LUNGI MCHUNU THERE ARE NO LIMITS

The first African woman to sail to the Arctic, a citizen scientist and climate change activist, Lungi has dared to dream and believes there are no limits to what we can achieve Here she tells Yachting Monthly her story

- Lungi Mchunu

When Lungi Mchunu sailed off on a voluntary expedition to the North Pole in 2018, she made history as the first African woman to sail to the Arctic. Raised in a single-parent household in South Africa, she was encouraged by her mother to challenge herself and to pursue her passions. Now she is a citizen scientist, climate change activist, part of The Maiden Factor charity to promote girls’ education around the world and has plans to compete in the Vendée Globe.

‘It was during a debrief with mariner of 40 years Captain Geoff Evans in Genoa that he told me he had met and trained many aspiring sailors but he was yet to meet one with such raw love and passion. He declared it really special and confirmed it would aid me on my journey.

So, I think in pursuit of the unknown, I grew to recognise moments and feelings along the way that fuelled my passion and served as confirmation that I was on the right path. And that path was sailing. ‘Ahead of the Arctic opportunity, I flew to Bilbao for the Sail IN Festival, showcasing the very best of international sailing cinema. A truly mind-blowing experience for me with two films standing out: Guirec Soudée’s Greenland Exploration and Untold Odyssey: The Man Who Sails with the Stars.

‘A few months later, I was gifted a ticket to a talk Mike Horn was giving in Lausanne. My only thought at the time was that it was great to meet a fellow South African sailor; nothing relating to his polar regions work appealed to me. However, little did I know that two months later, I’d come across a Twitter post for voluntary crew to join a sailing research expedition to monitor the ice caps and before I knew it, I was onboard Meloria.