Then, there was the time Ed Gillette paddled his kayak across 2200 miles of the Pacific, from California to Hawaii. In his words, [color:"green"]"Survival at sea depends on preparation, experience, and prudence -- not on the size of your boat. I had turned my kayak into one of the most seaworthy little boats in the world. I did not need to carry a life raft -- I paddled a life raft."[/color]

But, he would also admit, [color:"green"]"The trip seemed to me to be the kayaking equivalent of climbing Mt. Everest. It was the most difficult trip I could conceive of surviving."[/color]

He also wrote, [color:"green"]"I felt utterly foolish attempting to paddle to Hawaii. Who was I to attempt such an improbable feat?"[/color]"

He survived, but not after running out of food on the 60th day.

[color:"green"]"On my 60th day at sea, I ran out of food. My school of mahi-mahi had left me a week before. I had eaten my tooth paste two days earlier. There was nothing edible left in the boat, and no fish were biting my lures. Looking up, I watched a line of jet airplanes heading for Hawaii. I thought about the passengers eating from their plastic trays. My food fantasies were so real and so complete that I could recreate every detail of every restaurant I had ever visited. I could remember the taste, texture and smell of meals I had eaten several years ago. I thought about how I should have gone to a grocery store in Monterey and bought fifty cans of Spam, or chili, and stuffed the cans into my boat.[/color]

Ed's narrative written for Marblehead magazine can be found at Paddling from California to Hawaii