In the summer of 2010 Skipper, Boerge Ousland chose to sail a relatively modest yacht, a Corsair 31 trimaran to explore the North Pole, a feat made possible by global warming and the melting of the Arctic ice cap. The lightness and the maneuverability of this multihull craft enabled the sailors to thread their way between the icebergs, to sail where other heavier and more keeled yachts (Corsair 31 has a draught of only 40 cm) couldn't go, and to draw the boat on to the ground when the need arose.
The trimaran was delivered to Ousland in August 2009. Since then, the Norwegian explorer made endless tests in the Arctic water close or not so close to his home in preparation for the voyage.
This article was first published on October 15, 2010 by Sail-World Cruising roundup. We wanted to remind people how capable and rugged the Corsair trimarans are. And they just keep getting better. This passage was remarkable!
The 'Northern Passage' left the western Norwegian port of Bergen at the end of June and was expected to arrive back there Thursday after first sailing the northern passage off Russia and then the northwestern passage off Canada.
Before 2010, the trip would have been impossible to complete so quickly due to the polar ice. Following in the wake of the Russian ship 'Peter I,' which sailed a similar route at almost the same time, the Norwegian trimaran is the second vessel to ever complete the mythical voyage in the space of a single Arctic summer.
The crew comprises two permanent Norwegian members, explorer Boerge Ousland and navigator Thorleif Thorleifsson, and a rotation of one other Norwegian, two Frenchmen, one Russian and one from Dubai.
“I am at the entrance to Dease Strait, and last night I tied up to a large piece of ice using rope and an ice axe. I managed to get a good five hours of sleep.”
— Graeme Kendall, September 1, 2010
The following was originally published on November 5, 2010, by SAIL.
Challenges like this were par for the course during Graeme Kendall’s recent transit of the Northwest Passage. On September 9, 2010, the Kiwi sailor became the first person to sail solo and nonstop through the passage, doing it in record time, even compared to crewed boats.
The Northwest Passage is usually only navigable in September, and until recently, few boats even tried completing it. Kendall first attempted the passage in 2005 but had to turn back after encountering thick pack ice. Since then the combination of improved satellite technology and warmer temperatures has made the journey more plausible. Just this summer, a Russian team circumnavigated the North Pole in the 60-foot monohull Peter I, as did two Norwegians on the Corsair 31UC trimaran Northern Passage. Kendall, in his 41-foot steel cutter, Astral Express, remains the only sailor to complete the passage single-handed.
Q&A
SAIL: How does it feel to be the only sailor to complete the Northwest Passage solo, nonstop and in record timing?
GK: After not being able to complete it in 2005, I feel elated and relieved, especially after returning unscathed.
