Expedition recreates 'Bounty' survival-at-sea saga

strollingbones

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Sep 19, 2008
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NUKU'ALOFA, Tonga - Four adventurers set sail in an open boat from Tonga in a bid to re-enact the epic 4,400-mile (7040 kilometer) survival voyage of Captain William Bligh of HMS Bounty fame when he was cast adrift by mutineers in 1789.

Bligh, widely acknowledged as an expert seaman, sailed a 45-foot (14 meter) open longboat with 18 crew from near Tonga to West Timor in 48 days, surviving partly by catching fish and seabirds and drinking rain water.

The feat — achieved without charts or compass — has been portrayed in novels, poems and in several "Mutiny on the Bounty" films starring Hollywood luminaries such as Clark Gable and Marlon Brando.

The new expedition is sailing in a 25-foot (7-meter) open deck boat, the Talisker Bounty, which sports two small sails. The team expects to take seven weeks to cover the distance.

Led by Australian Don McIntyre, the expedition includes experienced Antarctic sailor David Bryce from Australia, Hong Kong businessman David Wilkinson and 18-year-old Briton Christopher Wilde.

"It is going to be really an adventure," McIntyre told reporters as they set sail late Monday for open sea near Tonga's Ha'apai group of islands. "Our boat is half the size of Bligh's boat, so the challenge is trying to survive on board. Our biggest fear is capsizing."

On April 28, the crew expects to be at the location of the mutiny to mark its 221st anniversary before striking out on their journey across the South Pacific to Timor.

The boat will head west to Fiji, Vanuatu, and then to Restoration Island, before sailing north inside Australia's Great Barrier Reef to Thursday Island and through the Torres Strait to West Timor.

McIntyre said the group is trying to get close to what Bligh encountered by taking with them only what he had on board in 1789.

This included 150 pounds (67 kilograms) of ship biscuits, 16 pounds (7 kilograms) of pork, six quarts of rum, six bottles of wine and 28 gallons (106 liters) of water. Like Bligh, the crew has no modern navigational equipment such as charts, compass or lights.

Expedition recreates 'Bounty' survival-at-sea saga - World news- msnbc.com

bligh's survival on this boat is considered one of the great naval feats blah blah blah...it will be interesting to see how this goes....

bty....i consider it to be one of the greatest naval feats....
 
If the man had been less of a jerkass, it wouldn't have been necessary.

IIRC Bligh was given another chance later on. He screwed the pooch big time then as well.

Even remarkable than the Bligh story was the battle of Minden, where a regiment mutinied against the col. and defeated the french cavalry charge contrary to orders.

The col involved was court martialed and deemed unfit for military service in any capacity. George III made him minister of state for the American colonies. Which revolted too.
 

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