About

Hi! We are Isabelle and Martin, from Montreal, Canada. We are about to embark on a sailing adventure from La Rochelle, France in the Summer of 2019 on Oxalis Borealis, our Nautitech Open 40 catamaran.

Oxalis Borealis

Imaginary specie of wild flower joining together the respective universe of each crew member.

A mix of memories and dreams, evoquing home and abroad, our original roots and the fluidity of time…

Oxalis Montana is a wild flower that is relatively abundant in Quebec’s evergreen forests. It has been a strong symbol through fundamental stages of Martin’s life, from childhood’s science camps to science fairs as a teenager, to his emergence as an entrepreneur as it also evolved into the name of his very first company. It is only natural that it would be associated to this adventure.

Borealis is a reflection of Isabelle’s universe, who is first and foremost a creature of the North, even though she has travelled, inhabited and worked under most latitudes; If we were to add the days, weeks and months Isabelle spent sleeping in a tent in the snow, it would represent well over one full year. As we contemplate the wake of our vessel and look at its name, we will be reminded of our boreal origins.

Our goal is to cruise alongside the coasts of Spain, Portugal and the Mediterranean Sea before going towards the Canary Islands for a transatlantic crossing to the Caribbean at the end of the year.

This powerful and improbable dream that we had always carried inside of us, turned into a common but distant objective when we recognized in the other an ideal crewmate. It then suddenly came to life in a surprising way, precipitating our calendar and rocking our entire life towards this adventure. In the space of just a few months, we travelled to some of the largest boat shows in the United States and France before confirming the order of our catamaran at the Nautic Show in Paris in December 2018.

Although our feet are for the moment still firmly on the ground, we invite you to follow us in the last stretch of our preparations as we go through intensive training and planning for our departure. It is a mix of exhilaration and positive stress as we are also transitioning our professional obligations to the best of our ability; but one way or the other, we are going to get there!

Thank you for joining us in our adventure!

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