The weather forecast for December 9, 2018, promised clear blue skies, light winds, and a calm sea, perfect for my start of rowing from El Hierro, a rocky island 240 miles off the African coast and the smallest of the Canary Islands. Family and friends had come to see me off on my first solo adventure, rowing singlehanded, without stopovers and without assistance from the Canaries to the Caribbean island of Martinique, a distance of some 5,400 kilometers. December was the recommended month for rowing the Atlantic, the end of the hurricane period, and the start of the tradewinds, a time, I was told, for “more secure and safer rowing.”I am a retired military parachutist, now 51 years old, and in January 2013 I had lost three very close friends, soldiers killed in the same military combat. Losing them had left a lasting mark deep inside me; the sadness of their families was heartbreaking to witness. I wanted to honor them and all soldiers who had died in combat. I felt compelled to raise money for military widows and orphans, and so to do that, I decided to find sponsors and donors who would put their support behind a great personal challenge.I gave myself 18 months for training, planning, and preparations, while exploring all the available avenues. Fundraising was my first priority, for both the crossing and the cause. I had to prepare myself physically and mentally for the challenge I’d set, and equally important, it was essential to have the support of a robust and reliable team behind me. Sailing was something I enjoyed, but rowing was new territory—I had only been on a few small kayak outings during my military career.
Read this article now for Free!
Ready for a second free article? Create a free account by entering your email address and a password below.
— OR —
Subscribe now for $29.99 a year and have immediate access to all of our content, including hundreds of small-boat profiles, gear reviews and techniques, adventure stories, and more! You can also browse our entire archive of back issues starting from September 2014, as well as post unlimited classified ads. This is an extraordinary value!
Wow. Terrific yarn.
Terrific traversée! You can be very proud of your rowing (incredible) adventure. Incroyable!
Thank you. You can follow the next adventure at my web site, http://www.papillonantarctique.com
(It’s in French but some web browsers can translate it into English.)
Thank you for your courageous and tender recounting of your fantastic voyage. The handprint was precious and brilliant at the same time. Best of luck to you in Antarctica.
J’ai beaucoup apprécié le récit de votre “folle aventure” qui été réfléchie et qui partait d’un très bon sentiment envers les familles de vos amis militaires.
J’avais l’impression de sentir les mêmes souffrances que vous au fur et à mesure de la lecture. Heureusement que vous êtes arrivé à bon port.
Je pense que vous vous souviendrez longtemps de cette omelette chaude offerte par le commandant du bateau panaméen. Quelle excitation vous avez dû avoir en réceptionnant ce colis.
Merci à Alice ALECH pour nous avoir fait partager ce voyage
Online translation:
I very much appreciated the account of your “crazy adventure,” which was thought-out and which started from a very good feeling toward the families of your military friends.
I felt like I was feeling the same pain as you as I read it. Fortunately, you have arrived safely.
I think you will remember this hot omelet from the captain of the Panamanian boat for a long time. What excitement you must have had when receiving this package.
Thanks to Alice Alech for sharing this trip with us
Thank you so much for these lovely comments. All very much appreciated.
I loved reading about this crossing. Amazing achievement, well done.Truly impressed.
Absolutely amazing ordeal/adventure. It was absolutely an amazing achievement, seemingly in this day and age, practically impossible. Heartiest congratulations indeed are warranted.
Alice,
A courageous journey by an amazing man, narrated with simplicity.
Rita
Exceptional, heroic Christophe.I become small when I think of my 8-day rowing trip from Pavia to Venice. Is it possible that I saw the boat in La Gomera?
You did good.