Pelagic 77 is one of a kind

Pelagic 77 - extreme expedition yacht. This is the last and largest project Pelagic.77 ft. Vinson of Antarctica... The boat was created in collaboration with the legendary adventurer and shipping sailor Skip Novak.

Pelagic squared his shoulders ...

Against the backdrop of this 77-foot colossus, any other yacht looks fragile and destructible. Designer Tony Castro calls his creation "the beast" ..

Named after the continent's tallest mountain, Pelagic 77 Vinson of Antarctica  was built with the harshest conditions in mind. It has everything you need to sail for six weeks to the most remote places, where there are no repair shops and no medical assistance.

The boat was built for a Chilean businessman and adventurer Nicholas Ibanez for use in science, filmmaking and sailing training. also, the yacht was designed in collaboration between Tony Castro and seafarer Skip Novak.

Dimensions (edit) Pelagic 77 complies with the MGN 280 code for small commercial vessels up to 24 meters in length. However, it can comfortably carry 10 guests and four crew members.

For Skip Novak, a no-nonsense guy and a tough sea dog, a true expedition yacht is a "taxi to the snow line," not a boat in the traditional sense of the word. It is a simple, clean, working "workhorse." Maintenance should be as simple as possible. Visible, purely cosmetic wear and tear is irrelevant.

Still, Skip values comfort: “We were always warm and dry, ate and drank exceptionally well, slept well, and enjoyed good conversation and fun.” A yacht of this type, tough and uncompromising on the outside, has everything you need for your time of life. Nothing more.

Pelagic 77 and fully manual control

It takes a fair amount of effort to raise the sails and mizzen Pelagic 77. There are no push-button winches or hydraulics here. “That’s not my style of sailing at all. We wanted manual winches because where we go there are no marine services, no amenities,” Skip explains. 

"Another thing is that if there are amateur yachtsmen or just guests on board, then you can't let them near such winches. Otherwise, goodbye fingers. The boat is oriented towards sailing, so it has simple systems."

For better control and sail management, the shipyard had to divide all the sails into conventional "zones", each of which was responsible for its own set of winches. This is not the same as having two different winches responsible for the staysail and mainsail. In the case of the Pelagic 77, the sails are divided into entire sections with separate control.

"On Pelagic Australis "We kept a detailed sail log. It turned out that the time we had all of our sails in use was less than 10%," Skip says.

Body and Soul Pelagic 77

Aluminum was the obvious building material. In turn, the company KM Yachtbuilders in the Netherlands was the obvious choice as a specialist in building robust and professionally equipped yachts.

"It all comes down to maintenance. However, there is no need to paint aluminum, it is easy to maintain, durable and suitable for custom boat building," explains Skip.

Comfort below deck

At sea, the wheelhouse with its saloon and chart table is the real heart of the yacht. In addition, here in the saloon, six to eight people can be accommodated at a time, and the helmsman's chair and sofa offer panoramic views.

Skip once bragged that he crossed the Drake Passage on Pelagic Australiswithout taking off your slippers or wearing protective equipment. And the crew of this boat can swim in pajamas if they wish.

The interior and deckhouse of the Pelagic 77 can be described as a warm, dry and protected place, as well as a safe place for sailing on the sea in all conditions.

Ready for the flight!

Vinson of Antarctica Will leave the UK in June to travel north to Norway, where she will gather a team of geologists and travel to Svalbard. This expedition will be led by Skip himself, but Kenneth Perdigon is the permanent captain of the boat.

14.09.2021