Chris Bertish is going to attempt a very long sailing trip on a craft not made for very long sailing trips. Photos: TransCat 2025
Chris Bertish is not a man who is afraid to do things alone. The big wave surfer (and former Maverick’s champ) has done a few enormous ocean crossings, and now, he’s got a new mission: he’s about to embark on a solo and unsupported crossing of the Pacific Ocean on a beach catamaran without a fixed cabin. Bertish’s TransCat Expedition 2025 will begin in late June.
“Launching from Dana Point, California, in late June, Bertish will navigate 2,800 nautical miles to Oahu, Hawaii, over an estimated 17 to 21 days,” a press release reads. “The expedition will be powered solely by wind and solar energy, highlighting a commitment to sustainable exploration.”
Bertish has long been an advocate for a variety of causes. Two among them are ocean protection and access to education. He uses his incredible journeys across oceans to raise awareness and funds supporting them, and the TransCat Expedition is no different.
“This expedition is not just about breaking records; it’s about inspiring change,” Bertish said. “By pushing the limits of what’s possible, we aim to spotlight the urgent need for ocean stewardship and educational access. When we protect our ocean, we protect all life on this planet.”
The vessel Bertish will call home for the trip is a 20-foot semi-foiling beach catamaran. It’s not something that would traditionally be used for a crossing as long as this one. Instead, it’s more of a day tripper; something to spend a few hours on before heading back to shore to the comforts of home. It’s made for agility and speed, not comfort. It has no cabin, no kitchen, and no toilet.
“For nearly three weeks, he will face the elements head-on, 24/7 – battling relentless sun, storms, wet and cold, both day and night,” the press release said. “He will endure extreme solitude without a cabin for shelter, a support crew or a backup vessel.”
Despite all the hardships Bertish has endured on previous voyages, he thinks this one might be the toughest.
“I believe this expedition will be the most extreme of any expeditions I have ever done before, due to the extreme exposure to the wet, the sun, the cold and other factors like the catamaran turning turtle (upside down) and not being able to right it,” Bertish said.
As mentioned, this isn’t the first time Bertish has done something like this. He has completed a 93-day solo stand-up paddle across the Atlantic as well as a 49-day solo wing-foil journey across the Pacific. Those trips, while still on tiny crafts, at least had little cabins for shelter, but the TransCat 2025 will just be Bertish in the elements.
Bertish is hoping to do a few things with this attempt: build a circular economy classroom for a school in Kenya, pay for ocean education initiatives through the South African Association for Marine Biological Research and South Africa’s 2 Oceans Education Foundation, fund a mobile ocean aquarium and educational sessions for the Nine Mile Project, Waves for Change, and the Sentinel Alliance, help plant more than 1,000 trees in North America with the SeaTrees initiative and 3,000 more in Africa through the World Forest initiative, as well as contributing to the Coral Restoration Project in Hawaii’s Hanauma Bay, Hawaii.
“As Sir David Attenborough said, ‘When we save the ocean, we save the world!’ We all need to take collective action for a sustainable future,” Bertish said. “Every small step and action counts, we can only accomplish this together!”
To support, track the journey, and learn more about the TransCat Expedition 2025, visit transcatexpedition.com.
