About US
Hi, I'm Morgan. I'm a Live Sound Engineer, living in Fremantle Western Australia. I'm an avid yachtsman. I have been sailing my whole life, both in dinghies and keelboats, and have spent thousands of hours growing up on or around the water. I was born and raised in Dunsborough, a small country town in the southwest of Western Australia, approximately 100 nautical miles South West of the capital city of Western Australia, Perth. Dunsborough is a picturesque coastal town lying at the intersection between the bush and the sea with a population of around 8000.
I have been a member of the Dunsborough Bay Yacht Club, since 2005 and have participated in club events since before then. The club was formed in 2000 by a small group of keen sailors who actively sailed off the beach from a makeshift tent 'clubhouse' for 10 years before the current clubhouse was opened in 2010. The Dunsborough Bay Yacht Club has been a huge part of my childhood and has given me my lifelong passion for sailing.
From a young age, I started sailing dinghies with my father. We sailed a GP14 dinghy which is a 1954 Jack Holt design 14ft double handed displacement dinghy. The GP14 is very popular in the United Kingdom with fleets at world titles over 100 boats. The "GP" has a mainsail, jib (or larger genoa) and a symmetrical spinnaker. In Australia they are sailed with a trapeze.
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After sailing GP's as a crew for my father, I was part of one of the first junior sailing courses ever to be held at the club. I learned to sail in Mirror dinghies and the Splash dinghy class.
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After a couple of years of learning the ropes, dad & I and a few members from the club built my first boat. A 7.5ft Minnow dinghy, constructed out of plywood and epoxy. I sailed the minnow for many years and before moving on to the Flying Ant class, a double-handed skiff with spinnaker & trapeze. I sailed in both state and national titles in the minnow and flying ant class and learnt about the racing rules and how to maximise the performance from these little boats.
After sailing Flying Ants it was time for me to change tack. I realised that racing wasn't my calling and that I was happiest with sailing for the fun of it.
Nostalgic to my sailing roots, I acquired a fibreglass GP14 dinghy (Pictured above) that was slowly rotting in a paddock. The GP14 was designed by Jack Holt, the briliant British naval architect who aslo deigned the every popular Mirror Dinghy in 1949. After two years of working on her in my spare time, I managed to bring her back to life. I sailed this fantastic dinghy for the next couple of years, mostly for fun with the occasional bit of racing thrown in to mix things up.
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From the GP 14 I had big aspirations, for a 14-year-old I suppose. I wanted to own my own keelboat. A boat that I could sleep on board, sail further, sail with more friends, expands my horizons; a true little ship."Sarnja"was my new project. A Spacesailor 18 designed by Kim Swarbrick and built in WA by Swarbrick Yachts. She was a solid fibreglass, ocean going fixed keel (yet trailorable) cruising boat.
'Sarnja' gave me my true passion for cruising boats and sold me on the idea of one day living on board. I sailed her around Geographe Bay for the next few years, learning boat handling and seamanship and how to quick recover from a man overboard situation while sailing solo!
While the Spacesailor 18 was an important stepping stone and possibly the best sailboat I have ever owned, it was time to sell her and move on to bigger and better things.
Introducing "Emigre" my current sailboat, home and passion. She's a 1983 Duncanson 35 cutter rigged sloop. 'Emigre' was designed by Allen Blackburne and built by Jon Duncanson of Duncanson Yachts in South Australia.
She's 7.5 tonnes of hand-laid solid fibreglass with an integral lead keel and a skeg hung rudder. 'Emigre' has now been my full time home for over four years and not a day goes by where I regret that decision. Since buying her, I have sailed her over 7000 nautical miles around Geographe Bay and up and down the WA coastline between Albany and Fremantle.
While this isn't a great distance, It's the best I can do whilst working full time. Don't worry. This is just the beginning! Hang around to follow my charted course.
Emigre partakes in both cruising and racing events at both Fremantle Sailing Club and Dunsborough Bay Yacht Club. Emigre completed the 2019/20 Fremantle Sailing Club Valmadre Winter Series, crewed by Freo locals and navigated by my good friend Jon Sanders. While we didn't fill the trophy cabinet, we had a great time racing against boats of a similar vintage.
In November 2019, Emigre completed the FSC Harbour Race, sailing under her Dunsborough Bay Yacht Club Flag. While she sailed faster than ever before, we managed to take out last place despite the head start! Maybe she's more of a cruiser?
Emigre is part of the FSC & DBYC cruising fleets and regularly participates in twilight sails for both clubs. She's even ventured upriver to sail at Royal Perth Yacht Club.
The highlight of Emigre's sailing calendar is the annual FSC Quindalup Cruise where she makes the pilgrimage back to her home waters in Geographe Bay, spending a few weeks moored in the idyllic anchorage of Quindalup, in front of the Dunsborough Bay Yacht Club. This time is spent sailing almost every day between Quindalup and Cape Naturaliste, cruising in convoy with DBYC's cruising fleet.
Emigre is currently residing at Fremantle Sailing Club.