Spring has sprung, and it seems the circumnavigators are coming out of hibernation. While Colin and I are pretty stationary as we work on our olive book and film, there are plenty of others taking on big challenges.
Sarah Outen from the UK is about head off on what is perhaps the most challenging leg of her human-powered journey around the world; she will attempt to be the first woman to row across the North Pacific Ocean. Sarah will depart from Japan and spend five months or more rowing alone across to North America. So far Sarah has paddled a kayak from England to mainland Europe and pedaled across Eurasia. Now, she will be aiming for Vancouver Island, and plans on cycling across Canada upon reaching our shores. We’re looking forward to welcoming Sarah to Canada when she arrives here in early autumn. You can follow Sarah’s trip at: www.sarahouten.com
And Adam Kreek, Canadian gold rowing medalist at the Beijing Olympics, along with a team of three others is planning on circumnavigating Vancouver Island in a rowboat. They are using a specialized ocean rowing craft, and will take turns rowing 24 hours/day in shifts of two. They’re hoping to complete the circumnavigation in 14 days, thereby breaking Colin’s current record of 15.5 days. It should be a pretty exciting trip to follow. While their ability to voyage 24 hours a day will offer some advantage, the more variable weather they will encounter in April may create more challenging conditions. You can follow their progress at oarnorthwest.com
The boat Adam Kreek and three other team members will circumnavigate Vancouver Island in
We were paid a visit a few days ago by Dimitri Keiffer, a French American who is also circling the world by human power. He is currently preparing to resume his epic expedition and will continue from where he left off in Yakutia, Siberia. Dimitri and his expedition partner, Karl Bushby, were the first ever to cross the Bering Strait from east to west by foot. Their crossing involved swimming across open leads the size of large rivers, and frequently breaking through the ice. Nights were particularly terrifying when they would camp on thin ice.
“We slept very lightly,” Dimitri informed us, as he recounted a few nights when the moaning noises coming through the ice transformed to cracking thunder, requiring them to move the tent before the ice completely split beneath them.
Dimitri is now travelling with his girlfriend, and the pair plan on cycling to southern Siberia where they may drop into China before heading west towards the Atlantic. You can follow his blog at www.nexusexpeditions.blogspot.com
The recent weeks haven’t been entirely adventure-less for Colin and me. A few days ago Colin visited northern Alberta to give some safety talks. In Fort Chipewan he had the opportunity to go on a dog sledding/fishing trip.
And life with little Leif is a never ending adventure. He’s now climbing the big slide all on his own, and launching himself fearlessly down the spiraling shoot. Pretty soon we’ll be harnessing that energy (like the huskies in the pics above), and he’ll be providing the horsepower behind our future human-powered journeys.
Have a great spring!
