On Wednesday, 9th November we brought Fame, our recently acquired 1966 Brown Brothers timber trawler into marina pen E31 after Craig ad his 85- year- old father Bruce steamed her down the coast from Brisbane. In some respects Fame has returned to her true home since she spent most of her working life fishing and scalloping in Bass Strait and Port Philip Bay.

Our connection with RMYS began as marina foundation members in 2006. At the time, we were living in St Kilda West with a dream of taking 12 months off and sailing from Europe to Australia. In 2010 we purchased a 1997 Amel Santorin Ketch, Hullabaloo of Normandy, in England and set off for Australia and RMYS. We enjoyed cruising so much that after 10 months in the Caribbean, we hatched a plan to leave Hullabaloo in the Caribbean and fly back to Australia to reorganise our lives so we could sail for half a year and work back in Australia for the rest of the year. So for the past 11 years, we have spent 6 months a year cruising aboard Hullabaloo, which has included 3 Atlantic crossings, 4 seasons in the Mediterranean, the Caribbean and the Pacific from Panama to Fiji. She is currently stored ashore in Fiji, awaiting our return for the next sailing season in the Pacific.

We are now retired and living in Lorne when not aboard Hullabaloo. Our 2 children are both married with their own children and live in Elwood and Yarraville. We bought Fame for our pen at RMYS and look forward to enjoying the friendly atmosphere at RMYS and cruising Port Philip Bay with our children and grandchildren when we are in Melbourne for a couple of days each week.

Written by Craig Willmott