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At sixty-five Francis Chichester set out to sail single-handed round the world. This is the story of that adventure.
弗朗西斯·奇切斯特在六十五岁时开始了只身环球航行。本文记述的就是这一冒险故事。
Sailing Round the World
环球航行
Before he sailed round the world single-handed, Francis Chichester had already surprised his friends several times. He had tried to fly round the world but failed. That was in 1931.
弗朗西斯·奇切斯特在独自驾船作环球航行之前，已有好几次让他的朋友们感到吃惊了。他曾试图作环球飞行，但没有成功。那是1931年。
The years passed. He gave up flying and began sailing. He enjoyed it greatly. Chichester was already 58 years old when he won the first solo transatlantic sailing race. His old dream of going round the world came back, but this time he would sail. His friends and doctors did not think he could do it, as he had lung cancer. But Chichester was determined to carry out his plan. In August, 1966, at the age of nearly sixty-five, an age when many men retire, he began the greatest voyage of his life. Soon, he was away in his new 16- metre boat, Gipsy Moth.
好多年过去了。他放弃了飞行，开始航海。他领略到航海的巨大乐趣。奇切斯特在首届横渡大西洋单人航海比赛中夺魁时，已经五十八岁。他周游世界的宿愿重又被唤起，不过这一次他是要驾船环游。由于他患有肺癌，朋友们和医生们都认为他不该去，但奇切斯特决意实施自己的计划。1966年8月，在他快满六十五岁的时候——许多人在这个年龄已经退休——他开始了一生中最了不起的一次航海。不久，他就驾着那艘16米长的新船吉普赛·莫思号启程出海了。
Chichester followed the route of the great nineteenth century clipper ships. But the clippers had had plenty of crew. Chichester did it all by himself, even after the main steering device had been damaged by gales. Chichester covered 14,100 miles before stopping in Sydney, Australia. This was more than twice the distance anyone had previously sailed alone.
奇切斯特沿着19世纪大型三桅帆船的航线航行。不过，三桅帆船拥有众多船员，而奇切斯特却是独个儿扬帆破浪，即使在主要转舵装置被大风刮坏之后仍是这样。奇切斯特一直航行了14100英里，到了澳大利亚的悉尼港才停船靠岸。这段航程比以往单人驾舟航海的最远航程还多一倍多。
He arrived in Australia on 12 December, just 107 days out from England. He received a warm welcome from the Australians and from his family who had flown there to meet him. On shore, Chichester could not walk without help. Everybody said the same thing: he had done enough; he must not go any further. But he did not listen.
他于12月12日抵达澳大利亚，这一天正是他离开英国的第107天。他受到澳大利亚人和乘飞机专程前去迎接他的家人们的热烈欢迎。奇切斯特上岸后，得由人搀扶着才能行走。大家众口一词，说他已航行得够远了，不要再继续向前航行了。但他却置若罔闻。
After resting in Sydney for a few weeks, Chichester set off once more in spite of his friends' attempts to dissuade him. The second half of his voyage was by far the more dangerous part, during which he sailed round the treacherous Cape Horn.
在悉尼休息了几周之后，他不顾朋友们的多方劝阻，再次扬帆出航。这后半段航程更为艰险，在此期间，他绕过了险情四伏的合恩角。
