AHODORI & Yoh’s circumnavigation

The ketch AHODORI 2 is a 21-foot plywood boat built by her skipper Yoh Aoki at his back yard taking 2 years.
When Yoh was 22 years old, he left Osaka in Japan for the circumnavigation the globe by himself.
He had no engine, no radio, no GPS, only a sextant and a compass.
Yoh was luckily sailed home on 1974 after 3 years and 2 months lonesome journey on the sea, calling at San Francisco, Acapulco, Galapagos islands, Easter island, Buenos Aires, Cape town and Sydney.
No such a small boats like a 21-foot has attempted to sail around the world via Cape Horn.

His 1972 Cape Horn passage was miraculous Yoh says.
“A wave he recalls as being about 100 feet high turned his vessel upside down before another wave somehow righted the craft. “The upside-down boat had started sinking because a lot of water came into the cabin” .

His boat is registered on the Guiness book of record as the smallest boat ever circumnavigated the world via Cape Horn. The record is also introduced to Captain Joshua Slocum Society’s book.
His boat AHODORI 2 has been now displayed at the EXPO ’70 Museum Park in Osaka.

If you like to read more about the story, check “Yoh & Ahoudori” book in English. Also his recent books “Inner sailing 1“,” 2” and “ 3” are best selling  in Japan and Korea as sailing text books.

Aoki is also conducting a monthly Zen meeting at Zigenin temple in OSAKA. Feel free to join the meetings.

And now, Yoh is running Aoki yacht school in Osaka.

Yoh's circumnavigation route
Yoh’s circumnavigation route taking 3 years & 2 months