Nilaya / Berserk Missing

[Landkrabbe]

Yeah, it's not that hard to get permission to go to Antarctica really - you just have to show that you won't pollute the place more than necessary and if something happens you've paid somebody to collect your corpses and clean up the oil, sewage and fiberglass you left down there. I would have supported Andhøy's Viking journey to Valhalla if he didn't do it in a nature reserve and under Norwegian flag. If it's true that he's on a Russian-flagged vessel now, I guess he's Russia's problem.
How would you rape and pillage penguins anyway?

[hogfighter]

By it's very nature, a sailboat with a small crew cannot possibly produce much of an environmental impact. If he's adventurous enough or (dumb enough, depending on your opinion...both are correct) to go to the most desolate and unforgiving place on earth, without equipment that ensures his safety, then godspeed.

[callmecrazy]

I agree he should have just gotten permission, it wouldn't have been that diffiucult... But the premise that he's an ecological danger to the Continent, and that those treaty rules are somehow sacred, is a bit off-centered.

That treaty allows massive factory ships to fish antarctic waters. You think they're just emitting carbon gas? Whale and seal harvesting? Yeah.

They allow 'Adventurers' of all types, filmakers and media, and tourists, travel to the Antarctic every year. Anyone one of them can cause just as much environmental damage as Jarle is capable (or more). And if you think McMurdo and all the other base stations and research centers there are simply emitting greenhouse gasses, think again.

Here's an article
And another one (with pics)

And a photo of the dump (a few years old)

[Last_Mutineer]

Originally Posted by Landkrabbe

Yeah, it's not that hard to get permission to go to Antarctica really - you just have to show that you won't pollute the place more than necessary and if something happens you've paid somebody to collect your corpses and clean up the oil, sewage and fiberglass you left down there.

Originally Posted by callmecrazy

I agree he should have just gotten permission, it wouldn't have been that diffiucult...

He can't afford the insurance. It's that simple. Without the insurance, no permission.

[minaret]

In case anyone is unfamiliar-

Explanation trip Berserk in the Antarctic (Best of E.O.F.T. Nr 1 ) [Movie 1 of 2] - YouTube

Berserk in the Antarctic (Best of E.O.F.T. Nr 1 ) [Movie 2 out of 2] - YouTube

Wild Vikings Berserk - YouTube

So sad to see now that most of them are dead. As the saying goes though, it is better to die living than to live dying.

[Sand crab]

I can't see the point of going there in the first place. There is no there there. No plant life, no port, sketchy harbors, those howling winds and storms off the continent or the sea, all rocky beaches, ice bergs, etc. You got some penguins and seals, sea lions and walruses. That's about it. It's an awful long way to go for not much at the end IMHO. And I like cold weather but damn. I'd rather take my chances around Somalia.

[callmecrazy]

Originally Posted by Last_Mutineer

He can't afford the insurance. It's that simple. Without the insurance, no permission.

What makes you think that? The just bought a quarter-million dollar yacht. Money isn't an issue here.

[minaret]

Originally Posted by callmecrazy

What makes you think that? The just bought a quarter-million dollar yacht. Money isn't an issue here.

Based on the history here, I seriously doubt Andhoy would ever buy a "quarter million dollar yacht", even if he could afford it. I'm guessing it was less than 100k. And I'm also guessing that insurance for sailing in Antarctica costs a fortune, literally. You can't even get insurance for the Carribean in hurricane season, Antarctica any time of year must be almost impossible to get insurance for. If the insurance law requires the insurers to clean up any environmental impact, which seems to be the point, think what they are putting themselves on the line for. Doing anything down there costs big bucks.
All of you who have not read "Berserk in the Antarctic" should give it a whirl, it's quite a read. Very inspiring. I don't know how they made it.

[Last_Mutineer]

Originally Posted by callmecrazy

What makes you think that? The just bought a quarter-million dollar yacht. Money isn't an issue here.

Because that's what they actually say.

Andhøy apparently said so to Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten in December, and at the recent press conference, former Berserk crew member and current spokesperson, Rune "Supern" Olsgaard said:

"We haven't been able to get insurance and you need that for these kinds of expeditions. You need Big Money backing you to make it." Source.

I know the new boat was expensive. Clearly, they have a sponsor, but my guess is that the sponsor (whoever it is) isn't giving them enough both for a boat and insurance. It's that or they're lying. And why on earth would they do that?

[Last_Mutineer]

Originally Posted by minaret

So sad to see now that most of them are dead.

These videos are actually all from the first expeditions he made, in a 27 foot Albin Vega, and none of the people you see here (except for Andhøy) were on the 40+ foot steel Berserk that went down.

Andhøy is now 34 years old. He undertook his first expedition when he was 18, I think, in an Albin Vega. This is the trip described in the first video. On his way back, the boat sank. There were no books or TV series made from this trip.

The second expedition was in another Vega and all the footage in the second and third videos is from a TV series that was made from the crew's own recordings. This expedition went north to the arctic ice.

For the third expedition (and the second TV series) Andhøy bought a used Russian custom built steel boat in the Caribbean. He brought a whole new crew and proceeded to successfully navigate the north west passage.

Fourth expedition: same boat, new crew again, except for one person. This is the expedition you all know about.

So. That's a quick rundown for those not familliar.

[perchance]

Originally Posted by Ocean Girl

Yep, let the guy sail,if he goes without the proper equip( which is in many ways subjective), if a friend decides to go with him, if he takes a stupid route, or to a dangerous place, so be it.

Frankly I am a little confused about the attitude of stopping him( no offense to the poster who wants him stopped, truly ) thought it was a free world as far as the ocean was concerned.

If he broke laws and needs to address some custom red tape, then let him take the penalty now or when he gets home.

Either way, let the guy sail.
Erika

I wouldn't be too quick to hang the label of "heroic adventurer" on this guy or his crew. Some of his crew were denied entry into Canada because of past criminal convictions. He and his crew were deported from the Arctic for entering illegally but somehow managed to re enter the country and get their ship out of Canadian waters. This guy is a scofflaw and technically a criminal. His videos display irresponsible behavior when interacting with the native animals. One member almost getting his head bitten off by an Elephant seal, an encounter with an angry Walrus and interaction with a Polar Bear does not srike me as being prudent behavior. If this guy happens to get himself and his crew in trouble during his latest so called adventure, I for one would have no sympathy for him nor would I lift a finger to help rescue him.
There IS a cure for stupidity; Death.

[TeddyDiver]

Originally Posted by perchance

There IS a cure for stupidity; Death.

True.. some people just run for Darwin awards.. let them do that

[Last_Mutineer]

Originally Posted by perchance

If this guy happens to get himself and his crew in trouble during his latest so called adventure, I for one would have no sympathy for him nor would I lift a finger to help rescue him.
There IS a cure for stupidity; Death.

So in other words, let them sail? Because that's all they want. They don't want you to rescue them.

Originally Posted by perchance

Some of his crew were denied entry into Canada because of past criminal convictions.

No, one crew member was denied entry because he is a member of the Hell's Angels motorcycle club, not because of any criminal record. (This is him.)

Then another crew member was deported because the Canadian authorities assumed he was Hell's Angels too. He isn't. (This is him.)

[perchance]

Not what I read on the Canadian Parliamentary website. By all means let them sail but please do not trample on the laws or regulations of the countries they plan on visiting whether they agree with them or not.
I say again; these people are scofflaws and should pay the penalty if they are caught.

[Last_Mutineer]

No that would be surprising, the Canadian authorities agreeing with the Berserkers' version of events.