A Sea Vagabond's World

<P>"I would like now to write a practical book that will cover three topics: boats the sea and the beachcombing life." These were the thought of Bernard Moitessier after he finished writing his last book Tamata and the Alliance while in Polynesia.<BR /><BR />The great master died in 1994 and never completed the book but here it is meticulously collected from his many writings published and unpublished by his companion Véronique Lerebours Pigeonnière. Moitessier's notebooks include all the know-how and the 1001 tips of this legendary sailor the knowledge he acquired on the water in meeting with sailors during long passages and during his many years living on various islands. The first part of the book details how to prepare for an extensive cruise what kind of boat to choose the rigging the sails the anchors on deck and below deck. The second part describes the passage: the weather navigation watch-keeping and heavy weather. In the third part Moitessier takes us to the South Sea islands and shows how to adapt to living on an atoll gardening fishing and attaining self-sufficiency.</P>