Women And The Wind

Ready To Set Sail?  So are these two...

"Women & The Wind is a project of adventurous women, one catamaran and the Atlantic Ocean. It aims to inspire others to seek adventure beyond the norm, see the beauty in simplicity, and reconnect with nature while taking action to preserve it."

About Women And The Wind

Women & The Wind started as a simple idea during a meeting between Captain Kiana Weltzien and environmentalist Laerke Heilmann in the Canary Islands, just a few days before the pandemic became a reality, and a total lockdown changed the way we all lived.

Artist, Surfer, Environmentalist, and Mara Noka's newest member; Laerke. 

Throughout 2020, Kiana and Laerke maintained contact and dreamed up ideas for how to bring Women & the Wind to life, aiming to inspire others to seek adventure beyond the norm, see the beauty in simplicity, and reconnect with nature while taking action to preserve it. Finally settling on a departure window for summer of 2021, the project will begin with a journey across the North Atlantic on Mara Noka, a 50-year-old wooden catamaran. The voyage will be powered by wind and willpower, and guided by the sun, the moon and the stars.

Mara Noka was put up on the hard (term for having a boat in a shipyard) at the end of February, and Kiana was joined by Laerke at the beginning of June for the final push on the refit. The work has been nonstop for the past 4.5 months, but the dream is still big & bold and closer to reaching than ever! 

Captain Kiana + her dream vessel the Mara Noka

The Women 

Kiana Weltzien - Sailor, Writer, Water-woman.

"Kiana did not grow up with a strong connection to the ocean, and did not know people lived on sailboats until she was an adult. However, after leaving her real estate career in Miami and meeting her mentor, the eternal-wanderer and ship-builder Hans Klaar, her life shifted in a powerful way. In 2017 Kiana ran across an old black catamaran covered in tarp, floating in a Panamanian bay. It was her dream boat, and she knew it would be hers.

Kiana hopes that she and the Mara Noka can become a vessel and a platform for bringing awareness to tough environmental and social issues which affect us all today."

Lærke Heilmann - Artist, Surfer, Environmentalist.

"Brought up in a Danish hippie commune by a family of sailors, Lærke spent most summer holidays sailing around Denmark, and soon developed a great passion for the conservation of the ocean. Now based in Fuerteventura, Canary Islands, Lærke works as Project Coordinator for the Clean Ocean Project, a NGO fighting against plastic pollution and the protection of the ocean."

Follow along with our “Captain’s Log” and weekly videos as we finish up Mara Noka’s restoration and get ready to head out to sea.

"Our connection to the sea and our love for the lifestyle, possibilities and moments it has given us is a driving force behind this project. By sharing our passions and showing the beauty of the ocean, we hope to inspire others to take action to preserve it."