The Sirens by N.C. Wyeth
“Long way home
Sea so deep
Hard way home
Sea so addictive
I find myself in waves
But in truth I'm going home…
…I find myself in mermaids
But in truth I'm going home”
-Fragment of “Odysseus” by The Dumplings:
The Pearl Button
Splendid portrayal of the beautiful ones who were drowned in the dark tides of humanity.
Yamana people who had resided in the Cape Horn area for 10,000 years have been “rounding the horn” solo, fully human-propelled as teenagers as young as 12.y.o. in their primitive self-made paddle boats, as part of their traditional canoe-faring hunter-gatherers lifestyle. By the middle of the 20th century Chilean government restricted their small boat journeys due to being "too dangerous".
I have seen so many of them who live lives that eclipse the difficulty level of the most pioneering expeditions. They just don’t know there is any reason to talk about it. They definitely taught me something.
I feel very proud of my team and our accomplishment, this is making history!
I am completely recovered, because since a few days we are aboard a ship that carries us and the row boat back to Punta Arenas. I have only one minor injury still healing. What bothers me the most is that I miss workout!
Yesterday dolphins were accompanying us again and I constantly have these memories of the most wildlife I have ever seen on any ocean row, later topped up with the majestic view of the Antarctica when we sighted it for the first time.
Rare birds, fish and sea mammals... From killer whales to non-killer whales
People often ask me why I do it and while It used to be a personal quest, now, I just want to live of what I love to do, expeditions and public speaking is big part of it.
About 70 people completed Explorers Grand Slam on land. I am sure the first person to complete it on land hadn't known how much it would mean to future explorers. Today it's one of major trophies, it is almost an initiation that puts you in the context of land explorers. I am glad I could set standards for human powered expeditions and I hope it will become a threshold of ambition for future explorers. It took me 9 years to complete it. In certain way I feel I expanded the boundaries of what human is capable of.
I earned 13 performance based World's Firsts during this journey, which happens to be the highest number of Firsts ever held by an explorer. I hope to see 50 people having completed Ocean Explorers Grand Slam in 30 years. I would like this title to be open to all human powered boats, whether powered by oars, paddling, pedals or kayaking. I would like it to be defined as completing a proper open waters crossing on each of 5 oceans by human power alone.
I think the only great explorations left on the surface of Earth are the boundaries of human power performance. Every land has been well discovered and there are no blind spots on our maps any more, but there are many spots where human couldn't put feet or oar yet by manpower alone. Distances and mental strength still is to be explored.
Ultra endurance is on major raise and I believe it will become the sports profile of the future. I think this is the most challenging Grand Slam one could undertake due to complexity of ocean rowing, especially in Polar areas. Antarctic Ocean will for sure be the most difficult piece of it. But I believe with the right amount of skills, courage, focus and funds this Grand Slam can be completed significantly faster than I did and I hope to see this speed record taken soon.
The first onset of delirium due to exhaustion and sleep deprivation typical to ocean rowing is often experienced as hallucinating the sound of barking dogs. I often tried to understand what causes our brain to choose this sound in particular and I never managed to find a scientific answer but I found a poetic one: Just like mad dogs are rolling foam from their mouth, so are the waves at Beaufort 10 winds. And on this occasion while crossing the southern ocean I wrote the Seadog haiku: Beaufort 10 Rolling foam from their mouth Seadogs
As I found myself becoming a Seadog in the middle of the Drake Passage.
I am one day away from achieving Ocean Explorers Grand Slam.
Thank you Abercrombie& Kent for visiting us on our way through Drake Passage. The cruise line detoured especially to see the captain in action.
“Guests aboard Abercrombie & Kent’s Luxury Expedition Cruise to Antarctica were thrilled to see Captain Fiann Paul and The Impossible Row team with their Discovery Channel escort while crossing the Drake Passage yesterday. It was exciting to watch the world's first completely human powered ocean row battle the elements as they attempt to reach Antarctica from the southern tip of South America” - comments Bob Simpson Vice President, Expedition Cruising.
I will be sharing my experiences as Explorer-in-Residence on Abercrombie & Kent’s Arctic cruises in 2020. Starting off the season is Arctic Cruise Adventure: In Search of the Polar Bear (Jul 31-Aug 14, 2020) which explores the Svalbard Islands, home to rich wildlife and stunning scenery, and the rarely-visited east coast of Greenland. The Ultimate Iceland & Greenland Cruise (Aug 13-27, 2020) is an immersive adventure featuring a treasure trove of Viking history. Discover the rugged and remote coastlines of Iceland’s stunning Westfjords, and retrace the pioneering trails of Erik the Red and other historic adventurers that ultimately led to the discovery of North America. Finally The Northwest Passage: From Greenland to the Bering Sea (Aug 24- Sep 16, 2020) follows in the footsteps of the greatest polar explorers from western Greenland to Nome, Alaska.
A&K’s Expedition Team of accomplished, real-life explorers – ranging from award-winning scientists to habitat conservationists, historians and recipients of the prestigious Polar Medal – bring each voyage to life in a most extraordinary way. Whether joining one, two or all three cruises, guests can count on insight and guidance from an average of 20 A&K Expedition Team members every step of the way, with interactions that include adventurous Zodiac cruises, fascinating lectures, unforgettable wildlife encounters and stories best shared over meals.
The expedition’s biggest success is getting them to the start line. Two years of work in order to go on actual expedition for one month.
The things are moving on according to the plan. There was a lot to do, starting from the most boring packing, to the most exciting capsize test. We tested and really appreciated the hybrid safety/performance suits that I designed together with expert manufacturers. The sea forecast is good, we had some 50 knots winds yesterday, this is what it is, and this is what we came here for. We are starting tomorrow (13th) and we know that at least once on the way the waves will be 10m+. We expect to reach Antarctica by the end of this month. I feel very excited, 2 years of work is coming to fruition. I needed to have a lot of faith since initiation of this project in September 2017 until now, looking forward to the start line. The way to the start line is often more difficult than the entire expedition.
OCEAN EXPLORERS GRAND SLAM HAIKU
D R A K E
Quintal chord echoed
Oceans’ D major
The chord above is a Quintal chord, it is a rare chord consisting of 5 notes instead of 3 most commonly constituting the chord.
Upon completion of my coming expedition I will become the first person to row 5 oceans, which in other words means the first person to achieve Ocean Explorers Grand Slam. For comparison there are approximately 70 people who completed land Explorers Grand Slam.
It is D major, because it is a joyful, major, the accomplishment and D stands for Drake, which also carries number 5.
Rowing across Drake Passage to the Antarctic Permanent Ice Pack.
www.Discovery.com/TheImpossibleRow
more soon!
EQUINOX HAIKU
Equinox
Graceful stroll on this orbit’s
Razor’s edge
I would like to share with you my recent TEDx talk. My main inspiration comes from years of explorations of my own psychology, psychology of the people I worked with and general psychology. It was also very helpful to follow shared stories of private life of several inspiring figures such as Elon Musk, or analyzing biographies of some of the greatest genius such as Nikola Tesla.
Good joke
What do you say when you greet the ocean?:
Nothing, you just wave.
ROGUE WAVE HAIKU
Rogue Wave!
Rough Seas? No, just optics.
World got brighter
EPIPHANY HAIKU
Lightening strikes
It fills my lungs with scent
Of enlightenment
GIFTS OF WOUNDS
Life’s blade, deep cuts
Many to burden and dust
Some into diamonds
Stardust Haiku
If science not proof
human body from stardust,
your stellar presence.
Goodies of Iceland
Shining salmon
nigiri ashore
taste of northern light
image copyrights: wikimedia
MEMORIES HAIKU
Through airplane window
Closing Asian sunset
In mimosa leaves