(CNN) A 71-year-old Frenchman has set off across the Atlantic Ocean in a large orange barrel, hoping to float to the Caribbean by the end of March.

Jean-Jacques Savin left the Canary Islands, off the coast of west Africa, on Wednesday, in a sophisticated barrel-shaped capsule he spent months crafting.

He is traveling at "two or three kilometers an hour" (one to two miles an hour) and intends to (literally) barrel his way across the ocean with the help of currents alone, he told the AFP news agency in a telephone interview after setting off.

Savin's journey is being tracked online , with his latest marking showing him approximately 19 miles off the island of El Hierro from which he departed.

The retired military parachutist has been funded by sponsorships and a crowdfunding campaign, and a Facebook page has also been posting updates of his progress.

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