If climbers see something high, they want to summit it. It seems that if sailors see a landmark, their desire is to circumnavigate it, instead.

That urge drove David and Rebecca Kilmer to undertake a major exploration in their 36-foot sailboat, Liberte, around British Columbia's wild Vancouver Island in the spring of 2009.

They will present a travelogue of their journey at 7 p.m. Thursday, June 14, at the Coeur d'Alene Public Library as part of the series "Novel Destinations." Admission is free and popcorn will be served.

The Kilmers and their Coeur d'Alene-area crew, Bill Bell, Scott Galbraith and Chris Rundlett - plus a Jack Russell dog named Sammy - completed the journey over eight weeks and 750 or more nautical miles.

"I asked the old salts how long we should take, and they told me, as much time as you've got," David Kilmer said. "There's a lot to explore. We found hot springs, waterfalls, tons of wildlife and wilderness you'd only see by boat."

Much of the trip took Liberte into remote areas, where self-sufficiency, strong currents, marked and unmarked hazards, potential weather and open seas all needed to be factored into the planning.

Kilmer said he'd been contemplating the adventure for five years, and spent the last year or two before the trip outfitting his sailboat with the right gear for safety and the means to live onboard for extended periods of time. Liberte generates solar and wind power, and can make its own drinking water by processing ocean water.

The trip had three goals, Kilmer said: Go around the island in a counterclockwise direction, use pure sail power rather than the engine whenever possible, and stop in many interesting ports of call along the way.

David, Scott and Chris departed from Bellingham, Wash., in mid-April, after three days of boat preparation and a massive Costco run. They cleared into Canada in Nanaimo, B.C., and then headed for the fabled Desolation Sound. This is as remote as many cruising sailboats get. In Liberte's case, it was merely the jump-off to head much farther northwest.

Bill Bell joined the trip in Port Hardy in time to sail around the rugged northwest tip of the island, Cape Scott. By the time the boat reached warmer weather and calmer waters, the rest of the crew had returned home, and Rebecca and David (and their dog) were alone as they sailed out of Victoria, B.C., and "crossed their wake" in the San Juan Islands to complete the trip.

Along the way, the boat visited the Broughton Islands, a remote archipelago on the Inside Passage. Some of the most special moments were meeting people who lived and worked in these out-of-bounds places. The Kilmers also had some amazing wildlife sightings, and evocative encounters with history from the days of First Nations and early naval exploration.

The weather contrasted from cold, grey storms to a beautiful 86 degrees and sunshine when the boat was tied up in front of the Empress Hotel in Victoria Harbour.

It turns out that Liberte did not stop cruising after Vancouver Island. That circumnavigation whetted the Kilmers' appetite, and owners and crew took their boat down the western coastline to Oregon, California and Mexico.

After cruising Mexico, Liberte is now in Central America. The Kilmers come and go from the boat by the season, and are planning to visit Costa Rica and transit the Panama Canal next. Their goal is to sail the unspoiled waters of Cuba soon.

Yet with all those exotic anchorages in their wake, it is the Northwest's own waters that exert a special tug on their memories.

"Vancouver Island is a place none of us will forget," Kilmer said. "It was way beyond our imaginations. I look forward to sharing the trip."