TRAGIC END
Chilling final photo of kayaker before he was heard yelling ‘help’ and ‘sinking’ in distress call – and never seen again
A huge search and rescue mission which looked for the thrill-seeker made worrying discoveries
THIS is the chilling last photo of a kayaker who vanished after making a haunting distress call.
Thrill-seeker Andrew McAuley disappeared after he tried to cross a dangerous storm-prone sea.
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McAuley had set out to become the first person to cross the Tasman Sea, which lies between Australia and New Zealand, on a kayak.
His daredevil mission in 2007 took a tragic turn just one month after he issued a sudden call for help.
McAuley’s kayak , gear, and a camera memory card were the only pieces of evidence discovered after his sudden disappearance - along with an eerie selfie.
His kayak was found upturned in a near-perfect condition 30 miles offshore - but the daredevil was nowhere to be seen.
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The spooky photo showed his drained eyes staring into a camera - while half of his face was painted white in what appears to be sun cream.
The tired-faced daredevil was backdropped against an immense wave lurking behind him.
It's the last known image of McAuley before he vanished.
McAuley was no rookie to breaking records through his extreme expeditions.
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He had become the first person to cross the notoriously perilous Bass Strait, between mainland Australia and Tasmania, in 2003.
He successfully managed to cross the 136-mile strait in 25 hours.
But his next record-breaking journey would come to a mysterious end.
He set out on his last known journey on 11 January 2007 - just one month after he backed out of his first attempt to cross the sea due to freezing temperatures.
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Despite developing hypothermia on his December 2006 venture, he set out on the sea again a month later with his kayak and insulation to keep warm.
McAuley made no secret about what pushed him to cross the waters known for its unpredictable waters and weather.
He told ABC radio before his journey: “I guess I’m really drawn to a journey like this, it’s a real personal challenge.
“There’s a great deal of satisfaction in coming up with an adventure that’s unlikely and improbable.”
His attempt came to a tragic end after he set off a sudden distress call to the New Zealand Coast Guard on February 8.
McAuley left a terrifying message before he was never seen again.
The coastguards said McAuley had made regular nightly check-ins with the authorities and later revealed they assumed he called for this reason.
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When they deciphered the message the next day, coastguards said they heard him say the words “help” and “sinking" - sparking a mass search mission.
McAuley’s wife Vicki later shared the message she had received before her thrill-seeking partner disappeared.
Vicki said her husband expected to reach home just three days after his last message, for a welcome home party.
He wrote: "See you 9am Sunday!”
Search missions, sent out two days after his eerie last message, found the adventurer's gear and kayak - but McAuley was nowhere to be found.
Authorities discovered the kayaker’s memory card which uncovered the spooky final selfie.
Theories about Andrew’s disappearance
WHEN Andrew McAuley vanished with no trace in 2007 theories into his mysterious disappearance grew.
His kayak, equipment, and his camera's memory card were discovered in the sea during a search mission.
The designer of the McAuley's vessel, Paul Hewitson of Mirage Kayaks, shared his theory after inspecting the retrieved kayak.
Hewitson claimed he thought the thrill-seeker's boat capsized while the cockpit was not covered.
The designer suspected McAuley would have been unable to get back into his vessel, and somehow became separated from it.
He also believed the heavy gear inside the kayak could have made it difficult to flip back over.
Other theories have claimed a rogue wave could have knocked the daredevil into the dangerous sea.
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DANGEROUS WATERS
The Tasman Sea has been known to be one of the most treacherous stretches of water in the world.
These waters have rough wind and water conditions for most of the year as this is the point where two great oceans collide, according to the .
The Southern and Pacific oceans strike into each other producing some of the most difficult waters to travel across in the world.
Its unpredictable nature has landed this sea the nickname "the Ditch".
These choppy waters have taken the lives of several people who have attempted to cross and has even been the site where ships have disappeared without leaving any trace.
The 85-year-old Niña boat vanished along with seven people onboard in 2013.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
This American schooner set sail from Opua, New Zealand, but it never made it to its destination of Newcastle, Australia.
Its final voyage across the Tasman Sea has remained a mystery after a huge search-and-rescue expedition found no trace of the ship or anybody aboard.
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