Grands Records - Olivier De Kersauson Talks About The Kerguelen Islands
19 March 19:30

Geronimo and her crew passed the Kerguelen Islands at the beginning of Day 23 of their Jules Verne Trophy attempt. They are now rushing headlong through the Howling Fifties toward Cape Leeuwin, with excellent daily averages, an incredibly buoyant atmosphere on board and wonderful light. Olivier de Kersauson was in excellent spirits when he told us over a radio link earlier today (Friday 19 March) about the fishermen who worked the waters around this island group back in the 19th century.

Q. What do the Kerguelen Islands mean to you? I know you have a friend down there who gives you precise weather information. Has that been important?
Olivier de Kersauson: Yes, very. Being able to talk with people who live down here gives you a much more accurate idea of what the weather situation really is. When I speak to the weather station by phone, I can find out exactly what’s happening at that moment. Alain Lamalle, the man in charge of the station, has been there for 30 years. I know him well through the Institut Polaire in Brest. We meet whenever he comes to Brest, and whenever I’m passing by I call him and spend a bit of time discussing what the weather is like around the islands.

Q. And does he get some of his information from fishing vessels, as well as weather data?
Olivier de Kersauson: No. They have their own weather station and they know the place inside out because they live there. They have a clear idea of how the weather is really developing within a range of about 200 to 500 miles around them.

Q. The Kerguelens have a certain symbolic importance, don’t they? But it’s not the first time you’ve passed this way, is it?
Olivier de Kersauson: No, it’s definitely not the first time! It’s symbolic in the sense that these are the Kerguelen Islands. This island - rather beautiful, but hostile at the same time - sits in an ocean where there’s not much else to talk about, so it’s always emotional. It reminds me of a book I really enjoyed by Rallier du Baty called "Aventures aux Kerguelen". It’s a fantastic story from the 19th century; they set sail with a tuna boat out of Concarneau to catch seals off the Kerguelens. I thought it was an incredible seagoing adventure. It’s hard not to think of that crew coming this far south in those days. It took a lot of guts and a lot of spirit and it was a great thing to do because it was such an adventure.

Q. They really did take a risk. There was no weather forecasting in those days and no information - nothing!
Olivier de Kersauson: No, there wasn’t anything like that. They came to catch seals and sell the oil in Sydney. Rallier du Baty wrote a book about it which was also published in English. Couedel from RTL gave it to me and said: "Read this, it’s fantastic". We managed to secure a Yacht Club de France prize for him, even if it was a century too late. It’s a great story of the sea, moving and very real. It really conjures up those boys with their tuna boat as they fought their way through these incredibly hostile seas. It’s fantastically moving.

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