Are Indian Ocean and Red Sea Safe?

[dniello]

Hoping to get some recent firsthand thoughts here, but has anyone sailed up through the Red Sea recently. Wondering if it is safe right now, considering you hear about pirate attcks almost daily. Any thoughts??? Cause its either that or around Africa.

[Laidback]

The Gulf of Aden and the 1st hundred miles of the southern end of the Red Sea is regarded as unsafe. The northern part and the Gulf of Aqaba no special reports regarding safety.
Guidelines for those determined to sail in unsafe waters is to be found in this official document:-

[maxingout]

I sailed up the Red Sea without a problem, but that was in 2005. It has great diving, windsurfing, kite boarding, and very remote cruising along the west coast of the Red Sea. We did Oman, Yemen, Eritrea, Sudan, and Egypt. It was one of the high points on our circumnavigation. When I lived in Saudi Arabia, there was occasionally a yacht that called into the Port of Jeddah on the eastern Red Sea. One yacht was featured with articles in the newspaper, and they had a good experience. Another yachtie that I met was not allowed to get off his yacht without hiring an agent for several thousand dollars. By and large, the eastern side of the Red Sea is fraught with potential problems and expense unless you have an Arabian sponsor. I lived in Arabia for sixteen years, and feel comfortable in that section of the world.

I don't know if I would sail in the Gulf of Aden and up the Red Sea at the present time. Things are out of control, and nobody seems committed to solving the problem of piracy.

If you would like to see some video footage of traveling in the Gulf of Aden and up the Red Sea, check out this link:

The Red Sea Chronicles - A First Class Sailing Adventure.* Captain Dave.

There are five short videos that show what it's like to make the trip.

[hummingway]

Your son does nice work Dave.

[maxingout]

Originally Posted by hummingway

Your son does nice work Dave.

Thanks for the positive comment.

David graduated from college with a major in media and a minor in music. Breaking into the media and music world is a major challenge, and I thought a video project would be a good calling card for him to use in getting a job. I purchased a couple of professional video cameras for him to use and turned the project over to him. I figured if he came up with something good, he could get a job with National Geographics or the Discovery Channel, or something like that. Since he does the shooting, editing, production, animations, writes the music, performs the music, and creates the voiceovers, I thought it would be an excellent project to get him started in the world of media.

He did a good job, especially considering that he had rookies for talent. It was an uphill project all the way. We are happy with the result. Although he's not rich or famous, he has a skill set that is marketable in the media world. I don't have any financial interest in the music or DVDs that he creates. Right now he just finished mixing an album for his band (Too Many Drummers), which he is sending off to get mastered this week by a professional.

I think I would characterize his career as being in the "sailing to windward" phase. I will be interested to see his next destination.

[James S]

Dniello.
I can't advise as to how safe it is...but If you do go, I live in Yemen and often travel to Aden on business and may be able to meet up and help out for some shore transport if the timing is right.
Good luck.

[SaucySailoress]

Originally Posted by Laidback

The Gulf of Aden and the 1st hundred miles of the southern end of the Red Sea is regarded as unsafe. The northern part and the Gulf of Aqaba no special reports regarding safety.
Guidelines for those determined to sail in unsafe waters is to be found in this official document:-

This is a great article, thanks.

[MarkJ]

We did Indian Ocean from Thailand to Oman and Oman through the Gulf of Aden to, and up the Red Sea in Feburary 2010.

I feel the whole area Northern Indina Ocean, Arabian Sea and Gulf of Aden are totally and utterly UNsafe.

Unless you are really aware of the risks and have your boat very well defended (not necessarily by guns) and sailing within a convoy then you should UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES contemplate transiting the Gulf of Aden, Arabian Sea or northern Indian Ocean.

There were many more pirate attacks that we heard on the VHF than are ever reported on the Live Piracy Map and we were involved as witness to one attack on a container ship wich also was not reported.





Mark

[MichaelC]

Great clips on the site!! Thanks for this.