Well, I have a whole year and a bit to catch you up on... this may take a while. My road trip ended in early Jan of 2015, when I was running out of money and on the hunt for a job in the fruit picking areas of Victoria. I had applied for a few jobs in Cairns, and was slowly making my way back up north - job searching along the way. I was about a week away when I received a call about a job interview with a company called Genesis Fitness who were looking for a receptionist for one of their gyms. I agreed to be there on Tuesday(it was Thursday when I got the call) and made a beeline for home.
I made it back to Cairns on Monday night, arrived for the interview, got the job, and started the following week. Then followed a year of driving my van to and from work. Towards the end of the year I decided to go back to uni, Cairns didn't have the Marine Biology course that I wanted to do, but our neighboring town did. Townsville was a 4 hour drive away, and the rent was quite high if I wanted to live there. I started looking for alternative options. I could live in my van again...
It's always been a dream of mine to buy a boat, and I've always got one eye on the market. One weekend I was in Townsville searching for a Graduation Dress with a friend, who was finishing high school that year, when we happened to walk past a somewhat sad looking catamaran in the creek. It was large enough to live on, but small enough it shouldn't be out of my price range. There was a 'for sale' sign and a phone number. I gave the number a call on the spot.
Not long after, I had arranged to view the boat. So one day I drove down to view Auberge. A lady, not much older then myself, was selling the boat that was her fathers, he had recently passed away and hadn't used the boat for the past few years because he was sick. Auberge needed a lot of love and work. There was no front netting - it had disintegrated away, everything was covered in dirt and grime and bird poo. The main sail cover needed replacing, the headsail probably needed replacing too. The rudders and back deck needed work and the boat needed some serious antifouling.
I loved it. There was room for a 6ft person to stand in the hulls, three bunks, toliet/shower, galley with gas stove and an area for a fridge(that was missing the electrics). After having a chat with the owner, we agreed on a price. I drove back to Cairns in ecstasy and shock, hardly believing that I just bought a boat. The plan was to sail her back to Cairns, do her up, and take her back to Townsville to live on her as I go to uni.
Each weekend from then on I would drive down by myself to Townsville and work on her, to get her ship shape to sail to Cairns. My dad would give me guidance and help me when I brought things back, like the worm eaten rudders. I met a guy while I was in Townsville, he lived close to the marina and gave me a hand on the boat occasionally(as well as took me out for ice cream). After a few months, when she was finally ready, dad came down and we sailed her to Cairns over a weekend. However, I would still head to Townsville every second weekend...
My boat is still in Cairns to this day. I still work on her, with the help of my family. These uni holidays I plan to fly home and spend a week out on the reef exploring the islands, by myself most likely.
I ended up going to Japan over Christmas with the guy I met in Townsville. He had just completed his Masters degree in civil engineering, and had bought a uni that year. He was renovating his unit while I was doing up the boat. When he got a job offer to good to refuse, he had to move to Adelaide and invited me to eventually move down with him. I've never been to Adelaide, but there is a good uni there...
When the uni offer round came through, I got accepted into my first preference: Bachelor of Science (Marine Biology) in the University of Adelaide. The only uni in Townsville is James Cook University, and although they do have the reef on their doorstep, the quality of teaching and the status of Uni of Adelaide is more appealing. In early 2016 I decided to quit my job, and move to Adelaide to commence full time study.
We are half way through the first semester now and I'm loving it. The weather, the lack of mosquitoes, and even living with someone is better then I expected. We set up a fish tank so there is a bit of the ocean with me. I'm looking forward to heading back to Cairns and taking my boat out for the holidays.
