Issue #19 - The Pyrates Way

called Yucuruchi close to the confluence of the Maraqsn,Ucayali and Amazon rivers.They took advantage of heavy rain and poor visibilityto stage their raid.They are reported to have overcome two police officersguarding the ship after a similar attack nine days earlier beforegetting the holidaymakers out of their beds and forcingthem to hand over their valuables at gunpoint.The area where the raid happened is near the city ofNauta, the capital of Loreto province.The piratical attacks are not restricted to the present,in 1974, lifelong sailor and writer for the Huffington PostReid Stowe was on his catamaran on the Amazon Riverwhen he and a friend were captured by pirates. They weretied up for three nights andtwo days while the piratesstripped the boat and arguedamongst themselves. They letthem live and left them tiedup on the floor. They untiedthemselves and sailed out ofthe Amazon to Martinique.Stowe’s little catamaranTantra was left anchored alone in the pirate's den.Four months after his pirate experience atthe age of 22, Stowewent back to theAmazon and stolehis catamaran out of thepirate's den. He sailedup to Martinique whereStowe rejoined hisfriends.Some pirate operationsinvolve stealingfrom smugglers, a dangerous business that is commonplacein major ports the world over, but especially in Brazil. Commoditiesin this case can involve anything from narcotics tovarious technologies to exotic animals.yachts have increased dramatically, they're often unreported,partially because those who sail yachts for pleasure don'tfeel that being attacked by pirates fits their image.Many private yacht owners don't report incidents eitherbecause of trauma or embarrassment, or becausethey feel that authorities can't or won't helpthem. Over the decades, many yachts have simplyvanished and no one knows what happened tothem. They could have been lostto an acident, or they couldhave fallen victim to piracy,but there's no way to knowfor certain.KILL FOR THE RUMDIE BY THE BLADEOf course Yacht piracy is more prevalent and more violentthan the general public may realize. While attacks onLIVING THE PYRATES WAYÂPrevious Page Issue 19 The Pyrates Way 29 www.pyratesway.com Spring 2013 Next PageÂ