Around Cape Horn for the first time

Statsraad Lehmkuhl has been sailing the seven seas for over 100 years, but never before this far away from homeport Bergen in Norway. March 28 she left the port in Punta Arenas, heading for Cape Horn.

- After a night passage through the narrow, eastern part of the Beagle Channel, we arrived due south of Cape Horn at lunchtime in virtually no wind and sunshine over a flat sea. Although there may have been some who had wished for more challenging conditions, nobody seemed to be disappointed at being able to see and photograph the characteristic cliffs in fantastic weather, captain Marc Seidl wrote in his daily log.

The captain continues.

- We rounded westwards by engine in a weak headwind but were able to sail by in a nice following wind on returning east. At midnight we are still under sail just east of the Horn and the weather has in the meantime become a lot colder and windier. Today, we will head for the anchorage at Ushuaia before docking on Wednesday. All is unusually well here off Cape Horn.

For both the crew and the cadets manning the ship, seeing Cape Horn was quite emotional.

- Sailing around Cape Horn was a very overwhelming experience. One can not help but think of all the people who have struggled to get around for centuries, many with their lives at at stake. For many, it was their last voyage, either by falling overboard or the ship sinking, chief engineer Jonas Jensen says in the video below.

The Royal Norwegian Naval Academy is signing off in Ushuaia, but a new, adventurous voyage crew is ready to sign on. They will participate in a second and final voyage around The Horn.