John Passmore This is going to be a “Think Piece”. A Think Piece – from my old newspaper days – was when something significant happened, and the editor needed to give it the appropriate amount of space but had run out of facts to put in it. All that was left were “Thoughts” – and very often, … Read more
When I returned to the UK from the Caribbean, people asked: “Did you have a good trip?” And I said: “Yes, lovely, thanks.” Because it was – but it was more than that. As with any voyage, it had its own special character – the moments that will remain in the memory forever (and … Read more
This was being sensible: Tom Fisher was on his way over for the Yealm in Bonny. The first time I met Tom for a drink, we sat up over the rum bottle until three in the morning. Add to that Connor Brosan and Alan Laine on their way from Salcombe in Feeling Groovy, and obviously … Read more
It is with great relief that I can confirm the Oldmansailing blog is back. It has been an anxious week waiting for it to reappear. I left Jost Van Dyke in the British Virgin Islands on June 11th. On June 13th, 318 miles in the vague direction of a waypoint somewhere 100 miles east of … Read more
For all those people who were so disparaging about my penchant for Aldi’s £9.99 rum: a parting gift to myself as I leave the Caribbean. The immigration officer just asked what was my next port of call? I had to say something, so I said, “Falmouth”. “Falmouth Antigua?” No, Falmouth UK. We’ll see. It’s … Read more
I have the picture in front of me now. The intrepid explorer in the foothills of the Himalayas – his yak in the background. Actually, that’s not quite true. It’s just me on the beach, posing with my folding bike before setting off to ride around Anegada. Anegada is the most northerly of the Virgin … Read more
The definition of cruising, so they say, is: “Boat maintenance in exotic locations”. Lately, Instagram has been alive with the saga of New Zealand friends in Grenada who replaced their thrust bearing without taking the boat out of the water. The final picture (in SCUBA gear with a screwdriver to tighten the anodes) was greeted … Read more
For all those people who asked when I was going to write another book, it turns out the answer was: Not until I was clocking a hundred miles a day without touching the helm or the sheets. Sure enough, the Atlantic crossing by the trade wind route provided the perfect motivation – there wasn’t anything … Read more
I blame the beer. And the Sint Maarten Yacht Club’s wifi code. This is very clever of them: The wifi code is BUYMOREBEER – and you do feel obliged to, sitting on the deck under the Heineken umbrella trying to get to the British Virgin Islands. The way things were going, It looked as though … Read more
