Happy Canada Day

Julie testing out the amphibious rowboat

With the official arrival of summer, Julie and I are excited at the prospect of cycling, hiking and paddling in the sunshine. The past month has been busy with preparations for our Scotland to Syria adventure, wedding arrangements, and quite a few other exciting events - as you'll discover in the words to follow.

Helly Hansen Partnership

We are excited to partner with Helly Hansen for our upcoming adventures. Helly Hansen was pivotal to the success of our last expedition - circumnavigating the globe by human power - and we know their clothes and footwear will go the distance. Helly Hansen’s philosophy “go further”is the same mindset that we embrace in our expeditions, pushing to challenge ourselves and striving for new experiences.

In our last expedition, Helly Hansen provided apparel that allowed us to travel through some of the coldest and hottest areas on the planet. We faced -100 degree temperatures (with wind chill) in Siberia and sweltering hurricanes mid-Atlantic. While rowing across the frigid Bering Sea our tiny vessel was battered by gale-force winds; it was of great comfort knowing our Helly Hansen survival suits would keep us alive if our boat went down.

Helly Hansen is a pioneer in clothing explorers. Pile fleece, oilskins, and woven polypropylene fabrics are all their inventions, and it is that kind of innovative thinking that has allowed them to become a leader in the outdoor clothing industry. Find out more.

Explorer’s Club Fellowship

I am thrilled to be accepted as a Fellow in the renowned Explorer’s Club in New York. Founded in 1904, the Explorers Club was created to support the scientific exploration of land, sea, air and space. It is a unifying body that possesses many resources available for explorers and scientists embarking on expeditions. Members include Sir Edmund Hillary, Robert Bateman and Neil Armstrong. It will be an honor getting to know some of the club members and learning more about the club’s rich history.

A big thanks to Fellow Jason Schoonover for inviting me to join the club, and sponsoring my application. Julie and I were also pleased to be able to contribute to Jason's soon-to-be released book, Adventurous Dreams, an anthology of the motivating forces behind exploration that includes over 100 stories from adventurers around the world, including Bob Ballard and Buzz Aldrin.

Books

As many of you know Julie is writing a book, Rowboat in a Hurricane, for Greystone Books, which will be published in the fall of 2008. The book not only details her experience of traveling halfway around the world by human power, but also goes into depth about the state of our oceans and planet. This is chronicled by combining her own observations as a scientist, and drawing on the research of others. Julie is diligently tapping away on her laptop, and the manuscript is coming along nicely.

My own book, Beyond the Horizon, has been on the bestseller list for twelve weeks and has already gone into reprint. It's been getting great reviews, and the best feedback is from readers who take the time to write a note (thank you). For those that have been inquiring about U.S. availability, it will be released in the USA in late fall through Skyhorse publishing.

Boats

Last month I detailed the amphibious rowboats we are constructing. The two 18’ solo rowboats are designed to be pulled behind a bicycle on a trailer and have the capacity to store both the bicycle and trailer while on the water. The boats will also catamaran together using spars from the bicycle trailer, allowing us to camp on the water with the tent between the boats.

The boats are nearing completion, and we hope to have them finished by July 10. The boat/bicycle trailers were custom built by Tony from Tony’s trailers. Tony specializes in making bicycle trailers for all purposes – for light utility purposes to hauling couches or canoes. We will once again be using Croker oars for our propulsion. Croker is based out of Australia, and makes lightweight carbon-fibre oars that are used commonly in Olympic racing shells. Check out Tony's Trailers and Croker Oars. Next month we will have photos of the official launch, and the boats in action.

Enjoy the start of summer and Happy Canada Day!

Colin Angus

Our newest addition to The Adventurer's Handbook - a free online resource for adventurers
Arctic Survival

Survival in Arctic conditions requires specialized preparation

Surviving in temperatures below -40 degrees Celsius depends on more than just staying warm. The physical properties of many substances change in low temperatures, and it is essential to prepare for these occurrences. Butane and propane, for example, cannot be used for cooking as they will remain in a liquid state. Plastic becomes brittle, grease becomes thick, friction of rubber diminishes, condensation in clothing dramatically increases, and potable water becomes scarce.

Read more in our Adventurer's Handbook.

Our July Explorer in Featured Expeditions
Greg Kolodziejzyk - Speeding Across the Atlantic

Greg Kolodziejzyk is pedalling across the Atlantic Ocean attempting the fastest solo human-powered crossing ever.

Canadian athlete Greg Kolodziejzyk can’t get enough of human powered travel. He is an Ironman triathlete who has shattered multiple world speed records for human-powered propulsion. And in December of 2008 he will pedal across the Atlantic Ocean in an attempt to break the record for the fastest solo human-powered crossing of the Atlantic.

Read more about this adventure and our other Featured Expeditions.