Ella Maillart and Hermine de Saussure met Gerbault in Cannes while he was preparing the 'Firecrest' to cross the Atlantic solo. He ignited their ambition to emulate his achievement and start a nomadic life on their boat.
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But after covering 900 miles in the Atlantic, the project came to an abrupt halt: Hermine de Saussure was pregnant. Their adventure at sea came to an abrupt end.
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Ella Maillart
Ella Maillart
Alain Gerbault achieved the feat of crossing the Atlantic solo from east to west, sailing from Gibraltar to New York in 101 days. In 1924, he embarked on a circumnavigation of the globe aboard the Firecrest, becoming the first Frenchman to complete a solo round-the-world voyage under sail.
"At last we were ready [to cross the Atlantic]. The last letter home had gone, giving Vigo, Spain, c/o French Consul as our next address. On the first of September 1926 we left our anchorage." - Gypsy Afloat, Ella Maillart
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Ella and Alain, 1923
"An aviator during the Great War, he and three of his companions had decided to reach the Pacific and abandon forever a continent where such wars were possible. His friends had been killed, but he had not given up on his plan; he was determined to leave alone."
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Upon returning from her abandoned expedition, Hermine bought a small house in the woods in Charente-Maritime (France), started raising chickens, and lived the life of a farmer.
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"She was lovely, built for the deep seas, with her good beam, straight stem and counter stern, the elegant flush-deco ending with a nice sheer towards the bowspit. Her cutter rig with its very long boom was too heavy so we altered her into a yawl." - Gypsy Afloat, Ella Maillart, 1942
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