Meet the Crew

Hi, we're the Carey family from Adelaide, South Australia. Two years ago we watched a documentary called Maidentrip, by Laura Dekker. That documentary changed the trojectory of our lives because it sparked a dream neither of us even knew we had. 

We started Googling "families sailing around the world" and to our surprise we found lots of information. That's when we decided, 'if they can do it, why can't we'? 

That was November 2015. By the 2nd Feb 2018 we had packed up our lives and moved aboard our boat on the other side of the world. We spent those two years (and two months) saving money, attending courses and researching everything from boat choice to the kind of towels we were going to take (Tesalate by the way). It was a crazy time but we also enjoyed having a huge goal to work towards, especially seeing as we were both 100% onboard. 

Check out our blog to find out what we have done to make our dream a reality and to read about the highs and lows of cruising life aboard a 47ft yacht with three rambunctious boys. What adventures will we have? Where will we end up? Follow along to watch our adventures unfold.  

So what can I tell you about us, well my name is Erin and I am 37 years old. I grew up in Wagga Wagga in New South Wales. I have worked for the Australian Government for the past 17 years and I interview people for a living. I grew up 'sailing' with my Dad on a small inland lake in Wagga, although I'm far from experienced. I was more interested in talking to the boys than sailing, much to dads dislike.  I love traveling and have visited 34 countries. I enjoy planning and organising our travels, almost as much as I enjoy going on them. 

Dave is 36 and grew up in Adelaide. He works in safety and has a Masters in Work Health and Safety.  He is an Aircraft Technician by trade and is responsible for maintaining the boat.  We met when Dave joined the Air Force and moved to Wagga to complete his training. I was working on the RAAF Base as a Travel Clerk and we were set up by a mutual friend. Dave was posted back to Adelaide and after a few months apart, we knew we wanted to be together, so I moved to Adelaide and the rest is history! We make a great team and our skills, although vastly different, really complement each other!

We have three children who help us crew ROAM. Hamish is 9 years old, Jack is 7 and Christian is 4. They (mostly) enjoy "Boat School" and love exploring secluded beaches and tropical islands. They never tire of building sandcastles or jumping off the boat into gin clear waters. Hamish is our responsible boy who looks out for his younger brothers. He enjoys Minecraft, building Lego creations and wants to be an Engineer when he grows up. Jack is our outgoing social butterfly and loves to swim, play outdoors and have adventures. Christian is our determined, headstrong 4 year old who wants to be just like his older brothers, even if that means jumping off heights that are really to high for him or swinging off the mast! We can't wait to see how this experience shapes them for the future.