Sailing to the Reefs

Sailing to the Reefs

• Used Book in Good Condition

<span><span>Perhaps the title of this book, Bernard Moitessier's first, should have been "Sailing on the Reefs'--for that is exactly what he did, almost unbelievably, twice. After finding his beloved </span><span style="font-style:italic;">Marie-Thérèse</span><span>, a beautiful junk in the Gulf of Siam, he set off across the Indian Ocean for Africa and eventually the Caribbean. Eighty days or so into the trip, Moitessier and </span><span style="font-style:italic;">Marie-</span><span style="font-style:italic;">Thérèse </span><span>found themselves on the reef at Diego Garcia.</span></span><br /><br /><span><span>It took Moitessier just nine months to build </span><span style="font-style:italic;">Marie-Thérèse II </span><span>from scratch in Mauritius with no boat plans or power tools. From her launch he sailed her down to South Africa. His observations during a stay of almost two years are as interesting as the people he met and the innovative boat improvements he came up with. Unfortunately, he and </span><span style="font-style:italic;">Marie-Thérèse II </span><span>managed to end up on the rocks near St. Vincent in the Caribbean.</span></span><br /><br /><span><span>In between these two heartbreaking disasters is a tale of courage, resourcefulness, and creativity. It is told with refreshing honesty, in which Moitessier, still really an apprentice sailor, admits his blunders. And it is told with marvelous humor.</span></span>