Yesterday
Pit stop at the "eight"
American traveler Randall Reeves, who on the 45-foot aluminum sloop Moli planned to describe the G8 alone around Antarctica and both Americas, decided to make a pit stop in Canadian Halifax – 237 days later and 31000 nautical miles after the start.
We have already written about Odyssey Reeves. But it was a few months ago. It is worth something to repeat.
His American project called Figure 8 Voyage. That is, the “voyage is the eight”, around Antarctica and both Americas. The total length of the route is about 38 thousand nautical miles. Monstrously a lot. But here it should be noted that Reeves has been an avid admirer of Bernard Moutacceier for many years – ever since, while still at university, he interviewed him for a student radio station.
Reeves started in October 2018 from San Francisco (this city, we recall, is located on the west coast of the United States). Took the course, first to the south, and then to the east. And walked around the Antarctic for 110 days. On March 21, for the second time in one journey, it circled Cape Horn. Then headed north. And now I got to Halifax (Canadian province of Nova Scotia).
So why did he suddenly decided to make a pit stop – lasting up to a week? The trip was planned in such a way as to turn out to be in high latitudes in the summer – this allows us to avoid the strongest storms. Soon Reeves will have to go through the Canadian Northwest Passage (he, by the way, went there already), but he had problems with the sails, and something needs to be replaced. In addition, there were a lot of ice floes on the path of Randall. And, it means, it is worth waiting a bit – in the hope that the sun will melt them.
Reeves plans to finish in San Francisco, to which now is not so far away. The entire trip according to plan will take less than a year. Must have time.
And, of course, you need to talk about his ship, especially since it deserves it. The 45-foot Moli (the skipper simply calls it Moe) was built in 1989 specifically for high-latitude expeditions. The first owner – the German Clark Stede – walked around it around two Americas. The second owner – American Tony Gooch, – having started from North America, then walked around the Antarctic.
So, Randall Reeves did not invent anything himself. Combined travels of two previous owners of Moli – and it turned out to be the "eight"!
Travel Site Figure 8 Voyage –
http://figure8voyage.com/
Facebook page –
https://www.facebook.com/figure8voyage/
172 Yesterday # 9069
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