A Holland America cruise around Cape Horn - Telegraph Cruises A Holland America cruise around Cape Horn After a cruise on Holland America's ms Veendam around Cape Horn, Gill Charlton was finally converted to cruising. The shape of Cape Horn, the end of a continent Photo: Alamy Holland America's ms Veendam, a mid-size ship by modern standards, with a sense of tradition Port Stanley on the Falkland Islands Photo: Alamy One of the landing points was Montevideo, the capital of Uruguay Photo: Alamy Image 1 of 5 A king penguin, one of a couple of species that Gill Charlton saw on her cruise around Cape Horn Photo: Alamy By Gill Charlton 11:25AM GMT 03 Nov 2011 Even for a veteran traveller like myself, there’s a frisson of excitement on the quayside in Buenos Aires as we hand over luggage and passports. Plastic smartcard in hand, I mount the gangway with some trepidation. Two friends have persuaded me to go on a Holland America cruise despite my qualms at being holed up with 1,600 others and seeing only fleeting glimpses of ports of call.

However, 12-day cruises around Cape Horn, from Argentina to Chile via the Falkland Islands, is a journey that should be done by sea. The ms Veendam plies this route every winter. A mid-size ship by modern standards, she retains a sense of tradition: lots of polished brass, formal dining with black-tie nights and wooden steamer chairs on her wraparound promenade deck. Museum-quality antiques and artwork are all over the ship. My Lanai stateroom is spacious and comfortable: a king-size bed, sofa and small desk. The bathroom has a short shallow bath and a powerful shower. Best of all, a sliding-glass door opens on to the lower promenade deck. The glass has been treated, so I can watch the ocean lying in bed but nobody can look in at me. The red-plush Rotterdam dining room occupies the stern of the ship. We have been assigned table 23 beside a large window on the upper balcony. Guests can choose free seating or reserve tables for two, four or more. It means there is no chance of getting stuck with the very dull.

(For those who prefer not to dress for dinner there is a bright, buzzy self-service restaurant.) The cheerful, attentive waiters are from Java, supervised by Raj from Bangalore, who has a no-problem-can’t-be-solved attitude. He trained with Taj Hotels and, after discovering our love of India, invites us one evening to try a fiery curry cooked by his personal chef. Related Articles Th ultimate guide to America's 'last frontier' 08 Feb 2016 The cheapest wines – $22 (£13.73) a bottle – are uninspiring choices from Australia and California. Instead, we pick up Argentinian and Chilean vintages in our ports of call and pay the $18 corkage. Overnight we cross the River Plate to Montevideo, capital of Uruguay. It is Saturday and the colonial centre is deserted; even the museums are closed. A flea market selling silver plate, second-hand books and clothes draws in a few locals, who walk along sucking maté tea through silver straws, a Thermos tucked under an arm for refills. This sour-tasting brew made from the holly leaf is a national obsession.

There’s a strong South American and Spanish presence on the ship, couples and multi-generation families, plus a few parties of French and more British than I had expected. Americans and Canadians still dominate, but the age profile is younger than on many cruises, probably because the seas can be rougher. It soon dawns that there are two kinds of passenger on board and that their paths rarely cross. The majority like to lie around the pool, eat in the self-service restaurant, play the slot machines and take coach excursions. The minority read in the excellent library, drink cocktails in the Crow’s Nest bar and listen to talks on how to make your own way in the next landfall. Nowhere on board seems crowded. Up on Deck 12, we are the only ones pounding the boardwalk (13 laps to a mile) as we sail towards the Falkland Islands. The sky is blue and streaked with horsetails, the wind still warm. Sleek black skuas follow in our wake. We take all our meals in the main dining room: silver-service breakfast with dishes from around the world, Japanese miso soup to perfect eggs Benedict, Indonesian nasi goreng for lunch and a proper high tea.

The dinner menu changes daily: crab bisque, interesting salads, home-made ravioli, perfectly cooked steaks and slipper lobster, creamy puddings. Low-calorie choices are helpfully asterisked. The high quality of the food comes as a surprise. Given that most passengers are paying about £80 a day full board for this cruise (which includes a big chunk for fuel), I had not expected such fine dining. It takes 60 hours to reach the Falklands. There’s a moderate swell that thuds against the prow and sends some to their beds. Black- browed albatross fly alongside us, gliding inches above the waves. With a seven-foot wingspan and white torpedo-shaped bodies, they are the Concorde of the avian world and spend their lives fishing for squid and shrimp. They sleep on the wing and return to the Falklands to breed only after a decade at sea. It’s a warm February morning when we arrive in Port Stanley and anchor outside the harbour. Many passengers have signed up for the long bumpy ride to a king penguin colony. Only eight of us join Ledda, a Yorkshire-born retired GP, for a four-hour nature trek.

A noxious smell gives away a colony of Magellanic penguins. The young are almost as tall as their mothers, brown fur moulting to uncover sleek oiled pelts. A Typhoon fighter jet drowns out the song of the red-breasted meadow lark. It’s a new addition to the islands’ air defence, says Ledda. There is a fear that the discovery of offshore oil will lead to more tension with Argentina. More than 1,700 British soldiers and airmen are still stationed on the islands. The walk ends above a wide sickle of white sand which, like nearby beaches, is still mined. Occasionally a cow gets blown up, says Ledda, assuring us that the two stray king penguins are safe, even though they dwarf their Magellanic cousins. Their humanoid ways make them hilarious to watch: one flaps up the beach like a child pretending to fly, the other plods after him like a fed- up younger brother.

Back in Port Stanley, a tidy two-street town of low stone buildings with tin roofs, we find our shipmates in the souvenir shops, where penguins stand proud on loo rolls, emery boards, fridge magnets and mouse mats – all made in Britain. “Some days we get two or three cruise ships in,” a shopkeeper says. “Last week there were over 6,000 people in town and we had to operate a queuing system.” I send a postcard back to Britain for 60p; it arrives before I do. Last December, the Veendam ploughed through an exceptional storm on her way from the Falklands to Cape Horn, with waves of more than 90ft. It’s good to know the ship is that seaworthy as we head to Tierra del Fuego. The light is fading as we approach the archipelago that makes up Cape Horn. Despite the fierce wind, the sea is a flat calm. The captain sounds the horn as we round the Cape itself, a great slab of basalt holding back the Southern Ocean. We wake to find ourselves in Ushuaia, jumping-off point for cruises to Antarctica.

It’s a boom town with crazy drivers, giant graffiti and no planning laws. There are glass high-rises next to Tyrolean chalets and garish tin homes. The most hairy-chested of the organised excursions (canoeing apart) is a four-wheel-drive trip into the tundra and a pleasant walk through a beech forest for a steak lunch cooked over a brazier in a woodman’s hut. The sociable outing is led by Maria, whose family has lived here for generations. She tells us that the indigenous Yamuna people, who wore no clothes and lit fires in their bark boats to keep warm, are now extinct. In the winter Argentinians come for cross-country skiing and husky sled rides. A woman is an hour late for the ship. She is slow-clapped on board as we are all impatient to set sail for the Beagle Channel, where glaciers of blue ice tumble down to the sea. After such a warm summer’s day the wind blowing off the glaciers chills us like walking into a deep freeze. Find a Holland America cruise The channel water is a beautiful blue-green. There are sandy beaches, colonies of seals and penguins on rocky headlands, and great tongues of churned ice.

Yet we are only 53 degrees south, on a similar latitude to Wales. Our next landfall, Punta Arenas in Chile, is a much more sophisticated affair thanks to two families, the Brauns and the Hamburgers, who arrived here from Prussia in the 19th century. They made fortunes from sheep-farming and built handsome mansions in the Spanish classical style. This is where being on a cruise comes into its own. It’s a chance to grab a snapshot of a place, to see whether it warrants a return visit. Punta Arenas is worth a day of anyone’s time, but no more. As we cruise through the Chilean fjords the weather closes in and the landscape of Patagonia, scrubbed bare by ice, wind and rain, appears the bleakest place on Earth. Only about 40 of us are enjoying the 180- degree view from the Crow’s Nest bar as the Veendam makes her way between the low knobbly islands. Dolphins arrive to play in our wake as the jumble of blue ice that is the Amelie glacier fans into the sea ahead of us.

The Veendam prudently stands off as icebergs the size of small cars float past. In the evenings, the entertainment director, Patti, introduces an unremarkable succession of cabaret crooners, magic shows and tango dancers. We find better music in the smaller lounges, including a young soul singer who would win The X Factor. That is the pleasure of a ship this size – there really is something for everyone. Puerto Montt is our final port of call. Puerto Varas, a short taxi ride away, is a pretty lakeside town of larch shingle houses and high-quality craft shops settled by German immigrants in the 1850s. Locals are swimming in the lake against the backdrop of a picture-book snow-capped volcano. So would I cruise again? The answer is yes. I can absolutely see the appeal of a taster cruise to the Baltic or to Alaska, and sea days are a rare chance to relax completely. What struck me was how proud the crew are to work on a Holland America ship. It’s clearly like being part of a large family at sea. There’s a real commitment to getting the experience right – for everyone on board. I hadn’t expected that.

Gill Charlton cruised on Holland America Line’s South America Passage cruise (0845 351 0557; ) on the ms Veendam. Prices for a 15-night package departing from Valparaiso (Santiago) on March 5, 2012 and ending in Buenos Aires, starts from £2,219 per person sharing a twin inside stateroom including return flight from London, pre-cruise hotel night, transfer and full board on the 12-night cruise. Find more cruise deals . Find a Holland America cruise Your say Have you done a cruise around Cape Horn? Or can you remember a moment when you were converted to the pleasures of a cruise holiday? Share your thoughts below. The best comments will be considered for our Travel Views competition for the chance to win two return Brittany Ferries tickets. Bottoms Up on Cape Horn, Chile – Intelligent Travel Senior editor Norie Quintos , who edits the magazine’s annual Tours of a Lifetime issue, is just back from a trip down South (way down) to Cape Horn, the Straits of Magellan, and Tierra del Fuego. It’s the dawn of a new decade.

And I’m at the end of the world . Specifically, it’s 01/01/10 and I’m at Cape Horn, the tip of the habitable world, Land’s End, tailbone of the Americas, the planet’s last lick of land beyond which Earth’s two great oceans–the mighty Atlantic and the misnamed Pacific–clash in a not-so-friendly mashup. Beyond the Cape: the forbidding shores of Antarctica, 500 miles away. Prosaic thoughts give way to profound during moments and at coordinates such as these. (It helps that I am beyond the tentacley reach of Wi-Fi and thus liberated from the neurotic, neuronic blips that pass for thinking in the Age of Twitter.) This is the perfect time and place for a Big Think.

The Chilean expedition cruise ship Via Australis has deposited me and 130 fellow passengers on this island in a manner far more cushy than previous travelers who have wended this way, among them Francis Drake, whose storm-tossed detour led to the accidental discovery of the Drake Passage directly to the south; the Dutch merchant-explorer duo Le Maire and Schouten, who named the Cape after the latter’s home town of Hoorn; and English naturalist Charles Darwin, who rounded the Cape on the Beagle on his way to the Galapagos Islands and eventual fame. The carcasses of countless ships and steamers litter the ocean floor around these parts. The “furious fifties,” as the winds of the 50th parallel southern latitudes are called (Cape Horn is at 55° 58′ 47″ S), are legendary, and–squeezed by the Andes and the Antarctic peninsula–they give rise to equally fearsome waves. Throw in the odd iceberg to make things more interesting. Even now, only sailors who have “rounded the Horn” are by tradition permitted to wear a gold loop earring and to dine with one leg on the table.

Landing on or rounding the island remains enough of a dicey proposition today that the cruise line, Cruceros Australis, takes pains not to guarantee it in its promotional materials. (Queasy types shouldn’t worry too much. The rest of the ship’s route is through the sheltered passages of the Beagle Channel and the Magellan Strait.) The captain told me the ship manages a rounding of the Horn only about 50 percent of the time. But the first day of 2010 turns out to be a lucky one: calm seas, the lightest of breezes, a hazy sun. It is summer in the Southern Hemisphere and the temperature is in the relatively balmy 50 degrees Fahrenheit. We make landfall, clamber up a steep set of stairs, greet the lonely Chilean Navy sailor at his guardpost, and snap the requisite photos. Eventually everyone scatters to explore the lighthouse and visit the chapel, leaving me, briefly, alone to gaze at the Cape. (The actual point is virtually inaccessible, protected from the erosive tread of visitors.) For one brief shining moment, I’m the southernmost human in the Americas. I whip out my Moleskine notebook.

(Hemingway famously used one and therefore so do all the writers I know; interestingly, so did Bruce Chatwin, whose musings about Patagonia and Cape Horn I have just read.) I jot down deep thoughts, burning questions, fervent wishes, and firm resolves. I visualize them rising to the heavens, carried on the wings of the albatrosses–the souls of sailors perished according to sea lore. It doesn’t have to be New Year’s Day on Cape Horn. Any combination of place and time (spot + moment) that takes you away from the incessant demands of daily living, that places you in direct contact with Nature’s majesty or civilization’s crowning glories, throws open the window on your essential self so you can get a good hard look. These auspicious times and places can be truly enabling, in the best sense of that much-maligned word. So when and where is it going to be for you? Valentine’s Day in Tuvalu? April in Paris? Post-divorce in Bali (a la Eat, Pray, Love)? Christmas on the Equator?

At the lighthouse-cum-souvenir shop, I sign the guestbook (page 1!) and buy an “El Fin del Mundo” postcard stamped with today’s date. Then I rejoin friends old and new back on the boat. The end, come to think of it, makes a fine beginning. Share your own deep thoughts about travel in the comments below. Photos of Cape Horn by Norie Quintos. In her next posting, Norie falls in love with Darwin, Drake, and a bunch of dead guys. Plus: Glaciers are cool. Keywords Destinations Jimmy Cornell's South American Vacation CW contributing editor charts a course for maximum sailing with minimal obstacles. Supplement to our October 2006 issue By Jimmy Cornell posted Sep 19th, 2006 at 12:23pm Elizabeth Wishe Jimmy Cornells South American Vacation North American Sailors with a sound boat, a few months time, and a desire for a voyage to remember need look no farther than their own hemisphere to find an ambitious get-away: a complete circumnavigation of the South American continent, with a possible detour to Antarctica.

Because more favorable weather and wind conditions will be encountered by sailing around South America in a counter-clockwise direction, East and Gulf Coast cruisers can look forward to a trip through the Panama Canal in the early stages of the journey. The voyage can be accomplished in the opposite direction, but it would be much harder. I know this from personal experience from my second voyage to Antarctica. Sailing south via Brazil and Argentina presented no great problems, but sailing north through the Chilean canals against the prevailing northwest winds was hard, hence my advice to go the other way. The easiest route south from the East Coast of the United States is via the Outer Bahamas and Windward Passage. From there a direct course can be sailed across the Caribbean Sea for Colon at the entrance to the Panama Canal by keeping well to windward of the various reefs and islets south of Jamaica. If time permits, a detour to the San Blas Islands is well worth the effort, and can be easily accomplished before the canal transit. The best time to start this voyage is late spring, just before the start of hurricane season in the Caribbean. Such timing will allow enough time to reach Southern Chile at the optimum time, from October to January.

Once in the Pacific Ocean, there are two main options for the southbound route from Panama: a detour via the Gaapagos Islands, or a track that follows the coast of South America. If the latter option is chosen, the route should stay far enough from the Colombian coast to keep clear of any dangers. This first leg should be sailed non-stop to Ecuador where there is a good marina at La Libertad, the Puerto Lucia Yacht Club. This is a convenient place to stop for fuel and provisions, and is also a safe place to leave the boat to visit the interior, whether the Andes or a corner of Amazonia. The route then continues south along the coasts of Peru and Chile, with several ports on the way where one can stop for fuel and provisions. Light south east winds, the contrary Humboldt Current and the long distances to be covered will probably make this a slow leg on which a reliable engine and plenty of fuel will be of utmost importance. The alternative is to seek better winds offshore, which will mean covering a lot more miles but being able to sail most of the way. One further advantage of such an offshore route is the opportunity to call at two highly attractive destinations: the Galapagos and Easter Island.

The winds between Panama and the Galapagos, as well as to mainland Ecuador, are mostly northerly at the start, but becoming light and variable as one moves south. Formalities in the Galapagos Islands have been greatly simplified and cruising boats are now welcome to stop at one of the two main ports of entry: Puerto Baquerizo Moreno on Isla San Cristobal and Puerto Ayora on Isla Santa Cruz. Although it is possible to obtain a permit to cruise the various islands, this is an extremely costly exercise and the boat must be accompanied by a licensed guide. The alternative is to base your boat in one of the above mentioned ports and join one of the local excursion boats on day trips to the other islands. On the next leg, from the Galapagos to Easter Island, the prevailing winds will be from the south east, which means that much of this leg will be close to the wind. However, getting to the island of the giant statues is well worth the effort, as there are few more interesting places in the entire world. The best anchorage is off the main settlement at Hanga Roa, on the island's west coast.

Like with everything else in life, there is a price to be paid for this detour: There is simply no easy way to sail from Easter Island to mainland Chile. Although one may be able to motor through the Pacific high, probably the better alternative is to head south in search of prevailing westerly winds, which will probably be reached somewhere south of latitude 32 degrees south. From there the course should be set for the Chilean coast, with a landfall in the area of the Canal de Chacao, north of Isla Grande De Chiloe. This narrow body of water is swept by strong tides and leads to the marina at Puerto Montt, which is the best place to get charts, provisions and local information on Southern Chile. Once the Gulf of Penas is reached south of the Isla Grande De Chiloe, one can sail inshore and in sheltered waters all the way to Islas Hornos at the southern extremity of the continent. This vast area, which stretches for well over 1,000 miles, is a maze of fiords, narrow passages, ancient forests, snow-clad mountains and mighty glaciers. Solitude is absolute.

Weather conditions in summer (October to January) are relatively good and the prevailing winds are from the northwest, hence my recommendation to cruise this area from north to south. Stronger winds with violent gusts (the infamous willawas) become more frequent as one moves south so one should be prepared for these sudden blasts both when sailing and at anchor. Puerto Eden, about halfway between Chiloe and Cape Horn is the only place to get fuel or provisions, so self-sufficiency is an absolute necessity in this part of the world. This spectacular route reaches its conclusion at the Canal Beagle and a choice of ports; the larger, better endowed Argentine port of Ushuaia, or the remote Chilean military base of Puerto Williams. The former has all essential facilities, including an airport with direct flights to Buenos Aires. Puerto Williams is a favorite port of call for boats heading for either Cape Horn or Antarctica, both of which fall under the jurisdiction of Chile, so permission to head south needs to be requested here.

Those who choose to skip Antartica and who have reached the southernmost point of their voyage, move on east via the Canal Beagle, leaving Isla de los Estados (Staten Island) to port and then turning north towards the Falkland Islands. Those undaunted by a crossing of the Drake Passage, meanwhile, can keep their bows pointing south towards the Antarctic Peninsula. Crossing the 600-mile-wide Drake Passage in a well-found boat during the optimum summer time (December to February) should present no problem. Ideally one should set off immediately after the passing of a low when the winds will veer from northwest to northeast. The risk of encountering icebergs during the offshore passage is not very high in summer, but a good lookout should be kept nonetheless. A good starting point for a cruise inside the sheltered waters off the western side of the Antarctic Peninsula is Deception Island. From there the route leads in a generally southwest direction with a choice of good anchorages. The scenery is quite breath-taking and there is lots of wildlife: large penguin colonies, pods of courting humpback whales, and various species of seals, including the enormous elephant seals.

Weather conditions in the optimum summer months are quite benign, and temperatures rarely fall below freezing. When it's time to head north again, a good departure point is in the area of the Melchior Islands, from where the open sea is easily reached. Getting back to Cape Horn against the prevailing westerly winds and east-setting current is not easy, so if one wants to visit Horn Island, where it's possible to land, it's better to do this before setting off for Antarctica. Then the return voyage will be much easier as a direct course can be set for the Falklands, staying east of both Cape Horn and Staten Island. Stanley is the main settlement on the remote Falklands, and makes a good port of call for boats heading north. The Argentine coast south of the port of Mar del Plata has few attractions and is best passed well to seaward. Mar del Plata is a busy seaside resort with several yacht clubs that welcome visitors. The homebound route continues parallel to the Brazilian coast with plenty of landfall and cruising opportunities. Going north from the Falklands the prevailing winds will be westerly with a favorable north-setting current.

Along the Brazilian coast the prevailing winds up to April are northeast, becoming southeast in May, so this section should not be attempted too early in the season. Once the equator is reached the winds become easterly and there is also a strong northwest-setting current that ensures a fast passage to the Lesser Antilles. As the Eastern Caribbean will be reached near the end of the winter season, there will be little time to linger. A good pace needs to be maintained to arrive back in the States the before the onset of the new hurricane season in June. The total distance, including the detours to Easter Island and Antarctica, is 16,800 miles, though you can shave 3,000 miles off by skipping these visits. With good planning and careful preparation either option can be accomplished in the 12 months that have been allowed for the voyage. About the Author Jimmy Cornell has sailed to Antarctica twice, in 1996 and 1999. In the last 35 years he has sailed over 200,000 miles in his three different Aventuras.

In the October 2006 issue of Cruising World, Cornell plots two more modest cruises, one a North Atlantic circle, the other a voyage heading south through the Caribbean. Tags: 5. – European discovery of New Zealand – Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand Impressions of ‘Dusky Bay’ (1st of 2) First sighting and landfall James Cook’s ship the Endeavour was a relatively small vessel of 368 tons, just 32 metres long and 7.6 metres broad. It departed from Plymouth on 26 August 1768 with 94 men, entering the Pacific around Cape Horn. After almost four months in Tahiti, from mid-April to mid-August, the Endeavour sailed south into uncharted waters. On 6 October 1769 a cabin boy sighted land. Two days later Cook landed at Poverty Bay. But unfortunate skirmishes on that day and the next resulted in the deaths of several Māori. The incidents appear, like Tasman’s bloody experience at Murderers Bay (Golden Bay) in 1642, to have been in part the result of Māori efforts to deal with strange newcomers in a traditional way.

After the encounters, Cook sailed first south to Cape Turnagain, then north, pausing at Tolaga Bay and Anaura Bay before rounding East Cape to Mercury Bay. After a week in the Bay of Islands, he turned the top of the North Island in a storm, and sailed down its west coast. Young Nick’s sharp eyes Sailing across uncharted seas in October 1769, James Cook offered a reward of rum to the man who first sighted land, and promised that ‘that part of the coast of the said land should be named after him’. The sighting was made by the surgeon’s boy, 12-year-old Nicholas Young. He had probably come aboard the ship in the retinue of the botanist, Joseph Banks. It is not recorded if Young Nick was given the rum, but the headland below the high hills which he first saw from the masthead was named Young Nicks Head after him. He was certainly sharp-eyed because he was also the first to see Land’s End when the Endeavour returned to England in 1771.

A favoured anchorage On 15 January 1770 Cook brought the Endeavour to anchor at Ship Cove in Queen Charlotte Sound at the top of the South Island. From a high point on Arapawa Island he gained his first view of the narrow strait that now bears his name. Sailing through the strait, he returned to Cape Turnagain, confirming that the North Island was indeed an island. He then sailed south down the east coast of the South Island and round the southern tip of Stewart Island. Observing the new land sometimes from well out to sea, he made two famous mistakes, charting Banks Peninsula as a probable island and Stewart Island as a probable peninsula. He did not land again until he put into Admiralty Bay, D’Urville Island, on 27 March 1770 for wood and water. On 1 April 1770 Cook sailed west to discover and chart the eastern coast of Australia. He reached Batavia (Jakarta) on 11 October and returned to England, having circumnavigated the globe, on 13 July 1771.

The second voyage When Cook made his two subsequent voyages into the Pacific, New Zealand was no longer a place unknown to Europeans. The first voyage in 1770 had confirmed that it was not a vast southern land waiting to be discovered. Joseph Banks, the naturalist on board the Endeavour, had recorded that Cook’s rounding of Stewart Island’s South Cape had totally demolished ‘our aerial fabrick called continent’. Yet there still remained unexplored ocean to the east of New Zealand, where a great continent could lie. On his second voyage (1772–75) Cook used New Zealand as a base for probes south and east, which finally proved there was no such continent. The Resolution, commanded by Cook, and the Adventure, commanded by Tobias Furneaux, sailed from England on 13 July 1772. Both ships spent time in New Zealand waters between excursions into the unexplored parts of the Pacific. The only significant achievement of the second voyage relating to New Zealand was Cook’s charting of much of Dusky Sound, where he spent six weeks in the autumn of 1773.

Historic tree stumps Some of the earliest evidence of a European presence in New Zealand is found in the far south-west of the South Island. When James Cook rested up in Dusky Sound in the autumn of 1773 after arduous voyages towards Antarctica, one of the tasks he had his party complete was accurately fixing the geographical position of New Zealand. So that the necessary observations could be made, about an acre (half a hectare) of land on Astronomer Point was cleared of bush. The stumps of trees felled by Cook’s men can still be seen beneath the regrown bush. The third voyage On his third voyage (1776–79), Cook paid a last visit to New Zealand. He stayed from 12 to 25 February 1777 at ‘our old station’, Ship Cove in Queen Charlotte Sound, before sailing into the north Pacific. He was killed in an incident with the islanders at Kealakekua Bay, Hawaii, on 14 February 1779.

Hotel Cape Horn, Den Helder, Netherlands - Booking.com Hotel Cape Horn Zuidstraat 82-83, 1781 BV Den Helder, Netherlands – Great location - show map After booking, all of the property’s details, including telephone and address, are provided in your booking confirmation and your account. Lock in a great price for Hotel Cape Horn – rated 8.7 by recent guests! Enter dates Excellent 8.7 /10 Score from 423 reviews Cleanliness Very friendly owners. Helpfull anytime. Good location of Hotel. Krzysztof, Poland Very friendly helpful owners. Super atmosphere. Breakfast with strawberries, cherry tomatoes, freshly squeezed orange juice and espresso. Free parking outside. Next to harbour. Great value and location. Jim, Netherlands Really friendly, helpful hosts. Comfy beds. High level of cleanliness. Fantastic breakfast. Really nice place to stay and would definitely stay there again. Henry, United Kingdom Very friendly and helpfull owners. Bicycle is always a big advantage! Anna, Finland Great stay! Everything you need is there. Clean, tidy place and friendly staff. The breakfast was excellent! Mrc, Netherlands Very clean and cosy!

Lovely owners who made it feel just like home. Claire, United Kingdom Great Hosts, very nice breakfast in very cosy atmosphere, we felt like visiting friends Marc, Germany Very lovely place, the owners are friendly and try to do everything to enjoy our living. We found many pretty small things useful for traveling in the wonderful, original designed room. Free bykes. Very clean, very beauty, very tasty breakfast with fresh juice and fruits. WiFi is excellent! Thanks a lot . Dank U wel! Het beste ermee! Maria, Russia Very kind and friendly owner. A completely warm atmosphere in a lovely small hotel. Really close to the coast and also close to the city. We borrowed two bikes from the hotel and could visit both in 5 minutes. We had two very nice days staying there and will hopefully come back one day. Big thumbs um! Julian, Germany Very cosy little hotel with lovely and helpful hosts. Bikes to use for free. Prior to our arrival, we asked for a vegan/vegetarian breakfast and it was lovingly prepared and very delicious.

Alexandra, Germany 9.7 Featuring free WiFi throughout the property, Hotel Cape Horn offers accommodations in Den Helder, just 0.6 miles from Royal Navymuseum. The rooms are fitted with a TV. There is a shared lounge at the property. The bed and breakfast also provides free use of bicycles. The nearest airport is Schiphol Airport, 45 miles from Hotel Cape Horn. This property is also rated for the best value in Den Helder! Guests are getting more for their money when compared to other properties in this city. We speak your language! Hotel Cape Horn has been welcoming Booking.com guests since Jun 16, 2015 Bed and breakfast: 5 rooms Most Popular Facilities 낍 Top Location: Highly rated by recent guests (8.7) Special breakfast options: Lock in a great price for your upcoming stay Get instant confirmation with FREE cancellation on most rooms! Check-in Date We Price Match When would you like to stay at Hotel Cape Horn? Sorry, we can only search for stays of up to 30 days. You can always contact Customer Service to request a longer stay once you’ve chosen your hotel. Your check-in date is invalid. Your departure date is invalid.

Check-in Date Adults Children The most recent booking for this property was made on Jan 15 at 5:36 PM from Belgium. Max Economy Twin Room Reveal prices Don't Miss This: Hotel Cape Horn was just booked 5 times on our site. Reserve your spot now. 5 Reasons to Choose Hotel Cape Horn Low rates Free! WiFi is available in all areas and is free of charge. Parking Free! Free public parking is available at a location nearby (reservation is not needed). Services All Spaces Non-Smoking (public and private) Non-smoking Rooms What would you like to know? I already have a booking with this property Thank you for your time Your feedback will help us improve this feature for all of our customers Missing some facilities information? Yes / No Brilliant! Den Helder Station 0.5 miles Royal Navymuseum 0.6 miles Den Helder Zuid Station 1.7 miles Lighthouse Den Helder 2 miles VVV Texel 6.5 miles Circuitpark Karting Texel 7 miles National Park Dunes of Texel 8.5 miles Ecomare 8.5 miles Cancellation/ prepayment Cancellation and prepayment policies vary according to room type.

Please enter the dates of your stay and check what conditions apply to your preferred room. Children and Extra Beds Free! All children under 12 years stay free of charge for extra beds. Any additional older children or adults are charged EUR 30 per night for extra beds. The maximum number of extra beds in a room is 1. Any type of extra bed or crib is upon request and needs to be confirmed by management. Additional fees are not calculated automatically in the total cost and will have to be paid for separately during your stay. Pets Cards accepted at this property ATM card Apartment Boven Jan has a location score of 9 Looking for something else? See the 5 best hotels in Den Helder , based on 2,798 verified hotel reviews on Booking.com. The Fine Print Please inform Hotel Cape Horn of your expected arrival time in advance. You can use the Special Requests box when booking, or contact the property directly using the contact details provided in your confirmation. 눱 Read more Booking.com Guest Review Guidelines To keep the rating score and review content relevant for your upcoming trip, we archive reviews older than 24 months. Only a customer who has booked through Booking.com and stayed at the property in question can write a review.

This allows us to verify that our reviews come from real guests like you. Who better to tell others about the free breakfast, friendly staff, or their comfortable room than someone who’s stayed at the property? We want you to share your story, with both the good and the not-so-good. All we ask is that you follow a few simple guidelines. Reviews Vision We believe review contributions and property responses will highlight a wide range of opinions and experiences, which is critical in helping guests make informed decisions about where to stay. Reviews Principles Contributions to Booking.com are a reflection of the dedication of our guests and properties, so we treat them with the utmost respect. Whether negative or positive, we'll post every comment in full and as quickly as possible, provided the guidelines are met. We'll also provide transparency over the status of submitted content. We'll use the same guidelines and standards for all user-generated content, and for the property responses to that content. We'll allow the contributions to speak for themselves, and we won’t be the judge of reality. Booking.com’s role is to be a feedback distributor for both guests and properties. Guidelines and Standards for Reviews These guidelines and standards aim to keep the content on Booking.com relevant and family-friendly, without limiting expression or strong opinions.

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Booking.com does not accept responsibility or liability for any reviews or responses. Booking.com is a distributor (without any obligation to verify) and not a publisher of these comments and responses. Review Score Weekly Ocean News Weekly Ocean News PREVIEW WEEK: 25-29 August 2008 Ocean in the News: Eye on the tropics --- In the North Atlantic basin, Tropical Storm Fay moved to the west-northwest over the Caribbean Sea south of Cuba over last week. Fay made an initial landfall in Florida as it passed over the Florida Keys on Monday afternoon. Early Tuesday morning Fay made a second landfall along the southwest Florida coast to the south of Naples. Traveling to the north-northeast across the Florida Peninsula, Fay moved out over the western North Atlantic, but then made a third landfall along the northeast coast of Florida near Daytona Beach. The storm continued westward across northern Florida and after traveling over the northeastern Gulf of Mexico, made a fourth landfall near Apalachicola. As of Sunday, Faye was traveling to the northwest across southern Alabama.

An image generated from data collected from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) onboard NASA's Aqua satellite shows the clouds surrounding Tropical Storm Fay while it was off the east coast of Florida. [ NASA Earth Observatory ] Additional information and several images on Tropical Storm Fay can be found on the NASA Hurricane Page . In the eastern North Pacific, Tropical Storm Julio, the tenth named tropical cyclone of the 2008 hurricane season in that basin, formed off the west coast of Mexico late Saturday. By Sunday afternoon, this storm was moving to the north-northwest toward the southern tip of Mexico's Baja California. In the western North Pacific, Tropical Storm Nuri brushed the northern coast of Luzon in the Philippines last week. Typhoon Nuri, reached category 2 status on the Saffir-Simpson Scale as it traveled across the South China Sea; note that a typhoon is the western North Pacific's equivalent to a hurricane. By late in the week, Typhoon Nuri made landfall near Hong Kong along the south coast of China. An image from the MODIS instrument on NASA's Terra satellite shows the clouds associated with Typhoon Nuri as it crossed the South China Sea toward southeastern China.

[ NASA Earth Observatory ] Additional images plus a discussion of Nuri are available at the NASA Hurricane Page . Dust affected the seasonal hurricane outlook -- Researchers at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center and George Mason University report that from their analysis of satellite data, they suspect hot, dry and dusty air carried westward across the tropical Atlantic Ocean from dust storms over Africa's Sahara Desert appears to have been a major reason why the 2007 North Atlantic hurricane season was quieter than expected. [ NASA GSFC ] New storm tide stations in Gulf serve as sentinels -- NOAA recently dedicated the first of four new "NOAA Sentinel" water level observing stations in the coastal waters of the Gulf of Mexico offshore of Mississippi and Louisiana that will provide meteorological and water level data. These "hurricane hardened" stations are designed to withstand the winds and waves that would accompany a Category 4 hurricane on the Saffir Simpson Scale.

[ NOAA News ] New marine weather web site unveiled -- NOAA, along with Southeast Coastal Ocean Observing Regional Association, through the University of North Carolina/Wilmington, has unveiled a Southeast Marine Weather Internet portal that has been designed to offer marine weather forecasts as well as real-time coastal wind and water information along the coastal waters of the Carolinas, Georgia, Florida and Alabama. [ NOAA News ] Assessing the health of a marine sanctuary -- NOAA's Office of National Marine Sanctuaries recently released a peer-reviewed condition report on Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary that indicated the marine life and habitats this sanctuary off the Georgia coast to be in fair condition and that it could be facing emerging threats from non-native marine species and human activity. [ NOAA News ] Awards in honor of a NOAA scientist -- Peter Wellenberger, manager of the NOAA Great Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, was recently presented the 2008 Dr. Nancy Foster Habitat Conservation Award. NOAAs Fisheries Service established the Dr. Nancy Foster Award in 1997 to recognize leaders in habitat conservation. During her 23-year career in NOAA, Dr. Foster, was instrumental in protecting, conserving and restoring threatened habitats for living marine resources.

[ NOAA News ] Nine students from across the country have been selected as national recipients of the Dr. Nancy Foster Scholarships as outstanding graduate-level scholars in the fields of marine biology, coastal resource management, and maritime archeology. [ NOAA News ] Isolated national park seen from space -- A high-resolution photograph taken by an astronaut on the International Space Station shows the three islands formed from coral reefs and the surrounding waters that form Dry Tortugas National Park, located approximately 75 miles west of Key West, Florida. [ NASA Earth Observatory ] (Editor's Note: The trip to this fascinating National Park should be considered by any naturalist or historian. EJH) Tracking fish along the "Atlantic Salmon Highway" -- Researchers from NOAA's Northeast Fisheries Science Center have implanted small acoustic tags on 150 Atlantic salmon smolts that are being tracked following release to determine their travels across sections of the North Atlantic. [ Northeast Fisheries Science Center ] Algal bloom in the Barents Sea -- An image obtained recently from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASAs Aqua satellite shows a bloom of phytoplankton, or marine algae, in the coastal waters of the Barents Sea off northeastern Norway.

[ NASA Earth Observatory ] Air quality in coastal cities degraded by ship smoke -- Measurements made by chemists at the University of California, San Diego indicate that dirty smoke produced by ships burning high-sulfur fuel at sea or in port can substantially degrade the air quality in port cities. [ University of California, San Diego ] German research vessel traverses the Northwest Passage -- The German research vessel Polarstern was traveling through the Northwest Passage for the first time on its way to the East Siberian Sea where it will make measurements of the Arctic seafloor near the junction of the Mendeleev Ridge and the East Siberian Shelf as part of the International Polar Year. [ Alfred Wegener Institute ] Century-long drought have happened in eastern North America's past -- Researchers at Ohio State University, at the University of Texas at Arlington and the University of Minnesota have reconstructed a climate record from stalagmites from a cave for the last 7000 years that shows eastern North America was susceptible to extensive drought episodes that persisted for at least one century. The researchers suggest that the seven drought episodes, with a periodicity of approximately 1500 years were the result of reduced solar radiation that cooled the North Atlantic Ocean, resulting in less precipitation.

[ Ohio State University Research News ] Satellite images show breakup of Greenland's largest glaciers -- Researchers at the Byrd Polar Research Center at the Ohio State University who have been monitoring NASA satellite images of Greenland's glaciers on a daily basis report that the Northern Hemisphere's longest floating glacier continues to breakup during the last month. They predict that the glacier should disintegrate in the next year. [ Ohio State University Research News ] An All-Hazards Monitor --This Web portal provides the user information from NOAA on current environmental events that may pose as hazards such as tropical weather, marine weather, tsunamis, rip currents, Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) and coral bleaching. [ NOAAWatch ] Global and US Hazards/Climate Extremes -- A review and analysis of the global impacts of various weather-related events, including drought, floods, and storms during the current month. [ NCDC ] Earthweek -- Diary of the Planet [ earthweek.com ] Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader. Concept of the Week: Touring the DataStreme Ocean website Welcome to DataStreme Ocean! You are embarking on a study of the world ocean and the role of the ocean in the Earth system.

This unique teacher enhancement course focuses on the flow and transformations of energy and water into and out of the ocean, the internal properties and circulation of the ocean, interactions between the ocean and the other components of the Earth system, and the human/societal impacts on and responses to those interactions. Throughout this learning experience, you will be using the DataStreme Ocean website to access and interpret a variety of environmental information, including recent observational data. The objective of this initial Concept of the Week is to explore features of the DS Ocean website. On Monday of each week of the course, we will post the current Weekly Ocean News that includes Ocean in the News (a summary listing of recent events related to the ocean), Concept of the Week (an in-depth analysis of some topic related to the ocean in the Earth system), and Historical Events (a list of past events such as tsunamis or specific advances in the understanding of oceanography). When appropriate, Supplemental Information will be provided on some topic related to the principal theme of the week. You will use the DS Ocean website to access and download the weekly "Current Ocean Studies" (plus supporting images) that complement Investigations found in your Ocean Studies Investigations Manual. These materials should be available Monday morning.

Click the appropriate links to download and print these electronic Current Ocean Studies and answer forms as well as your Chapter Progress and Investigations Response forms. The body of the DS Ocean website provides links to the Earth System, information on Physical & Chemical, Geological, and Biological aspects of the ocean, Atmosphere/Ocean Interaction, the Great Lakes, and extrasa glossary of terms, maps, educational links, and DataStreme Ocean information. Following each section is a link to other sites that examine the various subsystems of the Earth system. Let's take a quick tour to become more familiar with the DS Ocean website. Under Physical & Chemical, click on Sea Surface Temperatures. This image uses a color scale to depict the global pattern of sea surface temperatures (SSTs) (in degrees Celsius) averaged over a recent 7-day period and based on measurements by infrared sensors onboard Earth-orbiting satellites. (Depending on your browser, you may have to place your mouse cursor on the slide bar to the right and scroll down to view the entire image.) Compare SSTs in the Northern Hemisphere with those in the Southern Hemisphere. Return to the DS Ocean website. Under Geological, click on Current Earthquake Activity.

The USGS Current World Seismicity page provides a global map of the locations of seismic (earthquake) events color-coded for the past seven days. The size of the squares represents the magnitude of an earthquake. Note how earthquakes are concentrated along the margin of the Pacific Ocean. Details of recent earthquakes can be found by clicking on their map squares. Return to the DS Ocean website. The ocean is home to a wide variety of habitats and organisms. Under Biological, click on Ocean "Color" (Productivity). This is a satellite-derived (SeaWiFS) color-coded map of biological productivity in the surface waters of the world ocean averaged from the year 1978 to date. Orange and red indicates the highest productivity and dark blue and violet indicate the lowest productivity. Note the vast areas of relatively low productivity over the central regions of the subtropical ocean basins. Individual months within this period may be chosen for viewing. Now return to the DS Ocean website. Under Atmosphere/Ocean Interaction, click on TRMM Tropical Rainfall. The TRMM (Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission) page includes color-coded maps of the Monthly Mean Rainrate (in mm per day) across the tropics for the last 30 days ending on the present date.

Changes in rainfall are linked to large-scale shifts in the atmosphere/ocean circulation in the tropics. Now return to the DS Ocean website. Take a few minutes when you have time to browse the other data and information sources available via the DS Ocean website. You should "bookmark" ("favorites") this page on your computer. Return frequently to learn more about the many resources on the ocean in the Earth system. Bon voyage! Concept of the Week: Questions The latest global sea surface temperature map indicates that SSTs are generally higher over the [(western)(eastern)] tropical Pacific Ocean. The USGS map of Current Earthquake Activity indicates that earthquakes appear to be more common along the [(east)(west)] coast of North America. Historical Events 25 August 1885...A severe hurricane struck South Carolina causing $1.3 million damage at Charleston. (David Ludlum) 25 August 1927...The August Gale, a hurricane, raged across the East Coast, crossing the Cabot Strait between Nova Scotia and Newfoundland during the early morning hours. Hundreds of small boats in Newfoundland ports are among the storm's victims.

(The Weather Doctor) 25 August -7 September 1979...Hurricane David crossed the island of Dominica on the 29th, with winds to 145 mph. Roseau, the capital, was devastated. Fifty-six people were killed on Dominica and 60,000 of the island's 80,000 residents were made homeless. About three-quarters of the coconut and banana crop were destroyed. The central pressure in David fell to 924 mb (27.28 in.) on the 30th as it moved south of Puerto Rico. At that time, highest sustained winds reached 173 mph. On the 31st, winds of 150 mph from Hurricane David brought over $1 billion in damage to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, killing over 1200. (The Weather Doctor) (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar) 26 August 1883...Krakatoa Volcano exploded in the East Indies. The explosion was heard more than 2500 miles away, and every barograph around the world recorded the passage of the air wave, up to seven times.

Giant waves, 125 feet high and traveling 300 mph, devastated everything in their path, hurling ashore coral blocks weighing up to 900 tons, and killing more than 36,000 persons. Volcanic ash was carried around the globe in thirteen days producing blue and green suns in the tropics, and then vivid red sunsets in higher latitudes. The temperature of the Earth was lowered one degree for the next two years, finally recovering to normal by 1888. (David Ludlum) 26 August 1949...A hurricane made landfall at Delray Beach, FL. Winds reached 153 mph at the Jupiter Lighthouse before the anemometer failed. The hurricane caused $45 million damage to crops, and caught the Georgia and South Carolina coast resulting in another $2 million in damage. (David Ludlum) 26 August 1992...Hurricane Andrew made its second landfall along the Louisiana coast near Burns Point, as a category 3 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Scale. Morgan City recorded wind gusts of 108 mph.

Hammond was deluged with nearly a foot of rain. Total additional damage was estimated at $1.8 billion. Andrew, which had made its initial US landfall in South Florida on the 24th, was the most costly natural disaster in US history, with total damage reaching up to $30 billion. Additionally, record hurricane evacuation of 2.4 million people took place in Florida and Louisiana. (Intellicast) (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar) 27 August 1881...As many as 335 people were lost in the Georgia Hurricane, especially severe at Savannah and Charleston, SC. (Intellicast) 27 August 1883...The after effects caused by the Krakatau explosion in Indonesia, including large tsunami waves of up to 300 feet, killed 36,000 people. The tsunami waves were powerful enough to cross the Indian Ocean and travel beyond Cape Horn. The most powerful blast was the most violent known in human history, was loud enough to be heard in Australia, and the shock wave was registered by barometers England. The huge amount of volcanic dust thrust high into the stratosphere eventually traveled around the world.

The dust blocked sunlight causing temperature drops and chaotic weather patterns for several years afterward. (Wikipedia) (Today in Science History) 27 August 1893...The first of three great hurricanes that year struck South Carolina drowning more than 1000 persons in a storm surge at Charleston. Landfall was just south of Savannah, GA where sustained winds hit 120 mph. (David Ludlum) 27 August 1964...Hurricane Cleo battered Miami and the South Florida area, marking the first direct hit for Miami in fourteen years. Sustained winds of 100 mph gusted to 135 mph, and the hurricane caused $125 million in damage. (David Ludlum) 27 August 1995...Remains of Tropical Storm Jerry unloaded 12.32 inches of rain in 24 hours in Greer, SC, a record for 24 hours, for a rain event and for August. At Antreville, 17.00 inches fell in 24 hours, setting a 24-hour rainfall record for the Palmetto State.

(Intellicast) 28 August 1965...CDR Scott Carpenter, USN, and nine aquanauts entered SeaLab II, 205 ft. below Southern California's waters to conduct underwater living and working tests. (Naval Historical Center) 28 August 1988...Tropical Storm Chris spawned a tornado near Manning, SC, which killed one person, and spawned three tornadoes in North Carolina. Chris produced one to two foot tides, and three to six inch rains, over coastal South Carolina. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data) 28-30 August 1839...A hurricane moved from Cape Hatteras, NC to offshore New England. An unusual feature of the hurricane was the snow it helped produce, which whitened the Catskill Mountains of New York State. Considerable snow was also reported at Salem, NY. (The Weather Channel) 28 August 1965...CDR Scott Carpenter, USN, and nine aquanauts entered SeaLab II, 205 ft. below Southern California's waters to conduct underwater living and working tests.

(Naval Historical Center) 28 August 1988...Tropical Storm Chris spawned a tornado near Manning, SC, which killed one person, and spawned three tornadoes in North Carolina. Chris produced one to two foot tides, and three to six inch rains, over coastal South Carolina. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data) 29 August 1583...The Delight was wrecked on Sable Island, Nova Scotia during a heavy gale, blinding rain and thick fog. This was Canada's first recorded marine disaster, taking 85 lives. (The Weather Doctor) 29 August 1979 Winds associated with Hurricane David reached 145 mph as the hurricane crossed the island of Dominica. The capital city, Roseau, was devastated, with 56 fatalities and 60,000 out of a population of 80,000 left homeless. About three-quarters of the coconut and banana crops were destroyed.

(Accord's Weather Guide Calendar) 29 August 1988...The remnants of Tropical Storm Chris drenched eastern Pennsylvania with up to five and a half inches of rain, and produced high winds that gusted to 90 mph, severely damaging a hundred boats in Anne Arundel County, MD. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data) 29 August 2005 Hurricane Katrina, the costliest and one of the five deadliest hurricanes in US history, made landfall along the Louisiana Gulf Coast southeast of New Orleans as a category 3 on the Saffir-Simpson Scale after reaching category 5 status. Massive destruction was reported in coastal Mississippi and in New Orleans. As many as 1833 people reportedly died from Katrina in the US. (National Hurricane Center) 30 August 1913...The US Navy tested the Sperry gyroscopic stabilizer (automatic pilot). (Naval Historical Center) 30 August 1942 A hurricane weakened in moving 160 miles across south Texas from landfall at Matagorda to San Antonio, winds still gusting from 50 to 70 mph at San Antonio for more than five hours.

Seventy of 75 planes were damaged at the city airport. Many trees were destroyed, but the famed Alamo's walls withstood the storm. (Accord's Weather Guide Calendar) 31 August 1842...The U.S. Naval Observatory was authorized by an act of Congress. (Today in Science History) Cape Horn | Solo Around the Americas Under Sail Posted on January 5, 2012 by Matt It’s taken me 208 days and 18,341 miles to get to Cape Horn, but finally I’m here. It’s an honor to be here. I think all blue water sailors dream of rounding the Horn. It’s a special place and it’s a privilege to sail these waters. 208 days is a long time to be cooped up on a 27 foot boat, I can’t even stand up without hitting my head. It’s been a long trip from the top of the planet down to the bottom. Heck, it was a long trip just to get to the place north of Alaska (Point Barrow) where I could finally turn south. I think I had grand tour of the open Pacific.

Originally when I left Annapolis I estimated that I would round the Horn on January 16th so I’m 11 days ahead of schedule. I’m also only 1,000 miles from South Georgia (Island). How tempting is that? In 10 days from now I could be on South Georgia, standing next to Shackletons grave toasting “the boss” with my last glass of whiskey. It’s a nice idea but I’ve come too far to stop now. Now I can start thinking about my ultimate destination, the finish line at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay and my first landfall in Annapolis. My friend Simon Edwards did some reconnaissance work and sent me this on the Dec 30th (revised version). “Seas will be in the 15-20 foot range for the rest of today with a large W swell and rough wind wave chop. They will continue in this range into Sat before diminishing some late in the day. They will build back to 15-20 feet for Sun and up to 18-25 feet Mon (the 1st) with large NW swell and rough wind wave chop.

It looks like a general but gradual decreasing trend in seas Tue. Waves will increase to 15-20 feet Weds and on Thurs waves will be 12-15 feet near Cape Horn, then higher seas developing after the Horn.” I couldn’t have asked for a much nicer day for rounding the Horn. I have 20 knots out of the SW, partly cloudy skies with spots of blue sky and sunshine. There are tons of squally rain showers but that’s not a big deal. What a beautiful day! It has been an on and off gale since the 27th, but considering where I am the weather has been fairly nice. I was actually becalmed for 10 hours on the 2nd/3rd and when the wind came back it was blew out of the east for eight hours (that’s right, east). I am almost out of diesel so it was slow going for a while. The winds turned west again on the 4th and I did 135 miles in 24 hours. I usually don’t push the boat that hard but this is no place to hang out. I need to move like I’ve got a fire under me.

There’s a fine line between pushing the boat hard and pushing the boat too hard. Since I don’t race anyone, most of the time I have the luxury of reefing early and reefing often. Down in the furious fifties it’s prudent that a sailor gets his boat around the Horn and back up north to safe waters ASAP. But you must be careful, down here the wind builds quickly and the gusts are more extreme. Any carelessness is an invitation for a dismasting. It’s rainy, cloudy, windy and cold down here (it was 42 degrees this morning), but after 3,000 miles in the Artic the temperature and moisture is not that bad. I brought in the New Year in a gale. I was in the mood for some excitement so it was entertaining. Sometimes gales are absolutely annoying but other times they can be good fun. I’m talking about a gale not a full ocean storm; a true storm is never fun. Anyway, I was thinking about wave patterns laying in my sleeping bag when a wave hit that filled my cockpit so full of water that water was pouring down from my companionway hatch into my cabin.

I thought it was humorous, as I was just thinking about that right before it happened. I’ve become desensitized. It’s pretty funny to think I’m rounding Cape Horn without a dodger, or any canvas for that matter. My dodger was so badly damaged in the Bering Sea that there is no use trying to fix it. I don’t need a dodger, I have a paintball mask. Between my Paintball mask and my mustang survival suit I look like a heavy weather ninja (Karate chopping waves). I’ve seen quite a few Albatross lately. They will fly threw a gale like its blowing 5kts. To live down here they must be rather indestructible. They remind me of avian jumbo jets. A week ago I had a small seal playing with my boat for hours. I was 400 miles from land and surprised to see him that far out. I must have seen two hundred seals in the Artic, but they never hung out with me before. The little guy must have been as lonely as I am; I’ve never seen a seal so happy and playful. If you get the chance pick up a copy of the January issue of Cruising World magazine.

An article I wrote back by the Bering straits is their featured article. This is the first time anything I’ve written has been published. Most of you already know the story and have seen the pictures, but it’s still interesting. I would like to thank Mark Pillsbury and the cruising world staff for giving me this opportunity. It’s round Cape Horn we all must go, Bring ’em down; Arms all stiff to the ice and snow, Bring ’em down; Oh, rock and roll me over boys, Bring ’em down; And get this damn job over boys, Bring ’em down. (19th Century Sea Shanty) InciWeb the Incident Information System: Cape Horn News Release Location: East end of Bayview, Idaho on Cape Horn Mountain Agency Jurisdiction: Idaho Department of Lands Cooperating Agencies: Kootenai and Bonner County Sheriff’s Departments, U.S. Forest Service- Idaho Panhandle National Forests, Timberlake Fire Protection District Incident Command: Western Montana Type II Interagency Incident Management Team (IMT) CURRENT SIZE: 1202 acres CONTAINMENT: 40 % CAUSE: Under investigation. Any rumors of cause and origin are false and unsubstantiated.

UPDATE: UPDATE: Road blocks will remain in place to the general public and with access to Cape Horn Road being limited to property owners. However, the area is a hazardous environment with many smoldering hot spots, rolling rocks and logs, fire and utility vehicles traveling as well as working directly from the road. We ask that only residents and those with pertinent business enter into the fire area for the next few days for your own safety. TODAY’S ACTIVITIES: Kootenai Electric replaced all the burnt poles and power lines and successfully returned power to the area in a very timely fashion. Residents were allowed to return to their homes today. Idaho Governor Otter visited the fire area and was briefed at the Incident Command Post this morning. Crews continued building containment lines and conducting burn out operations along the fire perimeter. Helicopters supported ground operations by dropping water to strengthen fire lines and cool hotspots. A community meeting was held at 8:00 p.m. at the Bayview Community Center where local fire, law enforcement and IMT members discussed today’s activities, accomplishments, and future plans. The next community meeting will be held at 8:00 p.m. Saturday evening 7/11.

We will continue to update our Inciweb and Facebook pages daily and Information Officers will be posting updates and interfacing with residents throughout the community. RESOURCES ON THE FIRE: nine 20 person crews, eight engines, two air tankers, four helicopters, one fireboat, two sheriff boats, three dozers, two water tenders, Total personnel: 402 SPECIAL CONCERNS: Rolling rocks and falling debris pose a significant risk to residents travelling on Cape Horn Road. Please drive slowly and limit your travel to allow firefighters in the affected area. Steep, rugged terrain, snags, and old mine shafts in the fire area pose safety concerns for firefighters. Unit Information

Question: Travelling directly east from Cape Horn where would your next landfall be?
Answer: Cape Horn