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Hello George,

despite your flattering comments I do not believe that my literary and
bibliographical endeavours are worth mentioning that much. I just
happen to live close to the "City- and University Library" of
Frankfurt which holds a near complete run of the "Annalen der
Hydrographie ...", "Der Seewart", "International Hydrographic
Journal" and other relevant publications (no "Journal of the Royal
Institute of Navigation" and just a few copies of the "Journal of
Navigation", though). And as I am not as ingenious as other members
of this list I like to look up what other people have thought and
written before about a problem I am interested in myself and to keep
track of that I maintain a bibliography. If someone else can profit
from that if I share these bits of information, that's fine.

By the way: I would not call the J�ger article an "obscure paper";
the "Annalen..." certainly were not an obscure publication, but
somewhat of a model for the "International Hydrographic Journal"
and other professional publications in this field. It was - after all
- published by the "Deutsche Seewarte" which was not a private
outfit for the benefit of seamen but the central state institution in
Germany collecting all information regarding the safety of navigation
that could be had from German vessels. One of the results was the
collection "Segelhandb�cher" which aimed at providing the best
information for masters of sailing vessels to insure safe and speedy
passages in every ocean.

And regarding my Atlantic crossing: I really do not think that sailing
across the Atlantic in the Trade Wind Zone - as I have done - is an
adventure relevant to the group in general. It is not an exercise in
navigation, nor in seamanship (though we had a few exciting moments
like a rudder failure at night, broken spinnaker halyards resulting in
the sheet getting twisted around the screw etc.). It is mostly an
exercise in patience and social skills - and if you have that: highly
recommendable.
As far as navigation on such a cruise is concerned, there is absolutely
no need for high precision - the main topic on this list for some
time - as the nearest navigational hazard is about 12.000 feet below
your boat. Personally I think it calls for a lot more navigational
expertise to sail in the tidal waters around Britain and Northern
France in a small boat. There - when the speed of the tide may expeed
the top speed of your boat - it is crucial to know exactly where you
are and where you may be able to go. It also calls for a navigational
sixth sense - the ability to integrate many different informations of
which some simply cannot be expressed in numbers. Sorry to say, but I
have never sailed in these waters (only in the Med, the Baltic and the
Caribbean), so I cannot contribute anything from my own experience.

Regards,
Wolfgang

George Huxtable schrieb:

> Wolfgang Koberer's access to obscure old papers on navigation, and the
> indexing sytem that underlies it, continues to impress me.
>
> I had no idea that he has, in recent years, made an Atlantic crossing,
> sextant in hand. He has kept very quiet about that, and it would be
> interesting to discover more. Perhaps I can do so when he and I meet,
> at the Greenwich symposium, next week. I am looking forward to that.
>
> But I must take issue, this Remembrance Day, with a comment he made,
> as follows-
>
> "During the period of interest here, prior to the "Great War" (as I
> think they say in your part of "Old Europe", George) ..."
>
> Not any more, we don't, Wolfgang, I'm pleased to say, though in my
> younger days there may have been a few "old fogeys" that did. To us,
> it's World War 1. I suppose that for a time after its end, such a war
> might have been so exalted by its "victors", but no longer.
> Conversely, it's interesting how, in the absence of a victory, wars
> get forgotten, so that Britain keeps quiet about the Suez invasion
> half a century ago, just as Americans suppress the memory of Vietnam.
>
> George.
>
> contact George Huxtable at george@huxtable.u-net.com
> or at +44 1865 820222 (from UK, 01865 820222)
> or at 1 Sandy Lane, Southmoor, Abingdon, Oxon OX13 5HX, UK.


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