Waking up on a mooring buoy was, and still is, a magical experience. When we first arrived in Poole Harbour we’d only twice before woken up detached from land. Once, on a sailing course and a second time, on the Isle of Man. The first, though unforgettable, had been a journey we followed, rather than …
And just like that, one year on, it was time to leave Portland and the safety of pontoon life behind. Time to leave faces that had become familiar and people that had grown accustomed to our presence. Albeit in a fleeting kind of way as we’d never exchanged much more than a brief hello with …
After an extremely hectic January in the boatyard, cleaning Lanita up for the year ahead, it’d be fair to think that we’d slow down a little. Take our time through the remainder of winter, the time of hibernation. This, however, was not the case. We’d decided not to renew our annual contract at Portland Marina and …
It was the day before our boat was due to be lifted out and transferred to the boatyard, and we were met with stronger winds than we were comfortable with for moving Lanita. Either we needed to take her round to a pontoon near the crane, or pay a £50 fee for the marina to …
After three months of patience, on 2nd August 2025, we enjoyed our first sail on Lanita. During the last couple of months we’d had our mast down for new rigging. Having taken our vessel to a boat yard across the harbour which we thought was cheaper (though later we realised we may have misjudged this). …
When we first purchased Lanita our cockpit had faced the pontoon. Something that was enjoyable in the first couple of days as neighbouring owners stopped to say hello, but began to feel an inconvenience as we struggled to eat a meal in peace. Coming back in from our first voyage gave us the added benefit …
During our first few weeks of boat ownership, we ticked off one accomplishment after another, feeling a growing mixture of pride and amazement as we did so. Not only had we brought some prior knowledge along with us this time, but having also grown as a team, we were even more able to tackle one …
We’d made the long journey down the country from Yorkshire to the south coast the evening before, full of anticipation and disbelief of the day ahead. It was Thursday, 24th April when we awoke early in our AirBnB, quickly getting ready and then driving the short distance from our accommodation in Weymouth, across the causeway …
Our time in Italy was cut short due to the looming Brexit deadline. We discovered in mid-November it would be much easier for Miki to stay for a longer period in the UK if we arrived before 11pm on 31st December 2020. So bags were packed, notice was given at the flat in Genova, and …
After our stressful exit from Sri Lanka, we were very grateful when we finally touched down in the UK. This was Miki’s first time in the country and was most likely a very strange way to experience it, when most things that help create the culture and atmosphere are closed or off-limits. We had flown …
