Stranded on the High Seas

A storm ripped apart sections of the reed-hulled sailboat approximately 900 kilometers (558 miles) short of the Azore Islands, according to a spokesman.

Dominique Görlitz, a 41-year-old German botanist who conceived the adventure, abandoned ship, along with his crew of 10. They were taken aboard an escort boat, which was tracking their progress.

Looking forward to dropping anchor

The Azore Islands were intended to be their first landing after leaving New York on July 11, 2007, spokesman Michael Grünert told reporters from the eastern German city of Chemnitz.

The Portuguese islands are about 3,900 kilometers from the United States and 1,500 kilometers from Lisbon.

Görlitz, who had been criticized for risking the lives of his volunteer crew, made the decision as a fresh storm with force six winds was forecast in the area. He told his base that it would be irresponsible to keep the crew on the patched-together vessel any longer.

Weather took its toll on boat

After a long period without wind, a cyclone lasting over three days had ripped off the stern of the Abora 3, which is modeled on ancient rock drawings of river boats and is made of 17 tons of reeds. After that storm the crew lashed the remaining three-quarters of the vessel together and continued their journey.

Görlitz's expedition was a form of experimental archaeology. He hoped to test whether his theories about long-distance navigation as long as 14,000 years ago could work in real life.

His inspiration came from Norwegian adventurer Thor Heyerdahl whose reed vessel Ra II sailed westwards with prevailing winds over the ocean in 1970. Görlitz wanted to show that ancient cultures in the Americas could have exported goods and had contact with the Old World.