were tastefully prepared and elegantly presented on Capricorn Lady.

For many years, Judi was the volunteer Secretary of the Charter Yacht Society of the BVI, doing the business of the Society from the crew area of Capricorn Lady. She worked with boats and agents to organize Charter Yacht Shows in the British Virgins, spotlighting BVI crewed charter operators as a recognized and valued part of the country’s economy.

After selling Capricorn Lady to a charter guest in 1999, Judi left the islands with her husband. Their partnership of almost 40 years is a love story that cannot be ended by his death from Lung Cancer in 2003.

Judi lives with her two cats, and Yorki Dog, in a historic 100-year-old building in Florence, Oregon on the scenic Oregon Coast, on the banks of the Siuslaw River. Her tiny bookstore, Captain’s Lady, is a favorite stop for locals and tourists, specializing in books on a wide variety of categories such as Philosophy, Poetry, Native American Culture, Spirituality, and Religion. Captain’s Lady sells incense and pirate flags, sarongs and wind chimes, and many other items both old and new; there is something for everyone in Captain’s Lady Store, especially friendly conversation.

Judi sells books through her online store at Amazon.com, and helps her two daughters, Barbara and Lauri, in their antique mall in Florence, Oregon. She stays in touch with her friends in the Caribbean, and often assists clients to find the perfect yacht to cruise the peaceful islands of the British Virgins.

In the winter, Judi is General Manager for a large Snowmobile Tour Company in the Colorado Mountains. She lives and works at 12,000 feet, continuing the mountain adventure she embarked on with her husband. In her “spare time”, she writes, paints, and enjoys her grandchildren.

The author’s first book, The Voyage Of The Capricorn Lady, Book 1, Lost at Sea With Daniel T., and her second, The Voyage Of The Capricorn Lady, Book 2, The Shadow Of His Smile, represent a loving tribute to her husband. The books are a response to the plea of one of her husband’s children to know the complete story of what happened when they were young.

The third book in the Voyage series will be called Voyage Of The Capricorn Lady, Somewhere Beyond The Sea.

Judi is presently working on her third book, a Fantasy called OHNALEE set on the Oregon Coast in the early 1900s. This book will be the first in the Dragon Mer Trilogy.