Gecko

My brother and I were on a bicycle tour in 2005, and on one day a huge number of trucks passed us by. I trundled on, and came to where he was waiting for me on the side of the road.

"This is not on the top ten safe things you could be doing. It's on the top of the most dangerous," he said. "I'm going to buy you a yacht."

I put aside my intentions for a round-the-world ride and set about seeking a yacht specific to a few things: sea-worthy, fibreglass, under 30ft, less than $30,000, and needing very little work.

I found a good approximation of all these at Tin Can Bay, a small town on the middle of the Queensland coast, and before long had ownership of her and sailed her away.