THE IMPOSSIBLE VOYAGE

by Chay Blyth ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 8, 1972

Anchors away and mainsail set, Chay Blyth sailed off to circumnavigate the globe backwards, i.e., from east to west, against the spin of the earth and the prevailing Westerlies. Piloting a specially built ketch fig designed and paid for by the nationalized British steel industry (and named British Steel -- they need the publicity) Chay said a prayer to the Almighty, kissed his wife Maureen goodbye, and took off singiehanded for the nonstop voyage around Cape Horn and the Cape of Good Hope. It took ten months to complete and he logged a lot of boredom and fatigue along the way -- along with falling running booms, a smashed self-steering mechanism, a broken water pump, and some mighty big waves and storms down in the high southern latitudes around Tasmania and New Zealand. To say nothing of ear rashes, spilled ketchup, soggy biscuits, and salt sea sores. God and the boat and his army training served him well and he returned safe and sound to the huzzahs of the royal family and his patient wife, modestly minimizing the valor and heroics with the self-effacing murmur, ""I was merely the instrument of mankind's capacity to adventure and survive."" One more splashy Man-Against-the-Elements saga; the kind that makes us landlubbers queasy.

Pub Date: May 8, 1972

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Putnam

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972

Categories: NONFICTION