Being around barges and passing ships on the waterways of the Manchester ship and Bridgewater canals, in my home towm of Barton (Manchester), probably had little to do with my initial interest in sailing. Although I had been on several boat trips in my younger days and had bought and had made one or two toy boats for me; my interest was, perhaps naturally, minimal.
I probably took and developed more of an interest in the local history, while walking these areas with my pet dog, "Bruno", in my teenage years. This really served as a basis for more indepth knowledge into the history of these areas and the life which must have existed around these channels in their heyday. Even today, with all the road traffic, there is still something very ancient about the place, not withstanding the monastery adjacent to the Barton swing bridge.
Sailing out at night from Dover on route to Paris, via Ostend (Belgium), on a school weekend break, probably had to be the start of my romantic dreams of the sea. Of getting away from the land, away from noise and light polution. It was a rough crossing, but I remember being out on deck watching the land disappear into the moon-lite mist and leaving the white cliffs of Dover behind.
A few years later on a school trip to London and on a tour around H.M.S. Belfast, we were told of life aboard ship. Then on to the more stately Cuttey Sark † 1, the two visits connected by a trip down the Thames on a pleasure craft. Again, although I enjoyed the visits, I probably had, nor really gained, a real sense of what life would have really been like aboard either vessel.
During the summer vacation while I was at University, on the island of Tenerife (Canary Islands). My friends and I took a boat trip to see the South side of the island in search of dolphins. Bombing along, bouncing from wave to wave, it was probably this experience more than any, which made me dream of buying a boat of my own one day. Part of the rest of the holiday was spent walking around the coastline of the South side of the island, looking at the harbours and the marinas, watching the ferries come and go.
By far my biggest influence however, has to be from fictional writers, such as Wilbur Smith, Bernard Cornwell, Nicholas Monsarrat and others. Giving me the pleasant and harsh realities aboard vessels of current and bygone eras; military, pleasure and trade. Slowly picking up the terminology, and history of ship building and design.
Promising myself to sign up/enlist for a week onboard ship, for the past six years or so, down in Devon; A little East of Cornwall - a past family favourite holiday destination - to gain some practical sailing experience, but not really planning it and usually finding I've missed the deadline. In 2002, however, on a more historical sightseeing orientated trip, I found myself emersed in the rich history and maritime center of Jersey (Channel Islands). A costal day-trip out on a large motor boat, the large maritime musaeum‡ and the yachts, powerboats and sailing craft in the two or three marinas, had my interest peaked.
The thing I have found about sailing and the maritime world, is that once you start looking, there is so much out there, so much to learn. It's not just about the sea, and crafts, it's also where ports and centers meet the sea, waterways and people. If you look at your local history, you will probably find many fascinating things, which have been right under your nose along the british waterways.
Although I love ships and powerboats, I think I am more attracted by the complicated sailing of and romance of sail boats. For a seafaring island nation, sea pleasure seeking is now on the increase. While the expense and organisation of tall ships and sailing craft, is probably out of the reach of all but the lucky and the rich, a trip across the Mersey (enjoyed by many each day) or floating around in a dinghy, is probably enough to set me, if not most, off on dreams of sailing away and of the ocean.
a power boat docked in a marina