To the Ice and Beyond - Graeme Kendall completes Sailing's Everest

by Sail-World on 10 Oct 2016 When Graeme Kendall pulled into Auckland Harbour accompanied by terns, petrels and a pod of dolphins it seemed nature was giving him a pat on the back for his epic solo-circumnavigation of the world, a journey that saw him cast anchor in the history books.

Sailing from Auckland to Auckland, covering 28,000 miles and 32 oceans and seaways; Kendall was the first person to sail the Northwest Passage solo non-stop; a feat considered the ‘Everest of sailing’.

An audacious exploit by any standards, the fact Kendall achieved this in his sixties with a cocktail of
chutzpah, scrupulous planning and a well-tended boyhood dream is enough to seize the collective imagination and rattle us out of our armchairs.

One of the world’s best adventure stories - the inspiring true tale of the first person to sail the Northwest Passage solo non-stop, a feat considered the ‘Everest of sailing’.

“Eighteen thousand miles I had sailed to get here, solo in my yacht, since setting out from Auckland, New Zealand, almost on the opposite point of the globe. Now before me lay one of the greatest enigmas of sea exploration - the Northwest Passage, filled with mystery and adventure, and probably more stories of loss and failure than triumph...This was a personal thing. A challenge, a dream, an adventure. This was what the trip was all about, and here I was at the entrance,” says Kiwi yachtsman Graeme Kendall in his soon-to-be-published book, To The Ice and Beyond, which traces this epic adventure.

“This is a book to be savoured, to be read time and again.” - America’s Cup Hall of Famer, Dr Tom Schnackenberg OBE.
To the Ice and Beyond, is a two-fisted, highly-readable account, edited by Geoff Walker, of Kendall’s 193-day trip on board his purpose built yacht Astral Express, navigating some of the earth’s most terrifying seas; and an inspirational and invaluable toolkit for world adventure.

The Northwest Passage is defined as the route from the Atlantic to the Pacific through the Arctic Archipelago of northern Canada and along the northern coast of Alaska - a route that has claimed the lives of hundreds who sailed before.
Advances in satellite technology helped make Kendall’s dream a possibility, but as he came to discover, the data was not 100% accurate. The danger was constant and real, necessitating constant vigilance and sleep deprivation. Imagine the force of thousands of tonnes of ice against the hull of a boat, or getting iced in for a winter, not to mention polar bears attracted to the smell of your cooking.

Kendall’s sense of trepidation is keenly felt at times; in one chapter he tells us of taking shelter at little Diomede Island under an amphitheatre of birds, tens of thousands of them, circling and attacking one another with their talons, an overwhelming concert of noise with nature at its very essence and dead birds floating around his boat.

A wonderful education in what it takes to be a truly successful sailor and how to achieve a goal with passion and perseverance, To the Ice and Beyond is an absorbing read buoyed by Kendall’s infectious spirit of adventure and shrewd approach to life. In turns philosophical, instructional and inspirational, this book is a fantastic read for dreamers and doers alike.

To the Ice and Beyond (rrp. $45, Mary Egan Publishing) is available in all good bookshops and online at www.iceandbeyond.com

Graeme Kendall MNZM is a highly experienced sailor in many different parts of the world, including ocean racing. Born in Christchurch, he has sailed since he was a teenager and as an adult he has owned several cruising, racing and classic heritage yachts including Galatea and Pastime. In 1986 he sailed in the Whitbread Round the World Race with Digby Taylor aboard NZI Enterprise. The following year, Graeme and his friend Stan Pearson sailed his yacht Astral Rose in the inaugural
two-handed Melbourne-to-Osaka race. He has been self-employed since the age of 25, with a business career focused on farming and residential property. Graeme currently lives in Auckland where he is a charter yacht skipper. His boyhood dream has always been to sail through the Northwest Passage.