Preparations For Antarctica

Aventura was built and equipped with a cold water voyage in mind and, as mentioned earlier, both deck and hull were insulated down to the waterline.

Condensation was minimal, both because of the insulation and also because for Antarctica I covered the insides of all hatches with a thick layer of bubblewrap, held in place by fitted mosquito screens. This arrangement let through some light and the bubblewrap created enough of a temperature barrier to stop the worst of the condensation.  The boat is heated by an Eberspacher diesel heater, blowing hot air through ducts leading to four outlets throughout the boat. The first, and hottest, leads to the oilskin locker, which dried gear perfectly. Generally, the heater worked well and with a consumption of 8 litres per 24 hours, it was very economical. When we were day cruising in Antarctica and spending most of the time in the cockpit or ashore, the heater only came on when we were back below. In daytime we let the temperature in the main cabin rise to 15°C, which was too hot once we became acclimatised to local temperatures, while at night we let it go down to 10°C.

There were no special provisions for the galley. Propane gas is recommended for cold climates but as Aventura is equipped with Camping Gaz, which is butane, I was forced to stick with the latter. A heating element was fitted to the regulator at the tank end to stop the gas from freezing and we had no problems using butane even in the coldest weather.

The hull, being made of aluminium, did not need much preparation for occasional encounters with ice. On several occasions we had no choice but to push through large slabs of sea ice or brash ice at slow speeds, with the only visible damage being an absence of antifouling paint in the bow area. As we pushed our way through the ice, we took the engine in and out of gear to avoid damaging the Maxprop by any ice that might have been pushed under the boat, although we found that most ice was deflected sideways. Regular visitors to Antarctica advise against installing a propeller guard as small bits of ice may get stuck in it making things worse than having an unprotected propeller. As a precaution I carried a spare two bladed propeller. On Aventura all seacocks had been fitted onto welded pipes to eliminate any protrusions outside the hull that may be broken off by ice, but this may have been an exaggerated precaution as shown by the fact that the B&G speedo paddlewheel was still intact at the end of the Antarctic cruise.

Aventura’s engine, a Volvo MD22, worked well and we used the recommended winter grade fuel. With a fuel capacity of 380 litres, we carried an additional 120 litres in jerrycans. Over a period of one month about one third of the total was used up by the heater, and as we managed to do much of our cruising under sail, the extra fuel was quite unnecessary. A second heating source would have been useful and could have been easily set up by using the cooling water from the engine to run a small radiator. One thing that I regret having overlooked was to install a warm sea water supply from the engine to the galley.

Generally I feel that Aventura had been perfectly prepared for her Antarctic voyage. She was easily handled under all conditions and was comfortable inside and out. There is no doubt that having been to Antarctica before when I sailed there on a different boat had been a great help in deciding exactly what was essential and what should be avoided.