From Family to Crew

From Family to Crew is the true account of Dr. James Ellingford and his family as they embark on a remarkable journey with Pendana, a beautiful vessel designed for open-ocean cruising that is docked in beautiful Bobbin Head, Broken Bay, approximately twenty nautical miles north of Sydney, Australia. Ellingford and his wife have owned several boats over the course of their lives, but none so impressive and capable as Pendana, a Nordhavn 62. The doctor and his family purchased the boat and decided to write about their experiences over the first year of ownership, feeling that there should have been a similar guide for them at the time that they decided to buy Pendana.

Pendana is truly a remarkable boat, and throughout the book, readers can sense the enormous amount of affection and respect the family hold for her. The Nordhavn 62 is one of the most highly regarded oceangoing vessels on the sea today, and Ellingford calls her “not simply a boat, but a way of life.”

From Family to Crew shows anyone interested in voyaging with their families that it may be challenging at times yet absolutely possible for a couple with no real hands-on knowledge or experience of crossing oceans, to successfully own and operate such a sophisticated vessel. Ellingford’s account of his adventurous first year holds nothing back, offering brutal honesty about the myriad of challenges he and his family worked hard to overcome. Many obvious aspects of boat ownership are thoroughly covered, along with others that one might not even think of before purchasing a boat.

The story reads much like a captain’s log and doesn’t leave much out; after all, Ellingford also seeks to reassure the reader that there are some aspects of Nordhavn ownership that aren’t so difficult. It was his hope that anyone else deciding to purchase a Nordhavn, or any complicated vessel for that matter, might use his story as a guide on what to do and what not to do.

Ellingford’s story is all the more compelling given the aspect of his family’s role in the maintenance and use of the Pendana. While there are so many stories of a man alone with his vessel, the presence of a wife and children gives the book a much more interesting and unusual twist that will appeal to a wide range of readers. How will they deal with the usual pressures of family life compounded with the notoriously difficult life at sea? How will the doctor and his wife learn how to confidently operate the boat enough to justify its purchase? Learn the answers to these questions and more in this exhilarating firsthand account of life with Pendana.