Volunteer Spotlight on Judy Evans

Introducing Judy Evans

Judy's journey in the cruising world is as adventurous as it is inspiring. Her cruising story began, as many do, with a practical shift in life circumstances. A former dinghy sailor, she laughs that once children arrived, "hanging off a trapeze with a baby strapped to my chest didn't seem such a good idea!"

A Drascombe with a cuddy came first, suitable for day sailing with one infant, followed by a Polish-built wooden Folkboat when daughter number two arrived. The Folkboat, originally Lady Pogamberry, was promptly renamed Rumpus, in homage to Where the Wild Things Are and in reference to the children onboard. The family aptly christened the tender Racket.

As their confidence grew, so did their adventures. From Poole, they began Channel crossings in a Fred Parker-designed wooden yacht, Tamarisk of Parkstone, spending long summer holidays cruising Normandy, the Channel Islands and Northern Brittany. With Judy's husband, Bob Barker, in academia enjoying extended summers, and Judy saving her annual leave "all in one go, thanks to a sympathetic boss who was also a sailor", cruising became the rhythm of family life.

Wooden boat maintenance eventually lost its charm, and in 1998 they moved to a Nicholson 35, originally built for a relation of one of the owners of the J Class yacht Velsheda. It came with the rather unfortunate name Velsheda S. "Try using that in the phonetic alphabet when reporting to Portland," she laughs, so they quickly renamed her Nixie.

Today, Judy, Bob and their family enjoy cruising the French inland waterways aboard their Linssen 35 steel cruiser, Mon Amie, based in Auxerre.

Judy and Bob joined the CA in 1994, initially making use of the website and forums. But her volunteer involvement began with what she describes as a chance meeting "like ships passing in the night" on the Somme in 2018, when Betsan Caldwell called across the canal inviting her to speak at the next European Inland Waterways Section seminar about their move from sail to power. Judy's presentation was titled, "From Sail to Snail" as a nod to the change of pace in canal cruising.

From there, Judy began contributing reports to CAptain's Mate and later became an editor for a section of the French canals. When Brexit reshaped cruising logistics, she offered to investigate extended stays in France via the VLS-T visa with David Fickling. The subject became, in her words, her "Mastermind topic (or anorak obsession)". Judy has since run webinars, written guidance and regularly posted on the CA forums on this and other aspects of EU travel.

In 2022 Judy was awarded The Dussek Plate for her contributions. Whilst Judy's family affectionately refer to the recognition as "for being gobby", it was a proud moment. The CA's Regulatory & Technical Services (RATS) group invited her to join, and, as she puts it, "the rest, as they say, is history!"

On her volunteer contributions, Judy shares, "I enjoy being able to share my knowledge with CA members, who are a very receptive audience, and I have benefited enormously from the knowledge of others.

"I hope that in some small way the research I do, and the information I share, makes the cruising life for others better informed and more pleasurable."