WATER CONSUMPTION

It will take some time before I get organised and can write something useful about my trip. Here is only a commet on my water consumption.

I do have some material in the boat with witch help I probably can in a survival situation catch enough water to survive.

On my recent trip from Kinsale to Ireland I started with 45 liter water. I still have about half left more than 25 liters maybee more left. No problem. I have plenty of water.

The morning I sighted Porto Santo the wind died down. At sea I had been navigating without navigation lights saving my electricity for the AIS- and radar-transponders. So close to the shore I planned to put up a LED light powerd by AAA-batteries. It did not work. I had tested it before departure. I changed the internal batteries for lithium ones. It still did not work.

I decided to try to scull. The yuloh oar had only been tested a few minutes. It was a new design. But I had forgotten an important detail concerning the balance. It was difficult to work. After ten minutes I was tired. After half an houer I was more tired and already had blisters in my hands. Harbour was still a long way of.

I have a freind Rune Larsson. He is a ultramaraton runner. He can run 250 kilometers in 24 houers or something like it. Its super-humman. I have tried to make him teach me the secret. It must be fun he has repetedly told me.

In my difficult situation I was thinking of Rune. It must be fun I told myself and struggled on. At 72 years of age I dont have the force and stamia of my youth. On the windward side of the island the swell was choppy. The boat was rocking the oar went out of the water it was a fight with the oar. One houer went, two houers went. I was thinking of my freind Rune for him this would be nothing. He has also rowed across the Atlantic. I got the bright idea of putting on a pair of glowes to protect my skin. I changed the grip on the yuloh. I was tired and decided to make a shortcut over reef inside a small island. It was getting dark but the moon came out.

Once commited to the shortcut I just had to keep going. It was a question of life and death. The breakers on the vertical rocks was heavy and there was no way I could clime then. I have a tendency to put myself into interesting spots. I just had to keep going.

On my first visit to Madeira 1969 I had an second hand American chart. I still had that chart. It was from the 1930. I thought the rocks hadnt changed. Well they had not but more of them had been discovered. Finally after some breakers I came through. Next problem there was ny yacht harbour on my chart. The marina was not even here 1979 last time I was here, Finally in the dark. I tied myself up behind a very freindly Brasilian Catamaran from Bahia. I had been sculling for more then ten houers without a break. Thank you Rune. Fanny thing my body had no pain the next day. I am in excellent shape.

I was in calm water and safe. I was glad to bee alife. I was eager to start building my next boat. I decided to end the trip now and here and try get the boat shipped back to Sweden. At sea I had spent much of my time working on a new design and had many a wonderfull ideas of improvement. Learning by failure and learning by hindsigt.