The Finale

No, we’re not dead (obviously, at the time of writing anyway), and Jeannius hasn’t sunk or anything but a lot has happened since the last entry.  At first I didn’t quite know how to continue to an end as I didn’t really know what the end was, so I just left it.

However, too many people have asked why I didn’t finish, so here it is.

Mike and I had discussed what our next adventure would be.  To be honest, after the World Arc and the thrill of a circumnavigation, ordinary poodling around type sailing seemed a bit tame.  We had honestly sailed everywhere we wanted to sail that was safe to sail.  There are a lot of places we would have liked to see but didn’t fancy our chances against pirates.  Malaysia and more of the Far East would have been fantastic too but getting back to that part of the world in Jeannius would have just been too much, for me anyway.  As much as I loved French Polynesia, crossing the Pacific would have been one voyage too far and I never want to sail on the South Indian Ocean – I still shudder at some of the memories and wonder that I am sane!

Also, our trip down the east coast of the USA hadn’t thrilled us – the water was too cold (yes, I know, wimps).  Don’t get me wrong, we had a fantastic time, mainly due to all the people we hooked back up with along the way, but the sailing in cold, coastal waters, you can definitely keep it, and after our experience with that bridge … no thank you!

So in St Augustine we made the huge decision to leave Jeannius out on the hard and put her in the hands of an agent – to sell.  Leaving her was hard but financially we couldn’t get on with our lives without letting her go and the pull of a road trip in an RV was getting stronger.

We went home for Christmas and the New Year, then in early February 2013 took the ferry to Bilbao, drove across Spain and spent a very pleasant few months in our villa on the Costa Blanca.

We went back to the UK in mid April but within a month, Mike was bored and started scouring the internet for a project.  He found one, a real ‘do-er up-er’.  A hovel, in need of total renovation.  Actually knocking it down and starting again would have been cheaper but as it was a terrace (townhouse), that was out of the question – and another story!

We accepted an offer on Christmas Eve and the sale eventually went through in early January this year.  Jeannius is no longer called Jeannius and will no longer fly the Red Ensign.  Her new owners are based in Florida and she has been re-registered.  From all the updates we get from the owners, she is being lovingly restored.  We miss her but can now move on.

We will be doing the road trip, maybe as early as this autumn, and I will be blogging that adventure too.  Maybe we’ll see some of you along the way.