Julian Legg
Captain, motoryacht Haida G

Date interviewed: May 2008

How did you realize you wanted to become a captain?
I was born just south of Birmingham, England, and my dad got fed up with the city. We moved to Cornwall, near where all the fishing boats come in. So I’d go down and help unload the catch, just for fun. When I was 12, my dad took me out on a shark-fishing boat, and when I was 13, one of the commercial boats took me out. I loved it.
     By the time I was 14, I was arguing with my mom because I wanted to go to sea for six weeks. I threatened to leave home on one of the commercial boats, and my mom knew the captain. She brought my luggage down to the boat and dropped it there, thinking she would call my bluff at the dock. But off I went. I was grounded for a good long time when I got back.
    When I was 15, the skipper was away from a 50-foot trawler where I worked, and the owner gave me a chance to take the boat out. It was our best catch of the year, and I thought I’d be a fisherman. I started failing at school, because I’d never go. I was always playing hooky on the boats. I only went back seriously when I was 17, do get one year of good grades so that I could join the Merchant Navy. 
 
What training did you undergo to become a captain?
I did four years in the Merchant Navy and became a second officer on cargo ships and tankers. I was chief officer on a container ship for most of the 1990s, and in 1999, I was offered a relief captain job onboard a 262-foot private yacht.
     That boat didn’t work out, but I loved the lifestyle. It reminded me of the time in 1989 when I was on leave in Tahiti and met a family sailing around the world on a 66-footer. I thought, "Why be on a tanker when I could do this?"

What yachts did you work on before Haida G?
I went to work for the Windjammer boats in the Caribbean in1999. I stayed there for five years, and then in 2004 I bought my own Ocean 71 sailboat. I was going to become an owner-operator in the British Virgin Islands and the Grenadines.
     Then Hurricane Ivan came through, and my boat was seriously damaged. That put me out of business the same year I’d started. I did some freelance jobs, then became captain of a private 219-footer in 2005. It was a bit boring because the owner never wanted to go boating.

When did you join your current yacht?
In July 2006, I came here, to the 233-foot Haida G. She had been out of sight for four or five years, going through an extensive refit. I was excited to get into charter, especially on a yacht with such history.

Please talk a bit about that history.
Haida G launched in 1929, built for millionaire yeast producer Max C. Fleischmann. He sold her to the U.S. Navy in 1940, which used her until 1946, when the Egyptian cotton magnate Maurice Ada returned her to use as a private yacht. Loel Guinness bought her in 1969, then sold her in 1979 to film producer Robert Stigwood. She sold again in 1981, to a Greek owner, and then again in 1999 to her current owner, who undertook the recent refit.
     Few yachts in the world have that kind of history, not to mention being beautifully restored and very comfortable. We still run on the original engines, which are museum-quality and, as far as I know, the oldest working diesels onboard a commercial boat. Everybody wants to see them.

How do you determine what itinerary you will set for a given charter?
Normally, our management company, Ocean Independence, will tell us roughly where the guests want to go. Sometimes we sort it out together to create a suggested itinerary to give to the client.
     It always changes along the way, during the charter. Once the guests are here, they can do whatever they want within the limits of safety.
     We’re doing all of the Mediterranean this year, from Gibraltar to Croatia and Turkey. And I’m hoping to be in the Caribbean and Bahamas this winter.

What are some of your favorite cruising destinations?
I like Croatia and the northern Aegean. They are like the Bahamas in that there’s not a lot of boats or people. You can find little bays, no noise, and no crowds. It’s nice and peaceful.

What features onboard Haida G do you particularly enjoy sharing with guests?
Our aft deck dining area and sundeck are always the favorites. Our sundeck, in particular, is very open and private. We had a party last night for 80 people and nobody on the dock knew it. That’s how secluded our top deck is.

Describe a typical guest’s day onboard your yacht.
Some guests like routine, but we don’t have one. We do what the guests want. We have one client coming back for the fourth time who is always changing his mind. It makes life interesting.

What kind of charter guests are your favorites?
I like families. Haida G is like home, no matter where you’re from.
     Our last guest last year was a big-time singer from the 1970s. He said his charter was the best family vacation they’d ever had. To me, families are the best.

What awards have you won?
I haven’t won any awards, but Haida G is going to be famous this summer. She’s in the upcoming movie version of the musical Mamma Mia.

What else should CharterWave readers know about you and Haida G?
We’re willing to go anywhere, we have a great crew, our sundeck is massive, and we have lots of entertainment onboard.
     Oh, and I forgot to mention the outdoor cinema on the top deck. You can watch the big screen from the sunbed or from the hot tub. Talk about family fun!

Haida G takes 12 guests with 15 crew at a lowest weekly base rate of 175,000 euro. Contact any reputable charter broker for more information.