A COUPLE were found dead in a lifeboat a month after disappearing while trying to cross the Atlantic on a yacht.
Sarah Packwood, 54, from Warwick, and Brett Clibbery, 70, were heading to the Azores on a wind and solar powered ship called ‘Theros’.
But the pair were reported missing a week after leaving Nova Scotia, Canada, on June 11 in their 42-foot sailboat.
The two bodies were found in a three-metre lifeboat after it washed ashore on Sable Island – 290 kilometers off the coast of Nova Scotia – last week.
It’s still unclear how the couple got into trouble, but Halifax police have launched an investigation into their deaths.
Brett, a Canadian, and Sarah met at a bus stop in London in 2015, before getting married on the yacht a year later.
They also had a Celtic wedding ceremony at Stonehenge and later moved to Canada, where they purchased land on Salt Spring Island, near Vancouver.
Poet, musician and reiki healer Sarah was a “gifted sailor” studying at university in England.
In a farewell video message before the couple’s departure, Sarah said: “Captain Brett and First Mate Sarah set sail on the second leg of the Green Odyssey aboard the 42ft sailboat Theros – GibSea.
“Driven by the wind and the sun. Heading east, towards the Azores. It’s probably the biggest adventure of our lives so far.”
The pair had previously sailed 5,000 miles together along the Pacific coasts of Canada, the US and South America.
Sarah, who has blogged about her travels, wrote: “We spent a year together aboard the Theros at sea, sailing the first leg of our staged round-the-world voyage from Salt Spring Island in British Columbia to Dartmouth in Nova Scotia. , via Central America, the Panama Canal and across the Western Caribbean.”
How the couple’s planned trip turned into tragedy
June 11th – Sarah and Brett leave Halifax, Nova Scotia on their sailboat Theros
June 18 – The couple is declared missing and a search begins
July 10 – Their two bodies are found in a lifeboat on Sable Island
July 13 – Brett’s son James posts tribute on social media
The pair also maintained a YouTube channel to keep family and friends updated about their travels.
Brett’s son James posted a tribute on Facebook that said: “The last few days have been very difficult.
“My father, James Brett Clibbery, and his wife, Sarah Justine Packwood, have sadly passed away.
“There is still an investigation, as well as a DNA test to confirm, but with all the news, it is difficult to maintain hope.
“They were incredible people and there is nothing that can fill the void left by their, until now, inexplicable passing.
“Life won’t be the same without your wisdom, and your wife was quickly becoming a beacon of knowledge and kindness.
“I miss your smiles. I miss your voices. We will miss you forever.”
Their yacht, Theros, has not yet been recovered.
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story