I love the sea. I love her ever changing moods, that salty taste to the air, the  freshness of the breeze & the excitement of bouncing up and down on the waves.

This weekend I had the pleasure of meeting another woman who shares that passion for the salty oceans, although her preferred method of traveling on it is usually by rowing boat. In fact Sarah Outen has got a few world records under her belt having become the only woman and the youngest person to row across the Indian Ocean last year.

You’d have thought that she might be happy to hang up her oars after that remarkable feat but instead she’s decided to up the ante and circle the globe using nothing but “Sarah power”. Next April she’ll start out from London, kayak down the Thames and across the Channel before picking up her bike and cycling all the way to far East Russia! She’ll kayak and cycle to Sakhalin island and Japan & overwinter in Japan before rowing the Pacific to America or Canada. She’ll bike and kayak across North America before rowing across the North Atlantic back home.  Phew – what an adventure!

Sarah has done a fair bit of kayaking before  but she’s asked me to join her on some of the paddling sections (across the Channel to France, and from Russia to Sakhalin, then from Shakalin to Japan), plus we are heading to Menorca in October to try to circumnavigate it as part of her training. As you can imagine, I didn’t take much persuading! Today she came up to Wales and we went on a paddle to Rhoscolyn.

Sarah is seeking sponsors to help fund the expedition & provide equipment. Ernst & Young, Rockpool kayaks, Aquapac and many others are already on board supporting this exciting journey.  Check out Sarah’s website for more info.

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