Following almost a full day in which the loved ones of Abby Sunderland feared this 16-year sailor was lost at sea, a search plane made contact with Sutherland last week and assured the world:
Abby is alive and well.
Reports indicate a giant wave knocked Abby unconscious for a short period of time on Thursday before she recovered and activiated a pair of emergency satellite beacons. Since then, a French fishing vessel has scooped up Sunderland and rescued her from the harsh conditions of the Indian Ocean.
Aboard this new boat, Sunderland found time to update her blog and wrote:
"As you probably already know I had a pretty rough couple of days. The long and short of it is one long wave, and one short mast (short meaning a two-inch stub).... I just wanted to let everyone know I am safe and sound on a great big fishing boat headed I am not exactly sure where."
Abby has spoken to her parents and the family is trying to figure out the most logistical way of getting her home to California.
In her blog entry, the teenager - who was attempting to become the youngest person to ever navigate the globe on a solo sail - also addressed critics who believed she was too young to take on such an adventure.
"The truth is, I was in a storm and you don't sail through the Indian Ocean without getting in at least one storm," she wrote. "Storms are part of the deal when [you] set out to sail around the world alone.
"Since when does age create gigantic waves and storms?"
You tell us, readers: Should Abby Sunderland ever have been on the ocean by herself in the first place?
September 12th, 2010 12:09 PM
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June 26th, 2010 2:03 AM
Also. Any bone head can sit in a boat with a navigation system and have it guide them. Can ou read maps and plot your course according to the sun and stars?
June 26th, 2010 1:58 AM
Your parents should be arrested for putting you in harms way. You are not even of legal age. Your parents need to pay for all the rescue.
June 15th, 2010 4:53 AM
Abby Sunderland was in a mad panicked rush to get out to sea simply in order to beat Jessica Watson and be 3 months younger than Jessica when her voyage
was completed. Abby's vessel was inadequately prepared and little attention paid to the fine detail. In Abby's first 1000 miles, abby found her boat had
insufficient battery power, the diesel fuel was dirty, the radio signal and weather sensing wiring was faulty and that her wind power generators were falling
to pieces, so a stop in Mexico was made necessary. Abby had again to call into Port in Cape Town south Africa to make further repairs to her inadequately
prepared boat. all of this due to a 16 year old's vanity. this is not mature, sensible nor anything that can be called seamanship when knowingly setting
off in an ill prepared vessel and into high southern latitudes in mid Winter.
The Captain of the French fishing boat, "Isle de Reunion", fell into the life threatening, icy and incredibly rough Indian Ocean waters whi
June 14th, 2010 9:12 AM
I agree with Antix1. What a disgrace you are Abby and the Sunderland family, having the audacity to ask for money to recover Wild Eyes after the expenses you have costed Australian citizens in rescuing you (how about paying that bill first!).
As for your trip.... It was only inevitable. Wake up to yourself, an Open 40 should never have done this trip, let alone with a 16yr old female incapable of PHYSICALLY handling the boat in rough weather which is what is required at this time of the year in the southern ocean. Your boat was not a cork like Jessica's s&s, you can't just shut the hatch and hope for the best in rough weather.
Unbelievable. I for one am bloody glad you've lost your boat, so that hopefully a few more years catch up on you before you attempt to do this again.
You rushed it out of desperation for the record. That is why you failed.
June 14th, 2010 7:24 AM
You and your family are a disgrace. you have no business circumnavigating the world when you lack the experiance and knowledge to do so. And expect the Australian goverment to foot the bill of your stupidity, yet you have the audacity to ask people for danations to save your boat. Why don't you request doantions to repay for the rescue. That cost $300,000 you arrogant little sh it. YOu have no business trying to circumnavigate the world, especially when you cant even afford the insurance. Try funding your trip from your own pocket, in stead relying on the wolrd to do it for you. I for one am appalled that you stated you will try it again, especially when, in reality you can't afford to do so. Hmmmm the arrogance of you americans is appalling...
June 14th, 2010 1:44 AM
She would be more competent than most people twice her age look how far she got, she was just unlucky. At least she had a go unlike people who sit safe on land and criticize, go Abby you are a great inspiration.
June 14th, 2010 12:09 AM
Go Sunderlands!
God bless you, Abby -- may you succeed the next time around :)
June 13th, 2010 10:35 PM
Knocked unconscious? Hehe, I don't think so. But adds a bit of drama to the reporting. Facts, please.
June 13th, 2010 9:33 PM
hi Abby - thank God you're safe. i traveled with you daily and prayed for you nightly. i can't even imagine what your last few days had been before rescue.
i realize there's alot of controversy about your quest - my concern (and it doesn't matter what i think) wasn't that you weren't capable but that you'd had serious equipment failures twice and then heading into the dangerous Indian Ocean. i read your family and team had been warmed this is the worst possible time of year to venture into those waters. so like other people, I based their opinion on what the media presented. am sure it was not all false. Many of us were worried about your safety from the onset.
this might have had an unhappy ending - i thank God it didn't. a crippled boat and no communication for 20 hours is not always a good recipe for a happy ending.
do i honor your courage, strength, commitment, keeping a level head in a serious crisis - you bet i do.
God bless and happier trails next time.