Day 26. News from the South Atlantic
Fedor Konyukhov welcomes the final day of 2024 in a good spirit. From December 26th to December 29th, he had to fight a headwind, and after shifting southward, he had to wait another day until the wave also changed direction to a downwind. As a result, slight progress on the course and constant rocking of the boat, but by New Year’s Eve, the weather had stabilized. Currently, there is a stable south-westerly wind of 15-20-25 knots, and the “AKROS” boat is back on track.
The results of the transition in 2024. The weather window was chosen correctly. More than 2,600 km (in a straight line) have been covered. All difficult and potentially dangerous geographical points on the route in the South Atlantic have been successfully passed: Isla de los Estados, the Falkland Islands, Burdwood Bank, and South Georgia Island. Most importantly, Fedor has acclimatized and settled into the routine.
In January, the team’s attention will be focused on a psychologically significant point – the Prime Meridian (Greenwich Meridian), dividing the hemispheres into the Western and Eastern (native) hemispheres.
Currently, there are 35 degrees left to the Prime Meridian (in a straight line). Assuming an average of 40 nautical miles per 1 degree at the latitude where the “AKROS” rowing boat is located, it’s approximately 1,400 nautical miles or 2,550 kilometers – about the same distance Fedor has already covered since the start on December 5th.
It would be great to see the “AKROS” boat in the Eastern Hemisphere by the end of January 2025.
Text messages from Fedor: “Loneliness in the ocean is felt more on days like these, when you reflect on the past year and mentally go over your whole life. When I was young, I never thought I would be greeting 2025 in the South Atlantic aboard a rowing boat.”
“Today, I caught my first squid – the first catch in 26 days! Either I didn’t have time before, or the weather wouldn’t allow it, but on the night of December 30th to 31st, I made a catch with a fluorescent lure (it glows in the dark). So now I have a festive meal too, as I’m quite tired of freeze-dried food.”
“The ocean behaves differently every day, but there is so little sun here. It feels like it doesn’t exist at all. Sometimes at dawn I see a narrow strip on the horizon and then a thick blanket of clouds covers me for the rest of the day. Fortunately, the solar panels are charging even in these conditions. There’s enough energy for all the devices and onboard systems so far. The water desalination system has the highest energy consumption, but I only use it every 3-4 days. I expect that the farther north I go, the better my chances of seeing the sun. I’ve set a waypoint at 45°00′ south latitude and 15°00′ west longitude.
See you in 2025!”
AKROS position 48’23 south and 35’04 west
The route map here.