The sailing vessel Berserk II, tragically lost with three crew members last year, carried the phrase BORN FREE on its mainsail. Scrawled in black spray paint, Jarle Andhøy piloted her from the Caribbean to the North West Passage, and onto Antarctica. The entire journey was fraught with bureaucratic setbacks – They’ve been after Andhøy from Canada to Norway to New Zealand. And for what? Being possessed with a restless spirit? The tragedy of the Berserk last year should never be forgotten. But I truly believe Andhøy should not suppress his energy for the sake of loss. On the contrary, he should live thrice as hard to compensate.
The Canadians are happy to have ice breakers tanking oil through their waters. They’re also happy to exploit the Arctic for money, greedily waiting for the pole to warm enough for their waters to become popular trade routes. The tentacles of government and their ‘Polar Institutes’ are also happy to pollute Antarctica with rubbish and research stations. The Australians and New Zealanders are happy to have Chinese fishermen take rare tuna and sell them to the Japanese. These same nations are equally happy to let the Japanese slaughter whales in enormous factory ships, thrashing through our last truly pristine waters.
However, they’re not happy to have Andhøy below 60 degrees south.
Yet he’s off, aboard what people are naming Berserk III, purchased in New Zealand. From what I can gather, the actual name of the vessel is SV Nilaya, and a quick bit of research pulls up a 54ft steel pilot house ketch, currently for sale within NZ waters. I’m no detective, but I’d say with a fair amount of confidence that Andhøy has purchased Nilaya, and is currently barrelling into the southern ocean, reported to have left on the 19th of January. SV Nilaya is the perfect boat for this voyage, and I hope my connections are correct. At a decent clip, Andhøy would be at the very least 500nm-800nm away by now, far beyond the reaches of anyone. The New Zealanders can search for him with their planes and navy ships, but no one is under any jurisdiction to do anything about it. He’s beyond 12nm ocean border of New Zealand territory, and he’s even outside of the Economic Exclusion Zone. I dare say Andhøy is even prepared to be iced-in this winter, as it’s very late in the season…
Rubbish tip at McMurdo, Antarctica.
Berserk III?
Fair winds Andhøy, and fuck the governmental bullshit spouting from the mouths of the politically correct, conservative and freedom-fucking powers at be. Your institutions have created more havoc on this earth than our restless spirits. My only hope for Andhøy and his pal Samuel Massie: To sink with courage if nature so chooses.
No EPIRB. No rescue.
Adventure and freedom.
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