An Aussie family who sold everything and set sail around the world are celebrating a milestone 10 years at sea. With a dream of living full-time on the ocean, keen surfers Sara and Lee purchased their first 44-foot boat in 2014 — long before travelling families became a frequent sight across Australia.
Having both lost a parent at the tender ages of 50 and 59, the couple told Yahoo News Australia their grief was eye-opening.
“It made us realise that they never really got to go and do what they wanted to do after retirement and live their dreams,” Sara said.
“Why wait? We wanted, with our kids, to go and have an adventurous life, and surf and travel the world together.”
To see if they enjoyed living altogether on a boat, the pair and their young children, Taj and Bella — aged 8 and 9 at the time — did a test run.
“We absolutely fell in love with it,” Sara said.
After returning home to the Gold Coast, the family spent the following months prepping the sailboat, named Catalpa, before kicking off the adventure of a lifetime in 2015.
“We pulled [the kids] out of school and started homeschooling them, and sold everything we had and took off,” Sara told Yahoo, admitting the thought of teaching her children herself was what she was “most nervous about”.
“Back then, there wasn’t Starlink. Now there’s internet everywhere we go, but back then, there was barely any internet, so they did a lot of their schoolwork out of books.”
After time it became clear that Taj and Bella’s education also stemmed from new experiences and interactions with various cultures and languages.
“It was a pretty great way for them to grow up,” Sara said.
The family have enjoyed countless moments snorkelling and scuba diving together. Source: Supplied/Sailing Catalpa
Precious memories made while living on boat full-time
The family are still roaming the seas, and have spent time in the waters surrounding Australia, Thailand and Indonesia — their favourite spot.
“We spent six years in Southeast Asia,” Sara told Yahoo.
“There are so many islands and so many beautiful places, we spent a big chunk of our time there. A lot of the kids’ childhood was spent there, scuba diving and surfing.”
Needing some more space and separate cabins for Taj and Bella, who are now 20 and 19, the family bought a 53-foot Pearson 530, named Catalpa II, in 2022 and flew to San Diego to pick her up.
After stopping off for a while in Mexico to fix up the boat, they set sail again and are currently in Costa Rica.
Years later, the family say they have absolutely no regrets.
“It’s the little things…when we all go snorkelling or scuba diving, and we have these incredible shared moments,” Sara said.
“Being able to travel and see other cultures and share that with your kids and see them as little people.”
Family’s sailing adventures go viral
By sharing such memories online, the family has gained a large following, which has largely helped fund their ongoing excursion.
Their most viral video yet was captured in late last year in Costa Rica.
After the couple and their children jumped into the water to clean the bottom of their boat, Lee and Bella each felt something crawling around in their ears.
Flooding their ears with olive oil helped to draw out tiny baby crabs that were hiding inside.
After a combined 11 years of living on the boat, including their trial run, even this Aussie family was shocked by the creepy crawlies.
To follow along on their journey, click here.
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