HI, I’M MATT.
THESE ARE MY ADVENTURES LIVING ON MY SAILBOAT GUDGEON AS I SAIL AROUND THE WORLD.
Back at the end of 2013 I decided (apropos of nothing) that I wanted to live on a sailboat. Armed with only a copy of This Old Boat
Luckily the boat (a Cherubini designed Hunter 36) turned out not to have anything too disastrously wrong with it, so with a lot of time, money and reading I managed to get it into a livable condition. And then I discovered I liked sailing…
Things escalated from there and now, just over four years later, I’m preparing to head out around the world, leaving in May 2018. Come follow along!
Back at the boat!
After a very rushed last week in BC (pro-tip - don't finish work on Friday afternoon and then get the 6am flight Saturday) I am back in Mexico and on Gudgeon! Since I had bought a lot of second-hand stuff while in BC (including a watermaker, a solar oven and a billion...
Less than a month left!
So I've booked my flight back to Mazatlan and it's on the 27th September, the day after my last day of work. Funny to think a year ago I was in the yard, doing final preparations to move south... definitely glad I am where I am and not starting down storms in Neah Bay...
Brexit, Solar Cooking and some second hand parts
Titles a bit all over the place as is this update - only two months to go till I fly back to Mexico though! Without further ado: Brexit One of the questions I'm often asked is 'why did you fly back for the summer?' There are actually a few reasons that I've explained...
Stocking up on parts in Canada
Firstly, I'm HALFWAY through my summer break! Only 2 and a half months to go till I'm back at the boat! While I've been back in Canada (and working two jobs) I've been buying up a storm, getting both additional things to weigh down the boat make things easier, and...
J/92 boat for sale
So my friend Phil, whose boat I have sailed on like a billion times is selling his J/92, Zaff. This is a really fun boat to sail on and has won a bunch of stuff, including 1st 2019 THRASH Div 1 1st 2018 Pacific Cup Div C 1st 2018 Southern Straits Div 4 1st 2018 Round...
New hardtop dodger
As anyone who has been reading for a while knows, the boat came with a pretty crappy pre-fab dodger that I installed soon after I found it in a locker, and then removed just before Swiftsure 2017 in an ill-conceived attempt to make us look 'more racey'. And also...
Spring racing in the PNW
I've been missing the boat a lot recently, but have been lucky enough to get out a fair bit on other peoples boats (which in some ways is even better) Firstly, I've been racing on Fiesty, a Martin 241 at the CFSA every Wednesday. The weather has either been honking 25...
Summer Plans
So I've managed to get a job (well actually, two jobs) in Victoria and am getting down to spending the next few months earning some money. One of the jobs can potentially be done remotely - meaning I can probably pick up a few hours here and there when I am on the...
Back in Victoria
After arriving in Mazatlan, I had around five days to prepare the boat to be left for the summer. I spent the first two days productively lying around napping meaning I had three days to finish all I needed to do, in classic Matthew style. Basically, I stripped all...
Heading to Mazatlan!
So after I made the decision to head back to Canada for the summer, I had to figure out where to put the boat. I ended up deciding on Mazatlan, the place just North of Banderas Bay where I met Emma a few months ago. To get there I had to head 160nm North, against the...
