Papyrus Raft Half-way There

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32031, 4 July 1969, Page 11

Papyrus Raft Half-way There

(N.Z.P.A.-Reuter—Copyright)

ST PETERSBURG (Florida), July 3

Mr Thor Heyerdahl’s papyrus raft Ra has passed the half-way point on its voyage from Africa to the New World.

Despite many problems, mostly resulting from rough i seas, the raft and its international crew of seven continues to sail steadily west- ; wards, averaging about 60 miles a day. In a long talk this morning with a Florida amateur radio enthusiast, the Ra’s radio operator, Mr Norman Baker, said that the crew hoped to increase the craft’s speed by improving its rudder and sail rigging. Today’s report places the Ra 1400 miles due east of the j ; Lesser Antilles, and about'

2600 miles east-south-east of Miami.

While the raft is very much at the mercy of wind and current, it now appears likely that the expedition may sail into the Caribbean, near St Lucia or Martinique, by the end of July. The Ra is encountering increasingly warm weather as it moves westwards, and the crew frequently enjoys the luxury of sunbathing and swimming near the raft. Foggy nights and hazy mornings regularly give way to bright, sunlit afternoons.