I learnt to sail at the age of 8 after my Mother decided to go on a boatbuilding course, a decision I still thank her for to this day. The result was a beautiful wooden Optimist dinghy called ‘Tomcat’ in which I quickly caught the sailing bug. As I grew up I spent most of my spare time racing dinghies and keelboats on the South Coast of the UK before getting a taste for offshore sailing as co-skipper on a Najad 51 for a Pacific Crossing in 2007.

After working for eight years as a Shipbroker in London I became increasingly impatient to set off on an adventure before it was too late. Instead of putting my savings into a property like most of my friends, I purchased ‘Fathom’, a Vancouver 28 pocket sailboat and put the remains into a cruising fund. For three years I worked hard in my spare time refitting and upgrading her for extended offshore sailing.

In May 2016, I was ready as I would ever be to set sail, and decided to enter the Jester Azores Challenge. However, after facing a series of storms in the Bay of Biscay I decided enough was enough and diverted to Spain to lick my wounds. After some R&R I proceeded south to Madeira, the Canary Islands and then the Cape Verdes before reaching Barbados just before Christmas after a 17 day Atlantic crossing.

In 2017 I transited the Panama Canal and set off on a 4000 nautical mile passage from Panama to the Marquesas which took me 38 days. From there I made stops in Tahiti, the Cook Islands, Tonga, Fiji and New Caledonia before reaching Australia in November but ran into a storm on the way and was knocked over by a breaking wave.

The early part of 2018 was spent day sailing up the endless East coast of Australia and across to Darwin before heading out into the Indian Ocean to Cocos Keeling. From there it was a three week passage to Madagascar where I arrived in October. A magical month was spent exploring with new friends before sailing down to South Africa in time for Christmas via a stop at Bazarutto in Mozambique.

In early 2019 I departed South Africa and sailed up the South Atlantic to Saint Helena island but nearly sank on the way after the engine exhaust hose split open and the boat filled with water after the bilge alarm failed to activate. After recovering the situation just in time I enjoyed a rest in Saint Helena before heading onto Fernando da Noronha for a quick pit stop. In April I arrived in Grenada and crossed my ground track from two years previously, completing a lap of the world. After a few months break from the boat, I returned to Fathom in October and got her ready in the boatyard for the last part of the voyage.

The beginning of 2020 was spent exploring the Caribbean before the coronavirus pandemic arrived. After a few weeks in lockdown I set off from Antigua to the Azores in early May and arrived at Horta on the island of Faial twenty one days later. My hopes of a beer ashore on arrival were dashed when I was told the border was closed. It took another three weeks confined to the boat before I and other cruisers were invited for a COVID test and finally allowed ashore. My first steps on land after six weeks on the boat felt pretty good.

In July of 2020 I set sail on the final ocean passage to Falmouth in the UK where I made a few repairs before continuing on to the Solent. On the morning of August 8th I was met at the Needles by a flotilla of boats filled with friends and family, an unforgettable welcome I will never forget. I was escorted back to Yarmouth Harbour from where I had left four years and three months previously. After 37,223 nautical miles I had fulfilled my dream of sailing around the world. My life would never be the same again.

Check out my blog, films on Youtube and my social media feeds if you want to discover more about my adventures in Fathom. Book to come…. I am happy to answer any questions so please don’t hesitate to send me a message and i’m always open to talking about new adventures and collaborations :-).

Thanks for looking at my website, Thom.