My name is Alan Mulholland.
I tried to circumnavigate the globe
but ended up in lockdown on my sailboat.
I’d describe myself as an adventurer and a sailor
not the other way around because there are so many better sailors out there.
There are racers, there are cruisers who do a fantastic job
but I did this almost entirely from a sense of adventure.
The boat itself, when I purchased it, was in really rough shape.
It had leaks both above the waterline and below the waterline.
So if it stayed in the water for any length of time, it was sinking.
And it was set up to sail on the Ottawa River. It wasn't set up to sail across an ocean.
Now this boat is 40 years old
and it really represented the thinking of designers and sailors four decades ago.
And it's small.
It was small by standards 40 years ago and it's exceptionally small by today's standards.
So we terminated the whole farm.
We sold off the animals. We sold the farm. We moved into Summerside.
And that was the first time in my life where I didn't really have
any real sense of purpose or —
I've been very fortunate that I've lived an exciting or I've always had passion toward all my endeavours
but I lacked it at that point as we moved into the city.
And Glenda, quite wisely after a few months, said to me:
‘You know, Alan, I think you need a boat.’
And later I would discover that what she had in mind was a kayak or a rowboat to get out into the bay.
But in fact, I took it as a license to get a sailboat.
I then said, ‘Yes, I'll buy an old wreck of a sailboat.
I'll fix it up quickly and I'll get myself off on the Atlantic.’
And that really was — it's simple and it's probably a little trite, but that's how it all happened.
My initial plan was to sail the boat around the world
and I had a very good start into it.
I had crossed the Atlantic from Canada all the way to the Azores.
And from there I sailed it across the Atlantic again
using the very same route that Christopher Columbus would have taken.
And I had every intention of going non-stop to the Panama Canal
and getting through the Panama Canal to the Pacific Ocean.
But about 800 miles from the Windward Islands of the Caribbean where Martinique is located
I was hit by this rogue wave.
It’s January 12. Shortly before midnight.
And Wave Rover has just suffered a knock down.
There was the bang and my eyes just popped open at this point.
The boat was picked up, and there was a partial moon and a clear sky that night.
So the boat was well-lit on the inside.
And as the boat went up and moved on its side
the hatch slightly opened
and the boat then descended.
It was almost like someone had dropped the boat onto a hard surface
and that was the boat hitting the water again.
I got my flashlight out, saw the amount of water that was in the boat
and started pumping the manual bilge pump, which is the only pump I have on board.
So I got the boat steadied again.
I got the boat steering itself again.
And since it was so late and I was wet
so I thought for safety considerations, I'll just do the rest of the assessment in a few hours.
I was there for a few days and I found out that
the repair would take a few weeks.
And while I was still contemplating that, that's when COVID-19 happened.
And when COVID-19 happened
wow, the whole world changed as everybody knows.
But for sailors, all the ports closed. So you could not leave where you were.
So my plans had changed.
Things didn't tighten up overnight on Martinique.
Things were ratcheted up. Every week or two there was another level of lockdown.
If you went to shore at a certain point we had to have a note
that was written that very day with the time that we were leaving
and the place we were going. And the note allowed you to go only to that place.
Now the thing about Martinique being a French territory is
they always have the very best wines and cheeses and food that France has to offer.
So of all the places to be locked down during the pandemic
I was in this place where —
I was putting on considerable weight by the end.
It was time to get back to sea because the food really was that good.
I wanted to get going as soon as possible
but I knew I had to wait until the North Atlantic storms had stopped.
Because the trip from Martinique, or from the Caribbean up to Canada
is probably one of the top five most challenging passages you can make on the high seas.
The seas are a little confused on account of the wind veering so quickly.
So we have the wind coming from one angle
and we have the seas from a couple of different angles.
It's June 19 and the sun is setting
on what is the last day of this passage.
And you can see just over my shoulder here:
That’s the beautiful province of Prince Edward Island.
I didn't actually touch any land until I got to Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island.
And when I arrived in Charlottetown
we had sent texts to them and my wife had communicated with the health authority here
and explained to them how I had been totally isolated for 33 days at that point.
And on top of that there was electronic charting showing the position of the boat.
And we had made an arrangement to have the health authority come down to do a check
and then gain an exemption and then get ashore.
But, interestingly, I got into Charlottetown at four in the morning.
I wasn't able to step ashore until 10 AM.
They had to dispatch two officers from the Canada Border Services Agency
all the way from Moncton, New Brunswick.
They had to come across the bridge, Confederation Bridge, to Charlottetown
and interview me and then clear me.
Then I was able to jump ashore, embrace my wife and …
the voyage was over.
I'm so happy I went on this voyage.
Not only did this invigorate my soul
it ignited my passion for life again.
I came back to Canada with all this energy.
I feel 20 years younger than the day I left.
I have more energy. I have a clear vision of what I want to do in life.
When you're stuck in the middle of the preparation and all that
you don't take time to see the big picture.
But I do see the big picture now
and I'm so thankful I've been able to do this, I had the health to do it, and I had the …
I had not just the desire but the ability to do it.