Welcome to Madison.
For the un-initiated Madison is
a 34ft Sailing Boat that we have put our heart and
soul into restoring to allow us to take time out from our
careers and sail from Scotland to the Greek Islands. We left
from Troon on the west coast of Scotland on the 2nd of August
2007 following a hard year and a half of getting Madison ready
for the water.
Our original dream started whilst on holiday in Kefalonia.
We travelled to a small harbour called Fiscardo and here we
settled into a taverna for a nice coffee and were both watching
out over the water, when a flotilla of yachts came in and
tied up, sterns facing the quay where we sat. They tidied
their ropes and did a few quick chores before stepping off
and joining us in the taverna.
I just happened to say to Laura that I would love to do
that and she immediately agreed. I bought a yachting magazine
in the airport before boarding the flight home and we have
never looked back.
All plans turned to saving, realising the cash for the trip
and the purchase of the boat. I hunted for a suitable boat
and read everything I could about the subject. Neither of
us had ever really been interested in boats and the only link
we had was that my Father was a retired trawler skipper and
Laura's parents had both been in the Navy.
Madison (originally called Caprera) first entered our life
when I noticed an advert on Ebay for a 34ft boat.
A swift trip to Kent (above) and we were the proud owners
of a big bit of plastic. Until this point we had been living
with the idea that we wouldn't be able to afford anything
bigger than 29ft. We had set a total budget of only £15,000
for the boat, which was tiny. In the end we have pulled off
a minor miracle having spent only £20,000 for a 34ft
boat that has been professionally valued at over £35,000.
This is due to the amount of work Laura, my Dad (Ken) and
I have put in to keep the cost down.
Laura has been keeping a log of the trip in our Diary
and I have been working hard to keep the boat running. Even
a new boat has a never-ending list of maintenance, so you
will imagine how much more you need to do to keep a 1982 boat
going. We are learning every day and trying to travel on as
small a budget as possible to prolong the dream as much as
we can. We avoid marinas where possible and have found that
anchorages can be very rewarding. We were told that we would
find them very lonely compared to marinas where it is easy
to meet new people. It is hard to dispute that it is easy,
but I would disagree that anchoring is lonely, as we have
found the key is to make more effort and to always make a
point of calling in on other boats at anchor regardless of
the flag they fly. We have yet to be disappointed and have
met some fantastic people.
I am sure you agree that a marina couldn't compete with this
option! We always smile when we look at this. Wouldn't have
missed it for the world.
We hope you like our website and we would love to hear from
you, so please keep in touch. Anyone who knows Laura will
be well aware that she is a very sociable 'wee' thing and
my life wouldn't be worth living if you don't keep her up
to the minute on all that is going on.
Love from
Laura & Karl
|
