Ken Gourlay Circumnavigation - Pt 10

Sailing into history

The three fronts ended up in only being one and then a really light spell came. Bad weather coming! Roger Badham was still keeping an eye on what was happening around me and his email to me on the April 23, 2007, bluntly reminded me that I wasn't home yet.

I replied:

That night I was still battling the current weather pattern that I was in. It really reminded me that I didn't want to face 55-knot easterly winds.

Spirit and I battled 35 to 45-knot NNE winds with top gusts to 47kts. It was a shockingly bumpy ride as I had to work to windward in it. Spirit again proved just how strong she was as she took some huge blows.

I was on the northern edge of the low that was behind me and it was unclear as to what would happen as the low was due to take a massive dive to the south. That was then due to leave a massive void of no wind, as Roger had described, possibly lasting three days.

A LAST TOAST TO NEPTUNE
During that massive night's sailing Spirit and I passed our fifth and final of the world's great capes, Cape Leeuwin, Western Australia. Neptune and I shared our little bottle of bubbly in the morning.

Spirit and I had now sailed more than 22,800nm and had 1348nm left to run on our homeward bound track.

The next four days runs were very disappointing - 125, 127, 68 and 86nm. One of my log entries explained it all: Main down, back up, gibe over and then main back down. Bloody frustrating! Two hours, one mile.

I had fallen against the dinette table on a big boat movement and broken the brace on one of the legs so I took the opportunity to fix that with a small bracket that I pop riveted on.

The moon was just becoming visible now at night and it looked like I would have a full moon to finish with. I had left on a full moon which was great. It makes for an easier night's sailing as things are clearer on deck and, as I will be sailing along Tasmania's north coast towards the end, the extra light will be beneficial.

When I was leaving, my daughter, Carly, had said to me that when she could see the moon I also would be able to. She said that that would be our sole connection until I arrived home. I never forgot this and the moon became a significant thing whenever it was visible. I would even send her an email from the other side of the earth saying that the moon was beautiful tonight and I would send it to her as long as she sent it back the next day with love.

At one stage on day 171 I only managed 13nm in four hours. The low had developed over Adelaide as predicted and it was now sending big swells in my direction.

VANISHING RECORD
My clocks were now within a couple of hours of home and this made life and contact with home much more pleasant. While I sat there with no wind, I quietly watched any chance of me getting the record for the fastest Australian disappearing over the horizon.

This was hugely disappointing as all the way across the Indian Ocean I had been able to just keep the possibility alive. If my mileage did not improve then it would take a gale all the way home to make it. The only positives were that it was good drying weather and I could clean the boat up. Birds were still all around and I had plenty of books to read.

At 0230 I was dragged back to reality with a slating main and no wind. I dropped the main down onto the boom and found the lacing that I had done five thousand miles earlier had chaffed through between the headboard at the top of the mainsail and the car on the mast. There's no time like the present so standing on the boom, and tied to the mast, I re-lashed it back together. About an hour latter an easterly came in and up went the mainsail again.

The swells were still huge and they were now coming from the south which was where that low had gone. The wind would just come and go, and progress was still painfully slow.

Finally around noon on day 174 a light northerly came in to continue our track east. It would take a mammoth effort from here to beat the record. I had filled my time by doing lots of reading, rigging and other checks. I mopped out the bilge for the second time of the trip. I was back to full wet-weather gear when I ventured outside. The sea had not built and the pilot was handling it all well so far. I was not looking forward to heading outside to hand-steer again. I commented in my daily email that the last 3000nm had been the hardest of the trip.

By the next day I was back in gales again. I didn't care. Something had clicked inside me and I seemed to be in a different frame of mind. I had said to myself that perhaps the rigging had now proved itself and it was time to go into racing mode and give this record absolutely everything that I had. That night I did five sail changes to ensure that I had the max sail for the conditions.

The winds kept building and the old saying of feast or famine sprung to mind again.

The next night I had sustained winds of 55kts and the maximum gust was recorded at 72kts. I decided to take a photo of the wind speed indicator and send it home. It received a huge response and it just showed that sailing around Tasmanian waters could be as challenging as anywhere in the world.

The fundraising at home was still in full steam. My home club, the Tamar Yacht Club had a trivia night and more than 200 people attended raising in access of $3000. Another local club on the Tamar River, Port Dalrymple Yacht Club held a sailing day and BBQ raising more than $800. Two yacht clubs in the south of the state, The Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania and the Derwent Sailing Squadron, had also donated $1000. This was all terrific support for my chosen charity and our total funds raised were more than $70,000 to date.

This hard sailing was starting to take a lot of my reserves and I needed a break. The next night was horrible. I struggled to keep the autopilot going and at midnight I gave up. I hand steered until 0330 hours and then had to give up. I set the boat in the hove to position, slept until 0530 hours and then got going again.  I was giving it my all as I knew I was nearing the end of the trip. I had done 90nm in 21 hours and it felt like 190nm.

NO RESPITE
There was to be no respite yet as my weather grib files showed another big storm coming through (to think I was becalmed only a matter of days ago). I wondered how I would make it through and commented that I would have to just dig deeper. The worst of the storm was due around midnight. I missed sending my daily email.

The wind did not reach its expected storm strength during the night and luckily I managed to get some much needed sleep. I was now only a couple of days out as progress had been good. I had certainly worked hard for it. I now had some navigating and planning to do to sail into Bass Strait. As I did this planning I started to feel the excitement of getting home.

My next point was the line of longitude that to me would signify that I had circumnavigated. I intended to sail on to my starting point and cross my outward track on the way.

A plane was going to fly out for some photographs and onboard would be my second son, Tristan. He also shares a wish to sail around the world solo and I'm sure he too will achieve his dream.

I was riding the top of a low pressure system to the south and my winds stayed with me. Another gale is due in tonight and it's amazing that after all the strong winds that Spirit and I have endured I still feel apprehensive at yet another gale. This will be my third gale in three days. I'm not complaining as I need as much boat speed as possible. If I can repeat the last two days distance for the next two days then my ETA is Sunday afternoon.

I thought that blow would be the last. The wind lightened in the morning and I decided to take the opportunity to change up to my No. 1 headsail. If it was to continue to lighten then I would need all the headsail that I could get. I had just got back inside by lunch time and Smithton Radio came on with the latest weather forecast. As Mary read it out to me I couldn't believe it.

Gale Warning! At around midnight or just after, another front was due through. Well I wasn't changing back up. I would just have to work my other sails the best that I could.

At 0400 I had passed the longitude of my outward track. To me that had meant that I had finally circumnavigated. I was not back where I started from, but I had done it. It felt great and I was just as charged up to get back to Devonport to grab the record. I was not there by any means yet, but I would give it a good shake now that I had the winds.

I emailed back home at 2000 hours and reported that I could be at Devonport around lunch if all held well. As I sailed into Bass Strait the swell and sea state changed noticeably and instead of getting waves from all directions they only came from the west. Mary's weather update that night confirmed the front and gale warning.

Mary also gave the Waverider buoy readings and they said that there was a swell of 11m. I could hardly see it.

At 0300 hours the front hit in earnest and the winds were in excess of 40kts. I was dropping the mainsail and somehow the mainsheet got caught around the main halyard jammer handle that was up at the time. It ripped the handle out of the body of the jammer. I was so annoyed. This was the first damage that I had done to the boat in 22,425nm of sailing. I pride myself in sailing a boat in a clean, organised and careful manner, and this damage was so unfortunate to have happened on the morning of the last day. Even this was not going to stop me enjoying the day. With just half a headsail and the small hurricane jib I sailed on to my rendezvous at Devonport at a great rate of knots.

As conditions were still very rough I had told my family that they should wait in Devonport until I came into the river. With seven miles to go a couple of Tamar Yacht Club rescue boats came out to greet me with some familiar smiling faces on board. They were the first people that I had seen since leaving Tasmania 180 days ago.

I sailed across the line about five hours under the record. I was stoked. I had set out to sail solo, unassisted, and non-stop around the world hoping to be the fastest and the oldest Australian. and the first Tasmanian to achieve this. I had achieved everything that I set out to do. Life didn't or couldn't get much better than that.

Immediately after crossing the line one of the rescue boats came over and my two sons Adam and Tristan jumped on board and there was a very emotional hug for all three of us.

At the mouth of the Mersey River my brother's yacht, Tradition, was waiting with my whole family on board. Once in the river Customs and Immigration were next and they had been great in being so flexible with my erratic estimated times of arrival, not to mention it being Sunday morning.

Wendy and Carly were next on board and we were a complete family again. Kym and the grandkids were waiting at the dock.

ONE MAN'S JOURNEY
Ken Gourlay's book One Man's Journey is now available for $29.95 plus $8 for package and handling.

The book can be purchased by visiting Ken's new website www.kengourlay.net or by phone on 0417 366 612.

Gourlay's circumnavigation has raised $130,000 for the Clifford Craig Medical Research Trust, which has been established to facilitate the creation of a ‘world class' medical research institution in Northern Tasmania.

He was Tasmania's representative and finalist for this year's Australian of the Year Award won by country music singer Lee Kernaghan.