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| Meta Title | Lost at Sea Stories | How To Survive Being Lost at Sea |
| Meta Description | The sea is a dangerous place. Here are nine people who survived it against all odds. |
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Filo Filo, Etueni Nasau, and Samu Pelesa
PM
In many Pacific island chains, people use small boats to sail from one island to the next. The
islands
are close enough together that sailing from one to the other is a relatively simple, cheap, and straightforward mode of travel.
For three teenage boys on the small island of Tokelau, sailing was routine. However, when Filo Filo, Etueni Nasau, and Samu Pelesa set sail on October 5, 2010, it would be
a longer trip
than any of them were expecting.
Shortly after sailing into the ocean, the three teens lost sight of the shore and became disoriented. Not knowing which way was home, the group became lost, drifting further and further from land.
They had brought enough water with them for two days, but that quickly ran out and they had to rely on
rainwater
. After a few weeks—with no food and no sign of rescue—they grew desperate enough to catch a bird and eat it.
Meanwhile, after a month with no news, their community believed that the boys were dead. Around 500 people attended a memorial service for the boys, representing about a third of the total population of the island chain.
Having spent more than a month adrift at sea, the three boys had no food and no water, and were suffering from extreme exposure. Their situation was so dire that they began drinking
seawater
, a sure sign that death is near. With only days or even hours left to live, a fishing boat halfway between Samoa and Fiji spotted them. They had drifted over 500 miles.
The sailor rescued the three boys and took them to a hospital in Fiji, and then back to their homes on Tokelau. They had been lost at sea for 50 days in total.
2
Brad Cavanagh and Deborah Kiley
PM
Deborah Kiley was no stranger to the seas. She had spent most of her life working as a crew member on yachts around the world. So, she thought that signing up to crew the 58-foot sailing yacht
Trashman
in October of 1982
was just another job. It would
turn out to be anything but
.
John Lippoth, the captain of the ship, brought his girlfriend Meg Mooney along for the ride. The two other crew members on the trip were Mark Adams and Brad Cavanagh. The plan was to take the yacht from Annapolis, Maryland down to Florida to meet up with its owner.
The first half of the trip was pretty smooth sailing, although Kiley started noticing things that made her uneasy. Lippoth kept making excuses to go below deck, for instance, and Kiley soon realized that
their captain was afraid of the ocean
. Lippoth and Adams also spent the entire voyage completely drunk. Of the five people on that yacht, only Kiley and Cavanagh were experienced, capable sailors.
After the boat passed North Carolina, the trip took a turn for the worst. A massive storm appeared out of nowhere, and
Trashman
headed right into the heart of it. Kiley recalls wind speeds of over 70 knots, and 40-foot waves so powerful they ripped holes in the boat. Two days after they set sail, the yacht, torn apart by the sea, began to sink.
The crew managed to make it to a
lifeboat
, but not before the ship's rigging seriously injured Mooney, leaving severe lacerations on her arms and legs. Her bleeding attracted sharks, who followed the lifeboat for the remainder of the journey. The crew found themselves adrift with no supplies or water, miles from land.
Two days after the
Trashman
sunk, Lippoth and Adams, already dehydrated from alcohol and dying of thirst, began drinking seawater. They started hallucinating and rambling incoherently. On the third day, Lippoth—in a state of delirium—jumped into the water and attempted to swim to shore. He was immediately attacked and killed by the
sharks
. Soon, Adams jumped overboard as well, muttering something about going to get some cigarettes. The sharks attacked him also, so violently that the boat spun around and the water turned red.
That night, Mooney succumbed to her injuries, dying of blood poisoning. Kiley and Cavanagh, the only two left, had to toss her body overboard where she, too, was eaten by sharks. Shortly after, Kiley and Cavanagh, close to death themselves, were spotted by a Russian cargo ship off the coast of Cape Hatteras. The crew rescued them four days after they abandoned ship, and five days after setting sail.
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3
Steven Callahan
PM
Steven Callahan is an expert on sailing. Specifically, a naval architect who has been
sailing
ships since he was young. He even built his own boat, called the
Napoleon Solo
, and set sail from Rhode Island in 1981. His travels led him all over the Atlantic: first to Bermuda, and then to the coast of Europe. On his way back, bound for Antigua,
he ran into trouble
.
About a week after he set sail for home, a storm started brewing. The storm was relatively mild, and Callahan said he wasn't worried. But his boat hit something that tore a gaping hole in the bottom. Callahan suspected it was either a whale or a large shark.
The boat began filling up with water, and Callahan made it to his
inflatable raft.
But he needed the emergency supplies in the cabin, which was already underwater. Diving in again and again, he managed to retrieve food, water, flares, a spear gun, solar stills, and a handful of other items. All in all, he was particularly well-equipped to be adrift.
And a good thing too, because Callahan drifted on his raft for 76 days. During that time, he faced threats from starvation, dehydration, sharks, and raft punctures. Finally, some sailors off the coast of Marie-Galante, near Guadalupe, spotted him. He had lost a third of his weight and could barely stand, so they took him to a hospital for treatment. However, Callahan didn't even stay the night, opting instead to recuperate on the island, while
hitchhiking
throughout the West Indies.
Much later, Steven Callahan would work as an advisor on the movie
Life of Pi
, providing his sea survival expertise to make the film more realistic.
4
Poon Lim
PM
Poon Lim holds the world record for the longest survival on a life raft. It's not a record he hopes anyone will ever beat.
Poon
was a Chinese sailor
on the British Merchant vessel SS
Benlomond
during WWII. The ship had left Cape Town, South Africa on its way to New York when a German U-boat attacked it a few hundred miles off the coast of Brazil. That encounter destroyed the ship, but Poon managed to escape with a life jacket. He was the ship's sole survivor.
After about two hours, Poon found a small wooden raft and climbed aboard. Amazingly, the raft contained some
survival supplies
, like food, water, and flares. But as the days turned into weeks, and his food started to run low, Poon had to improvise.
He began by crafting a makeshift fishing hook and catching fish. With his new food supply and the water from his raft, he felt he might be able to make it. He still had his flares, and all he had to do was wait for a ship to come close.
Then things took a turn for the worst. A storm hit, and Poon lost all his food and water. With no supplies, and close to death, Poon had to go to extremes to survive. With the last of his strength, he caught a passing
bird
and killed it, drinking its blood to quench his thirst.
Poon realized that if he was going to survive, he would need a more permanent water source. The only one available happened to be protected by many sharp teeth. Still, Poon strengthened his
fishing line
and started trying to catch sharks. He managed to hook one, and brought it onboard. He drank the blood from the shark's liver to sustain himself.
After 133 days, Poon drifted close to the shore of Brazil, where some fishermen rescued him, and took him to a hospital to recover. Despite being lost at sea for almost half a year, he had only lost around 20 pounds and could walk by himself.
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5
Maurice and Marilyn Bailey
PM
In 1973, Maurice and Marilyn Bailey were planning to live out their dream of moving from their home in England to New Zealand. They sold their house, bought a yacht, and set sail with their possessions. They believed the trip would be a pleasant journey.
They were wrong
.
The first half of their voyage went well, and they passed through the Panama Canal in February of that year. Soon after, they ran into trouble, or more accurately, trouble ran into them.
While both of the Baileys were below deck, they felt a massive impact. Rushing onto the deck, the couple saw a
whale
diving below the water and a large hole in their hull. The ship quickly began to sink, and the Baileys grabbed what little they could and headed for their life raft.
The couple was stranded in the Pacific with a few days' worth of food, a
compass
, some flares, and little else. They collected rainwater to drink, and when their food ran out, they ate birds, fish, and even turtles.
During their time at sea, they spotted seven ships, which they attempted to signal, but no one noticed them. As the weeks stretched into months, they became badly
sunburned
and malnourished. Their life raft started to deflate, they were plagued by sharks, and they suffered multiple storms.
After 117 days stranded at sea, with no supplies and near the brink of death, they were finally rescued. A passing Korean ship spotted them in the water and changed course to bring them aboard. They could barely move and they were so weak that they couldn't eat solid foods.
The Korean ship dropped the Baileys off at Hawaii, where they immediately vowed to build another yacht and return to the sea, because they clearly didn't get the message the first time. With the proceeds from the book they wrote about their experiences, they did indeed build a second yacht, and spent years sailing around the world comparatively uneventfully.
6
Rose Noelle Crew
PM
John Glennie, Rick Hellriegel, Jim Nalepka, and Phil Hofman were four friends who decided to take a winter vacation to the island of Tonga. They left on their ship, the
Rose Noelle
, and
hoped for smooth sailing
.
On June 4, 1989, three days after they set sail, a massive wave came out of nowhere and hit the ship, flipping it completely upside down and severely damaging it. The crew found themselves trapped in the ship's cabin, which began rapidly filling with water.
They set off a signal beacon in an attempt to get help, but the beacon went unanswered. Alone and trapped in a dark cabin, the crew had to chop a hole in the hull of the ship to escape. Fortunately the
Rose Noelle
, though now upside down, did not completely sink, and its
wreckage
served as a twisted vessel on which the men could still float.
A week later, with supplies running out, the signal beacon stopped working, still with no response or rescue. The crew were on their own.
After the ship's water reserves ran out, the crew rigged up a system to collect rainwater and started catching fish for food. They were still adrift, they had food, water, and shelter, so they were in no immediate danger as long as the weather didn't turn.
They drifted in this manner for weeks without rescue. Glennie began diving into the wreckage to recover pieces of the ship they could use. He managed to recover a
gas cooker
so the four men could have occasional barbecues.
On September 30, 118 days after they were set adrift, the four castaways and the wreckage of the
Rose Noelle
washed up on a beach in New Zealand. They were extremely lucky. A few months later, the wind and water currents would have taken them in the direction of South America.
Even the location on the beach where they washed ashore was fortunate. A few dozen yards to the left or right were rocky cliffs, and if the ship had landed there, it would have broken apart on the rocks.
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7
Salvador Alvarenga
PM
José Salvador Alvarenga holds the record for the longest solo survival at sea.
He was adrift
for 438 days, and traveled over 6,700 miles.
Alvarenga is a fisherman, and on November 17, 2012, he set sail from the fishing village of Costa Azul in Mexico. With him was Ezequiel CĂłrdoba, another fisherman, whom Alvarenga had never worked with before.
Shortly after departing the shore, a storm hit their boat. It blew the ship off course, and damaged the motor and most of the electronics onboard. Alvarenga managed to contact his boss on the
radio
before it died, but he was unable to help.
The storm lasted for five days. When it ended, Alvarenga and CĂłrdoba had no idea where they were or how to get home. The storm had destroyed most of their fishing gear, leaving them with only basic supplies. And with no motor, no sails, and no
oars
, their boat was adrift.
The two drifted for months, surviving on rainwater and catching sea animals like fish, turtles, and birds. After four months, CĂłrdoba gave up hope. He stopped eating, and starved to death. Alvarenga says he considered giving up too, but persevered.
Even after four months at sea, Alvarenga was not even halfway through his ordeal. He tried signaling every ship he saw, but none of them spotted him. He continued surviving off rainwater and sea animals, and kept track of the time by the
phases of the moon.
More than a year after the storm that set him adrift, Alvarenga spotted land. He abandoned his boat and swam for the shore, and found himself on one of the Marshall islands, on the other side of the Pacific from where he started. He was taken to a hospital, where he made a full recovery.
8
Louis Zamperini
PM
Louis Zamperini first made national headlines in 1938 when he traveled to Berlin to compete in the Olympics. He ran in the 500-meter dash and placed 8th, which is more than enough to earn a spot in the history books. But
Zamperini wasn't done yet
.
In 1941, just a few months prior to Pearl Harbor, Zamperini enlisted in the United States military. He became a second lieutenant in the Air Force, and when the war began, he was deployed as a bombardier in the Pacific.
In 1943, during a
search-and-rescue
mission, his bomber suffered a mechanical failure that brought it down. It crashed in the ocean, and eight of the 11 crew members died. The three that survived were Zamperini and his crewmates Russell Allen Phillips and Francis McNamara.
The three crewmates were adrift in the Pacific Ocean, in enemy territory, with no food, water, or supplies. They managed to salvage two rafts from the wreckage of their plane, and collected enough rainwater to survive. They ate small fish and birds.
They drifted like this for weeks. After 33 days, McNamara died, leaving only Phillips and Zamperini. Two weeks later, their rafts washed ashore in the
Marshall Islands
and the two men were immediately captured by the Japanese.
Zamperini and Phillips were sent to various POW camps, and Zamperini eventually found himself at the Naoetsu camp in Northern Japan. There, he was tortured for two years by infamous prison guard Mutsuhiro Watanabe, one of Japan's most brutal war criminals. When the war finally ended in 1945, Zamperini was released and finally reunited with his family.
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9
Oguri Jukichi
PM
Jukichi was a sailor during Japan's Edo period, about 200 years ago. He was the captain of the freighter
Tokujomaru
and its crew of 14 men. He was transporting soybeans to the city of Edo, which would become present-day Tokyo, when his ship was caught in a massive storm. The storm damaged the ship's mast and
set them adrift
.
Very quickly, the crew exhausted their supply of food and water. They began surviving entirely on captured rainwater and the large stores of soybeans in the ship's hold. After several months, members of the crew began suffering from
scurvy
due to lack of nutrients.
One by one, over months, the crew started dying, while the
Tokujomaru
drifted further and further from home. After more than a year adrift, only three people were left: the captain Jukichi, and two members of the crew, Otokichi and Hanbe. All three were suffering the effects of scurvy and likely close to death when their ship was discovered off the coast of California in 1815.
The three Japanese sailors became the first people from that country to set foot on American shores. They had drifted over 5,000 miles and were lost at sea for 484 days.
The three sailors returned to Japan after recovering, however Hanbe died during the trip. Upon their return, Jukichi received numerous honors, and was granted a last name, Oguri. Even 200 years later, Jukichi
still holds the Guinness World Record
for longest time adrift at sea.
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1. [Adventure](https://www.popularmechanics.com/adventure/)
2. [9 Unbelievable True Stories About People Who Survived Being Lost at Sea](https://www.popularmechanics.com/adventure/g2770/lost-at-sea/)
# 9 Unbelievable True Stories About People Who Survived Being Lost at Sea
The sea can be harsh and unforgiving. These fortunate souls fought back against all odds.
By [Avery Thompson](https://www.popularmechanics.com/author/16191/avery-thompson/ "Avery Thompson")
Updated: Jul 09, 2021 2:05 PM EDT
Ivan//Getty Images
The sea is like a wet desert: There's no food, water, or shelter, and in every direction, the view is simply a glistening sheet of nothingness. Not to mention, [dangerous predators](https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/animals/a33368304/deep-sea-fish-invisible/) abound, lurking just beneath the depths.
### *→ Think you can survive anything? [Let's brush up on our skills together.](https://shop.popularmechanics.com/popular-mechanics-all-access-3.html?cds_tracking_code=popengredirect)*
A [shipwreck](https://www.popularmechanics.com/military/navy-ships/a28568445/shipwreck-discovery-golden-age/) out on the open ocean can be a death sentence. If a rescue team doesn't come in the first 48 hours, it probably never will. [Learning to survive](https://www.popularmechanics.com/adventure/outdoors/a6960/waterfall-survival-tips/) will take skill, courage, and a heaping of luck.
Here are nine stories of brave people who got lost at sea, and survived despite the odds.
*(The following maps are only rough approximations of route and distance traveled.)*
***
**MORE DEEP SEA STORIES FROM POP MECH:**
**➡️ [The 25 Coolest Shipwrecks in the World](https://www.popularmechanics.com/adventure/outdoors/g29370431/best-shipwrecks/)**
****➡️** [The 50 Weirdest Freaks That Live Beneath the Sea](https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/animals/g210/strange-sea-animals-2/)**
**[**➡️** This Jurassic Deep Sea Creature Looks Like a (Terrifying) Starfish with Razor Teeth](https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/animals/a36752406/new-deep-sea-creature-ophiojura-discovered/)**
***
1
## Filo Filo, Etueni Nasau, and Samu Pelesa
PM
In many Pacific island chains, people use small boats to sail from one island to the next. The [islands](https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/green-tech/a32643071/rebuilding-islands-ocean-waves/) are close enough together that sailing from one to the other is a relatively simple, cheap, and straightforward mode of travel.
For three teenage boys on the small island of Tokelau, sailing was routine. However, when Filo Filo, Etueni Nasau, and Samu Pelesa set sail on October 5, 2010, it would be [a longer trip](http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/11/25/new.zealand.sea.rescue/) than any of them were expecting.
Shortly after sailing into the ocean, the three teens lost sight of the shore and became disoriented. Not knowing which way was home, the group became lost, drifting further and further from land.
They had brought enough water with them for two days, but that quickly ran out and they had to rely on [rainwater](https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/green-tech/a6071/how-to-safely-capture-the-rain/). After a few weeks—with no food and no sign of rescue—they grew desperate enough to catch a bird and eat it.
Meanwhile, after a month with no news, their community believed that the boys were dead. Around 500 people attended a memorial service for the boys, representing about a third of the total population of the island chain.
Having spent more than a month adrift at sea, the three boys had no food and no water, and were suffering from extreme exposure. Their situation was so dire that they began drinking [seawater](https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/a33348567/seawater-fuel-catalyst-ships/), a sure sign that death is near. With only days or even hours left to live, a fishing boat halfway between Samoa and Fiji spotted them. They had drifted over 500 miles.
The sailor rescued the three boys and took them to a hospital in Fiji, and then back to their homes on Tokelau. They had been lost at sea for 50 days in total.
2
## Brad Cavanagh and Deborah Kiley
PM
Deborah Kiley was no stranger to the seas. She had spent most of her life working as a crew member on yachts around the world. So, she thought that signing up to crew the 58-foot sailing yacht *Trashman* in October of 1982 was just another job. It would [turn out to be anything but](https://www.amazon.com/Sinking-womans-true-story-survival/dp/0615130712).
John Lippoth, the captain of the ship, brought his girlfriend Meg Mooney along for the ride. The two other crew members on the trip were Mark Adams and Brad Cavanagh. The plan was to take the yacht from Annapolis, Maryland down to Florida to meet up with its owner.
The first half of the trip was pretty smooth sailing, although Kiley started noticing things that made her uneasy. Lippoth kept making excuses to go below deck, for instance, and Kiley soon realized that [their captain was afraid of the ocean](http://www.dockwalk.com/Essentials/HotTopics.aspx?id=24762). Lippoth and Adams also spent the entire voyage completely drunk. Of the five people on that yacht, only Kiley and Cavanagh were experienced, capable sailors.
After the boat passed North Carolina, the trip took a turn for the worst. A massive storm appeared out of nowhere, and *Trashman* headed right into the heart of it. Kiley recalls wind speeds of over 70 knots, and 40-foot waves so powerful they ripped holes in the boat. Two days after they set sail, the yacht, torn apart by the sea, began to sink.
The crew managed to make it to a [lifeboat](https://www.popularmechanics.com/adventure/outdoors/g2776/5-lifeboats-refuse-to-capsize/), but not before the ship's rigging seriously injured Mooney, leaving severe lacerations on her arms and legs. Her bleeding attracted sharks, who followed the lifeboat for the remainder of the journey. The crew found themselves adrift with no supplies or water, miles from land.
Two days after the *Trashman* sunk, Lippoth and Adams, already dehydrated from alcohol and dying of thirst, began drinking seawater. They started hallucinating and rambling incoherently. On the third day, Lippoth—in a state of delirium—jumped into the water and attempted to swim to shore. He was immediately attacked and killed by the [sharks](https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/animals/a33918172/megalodon-official-size/). Soon, Adams jumped overboard as well, muttering something about going to get some cigarettes. The sharks attacked him also, so violently that the boat spun around and the water turned red.
That night, Mooney succumbed to her injuries, dying of blood poisoning. Kiley and Cavanagh, the only two left, had to toss her body overboard where she, too, was eaten by sharks. Shortly after, Kiley and Cavanagh, close to death themselves, were spotted by a Russian cargo ship off the coast of Cape Hatteras. The crew rescued them four days after they abandoned ship, and five days after setting sail.
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3
## Steven Callahan
PM
Steven Callahan is an expert on sailing. Specifically, a naval architect who has been [sailing](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/how-to-plans/a35842979/how-to-get-started-in-sailing/) ships since he was young. He even built his own boat, called the *Napoleon Solo*, and set sail from Rhode Island in 1981. His travels led him all over the Atlantic: first to Bermuda, and then to the coast of Europe. On his way back, bound for Antigua, [he ran into trouble](https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2012/mar/23/adrift-in-atlantic-76-days).
About a week after he set sail for home, a storm started brewing. The storm was relatively mild, and Callahan said he wasn't worried. But his boat hit something that tore a gaping hole in the bottom. Callahan suspected it was either a whale or a large shark.
The boat began filling up with water, and Callahan made it to his [inflatable raft.](https://www.popularmechanics.com/adventure/outdoor-gear/g35765424/best-inflatable-kayaks/) But he needed the emergency supplies in the cabin, which was already underwater. Diving in again and again, he managed to retrieve food, water, flares, a spear gun, solar stills, and a handful of other items. All in all, he was particularly well-equipped to be adrift.
And a good thing too, because Callahan drifted on his raft for 76 days. During that time, he faced threats from starvation, dehydration, sharks, and raft punctures. Finally, some sailors off the coast of Marie-Galante, near Guadalupe, spotted him. He had lost a third of his weight and could barely stand, so they took him to a hospital for treatment. However, Callahan didn't even stay the night, opting instead to recuperate on the island, while [hitchhiking](https://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/robots/a3063/hitchbot-adorable-robot-hitchhiking-canada-17044984/) throughout the West Indies.
Much later, Steven Callahan would work as an advisor on the movie *Life of Pi*, providing his sea survival expertise to make the film more realistic.
4
## Poon Lim
PM
Poon Lim holds the world record for the longest survival on a life raft. It's not a record he hopes anyone will ever beat.
Poon [was a Chinese sailor](http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~judkins/survival.htm) on the British Merchant vessel SS *Benlomond* during WWII. The ship had left Cape Town, South Africa on its way to New York when a German U-boat attacked it a few hundred miles off the coast of Brazil. That encounter destroyed the ship, but Poon managed to escape with a life jacket. He was the ship's sole survivor.
After about two hours, Poon found a small wooden raft and climbed aboard. Amazingly, the raft contained some [survival supplies](https://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/gear/reviews/a2037/survival-gear-for-car-home-to-go-bag/), like food, water, and flares. But as the days turned into weeks, and his food started to run low, Poon had to improvise.
He began by crafting a makeshift fishing hook and catching fish. With his new food supply and the water from his raft, he felt he might be able to make it. He still had his flares, and all he had to do was wait for a ship to come close.
Then things took a turn for the worst. A storm hit, and Poon lost all his food and water. With no supplies, and close to death, Poon had to go to extremes to survive. With the last of his strength, he caught a passing [bird](https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/animals/a34314450/rare-bird-is-both-male-and-female-two-sexes/) and killed it, drinking its blood to quench his thirst.
Poon realized that if he was going to survive, he would need a more permanent water source. The only one available happened to be protected by many sharp teeth. Still, Poon strengthened his [fishing line](https://www.popularmechanics.com/adventure/outdoors/a12982/the-secrets-of-the-perfect-cast-16988251/) and started trying to catch sharks. He managed to hook one, and brought it onboard. He drank the blood from the shark's liver to sustain himself.
After 133 days, Poon drifted close to the shore of Brazil, where some fishermen rescued him, and took him to a hospital to recover. Despite being lost at sea for almost half a year, he had only lost around 20 pounds and could walk by himself.
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5
## Maurice and Marilyn Bailey
PM
In 1973, Maurice and Marilyn Bailey were planning to live out their dream of moving from their home in England to New Zealand. They sold their house, bought a yacht, and set sail with their possessions. They believed the trip would be a pleasant journey. [They were wrong](http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1396218/Maralyn-Bailey.html).
The first half of their voyage went well, and they passed through the Panama Canal in February of that year. Soon after, they ran into trouble, or more accurately, trouble ran into them.
While both of the Baileys were below deck, they felt a massive impact. Rushing onto the deck, the couple saw a [whale](https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/a34658153/exploding-whale-dynamite-video/) diving below the water and a large hole in their hull. The ship quickly began to sink, and the Baileys grabbed what little they could and headed for their life raft.
The couple was stranded in the Pacific with a few days' worth of food, a [compass](https://www.popularmechanics.com/adventure/outdoors/a28411555/how-to-use-a-compass/), some flares, and little else. They collected rainwater to drink, and when their food ran out, they ate birds, fish, and even turtles.
During their time at sea, they spotted seven ships, which they attempted to signal, but no one noticed them. As the weeks stretched into months, they became badly [sunburned](https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/health/a33215051/how-to-treat-a-sunburn/) and malnourished. Their life raft started to deflate, they were plagued by sharks, and they suffered multiple storms.
After 117 days stranded at sea, with no supplies and near the brink of death, they were finally rescued. A passing Korean ship spotted them in the water and changed course to bring them aboard. They could barely move and they were so weak that they couldn't eat solid foods.
The Korean ship dropped the Baileys off at Hawaii, where they immediately vowed to build another yacht and return to the sea, because they clearly didn't get the message the first time. With the proceeds from the book they wrote about their experiences, they did indeed build a second yacht, and spent years sailing around the world comparatively uneventfully.
6
## Rose Noelle Crew
PM
John Glennie, Rick Hellriegel, Jim Nalepka, and Phil Hofman were four friends who decided to take a winter vacation to the island of Tonga. They left on their ship, the *Rose Noelle*, and [hoped for smooth sailing](http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10600306).
On June 4, 1989, three days after they set sail, a massive wave came out of nowhere and hit the ship, flipping it completely upside down and severely damaging it. The crew found themselves trapped in the ship's cabin, which began rapidly filling with water.
They set off a signal beacon in an attempt to get help, but the beacon went unanswered. Alone and trapped in a dark cabin, the crew had to chop a hole in the hull of the ship to escape. Fortunately the *Rose Noelle*, though now upside down, did not completely sink, and its [wreckage](https://www.popularmechanics.com/flight/g73/the-most-famous-airplane-crashes/) served as a twisted vessel on which the men could still float.
A week later, with supplies running out, the signal beacon stopped working, still with no response or rescue. The crew were on their own.
After the ship's water reserves ran out, the crew rigged up a system to collect rainwater and started catching fish for food. They were still adrift, they had food, water, and shelter, so they were in no immediate danger as long as the weather didn't turn.
They drifted in this manner for weeks without rescue. Glennie began diving into the wreckage to recover pieces of the ship they could use. He managed to recover a [gas cooker](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g36143207/best-gas-stoves/) so the four men could have occasional barbecues.
On September 30, 118 days after they were set adrift, the four castaways and the wreckage of the *Rose Noelle* washed up on a beach in New Zealand. They were extremely lucky. A few months later, the wind and water currents would have taken them in the direction of South America.
Even the location on the beach where they washed ashore was fortunate. A few dozen yards to the left or right were rocky cliffs, and if the ship had landed there, it would have broken apart on the rocks.
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7
## Salvador Alvarenga
PM
José Salvador Alvarenga holds the record for the longest solo survival at sea. [He was adrift](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/nov/07/fisherman-lost-at-sea-436-days-book-extract) for 438 days, and traveled over 6,700 miles.
Alvarenga is a fisherman, and on November 17, 2012, he set sail from the fishing village of Costa Azul in Mexico. With him was Ezequiel CĂłrdoba, another fisherman, whom Alvarenga had never worked with before.
Shortly after departing the shore, a storm hit their boat. It blew the ship off course, and damaged the motor and most of the electronics onboard. Alvarenga managed to contact his boss on the [radio](https://www.popularmechanics.com/adventure/a22818698/two-way-radio-ham-cb-gmrs/) before it died, but he was unable to help.
The storm lasted for five days. When it ended, Alvarenga and CĂłrdoba had no idea where they were or how to get home. The storm had destroyed most of their fishing gear, leaving them with only basic supplies. And with no motor, no sails, and no [oars](https://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/gadgets/a27309640/my-patent-story-rowing-gear/), their boat was adrift.
The two drifted for months, surviving on rainwater and catching sea animals like fish, turtles, and birds. After four months, CĂłrdoba gave up hope. He stopped eating, and starved to death. Alvarenga says he considered giving up too, but persevered.
Even after four months at sea, Alvarenga was not even halfway through his ordeal. He tried signaling every ship he saw, but none of them spotted him. He continued surviving off rainwater and sea animals, and kept track of the time by the [phases of the moon.](https://www.popularmechanics.com/space/moon-mars/g30305180/moon-phases/)
More than a year after the storm that set him adrift, Alvarenga spotted land. He abandoned his boat and swam for the shore, and found himself on one of the Marshall islands, on the other side of the Pacific from where he started. He was taken to a hospital, where he made a full recovery.
8
## Louis Zamperini
PM
Louis Zamperini first made national headlines in 1938 when he traveled to Berlin to compete in the Olympics. He ran in the 500-meter dash and placed 8th, which is more than enough to earn a spot in the history books. But [Zamperini wasn't done yet](http://archive.vcstar.com/lifestyle/louis-zamperini-lives-to-talk-about-horrific-plane-crash-47-days-lost-at-sea-and-pow-camp-ep-2928913-351737941.html).
In 1941, just a few months prior to Pearl Harbor, Zamperini enlisted in the United States military. He became a second lieutenant in the Air Force, and when the war began, he was deployed as a bombardier in the Pacific.
In 1943, during a [search-and-rescue](https://www.popularmechanics.com/flight/a3331/4267469/) mission, his bomber suffered a mechanical failure that brought it down. It crashed in the ocean, and eight of the 11 crew members died. The three that survived were Zamperini and his crewmates Russell Allen Phillips and Francis McNamara.
The three crewmates were adrift in the Pacific Ocean, in enemy territory, with no food, water, or supplies. They managed to salvage two rafts from the wreckage of their plane, and collected enough rainwater to survive. They ate small fish and birds.
They drifted like this for weeks. After 33 days, McNamara died, leaving only Phillips and Zamperini. Two weeks later, their rafts washed ashore in the [Marshall Islands](https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/environment/a26541069/marshall-islands-raise-land-sea-level-rise/) and the two men were immediately captured by the Japanese.
Zamperini and Phillips were sent to various POW camps, and Zamperini eventually found himself at the Naoetsu camp in Northern Japan. There, he was tortured for two years by infamous prison guard Mutsuhiro Watanabe, one of Japan's most brutal war criminals. When the war finally ended in 1945, Zamperini was released and finally reunited with his family.
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9
## Oguri Jukichi
PM
Jukichi was a sailor during Japan's Edo period, about 200 years ago. He was the captain of the freighter *Tokujomaru* and its crew of 14 men. He was transporting soybeans to the city of Edo, which would become present-day Tokyo, when his ship was caught in a massive storm. The storm damaged the ship's mast and [set them adrift](http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2013/11/01/national/events-mark-1800s-castaways-who-were-first-japanese-in-u-s/).
Very quickly, the crew exhausted their supply of food and water. They began surviving entirely on captured rainwater and the large stores of soybeans in the ship's hold. After several months, members of the crew began suffering from [scurvy](https://www.popularmechanics.com/adventure/outdoors/g2300/10-of-the-toughest-old-school-explorers/) due to lack of nutrients.
One by one, over months, the crew started dying, while the *Tokujomaru* drifted further and further from home. After more than a year adrift, only three people were left: the captain Jukichi, and two members of the crew, Otokichi and Hanbe. All three were suffering the effects of scurvy and likely close to death when their ship was discovered off the coast of California in 1815.
The three Japanese sailors became the first people from that country to set foot on American shores. They had drifted over 5,000 miles and were lost at sea for 484 days.
The three sailors returned to Japan after recovering, however Hanbe died during the trip. Upon their return, Jukichi received numerous honors, and was granted a last name, Oguri. Even 200 years later, Jukichi [still holds the Guinness World Record](http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/longest-time-adrift-at-sea) for longest time adrift at sea.
[Avery Thompson](https://www.popularmechanics.com/author/16191/avery-thompson/)
twitter.com/physicallyavery
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| Readable Markdown | 1
## Filo Filo, Etueni Nasau, and Samu Pelesa
PM
In many Pacific island chains, people use small boats to sail from one island to the next. The [islands](https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/green-tech/a32643071/rebuilding-islands-ocean-waves/) are close enough together that sailing from one to the other is a relatively simple, cheap, and straightforward mode of travel.
For three teenage boys on the small island of Tokelau, sailing was routine. However, when Filo Filo, Etueni Nasau, and Samu Pelesa set sail on October 5, 2010, it would be [a longer trip](http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/11/25/new.zealand.sea.rescue/) than any of them were expecting.
Shortly after sailing into the ocean, the three teens lost sight of the shore and became disoriented. Not knowing which way was home, the group became lost, drifting further and further from land.
They had brought enough water with them for two days, but that quickly ran out and they had to rely on [rainwater](https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/green-tech/a6071/how-to-safely-capture-the-rain/). After a few weeks—with no food and no sign of rescue—they grew desperate enough to catch a bird and eat it.
Meanwhile, after a month with no news, their community believed that the boys were dead. Around 500 people attended a memorial service for the boys, representing about a third of the total population of the island chain.
Having spent more than a month adrift at sea, the three boys had no food and no water, and were suffering from extreme exposure. Their situation was so dire that they began drinking [seawater](https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/a33348567/seawater-fuel-catalyst-ships/), a sure sign that death is near. With only days or even hours left to live, a fishing boat halfway between Samoa and Fiji spotted them. They had drifted over 500 miles.
The sailor rescued the three boys and took them to a hospital in Fiji, and then back to their homes on Tokelau. They had been lost at sea for 50 days in total.
2
## Brad Cavanagh and Deborah Kiley
PM
Deborah Kiley was no stranger to the seas. She had spent most of her life working as a crew member on yachts around the world. So, she thought that signing up to crew the 58-foot sailing yacht *Trashman* in October of 1982 was just another job. It would [turn out to be anything but](https://www.amazon.com/Sinking-womans-true-story-survival/dp/0615130712).
John Lippoth, the captain of the ship, brought his girlfriend Meg Mooney along for the ride. The two other crew members on the trip were Mark Adams and Brad Cavanagh. The plan was to take the yacht from Annapolis, Maryland down to Florida to meet up with its owner.
The first half of the trip was pretty smooth sailing, although Kiley started noticing things that made her uneasy. Lippoth kept making excuses to go below deck, for instance, and Kiley soon realized that [their captain was afraid of the ocean](http://www.dockwalk.com/Essentials/HotTopics.aspx?id=24762). Lippoth and Adams also spent the entire voyage completely drunk. Of the five people on that yacht, only Kiley and Cavanagh were experienced, capable sailors.
After the boat passed North Carolina, the trip took a turn for the worst. A massive storm appeared out of nowhere, and *Trashman* headed right into the heart of it. Kiley recalls wind speeds of over 70 knots, and 40-foot waves so powerful they ripped holes in the boat. Two days after they set sail, the yacht, torn apart by the sea, began to sink.
The crew managed to make it to a [lifeboat](https://www.popularmechanics.com/adventure/outdoors/g2776/5-lifeboats-refuse-to-capsize/), but not before the ship's rigging seriously injured Mooney, leaving severe lacerations on her arms and legs. Her bleeding attracted sharks, who followed the lifeboat for the remainder of the journey. The crew found themselves adrift with no supplies or water, miles from land.
Two days after the *Trashman* sunk, Lippoth and Adams, already dehydrated from alcohol and dying of thirst, began drinking seawater. They started hallucinating and rambling incoherently. On the third day, Lippoth—in a state of delirium—jumped into the water and attempted to swim to shore. He was immediately attacked and killed by the [sharks](https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/animals/a33918172/megalodon-official-size/). Soon, Adams jumped overboard as well, muttering something about going to get some cigarettes. The sharks attacked him also, so violently that the boat spun around and the water turned red.
That night, Mooney succumbed to her injuries, dying of blood poisoning. Kiley and Cavanagh, the only two left, had to toss her body overboard where she, too, was eaten by sharks. Shortly after, Kiley and Cavanagh, close to death themselves, were spotted by a Russian cargo ship off the coast of Cape Hatteras. The crew rescued them four days after they abandoned ship, and five days after setting sail.
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3
## Steven Callahan
PM
Steven Callahan is an expert on sailing. Specifically, a naval architect who has been [sailing](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/how-to-plans/a35842979/how-to-get-started-in-sailing/) ships since he was young. He even built his own boat, called the *Napoleon Solo*, and set sail from Rhode Island in 1981. His travels led him all over the Atlantic: first to Bermuda, and then to the coast of Europe. On his way back, bound for Antigua, [he ran into trouble](https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2012/mar/23/adrift-in-atlantic-76-days).
About a week after he set sail for home, a storm started brewing. The storm was relatively mild, and Callahan said he wasn't worried. But his boat hit something that tore a gaping hole in the bottom. Callahan suspected it was either a whale or a large shark.
The boat began filling up with water, and Callahan made it to his [inflatable raft.](https://www.popularmechanics.com/adventure/outdoor-gear/g35765424/best-inflatable-kayaks/) But he needed the emergency supplies in the cabin, which was already underwater. Diving in again and again, he managed to retrieve food, water, flares, a spear gun, solar stills, and a handful of other items. All in all, he was particularly well-equipped to be adrift.
And a good thing too, because Callahan drifted on his raft for 76 days. During that time, he faced threats from starvation, dehydration, sharks, and raft punctures. Finally, some sailors off the coast of Marie-Galante, near Guadalupe, spotted him. He had lost a third of his weight and could barely stand, so they took him to a hospital for treatment. However, Callahan didn't even stay the night, opting instead to recuperate on the island, while [hitchhiking](https://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/robots/a3063/hitchbot-adorable-robot-hitchhiking-canada-17044984/) throughout the West Indies.
Much later, Steven Callahan would work as an advisor on the movie *Life of Pi*, providing his sea survival expertise to make the film more realistic.
4
## Poon Lim
PM
Poon Lim holds the world record for the longest survival on a life raft. It's not a record he hopes anyone will ever beat.
Poon [was a Chinese sailor](http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~judkins/survival.htm) on the British Merchant vessel SS *Benlomond* during WWII. The ship had left Cape Town, South Africa on its way to New York when a German U-boat attacked it a few hundred miles off the coast of Brazil. That encounter destroyed the ship, but Poon managed to escape with a life jacket. He was the ship's sole survivor.
After about two hours, Poon found a small wooden raft and climbed aboard. Amazingly, the raft contained some [survival supplies](https://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/gear/reviews/a2037/survival-gear-for-car-home-to-go-bag/), like food, water, and flares. But as the days turned into weeks, and his food started to run low, Poon had to improvise.
He began by crafting a makeshift fishing hook and catching fish. With his new food supply and the water from his raft, he felt he might be able to make it. He still had his flares, and all he had to do was wait for a ship to come close.
Then things took a turn for the worst. A storm hit, and Poon lost all his food and water. With no supplies, and close to death, Poon had to go to extremes to survive. With the last of his strength, he caught a passing [bird](https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/animals/a34314450/rare-bird-is-both-male-and-female-two-sexes/) and killed it, drinking its blood to quench his thirst.
Poon realized that if he was going to survive, he would need a more permanent water source. The only one available happened to be protected by many sharp teeth. Still, Poon strengthened his [fishing line](https://www.popularmechanics.com/adventure/outdoors/a12982/the-secrets-of-the-perfect-cast-16988251/) and started trying to catch sharks. He managed to hook one, and brought it onboard. He drank the blood from the shark's liver to sustain himself.
After 133 days, Poon drifted close to the shore of Brazil, where some fishermen rescued him, and took him to a hospital to recover. Despite being lost at sea for almost half a year, he had only lost around 20 pounds and could walk by himself.
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5
## Maurice and Marilyn Bailey
PM
In 1973, Maurice and Marilyn Bailey were planning to live out their dream of moving from their home in England to New Zealand. They sold their house, bought a yacht, and set sail with their possessions. They believed the trip would be a pleasant journey. [They were wrong](http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1396218/Maralyn-Bailey.html).
The first half of their voyage went well, and they passed through the Panama Canal in February of that year. Soon after, they ran into trouble, or more accurately, trouble ran into them.
While both of the Baileys were below deck, they felt a massive impact. Rushing onto the deck, the couple saw a [whale](https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/a34658153/exploding-whale-dynamite-video/) diving below the water and a large hole in their hull. The ship quickly began to sink, and the Baileys grabbed what little they could and headed for their life raft.
The couple was stranded in the Pacific with a few days' worth of food, a [compass](https://www.popularmechanics.com/adventure/outdoors/a28411555/how-to-use-a-compass/), some flares, and little else. They collected rainwater to drink, and when their food ran out, they ate birds, fish, and even turtles.
During their time at sea, they spotted seven ships, which they attempted to signal, but no one noticed them. As the weeks stretched into months, they became badly [sunburned](https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/health/a33215051/how-to-treat-a-sunburn/) and malnourished. Their life raft started to deflate, they were plagued by sharks, and they suffered multiple storms.
After 117 days stranded at sea, with no supplies and near the brink of death, they were finally rescued. A passing Korean ship spotted them in the water and changed course to bring them aboard. They could barely move and they were so weak that they couldn't eat solid foods.
The Korean ship dropped the Baileys off at Hawaii, where they immediately vowed to build another yacht and return to the sea, because they clearly didn't get the message the first time. With the proceeds from the book they wrote about their experiences, they did indeed build a second yacht, and spent years sailing around the world comparatively uneventfully.
6
## Rose Noelle Crew
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John Glennie, Rick Hellriegel, Jim Nalepka, and Phil Hofman were four friends who decided to take a winter vacation to the island of Tonga. They left on their ship, the *Rose Noelle*, and [hoped for smooth sailing](http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10600306).
On June 4, 1989, three days after they set sail, a massive wave came out of nowhere and hit the ship, flipping it completely upside down and severely damaging it. The crew found themselves trapped in the ship's cabin, which began rapidly filling with water.
They set off a signal beacon in an attempt to get help, but the beacon went unanswered. Alone and trapped in a dark cabin, the crew had to chop a hole in the hull of the ship to escape. Fortunately the *Rose Noelle*, though now upside down, did not completely sink, and its [wreckage](https://www.popularmechanics.com/flight/g73/the-most-famous-airplane-crashes/) served as a twisted vessel on which the men could still float.
A week later, with supplies running out, the signal beacon stopped working, still with no response or rescue. The crew were on their own.
After the ship's water reserves ran out, the crew rigged up a system to collect rainwater and started catching fish for food. They were still adrift, they had food, water, and shelter, so they were in no immediate danger as long as the weather didn't turn.
They drifted in this manner for weeks without rescue. Glennie began diving into the wreckage to recover pieces of the ship they could use. He managed to recover a [gas cooker](https://www.popularmechanics.com/home/g36143207/best-gas-stoves/) so the four men could have occasional barbecues.
On September 30, 118 days after they were set adrift, the four castaways and the wreckage of the *Rose Noelle* washed up on a beach in New Zealand. They were extremely lucky. A few months later, the wind and water currents would have taken them in the direction of South America.
Even the location on the beach where they washed ashore was fortunate. A few dozen yards to the left or right were rocky cliffs, and if the ship had landed there, it would have broken apart on the rocks.
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7
## Salvador Alvarenga
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José Salvador Alvarenga holds the record for the longest solo survival at sea. [He was adrift](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/nov/07/fisherman-lost-at-sea-436-days-book-extract) for 438 days, and traveled over 6,700 miles.
Alvarenga is a fisherman, and on November 17, 2012, he set sail from the fishing village of Costa Azul in Mexico. With him was Ezequiel CĂłrdoba, another fisherman, whom Alvarenga had never worked with before.
Shortly after departing the shore, a storm hit their boat. It blew the ship off course, and damaged the motor and most of the electronics onboard. Alvarenga managed to contact his boss on the [radio](https://www.popularmechanics.com/adventure/a22818698/two-way-radio-ham-cb-gmrs/) before it died, but he was unable to help.
The storm lasted for five days. When it ended, Alvarenga and CĂłrdoba had no idea where they were or how to get home. The storm had destroyed most of their fishing gear, leaving them with only basic supplies. And with no motor, no sails, and no [oars](https://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/gadgets/a27309640/my-patent-story-rowing-gear/), their boat was adrift.
The two drifted for months, surviving on rainwater and catching sea animals like fish, turtles, and birds. After four months, CĂłrdoba gave up hope. He stopped eating, and starved to death. Alvarenga says he considered giving up too, but persevered.
Even after four months at sea, Alvarenga was not even halfway through his ordeal. He tried signaling every ship he saw, but none of them spotted him. He continued surviving off rainwater and sea animals, and kept track of the time by the [phases of the moon.](https://www.popularmechanics.com/space/moon-mars/g30305180/moon-phases/)
More than a year after the storm that set him adrift, Alvarenga spotted land. He abandoned his boat and swam for the shore, and found himself on one of the Marshall islands, on the other side of the Pacific from where he started. He was taken to a hospital, where he made a full recovery.
8
## Louis Zamperini
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Louis Zamperini first made national headlines in 1938 when he traveled to Berlin to compete in the Olympics. He ran in the 500-meter dash and placed 8th, which is more than enough to earn a spot in the history books. But [Zamperini wasn't done yet](http://archive.vcstar.com/lifestyle/louis-zamperini-lives-to-talk-about-horrific-plane-crash-47-days-lost-at-sea-and-pow-camp-ep-2928913-351737941.html).
In 1941, just a few months prior to Pearl Harbor, Zamperini enlisted in the United States military. He became a second lieutenant in the Air Force, and when the war began, he was deployed as a bombardier in the Pacific.
In 1943, during a [search-and-rescue](https://www.popularmechanics.com/flight/a3331/4267469/) mission, his bomber suffered a mechanical failure that brought it down. It crashed in the ocean, and eight of the 11 crew members died. The three that survived were Zamperini and his crewmates Russell Allen Phillips and Francis McNamara.
The three crewmates were adrift in the Pacific Ocean, in enemy territory, with no food, water, or supplies. They managed to salvage two rafts from the wreckage of their plane, and collected enough rainwater to survive. They ate small fish and birds.
They drifted like this for weeks. After 33 days, McNamara died, leaving only Phillips and Zamperini. Two weeks later, their rafts washed ashore in the [Marshall Islands](https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/environment/a26541069/marshall-islands-raise-land-sea-level-rise/) and the two men were immediately captured by the Japanese.
Zamperini and Phillips were sent to various POW camps, and Zamperini eventually found himself at the Naoetsu camp in Northern Japan. There, he was tortured for two years by infamous prison guard Mutsuhiro Watanabe, one of Japan's most brutal war criminals. When the war finally ended in 1945, Zamperini was released and finally reunited with his family.
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9
## Oguri Jukichi
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Jukichi was a sailor during Japan's Edo period, about 200 years ago. He was the captain of the freighter *Tokujomaru* and its crew of 14 men. He was transporting soybeans to the city of Edo, which would become present-day Tokyo, when his ship was caught in a massive storm. The storm damaged the ship's mast and [set them adrift](http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2013/11/01/national/events-mark-1800s-castaways-who-were-first-japanese-in-u-s/).
Very quickly, the crew exhausted their supply of food and water. They began surviving entirely on captured rainwater and the large stores of soybeans in the ship's hold. After several months, members of the crew began suffering from [scurvy](https://www.popularmechanics.com/adventure/outdoors/g2300/10-of-the-toughest-old-school-explorers/) due to lack of nutrients.
One by one, over months, the crew started dying, while the *Tokujomaru* drifted further and further from home. After more than a year adrift, only three people were left: the captain Jukichi, and two members of the crew, Otokichi and Hanbe. All three were suffering the effects of scurvy and likely close to death when their ship was discovered off the coast of California in 1815.
The three Japanese sailors became the first people from that country to set foot on American shores. They had drifted over 5,000 miles and were lost at sea for 484 days.
The three sailors returned to Japan after recovering, however Hanbe died during the trip. Upon their return, Jukichi received numerous honors, and was granted a last name, Oguri. Even 200 years later, Jukichi [still holds the Guinness World Record](http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/longest-time-adrift-at-sea) for longest time adrift at sea.
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