Kayaker's Solo Journey From California to Hawaii Failed, Rescued by Coast Guard After 6 Days

The supposed epic 70-day voyage across the Pacific of a kayaker failed after his California-to-Hawaii attempt was interrupted by rough seas and high winds that caused him to lose his anchor.

On May 31, Larkspur resident Cyril Derreumaux set out from the coastal town of Sausalito in California while heading for Hawaii to achieve the 70-day voyage across the Pacific. But his paddling hopes were cut short in less than a week by the extreme circumstances.

California-to-Hawaii 70-Day Voyage

According to The Guardian, the world record holder for endurance rowing, Cyril Derreumaux, was rescued by a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter six days after he set out.

Derreumaux endured several problems with his 23-foot kayak but continued. However, when he lost his sea anchor, he immediately decided to abort his adventure.

After he was rescued, the kayaker shared that he experienced unexpected things in his initial days of adventure. But on his sixth day, things went from bad to worse quickly, especially that he lost his anchor, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

In his post on social media, Cyril Derreumaux said that his 23-foot kayak was pummeled with 4.5 meter high waves. The endurance rower also noted that the anchor lines of the vessel became entangled in the rudder, and his GPS stopped functioning.

The kayaker added that together with his team, they were trying to find a solution to the electronic problem that he encountered. But he noticed that the general behavior of his kayak changed suddenly. He immediately attributed the change to the damage in his sea anchor.

The Kayaker Experienced More Problems

Cyril Derreumaux stated that few moments after he discovered the sudden change, his kayak was positioned almost parallel to the axis of the waves. He then found himself violently tossed from side to side, along with all the equipment that was inside the kayak.

The kayaker noted that when the night had just fallen, he realized that it was over as his situation was no longer sustainable because of problems in communication and consumption. The endurance rower was not able to drink, eat, and sleep because of the situation, ABC7 San Francisco reported.

After he consulted and mentioned his situation with his land crew, Derreumaux phoned the Coast Guard for rescue on Saturday night, June 5, and he was rescued around 70 miles west of Santa Cruz. A diver was lowered from a helicopter by the rescue unit into the water and helped hoist Derreumaux up.

Meanwhile, the boat of Derreumaux remains adrift in the ocean. But he said that he hopes to coordinate with a retrieval team to salvage his boat this week when the winds die down. The kayaker noted that he knew from the start that it would be a difficult task to achieve.

But the 44-year-old endurance rower emphasized in his social media post that he still has the passion for this adventure intact, and he is still determined to make it happen. He added that he would not stop until he can conquer it.

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