Blog 1 26 March

In the beginning...

When David and I first met we spoke of our dreams to travel the world. Seven years later we are setting forth to see if we can indeed be world sailors, or even Pacific Ocean sailors. In 2006 to check out our seaworthiness we flew to Noumea to sail to Australia with friends to see how we would cope out of sight of land. It was a dream trip, 8 days on the ocean with only sea birds and pilot fish for company. It was so calm we could have water-skied most of the way. Cook Sraii had thrown much worse at us.

We spent the next 12 months looking for the right boat, and found Navire. She has travelled the world for nine years, even if we didn’t, she would know her way around the globe. We wondered could we live in this small space for long periods of time? Well now, three years on board, I question whether I could live in a space as large as house any more.

So the months of preparation began. To be allowed to be to leave these fair shores we had to pass a stringent safety check called Category One. After a lot of work and an unseemly amount of expenditure we have been deemed to be let loose on the ocean. We are loaded to the gunnels with stores and a small top shelf.

Four weeks to the day till we go. On the first good weather day (good five day forecast in fact) we sail to Whangarei, a 5 or 6 day passage, where we will see David’s mum and some of my family before we go. On this passage we will be accompanied, as crew and musically, by Simon Miller who just happens to be a violinist with the symphony orchestra who can also sail. In Whangarei we pick up Piet Asplet, friend and fellow liveaboard from Chaffers to sail to Tonga. Fortunately he is a fellow musician and may or may not cope with our singing on the high seas.

So for the next few weeks we wind up our land-based lives, pack and stow and say our farewells.