One of the great surprises in the new book is that they set off from Falmouth astonishingly unprepared. Dougal was an experienced sailor and Anne had learned the basics, but the children had no experience whatsoever. 'I still can't believe that!' cries Douglas. 'Why didn't we learn to sail in those quiet waters at Falmouth? We went straight into a force 10 gale and it was horrific. I had no idea what to do.' We have a 30-day return policy, which means you have 30 days after receiving your item to request a return. Day 29 – This was the day that Dougal caught a five-foot Mako shark, hauled it on board and cut its head off. The severed head closed its mouth on Douglas’s hand and drew blood. He kept the teeth. Progress eastwards was improving.

The Last Voyage of the Lucette’ by Douglas Robertson (2005) – available via our online shop. The Bartlett Blog Ednamair towing the raft stern first. Illustration from ‘Survive the Savage Sea’ by Dougal Robertson. On 15 June 1972, Lucette was holed by a pod of orcas and sank approximately 200 miles west of the Galapagos Islands. The group of six people on board escaped to an inflatable life raft and a solid-hull dinghy with little in the way of tools or provisions. [3] Aleph racing to the fore on light and shifty day They say in yacht racing that when conditions are light, flukey and difficult to predict, it is all about keeping a cool head and avoiding the big results. Day 35 – Huge deluge of rain. Filled the containers, tins and plastic bag with water. Enemas for everyone for digestive reasons. Found five holes in the flotation collar.After setting sail from Falmouth, the Robertsons spent the first 18 months sailing across the Atlantic and stopping at various Caribbean ports. Anne decided to retire from the voyage in the Bahamas and the family welcomed Robin Williams, a 22-year-old Welsh graduate in economics and statistics, to join them on their onward voyage to New Zealand, via the Panama Canal and the Galapagos Islands. For the next five and a half weeks they would fight for their lives, working constantly to keep their raft afloat, catching rain water, fishing, bailing and eking out their meager provisions. Holes started appearing in the raft, and on the 17th day, the floor gave way, forcing them all to take to the open dinghy. Day 36 – The seas were rough and squally. Clothes were tattered and threadbare, but Lyn washed and mended them. The twins were very thin, Neil was emaciated, and Sandy had a cough, possibly pneumonia. If he did not improve, they would have to start rowing with or without reserves of water.

MLA style: "The Last Voyage of the Lucette.." The Free Library. 2005 Midwest Book Review 25 Nov. 2023 https://www.thefreelibrary.com/The+Last+Voyage+of+the+Lucette.-a0144438111 Drying Fish. Illustration from ‘The Last Voyage of the Lucette’ by Douglas Robertson. The Rescue – Day 38

Robertson, Douglas (2005), The Last Voyage of the Lucette, Woodbridge, Suffolk: Seafarer Books, ISBN 1-57409-206-5 Daddy's a sailor, why don't we sail around the world?' On board their 43-foot schooner Lucette, the Robertson family set sail from the south of England in January 1971 - and in June 1972 Lucette was holed by killer whales and sank in the Pacific Ocean. Four adults and two children survived the next 38 days adrift, first in a rubber life raft and then crammed into a 9-foot fibreglass dinghy, before being rescued by a passing Japanese fishing vessel. This is the story of how they survived, but it also tells of the 18-month voyage of the Lucette, across the Atlantic, around the Caribbean, through the panama Canal and out into the Pacific. José Salvador Alvarenga, who spent 438 days drifting in a small open top boat from Mexico to the Marshall Islands.

APA style: The Last Voyage of the Lucette.. (n.d.) >The Free Library. (2014). Retrieved Nov 25 2023 from https://www.thefreelibrary.com/The+Last+Voyage+of+the+Lucette.-a0144438111My mother's fault I'm afraid," says Douglas. "She'd argue about not having electricity at the farm and not having proper running water or shoes for the kids, and Dad didn't need that." The Robertson Family onboard Lucette in Falmouth before departure. Photograph from ‘The Last Voyage of the Lucette’ by Douglas Robertson. One of the daughters, Ann, 18, left the expedition in the Caribbean. In Panama, they took on a young hitchhiker named Robin Williams. The Bartlett Blog is written and produced by the volunteers who staff The Bartlett Maritime Research Centre and Library of National Maritime Museum Cornwall. The 50th Anniversary of the Robertson Family Rescue was written by Lynne Vosper. Other artifacts on display include a pressure cooker weight from Lyn’s sewing box that was used as a fishing weight. Some of the teeth from the 5-foot Mako shark were kept as a trophy. Turtle Oil, saved by the Robertsons’ from their ordeal, was an extremely valued resource made by melting turtle fat in the sun. The oil was used to rub onto saltwater boils, drunk as a warming tonic, mixed with fish and turtle meat to make a stew, and used as an enema. The Enema Tube was cut from the boarding ladder of the life raft and was a good way of rehydrating the family using the dirty water from the bottom of the boat. Ednamair and the Robertsons