Teen sailor nears Horn

THE SOUTHLAND TIMES

JESSICA WATSON: Had a rough few days after being hit by a raging storm in the southern Atlantic.

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The grandfather of Jessica Watson, the Australian teenager trying a sail solo nonstop around the world, said she could be rounding the treacherous Cape Horn at the weekend.

The Horn, off the southernmost archipelago of South America, is widely regarded as one of the most challenging navigational tests in yachting.

Gordon Chisholm, of Cromwell, said his 16-year-old granddaughter was doing well after 79 days at sea.

The teenager, who he described as "a wee bit unique", spent Christmas and New Year battling the elements in the Southern Ocean on her way to the Horn.

She had encountered a storm, with 5m swells and 80kmh winds, and was "amazing everybody" with her resilience, he said.

In a few days her family and supporters would have a better idea when Jessica and her 10m yacht Ella's Pink Lady would be tackling the Horn, he said.

"It could be this weekend.

"It depends on the weather patterns," he said.

Ms Watson called her family in New Zealand at Christmas for a few words and her family had hidden gifts and treats in the yacht, he said. "She had a whole range of knickknacks stowed away.

"Her mother and grandmother hid things around the boat."

Ms Watson aimed to arrive in Australia in May but during December she sailed more than her planned 180km a day, he said.

At that rate she could be home from her 42,500km voyage a month early.

In the teenager's latest blog entry for January 2 she said that she spent the morning "doing jobs on deck and soaking in the lovely sunshine".

But on Sunday she was battling another storm, sailing in 55kmh winds and a 4m swell.

An Indian naval sailing yacht, a faster craft than Ms Watson's, was about 650km west of the Ella's Pink Lady and it was possible the two would round the Horn about the same time, he said.

Commander Dilip Dhonde embarked on the first Indian attempt at solo circumnavigation of the world on August 19.

- © Fairfax NZ News