What did your 16 year old do today…
Many parents watch their daughter play volleyball or perform in the school orchestra. Last Wednesday Roger and Julie Watson watched their 16 year old daughter, Jessica, round Cape Horn… in a pink 34 foot sailboat… alone.
Jessica is attempting to be the youngest sailor to circumnavigate the globe, alone and unassisted. She left Sydney Harbor over 100 days ago. Jessica says:
“My goal is to sail solo around the world non-stop, unassisted. I have chosen a route that is a traditionally recognised path and distance for ‘around the world sailors’. As this is a Southern Hemisphere voyage the significant landmarks are the southern tips of the American and African continents, as well as some of the most challenging oceans a sailor will ever face. The entire journey is a mix of amazing experience and unique challenges.
There are a few key targets I must achieve to qualify for around the world status. The approximate distance is 23,000 nautical miles or 42,596 kilometres. I must depart and arrive from the same port, cross all lines of longitude, cross the equator entering into the Northern Hemisphere at least once and round the southern landmarks of South America and South Africa.”
She is well on her way to doing just that.
Jessica posts on her blog every day via uplink. www.youngestround.blogspot.com
Follow her circumnavigation. www.jessicawatson.com.au
Amazing girl.