"HERE WE ARE."

Auckland Star, Volume LXII, Issue 4, 6 January 1931, Page 9

"HERE WE ARE."

SAILED FROM NORWAY.

SMALL YACHT ARRIVED.

YOUNG COUPLE WITH SON BORN ON VOYAGE.

DARING VOYAGERS' STORY.

A small, strange craft worked her way up to the Rangitoto Channel this morning, and, amidst speculation as to her identity, broke out the Norwegian flag. The visitor proved to be the yacht Teddy of Larvia, on which are Mr. Erling Tambs, his wife, and child, who are making a trip round the world. Long ago when the world was young, and the knowledge of the world W3S confined to Europe and the northern fringe of Africa, and when man used to speak of the fringe of the northern ocean, giants with flaxen hair and blue eyes sailed out into the unknown, in double-beaked long boats, with a square strip of sail. They dared all there was to dare, and their memory has never faded. This morning there crept into the harbour such another craft, doublebowed, and of a similar length, which, with a crew of a man and hie wife, their infant eon, and a straight-liaired dog, has sailed across the world over two years. This boat and crew, like those of old, are Norwegian.

Son Born in Canary Islands. This morning, when the Teddy dropped anchor across the harbour under Stanley Bay, it looked little different from the other yachts which drop in and out of the Waitcmata; but instead of returning from a Christmas cruise, it had come from. Samoa. Two years and four months ago it left Oslo. Erling Tarabs and his wife, both of whom speak good English, just left the life tliev lived, and, to use their own words to-day, "Here we are.' 5 When they left Oslo they crossed to the Canary island?, where their son was born. Perhaps because of his birthplace they called him Antonio. He is the treasure of the ship. "Then we came across the Atlantic," said the shipper, much in the same way as a transliarbour dweller would speak of a trip across to town, "to the West Indies." There, in the manner of those who do not own time as a master, they idled a way lazy days until they divided to come through the Panama Canal to Papeete. Another nonchalant gesture, and most of the .Pacific was passed. Through the various island groups they made a leisurely way until they looked into Suva and came on to Pago Pago, in .Samoa. There they ran into bad weather. "It blew," said the captain, in his careful, clipped English, "to beat the band." From there they crossed without the aid of a chart to Auckland in 24 days. This part of the trip, ac-, cording to .airs. Tanibs, was the most tlying, because herhusband was sick, , she herself did not ,feel well, and tliere_ . : nc>body rto• ■ - navigate the : -craft ? ' properly. - "When we left the Islands my husband poisoned his finger, and it was very bad," she added. "He was too ill to leave his bunk, except to look at the sun at mid-day. After setting a■, storm jib $he let the boat take her own course. For 14 days not one of us touched the tiller, yet here wc are safe and sound. That is the advan:ag2 of having an old pilot ' vessel to rely 'on." Followed by Shark. Mrs. Tanibs could see nothing very unusual about the long tri- that they had made, and the prospect of crossing the Tasman to Australia left.her undismayed; but of onSginc-ident, an accident which almost befall her little ■ jn, she spoke with agitation. When the Teddy was* just clear of Samoa the bov was playing on deck. He had a smad fishing line over the side w.th a piece of rag instead of a- hook. Mr?. Tambs suddenly missed the noise of his play- . ing, and, on going up, found him gazing intentlv over the side into the cold, small eves of a huge shark. She drove the monster away, but all that it did was to sink and then come up on the other . side of the boat. The snark followed them for days. Since leaving Oslo the crew of the Teddy have had a fair share of adventure - They have met storms and calms, shortage of water and provisions, they have known sickness and they know what it is to sail blindly looking ior a hidden landfall, but through it all they have managed somehow to come through without serious accident. The excited yapping of a dog greeted the small fleet of launches which quickly surrounded the Teddy practically as soon as she dropped anchor, and then ou o the steep companionway there appeared the peaked cap of the skipper oi the vacht. Behind him was the sun-tanned face of his wife, in a hat which looked as though it had weathered many storms. Small Antonio had a smile icr everyone. v A Good Sea Boat. Once on board the visitor could easily see why the Larvik had the name for beinc a good sea boat. She was 40ft in length, but her fceam would scarcely allow it. She is very solid and very roomy, but for all that every available inch of- deck space was taken up w'uh an orderly array of ropes and chains. Lp for'ard was a big drag anchor and a small surfing dinghy. The were well worn and patched, and the showed evidences of long wear. She> is rigged just like an ordinary yacht, with the mainsail and the jibs. The gaff and boom are much lieavier than the average on yachts, and the mast looks almost stumpy. Down below, in the cabin, the living quarters are very comfortable, but lice again there is the same story of an economy of space. To get into the cabin one has to go down a ladder of some six steps, but once there it is possibfealmost to stand upright inside the "living room," a fact which every yachtsman will appreciate. The place is lined with cupboards, and every one is filled to capacity. One is for the charts, one is for the flags, one contains crockery, and so on. The impression is that nothing could ever get in a muddle, that thing is in its place, where one's finger could be laid on it at a minute's notice. Mr. Tambs said that about a week ago the Teddy was becalmed in the vicinity of the Kermadec Islands. A fresh breeze came up and they were soon on the way to New Zealand. He was not a bit sure about his landfall, but picked his wav in past the Barriei Islands, past' fir, and thence up the irulflane to the reef. They knew then that tliev were in in the vicinity of .'"• •kland, and they flew tHeir national • urs so that they would be piloted in.,

May Stay Two Months,

The skipper said that their future movements were a bit indefinite. They would stay about two months to refit, and then they would start the first leg of their long voyage back to their beloved Oslo. Mrs. Tamtfe confessed that she would be pleased when they were safely back in their native land. Young Antonio beamed smiles at all the visitors, and if he qould express an opinion he would probably say that Auckland was a very nice place. The straighthaired dog also seemed pleased. There was a very wistful look in his eyes as he braced his legs on the edge of the decking and looked long and searchingly at the shore. There is not a single rat to chase on the Teddy, and the last, cat he saw was on a Norwegian quay over two years ago.