A new start after 60: ‘I set sail round the world on my own at 66 – and stayed at sea for six years’

Chris Ayres was a climber and mountain guide, who first sailed in his 50s. He hadn't planned to make his six-year voyage alone, but it was the adventure of a lifetime

Chris Ayres was 66 when he moved aboard his yacht with a circumnavigation in mind". He had read about people setting off on adventures. I thought, let's try it. I liked the idea that you could just get on a boat and head off."

He was ready to sail when the friend who was to join him as crew backed out. I'd sailed solo before, but only for a day or so. Not like heading into the ocean, where you're sailing for 24 hours," he says from his home in Sheffield. A map of the world hangs on the wall beside him.

Tell us: has your life taken a new direction after the age of 60?