After a 10-day stop-over in Honolulu to carry out emergency repairs to his mast, global adventurer Adrian Flanagan is undersail once more. Flanagan who set sail from Falmouth on 28 October on his 11m stainless steel sloop and is now nearly seven months into his westabout round the world global voyage slipped his mooring at Waikiki Yacht Club at 1330 on Wednesday.

Commenting on his return to sea Flanagan said: “After the excitement of touching land after six months alone, it now feels strange to once again find myself on the wide ocean with only Barrabas as company.

“As I watched the mountains of Oahu and the high-rises of Honolulu fade into the mists of low cloud a certain sadness descended at leaving a group of new found friends who have, by their help now become an integral part of the Alpha Global story. Commodore of the Waikiki Yacht Club, Ivan Chan Wa was inexhaustible in his efforts to locate the right people to carry out the work on Barrabas and Rear Commodore for Sail, Michael Roth was equally generous with his time.

“With the replacement parts organised and sent out to Honolulu by Louise, I was able to substitute the electronic control head for the heating system and the body of my Ampair wind generator. A tricky piece of work involved replacing and rewiring the voltage converter unit that powers the ship’s computer. All theses systems are now fully functional. Dan Toye of Electro Marine Services charged up the boat’s battery bank and we put the batteries through a thorough health check. I had been concerned that there may have been a current leak, but Dan, using a galvanic meter allayed my fears.

I took the mainsail to North Sails Hawaii for minor repairs. There, Jim Maselli wasted no time in getting to work, immediately appreciating the need for urgency.

“The repairs to the mast took place last Friday. Two 3 inch square, 1/4 inch thick plates were welded to the damaged area and a new through-bolt made to take the lower shroud tangs. Despite the repair, I am mindful that there is a weakness now and will need to modify my sailing strategy accordingly. This means reefing the sail down at lower wind thresholds than previously. The consequence will be slightly slower boat speed but this will be mitigated by the gains that will inevitably be made by having had the hull scraped.

“My immediate task is to reach my selected antipodal point south east of Japan, a distance of 3,200 miles. There is a concern now that the Typhoon season has begun and it was with considerable trepidation that I learned of a big storm hitting Japan just recently.

“After 10 days ashore it will take a little time for me and Barrabas to settle back into our previously established routines but I am fuelled by the kindness, graciousness and generosity of those I met in Honolulu.”