Joakim wrote:

Graham, I now realise that you were the original poster of that June 23rd update, and also the author of the wonderful Hall of Fame article!

Kris Larsen has made a real impression on me, as Slocum, Moitessier and Blondie has for older generations. Reading about his life has awaken in me a longing for that self-reliance and freedom that he seeked. I don't think I have it in me to live quite like Kris, but I share many of his values and admire his commitment to his ethos. Thank you for introducing me to this very special sailor and human being.

If anybody has a copy of Monsoon Dervish that they can part with, please get in touch.

Hi.  I posted those reports on Facebook at the request of some friends of Kris, in the hope of reaching a wider audience through various groups I am a member of.  I did manage to establish some further facts but not much.  It is now up to the person who Kris appointed as his shoreside contact in Darwin to decide whether or not to file a missing person report with local authorities.  He remains understandably reluctant to do so, as Kris was fiercely independent and preferred to go his own way.

Writing the Junk Rig Hall of Fame brought me into contact with many extraordinary characters, with whom it was a privilege to correspond and sometimes meet.  Kris is one of the most fascinating sailors I have known, truly independent, willing to accept the consequences of that freedom, as well as being a deeply philosophical and culturally nuanced individual.  I hope he turns up one day, having decided to 'go off the beaten track' again, as he has before, but this time the evidence seems to suggest that he may be lost at sea, since he was suffering serious heart problems when he left Rabaul, and planned to return to Darwin.  That journey should have only taken 1-3 months, even with adverse conditions.

Whatever the outcome, he remains one of the most authentic people you could meet, and Monsoon Dervish deserves to be hailed as a classic of sea literature.  Sadly, this genre of literature no longer commands the wide public interest it once did, and I doubt a mainstream publisher would be willing to take on the book.  As I wrote in my recent memoir, we have lived through the last days of the Slocum era. 

I've just read about Kris Larsen and his wonderful life and adventures, so I was sad to learn that he's not been heard of for a long time.

I did some online trawling and found a couple of updates from people in his network.

First this, from June 17th:

Last we heard of him he was in Rabaul, PNG in October - November, and planning to leave for Mexico across the North Pacific. He befriended Rod (72) a yachtsman living in Rabaul.

Then this, from June 23rd:

The inquiry as to the possible whereabouts of our friend, Kris Larsen, of the junk-rigged sloop, Kehaar, continues. I have been contacted by a sailor who lives in Rabaul, Rod Pearce, who assisted Kris during the month Kehaar was anchored in Rabaul Harbour. It appears that Kris stopped there to seek medical attention, and while there it was determined that he had developed heart arrhythmia, but he was unable to receive appropriate treatment there due to civil unrest that had closed the hospital. Despite being weak and sick, he eventually got assistance to lift his dinghy on deck and sailed away on around 20 November 2023, telling Rod that he intended to return to Darwin to get medical treatment. I have talked to his friend in Darwin, Attila Vedo, and confirmed that he has not made landfall there.

Unfortunately, not very uplifting. We can only hope he is out there somewhere, sailing under the radar.

Igor Kiporouk, who translated Monsoon Dervish into Russian, had this to say:

They just write that there is no news from him. This is normal for Kris. Although at sea, anything can happen. When he left New Guinea, he did not feel very well. Let's hope he shows up.