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There are some places that are just better seen by boat. If you don’t have your own sailboat or are averse to cruising on a mega-ship, you can still travel by boat around the Marquesas Islands on the Aranui 3 “Freighter to Paradise,” a real working freighter that welcomes a limited number of passengers aboard.
It sets sail from Tahiti every two weeks for a 14-day tour of the islands. There are daily stops at over a dozen remote islands, plus two full days at sea. The boat can hold up to 200 passengers and meets international safety standards. There are two bars and a swimming pool and the vessel offers standard, deluxe, and suite accommodations. All meals and wine are included in the cost of sailing.
Along with the 50 Polynesian crew and deckhands, guests onboard will visit some of the most untouched islands in the world on one of the last ships to carry both cargo and passengers. I’d say that beats a week on the Oasis of the Seas any day.
[via Urban Daddy]
Jessica Watson likes to travel, but she approaches the concept a bit differently. The 16-year-old Australian just left Sydney Harbor today, and she wants to take on the world. Her goal is to sail 23,600 miles alone — through some of the toughest waters in the world — and become the youngest person in history to do so.
The trek has kicked off some debate in Australia as to whether Watson’s parents are nuts for letting her attempt this (not a position that’s hard to imagine).The family claims that the kid is plenty salty and knows her way around a ship, and she’ll have radio and e-mail access. She’ll be blogging, too. In the Netherlands, a pair parents disagreed on whether to let their 13-year-old daughter, Laura Dekker, attempt the same feat. A Dutch court put Dekker in the custody of childcare authorities while the parents fought it out.
For Watson, just getting her pink, 34-foot yacht to the starting line has been difficult. Last week, she collided with a cargo ship while sailing to Sydney to make a few last preparations for her journey. And, strong winds last week prompted the sailor to push back her start date.
There are two ways to categorize these around-the-world trips: assisted and unassisted. Watson is gunning for the latter. The youngest person to do this so far is Jesse Martin, also an Australian, who was 18 when he circled the world in 1999. To qualify as “unassisted,’ the vessel can’t take any new supplies, materials or equipment on board once the trip starts. Repairs can be made, but they must use stuff already on the yacht.
The youngest circumnavigating sailor is Mike Perham, from Britain, who went 28,000 miles in nine months, but his trip counts as “assisted,” because he stopped for repairs. Zac Sunderland, from California, was a few months older than Perham when he completed the trip in 13 months, but his was also assisted.
Let me think. What was on my mind at age 13? Homework and boys and fitting in at school, probably.
Laura Dekker, a 13-year-old in the Netherlands, has bigger fish to fry. She wants to take on the world. In a sailboat. By herself.
She has her parents’ permission. Now she just needs the Dutch government’s.
The Dutch Council for Child Protection is in the process of asking for temporary custody of Laura to stop the trip, since her parents won’t. They’re concerned that this goal comes less from Laura’s own drive, and more from the need to please her divorced parents–especially her father, who is an expert sailor and the parent with whom she lives. The decision will be made on Friday by the Utrecht District Court.
I’m a bit torn. I’m so impressed by her adventurous spirit and want to cheer her on. But at the same time, I’m worried for her safety. At what age would it be okay for her to go? I’d be happier if she had an adult with her, but, of course, that defeats the purpose of a solo trip.
But if anyone has the background for a trip like this, Laura does. She spent her first four years on the ocean because her parents were on an around-the-world sail. She’s been sailing solo since she was six, and dreaming of her own around-the-world trip since she was ten.
If she wins her court case on Friday, Laura would start her two-year trip in September.
Most photos you’ll see of sailboats are full of visual cliches. Typically the background is all puffy white clouds, set against a brilliant blue sky and brightly colored ship’s sail, stretched taut in the forceful winds. This shot, by Flickr user Ben Grogan, doesn’t fall victim to the typical sailing photo traps. I love the darkly ominous sky menacing its way across the photo’s left, slowly melting into a brilliant cheery spot of sun on the far right. Meanwhile the sailboat seems frozen in the midst, caught between dark and light.
Have you taken any great sailing photos recently? Or maybe just while you were floating in the pool? Why not add them to our Gadling group on Flickr? We might just pick one your as our Photo of the Day.