200,000 MILE CRUISERS

ince 1981, when we bought our wooden, varnished, 39ft Sparkman, my husband Tom and I have sailed some 200,000 miles. Our world cruise, with some racing thrown in, began when we finished full-time employment and departed England in September 1997. Over the years I kept a journal recording life on board, describing the places we visited, the weather and the state of the ocean, and my reflections on our lives permanently on board . The following are extracts from these diaries, with some bluewater cruising insights I gained along the way.