Just finished watching a PBS Nova special on Ernest Shakelton's failed attempt to cross Antarctica. After getting his ship the Endurance smashed up and sunk in pack ice he and his 28 man crew wound up marooned on a remote rock called Elephant island. At this point he decided to take a handful of his men to try and reach a place called South Georgia island in a 22 foot open lifeboat...the island was 800 miles away. The boat had no motor, no epirb, no gps, no lifejackets, and no bilge pumps to stop the leaks. On top of this the Southern Ocean is one of the roughest bodies of water on the planet. Anyway do to incredible skill and luck, Shakelton and his crew made it to South Georgia Island, crossed over the interior of the island and reached a whaling station. Later that year after two failed attempts he was able to return to Elephant island and rescue the rest of his crew--all who survived. This was an amazing story.
Also, back in the 18th century Captain William Bligh (you know HMS Bounty) led a voyage of 18 of his crew in a small open boat (23 feet by 6 feet 9 inches). The men spent 42 days at sea and crossed over 3600 miles of ocean from Tafoa in the Tonga Island Group to Kapang on the Island of Timour. They sailed through the Fiji Islands, New Hebrides, NW Australian coast, through the Torres Strait, and across the Arafure and Timor Seas to reach the Dutch settlement.
After considering these two stories I couldn't help but think that with all the talk about going off-shore in small boats, what would Shakelton and Bligh have to add to our discussion?
Bottom line is that there is no substitute for seamanship except good fortune. Think about that the next time yoy decide to venture off-shore. | 
