SUMMERSIDE, P.E.I. — It took all of two seconds to ruin years of planning and dreaming.
Alan Mulholland was sleeping in his cabin on the night of Jan. 12 when he was forcibly awoken when his ship crashed horizontally onto its side before righting itself.
“It was a very violent motion. The boat was thrown down into the sea,” recalled Mulholland.
The sailor from Summerside was alone and in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, on the latest leg of his around the world sailing adventure. He’d been at sea for 23 days, heading from the Canary Islands off the coast of Africa to the Panama Canal in South America.
He was about 800 miles from the French territory of Martinique, about three-quarters of the way across the Atlantic, when the crash happened.
His ship, Wave Rover, had been picked up by a six-metre-tall wave in a storm. In sailing terms, it was a “knockdown.”
He spent the next several hours taking stock of the damage.
One of her solar panels was destroyed, the steering system was knocked out of alignment and the rudder connection developed a leak.
To make matters worse, after the adrenaline started to wear off Mulholland felt pain in his chest.
It was another eight days before he managed to dock in Martinique.
A doctor would later tell him he’d cracked two ribs and the boat master found Wave Rover was not in much better shape.
It took a few days to sink in, but Mulholland eventually had to face fact that Wave Rover’s around the world journey had come to a premature end.
"Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, but I really think I broke even."
- Alan Mulholland
When he set out on this adventure he factored the potential of six weeks of delays into this leg of the voyage. Unfortunately, it will be at least eight weeks before repairs can be arranged, and another two waiting to go through the Panama Canal.
Such a delay would put his voyage into dangerous Pacific storm season territory.
“It might as well be eight months because in eight weeks the window of opportunity for me to make my timing is over.”
After a long discussion with his wife, Glenda, Mulholland has decided to repair Wave Rover and sail her home to the Maritimes. He hopes to dock in Cape Breton in June.
The only way to have still accomplished his initial goal was to add another year to the trip, he said.
That wasn’t something he was prepared to do.
“Being away from my wife, family and commitments in Prince Edward Island is hard enough in two years. Three years is a non-starter,” he said.
It’s a tough pill to swallow, said Mulholland.
“I know people are going to be incredibly disappointed, but nobody is going to be more disappointed than I am about the outcome here. But it is the prudent thing to do,” he said.
“If you had more time and you had more money you could solve just about anything – but those two things are just about running out. But I’m still really proud of the achievements of Wave Rover.
“Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, but I really think I broke even.”
For her part, Glenda is sad Alan will not be able to complete this dream voyage but she’s also relieved he is safe and will be heading home.
“I mean, he was kind of ready for anything and he planned a lot and is well organized – but when you’re sailing your plans are up to the weather. The weather dictates where you are going, and when you are going, and you have no control over that. There’s nothing he could have done differently,” she said.
Islanders have been incredibly supportive of his adventure, her husband added, and he would like them to know how much he appreciates it.
“It means so much to me when I read those comments. They really light a fire under me. They give me the fuel to keep going,” he said.
Even as news broke Tuesday that Mulholland would be heading home early, he started receiving an outpouring of support from many of those who have followed his journey so far.
“The updates you posted and reading about this adventure has been an amazing read,” noted Rob Gaudet on Facebook.
“I can’t speak for everyone, but I can say for me it has shown and taught me what one person can do when you face risk head-on. The sail has been quite a ride, but the lessons you have given your followers is the success that will last forever. Cheers. And safe travels back home!”
Mulholland has been sailing the world’s oceans off and on for most of his life. In 2018 he purchased Wave Rover and completely rebuilt it with Glenda in their Summerside driveway.
He re-launched the vessel at the Summerside Marina in June 2019 and sailed to Cape Breton first. He then crossed the Atlantic to the Portuguese Islands of The Azores, where he had to be rescued during hurricane Lorenzo, then on to the Canary Islands off the coast of western Africa. He set out again on Dec. 21, 2019, to again cross the Atlantic, this time with the goal of getting to the Pacific through the Panama Canal. His around the world voyage was expected to take almost two years in total.
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