NORTHWEST PASSAGE REVISITED

VENUE; WELCOME INN HOTEL

23/01/02

8.00 PM

This is a meeting organised under the auspices of the Castlebar Archaeological Society to let Jarlath Cunnane and his crew from the "Northabout" give an illustrated account of their hugely successful trip through the Northwest Passage last summer.

The Northwest Passage, North of Canada and Alaska, joins the Pacific Ocean with the Atlantic Ocean. It and was keenly explored by navigators at the turn of the twentieth Century with major loss of life and limited success.

Jarlath Cunnane built this sturdy aluminium sailing vessel in Knock Co. Mayo. She was purpose built to a special design to suit this passage.

Jarlath and his crew have featured before in "Arais Aris" when they repeated Shackleton’s trip from Elephant Island in the Antarctic to South Georgia including the mountain climb at the end.

The North West Passage trip included Paddy Barry and Frank Nugent, and also had Dr. Michael Brogan from Ballyhaunis.

Northabout left Westport Co. Mayo Last Summer and made a fast Trans-Atlantic passage to Greenland where the Journey began.

They then continued west through the passage with amazing success, overcoming difficulties and poor weather with cool efficiency. They had to be in Alaska before September to avoid being trapped in the ice and they made it with time to spare. No doubt modern technology and weather forecasting was a major help to them but the odds at any stage for completing the passage in one season were only fifty / fifty.

The Mayo sailing club followed Northabout’s passage with interest on the web and are justly proud to be associated with Jarlath and his crew