Blog Archives - Page 6 of 48 - Laura Dekker World Sailing Foundation

12th November 2011

Rules on open sea, sailboats go first..

7-11-2011 Finally a whole night of sleep! There was a nice southerly wind that pulled Guppy along at 6,5 knots. Even though the wind now weakened […]

11th November 2011

Flying and exploding peperpots

6-11-2011 My prediction that the wind would drop to almost nothing happened. And by midnight it was completely gone. I went to get a good rest […]

11th November 2011

Another sailboat in sight!!

5-11-2011 ARGH! The wind really doesn’t know what it wants and keeps changing back and forth, either blowing strongly or not at all. So I had […]

11th November 2011

Wet clothes & Weavels in the pasta..

4-11-2011 Still no wind, sigh… Well, at least the weather is fine. I awoke early this morning to get to work. When I was about to […]

10th November 2011

A Tiring endevour

1-11-2011 Sailing was great today with good crosswinds at times changing to headwinds but I am happy that we are on course. Guppy flew like a […]

10th November 2011

Rain & shifty winds

2-11-2011 My good northern wind has now left me… Rain and shifting winds took its place and kept me busy all morning adjusting course and the […]

10th November 2011

Headwinds again

3-11-2011 After another day fighting with the sails and keeping course I was hoping for a good night sleep, but in the middle of it the […]

9th November 2011

The storm is not loosing her grip on Guppy yet

29-10-2011 Just when I was hoping for the wind to weaken a little, Guppy got even more to play with… Clipped with a short safety tether […]

9th November 2011

Sighted first ship in three weeks!

30-10-2011 The wind has finally weakened! It is even blowing form a better direction and pulling Guppy up to a nice speed so she is not […]

9th November 2011

Time for a big clean up

31-10-2011 After the heavy weather Mother Nature threw at me for several days, it now looks like she feels that she has to make amends… So […]

8th November 2011

Stormy weather

27-10-2011 Another beautiful sunny day. I am sailing on a close tack to a 25 knots wind and heading straight into fast coming towering waves which […]

8th November 2011

Maybe I’m a little crazy, but I’m just loving it!

28/10/2011 The Rollercoaster is in full swing now… but happily we did not do any loop-the-loops so far and I am feeling pretty good actually. Althought […]

7th November 2011

Back to squalls, rain & changing winds

25-10-2011 Very early this morning as it was still dark rainfalls, shifting winds and squalls with strong gusts took me out of my sleep and kept […]

7th November 2011

Charged batteries, thank you sunshine!

26-10-2011 We are sailing close to the wind now and just off course to the south of our rhumb line, but I am happy that there […]

6th November 2011

Steady winds! Yay

24-10-2011 The sky is a bit cloudier today, but instead of sunlight I now have some wind! Our speed is back to 4 to 4,5 knots, […]

6th November 2011

Got a little more wind

23-10-2011 I catched on some sleep last night as the light wind that is still blowing was just enough to keep the boat on course, so […]

5th November 2011

Stitching & fighting Sails

22-10-2011 Our speed has dropped to 1-2 knots.. which is not really something to write home about. But I do, because not much else is happening […]

5th November 2011

Maintenance day

21-10-2011 We are still making progress under light wind. After a promising start this morning the sun sadly faded again. In this hazy sunlight and in […]

4th November 2011

All is well onboard

20-10-2011 It is another sunny day today and there is still a nice wind blowing. Everything on Guppy finally has the chance to dry and the […]

4th November 2011

Fresh Bread & Sunshine :D

19-10-2011 Finally a bright and sunny day! That is good to me and for the batteries.. Along with a great wind and nice waves it all […]

3rd November 2011

Another gray, rainy day in GuppyLand

18-10-2011 It is another grayish gray rainy day in Guppyland. But there is a good wind so we are going great under sails. Last night the […]

3rd November 2011

Started playing a recorder

17-10-2011 How is it possible to be for three weeks at sea and not get good winds for two days in a row .. The weather […]

2nd November 2011

Loosing sense of time

15-10-2011 The wind faded away to normal and we are sailing into another gray and rainy day.. I feel very tired since I did not have […]

2nd November 2011

A little sun

16-10-2011 Nice change; I awoke to the sun shining today. All morning It warmed Guppy and me which gave us a chance to dry up a […]

1st November 2011

Got knocked down!

14-10-2011 Yesterday evening and night felt like I was taking a rollercoaster ride. The waves reached up to more than six meters [20 feet].. really awesome […]

31st October 2011

The wind became a little too enthusiastic

13-10-2011 The wind has become a little too enthusiastic.. She is getting strong and the seas are getting pretty rough.. Different from what things were in […]

30th October 2011

Building seas

12/10/2011 No bird droppings or squalls today but a strong breeze. That’s exactly what we are going for! The sky is still heavily clouded but the […]

29th October 2011

Wind! It’s a miracle, so happy!

11-10-2011 Wind finally! A nice wind that takes Guppy flying forward, so for the first time since our departure from Darwin we are making good progress. […]

28th October 2011

Being swallowed by clouds

10-10-2011 Finally I have some wind, but it is so dark and gray outside that it looks like Guppy will be swallowed by the clouds at […]

27th October 2011

Still no wind..

9-10-2011 Well, I am still waiting for some wind.. Last night I sailed with the engine on for a slow going 3 knots. So I could […]

26th October 2011

Ants!

8-10-2011 Of course I am without wind again, but at least the sun showed up.. But wait.. maybe I should keep quiet because over the horizon […]

25th October 2011

Back to bobbing around and drizzle

7-10-2011 Well okay, I spoke too soon… Since last night the wind is back to ‘normal’ which means calm winds, headwinds and shifting winds.. For the […]

24th October 2011

starting the blog again – A good night sleep does wonders

6-10-2011 Yes!Finally I have wind and it is even blowing from the right direction. With decreased swell but increased wind and in the company of a […]

22nd October 2011

Congratulations to the Dutch Solar Team

The news has also reached me by now.. And I want to congratulate the Dutch Nuon Solar team with the Nuna 6 which I met in […]

20th October 2011

Conny van Rietschoten nomination

It’s a pity that I can’t write everything because there are people who can figure out where I am by looking at the weatherconditions I have.. […]

12th October 2011

All is well onboard

everything good with me… Laura

9th October 2011

Storing my blog

It is OK with Gup and me. From now on I regularly will let you know how it is going. So I wrote already, my blogs […]

6th October 2011

Danger of tracking

Because the danger of tracing me by information of my blogs , from now my actual blogs will appear some time later. Sorry, but this is […]

5th October 2011

Am I in a wash-machine?!

It seems that the wind was waiting for me to fall asleep… ‘Yep, she’s almost asleep, in just a moment…’ And then the wind fades and […]

4th October 2011

Squalls, wind, no wind – no sleep..

Flap clang, flap clang… Huh? I jumped out of bed, the boat was upright in the water, bobbing wildly up and down the steep waves. The […]

3rd October 2011

Fleet of shabby fishing boats..

When I woke up the sun was already shining brightly in the sky. I didn’t have much chance to sleep last night as I went by […]

2nd October 2011

Hungry again :D

I really hope that the wind keeps on blowing constantly and that it will shift to a better direction sometime because we are still sailing on […]

1st October 2011

Yay found wind! :D

Finally I have WIND – Hurrah! For sure it could be coming from a better direction but at least we have wind and Guppy is going […]

30th September 2011

Well, there was some wind for the night at least..

The wind kept blowing all night, and for a moment it looked like it wanted to shift to a better direction. I was hopeful that ‘Gup’ […]

29th September 2011

Ships & Oil rigs

Beep – Beep – Beep… My alarm system keeps waking me up all the time usually because of nearby ships, but not this time. I went […]

28th September 2011

Another hot day..

I stretch myself in the cockpit having been chased out by the sun-heated air inside the cabin. I still have no wind and the small engine […]

27th September 2011

The sea is like a mirror

Well finally the wind has completely left me.. so I started the small engine and for the first time since we left Darwin, Guppy’s nose is […]

26th September 2011

There we go, 6000nm of ocean in front of us

After a good night sleep I set sail at dawn and watched Darwin slowly vanish in my wake until there was nothing but water left to […]

23rd September 2011

All alone again

To start with I want to thank each and everyone of you who wished me a happy birthday on the telephone, or by SMS and e-mails […]

21st September 2011

A new year of my life with new adventures

After eating so many cakes and donuts yesterday I had to spend today resting my bellie and just recovering. It is not everyday that I have […]

20th September 2011

16th Birthday! :)

18th September 2011

When buses don’t drive…or you miss them.

After having solved all the known maintenance problems, I went looking for the still undiscovered ones and found that one of the backstays was a little […]

16th September 2011

Finding Volvo filters..

I was in a good mood when I started replacing both my engines oil filters while my father was trying to solve a problem with the […]

14th September 2011

Dutch Solar Car

Today I was invited to take a look at the Netherlands’ solar powered car that will compete in the famous 3000 kilometres [1865 land miles] World […]

13th September 2011

Alternative way of hauling out Guppy

It is 4 AM when the alarm clock resonates in my ears and it is cold 18° C [64,4° F]! outside. We hoist anchor and I […]

11th September 2011

The Season is changing

Gradually the cruisers are departing from Fannie Bay. Henk and Sogno d’Oro have set sail two days ago for Cocos Keeling Islands or Christmas Island. Myself […]

10th September 2011

Spring clean ( or something like it)

After I did my presentation at the Darwin Yacht Club I had a big surprise when the Carbon Club announced that it will sponsor the repair […]

9th September 2011

Presentation at the Darwin Sailing Club

Yesterday evening I did a presentation here at the Darwin Sailing Club. First I gave it to a group of children, and then I did it […]

8th September 2011

Dad Arrived

It has already been two weeks or so since I am in Darwin, and my father has just arrived here to join me… I could not […]

5th September 2011

Few Photo’s of the last weeks

4th September 2011

More boatwork – Rudder Shaft getting more stuck

I have been very busy for the past days …and it looks like it will be like this for some time.I have problems with the rudder […]

3rd September 2011

Little Laura in Australia 16 years ago

31st August 2011

Giving Guppy some much needed tlc

The days just fly by and I haven’t had time to be bored, not even for one second. There is plenty of work to do on […]

29th August 2011

My laser sunk..

There were pretty strong winds blowing as the regatta took place and right from the start I already had trouble keeping the boat upright. Even though […]

28th August 2011

Laser Regatta

Now that I am well rested, I could go over all I wanted to do yesterday and it went a whole lot better. In no time […]

26th August 2011

Photo’s Vanuatu – Darwin

The Genua with a little whole A few seconds later the little hole has become huge! Passing the last Islands in the Torres Strait Bird presents… […]

25th August 2011

Arrived in Darwin and still didn’t get to sleep!

I haven’t had a chance to go to sleep yet and I feel like a whole lifetime of experiences has passed me by since I arrived […]

24th August 2011

The Gulf Van Diemen

Unfortunately, I did not not sleep much last night… The wind had increased to almost 30 knots So I had to take down the mizzen sail […]

23rd August 2011

Still not a lot of sleep

Bam, splash, congratulations..!I know you can turn my life onboard upside down, but could you calm down a little? WHAM!… No go! The waves have grown […]

22nd August 2011

Chased by fishing boat?!!

Sitting in the cockpit near the entrance to the cabin I was monitoring the fishing ship that had been sailing for half a day 2 nautical […]

21st August 2011

So much to do!

Even after a good sleep last night I still feel tired but surely better. There is still heavy ship traffic around and six monsters have already […]

20th August 2011

The Genua is lost..

Guppy and I rushed through Torres Strait at 7,5 knots! There were reefs everywhere but I could hardly see anything because it was getting dark. But […]

19th August 2011

Surrounded by ships & reefs

I am really surrounded by reefs, most of which I can’t see… Guppy is now sailing very close to the wind and there are buckets of […]

18th August 2011

Almost in the Torres Strait

The wind is back and Guppy is galloping over the sea at a good 7 knots. There are only 50 nautical miles to go to the […]

17th August 2011

Why isn’t it getting light?!

After a very quiet night daylight did not show up for work this morning… That is because of pitch-black clouds hanging over Guppy. The mega-squall I […]

16th August 2011

Building waves

Today the waves are higher and they are still coming from two different directions! Guppy is like a rocking horse gone wild and I, well I’m […]

15th August 2011

Bird presents

Waves are still coming across from the side but Guppy just merrily cuts straight through them at 7 knots [13 kilometres or 8 land miles an […]

14th August 2011

Neptune took my book!

Strong winds still blowing at an angle from side astern and I am still not sure if I should pole the Genoa out on the windward […]

13th August 2011

Wind & squalls!

Finally after five days of bobbing, the wind is back! Yesterday evening the threatening squalls that I could see all day on the western horizon, suddenly […]

12th August 2011

Sometimes it’s all about: Patience

Bobbing and flapping… 2 knots, 2,5 knots and back to 2 knots speed… There is still no wind but the sky has turned a bit cloudier […]

11th August 2011

Getting closer to the Torres Strait

Wind is getting a little better. Last night I had to run the engine for a few hours but during the day we ran under sail […]

10th August 2011

Fighting with sails & other boat dramas

Still only little or no wind… Today I ran a lot to wrestle with the sails, put the pole on the Genoa rolling it in and […]

9th August 2011

Not a lot of wind..

There is very little wind. I am trying to sail a bit further with every puff there is but the speed does not get over 3,5 […]

8th August 2011

Clearing out, duty free – it’s not so simple..

At opening time this morning I was already standing in front of the Customs Office door and after running from one place to another I was […]

7th August 2011

Cleaning the underwater hull

On our last leg Guppy became slower due to marine growth on her hull below the waterline so I dived into the water to give Gup’s […]

6th August 2011

Preparations for the next voyage

During my time here in Vanuatu I have met many local people including a nice family who has been living here for many years. They asked […]

5th August 2011

Trying to find internet

The wind was whistling in the rigging when I awoke and it was cold – just 22° C [71,6° F]. Here at anchorage the yachts are […]

3rd August 2011

12 string guitar

Back at the beach party I saw a really beautiful music instrument, it is like a twelve strings guitar… A boy was playing it and I […]

1st August 2011

Clearing in always an adventure

Today started with a bright sunshine. I give a call to the customs office on vhf early in the morning and since I had catched lots […]

1st August 2011

photo’s Fiji – Vanuatu trip

31st July 2011

Arrived in Vanuatu

After my night at sea sailing through squalls and thunderstorms I thought that I would have a very good sleep the following night when I took […]

30th July 2011

Squalls, lightning blegh!

Unlike yesterday, I did not sleep much last night. We were hit by heavy squalls with some thunderstorms that made for a mega-spectacular show. At one […]

29th July 2011