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Old 01-11-2014, 07:59   #1
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Circumnavigation Route through the Red Sea

Hi,
I would like to ask is it safe to travel trough the Red Sea right now? I am planning my circumnavigation trip for 2015 and I would like to know if this route should be avoided or it can be traveled. AFAIK the issues with Somali pirates started in 2008 have been fixed now...

TIA
Nulik
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Old 01-11-2014, 08:12   #2
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Re: Circumnavigation Route through the Red Sea

I don't think that's an answer that can be provided for you on an internet forum. Each person will have to make that decision for themselves. But, you might want to look here:

NSC | Daily Piracy Update

Quote:
Piracy Threat

The threat of piracy against merchant shipping continues to be present throughout the entire High Risk Area (HRA). Successful disruptions by naval forces over the past months, in conjunction with masters’ adherence and implementation of BMP4, have significantly reduced the pirates’ ability to capture vessels.

The SW monsoon has ended and the transition period established. These weather conditions provide more favourable opportunities for small boat to operate in the Somali Basin and the western GoA.
or here:

Piracy Map - Live

or:

Piracy Map Search
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Old 01-11-2014, 08:29   #3
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Re: Circumnavigation Route through the Red Sea

"Safe" is very relative. Your choices are around South Africa which I heard is a spectacular place to visit or through the Suez, or trucking the boat overland to avoid Red Sea and the pirates. The link below might give some more info. I would guess your odds of being kidnapped by Somali pirates is very very low but that is only a guess.
Somali Piracy Update: January 2013 — Noonsite
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Old 01-11-2014, 11:38   #4
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Re: Circumnavigation Route through the Red Sea

Its safe for ships because they all have armed guards aboard.

You won't.
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Old 01-11-2014, 13:08   #5
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Re: Circumnavigation Route through the Red Sea

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Originally Posted by Waterrat10 View Post
Your choices are around South Africa which I heard is a spectacular place to visit or through the Suez, or trucking the boat overland to avoid Red Sea and the pirates.
thanks!
I thought about trucking the boat overland , and I thought it was crazy, but now that you are mentioning it, I think it could be real.
I checked the piracy map, and this is what I think is possible:
- You can sail safely half Red Sea until you reach Mecca.
- At Mecca, you send the boat overland through the whole Saudi Arabia to Dammam , that would be around 1,000 km.
- From Dammam through persian golf you continue to indian ocean.

Now, the question is, is it possible to send a 8 meters wide catamaran overland in Saudi Arabia???

Or maybe In Sudan I could put the boat on a cargo ship and send it to Mumbai or some other safe place in Asia. But the ship must have armed security team on board.

Or maybe you can hire security team to sail on another boat next to you ? I don't know.
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Old 01-11-2014, 14:14   #6
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Re: Circumnavigation Route through the Red Sea

No you cant truck it. Neither can you go to Jedda or Mecca unless you are Muslim.
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Old 01-11-2014, 22:15   #7
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Re: Circumnavigation Route through the Red Sea

No problem going to Jeddah. Only Mecca is haram


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Old 02-11-2014, 02:11   #8
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Re: Circumnavigation Route through the Red Sea

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No problem going to Jeddah. Only Mecca is haram

Private vessles can NOT enter Jeddah.

Quote:

Yachts are allowed to enter these ports, which are the main ports of Saudi Arabia, only in an emergency.

Mira' al Jeddah * , Yanbu'al Bahr (Yenbo or Yambo) *

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Old 02-11-2014, 08:10   #9
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Re: Circumnavigation Route through the Red Sea

In 2008, they try to hunt me two times. Actually first time was on 2007-10, arround N12 34' nd E049 42' on the way of eastbound after Aden Port. And the last one was on the date of 2008-04 in the Bab El Mandeb on the way of westbound. I live in Antalya/Turkey and I check Navtex Security messages, I dont see piricy warnings messages via navtex for a long time. I think, north Red Sea is safe for sail up to Eritrea. Southern then this point is still question mark in my mind! But ofcourse, there are some possiblities to sail Indian Ocean if you are looking for adventure.
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Old 02-11-2014, 08:46   #10
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Re: Circumnavigation Route through the Red Sea

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No you cant truck it. Neither can you go to Jedda or Mecca unless you are Muslim.

An Alternative to GOA and the Red Sea: Desert Sailing — Noonsite

These folks trucked it. Granted they were not a huge catamaran. A Catamaran would probably need to be sent on ship or some other method. It all comes down to the risks you are willing to take. I would guess your odds of pirate attack are far below your risk of getting into a automobile accident. Think too hard about the what if's and we never leave the dock.
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Old 02-11-2014, 10:21   #11
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Re: Circumnavigation Route through the Red Sea

Am I reading this right? It sounds like you're trying to do your circumnavigation backwards. You go up the red sea in a circumnavigation, not down it.
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Old 02-11-2014, 10:30   #12
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Re: Circumnavigation Route through the Red Sea

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Am I reading this right? It sounds like you're trying to do your circumnavigation backwards. You go up the red sea in a circumnavigation, not down it.
My boat went down it..... under previous owners. They spent spent 4 months in the Red Sea - diving.

Rally sailors go westabout... real sailors go eastabout....
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Old 02-11-2014, 11:30   #13
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Re: Circumnavigation Route through the Red Sea

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Originally Posted by Waterrat10 View Post
An Alternative to GOA and the Red Sea: Desert Sailing — Noonsite

These folks trucked it. Granted they were not a huge catamaran. A Catamaran would probably need to be sent on ship or some other method. It all comes down to the risks you are willing to take. I would guess your odds of pirate attack are far below your risk of getting into a automobile accident. Think too hard about the what if's and we never leave the dock.
Thats an interesting read.
Via Jordan. Good detail in the article for those that want to try it.

At the price and hassle I wonder what the cost of armed guards would be?

Oh, by the way, for people going down the red sea as opposed to up, buying semi auto shot guns in Turkey is/was easy. When I as there in 2010 all you had o do was present your passport. Then you need to chuck them overboard before Asia as they are not regustered in your home country.

Other thing of interest is from Salalah, Oman eastwards theres been little pirate activity, so guards from Egypt to Oman would be cheaper than right across the Indian Ocean.
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Old 02-11-2014, 14:03   #14
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Re: Circumnavigation Route through the Red Sea

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Originally Posted by nulik View Post
Hi,
I would like to ask is it safe to travel trough the Red Sea right now? I am planning my circumnavigation trip for 2015 and I would like to know if this route should be avoided or it can be traveled. AFAIK the issues with Somali pirates started in 2008 have been fixed now...

TIA
Nulik
If you go through the red sea you will miss some of the greatest places and experiences of a circumnavigation. The Maldives, Chagos, Madagascar, and South Africa. Madagascar turned out to be one of our favorite places. Check out our Web site: handleysail.com. Especially year 5 for the Indian ocean.
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Old 02-11-2014, 14:12   #15
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Re: Circumnavigation Route through the Red Sea

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My boat went down it..... under previous owners. They spent spent 4 months in the Red Sea - diving.

Rally sailors go westabout... real sailors go eastabout....
haha! Nice. There's a reason 99.9% of cruising boats go west.

I have a great respect for your high latitude sailing and hope to join you some day... after my westabout circumnav!

As far as I'm concerned, a "real sailor" works with the planet's prevailing winds and currents unless they have something to prove or are on a shortish delivery. That means westabout in the low latitudes or eastabout in the high latitudes.

If the OP was looking to beat upwind against the trades for a few years or to run downwind in the Southern Ocean, he probably wouldn't have decided to use a cat (actually, maybe for the latter trip, I'm not sure).

Nulik, what is your proposed route and why? Have you researched the "cocunut milk run" route yet? There's a reason everybody does almost the same route! The only real variance is whether to go red sea or south africa. Most are choosing south africa these days due to the very, very high consequences of a pirate attack.
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