November 9, 2024

This Week in Amateur Radio

North America's Premiere Amateur Radio News Magazine

Solo voyager Horie, 83, passes Hawaii 3 weeks into Pacific trip

Octogenarian Kenichi Horie, who aims to become the oldest solo voyager to cross the Pacific, passed Hawaii on April 17, a week ahead of schedule and apparently in good shape and spirit.

When support staff went out in waters off Honolulu to take images of Horie, 83, they called out “Take care!” He replied, “Thank you!” and he waved to them. The veteran adventurer looked as usual, according to the staff.

Horie set out from San Francisco on March 26 local time on the Suntory Mermaid III, a new yacht measuring 19 feet (about 5.8 meters) from bow to stern.

The vessel was the same size as the one on which he pulled off his first solo voyage across the Pacific–from Nishinomiya Port in Hyogo Prefecture to San Francisco–60 years ago.

The yachtsman from Ashiya, Hyogo Prefecture, dictates descriptions of his voyage to his staff via a satellite phone, who then publish the travel logs on his website.

According to the logs, after leaving San Francisco, he was soon hit by a storm.

Read more – Asahi Shimbun: