Friends of an Anglesey yachtsman are to stage a celebration of his life in the town he called home for more than 30 years.
Roy Boughton, who set sail from Beaumaris 10 years ago, is lost at sea after failing to make it back on board his boat anchored off the idyllic island of St Lucia in the Caribbean.
The 71-year-old set off to his yacht in a small dingy from Rodney Bay marina in St Lucia on November 15 last year but didn’t reach the yacht.
A full scale air and sea search was carried out but no sign of Roy has been found.
His friend Carolyn Warburton said there was a heavy sea that night and Roy was said to have been "out of sorts".
"We don’t know what happened, but one possibility is that the swell tipped him into the water, and he was unable to get back into the little dinghy, to reach the relative safety of his beloved Guiding Light.
"In the last few months there has been no further sign of Roy. Something was fleetingly spotted in the water the day after his disappearance, but after an extensive search, his body has not been recovered," she said.
Roy began planning to sail around the world during his 30 years on Anglesey and spent several months preparing his wooden sailing yacht Guiding Light for an epic voyage that would take him across oceans and finally to the Caribbean.
He finally set sail in 2009 from Beaumaris Pier with a few friends from the Royal Anglesey Yacht club . They then sailed the length of the Wales and across the Bay of Biscay to Spain, where the group had to part company.
After a few months, Roy continued his journey to the Caribbean, crossing the Atlantic in Guiding Light, with squalls, visits from passing whales and several leaks and minor engine problems.
A storm prevented him from reaching Barbados, in the Caribbean, his original destination, but undaunted, Roy continued finally reaching St Lucia. For the next eight years he essentially lived at sea - continuously making sea crossings to visit many of the Caribbean Windward Isles, taking part in regattas and making many, many friends.
Born in Liverpool, Roy originally sailed into Beaumaris in 1974 to repair and find some spares for his boat, Senrab, which he kept on the Point.
He met other local sailors, loved the place, and began living there in 1980. He had a house on the seafront with views over the mountains and Menai Strait, where he held regular parties.
"He would amuse us all with his tales of visiting China, crossing oceans, and fixing engines. Roy was part of the merchant navy and regularly went off to work as an engineer, mechanic and even captain on some very impressive boats.
"He lived on the wild side, and loved visiting new places and making new friends. People who got to know Roy enjoyed his warmth and laughter, and above all, his entertaining stories.
"It’s a comfort to know that Roy lived exactly the life he had dreamed of. He was more at home at sea than on land, and took great care of his yacht; she dated from the days when boats were made of wood and needed fantastic skill and care to look after them.
Roy had the full set of abilities needed to make the boat shine, and not only that, he was able to win his class above other antique sailing boats in the Antigua Classic Regatta.
"We’ll remember Roy’s mischievous twinkle, the laughter we shared and the many stories he gave us. Roy was certainly one of a kind, and we won’t forget him," added Carolyn.
The Celebration of Roy’s Life event will be at Canolfan Beaumaris on April 6 between 12.30pm - 5.00pm. Anyone who knew Roy is welcome to attend.
