Give meaning to your travel project
Marion and Ivan are the happy parents of four children, Anne (17), Claire (14), Agathe (12) and Antoine (8). This Franco-Peruvian family, living in the north of France, has been planning a sailing trip for many years.
But beyond the desire to travel with their family, Marion and Ivan wanted to give meaning to their trip, by telling their story and their new way of life, using their journey as an educational support. This is why they created the non-profit association "L'Ancre et les Voiles", which aims to raise awareness of a new way of life.
"The trip serves as an educational medium to present the contours and paths of an individual and collective transition to a society that is more respectful of our human and earthly environment. We seek to reach schools and families through a regular educational magazine.
We don't pretend to change people, but through our story, to bring small seeds of awareness to a different way of life. Our project on board will last between 3 and 5 years, and we will continue to carry these values when we return to land." explains Marion.
A solid travel catamaran
Once the budget was defined, Marion and Ivan started looking for the boat that would become their home for the years to come. The choice of the catamaran was obvious to welcome the big family. It was during a visit to Port Saint Louis du Rhône that they discovered Eagle, a Kronos 45 built by the Wauquiez shipyard.
"We visited it separately so that everyone could make their own opinion. But it was love at first sight. With its four cabins, and its large volumes, we set our sights on Eagle." continues Marion.
Eagle is number 7 of a series of thirteen units built between 1991 and 1993. Solid and well built, this model has already sailed around the world in the hands of its former owner.
Prepare and adapt
Even if Eagle is already a tourdumondist sailboat, she needs important works to adapt to her new crew and lifestyle. Both engines have been removed to be reconditioned by a professional.
The rigid bimini has been modified to provide more protection, and to be able to collect rainwater for onboard consumption. Solar panels and a new mainsail have been installed.
A lot of carpentry work was done in each cabin to increase the storage capacity for this large family.
The Kronos 45 is originally equipped with a toilet in each of the four cabins. Ivan and Marion decided to remove half of them, to keep only one in each hull. And one of the two has been replaced by a dry toilet, running on sawdust. This maintenance-free installation has the advantage of eliminating the need for a black water tank, and of eliminating the need for a hatch.
And the crew also needs to prepare. If Marion has a solid experience in cruising and racing, Ivan has a more limited experience in offshore sailing. In order to perfect his knowledge, he joined the "Club des Dauphins" in Dunkerque for several years to accumulate miles and maneuvers.
Leaving a big house to settle in a catamaran
After having sold and emptied their home in Roubaix, the whole family settled in the south, in a small house close to Eagle, the idea being to start the work and then to settle on board at the end of the construction. But it's not easy to go from the living space of a house to the simplicity necessary to live on a sailboat.
"We made a big reflection on our material lightening, an essential step to live with 6 people on a boat. Each member of the family has had to make choices in their daily belongings in order to limit the volume of the boat. But this work of reflection continues on a daily basis, in order to limit the superfluous and to review our consumption mode downwards."
Accepting risks and overcoming doubts
Selling your comfortable house to buy a boat and go around the world with your children is obviously a big risk for parents. But these doubts, which the children also felt, were the driving force for Marion and Ivan to carry out their project, which was very engaging for the whole family.
"It was necessary to stay the course during these many years of preparation, and there was no lack of opportunities to give up. You have to accept to readjust, to question yourself while listening to yourself."
On the professional side, both parents were forced to retrain to adapt their jobs to their new lifestyle. The purchase of the boat was financed by the sale of the house, but they had to find a way to earn a living while traveling. Marion, a doctor of pharmacy, specialized in translation and proofreading, while Ivan, who worked in the outdoor industry, trained as a video maker.
Meet and share
"It is important for us to share our project and its evolution with everyone, via our website and social networks. Many friends came spontaneously to help, and the family made some nice encounters on the platform of de Port Navy Service in Port Saint Louis du Rhône.
Then, by communicating honestly and humanely about our project, we managed to federate a lot of good wills, which helped us enormously in our preparation.
Former members of the shipyard, such as the production manager at the time, have given us valuable information to help us in our work. We are also in contact with Charles-Henri Wauquiez, the son of the founder of the yard where Eagle was built, who regularly follows our progress."
An itinerary that leaves room for improvisation
After her launch, Eagle and her crew will sail around Corsica and Sardinia so that the family and the boat can get to know each other better, the goal being to arrive in Gibraltar at the beginning of September. But this great family of travelers does not forbid themselves to visit the Greek islands if they feel like it, and to postpone the transatlantic.
You can follow the progress of Eagle and his crew via social networks or directly on the site:
