Where to start - the blue prints of an idea?
A simple idea... buy a small boat, repair and restore where appropriate and then sail it for 6 to 8 weeks around the west coast of Scotland while stopping for climbing, walking and kayaking fun... oh yes and do the entire thing in a budget of £5000.
On the face of it, it’s a simple idea, but with everything that would appear simple on the surface, when you start looking at it closely, the detail can start to look a little overwhelming. |
The challenging part will be how will I squeeze such a journey into my every day life? Unless we win the lottery tomorrow, it looks like I'll have to break the journey it down into manageable chunks and 'park' the boat at appropriate times and then pick it up on the next leg.
I don’t want this to be just a sailing experience, although this is its self would be a large under taking, but I also want my trip to take the opportunity to explore the west coast of Scotland in its entirety, as it is so rich in outdoor pursuits such as Hiking, Climbing, and Sea Kayaking. As I have been involved in such pursuits for the last 20 years this was an opportunity I fully intended to take advantage of and anything else that came along with it.
I don’t want this to be just a sailing experience, although this is its self would be a large under taking, but I also want my trip to take the opportunity to explore the west coast of Scotland in its entirety, as it is so rich in outdoor pursuits such as Hiking, Climbing, and Sea Kayaking. As I have been involved in such pursuits for the last 20 years this was an opportunity I fully intended to take advantage of and anything else that came along with it.
Who, What, Where, When, Why and How?
So... to keep a cheque on what I need to do I've applied the age old 5 W’s (always a good place to start and come back to from time to time) plus I've thrown in a H as well.
Who – me and who ever cares to join me from time to time on various parts of the journey. This hopefully would be the the family but as they are currently either not interested in sailing or under 5 this remains to be seen.
What – Sail around the west coast of Scotland on a micro budget.
Where – Wales (build and test sails) and Scotland for the main event!
When – This will have to be revisited.. 2015 - 2025?
Why – Because it sounded like a good idea at the time
How – Stubbornness and luck and a pitiful small amount of money
Who – me and who ever cares to join me from time to time on various parts of the journey. This hopefully would be the the family but as they are currently either not interested in sailing or under 5 this remains to be seen.
What – Sail around the west coast of Scotland on a micro budget.
Where – Wales (build and test sails) and Scotland for the main event!
When – This will have to be revisited.. 2015 - 2025?
Why – Because it sounded like a good idea at the time
How – Stubbornness and luck and a pitiful small amount of money
Logging it all!
Micro Budget News
As the process of finding, buying, maintaining, test sails and the final journey will more than likely run into years, I am going to try to document the entire process as much as I possibly can and pass it on to you (which could well just be me to be honest.)The reporting will take the form of this WebSite and its accompanying Blog page, but I will also endeavour to film and produce small YouTube based articles along the way - the great thing about the web is that all the tools I have used so far have been completely free, a mantra of my current financial status with this project! The keenness of this filming idea has spread so far, I have even drawn up a detailed plan of how I would kit the boat out with cameras in order to film the process while at sea! See 'Cameras for a small Yacht' on the Boat Details tabs at the top of the page!