Please select your home edition
Edition
Trofeo Princesa Sofía Mallorca 2025

Anchored and isolated on a sailboat

by Stephanie Colotti Ferrie 20 Apr 2020 23:12 AEST
Anchored and isolated on a sailboat © Stephanie Colotti Ferrie

Imagine planning for years that you'd take an entire year away from your job, or maybe even put your career on hold, to purchase a sailboat (Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 44i) for your family to sail the world. You'd probably sell your home, along with many of your possessions all for one dream. One that you may have dreamt about for your entire life. A dream many said would be close to impossible to execute.

When the day finally comes and you move on your boat with your few possessions and your family. You're in a new country, maybe one that doesn't speak your language and the only familiar faces you see are your family members. Figuring out how to get food and supplies, and for many, how to sail your boat. You wonder how you'll ever adapt to such a different lifestyle.

What happens if weeks or maybe months into your one year plan, a global pandemic strikes and your dream comes to a complete halt. You and your family get stuck in a country, without anywhere to go. Healthcare is questionable. The language different, and the locals are petrified you will be the one to bring disease to their country, and it's exceedingly clear, they do not want you there.

This is reality for many sailing families right now. Imagine that one week vacation you had planned, but add in leaving your career, selling your home for a floating one and selling all your things, and then the only thing you can do is stay on your boat and not leave. What about traveling to all those exotic places you had on your list? All those places you talked incessantly about to your family for years. Not happening.

Global pandemic was not on their list of "10 things you should worry about when moving your family abroad and onto a sailboat"

Right now, there are families all over the world, ones like the ones I've described above, who are close to waving the white flag. They didn't sign up for this when they were leaving their jobs and selling their possessions. Global pandemic was not on their list of "10 things you should worry about when moving your family abroad and onto a sailboat". One may think being overtaken by a rogue wave or boarded by pirates was pretty high up there on the things people worried about when you said you were going to sail the world with your kids, but a global pandemic? No freaking way. That's like Sci-Fi crazy!

Not only are there families out there who aren't even through their one year sabbatical, there are ones out there who may be years into their adventure, and even when they think they may have seen it all, they are faced with the unbelievable. The entire globe has basically come to a screeching halt due to COVID-19, and many families like us who travel by sailboat are left wondering, "what next?" or even more important "where can we go from here?"and most often, the answer is "no where" or "there's no right answer."

There are families who had multi-year plans to sail the Caribbean, then cross over to Panama and prep for a month-long passage across the Pacific Ocean to French Polynesia to eventually circumnavigate the globe over a set period of time. These plans, years in the making, and countless dollars spent prepping for a huge undertaking. Some families were able to leave their boat safely and get back to family, while others ultimately did leave Panama for French Polynesia, only to be turned away once they arrived, after traveling for weeks non-stop, even with kids on board, to be told, there was no islands accepting visitors and they must turn around. Their only option? Sail to Hawaii, another several week passage or if they continued on, there was no guarantee other countries wouldn't turn them away as well. Then what? Almost months on the ocean without stepping foot on solid ground and still nowhere to go with waning food supplies.

There are those out there who left their boat in a foreign country to travel back home to visit family, maybe take care of some medical care, only to be told, they were not allowed to return to their boat, which is ultimately their home and must stay where they were. They never planned to leave their boat unattended for an unforeseeable length of time and the financial burden begins to build.

One family with the mother seven months pregnant, located in the Cayman Islands, had plans to return home to Canada to deliver their unborn child and were notified all the borders and airports were closed before they could leave. The catch? They now will be forced to deliver their new baby in the Cayman Islands. Not only does this create stress and problems for the family, but the financial impact is real due to hospital fees and lack of health insurance coverage this family now faces.

Some families face being in a foreign country and are now being asked to leave, or have no choice to leave in order to position their boat in a hurricane free zone. The real challenge comes when there is no logical place to go from their current location, or one that is thousands of miles away which entails crossing oceans in order to get home, often with small children aboard and/or inexperienced sailors aboard. The opportunity to find crew members to assist in this potential dangerous undertaking is close to impossible. Travel restrictions around the world making a usual easy task of finding crew almost impossible. Travel insurance companies dropping healthcare if patrons cannot return back to their home country, all the while the country they are located in does not want them there either. Many islands harassing people to leave immediately. The challenge is real and most often cruisers are faced with the option of inaction being the best action, which is sitting tight and seeing which direction the world goes.

One family interviewed stated they had no solid plans as to how long they'd continue traveling, but now they may be forced to sell their boat due to financial insecurity. Their primary income coming from a vacation rental property, but with COVID-19, many are cancelling, leaving many families with drastically reduced income streams.

Unfortunately, situations like the ones above are just a small handful of what cruising families are currently facing. One could say "this is what people get for not going back to their home", but the reality is, home is no longer home and is now their boat, and home is wherever that boat may be. The truth is, the changes that occurred happened so very fast that it was close to impossible to make plans to leave your home safely in a hurricane zone and go back to your country, which often meant for many that there was no actual physical address to return.

The truth is, no matter where you are on the globe, one thing is for true, life is uncertain. It's a scary new world that we are all just watching unfold before our eyes. We are all being faced with challenging choices and decisions, and many people like us are feeling exposed and not quite sure where we belong. Those families who had one year to execute their dream are now watching it unfold in unimaginable ways. The sailing community is full of amazingly strong people who face challenges like this with grace and strength, and it's a special feeling to be surrounded by families like these. We are all facing incredible challenges, but we're in this together. People helping people, despite the wide range of obstacles that we each face on a daily, or even hourly basis.

We are all living the voyage.

For more information visit www.livethevoyage.com.

Related Articles

Jeanneau NC 1295 Coupe first look
The latest flagship model designed for effortless family cruising Introducing the NC 1295 Coupe, the latest flagship model designed for effortless family cruising. Posted on 8 Mar
Jeanneau appoints new dealer in Indonesia
Expanding its presence in the Asia-Pacific region With its growing success in South East Asia, Jeanneau announces the appointment of Salaya Yachts as its exclusive dealer in Indonesia. This strategic partnership underlines the brand's commitment and confidence in the Indonesian market Posted on 25 Jan
Jeanneau Yachts 55 to make Australian premiere
At the Melbourne Boat Show Jeanneau's latest innovation in yacht design has made it down under! Posted on 14 Oct 2024
2024 Performance Boating Sales Jeanneau Rendezvous
Over 25 yachts from all over NSW gathered on Sydney's Pittwater On Saturday 28th September over 25 yachts from all over NSW gathered on Sydney's Pittwater for the popular annual Performance Boating Sales Jeanneau Rendezvous. Posted on 2 Oct 2024
What comes after good?
Well if you get it right, then it's usually, great Well if you get it right, then it's usually, great. Miss the mark, and the slide down and out the other side is not so glorious. Good thing then that Jeanneau's new Sun Odyssey 350 is all about the former, and none of the latter. Posted on 17 Sep 2024
Jeanneau Yachts 55 arrives Down Under
Jeanneau's latest innovative yacht design has arrived in Australia Jeanneau's latest innovative yacht design has arrived in Australia. The long awaited Jeanneau Yachts 55 features a unique deck and cabin layout, with the two aft guest cabins completely isolated with their own companion ways. Posted on 22 Aug 2024
Jeanneau Yachts 60 #33 ready for delivery
Designed by Philipe Briand in collaboration with Andrew Winch Designed by Philipe Briand in collaboration with Andrew Winch, the Jeanneau Yachts 60 offers the perfect blend of elegance, sailing performance and livability. Posted on 9 Jul 2024
Recall operations for Sun Odysseys is ending
The EU authorities have issued a recall warning The EU authorities have issued a recall warning a few days ago regarding Jeanneau Sun Odyssey. Posted on 4 Jul 2024
Recapping the inaugural 'Jeanneau Days'
The first ever ‘Jeanneau Days' were run around the globe during May The first ever ‘Jeanneau Days' were run around the globe during May. They highlighted the breadth of the Jeanneau range across both power and sail. The new concept was presented by Jeanneau as a way to connect with our customers and prospects Posted on 22 Jun 2024
Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 350 just arrived in Sydney
Set to premiere at the 2024 Sydney International Boat Show The very first example of the new Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 350 anywhere in this part of the world has just arrived at Performance Boating Sales. Posted on 21 Jun 2024
Rolly Tasker Sails 2023 FOOTERSCIBS 2025X-Yachts X4.0