Welcome to Yvonne and John’s web site about our round the UK sailing trip and our first blog
Thank you for logging onto our blog. We hope you will find it interesting.
Our plan is to sail round the four countries of the United Kingdom – England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland. We expect to take about four months covering 2500 miles or so and stopping at between 50 and 60 places. We want to take the trip in fairly short stages so we can enjoy the wonderful variety and beauty of the coast line and the towns and villages that form so much of our heritage. As part of our trip we are collecting for our chosen charity – SUDEP Action (which specialises in support, education and research into Epilepsy) in memory of John’s daughter Helena who died of this disease.
We have put this website together to give more information on the trip, the boat (“Sundart”) and our charity. We plan to update this front page as we go along, reporting on progress, the sights and places we have seen and the friends and family who have accompanied us at various stages. If you want to follow this blog please click on the “follow this blog” link on the right of one of the pages. If you want to know more about the boat, our planned route, who is coming with us and our charity click on the pages of this website
We have gradually been preparing for this trip over the past few months. Working with our co-owners and friends, the boat has had its full winter maintenance which involved over 40 repairs, checks and items to be serviced. This has included drying the boat out against the harbour wall in Dartmouth out to apply anti-fouling and service the underwater components such as the propeller and anodes (which stop the salt water corroding the metal parts). The safety equipment including the life raft, life jackets, fire extinguishers, hand rails, safety lines and flares have been checked and serviced. The sails and rigging have been checked and quite a lot of the standing and running rigging (ropes to non-sailors!) has been replaced. The engine has been serviced (as despite being in a sailing boat the engine is critical to our progress and safety). We rely on batteries charged from the engine to supply all our electrical power for our navigation instruments, lights and on board power so that system has been overhauled. We can be fully self-sufficient on the boat, carrying all the fuel, fresh water and stores that we need. We have a gas powered galley (cooker), fridge and pumped fresh water system with the hot water being heated from the waste heat from the engine. The gas system and alarm have been checked and the galley grille is being repaired (so we can enjoy our morning toast!). The curtains and cushions have been washed, the heads (loos) serviced and the ‘fridge and boat cleaned so we can enjoy our creature comforts during the trip.
Over the winter we have purchased and updated over 150 secondhand and new charts that we need to navigate round the UK. These are now packed 
up together with a box of over 20 pilot books and tidal atlases plus the odd cook book and reading book! Our navigation instruments are packed and the boats papers are all on board. Over the next couple of weeks we will pack up our clothing, which ranges from heavy weather “oillies” and boots to tee shirts, shorts and swimming suits (surely we must be due for a good summer?….!). We will be taking our laptop, tablet and mobile phones so we can keep in touch and use the web to download the weather and maybe even the odd TV programme if we are in range of a Wi-Fi hot spot. The boat has a CD player & radio so some music will be packed. (Note to people coming with us: pack a few of your favourite CD’s!)
Our plan is to leave Sundart’s home port of Dartmouth on or around the 11th May with Paul Williams, who is accompanying us on the first leg round Lands End to South Wales. From then on we hope to keep more or less to our schedule (which is in the “where are we going” page) but as ever the weather and our inclinations will determine our progress.
We would love to hear from our friends and family on our trip , which can be done by using our normal mobile numbers or e-mail addresses or by clicking this link
Happy days and fair weather to you all
Yvonne & John
The Crusoes Sailing around the UK 