Is a modern day "Dove" realistic?

[mitch_connor]

thanks for the info. I was joking when I called him a moron. I don't have e-rage. I'm considering doing it next summer though, without GPS.

[David M]

I wouldn't let my kid do it for quite a number of reasons.

[Sailormann]

So you're saying it could easily be done? I'm pretty young and am considering this.

No. It could be done - but what's the point ? Nothing novel in it anymore. Too many people have done it, in just about every possible permutation.

I don't think that there would be too much opportunity for sponsorship, and it's not a cheap endeavour, so unless your parental units are as supportive as Robin's were, or you can talk National Geographic into a redux....I think you'll find it tough going.

Not that it's not a noble pursuit in itself, but you might find it a bit more enjoyable to take someone else with you on the trip, and worry less about making it around the world and more about seeing the stuff that's important to you.

All right, thanks dudes.

Hey, yer like uhmm, too totally welcome

Good Luck (and yes, I am a litle envious...)

[mitch_connor]

Well, I wasn't planning on doing it so I could get my own wikipedia article. It was kind of a personal thing to me that I still plan on doing next summer. I'm going to spend the next year sailing short distances/routes and studying celestial navigation, so next summer I can do it GPS-free and all that.

[Ex-Calif]

Can't be done today because the earth and the oceans are warmer. Changes everything...

[swagman]

Hi Mitch,
I'd like to think we'd all encourage you to take up sailing - and IMHO I do think it would be easier today with modern gear, than say 25 years back.
The worlds never really been a safe place, and that's part of the education you'll get when travelling, ie living and coping with the risks.
So have lots of fun planning it - have lots of fun doing it - and ensure you update the site with what you've experienced along the way.
Good luck
JOHN

[GordMay]

The Circumnavigators, by the late Don Holm, is available (free) on-line.

The Circumnavigators: Small Boat Voyagers of Modern Times
(c) 1974 by Donald R. Holm (originally published by Prentice-Hall, NY)

This electronic version was created with the permission of the author.

Goto: The Circumnavigators - by Don Holm - Table of Contents

Chapter 34, “The Schoolboy Circumnavigator” is about Robin Lee Graham.
The Circumnavigators - by Don Holm - Chapter 34

[Catamount]

Mitch, you should read Lionheart: A Journey of the Human Spirit by Jesse Martin -- he circumnavigated the globe at age 17 -- solo and non-stop!

[Southern Star]

Good suggestion Catamount, and one could of course add Tania Aebi's 'Maiden Voyage', although it is also now rather dated. However, I do think that TaoJones hit the nail on the head - it can still be done today but the problems are far more likely to be with and for the person attempting it, than with foreign bureaucracy.

Mitch, when you say that you are considering 'doing it' next summer, to what are you referring? Buying the boat? Making short voyages in preparation? Setting off on your circumnavigation? Understand that this is decidedly not the stuff for an essay entitled 'What I did on my summer vacation'. It is not an alternative to a summer job. It is a serious undertaking that will require huge planning, preparation and yes - experience at everything from navigation, boat maintenance, heavy weather sailing, radio operation (and licenses), weather forecasting, routing etc., etc.

If you are talking about departing 'next summer', from where and to where? Have you taken into account hurricane season in the North Atlantic/Caribbean? Have you thought out any of this? Starting from scratch (as it seems you are), this is no less difficult an undertaking than starting a new business in a field in which you have no experience. No less difficult, but with far greater risks!

Brad

[scallywag]

Tania Albia (spelling?) also did some long distant sailing. Missing the solo mark because her friend at the time sailed a little on her boat. She also fell to the marriage demon. She moved to Maine, had children, got divorced, and now is on a voyage around the world with her teenage children. Her initial voyage was financed by her father.

John

[sneuman]

Originally Posted by Sailormann

No. It could be done - but what's the point ? Nothing novel in it anymore. Too many people have done it, in just about every possible permutation.

This is an obvious but interesting point.

I have long wondered how it changes the psyche of the human race (and ordinary boys and girls) to realize the world offers them no more firsts - mountain peaks, oceans, terra incognita - to "conquer."

When I was a child, it was still possible to be the first at something that had at least the appearance of being important or history making; now all that seems gone. Hence, the unending litany of highly dubious "firsts" (think of the "Tin Can" guy, who aspired, among other things, to be the "first to circumnavigate with so little time to build and prepare ..." as I recall)

The last hope, in my mind, was manned spaceflight. But of course that's not something an individual can do on his/her own and the likelihood of doing it on the government's dime is remote. I am 42 and once dreamed of being the first person on Mars; for my son (now 11) , that still seems an unimaginably distant prospect.

I really do feel bad for this generation. Alas, I think it's harder to dream today than it was in my day.

[dcstrng]

<It could be done - but what's the point ?>

Very interesting thread – being at the woulda-coulda-shoulda stage of life, I’ve often pondered this point – and wondered why some left, and some (like me) didn’t… The 60s generation seemed quick to leave the nest and the farther the better – whether on land or sea; when mated with parents (or other folks, individuals or circumstances) who would foot (at least part of) the expense, the horizon of youth seemed almost limitless… if those factors or features can be mimicked meaningfully, I see no reason why a modern Dove scenario wouldn’t be (not only possible, but) likely…

However (big “however” – the inevitable coordinating conjunction), the part I didn’t like about the original Dove scenario was the amount of external stimuli Robin seemed to endure to complete the effort. Although denied some sort of record (is that the point) it seems to me Aebi did it right – by her standards as she saw `em at the time… In this era of mega-sponsorships, and the mega-distortions they bring, most of the practicable “records” have been reached… and I’d shy away from record attempts – but to sail around the world, just for the sake of going, well, that’s a horse of a different color…

I recall being only mildly entranced with the Bligh and Chichester sagas (not to mention Crowhurst sp?) and grew to be wary of those who seemed driven for yet another mantel ornament – many admittedly exceptionally accomplished sailors… always felt more in tune with the likes of Tangvald or Moitessier as well as the cruising couples such as the Stuermers, Pardeys and those who seemed rather more content in the environment and staying below much of society’s radar, rather than racing through it… in that vein, I see no reason a modern Dove saga wouldn’t be possible… the short of it is, these days few (young or old) are going to be the first or fastest at anything – I see the Around in Ten folks are working on setting another “shortest” record, so that will probably eventually be out of reach of the common sailor as well…

Seems to me that if a young sailor knows the rudiments of sailing, can navigate successfully, enjoys a modicum of maturity to weather the inevitable crisis’s that will arise, and sails on a reasonably seaworthy vessel, there is very little to stop them so long as they enjoy a basic “back-packing” existence and are doing it for the enjoyment being on God;s great ocean then it will be a "first" experience of itself… if they will require power to run their game-boy enroute or need the motivation of a trophy at the voyage’s end, well, the game is up – best stick to dashing around the buoys… as for the paperwork, even air travel is getting noticeably more complicated, so that is just a factor of modern life and, like most things nautical, is made easier with a degree of preplanning…

[liberty16]

Who cares about being the first to do something? Ultimately you have to live your life for yourself, not for the sake of your species. But still, there is no reason to feel bad for my generation. Humanity will be spreading out into the solar system within 100 years, the galaxy not long after that, and the rest of the universe sometime later. The universe is big enough that exploration and discovery will actually never cease. The species will die out or evolve into something completely different by the time we get to the other side of the universe. Best to live one's life for one's own enjoyment.

[Southern Star]

Sneuman I hear you, but see the opposite side of the coin. For my parents generation (my mother celebrated her 90th birthday last Saturday), there were many 'dreams' that were impossible to fulfill in their younger years: the ability to travel (air fares were exorbitant and only for the 'rich'), the ability to purchase a yacht of any type, let alone one capable of sailing offshore (limited supply and again, huge costs in relative terms), even a university education was an unaffordable and therefore unfulfilled dream.

Yes, there is much less of the surface of this planet to 'discover' than there was at the time of Columbus (although there is still much of the 2/3 of this planet that is under water that remains to be explored, for those who are so inclined). However, surely the opportunities for this generation to not only dream, but to make their dreams a reality is as great as at any time in our history. There are few of us who ever truly aspire to discover new lands and territories, but many of us who aspire to discover our inner selves and to explore different terrains, cultures, foods, religions, philosophies etc. Today these dreams can be and are fulfilled by more people than ever before.

There are also (I hope) many who dream of discovering cures for diseases, or technological/sociological/political solutions for problems that vex our society. And again, the opportunities for achieving these 'discoveries' or dreams has never been greater.

I for one am glad that I was not a child of the depression, or even worse, of feudal times. Glad that I was not born a slave (or a black in South Africa during apartheid).
Glad that I was able, through student loans and scholarships to attend university and to become a professional. Glad that I have been able not only to provide for my son's education, but able to travel and to buy a boat for extended cruising.
Glad that I have been able to fulfilll so many of my dreams, and that I have so many that are now visible on the horizon.

Brad

[swagman]

Well said Brad.

John