ABOUT | Ocean Maid

ROUND THE WORLD

eXXpedition is a Round-the-World trip lasting 2 years, from October 2019 to September 2021.

It is an adventurous all-women sailing expedition which circumnavigates the globe with the aim of raising awareness of the devastating environmental and health impacts of single-use plastics and toxics in the world’s ocean.

38,000 nautical miles (70,000 kilometres) will be sailed by women of all backgrounds to highlight the reality and risks of plastics and toxins in the oceans and explore solutions to tackle this problem.

The facts are staggering! See here.

The 4th leg -which I took part in- took us in November and December 2019 from Antigua in the Caribbean, to Bonaire and Aruba.

The boat had already completed the 3 legs, from the UK via the Azores and through the North Atlantic Gyre (which sadly also is the North Atlantic Garbage Patch).

The journey to circle the world continues now that I disembarked the vessel in Aruba and more sampling and awareness raising will take place via successive crews boarding the boat until September 2021.

LEG 4

Emily Penn, founder of eXXpedition, explains to Here & Now's Robin Young. Listen here

Plymouth, UK – Azores – North Atlantic Gyre – Antigua – Bonaire – Aruba – San Blas – Panama – Galapagos – Easter Island – South Pacific Gyre – Tahiti – Cook Islands – Tonga – Fiji – Vanuatu – Cairns – Darwin – Perth – Indian Ocean Gyre – Mauritius – Cape Town – South Atlantic Gyre – Recife – Fernando de Noronha – Grenada – St Lucia – Bermuda – Halifax – Labrador – Disko Bay – Nuuk – Iceland – Lofoten – Oslo – London, UK.

1. ANTIGUA - 2. BONAIRE - 3. ARUBA

3 destinations

Antigua

1. Antigua

Antigua is one of the 2 major islands that make up the Caribbean nation of Antigua and Barbuda. Also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the native population, it is an island in the West Indies. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region.

Ringed with coral reefs, the island is known for its many sandy beaches. The English Harbour, a restored Nelson’s Dockyard, is where Admiral Horatio Nelson made his base in the 1780s.

26th November - 29th November

Arrive in Aruba for acclimatisation and watersports.

29th November

Arrive on board the vessel and meet the crew. Safety briefings.

30th November

Antigua community work on plastic sources in association with University of Georgia.

30th November to 4th December

Sailing and science from Antigua to Bonaire

Bonaire

2. Bonaire

Bonaire, an island municipality of the Netherlands, lies off Venezuela’s coast in the southern Caribbean.

Its reef-lined coast is protected by Bonaire National Marine Park. Beyond its rich marine life, the island shelters flamingos, lizards and donkeys.

4th December

Predicted arrival in Bonaire. Work with general public and local organisations.

5th December

Set sail from Bonaire to Aruba.

Aruba

3. Aruba

Aruba is an island and a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the southern Caribbean Sea, located about 1,600 kilometres west of the main part of the Lesser Antilles and 29 kilometres north of the coast of Venezuela.

Unlike much of the Caribbean region, Aruba has a dry climate and an arid, cactus-strewn landscape.