On June 27, 1898, all but unnoticed, a Canadian seaman named
Joshua Slocum sailed his rebuilt oyster boat
Spray into Newport, Rhode Island, completing a 3-year, 46,000 mile voyage conducted solely by
dead reckoning that made him
the first man to ever achieve a solo circumnavigation of the world. His account of the feat,
Sailing Alone Around The World (HTML with illustrations, plain text, EPUB, audio), was described by
Arthur Ransome as "one of the immortal books". In 1909, Slocum set out in the
Spray for the West Indies. Neither he nor the craft were ever seen again.
posted by Joe Beese
on Apr 30, 2010 -
27 comments
That much wind means
some very big and nasty waves...
We experienced a total of 4 knockdowns, the second was the most severe with the mast being pushed 180 degrees in to the water. Actually pushed isn't the right word, it would be more accurate to say that Ella's Pink Lady was picked up, thrown down a wave, then forced under a mountain of breaking water and violently turned upside down.
posted by Huplescat
on Mar 19, 2010 -
40 comments
The
circumnavigators are out there. In February,
Mike Beaumont completed the fastest circumnavigation of the globe by bicycle. Tomorrow,
Rosie Swale, age 62, finishes her 4 1/2 year run around the world. As posted
previously, Zac Sunderland is now attempting to break the record for the youngest sailing circumnavigation of the planet, now held by
Jesse Martin.
posted by Xurando
on Aug 24, 2008 -
9 comments
