FROM GARY AND LIBBY

Hi, we welcome you to read the story of our travels and to follow our progress as we sail our yacht AQUARIUS to countries around the world.

HOW WE STARTED

We bought Aquarius in 1997 after several years of trying to decide what sort of yacht we wanted and, most importantly, what sort we could afford. Our dream for many years had been to buy a yacht with the intention of sailing it around the world. After many sailing trips on OP's (other people's boats) we were able to compile lists of essential and desirable criteria for the search of our boat. Every weekend we visited marinas, searched through yacht brokers' listings - all with no luck. Eventually, just as we were beginning to think that our hunt would never end, a friend suggested we have a look at a boat in Manly that belonged to a friend of his. The friend was looking to sell the boat but had not advertised it for sale. As an aside, a long time before an old sailor had told us that "you will know when you find your boat". As we walked down the dock at Manly and first caught sight of Aquarius, Libby and I knew we had at last found our boat. Once aboard, we found that all our essential and most of the desirable criteria were met. The rest is our story..........

Monday, January 23, 2012

1997 to 1998

In the first year after we purchased Aquarius, our sailing was totally confined to weekends and some school holidays in and around Moreton Bay in Brisbane Queensland. We learned how to sail Aquarius and how to navigate around the many shallows of Moreton Bay; however, to be honest we often spent some time during trips stuck on unforgiving mudbanks waiting for the tide to rise and float us free. Our children enjoyed the sailing and we think that those times also established a love of the sea within them as well.
Gary and Libby at