THERE’S a first for everything! And adventurous King Islander Shelley Graham enjoys taking on the wild and remote firsts.
She has embraced the icy natural world, battled the wildfires in Canada and closer to home, climbed steps and mountains, and crossed the skies but had never sailed, despite living surrounded by sea.
Never doing things by halves, Shelley joined a crew, spent six days at sea, and travelled 1058 nautical miles from Hobart to Bluff, New Zealand. There were 45-knot winds, six metre seas and an electrical storm, but also beautiful conditions with magical sunrises and sunsets, accompanied by many albatross and “awesome people”.
“I joined the trip as a crew member to sail a yacht the Silver Fern back to New Zealand after it had participated in the Sydney to Hobart Yacht race,” Shelley said.
“Two yachts were returning to New Zealand, so it was made a race between the two vessels, calling it the inaugural ‘Hobart to Bluff’ yacht race.
“We sailed into Bluff, New Zealand where the local yacht club welcomed us. It’s a small fishing community, that reminded me of a lot of King Island. It was such a nice welcome. They put on a barbecue, which included local cray, abalone, salmon and blue cod.
“The trip was wild. There was a six-metre swell and 45-knot winds in the first two days.
“The second half of the trip was much calmer, and I was able to enjoy beautiful sunrises, sunsets and many different species of albatross following us the whole way.
“As part of the crew I was responsible for watches which included getting up a couple of times overnight, as well as sharing responsibility for cooking and cleaning.
“The bunk and living space were very tight, with nine other crew members sharing the space.
“Our captain was Sharon Ferris, who has represented New Zealand in sailing for a couple of Olympic Games. She was an amazingly inspiring woman, who can stay calm and unfazed no matter what is thrown at her.
“It was a great adventure, and I certainly threw myself into the deep end for my first-time sailing.
“I’m looking forward to doing more of it.”