03 March 2013

Turning Albatros: How to sail half way round the world

(1st draft)
Carl Hughes equipped and stocked his yacht, installed his family as crew, said goodbye to his work colleagues in Monaco, and sailed off into the sunset until reached Tahiti. This book is about that ten month voyage, and the years of preparation that he invested in his dream. For a person who has a similar kind of life-changing dream, Turning Albatross will be an inspiration. For the yachtsman intent on sailing round the world, Turning Albatross will serve as a checklist.

The book falls into a number of categories: it is part manual, part adventure story and part reflection. I am reminded of a literary genre of the 'old salt' sea captain setting down his memoirs.

Carl demonstrates that he is a superb yachtsman. Handling a small boat in mid-ocean storms would terrify ordinary mortals. Add a leak that threatens to sink the boat unless your wife and daughter constantly hand-pump the water back into the sea and the jeopardy becomes unimaginable. Carl reflects on how he handled that and other perilous siutations. His discussion about pirates is both thoughtful and sensible.

Conclusion
I read this book because Carl is my brother and he sent it to me. I have no intention of setting foot in a boat, never mind sailing round the world. Still, I found the book interesting.