Sea Gypsies

[Thagarr]

I was doing my usual daily searches today when I ran across an interesting sailing video, of which of course, I have seen plenty. Few however have grabbed my attention like this one! It is a rough cut of a trailer for an upcoming documentary called Sea Gypsies.

Well, that of course got me wondering who are these people, and why are they willingly sailing through hurricane force winds in a motorized sail boat in Antarctica?? The answer I found, certainly wasn't the one I was expecting! I dug deeper and found an earlier trailer on Vimeo.

Ok, more cool sailing in Antarctica, a little bit more of an explanation, lack of official permits and penguins! I cant even begin to describe what these people do and do it any justice, so I won't even try. I will let them, and their videos speak for themselves. There was a bit more information in the description of the video :

Trailer in progress for what is planned as a full length feature sometime in 2015...or 2016.
This is a story of escaping modern civilization and living life as a Sea Gypsy, itinerant explorers and wanderers of the wild oceans. One year of exploring some of the last great wild lands, the remote islands of the South Pacific, the icy fingers of Antarctica and the isolated fjords of Patagonia.
Our mode of transport and home is Infinity, a 120ft sailing Katch made of reinforced ferro cement, tough stuff. Think of a bunker, that due to the miracle of water displacement, floats.
She is the home of Capt. Clemens Gabriel, his girlfriend Sage and their two daughters Rhianne (born in Fiji) and Chloe (born in Thailand), Infinity Expedition is also the home away from home for an ever-changing cast of characters, the sea tribe.
The tribe is a patchwork of eccentric peoples from around the globe, a community formed through shared experience. Infinity is a magnet for restless searchers. Drawn primarily by word of mouth, they represent all ages and nationalities and bring with them a variety of life experience: from professional sailors to gap year college kids, itinerant wanderers to NASA rocket scientists. Some join at one island and leave at the next, some stay for years. This is not a cruise though, there are no guests, only crew and everyone works… except the babies.
Filmed on magic lantern RAW hack, pirate software for a pirate boat.

And this one over on Youtube :

Then I found their web page over at www.infinityexpedition.org, where they have an even more detailed description of who they are and what they do, and even better, how you can join them! The term Sea Gypsies is very appropriate! They have been doing these voyages since 2004, why have a never heard of these people before?? These guys are awesome!

There are far more videos than I could possibly ever post here on both their channels on Vimeo and Youtube. I highly recommend you have a look through them, they are absolutely incredible! You can also follow their sailing adventures through Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr.

 

[Hylie Pistof]

Ayup! These folks seem to be the real deal.


It looks like the process of forming concrete hulls has gotten much better over the decades. The first ones were built in WWII and were crude. There is one wrecked on the California coast.

 

[Thagarr]

Indeed, they are! I have been reading through their web page, the blog and looking at the pics and videos, absolutely incredible. I am still at a loss for words. That kind of freedom is something I think we all strive for, but very few actually achieve.

Though it is certainly not without it's problems, anyone considering one of these trips should certainly read their "is it right for me" page. I also ran across THIS post from someone who had recently spent 6 weeks aboard, not exactly a glowing review.

 

[Hylie Pistof]

Read that review. Having spent time in close cramped quarters for extended periods of time most of the issues are pretty much normal for the situation. That said, the captain not taking care of basic cleanliness is inexcusable. That guy's bread ain't quite done.

 

[Thagarr]

As you say mate, a lot of those issues are to be expected, but I agree, the sanitation issues are inexcusable. Especially with children on board.

 

[Infinity Expedition]

Hi Thagarr, thank you for your nice words! Yeah, we're all onboard enjoying the incredible freedom of our lifestyles. We've been lucky to be able to share our adventures and lifestyles with hundreds of amazing people from all over the world over the last 10+ years, and are always welcoming new friends into our pirate family.

Living on a boat is indeed not without its challenges, and we want to be honest about that to avoid any disappointment. That's why we have put the 'is it right for me' page up on our website. Luckily a stay on Infinity has been a positive and life-changing experience for virtually all of our visiting crew!
Regarding the negative review you have posted, sadly many of the elements described are due to miscommunication between this guest and crew, and also things are portrayed different than the reality was at the time. And yes, on a ship in the tropics you will be fighting coakroaches all the time, and I'm happy to say that the situation is totally under control right now! Also we have changed some things, and our core crew now cooks 3 meals a day, and takes care of the daily cleaning of the ship.

Please look on our website pages to find some more recent blogs about life on Infinity.

If you ever find yourself near Infinity, you have an invite to come onboard and meet the crew over a few beers!

Pirate hugs from Kavieng, Papua New Guinea
Infinity crew

 

[Thagarr]

Thanks for the invitation, I hope one day to maybe be able to take you up on it! I have been watching quite a few of your videos, and you are all certainly living an adventure most of the rest of us can only dream about! Thanks for sharing! Thanks also for clearing up some points in that review, it's always good to get both sides of the story, I am sure there are some quite challenging conditions at some points during your voyages. I am also sure by the videos, that it is well worth it! I am really looking forward to seeing the full documentary when it is finished.