Talisker Bounty Voyage nearly over

Four men in an open boat have survived a perilous 3800-mile jouney from Tonga to Timor.

They are re-enacting Captain William Bligh's amazing journey in 1789, after Fletcher Christian had shanghaied a few of his men It was a triumph in navigationn that has never been equalled.

Here is the latest report from Don McIntyre, who can be contacted by emailing a member of his crew, Stuart Keane, at http://tinyurl.com/2ahwhvn
Here's the TBB's latest post: http://tinyurl.com/2ahwhvn

We love the Arafura sea..these short steep wind waves generated by the relatively shallow water have been challenging.. finally they have smoothed out around midnight but not before filling the boat again right on dinner when Dave P. broached the boat on a surprise wave!.one of the 20 minute specials but NOT what we expected as the conditions had been excellent all afternoon..!

Chris and I were sitting under the dodger..Dave W on the life raft..we were all very

relaxed as the sun was setting, chatting about the meaning of life..Chris had just

opened a tin of lambs tounges and the next thing we started slewing over to Starbord



tHW tALIS

and going down..the water started flushing over the rail as the mast headed for the water and everythin g in the boat went down AGAIN..

I was watching this from my seat with legs in the water half laughing and half in disbelief. Dave P was not saying anything..every one jumped into bucketing as the cockpit was full..the lambs' tounges were floating in the bilge. I grabed them and passed them to Chris as I bucketed and he ate them immediately..it was quite a funny scene really and something we are becoming familiar with and well practiced...hopefully this will be the last time.

Every time this has happened I have mixed emotions..I know the boat will not sink and I know we can fight to get it back up...BUT??

Anyway this, dare I say it, caused many laughs..finally we have all had one while at the helm..Dave P. was surprised but it happens..nice to do it with daylight!
!did not lose any gear...we have lost our two top cameras to water and the electrical took a wave while I was trying to fix a leak so most is now inopperable..fortunately we have only 300 miles to go and we are right on track by the look of it..all the crew are totally absorbed on calculating the new ETA..every time our speed changes there is a new one..but I will hold with afternoon of the 16th!

The sun is setting now and all looks good 15kts of SE wind..1.5mtr seas 27 degrees C. and we are sailing at 3 to 5 knts..last night was all stars again and we could smell the land coming off Australia..Coast watch aircraft buzzed us again about an hour before Daves Broach and I was telling them about the big one the night before...it is always good to see them fly by..we must be a hard target to find even though we have our radar reflector up? a little speck in what has been some big confused seas..

We have our first Indonesian fishing vessel just behind us..we are just outside the Australian Ecenomic Zone so more should start to appear..we are alsdo seeing more plastic and rubbish in the water..yesterday when sailing at about 5kts I went straight past a huge pole..20ft long and 1.5ft in diameter..missed it by about 6feet!!..lots of old fishing gear in the water and some discarded nets..tried to pick one bit up but it is too hard for us to manouver at the last minute..lots of thongs and even a gas bottle!

Happy to report that there was no lunch for some today..had dolphins turn up..not so many birds anymore and yes I reckon we could??? catch Bligh??..now this may cause some conjecture here..and it may not be the done thing to do...very unBritish in fact ..but it will go very close..right down to the wire.....

The atmosphere onboard Talisker Bounty Boat is very boyant..Dave W is the happiest I have seen him all trip and yes we have all given up now and dream heavily on all the delights that Kupang, hotels and food will bring!! now is the time for that so these last miles are very different..I can imagine what may be going through the minds of Bligh and his men at this point..some were in a very bad way and they were getting so close.

We have carried two bottles of Talisker whiskey on board for the whole trip..one will be cracked on the beach in Kupang..the other auctioned later..there are some big times ahead..the end game is close at hand but the fat lady has not yet sung!!

Looks like another steady gentle relaxed cruisy fun night..good for sleeping and being on the helm??..I wish..fingers crossed, touch wood!!!!..Don

NEWSFLASH. The Talisker Bounty Boat is expected to complete its journey and arrive at Kupang about 5pm on June 15.

Bounty Boat Expedition
In order to raise awareness of MND, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s and to raise funds for the Sheffield Institute Foundation and SITraN, the building that is currently under construction in Sheffield that will be dedicated to research in to those neurological disorders, SIF patron Stuart Keane enlisted the support of Don McIntyre and his Bounty Boat Expedition and when the organisers of the Southampton Boat Show donated a prime stand space, Stuart jumped at the opportunity to bring both causes in to the public eye.



The Bounty Boat Expedition is due to take place in April 2010 and will attempt to follow in the footstep ofCaptain William Bligh when he was castadrift from the Bounty, following theMutiny on April 28th 1798.
Australian Don McIntyre, Englishman Mike Perham, who at 17 recently became the youngest sailor to sail single handed around the world, and two others will set off for the 4000 mile journey from Tonga to Timor in an 7.5m long open boat - with not enough food - no charts - and no toilet paper. Can they survive on of the greatest open boat journeys in Maritime History? Their odds are far higher than if you were a sufferer of MND.
They are making this journey to raise funds for the Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience (SITraN). This landmark initiative will create the world’s first, stand alone institute dedicated to bringing an end to MND.

Bounty Boat Expedition
In order to raise awareness of MND, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s and to raise funds for the Sheffield Institute Foundation and SITraN, the building that is currently under construction in Sheffield that will be dedicated to research in to those neurological disorders, SIF patron Stuart Keane enlisted the support of Don McIntyre and his Bounty Boat Expedition and when the organisers of the Southampton Boat Show donated a prime stand space, Stuart jumped at the opportunity to bring both causes in to the public eye.



The Bounty Boat Expedition is due to take place in April 2010 and will attempt to follow in the footstep ofCaptain William Bligh when he was castadrift from the Bounty, following theMutiny on April 28th 1798.
Australian Don McIntyre, Englishman Mike Perham, who at 17 recently became the youngest sailor to sail single handed around the world, and two others will set off for the 4000 mile journey from Tonga to Timor in an 7.5m long open boat - with not enough food - no charts - and no toilet paper. Can they survive on of the greatest open boat journeys in Maritime History? Their odds are far higher than if you were a sufferer of MND.
They are making this journey to raise funds for the Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience (SITraN). This landmark initiative will create the world’s first, stand alone institute dedicated to bringing an end to MND.

Arrival in Sydney

THIS IS AN OPEN LETTER TO JESSICA WATSON.

As I right these words I'm watching u arriving in Sydney after sailing around the world alone in a small boat. Congratulations! Thoousands of Sydneysiders are lining the foreshores to see your arrival, and all five TV stations are showing your tiny boat, Ella's Pink Lady.

I'd like to tell u that ur a different woman from the intrepid 16-year-old who sailed from Sydney a few months ago. u have grown up.

Apart from inspiring children all over the world by proving that if you put your mind to it, u can achieve almost anything. But who would listen to a 91-year-old geezer(or even an old fart)? And, as UNO, we all fart. Sum say everyone farts 37 times a day U must have found it particularly Mbarrassing in your confined quarters

I b leave ima member of your support team, having emailed you once or twice b4.

P.S. I'm watching Knot 1, but all 5 of our TV channels although knot @ the same time.

BTW UR saling close to the wind these days. Do U no the origin of that phrase?

PPS. When I first tried 2 send this mess age 2U, I had 2 rite the words witz edip, which sounds like wits edit!

And I'm a copy editor for Anu Garg's A Word A Daynews letter which he sends five days a week to more than 900,000 wordlovers in 200 coutries.

P.P.P.S.

Seriously, I hope my two - nay, thousand - of readers adopt a suggestion that they eat the same rations today that the TBB (The Bligh Bount voyage re-enactment crew) do, then estimate the cost of the meal, and send that amount to SIF (Sheffield Institute for Neuroscience).

Bligh of the Bounty (continued)

Here's the latest news from Don McIntyre, the Tasmanian adventurer who is leading the Bounty Voyage Re-enactment. The four-man crew has landed on an island near Nai Nai, Fiji, after nearly running into a dangerous reef.

A presnter from the Australian ABC's Early Morning Show will interview Don next week:

What a beautiful island we are at. We pulled the anchor, rowed ashore and tied a line to a coconut tree. We've been trying to catch fish all day, get some more drinking coconuts and have rigged the sails to trees to catch water but no rain yet. We have a fire ready for the fish. Everyone is very lethargic, no energy but we have some repairs to make and reorganisation before we set off - probably in two days.


I will let the crew tell you their impressions. This is a grand adventure and Bligh was a great man...Don from Nai Nai, Fiji

I knew it was going to be a big night on Tuesday and it was. All afternoon we had been sailing toward an island and decided just as I sent the last blog to sail down the windward side as it was getting dark. Seas were big. I was on the helm and about two miles down wind I saw the surf line. We were sailing fast downwind straight for it so altered course 60 degrees to starboard but the reef continued out ...It was all eyes in the cockpit and the seas really started to build. Two sets around 6mtrs came through and I was forced to ride them downwind at 12-15kts. It was exhilarating but we were then sailing straight for the reef! Slowly we crept around the edge which looked to extend about four miles out. We all thought we were pretty dumb as we know about reefs but for some reason we just missed the obvious...it was dark - very dark.

After that and we had to use the compass and I decided to allow torches also as things were getting tough. About five hours later in the dark a BIG island appeared as a shadow to starboard. We could not tell how close we were as we did not know how high it was. Was it a little island close or a big island far off? Wind was 25-30kts and seas still around 4 to five metres. I had just gone off watch whenQuilter called out, "TED I HAVE BREAKERS DEAD AHEAD!" I grabbed my harness/lifejacket and jumped up.

They were close and the boat was already rounded up to port hard on the wind and waves. The surf was only a few hundred metres away downwind of us. You could see the phosphorescence in the water and we thought we could hear the thud of the surf above the noise of the sails and boat!! It was a tense time.

I grabbed for the emergency GPS chart plotter as this was very serious with no ideawhere the reef line would go. Within minutes I had it up and running but it seemed like forever. It showed us still on the reef line but it was only another 300 mtrs to the edge and we would sail clear which is what we did. This really made us realise what Bligh had done - was this nuts or what? We were doing this as volunteers - no chart, no nav aids. We had to sail at about 5-7 kts to stay safe in these seas and we were sailing downwind which means if you come across a danger it appears fast. Anyway we all agreed that if Quilter had not seen the surf it would all have been over in much less than two minutes - it was that close!! Maybe someone was looking over us?

We could not sleep easily because of that and the weather with many little challenges during the night. I was happy to see the light of day but then we couldsee the size of the waves. It had been building all night and now they took on a different shape - more confused and nasty. We were regularly surfing into the teensand averaging maybe 7kts. Talisker Bounty Boat is an amazing vessel and was handling it all very well. We were bailing out every 15 minutes and hey!

All the crew are working as a team so things are going well. When I was on watch at 12 noon, I was surprised at the sea. In the previous 4 hours the waves had become very confused and occasionally big - 6 or 7 mtrs. Wind was now up to 35kts at times and higher in the squalls so we decided we were now in a gale. We were headed north into the gap between the main Fiji Island and Bligh Passage which is littered with reefs. Our plan had been to go slow during the night even stopping and drifting and to sail during the day so we could see the reefs and islands but there was no way we could do that with this weather so we were headed up into a dead end gully. At 12.40 while I was on the helm a huge set loomed up. I had a problem as a squallhad justgone through and the wind was only about 25kts.. We eresailingwithadeepreefedmain only, the headsail and mizzen both lashed.


The first wave hit the boat from the starboard side. I called for the guys to standby for wave! Then out of the blue as we were recovering from thait was challenging to do the simplest things onboard but I continue to look at what wehaveand how well we are coping rather than the things we do not have or discomforts. Ifyou startwithnothing everything after that is a bonus,t another hit us right out of sequence. This one broke right beside us and right over us. I was watching it all in slow motion. The mast went down to water level and for a minute I thought it may go right over and we would have to put our training into practice! But no - she came up fast which was a delight to see. I called everyone to man the buckets. The aft part of the hull was full and just about awash. While they all got to it I turned the boat downwind and within about 6 minutes most of the water was out. I was looking over my shoulder not wanting another big one!! Everything down below is tied in but still flew around. I dislocated my little toe and took a big hit to my side. Fortunately there were no other injuries, a little damage to solar panels again and water into out books onboard which is a mini disaster. We all reflected that it was a good exercise and showed the boat has what it takes. We were all very wet but at least we were not swimming.


Conditions remained very challenging all the rest of the day...I made a decision that afternoon to again use the GPS chart plotter as we were running into danger with heavy winds and big seas behind us - not good for any sailor. So again I have to concede that Bligh is a bigger man than me. So Wednesday night saw us ride through the entrance of Bligh Waters with the aid of a GPS and turn left heading to a little island called NaiGai where we dropped anchor around midnight. Everyone was relieved. I had only had a few hours sleep in the past 48 hours. We were all hungry and have not been able to catch rain water so now on 1ltr a day. I am bruised and battered but very happy about the rest of the voyage. TBB and the crew are now one!

This morning I woke after a 5 hour sleep to see what a beautiful island we are at. We pulled the anchor, rowed ashore and tied a line to a coconut tree. We've been trying to catch fish all day, get some more drinking coconuts and have rigged the sails to trees to catch water but no rain yet. We have a fire ready for the fish.

Everyone is very lethargic, no energy but we have some repairs to make and reorganisation before we set off - probably in two days.

I will let the crew tell you their impressions. This is a grand adventure and Bligh was a great man...Don from Nai Nai, Fiji.

You can contact any member of the crew by sending an email to Stuart Keane@talktalk.net

Stuart has had a varied and interesting career. I googled his name, and found this bio:

Former Professional Rugby League Player,The first Pro R.L. player to break his Neck, Be Paralyzed and Play Professionally again!(1959). Ran a leisure company which exported to 54 country's ,sold out because of health issues in the early 90s. Became a Patron of the Sheffield Institute Foundation in 2007 after my eldest son Shaun was diagnosed with Motor Nuerone Disease. Shaun died in January this year,aged 40 years young.Leaving a wife and three young daughters,aged 7,9 & 11. With the help of my wife Lynn and daughter Danielle I am now concentrating even more in helping the other great Patrons of SIF raising the last few £millions needed to create theworld's first dedicated research cenrer in to MND.also known as Lou Gerhigs, & ALS. My Nickname in my business life was"The Kentucky Kid" I had a product that became world famous called "The Kentucky Derby" it was a game of skill that was sold to Theme Parks. In my photograph displayed perched on my right shoulder is my Parrot "Tali-Talisker" he informs me that he is 231 years old and that he went on the original TBB all those years ago? Would you believe him?

Bounty Mutiny Voyage Re-enactment

Today is April 28 in Australia, but it's only April 27 in Tonga, which is the other side of the International date line. So the Talisker Bounty Boat (TBB) is about to set sail for Timor, re-enacting the perilous voyage of William Bligh, captain of HMS (His Majesty's Ship) Bounty, after his crew had mutinied and set him adrift in an open boat. He travelled all the way to Timor, a feat which is thought to be the greatest navigational achivement in maritime history.

Bligh sailed a 45-foot (14 metre) open boat with 18 men from Tonga to West Timor in 48 days, surviving partly by catching fish and seabirds and drinking rain water.

His feat — achieved without charts or compass — has been portrayed in novels, poems and in several "Mutiny on the Bounty" films starring British actor Charles Laughton and Hollywood stars Clark Gable and Marlon Brando.

The new expedition is sailing in a 25-foot (7-metre) open deck boat, the Talisker Bounty, which has two small sails. The team expects to take seven weeks to cover the distance.

"It is going to be really an adventure," , the expedition leader, Australian Don McIntyre, told a reporter. "Our boat is half the size of Bligh's boat, so the challenge is trying to survive on board. Our biggest fear is capsizing."

Wikipedia says "Fletcher Christian (25 September 1764 – 20 September 1793) was a Master's mate on board the Bounty during William Bligh's fateful voyage to Tahiti for breadfruit plants. It was Christian who seized command of the Bounty from Bligh on 28 April 1789."

McIntyre said they would carry the same food as Bligh had on board in 1789. It included 150 pounds (67 kilograms) of ship biscuits, 16 pounds (7 kilograms) of pork, six quarts of rum, six bottles of wine and 28 gallons (106 litres) of water.

Like Bligh, the crew has no modern navigational equipment such as charts, compass or lights.

The team will film their re-enactment for a documentary.

The mutineers, led by Fletcher Christian, eventually settled in Pitcairn Island, where they burnt the Bounty, sinking its hull so they could not be found.

About 50 of their descendants still live on the remote island, Britain's last remaining territory in the Pacific. Others live on Pitcairn Island.

English actor Charles Laughton starred in a memorable film, Mutiny on the Bounty. American heart-throb Clark Gable was cast as Fletcher Christian. You can see brief extracts in a trailer posted at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fletcher_Christian. It won an Academy Award for Best Picture of 1935.

A few days ago I asked Stuart Keane, an expedition member, how they coul claim their boat was a replica of the original, since it's only half the size. He replied:

The Talisker Bounty Boat is indeed smaller than the original BB. It is very similar to Shackleton's James Caid. All three were classed as whaling boats.

The TBB with a crew of four represents the same challenge that Bligh and his crew had, in as much that the TBB crew will only have the same square footage per man that Bligh and his men had and the same freeboard.

Don McIntyre considered building an exact replica but came to the conclusion that it would be a problem getting eighteenrew to volunteer, also the cost would be prohibitive building a larger one.

This was a wise decision in view of the fact of the problems with crew pulling out at the last minute and a tremendous overrun of the budget due to unforeseen problems like the trouble Don has had with his onboard communications satellite systems.

If anything it's a greater challenge with such a smaller boat on those huge seas which are forecast.

Incidentally I am meeting tomorrow with a professor of fine arts, David Cotterill from Sheffield University. He has created a computerised film of the view that the crew would have had from the original Bounty Boat.

He gathered his material from historic documents such as Bligh's log and weather reports of that time His film runs for ten hours and Don sees it as an ideal backdrop to the Talisker Bounty Boat when it returns and is displayed at museums throughout the world.

Stuart said that Fletcher Christian's brother was in the crowd farewelling the re-enactment boat. "Just after a photo was taken we had crowds asking all about the TBBE and the chap slipped away without us getting his details -- perhaps you would like to run an international quest to find him. It would be fun and create added interest to our quest"

Why is the re-enactment vessel called the Talisker Bounty Boat?

Stuart Keane explained "Talisker is the name of the main sponsor of the TBB expedition 2010. It is the name of a single mallt whisky distilled on the Isle of Skye in Scotland since 1830."

The Duke of Devonshire wrote

Dear Don and all your intrepid crew. This comes with very best wishes from Stoker and Amanda Devonshire in England. We have been following your progress so far on your web site and we are confident that you will have an epic and extremely successful journey.

The support that you are giving to the Sheffield Institute Foundation for Motor Neurone Disease is hugely appreciated, and we look forward to seeing you on your return to congratulate you peronally. -- Ther Duke of Devonshire KCVO, CBE, DL

You can follow the journey by visiting the officil blog: http://www.bountyboat.blogspot.com/

FOOTNOTE: My sister Sylvia Oliver, who lives in Auckland, New Zealand, says, "A challenging journey ... I hope they are successful. I don't know where mythical Hawaiki was, but there would be some Maori who would be sure their first canoes to reach NZ had a longer open boat journey in the 15th century."

Bounty Boat Ready to Set Sail from Tonga

Last-minute new crew mambers have boarded the Bounty Boat which is due to sail from Tonga on April 28 to re-enact Lieutenant William Bligh's 3700-mile voyage from Tonga to Timor - the grestest open-boat navigation achievement in maritime history. Bligh had commanded HMS Bounty until most of the crew mutinied and set him adrift, with sailors who had refused to mutiny.

Australian adventurer Don McIntyre plans to set sail on April 28, in a replica of Bligh’s 25-foot-long, 5-foot-wide. boat built by Tongan craftsmen, following the journey across the Pacific from Ha’apai in the Kingdom of Tonga to Timor. He hopes to begin his trip on the same day, at the same time and in the same place 221 years after Bligh's original voyage.

A few days ago, McIntyre wrote in his blog:

"Just to let you know how organised we are...it was in 1990 that I last had to use a sextant for real..that was when I sailed solo from Sydney to Tonga as my 2000 mile qualifying voyage before the BOC Challenge single handed around the world yacht race...I can still remember packing my sextant away when I dropped anchor just a few miles from here ..I have never used a sextant in earnest since..anyway I now have to learn how to do it again...I will be using an Octant.. Bligh had a head start but hey..I like a

challenge!"

Two days ago I sent this email to the expedition:

Hi Don. I've posted a story about your epic voyage in my blog http://lifebeginsat80.blogspot.com/

It has been published in the Pitcairn and Norfolk Island newspapers.

Do you know that the premier of Queensland, Anna Bligh, is a great-great-great-great-great-grand-daughte of Bligh of the Bounty?

Good luck! Best wishes to you and your crew.

I received this reply from another crew member, Stuart Keane:

On behalf of the Sheffield Institute Foundation Patrons, thank you for posting the Talisker Bounty Boat Story so far. Pleases inform as many people as you can through your journalist skills and outlets,The more people who know about TBB and The SIF the more chance we have to get donations and help eradicate this most horrible of diseases.
Thanks a lot for your help.
Kindest regards
Stuart

Stuart Keane,
Patron,
To the Sheffield Institute Foundation,
for Research into Motor Neurone Disease,
& Other Neurological Disorders.
M 07737534918
www.sifoundation.com
www.taliskerbountyboat.com

The expedition has attracted great interest from the world's media, including the New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2010/04/20/world/AP-AS-Tonga-Bounty-Voyage.html?_r=1

McIntyre has already given countless TV, radio and press interviews, and is sure to be asked for many more in the course of the voyage.

After making a donation to the Sheffield Instiuter Foundation in the UK, Jonathon, a keen suppoter of the re-enactment, , commented, "You are delightfully mad and a divine inspiration to us all! May your God go with you on this adventure."

The original Bligh of the Bounty later became governor of the Australian convict colony New South Wales,
which at that time included Queensland. He was a
bad-tempered, hard-swearing man who antagonised many of the citizenry, mostly military officers and wealthy settlers.

Eventually he was arrested. It was popularly believed that he had hidden under a bed in Government House to avoid arrest, but that story may be apocryphal.

He died in London on December 6,1817.

o You can follow the Bounty voyage by visiting the expedition's blog http://www.bountyboat.blogspot.com/. You can send them a message by adding a comment .

o Charles Laughton starred in a memorable film, Mutiny on the Bounty, in1937. A brief video is posted at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtmV2tpbnjA

o For more details about Bligh, see Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Bligh

P.S. I've just received another message from Stuart Keane. It reads:

The Crew are Don,McIntyre Skipper,
David Wilkinson,
David Pryce,(nick named Quilter)
and 18year old Chris Wylde
If you go on the Talisker Bounty Boat website and look under The Crew heading you can view the profile of each one.
Talsiker is the name of the main sponsor of the TBB expedition 2010,
It is the name of a single mallt whisky distilled on the Isle of Skye in Scotland since 1830.
Cheers for now Stuart

Bligh of the Bounty voyage re-enactment

Will global warming affect Australian adventurer Don McIntyre's bid to re-enact Captain William Bligh's historic 3,700-mile voyage in an open boat, sailing from Tahiti all the way to Timor? The water will be warmer, and perhaps climate change will lead to perilous storms and huge waves.

McIntyre plans to set sail on April 28, in a replica of Bligh’s 25-foot-long, 5-foot-wide. boat built by Tongan craftsmen, following the journey across the Pacific from Ha’apai in the Kingdom of Tonga to Timor. He will begin his trip on the same day, at the same time and in the same place 221 years after Bligh's epic original mutiny journey.

McIntyre has had to make last-minute changes to his crew, because a key member of his fellow adventurers dropped out at the last minute. He has been replaced by a London university student with no sailing experience but with a burning ambition to join the expedition.

A few days ago, McIntyre said ”This trip has been a long time in the making. Flying into the Kingdom of Tonga and looking at the blue ocean, I realised it is really all happening now. We were then given the friendliest welcome that you could ever imagine. We knew certainly that we are among friends when we got here.”

McIntyre then joked that “a couple of weeks ago I had my own mutiny and lost two of my crew”, referring to the fact that two of the Talisker crew members pulled out last week citing medical reasons. Mike Perham, who holds the record as the world's Youngest Solo Circumnavigator, pulled out after having his appendix removed. Perham was replaced last week by 18 year old Christopher Wilde, of Warwick in the UK, who has no boating or sailing experience at all but simply blind passion.

It was in April 1789 that the famous ‘Mutiny on the Bounty’ occurred just off the waters of the islands of Ha’apai in the Kingdom of Tonga. The story goes that, whilst in the Pacific, the Bounty crew were attracted to the idyllic life and were angered by the (alleged) cruelty of their commanding officer William Bligh. The mutiny was led by Fletcher Christian and some of his followers and they tried to get Bligh to sail the Bounty back to Tahiti because they terribly missed their Tahitian mistresses. Bligh did not agree with the mutineers and he insisted they continue sailing to Australia. McIntyre added here that “someone stole the Captain’s coconuts and that cause the Mutiny”.

Fletcher Christian and his followers then cast commanding officer William Bligh and Bligh’s loyal crew adrift in a boat near Tofua Island in Ha’apai in the Kingdom of Tonga. Whilst Fletcher and the mutineers sailed to Pitcairn Island and settled there, Bligh and his men sailed for 48 days and over an epic 4000 nautical miles from Ha’apai in the Kingdom of Tonga to Kupang in Timor in an overloaded boat (traditionally used to lift an anchor) with little food or water and no charts.

McIntyre and the Talisker Bounty Boat crew face the same deprivations as the original crew that were cast adrift in the middle of the Pacific. Using their replica 18th century traditional open timber whale boat, they will relive Bligh’s nightmare by attempting to sail the same voyage under similar conditions with the same amount of food and water. Bligh and his crew only had 150lb of ships biscuits, 16 two pound pieces of Pork, 6 quarts of Rum, 6 Bottles of wine and 28 gallons of water.

The crew told the Tonga Visitors Bureau that they will carry 70g muesli bar, 210g baked beans, 90g ship biscuit, 2 liter water, 100g nuts, 75g raisins, 170g beef, 90g ship biscuit per person for 25 days only. They hope to catch fish, gather a supply of fruit, vegetable and coconuts in Tonga (rather than catch and eat birds) and supplement their 28 gallons of water with rain water.

A thin Wilde, who is on a mission to eat as much as possible in the next week in order to bulk up for the mission, is certainly in the right country for that. Not only are Tongans known for their inimitable sense of hospitality and musical talent, they are also known for their girth and love of feasting. McIntyre himself noted he’s purposely put on weight but expects to “loose 16kg by the end of the voyage”, adding “we will look pretty different by the end of it”. McIntyre explained that during their voyage, the crew will monitor their health by “taking blood samples every week and undergoing psych tests”. The latter causing laugher amongst the crew who will need to deal with emotions like fears and anger and use “
"self awareness and communication to create a stronger team and support each other throughout the difficult times, of which their certainly will be many”.
Will they survive on of the greatest open boat journeys in Maritime History? Their odds are far higher than if they were sufferers of a motor neurone disease. The Talisker Bounty Boat 2010 Expedition are making their journey to raise funds for the Sheffield Institute for Motor Neurone Disease.
McIntyre told the Tonga Visitors Bureau (Ministry of Tourism) that his crew plan to set up their a 25ft long, 7ft wide, open wooden vessel at Royal Sunset Resort (offshore from Tongatapu). They hope to have the boat, and their satellite blog that will record their positions automatically onto Google Earth every two hours and replicate Bligh’s meticulous Log, up and running as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, Stuart Kershaw, the crew's expedition cameraman, will be steadfastly working on recording as much about Tonga and its people as possible for a 4-6 part documentary on the Talisker Bounty Boat Expedition. McIntyre expects the first episode to be about when preparations and one episode to start with his arrival in Tonga and finish as he sails away from the Island of Tofua, about five days after the Mutiny took place.