UPDATE: They made it to the Gulf of Mexico!

Original Story: Six friends set out to sail the entire Mississippi River on raft made of soda bottles arrived in Hannibal recently. Here's what they had to say!

The “Recycled Mississippi” project set sail from Minneapolis, Minnesota on June 19 and the guys have documented their excursion via a weekly video blog as well as daily updates on social media. Barring delays, the crew is scheduled to arrive at the Gulf of Mexico on August 23.

The vessel (named “IOCO”) is comprised of 797 one-time use plastic bottles and wood reclaimed from old boating docks. The vinyl sail was derived from used camping tents.
The adventurous videographers plan to put together a documentary detailing their voyage and the people and communities working to help preserve the Mighty Mississippi—including Hannibal.

“People have been super generous,” documentarian Gary Bencheghib says. “We’ve been very lucky.”

Hailing from five different countries, the team is comprised of Bencheghib, expedition leader Dan Cullum, engineers Livio Knoeri and Hannes Stauffer, and adventurers Sebastian Engelhart and Zander Hartung.

“This is the biggest project we’ve ever done,” Bencheghib says, “but I’m hoping it will inspire a lot more.”

For more on the Recycled Mississippi adventure, visit recycledmississippi.com or follow them on Facebook and Instagram.

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