THEN ALONG CAME THE ANLEYS ........

Like Arthur, it has been a dream of mine for a long time to take some time out and sail for a period, to relax, re-energize and reconnect with what is important. I have done a lot of sailing over the years and a few of the trips Cheryl has been on board for part of the time, but I really wanted to share a special trip on our own boat with her. I have done a few yacht deliveries, one Cape to Rio Race in 1993,a leg of the Clipper round the world race, and several trips in the Med, Seychelles and Mauritius, skippering a 45ft Vickers for friends of ours, Hedi and John Matthews, who were kind enough to invite Cheryl along on these trips.

As much as I enjoyed all of these trips, I always hankered after my own yacht. Cheryl and I are both estate agents in Plettenberg Bay and the property market has not been kind over the past few years, so we certainly were not able to look at any fancy yachts at fancy prices. We have realised that we are not getting any younger and that if we are looking to do any serious sailing, it would have to be soon. So we have been looking  and looking for the right boat.

I am an avid user of the Gumtree site. I have found amazing things and have met some wonderful people through my searches and purchases. So one day in December of last year, when I saw the advert, I was immediately interested. I contacted Sue, and after chatting to her, decided that I was definately interested, but couldn't travel to East London until January as we were in the middle of our hectic Christmas Season in Plett, the busiest time of the year and the time when we have to try and maximise sales.

GRAHAM