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| Barque Europa |
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| Different boat but same destination - Antarctica |
As my voyage became a reality, I kept these two pictures in my phone, one of Barque Europa and one of the Antarctic landscape, to look at often. When I told people I was going on a tall ship to Antarctica, most didn't visualise such a ship. I think they thought I meant a tall cruise ship. I'd flash them a look at these pictures and the penny would drop, their eyes would light up as the romance of the voyage sank in. Not everybody could see themselves taking such a voyage - in fact the mere thought of it made some sea sick, or just plain terrified. But others were lit up by the idea, and hopefully will be inspired in the future to do something similar.
My inspiration came after I'd lost my darling J in 2015, followed by my own illness in 2017. My 60th birthday was coming up at the end of 2018 and I wanted to go on a life affirming holiday. My heart was set on sailing.
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| Gallant |
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Gallant - Dad and Mum's
yacht |
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I have always loved sailing, having done lots of coastal sailing earlier
in my life.
My dad, Frank, had several sailing boats over time, and they played a big part in our family.
(NB:
Please forgive my photos - I currently don't have access to many pre
digital photos - they are in photo albums in a storage shed).
In 1986, I met and later married my second husband, my children's father. He owned a half share in a lovely 9m
timber Herreshoff ketch,
Roving Tar. She had been sailed to
Australia from Vancouver by her previous owners. We bought the other
half share and spent all our spare time on her for eight years. During this time we did a trip with friends on their yacht to Lord Howe Island, my first experience of ocean sailing.
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| Roving Tar circa 1990 |
We sold "The Tar" in 1994
and bought
Wild Wave, a 14.5m huon pine sloop that had been built in Tasmania for the 1953 Sydney to Hobart race. We were making plans to sail around the world. Our children were both under two years old. My bible at the time was a book called '
Dolphins at Sunset" by Elizabeth Thurston. I read many books about sailing the world
including another favourite, a
biography by Anita Leslie about Sir Francis Chichester. And, we were
following
Kay Cottee's solo circumnavigation of the world on
First Lady.
In the 1953 Sydney-Hobart Muir took line honours and was placed fourth on handicap with Wild Wave, a yacht he had designed. This was ‘the first Tasmanian owned, built, and skippered boat to finish first across the line’ (Mercury 1954,
1). His elation was short lived, however, as the boat was disqualified
for infringements at the starting
line.
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| photo of Wild Wave from 1954 |
Sadly, that adventure didn't float. We sold
Wild Wave about a year after we bought her.
I hate to admit the last time I remember sailing was around my
40th birthday back in 1998. My husband, small
kids, parents and step son chartered a 40ft catamaran "Imagine" for a
couple of weeks in the Whitsundays.
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| Current day photo of Wild Wave |
Since then, a life time of changes, and time passing surprisingly fast, finds me twenty
years later still hankering to sail, while age and fitness allow. I have never let go of my love for the sailing lifestyle. These days I stay inspired by following such YouTube channels as "
Sailing Nandji" - about a much younger couple but none the less - which speak to my, as yet, unrealised dream. So, when I was planning a life affirming adventure, sailing definitely had to be part of it.
I was on a "
Classic Sailing" email list from 2016 and aware of an endless choice of sailing trips aboard classic vessels worldwide. I received the all clear regarding my illness on the 15th March 2018. I enquired about a voyage on Bark Europa to Antarctica 3 days later, I wanted a trip to coincide with my birthday in October. I missed out that year, discovering how popular these voyages are. My booking to
Antarctica 24 February - 16 March 2020 was approved in January 2019. Excited! Now, I just had to pay for it; which took me every skerrick of the time in between, to pull the money together for the voyage, airfares, required clothing and incidental costs.
At the same time I had decided to sell the property J and I owned for nine years, as it was getting too much to look after, and too isolated for me on my own. No sooner did I put it on the For Sale By Owner site, than it sold - took three days. I got it into my head I had
earned myself the agent's commission fee! And that is how I would pay for the trip. I promptly bought another house, which meant of course
that the said agent's fee I had 'earned' was spent and therefore the cost of the trip had to come out of my own coffers. By the
time that penny dropped, thankfully, I had committed to this trip, and I had to start chewing the enormous bite I had taken.
(It must be noted: I also went on a Bollywood dancing trip to
India, a trek in
Larapinta to raise money for Shelterbox, and a painting
workshop in Cornwall with artist
Paul Wadsworth in that twelve months -
so I certainly set myself a task)
"Congratulations, I am sure you are very excited.The ship’s office have received the OK from their doctor,
provided that you let Europa know shortly before the voyage that you still do
not need any treatments and show no symptoms.The Europa office have strongly advised you to arrange
cancellation insurance as soon as you pay for the trip as if you are forced to
cancel due to unforeseen (health) circumstances, then there would be no refund."
Left to buy was wet weather gear, duffle bags, snow gloves, goggles, wool liner gloves, wool buff, waterproof gloves, rubber boots, natural toiletries, Chemist items, European electrical adaptor, waterproof phone cover, journal and luggage tags. I borrowed scarves and beanies. My cousin gave me four wool undies! 
