Who would have thought that a 'spur of the moment' acceptance of a kind invitation to go sailing, one beautiful Sunday afternoon, out of Aberaeron harbour, would so dramatically change the life of Dafydd Hughes? Until that time Dafydd, now 62, a son of Talybont and proud Welshman, had certainly dreamt more about playing rugby for Wales, than setting foot on a sailing yacht and becoming a sailor.
However, on that fateful day, Dafydd's life, due to that first exhilarating sail around Cardigan Bay, took a very different turn, from a hardworking, rugby loving chartered engineer, as he had been well and truly bitten and totally bewitched by the sailing bug.
That same day he joined Aberaeron Yacht Club, and whilst ignoring all advice to test the waters and see if he still liked sailing when it was raining, cold and blowing a hooley, the following Friday he purchased his first boat, a lovely 23ft Hunter Duette. Now that s what you might say is jumping in at the deep end, or even daft. However, rest assured, Dafydd is most certainly not daft, but moreover incredibly driven, as when you get to know this very kind and unassuming man, you soon realise that anything he gets involved with, he is one hundred percent committed to doing it to the highest standard and with a great deal of success. Perhaps that is why his motto is 'Dream, Commit, Conquer'. He soon learnt the ropes, or should we say his sheets from his warps, during the summers of 2004- 2006, sailing his boat in local regattas and much to the despair of other more experienced sailors, myself included, who had encouraged his initial enthusiasm, he started to show his obvious abilities by winning races.
So what options does one consider that Dafydd might do next, to give himself a special challenge and to help fast track his sailing experiences, whilst leaving behind the safety and comfort of the Yacht Club, a beer on the balcony, while enjoying the stunning panoramic views of Cardigan Bay? Well, in 2007, only Dafydd would think of undertaking a week's sailing training course and then informing us that he enjoyed it so much that he had enrolled on the 'Clipper Round the World Yacht Race' - one of the biggest challenges of the natural world and an endurance test like no other. To him, it was obvious wasn't it, and all in a three-year period from novice to ocean racer!
His initial idea was to do just the first and last legs of the race, but after that first week of training on the 70ft racing yacht, he was once again completely captivated, and the dream and challenge of completing the circumnavigation of the world, was too much for him to miss out on, so he signed up for the whole race. It is a crewed race, divided into eight legs and between thirteen and sixteen individual races, including six ocean crossings and 40,000 nautical miles, which is somewhat a bit of a step up from the Aberaeron Regattas. He thrived during the race and mastered his trade through both good and some horrendous weather conditions, that would even send seagulls looking for cover. He recounts that during one watch, he was knocked off the helm three times by huge fifty-foot side swiping waves, staying on board purely by the wearing of a harness. On another occasion, the yacht was flattened completely on its side like a bath toy. I asked him if he was scared and in his inimitable way, he replied, 'It was interesting, but we had too much to think about.' Suffice to say, that due to his calm demeanour during a crisis, he was very soon promoted by the skipper to Watch Leader.
After the time taken out with the race, he completed his RYA Yachtmaster qualification and returned to the tranquillity of a normal, happy family life with his partner Joanna and two grown up children, James and Lizzy. He would still take any opportunity he had to get out on the water, in whatever boat would have him, and when asked if he had any sailing experience, he was heard saying, and with great humility, 'I've had a little'.
As well as sailing, his expertise as an engineer has taken him all over the world, but unfortunately, Dafydd was soon to have to contend with another challenge, a battle much closer to home and not one of his choice this time, as he was having to deal with debilitating bouts of depression, where the simplest of tasks, like going to the supermarket, would be a huge achievement. During these difficult times and by chance, he took solace by visiting and working on a neglected 4-acre parcel of woodland that he owns. Over a period of time and between bouts of depression and winter bad weather, the routine of working on the land, clearing and laying paths etc, reignited something within him, gave him a purpose again, and the desire to get out of bed in the morning to achieve something. One vantage point on the newly cleared land, gave him a view over Cardigan Bay, and whilst standing there, he egan to realise how lucky he was to be alive and the custodian of this wooded haven, and over time and with continued work, his mental health much improved from his previous difficult times, aiding him to a full recovery.
Testament to his character, over the last two and a half years, he has, with the help of Coed Lleol, the small woods organisation (smallwoods.org.uk), opened up the woods to help people with mental health issues, via volunteering through nature-based activities. It has been a great success and as Dafydd says, 'It gives me such joy to see the smiles on people's faces when they walk back to the minibus at the end of the day.' It was during this time, and with renewed vigour, that Dafydd returned to work on an extended contract, to build a waste energy plant in Lithuania. This was completed in 2020 and due to this length of time at work and the general restrictions of the pandemic, he was once again thinking of a new challenge. It transpired that the call of the sea was as intoxicating as ever and he decided to buy another boat, do it up and sail around Britain and Ireland. While looking for boats, and as fate would have it, he came across a website globalsolochallenge.com. One senses a little 'deja vu' here, and as sure as the wind blows, there and then he filled in the entry form with £100 deposit: 'It's not returnable, so I can't back down', and another challenge beckoned.
In his last circumnavigation, they stopped in ports around the world between races. He was part of a crew to share the trials and tribulations of the sea with, but this is a totally different kettle of fish, this is the cutting edge of offshore sailing. A solo, non-stop, circumnavigation is the 'Everest' of sailing challenges. It was first achieved in 1969 by Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, and since then has only been completed by 179 individuals. To put that into some sort of perspective, over 4000 individuals have summited Everest, but that's the sort of challenge that 'rocks his boat', so to speak!
He is now two years on in this incredible project and he has completely refitted his new boat, an S&S, 34ft yacht called 'Bendigedig', the same class of boat as Ted Heath's 'Morning Cloud'. She was re-launched in Aberaeron in May 2022 and much to the relief of us all, without any leaks! With Dafydd at the helm, her first competitive race was at the New Quay Keel Boat Regatta, where she took first place in her class and buoyed by his success, he and his crew set off to Ireland for the famous Cork Week Regatta. The big prize in her class, The Classic, was a brand new trophy presented to the Royal Cork Yacht Club by the then HRH Prince Charles, to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the formation of the club, the oldest yacht club in the world. Yes, you guessed it, and to complete the fairy tale, Dafydd and his crew of 'old salties' won the 'Prince of Wales Cup', the only Welsh boat out of 17 completing yachts. Oh how the Guinness flowed that evening and this ended Phase I of Ill.
In October 2022, 'Bendigedig' was lifted out onto the hard in Aberystwyth after extensive sea trials, covering a distance of 4,500 nautical miles where she performed beautifully in all manner of sea conditions. Phase II is now in full swing, getting 'Bendigedig' shipshape with all the adjustments, alterations and basically taking care of every detail that the sea trials flagged up, before the start of Phase Ill, the start line in A Coruña Spain on the 26th August. Dafydd is now busier than ever getting everything finished and with the words of the great Sir Robin Knox-Johnston ringing in his ears, who said 'Getting your boat ready, funded and fully prepared is far harder than the actual sailing part'. Who are we to argue with such a legend of the sailing world, but knowing some of the weather conditions that Dafydd wil I no doubt experience, I know which one of the three phases I'd prefer to do! There will be some dark and stormy times ahead for sure, but that holds no fear for him, as he's quashed many of those on a Saturday night in Aberaeron Yacht Club without any problem.
He is surely the epitome of what one can achieve with sheer hard work, commitment and dedication. He is inspirational, as we all have dreams and ambitions, but it is the way that he never gives up, faces challenges and adversity head on and still manages to fulfil his dreams, however outlandish we may think they are. He epitomises the Navy's unofficial motto 'Semper Fortis' (always courageous), and that's what makes him such a very special person. I hope after this epic ocean-going challenge, nobody mentions the 'Sea of Tranquillity' to him, as you just never know!
There is little more that can be said about or to Dafydd other than to wish him all the luck and good fortune in the world. In the time honoured and traditional nautical saying, we say, Dafydd, 'Godspeed, may you have fair winds and following seas' in your incredible adventure. If you would like to follow Dafydd's progress on his solo non-stop circumnavigation of
the world, you can do so on Yellow Brick Tracker VB Tracking.