We were heading for Newfoundland and wound up in Nantucket. The first time I sailed alone across the Atlantic in 2008 I was heading for Iceland and wound up in England. In my defense I had a late start in 2008 and then got nailed by tropical storm Christabel...
Read moreThey say the hardest part of winning a race is getting to the start line. The only thing we are racing is the melting pack ice but damn it was difficult to get this expedition off the ground. For starters we have an older steel boat, abused by previous...
Read moreWesterly winds dominate the region we have sailed into. It seems the winds can die off or blow lightly out of any direction but when the wind turns WSW it increases to 20+ knots forcing us due north. Every chance we get we head west knowing that stronger headwinds...
Read moreI’ve had a busy week. The day after we sailed passed Wake Island we sailed out of the easterly trade winds and into a windless void nearly 800 miles wide. After sailing west for 5,600 miles we have found the end of the easterly trades. Now it’s time to...
Read moreThe luxuries of civilization only satisfy those wants which they themselves create. Well, at least that’s what the great scientist and Antarctic explorer Apsley Cherry-Garrard used to say. I can’t say I disagree, yet some luxuries of civilization sound awfully nice right about now. The Harbor 29 is essentially...
Read moreToday we pass from the western hemisphere into the eastern hemisphere, 24 hours vanish and like magic and an entire day disappears. All of our samples have to be properly logged with descriptions about things like, wind speed, sea state, time of day. All of our samples are logged...
Read moreOur earth’s oceans are dominated by various trade winds, horse latitudes (aka variables) and doldrums. Starting at the equator you will find a doldrums called the ITCZ (inter tropical convergence zone), both north and south of the ITCZ are the easterly trades. The easterly trades are by far the...
Read moreOne of the questions I heard most often was, are you going to stop in Hawaii?? If this is purely a research expedition and all of our research is done at sea stopping on land would be an inappropriate use of funding. I would love to sit here and...
Read moreThe trade winds can either be a blessing or a curse. I sailed roughly 10,000 miles of the Pacific Ocean north to south while sailing around the Americas. On my way to Cape Horn I had to sail directly into these same trade winds for 41 days straight. Which...
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