1000 Days at Sea - Non-Stop!

Reid Stowe and Soanya Ahmad have been sailing aboard the schooner Anne in the “1000 Days at Sea” for over 306 days now. Unfortunately, due to Soanya's seasickness over the last few months, Soanya and Reid agreed that it would be best for her health if she leave the boat. Soanya has been picked up at sea off the coast of Freemantle Australia by a yacht from the Royal Perth Yacht Club. Reid will continue with the 1000 day non-stop voyage alone.

Reid Stowe is the principal designer and builder of the Anne, a 70 ft. (21.3 m.), 60 ton (54,400 kg) gaff-rigged schooner upon which Stowe has lived for 20 years. Stowe has previously sailed the Anne to Antarctica (with a crew of eight) and sailed several extended out-of-sight of land voyages, the longest of which was six months.

Soanya embarked on this voyage with very little sailing experience. She handled photography, computers and communication, as well as overseeing food supplies and preparing meals. However, since entering the Roaring 40s in late November, Soanya has suffered from recurring and disabling seasickness, resulting in her loss of appetite, dramatic weight loss, and apathy. In calmer weather, she was able to eat and actively contribute to shipboard activities. Though her condition was not life threatening, sea conditions continued to compromise Soanya’s condition. Reid and Soanya together agreed that she transfer off the boat in order to preserve her health.

From Reid: "After a long rough haul and a lot of seasickness, Soanya and I have decided that the best thing for her is to go back to land. I will continue on the Mars Ocean Odyssey since this is my life at sea. I have prepared for this for many years and have always said that I would go on alone if I had to. It's more rough and tough in a lot of ways to stay at sea, more than can be imagined by people who haven't gone on for months on end. It's a common human dream to go on the sea into the unknown and more people would do it if it were easier. Soanya was a good partner with a great positive spirit, but since we have been in the Southern Ocean her bouts of seasickness made it difficult for her to enjoy herself. I felt really sorry for her seeing her so sick and I felt she did the best she could. Through it all, she kept her head on her shoulders and didn't worry me that she might become irrational as I have seen other crew members become. She still had a quiet wisdom and I consulted with her throughout the day every day. She learned the technical things about the computer and electrical system and gave me a crash course so I have a chance of keeping these things going once she leaves."

Reid will maintain his original aims of the voyage, and finish out his 20-year dream to live at sea for 1000 days, out-of-sight of land, with no re-provision or resupply. "I still have the supplies we had packed onboard for our three year odyssey. All the systems are still good and now I face the ocean and the universe alone."

It looks like Reid and Soanya may have possibly broken two world records at sea:

• Longest man and woman sea voyage
• Longest consecutive time at sea for a woman.

Reid plans to also set the following records:

• Longest time out of sight of land
• Longest non-stop American sea voyage

The record for the longest time non-stop at sea now stands at 657 days held by Jon Sanders.

Current Conditions onboard the Schooner Anne:
Wind SE 30+ knots, Course NE, Speed 2, Position: 32*46 S, 115*17 E Temp. 75 F

• Videos (2): 1000 Days at Sea - Reid Stowe and Soanya Ahmad embark on a 1000 Day, non-stop sea voyage, out of sight of land without resupplying.
• Photos Credit: 1000 Days at Sea