- Paperback: 208 pages
- Publisher: McGraw Hill Higher Education; New edition edition (Jun 2003)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0071414304
- ISBN-13: 978-0071414302
- Product Dimensions: 20.9 x 13.5 x 1.6 cm
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 2,495,662 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
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Product Description
Product Description
Alone Through the Roaring Forties is the story of Vito Dumas's wartime voyage from Argentina eastward around the globe in the 31-foot canoe-sterned ketch Lehg II. By any measure, it was a remarkable, unprecedented voyage over what Dumas justly called "the impossible route" - south of the Cape of Good Hope, south of Australia, south of Cape Horn. Leaving Buenos Aires in June 1942, he made the 20,000-mile voyage singlehanded, becoming the first to do so. He was also the first solo sailor to round Cape Horn and survive, and the first to sail around the world with only three landfalls. Dumas completed his high-latitude voyage through the great Southern Ocean, where prevailing westerly gales push huge seas unimpeded around and around the bottom of the globe. His gear and provisions were makeshift - he suffered inordinately because his tattered clothing provided no protection from the cold wind and water - but his boat, though very small, was tough and well mannered. He was awarded the Slocum Prize in 1957 "to honour the extraordinary voyages made by the greatest solitary navigator in the world." Alone Through the Roaring Forties was first published in Spanish, then in French, and finally, in 1960, in English. Somehow through its translations it retained the qualities not just of a great voyage, but of a great book. It reflects the force of Dumas's personality, the ups and downs of elation and depression, hardship and relaxation, and above all, his unrelenting determination in the face of adversities. It is a story of skilled navigation and seamanship and of great adventure, and it is the godfather of all later stories about daring the vast, forbidding Southern Ocean in frail sailboats - including, most recently, Derek Lundy's Godforsaken Sea. Any sailor in the Roaring Forties must reach an accommodation with the sea at its most challenging and inhospitable. Dumas was the first to do so alone in a small boat, and it is that struggle which informs every page of his book, placing it among The Sailor's Classics. Jonathan Raban's introduction places this great book, out of print for many years, in its deserved place of eminence in the literature of the sea. Rich with details of Dumas's life and motivations, the introduction will help readers appreciate the magnitude of Dumas's trail-blazing accomplishment, his reasons for undertaking it, and its significance for the generations of adventurers that have followed.
From the Back Cover
"One of the classic small-boat voyages of all time." Jonathan Raban
In June 1942, Vito Dumas set off from Buenos Aires for a trip around the world unlike any previous circumnavigation eastward over the "impossible route," the Roaring Forties of the Southern Ocean: south of the Cape of Good Hope, south of Australia, and south of Cape Horn. His craft, the Lehg II, a 31-foot ketch named for his mistress, carried only the most makeshift gear and provisions. He refused to carry a sea anchor, a bilge pump, or more than one screwdriver, and he had so few clothes that he had to stuff them with newspaper to keep warm. He also sailed without a radio, since carrying one during wartime might have labeled him a spy.
He was the first to complete the 20,000-mile voyage singlehanded, the first solo sailor to round Cape Horn and survive, and the first to sail around the world with only three landfalls (in South Africa, New Zealand, and Chile). But what sets this story apart is Dumas's powerful prose, recording elation and depression, hardship and relaxation, and, above all, his unrelenting determination in the face of adversity. The terror of sailing through massive storms without respite from the helm alternates with periods of relative calm when he reflects on the enchanting nature of the sea. His trio of landfalls sojourns he called "calm waters where my spirit could rest" add yet another distinction to this beautiful tale. Alone Through the Roaring Forties is also a tribute to Lehg II, Dumas's beloved boat. He calls her his "shipmate," and "faithful companion," "an ideal floating house of extraordinary strength and endurance," and had complete faith in her abilities and performance.
First published in 1960, Alone Through the Roaring Forties is a classic tale of skilled navigation, seamanship, and great adventure, but it also demonstrates, as Dumas intended, the possibilities of global peace and friendship in a world at war. As Jonathan Raban writes in his introduction, "Dumas chose to see his circumnavigation as a test of his ordinary humanity. There are hurricane-force winds here, and hazardous waves, but . . . it is his reverence for the small things that gives Alone Through the Roaring Forties its distinction as a classic."
"One of the greatest voyages ever made by a solo sailor. Dumas's three-stop solo circumnavigation of the world, at latitudes infamous for their extended gales and appallingly high seas, was accomplished in a cruising ketch, less than 32 feet in length, without self-steering gear, in the middle of a major war. . . . It is his reverence for the small things that gives Alone Through the Roaring Forties its distinction as a classic. This most harrowing of voyages is presented by its author as a story of Everyman on a modest sea pilgrimage. . . . Other solo circumnavigators have made the world seem dauntingly larger by their harrowing exploits; Dumas makes it seem smaller." from the introduction by Jonathan Raban
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ON THIS ENTERPRISE a mate was obviously necessary-that is, the boat. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
ON THIS ENTERPRISE a mate was obviously necessary-that is, the boat. Read the first page
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5 reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Eternal Vito
23 Mar 2002
Format:Hardcover
An Argentine legend of the sea, deeply loved by all south american sailors. This book tells of his second voyage on board Legh II against the roaring forties alone, and all the things he had to endure. Bernard Moitissier used to keep this book under his pillow and referred to it many times. A must read for everyone, specially for overseas cruisers
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Definitely a classic
5 May 2003
Format:Hardcover
This is currently my favorite book I have ever read about sailing around the world. It's entertaining, informatative, and most important, I felt like I was right there riding with him on the boat.
It struck me as a very honest account without a lot of making things sound more impressive than they actually are. He talks a bit about getting sick on board, but he accepts that as just part of the challenge. He also talks about getting a tiny bit careless after going so far around the world, and getting put ashore in what must have appeared to be a "novice" mistake. At that point, he was ANYTHING but a novice. It's just the kind of thing that might happen to any one of us, which is exactly what makes this book so appealing to me.
If you want to escape from your land-locked life for a few hours with a good book, consider this one strongly. The chapters are generally fairly short, and the pages turn quickly, because he really draws you in with his writing style. His description of his experience with the waves in the South Pacific still has me spellbound.
I will read this book again and again over the years.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Certainly a classic of Solo Sailing Stories
30 Sep 2006
Format:Paperback
This story is as spectacular as it is unique. Who else would even consider this adventure now, not to mention then? No one. The story of the adventure of sailing in such conditions is well worth reading. As an added value Vito just seems to have a great capacity for making friends and telling the story. His capacity to endure is remarkable, but also his skills and seamanship are truly outstanding. Even in this modern world of computers and electronic navigational aids there is much to be learned about boats and seamanship from a person who sailed a 32' boat in the worst of conditions, and did it smartly, without all those modern aids. I recommend this book for the wonderful story it tells about the sea and the person. Certainly a classic of solo sailing stories.
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