When Her Father's Yacht Vanished, She Searched the Sea Until She Finally Found Peace

After Argonaut went down in calm waters, Chelsea Rice-Morris was convinced of foul play. She didn't stop until she had her answer.

Illustrations by Christina Gransow

“Boats don’t just sink,” says Chelsea Rice-Morris. “People don’t just disappear.”

On July 25, 2012, the 59-foot Argonaut, a robust $600,000 yacht crewed by owner John Rice and French Canadian crewmember Guillaume Gosselin, was sailing in calm conditions just three miles behind a second boat, 20 miles off Maumere, Indonesia.

Then it wasn’t.

John Rice spent his life on the water, and the Argonaut was a labor of love. He spent 18 years building and perfecting the steel boat in California and Mexico, dreaming of the day when he could sail her around the world. In February 2009 he set off across the South Pacific with an old friend named Bill McCue.

“John liked to sail hard and fast,” McCue says, “but he was a sensible sailor who knew what his boat could do and sailed accordingly.”

After reaching Australia, Rice continued to upgrade his boat. By July 2012 the big grey yacht was moored in Darwin and was in top condition. Over three weeks, Rice overhauled the pum…