An adventure around the world 

When JP and Charlotte – two young sailors – were working together on a superyacht called Marie, they used to spend hours talking about their dreams and wishes for the future. “We both mentioned how at some stage in our lives, probably when we were older and had more money and time, we’d like to buy a boat and sail around the world,” says JP. But the more they both talked about it, the more they realised they could make it happen a whole lot sooner. “We realised if we got our ducks in a row we could do it now, while we were young and didn’t have kids.” The decision was made.

Both had extensive experience of yachting that made their dreams a real possibility. Charlotte’s father was a yacht captain and so she had grown up around the water. JP, meanwhile, had gone straight from university into the yachting world. In fact, both still work in yachting in the Caribbean for half the year when they aren’t on their own boat.

Happening upon the right vessel 

The first step in their plan was to find that boat, and it happened via a coincidence while the pair were on Marie together heading up to Newport. “A friend who was working with us saw a boat pop up on Facebook Marketplace. It was about half an hour from where we were going to be docked,” says JP. “We went and had a look – the hull was a very prestigious design but the boat looked a bit neglected, as if someone had started a project and not finished it. The bones were really premium, though, so that got us a bit inspired. We knew a lot of work needed to go into it but we wanted to up our skill level from this experience and so it was the perfect blank canvas to do that.” 

The pair went back and forth with the owners and eventually settled on a price at the top of their budget. They named the new boat Jacqeau (after a word they’d made up while playing Scrabble) and then began the blood, sweat and tears to get it ocean-ready. “Doing everything ourselves, every inch of the boat got turned upside down and inside-out and all the systems got replaced and renewed,” says JP. “Anything that could go wrong went wrong but we came out of it having learnt so much.”

Supporting the seas as they go 

The couple were able to get sponsors to support them in their goal of circumnavigating the globe and inspiring others to follow in their footsteps. “One of our headliners is Ocean Bottle – an incredible water bottle company,” says Charlotte. “For every bottle you buy, they fund the collection of 1kg of ocean-bound plastic – the equivalent in weight to 1000 plastic bottles. We stand by that cause and work with them to promote those values.” 

Their passion for ocean health and sustainability is something they’ve noticed in their contemporaries too. “We’ve seen such a shift in the time we’ve worked in yachting when it comes to attitudes towards ocean health,” says Charlotte. “I’ve seen crew members coming to captains and asking to start recycling on board – simple things that can make such a big change. People seem to be on a quest to preserve this beautiful world that we’re lucky enough to work in every day.” 

A career on the water 

Both are big advocates of working in the superyacht industry. “As a career it’s a great option for anyone who loves the sea, is a hard worker and who wants to go and explore the world,” says JP. “It’s a slightly different route from your classic office job but it enables you to see the world and meet interesting people and be a part of a growing and interesting industry.” 

Their own careers so far have seen countless memorable moments. “Crossing oceans in big sail boats and seeing huge waves come crashing down onto the decks is always quite an experience,” says JP, who has raced in regattas against some of the quickest monohull sail boats in the world. “I’ve worked alongside very knowledgeable old America’s Cup sailors and I took a lot from that.” 

All of it has stood the couple in good stead for their adventures on Jacqeau. ”Rubbing shoulders with experienced sailors, you realise that you don’t need to sail the boat as hard as you can all the time, it’s more about being safe and having a level head and being measured in your approach,” says JP. Of course, there are benefits to going solo. “We have more time to ourselves on Jacqeau, so we will often leave the boat for a day and go and explore.” And with their circumnavigation still underway, there are plenty more adventures to come. 

@projectworldsail