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Read any good books lately?
I enjoyed Francis Chichester''s books, especially the one about his solo circumnavigation, when he tried to beat the time of the clipper ships.
Heavy Weather Sailing by Adlard Coles is excellent. He sailed and raced small boats in the North Atlantic, and tried every imaginable storm sailing technique. He discusses the pros and cons of every imaginable storm sailing technique.
Tristan Jones wrote several good books. He was very salty in his language and attitude, and, in one book, sailed a small boat into the north polar ice pack, and in another book, he mostly sailed and partly portaged his boat from west to east across South America, exiting via the Amazon River.
The Bounty Trilogy is a great read, even if you have seen the movie. The first part describes the cruise of the Bounty, and the mutiny. The second part describes the cruise of the Pandora, which was sent out by the British to capture the mutineers and bring them back for trial. The third part describes the trial of the mutineers who were captured. One of the segments (I think the first) also recounts Bligh''s 3600 mile cruise in the small, leaky, ship''s launch after the mutiny, which is considered one of the greatest small boat trips in history.
Also, read one of the several books written about the attempt to reach the south pole by Ernest Shackleton. His ship, the Endurance, was beset in ice and crushed. He and his crew sailed three small boats to uninhabited Elephant Island, and then he and four others sailed a small boat across Cape Horn to a whaling station on a small island. This was also one of the great small boat voyages.
Check the computerized catalogue in your local library for the titles of Chichester''s and Jones''s various books, and for books about the Shackleton trip.
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