How to Avoid Somali Pirates ?

[Wombat]

The concept of an predominately unarmed convoy is flawed. These pirates are the same people that took on the US Rangers and such in "BlackHawk Down". You think that a group of cruisers that may have a few guns will scare them. A convoy just makes a bigger target traveling at the speed of the slowest boat.

Having spent a year and a half in Viet Nam getting shot at by guys with AK47's (and I was in an armed helicopter), I would not even consider a shoot out with even a couple of armed pirates while I am in a very slow plastic boat!

The trip to Cape Town is not that bad and the destination is fantastic. You came out to sail, so sail.

[zeehag]

i still cant figure out why old fashioned avoidance is ignored....

[Astrid]

i still cant figure out why old fashioned avoidance is ignored....

Exactly. To me, there is not that much worth seeing in that part of the world--at least not worth the risk of entering waters frequented by Somali Pirates. Besides, I have already been through there once. I would much prefer to head south to Cape Town and go that route.

[tamif27]

I'd like to say 'thanks' to the fellas who had experience to share.

Also, it sounds like Alaska is a lot like Louisiana, hee hee

FWIW, my Mama had this to say: "Don't go where you're not wanted."

[AiniA]

When we were starting our circumnavigation one of the questions we had was which way into the Atlantic. I could make a very solid case for both routes, mainly based on the sailing to be done and the quality of the places to be visited. Now that we are actually doing it, there is not question at all - you go around South Africa. If you go to the site for the naval forces there, they say flat-out that you should not go the Red Sea route. The International Sailing Federation say the same thing. The use of motherships by the pirates has meant attacks huge distances from the Horn of Africa. It is just a reality of life as is the fact that virtually no sailing boats are going that way - long distance cruisers are not fools and survive by managing risk. Saying that I am going to take my personal armoury and fight my way through the pirates is the kind of thing that people sitting at home far from the Arabian Gulf say come up with.

[terminalcitygrl]

FWIW:

Out of sight, Somali piracy fight gets rougher - Yahoo! News

[evm1024]

Crossing the Indian Ocean is fine if you have the right boat....

[geckosenator]

Get a submarine.

[stevensuf]

no one has mentioned bad weather, do the opposite of normal wait for poor weather, those skiffs will be useless in big rollers, maybe diving gear, imagine if you had the time,set off epirb take diving gear head under till the cavalry arrives

[Astrid]

Assuming the cavalry arrives at all.

[Don Lucas]

good ideas, but not many on this forum are going to be able to do them