I'm reading a book that describes the life of a truly unusual man and
sailor.
William Willis sailed solo on a trimaran raft from Peru to Australia
(11,000 miles) in 1963 when he was 70 years old. He started his rafting
adventures when he was sixty with a home-made balsa raft, but only made it
from Peru to Samoa on that rig. He later tried a solo crossing of the
Atlantic
Ocean from New York to England in an 11½ foot sloop-rigged dory. Rations
were rye flour, olive oil, honey, lemon juice, garlic, and evaporated milk.
He depended on the sea for drinking water. His primary goal for his voyages
was to be tested for physical and mental endurance, and he welcomed an
extreme test.
BTW: You'll learn from this book that you can consume up to 1½ pints of
Atlantic seawater daily if that's your only source of salt.

His early life was fairly uneventful, with only a visit to Devil's Island on
a mission to rescue a stranger from prison, and a time spent in a leper
colony, to keep him entertained. Once he was on the high seas things picked
up considerably.

The book title is "Seaworthy - Adrift with William Willis in the Golden Age
of Rafting", written by T. R. Pearson in 2006. The book is well worth your
time.