VOYAGE OF ADVENTURE.

Shannon News, 29 May 1923, Page 4

VOYAGE OF ADVENTURE.

AMARYIiLIS REACHES SUEZ. PERILOUS RED SEA PASSAGE. FIRED AT BY NUBIAN. Having safely negotiated what undoubtedly was the most trying section of the voyage, the 29_ton yawl-rigged cruising yacht Amaryllis, which left Auckland about a year ago, for England, has arrived “all well” at Suez. An Auckland resident has received from Lieut. G. H. P. Muhlhuser, R.N.R., owner and master of the yacht, a let_ ter, dated Suez, March 26th: — “We left Aden on February 11, and took a fair wind to Perim. It then came ahead, eausing a nasty sea. Oft Jebel Ten the wind was fair for eight hours, and then fell calm. We had to beat all the way up from there, and twice were close reefed. The Red Sea is very awkward for sailing ships, as in the northern half the wind is always north, and m the southern half it is usually south. When we were there the wind was north right down to Perim, however, and often strong. As a result we had to beat practically the whole way, against a steep sea. Progress was very slow and we had to put into Port Sudan for stores. DIFFICULT NAVIGATION. “Navigation, for a sailing craft, is very awkward, the reefs running out far from the land, in some places to the extent of 30 miles. Cross currents afe often experienced, and observations of the sun arc useless, owing to abnormal refraction. Star sights are rather more reliable, but are very hard to get from a small yacht, tumbling about in a heavy sea. However, on the whole we were lucky, and made the Sanganeb light off Port Sudan, in exactly the right position. We received a very kind welcome, equal to any we received in other ports we touched at. I do not say that as a comparison to New Zealand, for I look upon that as my second home, and do not contrast it with other places. ‘‘From Port Sudan we toiled up to Shadwan, against a head wind. Just north of Shadwan the wind piped up to a strong blow, and, very luckily, as it turned o.ut, I decided to seek shelter. The entrance to the Gulf of Suez is full of reefs, but there are anchorages, and we picked our way in, with Tadgell, my Melbourne friend, aloft, looking out for submerged . dangers. We anchored under the lee of Towila Island, in five fathoms. Then we housed the topmast, as strong norther, lies are the rule in the Gulf. That night the wind increased, and at midnight the Amaryllis started dragging her anchor, although wo had 30 fathoms of cable out. We veered to 60 fathoms and got me second anchor ready; the extra amount of cable held her, however. Two days later, when the wind had moderated, we proceeded to Umm El Kyaman, keeping in the channels inside the reef for the sake of smooth water. SLAVE DHOW OR SMUGGLER. “Soon after bringing up a black appeared on the beach and blew whistles, which I disregarded. Presently a bullet sang overhead, and we heard the crack of a rifle. The boat was hoisted out and I went ashore, feeling pretty angry. The Nubian, who was wearing a khaki overcoat, seemed to be fairly overwhelmed by my rather forcible remarks, although, as it turned out, neither could speak a language which the other understood. Still, he knew I was pretty cross, and then he made it clear, by gestures, that he was on the look-out for smugglers and slave dhows, and that, as I did not heed his whistle, ne had to do something more, as a zealous servant of the Government. In the end we parted on almost friendly terms. His final remark was', ‘Go with Allah,’ or words to that effect, and I replied ‘Cheerio.’ Thus the incident closed. He will have to account for that carti’idge, but I have done what I could for him. A NIGHT OF ANXIETY.

“Next day we took a strong southerly—most unusual —right up the gulf, and by midnight had dropped Zafarana light out of sight astern. The wind blew north-west at 1 a.m., and then came in heavy gusts from all directions. At one moment we were sailing, the next we were all aback, and then full again before we could do anything. By 2 a.m. we had no idea where the ship was, as we had been sailing in all directions for an hour. As the channel is only nine miles wide and there are no lights, the chances of going ashore at any time wei'e great. So I decided to go back and sight Zafarana light and set a course which I hoped would be safe. If we did not hit anything in the first half hour I knew we should be all right. At 3 a.m. we saw the loom of the light and then we came round once more for Suez, which we reached at 7 a.m. It is fine to think that the Red Sea is now behind us, for it is a part of the trip which I considered critical."