Last Days of the Slocum Era is a lavishly illustrated, two-volume review of cruising under sail (over 400 colour photographs), spanning the years from the mid-1960s through to 2024, viewed through the lens of the author’s engagement, which began at the age of 14 on the famous International Jetty in Durban, South Africa, where yachts from all over the world used to raft up in the summer months, preparing for their passages around the Cape of Good Hope and beyond.
The first sailor Graham spoke to, in November 1966, was Dr David Lewis, who was circumnavigating on his catamaran, Rehu Moana. David Lewis, a veteran of the inaugural 1960 OSTAR, and later renowned for his examination of traditional Polynesian navigation systems (We, the Navigators), and his Antarctic exploits (Ice Bird), became a close friend.
The following year, on 21 October, 1967, 18-year-old solo sailor, Robin Lee Graham, sailed into Durban, aboard his small sloop, Dove, and from then on, there was only one thing Graham wanted to do, follow in the wake of Dove to wherever it might lead. Over the next few years, he befriended a number of extraordinary voyagers, mostly unknown and unsung, many of whom became lifelong friends.
He also found, in Durban Central Library, the largest horde of ocean voyaging narratives he ever encountered. After reading John Guzzwell’s Trekka Round the World, he became an afficionado of small boat cruising, and to this day thinks that any yacht over 30ft is decadent!
In 1972, he migrated to Sydney, Australia, where he has spent more than 50 years cruising Pacific waters, sailing aboard everything from 19ft, light-displacement sloops to 60’ gaff-rigged schooners, and more recently, several junk-rigged yachts.
The first volume of Last Days of the Slocum Era covers the period from 1966 until 1980, when voyaging under sail was not that different to the way that Joshua Slocum sailed around the world on his epic solo voyage between 1895 and 1898. Volume Two looks at the technological and cultural impact that the digital age has had on what was once a timeless way of life, once again illustrated by the author’s experiences at sea.
A unique aspect of this work is that the author is not your typical salty dog. He aspired to be a ballet dancer as a boy, and jokingly references ocean cruising as his great consolation prize. He has struggled with his emotional and physical health at times, and is frank about his shortcomings, both as a sailor and as a human being. One thing he learned from the great characters he crossed paths with, is that passion, courage and commitment form a bridge to a better life.
The paperback versions of Last Days of the Slocum Era can be purchased from Amazon, and the ebook versions from Amazon or Kobo.
