“Get uncomfortable. It doesn’t have to be buying a boat without a clue what you’re doing; it can be giving your phone number to a cute guy or singing in public. The more it makes you afraid, the better the excuses you’ll find not to do it. Do it anyway. That’s how you feel alive.”

Clara Barth

“Beneath different skies, we meet the same sea, a reminder that no matter how far apart we are, the ocean carries a part of us all.”

This quote perfectly illustrates how Clara and I first met. We both volunteered for a massive beach cleanup, supporting Sungai Watch in removing rubbish from the shorelines at Jimbaran Beach, Bali, Indonesia.

It wasn’t just her passion for marine ecosystems and ocean protection that made me admire her. Her sailing skills and bravery in navigating across countries, from Tahiti to Marseille and the islands were truly fascinating! She even inspired me to join her one day.

Let’s dive into the story of her deep connection with the ocean!

From Buying a Boat Without a Clue to Cutting Carbon: A Journey Beyond the Comfort Zone

Photos by:  Tashya Hampton | @applbm, Salomé tordjman | @salommmm

Please tell me about yourself and where you are originally from.
I am from Marseille, France. I grew up in the Mediterranean, always loved the sea and its creatures. I grew up in a city. So I didn’t really know how to sail and definitely not how to fix things (even put a frame on a wall).

Your profession?
I have a business degree. I do strategy and communication for non-profits or purpose-led businesses, mostly ocean conservation, but not only. At the moment, I am freelancing, and my last client was a sustainable housing company. Before that, I worked in coral reef restoration and marine protected areas.

How long have you been in Indonesia, and what are your favourite spots?
6 months. I loved the remote islands of Misool, Batanta in Raja Ampat. Incredible scenery and crazy marine life. There’s even a place with a stingless jellyfish lake! I also loved surfing empty waves out there, but I’m not telling where it is ;)

Could you explain more about “The Cool Life”?
We are girls tripping on a sailboat, trying to figure out how to keep the vibe and the planet cool.

For 3 years, we will sail the world on Venture, Clara’s boat, to imagine a new world where we would feel truly alive in a society that does not warm the planet nor destroy its biodiversity. During the trip, we will meet people who already live the Cool Life. They are deeply connected to their environment, plants and animals, and they have so much fun in their lives. Also, we will spend long sailing hours reading what wise men and women wrote about economics, urbanism, philosophy, energy, food systems, etc. In the end, we want to imagine how we can bring the Cool Life back into town, into the Western world we come from.

What do you love about the ocean?
It’s everything to me. I’ve tried to live out of the coast before, and I was miserable. I need to be around the water, in the water, to feel alive. Ocean creatures are absolutely fascinating to me. We know so little about this world that every time I put a mask on, I feel like I’m on a different planet where animals of many colours and shapes levitate, where the current creates a constant wind on the algae. I used to watch The Little Mermaid as a kid, and I think Ariel was super dumb for wanting to leave this world.

I feel a lot better on a surfboard or sailing offshore with no land in sight than inside a forest. I’ll never get tired of the shades of blue.

Who introduced you to sailing, and how long have you been doing it?
I learnt as part of being in the sailing team in college. To be honest, it was more about partying than sailing. But still, I learnt the basics. Then I stopped sailing for 6 years before I bought the boat. Almost everything I know I learned on my own boat, cruising in French Polynesia. Some by myself, but mostly through the people who would come on board and teach me. The deal was: you come here for free holidays in French Polynesia, and in exchange, you teach me. I’ve had many teachers and still do.

Please tell us about your sailing journey, both inside and outside Indonesia.
I’ve started in Moorea. I bought the boat and lived on it for 2 years, learning and doing small sails at first. I never felt really ready to leave French Polynesia, but I recruited a crew, and we headed west to Australia. It took us 6 months to get there, and we stopped in the Cook Islands, Samoa, Tonga, Fiji, Vanuatu, and New Caledonia. It was absolutely epic. I swam with a whale, surfed the best waves in the world, saw schools of manta rays, met insane people, and different cultures. I could write a book about it. Then, everybody came out. I stayed in Australia for almost a year before heading to Indonesia with a different crew. On the way, we had many issues, and it took us a good 4-5 months to get to Indonesia, in Tual. Then we went up the coast of West Papua, Misool and Raja Ampat. Currently, I’m in Halmahera, ready to sail south, to Lombok most likely.

What has been your most unforgettable moment while sailing?
Happy moment: So many. I like both hardships and chill. I loved the sailing part of our trip from Tahiti to Australia. Being offshore for days in a row, watching the ocean, letting your thoughts create this imaginary world. Sometimes stuff breaks at night, rough seas, sometimes just pure bliss in a flat sea and beautiful waves ahead.

Terrible moment: We hit a whale, and she snapped the keel. Pretty traumatic, first because of the guilt and also because we almost sank, there were only two on board. After that, we spent 2 months in a boatyard working every day to fix it. It was not fun.

Could you give us some tips about what we should prepare before sailing, and what we should do when the weather is, you know… “not so friendly”?
Take lessons! Or get a small, cheap boat and do some coastal sailing. Honestly, the thrill of sailing when you don’t know much about what you’re doing is quite unique.

And in bad weather, it’s hard to sum it up. In my head, I always have plan A, B, C, D and E for each situation. It’s a lot of mental load, but necessary. Hard to improvise with a hole in your hull if you’ve never thought about it.

What is your favourite marine animal?
Recently, I travelled to Tasmania and surfed with seals. I really like them, super playful.

During your journey, have you ever witnessed the impact of the climate crisis on the ocean and its ecosystem? If so, please tell us about it.
I’ve been blessed to go to places with not much direct impact and great local ownership and management of their ecosystems.

But in spite of it, I did see coral bleaching events. There was one in Indonesia this year, but not the year of our crossing. We can only see the effects of the previous ones: lots of dead corals.

We’ve heard the locals complaining about huge foreign vessels fishing in the border of international waters. Definitely saw some overfished areas. Indonesia has been very different from other places, with so much trash going into the water, yet super healthy corals, but less fish.

I’m no scientist, and these places are so different that it is hard sometimes to say what’s normal and what should be different.