Andrew Gueterbock

I grew up in Dorset in a thatched cottage surrounded by an extraordinary garden that my parentsopened to the public through the National Garden Scheme for over 30 years. My early interests leaned towards science and sport, which eventually led me to study engineering at Cambridge and sparked a lifelong love of outdoor adventure.

Sailing became a huge part of my life thanks to family living near Emsworth and long summers spent around the sailing club. My appetite for adventure led to extensive travel, including working in Pakistan and Mexico, and becoming a circumnavigator on the Clipper ’96 Round the World Yacht Race. During the final leg home from Brazil, I met my future wife Emma, who had grown up in Chichester. We were married in Donnington Church and settled first in Emsworth before moving to Hunston, where we raised our son and daughter.

Our years in Hunston were centred around family life, gardening, community and the outdoors. I spent time on the Parish Council and played rugby for Chichester, and we explored the local area extensively through mountain biking and running.

We moved to Southsea so our children could be more independent, and it proved to be a wonderful move for Emma and me as well. Emma is now a lipreading tutor running community classes across Chichester, Petersfield and Portsmouth. Together we developed a love of sea swimming and endurance sport, and I continue to take on regular challenges. These days, most of my exercise involves our two spaniels. I am a certified canicross coach and help run a local canicross group.

Dorset remains an important part of our lives. After retiring from the Navy, my father planted a paddock as an arboretum, and over 30 years it has grown into a beautiful mature woodland of native and specimen trees with a chalk stream running through it. I am now its steward and spend as much time there as possible learning practical conservation and land management skills. More recently we created a wildlife pond fed by old stone field drains, and I find enormous satisfaction in watching the habitats continue to evolve and thrive.