ketch, launched in New Zealand in
1989 and sailed to Australia in 2006.
For Grant, Raylene and their family,
living aboard a yacht has enabled them
to move to a new country and take their
home with them.
They sailed from New Zealand in
August 2006, stopping off at Lord Howe
Island, then Brisbane, before moving
on to Bundaberg to work, sailing on
to the Whitsundays and eventually
stopping back at Mackay to work again.
Grant, who had previously crewed
on racing yachts before buying his own
yacht, said he had been after a safe
bluewater cruiser that was comfortable
for the whole family and Virtu fitted
the bill.
“Virtu is a very strong boat, easy to
handle, and she has all the safety gear
on board,” Grant explains.
“It is a very safe boat, which you can
take anywhere provided you have the
time to get there.”
Grant and Raylene alternate their
lifestyle between living in marinas
when they are working and living on
anchor when they are travelling.
“We find the marinas are easier to
live in, especially with Jordan at school
and with my work,” Grant says.
“The best thing about being on a
boat is no gardens to tend to and no
lawns to mow, and if you don’t like your
neighbours you can just leave,” he said.
As for favourite locations, Grant and
Raylene love both Goldsmith Island
in the Whitsundays and Lord Howe
Island, which is 324nm (600km) east of
the Australian mainland and is widely
regarded as one of the most beautiful
islands in the Pacific.
“Around here, my favourite
anchorage would have to be Goldsmith
Island because there are never many
boats there and it is a great spot to
catch fish,” says Grant.
“But we also liked Lord Howe Island.
It took us two-and-a-half weeks to
reach Lord Howe Island where we
stayed for three weeks.
“It is a lovely place, the people are
very friendly and we liked the laidback
lifestyle,” he says.CASE STUDY FIVE
Geoff Craig of fixed address: Buragin, a
Class B pilot boat, 55ft Norman Wright,
built in 1964 out of oregon and spotted
gum.
Geoff, “a mad sailor at heart”, has
never looked back since he sold his
John Pugh yacht for a Norman Wright
ex-pilot boat four years ago.“I bought this boat more or less by
accident through a tender – so I sold
my (liveaboard) yacht and moved onto
this,” Geoff explains. “The best thing
about living aboard is freedom, peace
and quiet, no dogs barking, no lawns
to mow, no neighbours arguing, and no
cars hooning, and also there is less of
big brother standing on top of you.”
Geoff has lived aboard boats for the
past six years at Mackay Marina.
“Before moving to Mackay I used
to drive boats out of Yeppoon (Qld)
and did a lot of coastguard work down
there. I have lived in houses in Yeppoon
and up here as well, but there really is
no comparison,” he says.
As for recommendations, Geoff says
it’s hard to go past a Norman Wright for
quality of workmanship.
“This boat is very well known for her
sea capabilities,” Geoff explains. “Her
draft is 7ft with 45.41 tonnage and she
is powered a by 180hp Rolls Royce.
“It is the original motor, which
was rebuilt in 1985 and it purrs along
beautifully.
“Buragin is a big, heavy boat and
heavy boats are definitely best in a big
sea,” he adds.
Geoff enjoys his comforts, such as
air-conditioning and the microwave,46 trade aboat.com.au