British Woman and Husband Found Dead After Abandoning Eco-Friendly Yacht
The bodies of British woman Sarah Packwood and her husband, Canadian national Brett Clibbery, have been found washed up on an inflatable lifeboat, six weeks after they embarked on an eco-friendly voyage across the Atlantic Ocean.
Packwood and Clibbery set sail on their 42-foot wind and solar-powered yacht, Theros, from Nova Scotia, Canada, on June 11. They aimed to reach the Azores region of Portugal, demonstrating how travel can be achieved without fossil fuels. The couple was reported missing on June 18 and discovered three weeks later on July 10 on Sable Island, known as the “graveyard of the Atlantic” due to the numerous shipwrecks found there, located around 108 miles southeast of mainland Nova Scotia.
The reason behind their abandonment of the yacht remains unclear. In a heartfelt Facebook post, Clibbery’s son, James, shared the devastating news, saying the last few days had been “very hard.” He wrote, “There isn’t anything that will fill the hole that has been left by their, so far unexplained passing.”
Formal identification of the bodies is expected in the coming days. Canadian police have launched a “multi-agency” investigation into their deaths. Investigators are considering whether the yacht may have been struck by a passing cargo ship that did not notice the collision, as reported by Canadian news website Saltwire. An anonymous source suggested the couple might have been unable to avoid the collision or were below deck with Theros on automatic pilot.
Despite efforts by the Canadian coastguard and military aircraft, the yacht has not been located. Packwood and Clibbery, who lived in an eco-friendly home they built in Nova Scotia, hoped their 3,228 km journey would take 21 days. Their latest adventure, dubbed ‘The Green Odyssey,’ featured a yacht powered by a battery from an electric Nissan Leaf car and six solar panels.
The couple frequently uploaded videos to their YouTube channel, Theros Adventures, documenting their sailing trips, walks, and journeys across Canada in an electric car. In a post about their planned Atlantic crossing on April 12, Clibbery said, “We’re doing everything we can to show that you can travel without burning fossil fuels.” Packwood added, “It’s probably the biggest adventure of our lives so far.”
In their final post on June 11, they wrote on Facebook: “Captain Brett and First Mate Sarah set sail on the 2nd leg of The Green Odyssey on board Theros – GibSea 42 foot sailboat. Powered by the wind and sun. Heading east to the Azores.”
Packwood and Clibbery met at a London bus stop in 2015 and married on their yacht a year later. They reaffirmed their vows in a traditional handfasting ceremony at Stonehenge in 2017. Packwood, originally from Long Itchington, Warwickshire, was an experienced humanitarian who worked in Rwanda with the UN after the 1994 genocide.
In a 2020 interview with The Guardian, Clibbery described his wife as “an amazing lady who never lets anything get in her way. Not even months of sea sickness when we went sailing.” Packwood added that her spouse “always challenges me to be my best self. He’s my soulmate and has a heart of gold.”
In April, Packwood told the My Camino podcast about their “failed attempt to cross the Atlantic in 2019,” highlighting the couple’s adventurous spirit and determination.