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Saint-Denis-de-la-Reunion (dpa) - Frenchwoman Raphaela le Gouvello said Thursday she was "a bit exhausted" after completing a solo windsurf crossing of the Indian Ocean.
"It was a rather turbulent crossing," the 46-year-old Gouvello said after sailing her craft across an imaginary finish line off the city of Saint Denis on the Indian Ocean island of Reunion.
She said that winds had been stronger than foreseen, which enabled her to make the 6,300-km journey from the Australian port of Exmouth to Saint Denis in 60 days, two hours and one minute, rather than the expected 75 days.
But it also forced her to stop the custom-built 7.8-metre (26- foot) windsurfing craft on which she sailed.
"The hardest moments are those when you can no longer go forward," she said. "I waited on my board, inside (one of the cabins), tossed around in every direction. It was not too comfortable."
The trip was the fourth solo and unassisted oceanic windsurf crossing for Gouvello, and the first during which she celebrated her birthday.
In 2000, she windsurfed across the Atlantic; two years later, she traversed the Mediterranean and in 2003 she crossed the Pacific Ocean. However, before leaving Exmouth, she said the Indian Ocean journey would be her last crossing.
The trip was not without hazards. After completing three quarters of the crossing Gouvello capsized, losing most of her possessions, including fresh water. But her water purifier was not lost, which enabled her to continue.
She also suffered a severe bout of gastritis early on the trip and was then buffeted by violent squalls and high seas as she skirted an ocean storm.
Her craft, technically a "wind boat," is called Mahi Mahi, which means 'dolphin fish' in Tahitian, and was equipped with two below- deck cabins.
Copyright 2006 dpa Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH
