How one sailor survived 76 days lost at sea... and what he learned after
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It's been over four decades since Steve Callahan was left stranded at sea - in a life raft - for 76 days after his sailboat collided with a whale on the Atlantic Ocean. He's gained back the extreme weight he lost, re-married and gotten back on the water after the harrowing and incredible test of survival. But his life has very much been split into before and after.
![[The film explores Callahan's survival but also his connection to the ecosystem which formed around him]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2025/01/10/16/93919237-14256729-The_film_explores_Callahan_s_survival_but_also_his_connection_to-a-91_1736524840164.jpg)
'Since this happened in 1982, it's never left me,' he told Mail Sport in an exclusive interview. 'Now, I'm 72 years old, this is something that's two and a half months of my life from when I was 30. 'And although I have, I don't know, an affinity for the story and what it means, which is more than about me, it's really about senses of connection to everything, and just being a small part in the larger, incredible universe we live in.'.
![[Callahan had to abandon his self-constructed boat, Napoleon Solo, after a whale hit it]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2025/01/10/16/93918591-14256729-Callahan_had_to_abandon_his_self_constructed_boat_Napoleon_Solo_-a-89_1736524836178.jpg)
That story is told in documentary '76 Days Adrift,' which was shown at New York's DOC NYC festival late last year and showcases the mental fortitude and resourcefulness that Callahan needed to survive - as well his ever-growing connection with the ecosystem that formed around him on the sea.
![[Callahan (second left) has remained an avid sailor despite his harrowing experience]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2025/01/10/16/93919235-14256729-Callahan_second_left_has_remained_an_avid_sailor_despite_his_har-a-90_1736524837634.jpg)
Callahan was 29 years old and recovering from a 'lost' marriage when he set sail on his boat, Napoleon Solo, from Newport, Rhode Island to England with a friend, with Antigua set as the eventual return destination for him alone. Steve Callahan was left stranded on a life raft for 76 days after his sailboat crashed.
![[Callahan, is seen with Life of Pi director Ang Lee, who executive produced '76 Days Adrift']](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2025/01/10/16/93963257-14256729-Callahan_is_seen_with_Life_of_Pi_director_Ang_Lee_who_executive_-a-87_1736524825958.jpg)
