Islander 36 ‘Geja’ Preparing to Welcome New Torch Bearer in Med.

In a March 2023 episode of Good Jibes, we chatted with San Francisco sailor Andrew Vik about his sailing life aboard the Islander 36 Geja (pronounced “Gaya”).

“When I bought her sight unseen through the pages of Latitude in 2008, I promised to pass the “Geja torch” to another reader after a season or two.” Well, Andrew blew past two seasons and is now closing on 16 summers in the Med, during which he has sailed around 13,000 miles to nine countries and two continents. He’s been joined by more than 90 friends, family members, and acquaintances as crew. Now, his era of ownership is drawing to a close as he prepares to pass the torch to the next adventure-loving sailor, or sailors.

We’ve published many stories about Geja over the years, starting with those shared by Dick and Shirley Sandys of Palo Alto, who cruised the Islander most of the way around the world over a 15-year period. After Dick’s passing in 2006, Geja was bought by San Francisco sailors Eli and Sara Bottrell, for just $10,000, sight unseen in Spain. Seven years later, the Bottrells sold the boat to Andrew, again, sight unseen, though this time in Italy.

Andrew’s stories of life aboard Geja, while a little more spicy than those shared by previous owners, have graced the pages of Latitude 38 on numerous occasions. After his first summer aboard Geja in 2008, Andrew shared a few details of “the most amazing dream tour.” He covered 1,700 miles from June to early September, and stopped at 50 different places in 90 days. He had 21 different friends help sail the boat.

“Owning her has been life-changing,” he tells us now, “but the time has come. She’s absolutely cruise-ready. In fact, I’m currently moored in magical little Giovinazzo along Italy’s southeast coast, halfway through this summer’s smooth voyage from Sicily back to my beloved Croatia.”

Could you be the next Latitude reader to pick up the Geja torch and explore Croatia’s Dalmatian Coast before heading down to Greece, Turkey, Sicily, Malta …?

Tune in to Good Jibes to hear some of Andrew’s stories about life aboard Geja.