A retired couple sails 9,000 nautical miles

Video by Liu Xudong

For Yang Wei and Zheng Hong, the 15-meter sailboat Danyun is more than a vessel. It is their floating home, a testament to a life lived on the water rather than in the waiting room of retirement.

When they finally stepped back onto solid ground at the Shekou Cruise Home Port in Shenzhen in April, they had just completed a 15-month, nearly 9,000-nautical-mile odyssey across the Pacific. Their route traced a vast arc through the warm waters of Southeast Asia and beyond: from Vietnam and Cambodia to Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Palau, and the Philippines. They measured the distance between friends not in miles, but in the compass points of goodwill.

The sailboat Danyun, carrying veteran sailors Yang Wei and Zheng Hong, sails alongside a local fishing boat during their 15-month voyage across the Pacific. Photos courtesy of interviewees unless otherwise stated

Yang Wei (L) and Zheng Hong pose for a photo before they depart for a 15-month voyage across the Pacific at the Shuangyong Port in Nan'ao, on Jan. 4, 2025. Liu Xudong

At 70 and 65 respectively, Yang and Zheng are China’s oldest active captain and the most senior female sailor. Yet age, for them, is merely a number in the logbook.

On the day of our interview, the couple invited us aboard to feel the wind in their sails. After more than a month at the dock, the batteries were low — a minor hiccup quickly resolved by connecting to shore power. "These are just small problems," Zheng said with a knowing smile, coiling a line with the practiced ease of a seasoned deckhand. "It’s the big ones you meet out there that count."

Yang Wei (L) gestures as Zheng Hong photographs the scenery aboard Danyun during a sail near Shenzhen. The couple just returned from a 15-month, nearly 9,000-nautical-mile voyage across the Pacific.

As the Danyun slipped her moorings and the sea breeze filled the sails, it was clear that their daily life at sea was a seamless navigation between these "small" and "big" problems.

Yang documents their voyages with a sailor’s stoicism. In one diary entry, he reflected on the humbling nature of the sea: “We have sailed for a decade and crossed countless waters, believing we had grown calm and prepared. But the ocean is infinitely changeable. You can never guarantee that you will single-handedly conquer every danger it throws at you.”

Danyun departs Shuangyong Port in Shenzhen's Nan'ao on Jan. 4, 2025, beginning Yang Wei and Zheng Hong's 15-month voyage across the Pacific. Liu Xudong

Danyun (background) leaves Shenzhen's Shekou Port on Jan. 6, 2025, beginning its 15-month voyage across the Pacific. Liu Xudong

The most harrowing test came in the dead of night on Feb. 13, while sailing from Indonesia towards Palau. The engine began to "cough and wheeze like an asthmatic," before dying completely. With the wind against them and the vessel drifting helplessly on the edge of a coral reef, they were alone. Satellite signals vanished, and they couldn't even send a distress call.

Danyun anchors off a lush tropical island during Yang Wei and Zheng Hong's voyage across the Pacific, which took them through Southeast Asia and Palau.

For over 20 hours, Yang worked the sails relentlessly through the storm. It wasn't until they drifted within 20 to 30 nautical miles of Palau that the signal flickered back to life, allowing him to send a desperate plea for help. The sea conditions were so perilous that the Palauan government had already banned all maritime traffic.

The response was rapid. After receiving the distress signal, the Shenzhen Foreign Affairs Office immediately coordinated with the Chinese Embassy in the Federated States of Micronesia — the mission responsible for handling affairs related to Palau in the absence of formal diplomatic ties. Hours later, despite the ferocious conditions, Palauan police braved the storm to tow the Danyun safely into port. A local Chinese-run hotel offered the weary sailors immediate refuge and comfort.

Afterwards, Captain Yang noted down: "This rescue across the ocean truly showed the bond among Chinese people — blood thicker than water, standing together in times of need. It also made us feel the strength of our motherland — even thousands of miles away in the Pacific, we were still protected by Chinese consular services."

Local officials and residents welcome Yang Wei and Zheng Hong in Mataram, on the Indonesian island of Lombok, one of Shenzhen's sister cities, during the couple's 15-month voyage across the Pacific.

Yang Wei (L) exchanges commemorative gifts with Mataram Mayor H. Mohan Roliskana (C) in Mataram, on the Indonesian island of Lombok, one of Shenzhen's sister cities, during the couple's Pacific voyage.

Yet, beyond the perils of the deep, the voyage was defined by moments of profound warmth. In Mataram, on the Indonesian island of Lombok, one of Shenzhen's sister cities, they arrived to the rhythmic beat of drums and a jubilant crowd. The locals drew a direct line from the past to the present, telling the couple: "It's said that Chinese admiral Zheng He’s fleet once stopped here. And you are the first Chinese sailors to return by sea since Zheng He! We have to give you a very warm welcome."

The city’s mayor officially welcomed them, exchanging gifts and reinforcing a friendship that echoes across centuries.

A tractor hauls Danyun ashore for maintenance during Yang Wei and Zheng Hong's 15-month Pacific voyage.

Yang Wei (R) and Zheng Hong (2nd from L) pose with local friends aboard their sailboat, Danyun, during their voyage across the Pacific.

In every port, from Vietnam to the Philippines, the sight of the Chinese flag on the Danyun drew members of the local Chinese community like a magnet. The local residents were also curious, coming up and asking, “Did you really sail all the way from China?”

Yang and Zheng would pull out their phones, tracing their route on digital maps to show where they had come from. "We told them about Shenzhen, about how our phones and drones were all made there," Zheng recalled with a laugh. "Their eyes would go wide with surprise. We felt so proud to represent Shenzhen and China in this small, personal way."

Yang Wei (L) and Zheng Hong take a selfie aboard their sailboat, Danyun, before departing Shenzhen on Jan. 6, 2025, for a 15-month, nearly 9,000-nautical-mile voyage across the Pacific.

Yang Wei adjusts the rigging aboard Danyun while docked during the couple's 15-month Pacific voyage.

The decision to cast off the lines and become unofficial ambassadors was no whim. It was forged in a crucible of personal adversity.

In 2011, Yang was diagnosed with cancer. The surgery that saved his life also provided clarity of purpose. "Life cannot wait," he decided. In 2015, the couple purchased a sailboat and named it after Zheng Hong's childhood nickname, Danyun. Since then, they have educated themselves in meteorology, marine engineering, and navigation. Over the following nine years, they logged over 24,000 nautical miles at sea, with Zheng chronicling their adventures in a book, “Let's Go Sailing After Retirement.”

With experience came a grander ambition. "We thought, wouldn't it be wonderful if ordinary people could participate in the friendship between sister cities?" Yang said. So, they embraced their role as unofficial envoys, visiting Shenzhen’s sister cities to share the story of Shenzhen.

Yang Wei (R) and Zheng Hong (L) pose with Peter Cranfield, the British founder of Medana Bay Marina on Indonesia's Lombok Island, during their Pacific voyage in June 2025.

Yang Wei (L) exchanges gifts with a marina official during a stop at Ocean Marina Yacht Club in Thailand as the couple sailed across the Pacific.

Across nearly 9,000 nautical miles of ocean, they met countless people. "We never encountered anyone hostile," Yang reflected. "You treat people with kindness, and they treat you the same. Deep down, most people are good."

As 2026 marks the APEC China Year, the Danyun’s route has serendipitously linked numerous Asia-Pacific economies. In their unassuming way, Yang and Zheng have staged a masterclass in people-to-people diplomacy: a dialogue defined by rescue in the storm, embraces on the dock, and applause in a foreign land.

More than 600 years ago, Admiral Zheng He commanded a fleet of over 200 ships, spreading the peaceful message of Chinese civilization across Southeast Asia, South Asia, and the East Africa. Today, one silver-haired couple, on their own small boat, are building a similar bridge across the blue expanse, connecting Shenzhen to the world.