Join us on a true story of a seven-year cruise from Norwich to Africa aboard a 25-year-old motor cruiser. The decision to sacrifice a comfortable middle-aged life for an impractical and seemingly impossible dream led to many ups and downs, much humour, some drama, and even tragedy. This isn’t a tale of heroics or ocean crossings, but rather the story of two ordinary people who find themselves in a variety of unexpected situations, striving to cope with whatever life throws at them.The book traces their 1,000-mile journey through the French waterways from Dunkerque to Séte on the Mediterranean. The serene beauty of the rivers and canals was breathtaking, culminating in a winter spent with a small, quirky international boating community in Provence, where they participated in some unexpected activities.The following spring brought their first taste of the Mediterranean Sea. Wild and unpredictable, it was far from the flat calm pond they had imagined. They encountered rough seas, thick fog, pirates, tsunamis, Spanish paratroopers, and even the French Foreign Legion. A near-death experience and abandoning ships in a marina were certainly not part of their plan. However, the variety of people they met, the places they visited, and the incredible sights of large pods of dolphins, whales, turtles, and a two-ton sunfish made it all worthwhile. The whole experience gave them the best and worst times of their lives.
In her late teens, Jenny Holkham spent a year in Australia before returning to the UK and marrying long-time friend Terry. The couple have two children, Daryl and Angela. They bought a rundown smallholding in rural Norfolk, started a livery stable and kept cattle. A complete lifestyle change from their suburban existence!
After several years, they discovered boating, soon becoming a major part of their lives. They created yearly Skipper’s Guides, a popular information handbook that ran for many years. Their dormant sense of adventure gradually re-emerged, setting them on a course that would eventually change their lives forever.
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When this book arrived for me to review, my heart sank! I thought it was going to be about rough seas, gales, unexpected gybes and the like on a long ocean crossing: but I was wrong. The book relates a story of a couple in a 25-year-old motorboat (a 37-foot Broom called Sahira) crossing the Channel, travelling down the canals in France, into the Mediterranean and then across to Africa. It is not written by the skipper but by his wife; there is not much detail about the boat and the problems it encountered, the detail is in the people they met and their experiences along the way.
The husband-and-wife team sold their farm to buy a boat and do some travelling. The expectation of some was that they would be back in three months, but as it turned out they travelled for nearly seven years. Going across the channel was the start of the adventure, and I could empathise with the author who was cold, wet and frightened as they did this. Once in the canals things settled down and there are some great stories about the French and the other nationalities they met. After the canals it was time to enter the Mediterranean for more adventures. Like many others the author expected the Med to be a tranquil blue sea but found out that the sudden strong winds that occur can make the sea ferocious. Undaunted, they spent several years over-wintering in Spain which allowed them to explore the Balearics. Eventually, they arrived in Gibraltar and spend time there.
There was an irresistible urge to go to Morocco, a mere 22 miles across the straits, so they went. Eventually, it was time to return to the UK, they sold their boat and came back. There is an unexpected end to the book-but no spoilers.
It is a good read with great descriptions of people, places and things, some are humorous, only a few are sad. At 200 pages long it is very text dense with only a few black and white photographs; unfortunately, some of the photographs have not come out well and the detail is missing. Can I recommend it? if you are interested in motor boating-yes (I have done so already to some friends). Even if you are not a motorboater the book is still worth reading because the motorboat side is small and the contents appealing, a light-hearted way to learn some of the knowledge needed for any reader who has not travelled the canals but is planning to do so.
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