1,500 nautical miles solo across the Indian Ocean: from Darwin to Ashmore Reef and on to Christmas Island. A loose shackle sends the boom swinging wild, the oil pump fails right at the reef, a squall snaps the spinnaker pole in two — and mid-ocean, the insurer drops single-handed sailors. In between: frigatebirds, boobies, noddies, turtles, and coconut crabs in one of the most remote corners of the planet. A voyage of wildlife, wonder, and on-the-fly repairs.
Australia
Stuck! The struggle to bring REYKJA back into the water
A storm front and 35 knots of wind drive Reykja aground in Pilots Bay. Flooding, repairs, and setbacks in Launceston. But also, discoveries in Tasmania’s wilderness and environmental history in the southwest. With the help of great people, Reykja finally returns to the water. But the circumnavigation is stalling.
Go South! 1700 miles sailing alone, from tropical Queensland to Tasmania’s Roaring Forties
1700 miles south, 3000 kilometres. Just one stop, Bundaberg. The trick is to catch the right wind. In the Coral Sea it blows from the front for 10 months as a trade wind. But now, in November, it’s not regular. In the Tasman Sea, from Bundaberg onwards, it can blow from bow or stern. Sometimes it changes directions within hours. And it’s almost always strong.