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Russian Ocean Way expedition to continue from Australia on November 3 — executive director

The voyage was disrupted in early September when sharks attacked the Russian sailors’ inflatable catamaran in waters not far from Townsville

MOSCOW, October 27. /TASS/. The Russian Ocean Way round-the-world expedition will resume its circumnavigation on November 3 from Townsville, Queensland, on Australia’s northeastern coast, Yulia Kalyuzhnaya, executive director of the Tomsk Branch of the Russian Geographic Society, told TASS.

The expedition, billed as following "in the footsteps of Russian circumnavigators," started in 2021 from Kronstadt in the Gulf of Finland. The voyage was disrupted in early September when sharks attacked the Russian sailors’ inflatable catamaran in waters not far from Townsville. While the crew was rescued, they were left stranded without a vessel and gear. Earlier in the voyage, they had suffered a wreck and lost their trimaran in the Pacific Ocean.

"Australia has a very welcoming Russian community. A philanthropist provided us with a good hard-hull sailboat. The expedition is set to sail from Townsville to Indonesia on November 3, and then it will most probably start crossing the Indian Ocean and go around Africa," Kalyuzhnaya noted.

A route via the Suez Canal was considered initially but, in view of recent developments in the Middle East, the expedition will probably travel past the Cape of Good Hope, she said. The expedition’s new craft, the Wanderstadt, an 11-meter yacht, is more seaworthy and does not require making frequent stops. However, no final decision on the route has been made yet, she added.