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satori9904/03/20252 repliesview on HN

I recall reading Kay Cottee's account of her solo unassisted circumnavigation in 1988. She was the first woman to do so.

Part of her preparation was removing the labels from all tinned food, and then re-writing what was in the can with a permanent marker on the lid, before fully immersing each can in laquer. Presumably this was done to help deal with corrosion problems.


Replies

frenchman_in_ny04/03/2025

I think a big reason why cruising sailors would remove the labels is that there's a belief that cockroaches & other bugs would lay eggs in the paper / glue [0], and having an infestation on a sailboat is then challenging to deal with while at sea.

[0] https://www.spinsheet.com/cruising/sailors-offer-tips-long-t...

rkhassen904/03/2025

For a long trip like that, I can see it, but 24 days…!

Neat story through!!