In 1832, fourteen-year-old Otokichi set out on a Japanese rice transport ship. A violent Pacific storm disabled the vessel, tearing away its mast and rudder, and the ship drifted across the northern ocean for fourteen months. Otokichi and his crew survived on desalinated seawater and their dwindling rice cargo. According to Boing Boing, what makes this survival story remarkable isn't just the ordeal itself—it's the tragic truth that Otokichi could never return home.

Listen to this story

Hear this and more stories in a personalized audio briefing.

Open The Chonkerton