A committed live-aboarder for the past 22 years, author Chas Strange isn’t just any seaman and the ships he most loves aren’t just any ships. By his own admission he is fanatical about ferro-cement. In addition to having built nine boats for himself – some to his own design – he’s a ferro hull surveyor and former New Zealand Yachting Federation Inspector. He’s also a life member of both the Hartley Ferro Cruising Club and the International Yachting Fellowship of Rotarians. In this newly released ebook, Chas delivers a mix of narrative, philosophy, observation and opinion. Not short on experience, he made his first flotilla from totara fence posts – much to the farmer’s wrath – when a boy in the King Country. Subsequent events in this old seadog’s life move back and forth in time as his various boats and colourful voyages take the limelight. From meditative musings on some of the Pacific’s finest anchorages to digressions on infamous watering holes, the many topics covered will engage sailors, wanna-be boat builders and aspiring live-aboarders alike. Now in his eighties, Chas has spent many years on his floating home in and around New Zealand's Whangaroa Harbour. The content of his book - which has been many years in the making – draws on his building and sailing ventures, boat logs, personal philosophy and random conversations at the ubiquitous ‘table of knowledge’ in his favourite drinking establishment.
A committed live-aboarder for the past 22 years, author Chas Strange isn’t just any seaman and the ships he most loves aren’t just any ships. By his own admission he is fanatical about ferro-cement. In addition to having built nine boats for himself – some to his own design – he’s a ferro hull surveyor and former New Zealand Yachting Federation Inspector. He’s also a life member of both the Hartley Ferro Cruising Club and the International Yachting Fellowship of Rotarians. In this newly released ebook, Chas delivers a mix of narrative, philosophy, observation and opinion. Not short on experience, he made his first flotilla from totara fence posts – much to the farmer’s wrath – when a boy in the King Country. Subsequent events in this old seadog’s life move back and forth in time as his various boats and colourful voyages take the limelight. From meditative musings on some of the Pacific’s finest anchorages to digressions on infamous watering holes, the many topics covered will engage sailors, wanna-be boat builders and aspiring live-aboarders alike. Now in his eighties, Chas has spent many years on his floating home in and around New Zealand's Whangaroa Harbour. The content of his book - which has been many years in the making – draws on his building and sailing ventures, boat logs, personal philosophy and random conversations at the ubiquitous ‘table of knowledge’ in his favourite drinking establishment.