London2London via the World Update: Sarah Outen Nears Half-Way Point of Atlantic Crossing

The last time we checked in with Sarah Outen, she had just wrapped up her crossing of North America on a bike, and was enjoying some time in New York City. That was back in the spring, and since then she has pedaled her way north back into Canada, and more importantly launched the final stage of her expedition, as she is now rowing across the Atlantic Ocean, and making her way back home.

For those who haven't been following Sarah's fantastic journey, it all began back in 2011 when she set out from London to circumnavigate the globe under her own power. She first started by paddling a kayaking down the Thames River in London, followed by a crossing of the English Channel. From there, it was on to her bike for a long ride across Europe and Asia. After that, she returned to the water, making a crossing of the Pacific that took a couple of tries to complete. Eventually, Sarah made it to Alaska, where she returned to the bike for her ride across North America. She has spent the better part of this summer rowing across the North Atlantic on her way back to where she started in London.

Originally Outen believed it would take roughly two years to complete her round-the-world adventure, but a series of unforeseen incidents have stretched that time much further. For example, back in 2012 she was caught in a massive storm in the Pacific that forced her to abandon her attempt at rowing that section. It took some time to recover from the loss of her boat and schedule another attempt, but eventually she was able to finish that section as intended.

Sarah has now been out on the ocean for 90 days, and has just received a resupply in the middle of the ocean from some French sailors. She wasn't in need of any assistance at all, but three sailboats were going to be passing along her route, and they decide to rendezvous to deliver some treats, including beer, bread, salami, and chocolate, to help make the remaining leg of the trip a bit easier and more enjoyable.

As of this writing, Sarah is about 1700 nautical miles (3148 km/1956 miles) away from England. When she arrives at the shores of her home country, she will get on her bike one last time, ride it to the Thames once again, and kayak back up the river on her way to the finish line at the London Bridge. That is probably still a few months off, but she is closing in on the end at long last.

Follow Sarah on her voyage at her official website, where she is posting daily dispatches from the water.

Indian Ocean Rowers Rescued for Second Time

For the second time in two months, a pair of ocean rowers has been rescued while at sea. British adventurers James Ketchell and Ashley Wilson called for assistance today when they were hit by a big storm that rolled their boat on multiple occasions, possibly causing Wilson to suffer a concussion. 

The two men first set out on their attempt to row across the Indian Ocean back in May. They had hoped to set a new speed record for a two-man crew, but just one day into the journey they had to be towed back to their starting point in Perth, Australia when an electronic guidance system failed. 

After spending several weeks getting their boat back in order, the duo set out once again last Friday, but just five days into their second attempt, bad weather descended upon their route. The large storms rolled the boat, causing the crew to lose some of their gear, and Wilson to strike his head. The adventurer suffers from what is described as severe epilepsy, which means a head injury could be incredibly serious. It was under those conditions that the rowers activated their emergency locator beacon this morning. 

According to reports, a merchant vessel reached them within a few hours, and the duo are now en route back to Australia. A helicopter was standing by to evacuate either of them should immediate medical attention be required. 

Ketchell and Wilson had planned their record-setting attempt for three years before launching their rowing expedition. They chose this time of year for their Indian Ocean crossing as they had hoped it would allow them to avoid the big storms and cyclones that are common at other times of the year. Unfortunately, heavy storms can take place at any time of the year, and they just happened to get caught in one. Their goal had been to reach Port Louis in Mauritius in less than 85 days, 2 hours, and 5 minutes. 

The attempt was also meant to raise funds for a couple of important charities, including Young Epilepsy, the Scouts, and the Elifar Foundation. 

American Woman Ends Bid to Row Across the Pacific

An American woman has ended her attempt to row solo across the Pacific Ocean just eight days into the attempt. Sonya Baumstein launched her bid back on June 7, departing from Choshi, Japan with the intention of reaching San Francisco, covering a distance of 6000 miles in the process. But last weekend she put out a distress call after her boat experienced several mechanical failures that put the entire journey into jeopardy.

According to a report from the Associated Press, Baumstein began her Pacific row by first experiencing sea sickness. That kept her close to the shore for a few days as she acclimated to her conditions. After that, she was able to find the Kuroshio current, which crosses the Pacific west to east, and would have aided her progress. At that point, all seemed to be going according to plan.

On Saturday, June 13, Sonya sent out a distress signal calling for assistance. At that point she was 250 km (155 miles) from shore. That is about the limit for a Japanese coast guard boat to conduct a rescue, and as she started to have issues with the boat, Baumstein decided it was too dangerous for her, and potential rescuers, to continue.

At some point early on the steering system on her row boat failed, and she was facing a very long journey without precise controls. Furthermore, the weather forecast looked ominous as well, so it seemed that the better part of valor was for her to pull the plug altogether. A passing freighter picked up her distress call and hauled her out of the water, and later handed her over to the coat guard.

As of Monday, Baumstein was on her way back to Japan. There is no word yet on whether or not she'll have another go at the crossing.

It should be noted that a number of reports indicated that Sonya was attempting to become the first woman to row across the Pacific solo, which we all know isn't true. Roz Savage completed that feat back in 2010, although she traveled east to west, and made the crossing in stages along a longer route.

Video: In Current - Rowing the Grand Canyon

This video isn't just about rowing a boat down the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon. It is also about pursuing a dream. In order to earn a spot on the crew of a dory boat in the Canyon one must first pay their dues. That can take years to accomplish, and requires a great deal of experience. For Amber Shannon, the subject of this short film, it has been a nine year struggle toward achieving her goal of joining the team on the dory. This documentary shares that experience, along with what it is like to explore the Grand Canyon in a small wooden boat. Amazing stuff.

In Current from YETI Coolers on Vimeo.

Two Ocean Rowers to Attempt Record Crossing of the Indian Ocean

Two British adventurers are about to attempt a speed record for rowing across the Indian Ocean. The duo – James Ketchell and Ashley Wilson – plan to set out from Perth, Australia next week with the intention of rowing to Mauritius in just 85 days, covering approximately 3600 miles (5793 km) in the process.

When they do set off on this ocean crossing it will be their second attempt. A few days back they launched their rowboat but experienced technical difficulties with their navigation system and had to be towed back to shore just one day into their speed attempt. That issue has apparently been resolved now, and they hope to return to the water and restart sometime next week, although no specific date for the relaunch has been given just yet.

For Ketchell, this will be his second go at rowing an ocean. He successfully crossed the Atlantic back in 2010, and has a successful summit of Everest in 2011 on his resume as well. In 2013 he also made an unsupported round-the-world cycling journey, covering more than 18,000 miles (28,968 km) along the way.

Wilson, on the other hand, is not quite as an experienced adventurer. He does, however, suffer from epilepsy and is hoping to use this row as a platform to help spread better understanding of the affliction, and inspire others with the same disability to chase their dreams and do great things.

This journey isn't just about the speed record of course. James and Ashely are hoping to raise £100,000 ($156,000) that will be spread amongst three different charities. Those charities include Young Epilepsy, an organization that supports children with the conditions, the Scout Association, which is an outdoor group for kids, and the Elifar Foundation – a nonprofit dedicated to helping people with severe learning disabilities. All worthy causes for sure.

The current record for an Indian Ocean crossing is 85 days, 2 hours, and 5 minutes. Kettle and Wilson will take shifts at the oars for 24 hours per day while out on the water in the hopes of besting that time. Along the way, they'll face unpredictable weather, potentially large storms, and swells that could exceed 4 meters. They are of course hoping for calm conditions to aid them on the crossing, but as always with an ocean rowing journey, their fate is in the hands of nature.

You can follow their progress at the expedition's official website.

New Endurance Boat Race Challenges Competitors to Race to Alaska

We cover a lot of endurance events here on The Adventure Blog, with most of them focusing around running, cycling, or mountain biking along remote trails in beautiful locations. But this summer a completely new, and unique event, will take place in the Pacific Northwest, as the inaugural Race to Alaska prepares to get underway. In this event, competitors won't be traveling on foot or bike however, as they'll instead be challenged to sail, row, or paddle their way along the route.

This 750 mile (1190 km) long event will get underway from Townsend, Washington – located not far from Seattle – on June 4. Participants will proceed up the coast, with the eventual finish line located in Ketchikan, Alaska. Along the way, competitors will face fierce winds, cold conditions, potentially large storms, and turbulent waves. How they deal with those conditions, and exactly which route they take along the way, is completely up to them, as navigational choices will certainly play a role in determining the eventual winner.

There are ten classes of boats that are allowed to compete in the Race to Alaska, none of which are motorized. Those boats include multi-hull sail boats and row boats, kayaks, and even stand-up paddleboards. Exactly which means of transportation will be the best choice remains to be seen, as the sailboats have an edge when the wind is blowing, but if the winds are calm, other vessels may have an opportunity to steal the win.

The first stage of the race, which runs from Townsend to Victoria, Vancouver in Canada, serves as qualifier of sorts. All of the racers must cover that 40 mile distance in 36 hours or less, or they will be disqualified. If they complete this initial challenge however, they'll be allowed to continue on to Ketchikan. There are currently 23 boats competing in the race, which is an impressive turnout for the first running of an event of this type. It'll be interesting to see how the competition unfolds, and who ends up taking home the victory.

I heard about this really unique event from Steve Price, who is one of the competitors on Team Angus. He, along with teammate Colin Angus, will be taking to the water in a specially designed rowboat. Their plan is to take turns at the oars, going 24-hours a day in 2 hour shifts. Since calm weather is expected, the team duo feels like it has a real shot to win the race, even over the sailboats.

We're just a couple of weeks away from the start of this race, and it should certainly be interesting. Good luck to all the competitors, and enjoy the journey.

Ocean Rower Anne Quéméré to Challenge Northwest Passage Once Again

Ocean rower Anne Quéméré has announced that she is returning to the Arctic Ocean once again this summer in an attempt to complete the very difficult journey across the Northwest Passage by kayak. Last year, bad weather thwarted her efforts, but she has vowed to go back and finish what she started by covering the entire 3000 km (1864 miles) over a three month period. 

That 2014 expedition to the Passage proved to be an eye-opener for the veteran adventurer. She discovered that it was not as easy as she thought it would be to pass through the ice-choked waters found north of Canada. The weather was surprisingly bad all season long too, with high winds and heavy seas making it difficult to make any kind of progress. She also traveled solo on that journey, and unarmed. Two things that she'll rectify this time out. 

This year, Quéméré will have a companion joining her on the expedition. A Swiss scientist by the name of Raphael Domjan will accompany the her across the passage, and while she will be paddling her kayak, he will be following along in a second boat powered by a small electric motor that will match her pace. Domjan will spend his time in the Passage taking notes and environmental readings as he makes observations about the impact of climate change on the Arctic Ocean. 

Since the duo will be kayaking, they will stop and camp on shore most nights. That means they'll run the risk of encountering a polar bear, a creature that Quéméré had a few brushes with last year as well. This time out, they'll go armed with shotguns to scare the bears away. Massive and powerful, a hungry polar bear can be a real threat to a person in the arctic, and Anne and Raphael will not underestimate that threat in 2015. 

No stranger to oceanborn adventures, Quéméré has successfully crossed the Atlantic Ocean in a rowboat in the past, and even crossed the Pacific in a prototype boat using a kite for propulsion, spending 78 days at seas. She has also kayaked in the ice waters off Greenland, and has last year's experience in the Northwest Passage to her credit as well. 

The two will set out for Tuktoyaktuk in Canada in June, with the crossing starting shortly there after. 

London2London Via The World Update: Sarah Arrives in New York City, Atlantic Ocean Lies Ahead

It has once again been far too long since we checked in on Sarah Outen, the British adventurer who has been making her way around the planet completely under her own power. Since my last update on her progress, she has completed a six-month long cycling journey across Canada and the U.S. – much of it in winter – and is now preparing for the final stage of her journey, a crossing of the Atlantic by rowboat.

You may recall that Sarah launched her London2London via the World expedition four years ago by first paddling down the River Thames in London, and then across the English Channel to France. From there, she then proceeded to ride her bike across Europe and Asia, encountering many interesting people and adventures along the way. Eventually she arrived in Japan where she intended to cross the North Pacific by rowboat. That was back in the summer of 2012, and soon after she embarked on that ocean crossing she encountered a nasty storm that damaged her boat, and sent her back to shore. Undaunted, Sarah returned a year later and rowed from Japan to the Aleutian Islands in Alaska. Then, last year she kayaked through the islands to the Alaskan mainland, where she returned to her bike for a long ride across North America.

On March 15, Sarah rode her bike into New York City, essentially wrapping up the final cycling portion of her journey. She will eventually tack on another 400 miles (643 km) to the ride when she heads for Cape Cod in a few weeks, but for now she is enjoying some time in NYC, where she has been catching up with old friends, making new ones, and starting to prepare for the next stage of her grueling journey.


In May, Sarah will set out across the North Atlantic in her rowboat. The plan is to cross the ocean and row back up the Thames, passing under the London Bridge, which was her official starting point those many long months ago. If everything goes as planned, the Atlantic crossing should take roughly 4-5 months to complete, putting her back home in London sometime in the fall of this year.

While the journey has taken longer than Sarah had anticipated, it has been quite the experience and challenge. Circumnavigating the globe completely under her own power is an impressive accomplishment, and now just the Atlantic Ocean stands in the way of her achieving that goal. Outen is no stranger to ocean rowing however. In addition to having rowed across the North Pacific, back in 2009 she also rowed solo across the Indian Ocean as well. When she launches her Atlantic crossing in May, it'll feel like old times I'm sure, although this time she's heading home.

Over the next few weeks, Sarah will be dealing with logistical issues, resting, and getting her boat ready for launch. The weather needs to improve and stabilize before she begins rowing the Atlantic, but by mid-May or so she should be about ready to go. There are still thousands of miles of ocean ahead of her, but London is calling and the journey is nearing an end at long last.