1,152-Day Ocean Adventure Combines Willpower, Solar Power

Posted by EcoFriendly

May 21

On June 17, Reid Stowe will make oceanic history when he docks his Schooner Anne at Pier 81 in the New York Harbor. At that moment, he will have finished the longest sea voyage in history, spanning 1152 days. The trip started on April 21, 2007, when Stowe and his partner, Soanya Ahmad, set sail and will finally end next month, after more than three years at sea without being re-supplied.

mars ocean odyssey reid

Soanya only made it through 306 days on the trip before being forced to disembark due to morning sickness. But even in that time, she set the record for longest nonstop sea voyage for a woman.

Since her departure, Reid has sailed the remaining two-plus years primarily alone, using only willpower and the comfort of internet technology to overcome long periods of solitude and the rigors of life on the ocean. The trip was originally intended to last 1,000 days, but that would have brought Stowe back when winter storms were at their strongest in the North Atlantic. So he postponed his arrival for another 152 days by sailing the Atlantic doldrums until summer, rather than winter, was in full-swing.

When Reid and Soanya embarked in 2007, they left with a three-year supply of food, beans for sprouting, tarps to catch rainwater, a laptop, satellite phone, satellite tracking unit and solar panels to power it all. By Day 15 they had survived a collision with a freighter, and since then, Reid has dealt with both minor and major repairs using limited supplies.

The trip was inspired by the as of yet unattempted voyage to Mars, hence the name Mars Ocean Odyssey given to the voyage by Stowe. A Mars trip would also entail about three years in isolation in a single self-reliant vessel.

Upon returning, Stowe will finally be reunited with his partner, Ahmad, and meet his son, Darshen, for the first time, who was conceived at sea and is turning two years old. There will be a welcome-back flotilla on the Hudson River to accompany Stowe on the final leg of his record-setting journey. It is a more-the-merrier sort of event, so if you’ve got a boat and can get yourself to New York Harbor by June 17, 2010, you can register to participate in the event at 1000days.net.

See that very same website for more information, including ways to help, and to follow Reid’s blog as he and the Schooner Anne sail through their last month at sea.

Via Sail World
Photo Credit: Peter Greenberg