Book Review
Sail South till the butter melts - Atlantic Adventures in an open boat
by Geoff Stewart
This is a good read - one of those ‘just do it’ school of books.
In 1973 Geoff Stewart, a young Australian brought up on a farm outside Melbourne,
a good sportsman and an expert in the emerging IT industry, decided he needed
a bit more adventure. He had little sailing experience but decided to buy an
open boat – “I was reading the yachty magazines and liked the look
of the Drascombe Longboat… I ordered one through the mail and advised
I would arrive in UK in October to collect it.” Which he duly did, making
a maiden voyage east along the South Coast, across the Channel to Calais then
south through the French canals, into the Med, west into the Atlantic, down
to the Canaries and finally, a 3000 mile / 59 days trans Atlantic passage to
Barbados. He tells of his encounters with an assortment of characters afloat
and ashore, his thoughts on a huge range of topics and hints on how he navigated,
sailed, ate and plain survived the whole trip. The book is available through
the Author’s website – www.sailsouthtillthebettermelts.com
Peter Tiplady