Going against the Flow

the amazing adventure of Jason Lewis

By The Bimbler

I tapped the titanium mug upside down and out it popped.

I’d achieved a world first… the first mini cake dry baked on Chesil Beach.

Feelings of self importance quickly evaporated as my focus came back to the figure sat patiently beside me and the massive scale of his rather more impressive achievement.

In stark contrast to my lazy wanderings Jason Lewis holds the honour of being the first person to complete a circumnavigation of the globe using human power alone… sails and motors forsaken for a combination of walking, kayaking, roller blading and the minor detail of pedalling a custom built boat across the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

The full 13 year adventure fills three books which are a highly recommended read and include such insights as being stalked by a Saltwater Crocodile, White Tipped Sharks gnawing at the boat’s propellor and peddling against a 400 mile wide Pacific current (the Doldrums) for weeks on end without making any headway

While listening to Jason recall parts of his fascinating story it became clear how much importance was placed on the simple act of stopping for a brew… something I can definitely relate to.

““Setting the soggy chart aside to dry, I started an afternoon mug of tea, the most refreshing and eagerly anticipated part of each day. A fast dwindling supply of stove fuel [denatured alcohol] made it all the more so. This was the glittering prize at the end of each sweltering afternoon. ”

I’d asked him to bring along a couple of small keepsakes that served as reminders of the journey and a battered white mug immediately caught my eye. The marks etched around the lip correspond to each of the 111 days it took to pedal across the Atlantic with Steve Smith, his fellow explorer at the time. The mug became cracked mid-ocean and with no spare drinking vessel Jason had to draw on his resourcefulness to make a repair with whatever was to hand.

Simply getting enough water for a brew became a pressing issue on various occasions…

“Tea was an important part of the trip. When our desalinator pump ran out on the Arabian Sea, my co-pedaller and I had to make do with just one cup a day, which became a hook around which to hang the rest of the day”

Resilience seemed to be the theme of the entire journey and adaptability the name of the game. This wooden board for instance served as a primitive Swiss Army Knife not only for chopping food on but also as a hammer and general purpose tool.

I managed to glean a few mind boggling statistics from Jason’s incredible expedition which helped to frame the magnitude of it all…

Total Circumnavigation: 46505 miles

Total Duration: 4833 days

Mugs of Tea and Coffee: 19332

Atlantic crossing: 5641 miles

Mars Bars carried: (but not necessarily all eaten!) 4,000

Army ration packs eaten crossing the Atlantic: 250

Inline skating across the U.S.A. 4309 miles

Number of skate wheels used: 266

While eating cake and drinking tea we discussed the common ground between bimbling and epic adventures and how they both seem to expand your awareness to what’s happening on the periphery. In my case it’s just being inquisitive and trying to notice as much as possible from spending a few hours outside but for a proper explorer it’s more about using all your senses to heighten awareness of potential risks and rewards.

Jason explained how his adventurous spirit started as a student when he and college friend/fellow explorer Steve would sometimes board a train, pick an arbitrary destination then explore wherever they found themselves.

“Part of the appeal was not knowing where we were going to sleep each night. It’s easy to come up with a mound of excuses why you shouldn’t go but the main thing is to just leave, get out and start walking… because that’s how adventures start”

On a more philosophical note I learned that Jason Lewis is driven by a genuine desire to propagate respect and care for the planet by encouraging people to tap into the same resilience he called on to survive on long ocean voyages. It’s easy to talk the talk but here’s someone who literally walks it too… when he’s not in a Kayak or on a Bike… or Rollerblades!

Just listening to all the talk of physical exertion was exhausting for this lazy Bimbler and the sugar had worn off. My mind turned to where the next snack was coming from… Time to head home.