A lifetime adventure in the open seas By Chang Yi
THEY started out in Istanbul in 1998 and have since been making sailing the open seas the adventure of their lives.
They have weathered lifethreatening oceanic storms and even faced death at knife-point from pirates and close encounters with man-eating crocodiles.
Two indomitable sailors who have seen sunny and stormy days -- and braved all that the high seas have thrown at them
while traversing the briny deep -- recently sailed into the calm waters of Miri on their good yacht YS AStlantis, hopeful of making Malaysia their second home.
German couple Gisela and Walter Mittasch have found the Resort City a safe place to live with its wonderful community of good and friendly people. “We first arrived in Miri in 2010 and fell in love with the city. Since then, we have returned three times and already applied to make Malaysia our second home,” Walter said.
The couple were in Athens when a yacht was put up for sale in 1996. Coincidentally, at the time, they were planning the next stage of their lives – perhaps some sort of retirement, if not another exciting career or adventure, as office work had proven “rather boring.” Getting ready
The SY Atlantis, equipped with solar panels and excellent sails, was originally owned by three young men who decided to sell their custom- built 1000cc dieselengine yacht after sailing it for seven years.
It took Gisela and Walter two years of careful refurbishing and planning to get the boat ready for round-the-world trips and the accompanying challenges – long ocean passages and rough weather, especially tropical storms at sea.
Walter also studied to obtain his licence as a sea captain.
The couple started sailing in their 30’s, chartering yachts to different places. After sailing for 15 years, they contemplated the prospects of spending the next stage of their lives on a yacht of their own and going on a nationhopping odyssey.
Before they could do this, they had to get to used to living on a yacht -- how to manage the small space on board (unlike the spacious room they enjoyed on land), work in shifts (one partner sleeps while the other keeps watch), pilot the yacht plus a host of other tasks to perform out in the oceans.
Moreover, they have to be conversant with passport and harbour procedures, weather patterns and oceanic charts.
“Gisela is good with maps – she’s very careful. Computers can crash, so we really need to be top notch at handling real maps,”
Walter noted. Life at sea
Since starting their adventure on Sept 1, 1998, in Istanbul, Turkey, they have hoisted the Blue Peter to 56 countries and across the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans many times.
The Atlantis is 42-feet long and 12.5 feet wide with a 6.5 feet draft. Built from mild steel, it can withstand rough weather and is well-equipped for long-haul sea voyage.
For example, its 1000cc engine needs refuelling only once in three months, hence enabling the yacht to sail across lonely long stretches of seas before topping up at the next port of call.
Walter told thesundaypost: “Sometimes who spend two whole weeks without seeing land. There are the occasional signs of life such as sailboats and ocean-going ships. Even these are rather rare. So this is the kind of life we have chosen and gotten used to. But we enjoy every moment.”
Some days, they had small flying fish stranded in the cockpit.
According to Walter, hundreds of flying fish skimming along the surface of the sea is a breathtaking sight to behold.
“We also enjoyed seeing the waves, their crests, and the blue skies, dotted with fantastic cloud formations, not forgetting the awesome sunrise and sunset and the stars at night. We even watched or tried to catch the raindrops when it rained.”
The seafaring couple visited many islands during their journey. They stayed three months in Kiribati, an island nation in the central Pacific Ocean, spending their time reading books and fishing. They bought shell necklaces for souvenirs.
“We really enjoyed interacting with the locals. The people of Vanuatu are the happiest we have ever met. Everywhere we went, people were ready to help us with the navigation,” Walter enthused. Dangers at sea
For sailors, falling overboard is the biggest and ever present risk. This and other sailing hazards keep the couple constantly on their toes.
“If you are on solo watch (the other person sleeping) and happen to fall overboard, that will probably be it for you. The self-steering system will keep driving the boat for hours before the other person wakes up to find you missing.
“Turning around to retrace your path to find someone who has fallen off the boat is like looking for a needle in a haystack,” Walter explained.
Indeed, there is something about the ocean that is peaceful,
yet makes you feel small and unsure all at the same time.
The couple also had to contend with Hurricane Isabel while sailing from New York in 2003. That was one of the few times they had to retrace their route to safe harbour in the Hudson River.
Hurricanes can cause untold damage with winds up to 120 knots.
At another time, pirates intercepted and boarded the Atlantis. Walter and Gisella remained calm as the robbers of the high seas went through their boat, but admitted they were terrified in their hearts.
The learned a good lesson from the incident – that the pirates came only for what they wanted. Had they seen firearms on board, they would have killed the couple without a second thought!
Noted Walter: “The pirates took what they wanted and spared our lives. It was one call shave. No argument with that.”
A terrible incident took place while the couple were at the Solomon Islands, east of Papua New Guinea. A fellow sailor
was eaten by a crocodile and his boat was very near theirs at the time.
“We were deeply saddened by the tragedy. It’s very difficult to accept such a death because generally, when a person looks at the sea which is blue and beautiful, it seldom crosses his or her mind that in the next instant, a man-eating predator would jump up from the water to drag him down to horrible watery death,” Walter said.
The couple themselves had brushes with crocodiles but kept out of harm’s way by showing a healthy respect for the maneating reptiles and staying out of their way.
Continuing to relate their experience on the high seas,
Gisella and Walter said it was not always plain sailing as the unexpected could be lurking round the next bend.
“There are always some big worries and close calls to deal with.”
At one time, Walter was out on the mast which broke during a terrible storm. The winds were blowing at more than 100 knots and he was hanging on to the broken mast with all his might.
“Imagine if he could not hold on and got blown into the raging sea. I couldn’t think at all the whole time other than hoping he could withstand the forceful winds and hold on to dear life,” Gisela shuddered.
Thankfully, they were able to ride out the storm unhurt but said getting caught in such a furious storm at sea was one of the most frightening experiences they had during their journey.
They remained onboard until all the repairs were completed. Helping others
Walter is passionate about helping his fellow sailors, especially in Miri, who are Trans Ocean Sailing Club members, 10,000 of whom are sailing round the world at any one time.
The Club was founded in 1969 in Germany and has about 200 support points worldwide.
The support point leaders work as volunteers to help arriving TO (trans ocean) yachts with checkin and check-out formalities and source for spare parts and the right craftsmen to carry out necessary repairs.
In Malaysia, Gisela and Walter are the support point leaders.
Every three months, a magazine is published and distributed to Club members.
Walter is optimistic that having the support point at Miri Marina will increase the number of foreign sailboats taking shelter at this top berthing facility of the state.
The couple complimented Malaysia on having the “best rules” for sailors worldwide. Sailors get a 90-day stay here whereas in places like Thailand, only one month is allowed. Bahasa Malaysia lessons
Gisela and Walter are now taking Bahasa Malaysia lessons.
Gisela has an interesting anecdote to share about languages in the region.
Once in Sumatra, while looking for an automatic teller machine (ATM), they chanced upon a local motorcyclist and said “money” to him.
The latter nodded his head and happily took Walter to the main village. Arriving there three hours later, he showed Walter a bathing place. Apparently, the motorcyclist had mistaken money for mandi (taking a bath in vernacular lingo).
Apart from the inconvenience, the inadvertent mix-up isone of the light-hearted encounters during their journey that they share with friends. As they say, all’s well that ends well. Walter eventually got his money albeit in a roundabout way.
The couple lead a simple life in Miri. They get up in the morning, have good German bread for breakfast, then carry out the necessary repairs of their boat.
Besides buying the things they need in town, they also go to the coffee shop to drink the local brew and read the Borneo Post.
“We don’t usually eat lunch and have only muesli (raw rolled oats, grains and mixed fruits) for dinner. Very simple,” they said.
Gisela and Walter are hoping their Malaysia As My Second Home application will be approved in good time.
They are two people who have a sense of balance and worth and are looking forward to living in Miri and enjoying the friendship of the local people.
It will be a dream come true if their application is given the nod.