His son, Barry, sailed the yacht back to Sydney from South Africa where it underwent extensive work to prevent further corrosion. In 1982, Dr. Lewis donated "Ice Bird" to the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney, Australia. After the Ice Bird voyage, Lewis was involved in setting up the Oceanic Research Foundation with the aim of sending private expeditions to the Antarctic. In a 17.4-metre (57 ft) Alan Payne designed steel yacht named "Solo" with seven other crew, Lewis made a summer expedition to Antarctica and wintered over there, 1977–78. Lewis spent some of his later years conducting research into traditional navigation techniques of the Inuit on the Bering Strait region. One obituary said of Lewis that he "always brought his crews home intact. He was a typical Polynesian sailor, getting into trouble through haste and neglect, then, with near superhuman courage and seamanship, fighting his way out of it". Following this, he retired to New Zealand to write his autobiography, Shapes on the Wind; one of 12 books he wrote. In the 2001 Queen's Birthday Honours, Lewis was appointed a Distinguished Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to yachting and exploration. He finally retired to Australia, and died at Gympie, Queensland. See also Celestial navigation Polynesian navigation Micronesian navigation Publications The Ship Would Not Travel Due West, by David H. Lewis, 1961 Dreamers of the Day, by David H. Lewis, 1964 Daughters of the Wind, by David H. Lewis, 1967 Children Of Three Oceans, by David H. Lewis, 1969 We, The Navigators, by David H. Lewis, 1972 Ice Bird, by David H. Lewis, 1976 The Voyaging Stars, by David H. Lewis, 1978 Voyage To The Ice. The Antarctic Expedition of Solo, by David H. Lewis, 1979 Icebound In Antarctica, by David H. Lewis with Mimi George, 1988 Shapes on the Wind, by David H. Lewis, 2000 References Further reading 1917 births 2002 deaths British emigrants to New Zealand British sailors New Zealand sailors 20th-century New Zealand medical doctors Distinguished Companions of the New Zealand Order of Merit Single-handed circumnavigating sailors Hōkūleʻa British Army personnel of World War II Alumni of the University of Leeds Polynesian navigation