Expeditions

There’s a guy, Jaco Swart, who is walking around South Africa, kaalvoet. Ja, without shoes. He started his adventure in January 2009 and, just before xmas, had covered 4000km. Jaco was one of the guides on that awful blackwater tubing accident on the Storms River… must have been in early 2000…

Trail runner Andrew Porter set a new record for the Drakensberg Grand Traverse this past weekend (17-20 December 2009). He took 20 hours off the record set by Stijn Laenen and Andrew Hagen this time last year. Stijn and Andrew broke Gavin and Lawrie Raubenheimer’s long standing (10 years) record of 4 days 9 hours 39 minutes.

The race was meant to start 6 December. It has been postponed to 16 December (Wednesday). South African Peter van Kets will be rowing across the Atlantic solo.Visit Peter’s website at www.own-your-life.co.za to follow the event.

South African Peter van Kets is about to begin rowing across the Atlantic, solo. He won the Woodvale Challenge two years ago, with Bill Godfrey. He’s now aiming to do it solo and going for the record. The race starts Sunday, 6 December 2009

Ray Chaplin is now a week into his ‘Walking the line’ expedition, where he is walking from Cape Town to Beit Bridge following the railway line. His journey started on Sunday, 8 November 2009. His first week has not been without its share of excitement…

I have given much thought to adventures and explorers the past few months; it is tied in with a project that I’m working on, but it is also a personal interest thing. I have long had a near-obssession with adventurers – of days gone by and modern; my bookcase bears witness to my fascination with polar expeditions and seafaring explorers.