In A Speck on the Sea, William Longyard reaches back through five centuries to gather a collection of sea adventures in which the smallest, unlikeliest craft--and the daring individuals aboard them--completed extraordinary voyages against great odds.

From canoes and small sailboats to a pair of strap-to-your-feet pontoons, the watercraft in these true stories make nearly as varied a collection as the mariners who piloted them. The intrepid seafarers and their feats of seamanship include:

• Ed Gillet's kite-powered transpacific kayak voyage
• Gladys Gradely's 1902 quest to become the first woman to solo the Atlantic
• Ben Lecomte's swim across an ocean for love
• Hugo Vihlen's 1968 ocean crossing in the 6-foot sailboat April Fool
• Peter Bird's tragic attempt to row across the Pacific
• And scores more

Whether driven by desperation, adventure, or a desire for fame and fortune, the risktakers in these stories show what vast oceans can be crossed in tiny contrivances by those who dare.

"Great fun to read."--Cruising World

"Very few reference books make for such riveting reading."--Good Old Boat

"Re-creates these awe-inspiring adventures in fascinating detail."--NW Yachting

"Seagoing heroes and scalawags come alive with rich detail in Longyard's volume of salty tales."--Judy Blumhorst, Commodore Emeritus, Northern California Association of West Wight Potter Owners and Webmaster, www.trailersailer.com

William H. Longyard has spent twenty-five years paddling, rowing, and sailing small boats of all kinds. He has published several books and written numerous articles for boating journals.

"--John Harland, author of Seamanship in the Age of Sail

"A Speck on the Sea chronicles the greatest ocean voyages attempted in the littlest boats. These feats include: Diego Mendez's voyage to rescue ColumbusWilliam Okeley's escape from slavery in a folding rowboatErnest Shackleton's death-cheating journeysAnd more

Introduction

63 A.D. - Sixteenth Century / The Fogbound Past

Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries / Two Desperate Escapes

1865 - 1876 / Victorian Venturers

1876 - 1900 / The Paths of Glory

1900 - 1920 / A World to Conquer

1920 - 1930s / Lovers and Other Losers

The 1940s / Big Feat, Little Notice

The 1950s / Goofy and Gallant

The 1960s / Doing Your Own Thing

The 1970s / The Pursuit of Happiness

The 1980s / The Golden Decade

The 1990s / Records and Redux

The New Millennium / New Faces and Old

To Sea or Not to Sea / Conclusion

Appendix / Rowers and Other Strangers

Appendix / Other Notable Voyages

Notes

Bibliography

Acknowledgments

Index