New York City artist and sailor Reid Stowe, (59) and photographer Soanya Ahmad (28), the couple who sailed the longest sea voyage in history are now preparing for another adventure, this time to the jungles of Guyana with six people on their crew, most of whom have never been on the ocean before. They will depart on Nov.30, 2011.
Their diverse crew will consist of nine people: six men, three females. After the Anne returned from her record breaking three year sail in June 2010, she was still seaworthy but in dire need of maintenance. A year and a half later the worn but proud schooner will finally get the attention she needs. The month long ocean adventure will take the Anne and crew up a jungle river in Guyana where extensive repairs to the 70 ft schooner Anne will be made and then the crew will sail through the Caribbean and back to NYC. The entire voyage will take six months putting their return in May of 2012.
The crew will work with the World Water Rescue Foundation (www.wwrf.org) to foster awareness about the sustainable uses of water. They will also explore archetypal roles set in the context of the deep blue, sometimes stormy, Atlantic ocean and the dangerous yet ecologically rich mystic jungles of El Dorado.
Captain Stowe is a lifelong sea voyager who built the Anne in 1978 in the front yard of his family beach house in North Carolina. Ahmad had no sailing experience and had never been on the ocean until she and Stowe departed land in 2007 to spend 1000 days non-stop at sea. But 306 days into their three year voyage Ahmad had to leave the boat due to being pregnant. She left the Anne holding the record for the longest continuous time a woman as been at sea without re-supply. Stowe returned to land two years later to meet his son for the first time and set a record for the longest time a person has been to sea without re-supplying, 1,152 days non-stop.
Rachel Jameison (26) grew up surfing in Ocean City, NJ but has never sailed on the ocean before. After a short run in the Air Force where she hoped to experience some adventure, but was given a desk job, she expects this voyage will “be a special chance to put down the adventure magazines and pick up my dreams of far away places.”
Carly Tyrens (24) from Brooklyn, NY is an artist/curator. “Not only is this a chance to experience a life changing adventure, but I also see this as an opportunity to grow personally and artistically.”
Alex Sanford (24) from Knocksville, Tennessee worked as a landscaper and a metal worker until a friend told him about this trip. “I love sailing but there aren’t many chances to get on a boat in Tennessee.”
Andy Cronin (28) from Kentucky works as a structural engineer in NYC. “I wanted to gain sailing experience and go on an adventure.”
Dustin Porta (26) from Pennsylvania is a vintner who has done some coastal sailing. He wants to “experience the big ocean and have moments of extended meditation while at sea.”
Josh Grimm (21) from Pennsylvania worked at a small landscape business and is an avid flyfisherman. “I never heard of Guyana and so my interest was immediately sparked. To go on a trip like this is an opportunity that you can almost NOT pass up.”
Please visit the official website at www.1000days.net to read regular blogs from the Anne, see her preparations, and much more.
