JOIN THE CREW ON ‘TALISKER BOUNTY BOAT CHALLENGE DAY’
- Raise Money for SIF on Sunday, 16th May -

11th May, 2010 – The crew of the Talisker Bounty Boat has launched a fundraising challenge from their boat in the middle of the expedition to raise money for the expedition’s nominated charity, the Sheffield Institute Foundation.

The crew are launching this appeal as they struggle with surviving on the same food and drink rations that were available to Captain Bligh 221 years ago. ‘Talisker Bounty Boat Challenge Day’ will take place on Sunday, 16th May. Members of the public are invited to mimic the rations available to each crew member on board the Talisker Bounty Boat with money saved on a day’s food being donated via the website http://www.justgiving.com/bountyboatadventure.

The crew made the appeal having survived gale force winds, near ‘reef’ misses, the first knock-down, and almost losing the first Talisker Bounty Boat crew member.

Whilst on an uninhabited island in Fiji, British crew member David Wilkinson announced his decision to quit the expedition as he struggled with the rations endured by Captain William Bligh and his crew 221 years previously. With skipper Don McIntyre close to calling out a reserve crew member, David Wilkinson re-considered his options and pledged to finish the expedition, much to the relief and joy of his fellow crew-members.

The crew of the Talisker Bounty Boat is now sailing towards Vanuato, a string of more than 80 islands formerly known as the New Hebrides. In his original voyage Captain Bligh and his crew decided not to stop on the islands for fear of attack, even in the face of extreme thirst and hunger. True to the original voyage of Bligh, the crew of the Talisker Bounty Boat will not stop, sailing around the top end of the islands before heading to Australia and the Great Barrier Reef.

Conditions are testing as the boat is filling with two litres of water the boat and being pumped out every hour. The crew is also desperate for rain and is hopeful as conditions are overcast with winds from the North-East. With no rain since the expedition began fresh water supplies are beginning to run-low.

With McIntyre and the crew getting closer to the experience of Captain Bligh, Don commented: “Adventure is anything with an unknown outcome and we're in the middle of a big one right now. We don't know what's going to happen in the future, but that's all part of it.”

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