The Spirit of Ulysses, a well-travelled Nordhavn 76, just left Fiji on its epic 9,900 nm cruise from Fort Lauderdale to Perth, Australia, and things are going well so far.
They are going so well, in fact, that the captain, Nikolay Alexandrov, just posted on the yacht’s blog that the owner, Kris Townend, “is happy, great trip so far! He likes the boating life more and more, and his other job less and less.”
Welcome to the world of blue-water cruising. Townend, an Australian, bought Spirit of Ulysses last February in Fort Lauderdale. Built in 2007, the boat had already cruised the Pacific from Alaska to New Zealand, and crossed the Atlantic to Spain and back, via Barbados. Townend wanted to cross the Pacific himself; after the boat gets to his home in Perth, he plans to move on board with his family.
But for now, Spirit of Ulysses is working its way across the South Pacific. At the start of July, it made landfall at Suwarrow, a flat coral atoll in the Cook Islands with a large central lagoon. The highest spot of land is 16 feet, and the population is two people, the ranger in charge for the local government and his assistant.
Townend wrote that the arrival at Suwarrow “was not without its challenges” and involved “racing against time and the setting sun” and then “navigating through multiple reefs, contending with a strong 3-knot current and avoiding a treacherous south reef.”
The crew dropped anchor in 80 feet of water in the lagoon, populated by five other boats and a dozen or so sharks that started swimming around Ulysses. The next day, Townend wrote, “we were greeted by a sight that exceeded our wildest imagination – a tropical paradise like no other. Palm trees swayed in harmony, seemingly growing on top of each other, while coral-lined shores met sparkling, aqua-colored waters.”
They checked in with the ranger, explored the coastline on their large tender, and left the next afternoon, heading for Fiji. The crew quickly settled in to their cruising routine, involving “shower, watch, sleep, work, sleep, shower” and repeat.
After a week at sea, Fiji beckoned over the horizon (see picture above) and Ulysses arrived at Port Denarau at sunset. Captain Alexandrov wrote that it was “the first time in a marina since Panama and, of course, no electricity on our dock.” Ulysses took on 2,000 gallons of diesel fuel, a diver cleaned the bottom, and the Nordhavn was soon back on its way to Australia.
Specs.: LOA: 78’0”; Beam: 21’0”; Draft: 7’4”; Disp.: 286,000 lbs.; Fuel: 4,480 gals.; Water: 800 gals.; Power: 2×400-hp MTUs.
Read more: http://nordhavn.com
