A little update here for you, and it’s mostly just to confirm that indeed the plans are going ahead, and I’m very excited to be able to do this trip. Hopefully a few of you people reading this blog will be on board as well!
I have been quite active on Crewbay.com where the posting for the trip is found. There have not been so many people inquiring, which is understandable as it is all still quite far in the future. 5 weeks and a few days to be precise.
About budget
One of the main questions I get from people interested seems to be about budget, understandably as many of the people are students or long-term travelers. My response is that we will be doing this on as cheap a basis as possible, as that is what is most fun and best for everybody.
However, my personal budget for the year for a single season’s sailing, like this one planned, is minimum €1500. That is just the costs of owning the boat, and does not include any materials, or other items needed to keep a safe and seaworthy sailing boat.
Then of course there is all the manual work and time that have to be spent in maintaining the vessel. That’s where I really appreciate some help from the people, although it’s hard to do much productive work while under way and sailing. but please don’t be surprised if I ask you for help with the work once we get to port. I want you to know that I am not a slave-driver either, and if you think I am asking too much then tell me so.
Returning to the question about budget. The idea is to cook and eat on board. We should try to not go into expensive marinas unless we are a full crew on board to share the cost.
We all share marina fees, fuel and food costs. Food is good but basic. Think vegetarian, and leaning towards vegan, because there is no fridge on board.
A quick figure I always mention is €12 to €15 per day per person with all the above included.
The crew prospects
Alright! Enough about all that work and budget stuff. Let’s talk about the rumors of who may be sailing on board this year.
The people on board for the start of the trip I think will include one or two of my friends living in Sweden. Possibly a woman from the Faroe Islands, and not sure, but it could be that a man from Yorkshire in Northern England is on board too. Then there is a 27 year old man from Italy. And also possibly another friend of mine from Belgium if he can make it in time for the first leg.
There are changes of crew along the way, but the biggest shift is in Stockholm where I think a French-german woman, who lives in New Zealand is possibly joining. A friend of mine who lives in San Francisco is also joining there I think. Other people are getting off. Possibly some of my family will be on board for a few days as well.
There are several more people that I should mention here but I’ll have to get back with another posting at some point. The intention is to be 4, 5, or maybe sometimes 6 persons on board – but not more, except for day out sailing maybe.
Right! I have lots of other things to do today besides writing a blog so that’s it for now! Bye bye.
