Sailing Across Both Oceans!

"A Modern Saga of the Seas: The Narrative of a 17,000 mile Cruise on a Forty-Foot Sloop by the Author, His Wife, and a Baby, Born on the Voyage," by Erling Tambs.  With a title like that, who could resist beginning to read the next National Geographic Magazine article (December, 1931)?

Mr. Tambs bought Teddy, the retired sailboat of his childhood dreams, in his small hometown of Larvik, Norway.  He worked hard and used his last coin to restore and outfit Teddy.  In August of 1928, he and his new bride set out from Norway's capital city, Oslo, to See the World.  "In the snug shelter of this little cove we passed the last night on native territory, and thence we set out for the freedom and romance of the deep blue sea" (p. 648).

With neither money nor modern navigation equipment, Tambs was not the slightest bit concerned.  "Would I have changed places with a king?  Not I; for I was a King myself.  Mine was the staunchest craft, mine was the pluckiest girl, and mine was the utmost degree of independence that mortal man may attain," (p. 649).

His euphoria soon evaporated as gales lasted for the next 16 days.  Finally, Teddy reached the port of LeHavre, France.  The newlyweds looked forward to a rest.  On shore, a British colonel admired their boat.  He proposed to buy the boat and offered a price three times what the Teddy was worth.  Tambs denied him the prize.

In Vigo, Spain, the two, captain and first mate, took on a new crew member, "a dog of indeterminate ancestry but fine qualities" (photo caption, p. 654).  They named the dog, "Spare Provisions," or "Teddy."

Teddy acquired yet another crew member while the crew laid over for four months in the Canary Islands, east of Africa.  Master Antonio Tambs, the new baby, was born in a friend's house in the town of Las Palmas.  The Teddy left port when the baby was six weeks old.  Tambs commented, "by the time most boys begin to think of going to sea, this young man should be an accomplished mariner" (photo caption, p. 663).  What a handsome lad!

At last, when the Teddy and its sailors were nearing the coast of South America, I found out exactly how experienced was the Captain of this adventure.  "If I was a poor navigator with poor navigation facilities at my disposal, at least I knew something about seamanship.  I had served eight years in square-rigged ships in my younger days.  I knew how to handle my boat, and my faith in her knew no bounds" (pp. 668-669).

The Tambs family arrived at the Panama Canal Zone on November 24, 1928, and stayed there seven weeks.  "We lived on board, where I did my writing, while my wife and baby went promenading beneath the palms.  I had commenced writing a Norwegian book on our travels" (P. 674).

They passed through the Canal uneventfully, partially by being towed, mostly under their own sails.  Then the happy sailors stopped for three months, enjoying the "hospitality of some charming people and being befriended by all" (p. 675).  There is an adorable photo of baby "Tony" "fishing" at sea.  He has on a harness attached by a rope to the boat, lest he fall overboard!

The Island of Tahiti marked the halfway point of their journey.  They stayed there three months, "dreaming away the days under a continually blue sky" (p. 680).  I'm beginning to envy this wandering family of the sea!

The dangers of the open sea were chiefly the unpredictable winds and the heat.  In addition, due to not being able to afford food in abundance, the family's diet was limited.  The boat started filling with water and Tambs ran the pump till it gave out.  When they reached Papetoai Bay, west of Tahiti, "we had at least 5 tons of water inside. . . half hour longer at sea would have finished us" (p. 681).

On January 6, 1931, they arrived at Auckland, New Zealand and received "a heartier welcome than we had anywhere else" (p. 683).  They stayed with his aunt's family on their sheep farm.  On February 3rd, a great earthquake devastated some of the towns.  Tambs' nephew died and the farm suffered heavy damage.  The Tambs had planned to leave soon but stayed to help with the aftermath of the earthquake.  "Shocks and tremors were experienced every day, but they were not so violent as the first one, and gradually one became accustomed to them" (p. 687).

While Mrs. Tambs and Tony stayed with his aunt, Tambs picked up a crew and entered Teddy in a sailboat race between Auckland and Sydney, Australia.  Three weeks later, Tambs writes, "I have returned to Auckland with my boat.  Teddy, now more than forty years old, has won the Trans-Tasman Cup, the trophy in the first proper ocean race of such length in the Southern Hemisphere!  But she deserves it.  She is a beauty in spite of her years. Good old Teddy! (p. 688).  His writing style is so interesting and exciting - I hope to see more articles by Erling Tambs in the pages of the National Geographic Magazine!