Letters

Dispelling the myth

I have just heard that the sale of our boat is to complete next week. I was reminded of the adage ‘the two best days of your life are the day you buy your boat, and the day you sell it.’

Absolute rubbish.

I realise now that the whole process has been done with a heavy heart – a feeling shared with a number of friends who have joined us over the years for cruises and jaunts to otherwise inaccessible places.

It is the only boat we have ever owned, bought in April 2007, and she has taken me, family and friends to many isolated inlets, islands and coastal harbours around the west of Scotland and the Irish Sea. We have travelled 5,750 miles and spent nearly 200 nights away.

I am approaching 70, and struggle to get family and friends to come with me – there are so many other commitments that we all take on – and I have developed a heart problem which makes me reluctant to take the boat out on my own. It’s the end of