Who Are We?
Why Albatros?
We're Matt & Jess
We live permanently in Normandy, France but spend as much time as possible aboard Albatros in the Netherlands.
Matt - "My mind starting whirring during the Covid-19 Pandemic of 2020. I was running my own business as a restrantuer and due to Covid, I was running a dark kitchen.
It was during this time, I realised there's more to life than slogging my guts out to try and make ends meet. I decided to quite literally seize the day, and the idea of Seas the Day was born. We moved to Normandy in order to be closer to family and whilst in Europe, we realised the possibilities of adventure and travel are endless. I used to live in Scotland and owned a small Mirror Dinghy there, I knew I needed a yacht in my life. Ever since a young age, I have been drawn to the water. I started kite and windsurfing around the age of 5 and it was only a few years later I was introduced to sailing and ive never looked back, having used families boats and then having my own for the last 20 years.
During this time, I have been awarded an Off Shore Yacht Master teaching qualification from the RYA and I have sailed yachts up to 50 feet in Greece for two years whilst teaching others the joys of sailing. I am most defiantly ready for our next adventure and of course, that will be aboard Albatros!"
Phantom 31
Albatros is our beautiful Phantom 31, a 1977 Blue Water cruiser designed by H. Streuer at the Phantom Yachtbau Genzel Boat Yard. Albatros has been designed to sail around the world with heating, water system and renewable energy onboard, she is designed for offshore living for longer periods of time.
We have spent a long time renovating and transforming Albatros into a home away from home. When we first got her, she had dark brown pleather seat covers which did not look inviting and she had some very badly applied plastic vinyl on her walls and cupboard fronts. She needed a cosmetic rehaul.
It wasn't just the inside of Albatros that needed a facelift. She had been sat in the water with no care or attention for at least 2 years. She had a lot of barnacles and weeds on the bottom which were soon blasted off with a pressure washer. We then had to remove the few year old anti fowl and prime and add a new coat of anti fowl. The picture above was the final result. This anti fowl should last 2 years, but we will lift her out of the water again and see what she's like.
So, why this particular yacht? As a non-sailor, this part of the search was 100% up to Matt. We knew we wanted something between 30 and 36ft so it would be manageable to solo helm if needed but something that was roomy and not cramped when sat inside. The main criteria when looking for yacht (as well as being within a certain
price range) was that she had to have a fin or bulb keel, be set up for long distance blue water sailing and be comfortable to sleep 4 to 5 and host up to 8. We also wanted something of a project that we could put our own stamp on and make our own. When we first saw Albatros, we loved how sturdy she looked and how seaworthy she was. In the future we will be making longer voyages so we knew we needed a yacht that would perform well under challenging conditions.
Another thing that drew us to Albatros was her name itself. According to Myth, the Albatross is considered good luck if seen at sea and will guide the sailor safely to land. Albatrosses symbolise freedom, strength, and navigation. Exactly what we were wanting from the adventure that she would bring us. The story of the Albatross coming from Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner however, told a different story. In the poem, it tells of the narrator who killed the bird and was made to wear it around his neck as a symbol of bad luck.
Jess - "During Covid - 19, I was working from home having been in a busy bustling office in the middle of a big town. I worked for an insurance company and I went from a very lighthearted work place, to sitting on my own in my make shift office at home. For me, it was during this time, I thought there MUST be more to life! I know everyone was in the same position but it felt like such a waste of a year and when Matt came up with the idea we move abroad, I didn't have to think twice!
I have always wanted to run my own cake baking company, so a move to France as well as setting up my own business was a very exciting prospect. I have always lived on the south coast and I find the ocean a very calming place, although I haven't spent as much time as Matt on the water, its a place I adore and would never want to be far from the sea.
We decided quite quickly Albatros was the one. Having never seen her due to lockdown travel restrictions, we had a survey completed and bought her. Unseen. When we finally got to meet her, externally she was exactly what we were looking for and Matt immediately got his sailor “hat” on and started to plan what the next steps were. We needed to work out if she needed any work on her rigging or sails, so we got the sails out and to our relief they were in very good condition. We turned the key for the engine, and she started first time, another thing that had been worrying us. Stepping inside the cabin of Albatros, it became clear she had been unloved and not visited or any attention paid to her in a while. Our minds were in a whirlwind thinking about what we could do to improve her dreary interior. We knew we had found exactly what we were looking for. A project, a sturdy yacht, our next adventure!
My family have always had boats, and at the weekends, myself, my mum and dad would go out on our small motor boat at Poole Harbour, or cruise up the Wareham river. As a small child, I spent a lot of time in West Wales with my Grandparents and on my grandads Sloop Rig. Sailing is in my blood. My dad was sailing from a very young age and my grandad, commodore of his local sailing club. It was only a matter of time before I was aboard our own yacht.
I love spending as much of our spare time aboard Albatros and just like Matt, we cannot wait for our next adventures."
If we're talking about us, we cannot forget our four legged friends. They are a huge part of our lives and love coming on adventures with us. Between us, we have three dogs, but we are always looking after our family members two as well, quite often making us a family (or should we say pack) of seven including the two of us.
You can see Archie, who is the longest serving member of the pack, in the photo with Matt. He absolutely loves a break away on the yacht and is happy to sit below deck whilst we sail the ocean waves.
Winnie, in the picture with Jess, is our newest member. At just one year old, she is yet to make her sailing debut, but she will definatly be joining us on our Mediterranean adventure (see What's Next tab for more details).
The final member of our permanent pack is Teddy. We adopted him at 10 years old, so he is an old boy. He is also completely blind
and so he is the only one that won't have experienced life aboard Albatros. He loves his home comforts of a nice sofa, blanket and a fire when when its slightly cold. He is so happy at home, we don't want to traumatise him by bringing him aboard, but none the less he is a huge part of our pack.
