Laura Dekker - Precious moments

When all is well with your boat and she seems to be sailing along beautifully, as in this great shot of "Guppy", it's inevitable that you find yourself mesmerised by the sea in quiet contemplation.

I dare say, "Spot" may be ever present in Laura's mind during such precious moments.

Perth on Cyclone Alert

The Bureau of Meteorology has issued a cyclone watch for coastal areas from Jurien Bay to Albany as the category four storm continues to track south.

People in the areas between Jurien Bay and Albany are told to prepare now for very dangerous weather as Severe TC Bianca, now a category 4 cyclone, tracks toward WA's South West coast.

There's nothing normal about the weather anymore so I don't know what to expect.
Residents are being warned to prepare for dangerous weather conditions over the next 48 hours.....eeekkk!!!

Australia Day 2011

Australians all let us rejoice
For we are young and free
We've golden soil and wealth for toil
Our home is girt by sea

Our land abounds in nature's gifts
Of beauty rich and rare
In history's page, let every stage
Advance Australia Fair

In joyful strains then let us sing
Advance Australia Fair

Beneath our radiant Southern Cross
We'll toil with hearts and hands
To make this Commonwealth of ours
Renowned of all the lands

For those who've come across the seas
We've boundless plains to share
With courage let us all combine
To Advance Australia Fair

In joyful strains then let us sing
Advance Australia Fair

Laura Dekker - Stad Amsterdam

Laura Dekker's plan to set sail from St Martin next week has been postponed as the opportunity to crew on a magnificent tall ship, the "Stad Amsterdam" was too good to miss.

I'm not sure how "Guppy" feels about that but she is ready and waiting to sail off just as soon as she is re-uinited with her intrepid captain in 10 days time.

Laura Dekker - Back on dry land

Laura Dekker is back on dry land and is pictured here (AP Photo/Judy Fitzpatrick) walking toward the immigration office upon her arrival at St Maarten in the Caribbean on Sunday 19th December 2010.

Laura and Guppy left the Cape Verde Islands off the northwest coast of Africa on the 2nd of December and took 3 weeks to sail 2,200 nautical miles across the Atlantic Ocean to effectively complete the longest leg of their voyage around the world.

While she is aiming to become the youngest person to sail solo around the world in the long term, Laura is happy to learn that she is the youngest ever to have done the Atlantic crossing solo and unassisted.

Congratulations Laura and Guppy on a fantastic effort and all the best for a most enjoyable stay in the Caribean.

Laura Dekker - Hurricane Season 2010

This track map (Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons) shows the hurricane activity in the North Atlantic so far this year.








The hurricane season officially started on 1st June and should end on 30th November but evidently there's nothing normal about the weather anymore.

Laura and "Guppy" plan to up-anchor from the Canary Islands tomorrow and head south towards the Cape Verde Islands, off the north-west coast of Africa and estimate the journey to take about a week. Presumably they will stay there until the end of the hurricane season at the end of this month before making their way across the vast expanse of the North Atlantic Ocean to the Caribbean.

Perth WA - Spring 2010

A view of the city's skyline from King's Park.















A roadside display of everlastings at King's Park.














Eternal flame for silent contemplation.

Laura Dekker - And so it begins for Laura & "Guppy".

Laura Dekker was said to be in good spirits on Saturday 21st August 2010 as she said goodbye to her father and friends to begin her solo world voyage on her 11.5 metre boat, "Guppy".

Laura’s original plan was to depart from Portimao in Portugal but she ended up leaving from Gibraltar because Portugal does not issue permits for sailing vessels to people under 18. This regulation does not apply on British territory.

Laura and “Guppy” are now en route to the Canary Islands, the first of several planned stops, where they will wait out the hurricane season. Then they plan to head through the Panama Canal to the Pacific Ocean and on to Australia, the southern tip of India and through the Suez Canal to the Mediterranean.

Bon Voyage Laura & “Guppy”. May you have the time of your life.

Laura Dekker

Laura Dekker bids farewell to her home port, Den Osse in the Netherlands to begin her two year odyssey.








A 14 year old Dutch girl, Laura Dekker set sail last Wednesday, 4th August 2010 on the first leg of a two-year odyssey in a bid to become the youngest person ever to circumnavigate the globe.

Laura's father, Dick Dekker is accompanying her on this first leg to Portugal to test "Guppy" and make any final adjustments to her equipment. From there Laura goes solo, first from Lisbon to the Portuguese island of Madeira. Her second stop will bring her to the Canary Islands off the coast of Morocco where she will wait out the hurricane season.

At age 13 Laura felt she was ready to start her bid to become the youngest person to sail around the world but was blocked from doing so when a Dutch court ruled she was too young and put her under the charge of child-care protection services. Laura put the year-long delay to good use and learned how to manage her sleep during such a voyage. She also made a safety plan as well as a sail plan and got more sailing experience.

Last week a Dutch court in Middelburg ruled that Laura no longer needed to be under supervision as she had made all the necessary improvements to her plan, including getting a bigger boat to put in more equipment. "Guppy" is a 38ft Jeanneau Ginfizz ketch with a 12.5ft beam and a 6ft draft.

Laura's sail plan shows that she will be stopping regularly and will sometimes meet up with other sailors following the same route. During her more extended passages, Laura will have radio contact with other ships at least twice a day.

Bon Voyage Laura and Guppy!

Today Australia, tomorrow the world...

At approximately 1100hrs on Thursday 18th March 2010, courageous quadriplegic yachtsman Jamie Dunross set sail from Rockingham WA onboard his S&S-34
Spirit of Rockingham on a quest to circumnavigate Australia solo and unassisted.

Four months and one week later, at approximately 1400hrs on Sunday 25th July 2010 (tomorrow), Jamie is expected to arrive at the Val Street Jetty in Rockingham where he will successfully complete his circumnavigation.

Jamie and Spirit stopped at a few designated ports along the way but on their final leg managed to sail non-stop from Darwin to Rockingham covering a distance of over 1900 nautical miles to break Jamie's own previous record of the longest distance sailed solo by a person with quadriplegia.

Welcome home and Congratulations Jamie and Spirit on a job well done and an excellent achievement. You are truly inspirational. I wish you all the very best for whatever endeavour you undertake in the future.

Believe it...or not!

A breaching whale mangles the "Intrepid"...

No one was hurt...

The whale left behind bits of skin and blubber...

But was apparently none the worse for wear...

The destructive whale swims off into the sunset.

This incident happened off the coast of Cape Town, South Africa
on Sunday 18th July 2010.