Race 13 - Day 6
Crew Diary - Derry-Londonderry to Liverpool
27 July
Tied the Knot - RTW
Yesterday was a special day for the boat when we reached Latitude 50 34.584 North, Longitude 007 22.648 West. This was the point we passed on our way to Punta del Este, Uruguay on 22 August 2017 and we have passed over again on our inbound track to Liverpool, yesterday 26 July at 14:53 UTC. This means that we have truly rounded the globe in CV23 under the banner of HotelPlanner.com.
On the build up to this adventure one of the most striking memories is when I reported at the initial presentation for this race at the Yacht Club in Knightsbridge. I registered my name and used the initials RTW (Round The World) for the first time. This really brought home to me the scale of the challenge and reaffirmed, that for me, there was only one leg and it began and ended at the same place. This, to some degree, was achieved yesterday but will not be achieved in reality until we tie up in the Albert Dock in Liverpool.
I do feel this has been an amazing adventure, I could not have achieved it by myself and have been blessed to have been on a boat that has had an amazing crew that have always pulled together when the chips were down to achieve the goal of getting safety from destination to destination around the world. We have had a lot of laughs on the way and have had to support each other through some very challenging times. We have been, to all intents and purposes, an extended family and have all shared some of life's other challenges that have impacted on each others experiences. I do want to reiterate my thanks to what has been the core crew that started in Liverpool, Skipper Conall and the other RTWers April, Adrian, Carsten, Greg A, Greg G, Mary, Nic and Roseann together with Anna and Dr G who joined us half way round. The rest of the crew, that have come on individual or multiple legs, have really helped to keep the boat alive and all added to the whole experience.
I have missed my good buddy Greg, who unfortunately, missed this Leg but family always comes first and we all totally support and understand his decision, however hard it has been. We know he has been with us in spirit, and in our minds, we have always followed him up on deck as he is always first to the helm. A good naval officer to the last.....
I could not have done this without the support of my wife, Sarah, though. She supported my decision to do this in the first place and has supported me the whole way round. We have grabbed some amazing experiences in some of the stopovers, which have always been too short, but this has given us both the impetus to want to travel more. The crew supporters cannot be underestimated and they have all made this a much more pleasurable experience and have been superb in their logistical skills especially sorting out accommodation. (Washing Machine a priority). It has always been great to be cheered in by a friendly face.
Well what have I learnt about myself? It's not time to retire yet. I need to, want to work to be able to finance our next joint travelling adventure somewhere in the world!
But, most of all I am looking forward to going home, swimming in St Brelade's Bay, BBQing on the wall followed by a pint in the Old Smugglers Inn.
Signing Off, back to listening out on Channel 16 for a few more days.
Graham