Robert Youens, a 71-year-old adventurer from Texas, landed in Pensacola Thursday night after becoming the fastest person to navigate through a roughly 6,000-mile boating route known as the Great Loop.
And he did it all in his 16-foot Jon boat, the Ageless Wanderer.
Youens’ Garmin tracker last reported him entering Bayou Grande, a saline estuary that is part of Pensacola Bay, at approximately 9:36 p.m. on Thursday.
Youens, exhausted, officially made the announcement that he broke the Great Loop record in a Facebook reel just before 9 p.m.
“Hey guys, it’s Robert. I finished the loop,” Youens started. “It was, uh, an amazing thing. It started with me and my wife, and Jack and Quinton. I left this pass, right here, heading to Fort Myers, not knowing any of this stuff was going to happen. And then one thing led to another, and all of a sudden – joy. Unbelievable joy as the crowd grew,” he said.
“I think we brought joy to the world when the world needed joy. So, guys, thank you so much for following along, and I’ve crossed my wake,” he concluded.
Youens traveled more than 200 miles in the final 24-hour stretch before arriving in Pensacola.
Robert Youens became the fastest person to solo navigate the roughly 6,000-mile Great Loop.
John Kucko, a former TV sports anchor who chronicled Youens’ journey, posted to social media Thursday night when Youens was in the homestretch.
Cruising at 33 mph, Youens started the final leg of his journey around 5:30 a.m. on Thursday morning, navigating along the Tombigbee River south of Columbus, Mississippi, according to Kucko’s posts.
Youens passed the final lock around 2:30 p.m., leaving about 170 miles left on his quest. He reached Mobile, Alabama, around 7:45 p.m. on Thursday, where rough waves ended any chance of Youens entering the Gulf, according to Kucko.
In total, Youens managed to break the Great Loop record at 19 days, 13 hours and one minute.
What is the Great Loop?
The Great Loop is a roughly 6,000-mile continuous waterway that includes parts of the Atlantic, Gulf Intracoastal Waterways, the Great Lakes, Canadian Heritage Canals and inland rivers, according to the National Ocean Service.
While there are a few ways to navigate the Great Loop, Loopers, the official name given to anyone who navigates the route, can take advantage of river currents that run into the Mississippi by starting in or near Chicago.
Following the Mississippi down to the Gulf is a viable path, but not a common one due to barge traffic. Instead, most loopers elect to follow the Tennessee River, which leads to the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway and ultimately the Gulf.
Robert Youens tracker
While Youens’ journey is over, you can trace his route here.
This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Robert Youens lands in Pensacola after breaking Great Loop record
