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Craig66 said..Shanty1 said..Thanks mate I try to ask as many questions i can. Learn and make the most of every opportunity.
On another note, what's your story Craig? Where do you sail? What boat do you sail? How long how you been sailing?
Now your turn Mick,
Give us an update on your self, your past life experiences, how your going with your trip plans, oh and a few of us want to know why you left your new bride?
Well Craig this is a long story so hang on an get some popcorn (and maybe a couple reds) on the go (I do have a reputation). Well I suppose my story begins in September 1998. I was born in cairns to my mother a nurse and my father a commercial fisherman.
I lived in cairns until the age of 5 when I moved down to Bundaberg. Where my father bought a prawn trawler, a 55ft MacLaren built trawler called "Lady Beatrice" (not to be confused with the trawler in Mooloolaba under the same name) where he worked the local waters but also had a go up in the straits. He told me the most lucrative grounds where up at Mackay and out east of the swains. My first trip commercial prawn trawling was just east of the bunker group. On our first night we caught about 450 pounds of prawns. I was sorting all night. We only got one night in due to the little 371 Detroit diesel generator letting down (dad bought this home and we fixed her up and threw her back in).
As as I got older my relationship with my dad got stronger ( he was away a lot of the time when I was a child). Our adventures in "Lady Beatrice" were extended into school time. By the time I was 14 my dads just like "Mick I have had a chat to your mother we have agreed to you doing distance education and come work with me." I was doing average in school at the time c+-b+ type of kid. My family well knew I wasn't into school work I was into fishing. After a few breakdowns I started learning sh!tloads about engines. I also did one trip spanner crabbing when I was 15 east of Fraser with I guy I met on the jetty. It was a total bust.
At the age of 16 I got my boat license. My dad wanted to give commerial line fishing a go me on shanty and him trawling on "Lady Beatrice" We bought a 35ft wooden boat built in Townsville called "Shanty" it was originally a mackerel boat.It was agreed with my local fisheries officer ( that my dad was very good mates with) that he would "Let it fly " that I was not 18 so could not get a commercial Fisher license. I sold everything under dads name. Fishing with my mate on "shanty" we where making a selves a fair bit of money for 16 year olds. We did the odd stupid thing but generally everything went alright. My most memorable moment aboard "Shanty" was coming back from outside of Fraser in 25knots of northerly. The waves were probably about 3 metres but occasionally more. The boat got flogged but we made it back.
After I had caught all my quota I was looking at some work on a tug boat over in the gulf. I took the opportunity as a one off but ended up staying with the company. The job was only minor, tow an empty 15 car barge from Weipa to Darwin. The journey took 7 days and the weather was perfect.
In Darwin I met went down to the local bar ( my mate I was commercial line fishing with was with me and so was his brother who was 2 years older than us so bought us drinks as I was 17 turning 18 in 3 weeks time at the time). A girl and her friends approached us and asked me if I was single I told her I was, now let's understand she looked super Hot and one of those cool chicks ( to be first I was sceptical she looked a bit like the song "My Michelle" by guns n roses was made for her). Long story short she was a beautiful person and I married her at in july 2017.
Soon after my dad became very sick in hospital (he was a chainsmoker and also mucked around with fridge has when he was 20 on trawlers). He Had to have these drugs that would mess with him, he would declare here's going East of Fraser because "that's where the prawns are". We convinced him to sell the boats and he passed soon after in March 2019.
What made it worse was my mother was diagonised with breast cancer. She began chemotherapy immediately. This took weakend her immune system after that Pneumonia finished her off. She passed in the same week as my dad nearly a year after.
This is crippled me all I wanted to do was be by myself. I took off in Shanty all the time ( which I bought off my parents without the licenses a few months before he got sick). I lost my job and my wife was going in other directions to afford our bills I had to sell Shanty. So that's what I did on the 18 April 2019. My wife finally left me on 29 April.
That me to get myself together. I found some tug work from Hobart to Melbourne. I finished that on 15th of March, and took to sea breeze to try an Persue my dream of long distance sailing. Just like my hero's in the books, solo non-stop.
On seabreeze I found people like sectorsteve who gave me a wealth of information and where supportive.
Right now im getting sailing experience as much as I can. As well as looking for a boat.
I definitely need to thank dad. He taught me everything I know about boats and engines, he was a great man.
PS I gotta have Brocken the longest post record surely.
PPS don't know if everyone wanted to read my life story but oh well
Well craig that wraps up (in detail) my life so far
Shanty
> 9 months ago, 31 May 2019
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