[ritobana]

Paddy Macklin describes a night of knockdowns and rollovers as he attempted a non-stop circle of the Southern Ocean in his 27ft wooden sloop Tessa‘Captain Bungle’ is something of a misnomer – Paddy Macklin is actually a very well prepared sailorCaptain Bungle’s Odyssey by Paddy Macklin is a book belied by its title. Extraordinarily self-effacing, Paddy makes light of a remarkable circumnavigation executed in truly Corinthian spirit, without sponsorship or hype of any sort. He sets out in mid-winter 2009/10 to sail a non-stop circle, which will involve him in traversing the Southern Ocean in mid-winter. This used to be a daunting prospect in a pre-war 5,000-ton steel four-masted barque, let alone a 27ft yacht.
The good ship Tessa is a long-keeled, wooden Clyde Cruising Club sloop designed by Alan Buchanan and built in the 1950s, but there is little standard about her. Reading of Paddy’s preparations for the voyage, one realises that just about nothing was left to chance. When Tessa is put to the ultimate test described below with so little fuss, she comes out with flying colours, a living example of what a straightforward man can achieve by foreseeing trouble realistically and tackling it head-on.
Paddy’s attitude throughout the book is one of self-help and can-do. When asked why he was sailing in winter, he replied that if you thought too much about what you were taking on, you’d never go. A lesson for life in general, and this book is full of them.
From Captain Bungle’s Odyssey
My log reads, rather tersely: ‘Strong gale, 4 knockdowns, two 360° rollovers, damage occurred but rig OK. Position 43° 29S 37° 50E.’ The following is therefore a description of the events of August 11, 2010 from memory.
So there we were, lying to. This was all that could be done in the circumstances, as to re-reeve the broken tiller line was not feasible. There were heavy seas breaking over the boat and I might well have been washed overboard in the attempt.
Up to this point, my Southern Ocean heavy-weather tactic had been to keep the boat moving through all the gales. The wind by now had reached a sustained mean of 45-50 knots. By this time I was quite adept at judging wind strength and sea height, having been subjected to almost continuous heavy weather since South Africa, 5,500 miles away.
Article continues below…

[BaliVillast]

Solo overboard: An extract from Miles Hordern’s Sailing The Pacific

[David Armstrong]

Back in the early 1990s, a young man called Miles Hordern sailed his 28ft Kim Holman-designed Twister single-handed from the…

[hacim]

Modern technology makes meeting these needs much easier. here

[Vinnie]

These categories range from A to D, and they determine what type of waters the yacht was built to navigate.

[david1211]

This person’s knowledge could prove invaluable both before and during the long trip. You and your other passengers should also have some experience with long passages so that you all know what to expect.

[nelisky]

For this reason, you’ll probably want to hire a crew or bring along plenty of friends or family members that can help you make the trip. At least one person on the crew should have some experience making an ocean crossing.

[HarryStottle]

Add a hydro-generator, a wind turbine, and some solar panels to your system, and you’ll have power day and night whether your crossing wide-open expanses or anchor at one of the islands along the way. Larger sailing and power yachts also will typically have a diesel-powered generator or gen-set. [links]

[SkyN]

She can also carry over a month’s worth of provisions with no impact on her sailing ability. [links]

[lusid]

We chose a Tayana 37 for our small cruising sailboat, which features a fairly deep full keel, a super thick fiberglass hull, a moderately heavy displacement, two good sea berths and a small, sea-going cockpit.

[Pas]

The perk: there is a passionate owner’s association, so finding information about the boat and getting in touch with current owners to ask for advice is easy. here

[30dirtybirds]

I couldn’t not include the Tayana 37 – after all, we chose her out of hundreds of small bluewater sailboats we researched. here

[thrillkisser]

You will need to be self-sufficient when offshore or in remote locations, which means having enough energy to run your electronics, a good amount of provisions and water, and being able to sleep. [links]

[bugmenot]

When it comes to choosing boats, I vouch for going small.

[Bimmerhead]

I consoled myself with a daily double gin and tonic and joked that we would sail into the Marquesas held together by duct-tape, recycled bits of rope and a Captain held together by superglue, a ski strap and a coat hanger!

here

[tomkfischer]

The weather the following days was kind to us with light winds and calm seas, allowing us to sail upwind. Jackson rested and Xanthe and I took over his shifts, day and night. The doxycycline reduces your body’s ability to protect you from the harmful rays of the sun, so it was imperative Jackson stayed out the sun and rested. After a few days of sheer exhaustion, it was clear Xanthe and I could not continue the long watches we were undertaking and we were forced to developed a new routine of set watches where Jackson could be out of the sun and also on watch when the engine was on to make life easy for him. here

[blackish]

I’ve always been attracted to challenges that made me feel small. I’ve written whole articles about how being put in your place by nature is good for your soul. I thrive off it. Be it in the mountains, a forest, or at a remote surf break. But nothing prepares you for the opposing isolation and freedom that you feel at the mercy of the elements. The mood swings of Mumma ocean. Life several weeks from land. Nothing is comparable.

[Frost987]

Going to sleep that night, tired and worn down, I set my alarm excited for my watch. Darkness would lift and land would be in our sights. Then eagerness arose me from my slumber. That, or was it the smell? For the scent was the first thing I noticed. Going up the stairs from the galley, there was a floral, sweet aroma in the air. Dampness mixed with jasmine. Wet leaves and fresh crashing waves. LAND. I could smell land! Then the heavens opened unleashing a violent squall to rival all squalls. I was in my underwear with just a thin T-shirt, Bluetooth headphones getting drenched. I couldn’t leave the helm to get my jacket, or take one hand off the wheel to throw my headphones to drier climates. Having let Jackson sleep half an hour extra into his watch, it was time to wake him and relieve my not so enviable position. I took shelter. He took the helm. 10 minutes or so later the squall past leaving moody greys to rise from the shoreline, steam circulating the lush greens and rock formations. My morning ritual of bean grinding and coffee brewing played out in front of the most majestic landscape. We watched another boat Boag motor passed us to our starboard side. We could almost smell the pizza. [links]

[rmelanimek]

Under the direction of my Doctor brother (thanks Mark!), I gave him a course of doxycycline antibiotics that I had a Doctor In Bali prescribe to me just a month prior. Different antibiotics do different things and Doxycycline is one of the best for skin infections including staph infections. The antibiotics were a precautionary measure. We were 1,000 miles from land and if his leg got infected we would have a very serious problem on our hands. here