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E-Bay Row Boat waiting to cross the Bering Sea

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Agu 5, 2004 17: 36 EST
No sails, no engines - just raw human energy. From Vancouver to Alaska, across the Bering Sea and into Siberia, two BC adventurers Colin Angus and Tim Harvey have rowed and bicycled their way since June 1. The trip is a 11 month, 18,000 km journey that will take them to Moscow using only human powered modes of transportation.

Currently they are at the edge of the Bering Sea, awaiting their 400 km ocean crossing in a rowboat purchased on E-Bay only a few months ago. The 18 ft rowboat is packed solid with 1500 lbs of gear and provisions - everything needed in Siberia.

Colin and Tim started out cycling, the bicycles each carrying 140 lbs of gear, clocking 120 km a day. Grizzly bears and blistering heat were are all part of the daily routine as they made their way into Alaska. The grueling schedule of cycling 120 km a day with only 1 rest day took its toll, but the urgency of reaching the Bering sea before the storm season kept motivation up.

Colin and Tim arrived in Whitehorse, Yukon, almost caught in forest fires coming to both sides of the road and reducing visibility to 30 metres. In order to stick to their schedule, they decided to canoe from Whitehorse towards Fairbanks along the Yukon River rather than risk being delayed on the roads. The voracious forest fires created a river journey that Colin described as "the liquid road to hell". The flames crept up to both sides of the river, creating a constant smoke that obscured the river banks and made breathing difficult. "It's like being in pea soup with iridescent displays of light."

In Whitehorse, they discovered that the river was off limits, but pressed on, traveling 24 hours a day to stay on schedule. They cooked, ate, and slept in the canoe (bought in Whitehorse for $200). The boat carried more than 700 pounds, including both bikes and all the gear. This made it quite unstable and left little room to sit, let alone sleep.

The fires abated but strong headwinds assaulted the overburdened and undersized canoe for five days. They could not afford to wait a week until the weather system passed. The constant 24 hour daily paddle took on new meaning as they were both forced to paddle the canoe to keep its nose pointed into the waves and stay on a forward course. After nearly sinking and 48 hours without sleep they reached Fairbanks.

In Fairbanks, the bikes underwent a transformation to enable them to endure the hardships of Siberia and a rowboat conversion was finalized. The ocean crossing rowboat is an E-Bay purchased sailboat only a few months ago. After removing the mast, sealing the boat, installing a hatch, adding oars and many other adjustments, a rowboat worthy of crossing the Bering Sea emerged. The 18 ft rowboat is packed solid with 1500 lbs of gear and provisions - everything needed in Siberia.

There is 180 lbs of chocolate, 45 lbs of oatmeal, 20 lbs of beef jerky, 360 freeze dried meals and more. In total enough food to provide them with over 5000 calories a day, every day for the next several months! In addition to food, they are carrying Arctic expedition clothing, four season tents, -50°C sleeping bags, skis, winterized bikes, ocean survival suits (just in case), and other essential gear they'll need to cope with temperatures that regularly drop below -60°C. Generous sponsors have provided much of this equipment.

Currently, the winds gust across the tundra and the Bering mocks the rowboat that waits to cross her. Colin and Tim arrived at the Bering Sea on Saturday. They are ready to leave the coast of Alaska for their 400 km ocean crossing to a land that is vastly different, but the weather begs otherwise.

Historically, this time of the year is the calmest and should be relatively ideal for crossing but westerly winds are now gusting at up to 50 km/hour. It is impossible to row into headwinds that strong on the open ocean. They are more likely to move backwards than forwards as the turbulent ocean toys with the 18 foot rowboat. Although the boat is self righting and sealed as tight as a bottle with a cork in it, the strain of a storm is not something they wish to encounter.

So after several weeks of around-the-clock rowing and paddling, Tim and Colin are forced to be patient.

Colin Angus

Colin Angus and pals traveled the 7,000 km length of the Amazon River in a raft - from the first trickles of melting snow in the Andes to the Atlantic Ocean. In five months, they crossed a desert, climbed mountains, shot rapids and ducked bullets, and 119 days after setting out from Lima on Sept. 13, they navigated the entire length of the river.

Based in Vancouver, Colin has spent the last twelve years pursuing a life of adventure. Colin sailed across the Pacific Ocean (much of it solo) as a teenager, organized the self-powered expedition down the Amazon, and most recently completed a descent of the 5,500 km Yenisey River through Mongolia and Siberia.

Colin has authored two books for Random House and co-produced two documentaries for National Geographic, one of which garnered awards at the Banff and Telluride Festivals of Mountain Films.

Tim Harvey

Born and raised in BC, Tim has long enjoyed exploring the coastal wilderness by kayak and canoe. Tim spent seven months in Central America, funded by the Canadian International Development Agency to work as a photographer on biological inventories of threatened marine and wetland ecology.

Image of map and current location courtesy of the team.

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