All good things have to come to an end sometime, don’t they? We asked ourselves this question many times in August and September last year, along with a whole lot more. When to stop sailing, how to stop sailing, where to stop sailing, or where to go next?
The answer will be different for everybody but for us the main considerations revolved around what was right for the boys, and some economic realities. In Fiji, having explored some of the more remote islands and mulled over our options with cruising friends, we came to a decision.
Pushing on to get back to Europe was going to be a rush. We’d need to leave Fiji quickly and head for Vanuatu. After that it was getting late in the season to cross Torres Strait just north of Australia and we’d have wanted to go north of Papua New Guinea anyway (to Raja Ampat). Either way, if we were going to carry on round, we needed to leave soon and we weren’t ready to quit paradise!
We also couldn’t afford to be away for more than two years so we’d have to make it to Thailand for January, to cross the Indian Ocean in February before battling our way up the Red Sea to Suez and into the Mediterranean.
This wasn’t going to be the same downwind sleigh ride we’d had for the first 16,000 miles and by the end, the boat was going to be pretty battered.
Denne historien er fra May 2023-utgaven av Yachting World.
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Denne historien er fra May 2023-utgaven av Yachting World.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
5 EXPERT TIPS BOB BEGGS ON SAILING IN COLD WEATHER
As temperatures drop, Andy Rice gets tips on how to handle the cold from self-confessed Arctic weather fan and winning Clipper Round the World Race skipper Bob Beggs
SPECIAL REPORT EXTENDED CRUISING IN THE BALTIC
Sweden offers cruisers a warm welcome for winter - Janneke Kuysters has advice on how to boost your sailing time in the region
NIKKI HENDERSON
SEARCHING FOR MORE SPEED? BEFORE TINKERING WITH TINY ADJUSTMENTS, MAKE SURE YOU'VE GOT THE BASICS RIGHT THE POWER DRIVING THE BOAT
MATTHEW SHEAHAN
WHAT WILL THE BOATS OF THE 38TH AMERICA'S CUP LOOK LIKE? THAT'S THE $20 MILLION QUESTION IF BRITAIN OR NEW ZEALAND DECIDE TO DEPART FROM THE AC75
60-knot squalls hit Middle Sea Race
The 45th running of the Mediterranean offshore, the Rolex Middle Sea Race, saw a spectacularly random mix of conditions - even for a race which is famed for its variable weather patterns.
Italy win first Women's Cup
The first ever Women's America's Cup was won by Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli after a single, twoboat shoot-out final on 12 October.
'Three-peat' for ETNZ
As Defender, Emirates Team New Zealand came into this year's 37th America's Cup as clear favourites. But the Kiwi camp has far more than just the structural advantage of being the ones that wrote the Protocol for the competition, and the originators of the AC75 concept.
ROOM WITH A VIEW
SWEDISH DESIGNER GABRIEL HEYMAN POURED A LIFETIME OF IDEAS INTO THIS PILOT SALOON CRUISER, WHICH INCLUDES ARGUABLY THE LARGEST COCKPIT AVAILABLE AT THIS SIZE
LIVING HISTORY
THE ICONIC SEASON-CLOSING REGATTA LES VOILES DE SAINT TROPEZ WAS AN IMMERSIVE HISTORY LESSON FOR CROSBIE LORIMER
CHANGE OF PLAN
LEAVING AUSTRALIA, MARIANNE URTH NEVER PLANNED TO MAKE LANDFALL IN THE ISLANDS OF VANUATU, BUT THE EXPERIENCE WAS MAGICAL
