A Scottish sailor and her American husband have realised their dream of making the 4,800 nautical mile journey from Florida to Arran in their 47 foot catamaran.
Tadd Maudlin from Indiana, USA, and Lindsay Carswell from Edinburgh run sailing charters aboard their Leopard 47 sailing catamaran, based in Key West, Florida.
When they bought SY Makara in 2015 – named after a mythological beast from far eastern mythology that is half sea serpent and half goat/crocodile, which Gods rode on to cross the sea – they planned to sail her to Arran to visit Lindsay’s family, including cousin Margie Currie of Blackwaterfoot.
Unfortunately, setbacks put paid to that plan when the engines had to be replaced at a cost of US$60,000 (£45,500), delaying the North Atlantic crossing for three years.
After a great deal of hard work and planning they finally set sail from Key West on Wednesday May 2, heading to Bermuda and onto the mid-Atlantic Azores to Crosshaven, Ireland, then up the Irish Sea, to arrive in Blackwaterfoot on Saturday June 30.
With a crew of five, they logged a total of 4,800 nautical miles while spending 31 days at sea.
Lindsay, just prior to setting off again, told the Banner: ‘We have thoroughly enjoyed our month on Arran with family and friends, sailing the Mull of Kintyre and Kyles of Bute, the Mackerel Lottery and the amazing weather.
‘If any of our new friends would like to keep up with our journey, we keep a travel blog which can be found at www.lastknownposition.net – it also includes information about the boat, her crew and our adventures.’
The return journey, which began on Wednesday July 25, will see the crew and catamaran heading towards Northern Ireland and then down the west coast of Ireland, south of England, northern Spain, Portugal, Morocco, the Canaries and finally back across the Atlantic, leaving in November for Key West.
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