In 2021 Wayward Sun completed the first 100% solar voyage through the Inside Passage. Owners David and Alex Borton left Bellingham WA on May 25, and arrived in Glacier Bay Alaska on July 2nd. Propulsion was accomplished by using energy from the solar panels only, with no shore power or other backup of any kind. This ground-breaking trip shows it is possible to produce a solar boat with reasonable speeds and accommodation that can continuously cruise without ever charging from the shore, even in the mostly overcast world of Southeast Alaska.
Wayward Sun was designed and built by Sam Devlin in collaboration with Solar Sal Boats, using the solar-electric system conceived and patented by David. While originally intended as a day-use excursion boat, Alex soon realized she is a comfortable and capable cruiser. It is a testament to Sam’s design that his ‘day-boat’ totally rocked the Inside Passage! For this trip they added two more solar panels, doubled the original battery capacity, added AIS, satellite communication, and built a dinghy (custom designed by Sam). The propulsion system includes 1700 Watts of Solbian solar panels, six Torqeedo 24-3500 batteries, and a Torqeedo Cruise 4.0 pod drive.
She is for sale so we can continue to innovate and bring additional solar boats to the market.