A Northport woman is preparing to embark on the trip of a lifetime.
28-year-old Jessica Zevalkink grew up spending a lot of time on her dad’s 1962 Pearson sailboat.
Now she’s about to set sail on it across the Atlantic Ocean!
9&10’s Caroline Powers joined Jessica on board to see how she’s preparing for the trip.
“My fulltime job is trying to sail across the ocean.”
Jessica Zevalkink lives life on the water.
“It’s the boat I grew to a leisurely passenger on,” Zevalkink says.
Her father’s 1962 Pearson sailboat is like her second home.
“There’s only 20 of them ever built. It’s a unique boat,” says Zevalkink.
And for the next two months, it’s where she will be spending all her time as she sets sail for England with four different crews and her fiancé.
“We decided, hey let’s plan a boat trip instead of a wedding,” Zevalkink says. “We have all the ingredients to be able to make that happen.”
This isn’t Jessica’s first big sailboat adventure.
When she was 23 she sailed America’s Great Loop for two years.
Last November is when she got the itch to get back on the water and decided to make the journey across the Atlantic.
“It’s going to be a challenge. It’s going to be really cold,” says Zevalkink. “I know my crew members that are excited don’t really know what they’re getting into.”
These past two months, Jessica has spent every day getting the boat ready for the 4,000 mile trip.
“I think we’ll run into issues. Things are going to break. That’s just the name of the game. I guess I’m very prepared for that, it’s just a matter of what breaks and when and how you react,” Zevalkink says.
With the boat only being 37 feet long and pretty tight corridors, Jessica and her crew are making sure they use every inch of the boat.
“Kitchen stuff, book shelf. Ancient fog Joel made in England. Engine stuff, engine stuff. I have one empty one. I think I’m going to put my socks and underwear in there,” says Zevalkink.
Jessica says the boat is fully equipped with all their safety gear.
She hopes to make it to England by mid-June.
“I’m nervous for how I’m going to feel when it’s all done,” says Zevalkink.
You can follow Jessica and her crew’s journey on her .
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