An author has released a book detailing the gripping true story of one families’ journey from sailing novices to boating experts. 

Family Aweigh tells the inspiring true story of a family achieving their dream of leaving the hustle and bustle of life in England for an idyllic sailing tour of the Mediterranean. 

Author Michael Holt took off with his wife Rosemarie and his three children; 17-year-old Nicholas, 13-year-old Jeremy and 15-year-old Carolyn on their boat, Jernica in April 1976.

And with no GPS, smart phones or internet, the families first time handling a boat was far from plain sailing at times.

The keen writer, who now lives in a care home in Denham after his beloved Rosemarie passed away, explains how he wrote the majority of the book based on “copious amounts of logs” he had kept throughout the two and a half year journey.

The journey saw them sailing through tranquil bays and stormy seas and meeting some interesting and odd people along the way, including some Mafia members in Sicily.

Michael talks about how the family were at the mercy of the sea more than once and describes the scariest moment during their time on the water.

“One time, the whole sea was frothed up white, I was using my watch to navigate and Carolyn was at the helm. One minute, there’s white spray everywhere and the next minute I'm looking down into valleys of frothing waves.

“Suddenly Carolyn said ‘oh my god’ and ahead of us was a total wall of water, a completely vertical wall and it seemed to keep rising.

“Anything could have happened to us that day. Everyone admitted afterwards that that was the only time on the boat that we were terrified, but we knew these risks before we started.”

There were plenty of humorous moments during their experience – when offered a cup of tea in Greece, Carolyn asked for milk. The host proceeded to go out and milk a goat to provide it for her.

“She wouldn’t drink it. She learnt where milk came from that day!”

Michael speaks candidly about his amazement at how all of his children took to life at sea.

“They all knew their roles and they did them very well. Carolyn knew how to take the helm, Nicholas is a total perfectionist and Jeremy is a very hands-on person; he liked to get his hands dirty. I knew I depended on Jeremy because he had a technical intuition with engines, mechanics and electronics. My wife Rosemarie was much more than just a cook, she was first mate and much more.”

And for those who worried about the children’s education, Michael explains how Carolyn and Jeremy passed their O-Levels and Nicholas passed his O and A-Levels during their tour, which they sat at the British Council in Piraeus, Greece.

Michael admits the whole experience made them much closer as a family.

He said: “We all felt we were the best crew in the Med. Everyone knew what they were supposed to do in any circumstance. We wouldn’t have been able to do something like this if we weren’t a close family.”

And the calling of the sea hasn’t escaped Michael after all these years.

“I do miss the sea. You get the feeling like you’re on a different planet when you’re on the water. It’s something quite different. It was such a wonderful experience, we truly lived our dream.”

Family Aweigh is priced at £7.89, available on at www.amazon.co.uk.