Greenland with Sir Robin
Dilip Donde, the first Indian to circumnavigate the world solo under sail, speaks to Katy Stickland
‘ We started seeing icebergs a day before entering Scoresby Sund. That was exciting as most of us on board were seeing them for the first time. Early in the morning, a few hours before entering Scoresby Sund, we were surrounded by thick fog and the visibility reduced to a few feet. It was windy and choppy. We were motoring as the wind was on our nose. As we turned to port at the entrance of Scoresby Sund, using the chartplotter and GPS for reference, the fog cleared in a matter of seconds and we had this grand vista of one of the largest fjord systems ahead of us. In contrast to the sea a few seconds back, it was flat calm, sunny and absolutely windless in the fjord. Astern of us we could see the thick fog bank, standing like a wall, which we had just traversed. In the lee of the high mountains to our port, some of them over 1,800m high,
we were not affected by the wind or fog. The fjord, glassy calm and dotted with icebergs, stretched to the horizon.’
This was Dilip Donde’s first impression of Greenland after entering the tree-like Scoresby Sund, one of the largest and longest fjord systems in the world. Part of Sir Robin Knox-johnston’s crew aboard the Golden Globe Race veteran’s new Farr 56, Sanjula, Donde also vividly recalls how Greenland’s ice transformed the obligatory gins and tonics. ‘We lowered the dinghy to harvest some ice for our gin and tonics. Chilled with the ancient ice, it was absolutely the best G&T I have ever had,’ he said, with a beaming smile.
Donde has previously sailed with Sir Robin, the first time in 2006 aboard the IMOCA 60, Saga Insurance, where the pair voyaged from Gosport to Bilbao in Spain, as part of Donde’s preparations for his solo circumnavigation. Four years ago they raced the Finot-conq-designed IMOCA 60 Grey Power from Rhode Island back to Portsmouth in the 2015 Transatlantic Race.
Donde has also sailed with Sir Robin aboard his beloved Bermudian ketch, Suhaili, once in 2012 from Les Sables d’olonne in France to Portsmouth and more recently from Gosport to Falmouth for the Suhaili Parade of Sail in June 2018, and then on to Les Sables d’olonne for the start of the 2018 Golden Globe Race. He was shore manager for the race’s Indian entrant Abhilash Tomy.
For their latest voyage, Donde had initially expected to sail to the Faroe Islands from Liverpool aboard Sanjula, following the final of the 2017-18 Clipper Round the World race. Instead, Sir Robin wanted to explore ‘well north of his earlier forays’ in Greenland, so Scoresby Sund and the remote town of Ittoqqortoormiit was their destination, after sailing via Ballycastle in Northern Ireland, where they anchored to shelter from a cold front, and Iceland’s capital Reykjavik.
Sanjula had already undergone a full internal refit at Bursledon’s Elephant Boat Yard. Work to turn the forward cabin from a double bunk area into two twin cabins and a new head, and the installation of a watertight door was completed in March 2018.
To prepare for Arctic climes and the fact they would be motoring a lot, 400 litres of diesel were lashed to Sanjula’s deck.
‘We made sure that the onboard heating system was working and the right scuba diving equipment was onboard. The latter, more to have fun than as a necessity, as half the crew members were qualified divers. Essentially we ensured that we were totally self sufficient in all respects and would not need any support from the shore,’ explained
Donde, who for the first time, dived under an iceberg off the Arctic Circle during the trip.
He said sailing in eastern Greenland was ‘very different’ from his past experiences.
‘I have never weaved through icebergs on a sailing boat or any other boat. Neither have I ever sailed a few miles from snowcovered mountains rising to a height of 1,800 to 1,900 metres with a couple of hundred metres of water under my keel. You can imagine what a deep gorge has been created by the harsh climate in the area.’
The crew of Sanjula also had to cope with getting trapped in the ice.
‘One day as we were heading back out of Scoresby Sund, our path was blocked by a sheet of ice that formed quickly as the wind started piling the ice together. It took us a couple of hours to find the end of the sheet and free ourselves guided by a crew member standing on the mast spreader as a lookout,’ explained Donde. He said those wanting to sail to Greenland must expect to be self-sufficient for the voyage. ‘I am sure cruising to Greenland is the cheapest and simplest way to see this spectacular land. Like any other place, cruising gives you immense freedom and lets you see the world from the comfort of your boat.
It is especially true in a remote place such as Greenland where there are very few human settlements or roads, and air travel can be exorbitant. With an absence of marinas or similar facilities, one needs to be totally self-sufficient to undertake such a trip, so a well prepared boat is absolutely essential,’ he added.
Donde is now back home in India and is focused on his new Van de Stadt Caribbean 40, which is under construction.
‘I need to get her going and then figure out how best to use her. This is easier said than done, as all this is very new in India. We have a beautiful coast and good weather. It is time Indians got hooked to cruising and foreigners discovered a new form of tourism in India. Perhaps I can make a beginning,’ added the celebrated Indian sailor.