Tea with a Legend

It’s not everyday that you get to share a cup of tea with a sailing legend, but that’s just what this writer did today. Dutch solo circumnavigator Henk de Velde stopped in Richardson Bay last Saturday in the middle of his sixth trip around the world, this one aboard his 52-ft Chris White trimaran Juniper. We’d made plans to meet Henk later today for an in-depth interview but we had the pleasure of sharing a quick cuppa this morning after local diver/photographer Tim Sell brought him to shore to find a replacement fuel tank for the one stolen out of his dinghy yesterday.

"This is really terrible," said de Velde. "In 30 years of voyaging, I’ve only had some tools stolen in Russia and a camera stolen in Argentina." What a welcome to the Bay Area. Considering the slew of dinghy theft reports we received last fall, perhaps he’s lucky to have a dinghy at all.

But the theft didn’t affect Henk’s cheerful demeanor. He happily told the short version of his life and adventures, and we’re certainly looking forward to hearing the details. You’ll get to read about them in the June issue of Latitude 38.