By his own admission, the author's life has been dominated by three things: words, wind and women. Return to the Sea is his fifth published book, and he has written numerous magazine articles. Hence, the 'words'. The 'wind' of course, is the element that enabled him to do four circumnavigations, during which he set a number of sailing records. There were other voyages, too, and all told, his adventures were on five different boats Egregious, Chidiock,Tichborne1 and 11, Resurgam and The Hawke of Tuonela. And the third 'W' in his alliteration? Well, as he weaves his fascinating tale through the early days and brings you up-to-date, I lost count of the number of wives, let alone 'women'; but it did seem to just about equal the number of circumnavigations! In the main, this book is about his last round the world shot, on The Hawke, and about Carol, the lady who did much of the trip with him before returning to Boston to set up her won business, but is still very much a part of his life. Together, they cross oceans, and explore some of the ports of Portugal, the Azores and South America, before heading for South Africa and what the author calls "One of my favourite cities". Of course it is Cape Town. And while the boat is being overhauled he and Carol hop on the Blue Train, visit the Kruger Park, see the Drakensberg, drive down the Garden Route and generally do in a couple of weeks as much as many in South Africans do in a lifetime. Webb has much praise for Royal Cape Yacht Club, and for the people he met. He also has some canny observation on a land he had first visited some years earlier. It is at this point that Carol goes home, and Webb sails on to complete the circumnavigation in Sydney. It is a story that will hold the reader's interest, not only for the content, but for the easy going, colorful manner in which it is told.
Sailing and Yachting