Man Washes up in Marshall Islands 'After 16 Months Adrift'

[lancelot9898]

I'm waiting to see a picture of this guy. Not one of Tom Hanks in Castaway.

[simmo]

Spindly raw bird.

Stormy petrel on a stick? Ganet ripple.?

[shorebird]

Originally Posted by dannc

I read a book about a family that were sailing in the Pacific off the cost of South America when a whale hit and sunk their boat. I forgot how many months they were at sea in a life raft but it was a good long while. They survived by catching turtles, fish and birds. I just Googled to see if I could find their book but find a surprising number of hits regarding boats being sunk by whales. The book I remember was from the 1970's.

Water was a big problem and they survived by drinking turtle blood and sucking moisture out of fish back bones and eyes.

A couple whose boat was sunk by a whale survived on turtles and fish. The husband saw a turtle, reached over the side and lifted into the boat.

Probably "Survive the Savage Sea" already mentioned in this thread, and "117 days Adrift" by the Bailys. Both boats were sunk by whales, and both families survived for extended periods, mostly on turtle, but neither were even close to such an extended period as this recent case. I also am skeptical of such a claim, but often the claim is skewed by the media, not the claimant.

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by shorebird

Probably "Survive the Savage Sea" already mentioned in this thread, and "117 days Adrift" by the Bailys. Both boats were sunk by whales, and both families survived for extended periods, mostly on turtle, but neither were even close to such an extended period as this recent case. I also am skeptical of such a claim, but often the claim is skewed by the media, not the claimant.

I seem to recall a mention of bringing in an interpreter. If there's no one local that speaks decent Spanish it would be easy to mistranslate what the guy is saying. For example, six months seis meses. Sixteen months, dieciseis meses.

[SaltyMonkey]

he claimed he left in september 2012.

if he was mistaken or mis-translated as Sept 2013, again doubling the distance:

(6952 * 2) / 132 days = 105 nm per day = 4.32 nm per hour

that doesn't sound reasonable to me.

[markpierce]

Originally Posted by SaltyMonkey

I did a rough calculation of nautical miles distance vs when he said he left in mid sept 2012

I estimated he must have been traveling at 10 nmh.

I will recalculate. You can too

At 10 nmh he would have traveled 115,000 nm in 16 months.

[SaltyMonkey]

Originally Posted by markpierce

At 10 nmh he would have traveled 115,000 nm in 16 months.

Read on, before you comment. explained my miscalc

[Celestialsailor]

Originally Posted by boatman61

It'll boost the hopes of the Nina families... a strong spirit..

This is exactly why I was getting all over the pessimists about giving up. You never know. It's always good to hold out hope for the odds that happen like this

Originally Posted by captain58sailin

It might have rained a bit now and then.

In the South Pacific more than now and again.

Originally Posted by jtsailjt

I've never tried it myself and hope no to, but from reading the many published stories of survival at sea, they all seem to agree that gathering enough rainwater to drink is extremely problematic. The problem is that you have relatively brief periods of downpours where you can't begin to catch and then store (in what?) large enough amounts to last until the next rainstorm. The Robertsons barely survived 166 days in these same latitudes and they had a hand held watermaker onboard. For someone to go 3 times that without a watermaker or even a solar still just seems beyond possibility to me.

It's an open boat...It is the collector. In a suvival situation, you're not going to care too much how clean the water is.

[CPseudonym]

Originally Posted by SaltyMonkey

picture here:

Man lost on the Pacific for '16 months' reaches shore on remote Ebon Atoll - Americas - World - The Independent

His name is Tom

or maybe redford

Funniest post in a while. Funnier still is folks thinking it really was.

Good one SaltyMonkey

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by skipmac

mistranslate what the guy is saying. For example, six months seis meses. Sixteen months, dieciseis meses.

Whats six weeks? And 16 weeks?

[Coops]

But if you did not know who Tom Hanks is, you could believe that picture was really of the sailor involved. I see Justin Bieber's name on here, usually in a derogatory way, but, to be really honest, if he sat next to me I would not know that it was him as I have no idea what he looks like, or dozens of other so called celebrities. That either makes me lucky or very easy to fool.

Coops.

[CPseudonym]

That's why it's always a good idea to read the article, or at least the caption below the photo that states clearly Tom Hanks.

[Coops]

There is that argument.

Coops.

[bobconnie]

Gee guy's, A bunch of Marines spent weeks on French Frigate Sholes during the second world war,eating turtles, and drinking rain water, after the first battle of the pacific war! The one I knew said he gained weight!!

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by MarkJ

Whats six weeks? And 16 weeks?

Weeks is Semana's....