Moitessier Bernard - A sea vagabonds world: boats and sails, distant shores, islands and lagoons

PHOTO CREDITS

Erwin Christian: page

Bernard Moitessier: pages

William Rodarmor: pages

ARTWORK CREDITS

Bernard Moitessier provided all the artwork, except for the following:

Ilana Draghici: page

Goudis: pages .

Jeremiah B. Lighter: pages

Also published by Sheridan House

Tamata and the Alliance

by Bernard Moitessier

Translated by William Rodarmor

"The picaresque life of a seagoing vagabond, a fascinating tale told with remarkable insouciance by the wanderer himself....Risk-taker, romantic, holistic environmental philosopher (his "alliance" with nature), biodynamic horticulturalist, husband and father and national hero, and a fine writer to boota character who brought brio and dash to all he undertook." Kirkus Reviews

"To 20th-century ocean sailors, Bernard Moitessier was what Kit Carson had been to the 19th-century Western pioneers; yet so far as I know Carson wrote no books, and Moitessier wrote beautifully." Tristan Jones in Encounters of a Wayward Sailor

"Bernard Moitessier was one of the great free spirits of sailing, a man who preached and practiced a simpler way of life free of the complications of civilization. His book is a delight, but be warnedyou may find normal life difficult to follow after you have read it." Robin Knox-Johnston, author of A World of My Own and Sea, Ice and Rock

"When the call to lone adventuring sounds clear, a Bernard Moitessier appears. Nothing stops him. He sweeps toward his fate, carrying our hearts with him. This call illuminates Bernard's last book. It is a final testament, the tale of a free soul adrift in a crippled world, looking for harbors, finding few, a mystical Pied Piper whose home became the sea." Hal Holbrook, actor, sailor and author of Mark Twain Tonight

America's Favorite Sailing Books

www.sheridanhouse.com

Also published by Sheridan House

Advice to the Sealorn by Herb Payson

"Starting each chapter with a basic question, Payson draws on his decades of nautical experience to cover a sweeping range of sail and powerboating topics. In the process, he offers sage advice to beginning boaters and old salts alike." Soundings

Castaway in Paradise by James C. Simmons

"This book will attract armchair travelers and anyone with a history addiction. But its real appeal is much deeper and much more universal. It re-ignites everyone's daydream of being a castaway in paradise." The Philadelphia Inquirer

The Incredible Voyage by Tristan Jones

"This gripping sea yam is at once a riveting adventure story and a testament to human tenacity. In a salty, slashing style, [Jones] unfolds his extraordinary saga, revealing both a rich sense of history and an insuppressible Welsh wit." Sailing

The Long Way by Bernard Moitessier

"...has made its way to America to find a place in the great yachting stories alongside Slocum and Hiscock....a readable and thoughtful look at offshore sailing, the men who do it, and the civilization they leave behind." Yachting

Sails Full & By by Dom Degnon

"...well written, funny and charming while looking at the perils and rewards of long-distance cruising." Sailing Inland & Offshore

"...a grass-roots adventure in the tradition of Mark Twain." SAIL

There Be No Dragons by Reese Palley

"...a delightful blend of information and stories, with emphasis on the human aspect of sailing. Witty, irreverent, and inspirational with as much 'why to' as 'how to'." Cruising World

America's Favorite Sailing Books

www.sheridanhouse.com

ARTICLES

Revue Baleaux srie Vagabondages marins no. 34, 35, 37, 39, 41, 42, 44, 46, 48, 50, 58, 60, 62, 64, 70, 72, 75, 77, 79, 84, 86, 105, 114, 118.

Revue Neptune Yachting, no. 46, Le paradis selon Moitessier.

B ecause of my various books, Ive received many letters from peoplenot all of them youngwho felt the call of the open sea. They asked more or less directly, depending on their temperaments, for my advice on getting ready for the great departure.

If you can, stay. Leave, if you must.

There is one fundamental question you have to ask yourself at the outset: Do I really want to live and travel on a sailboat? Once youve answered that question, without hiding your head in the sand, things will become clear, because you wont be kidding yourself.

I tell everyone pretty much the same thing. Dont needlessly complicate your life. Give top priority to the essentials. Firmly put aside anything superfluous. Given a choice between something simple and something complicated, choose what is simple without hesitation; sooner or later, what is complicated will almost always lead to problemsneedless expense, loss of time, and waste of energy.

There are different philosophies of sailing. Mine is to do everything as simply as possible, so you can set out to sea in the quickest time and for the least expense.

This philosophy of simplicity has guided me like a guardian angel ever since I first set sail. Make do with what you have, and dont have eyes bigger than your stomach.

Unless you are solidly grounded in sailing theory and practice, I think it wise to start very modestly at the beginning. Others have shared their experiences in books. I think the book published by the Glnans sailing school, The Glnans Manual of Sailing, covers the basics very well. I also very much like Antoines book,