Ready to go!

Island Wanderer
Peter and Avril Brookes
Wed 7 Jul 2010 16:06
We're ready!  After 18 months of planning and preparation we are finally just about ready to embark on the first leg of our long anticipated journey. This will eventually lead us across the Atlantic to the Caribbean in our sailing boat Island Wanderer. This summer we aim to cross the Bay of Biscay to Spain, and if the weather and crew permit, travel down the west coast of Portugal and into the Mediteranean. Specific plans are very fluid at the moment and have been changed as often as our socks. However the boat is now ready to go and lies very low in the water being laden down with food, water and equipment to cope with almost every conceivable event. We also have a liferaft for the inconceivable. Island Wanderer is an Island Packet 485 which we have had for 15 months. During this time we have travelled some 2500 miles and tried to fit her out to make her both safe and comfortable. She is more a cruising yacht than a racing one and not particularly built for speed. The crew will begin to assemble the minute the school bell goes on Friday and we anticipate catching the fair tide out of the River Hamble on Saturday morning. What actually happens may be a very different story.