x360 Journal

Best of ExplorersWeb 2007 Awards: Jason Lewis, world circumnavigation

Mon, 31 Dec 2007 06:48:21 +0000

Expedition 360 has been selected by Explorers Web as one of their Best of 2007 Awards.

In 1519 Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan set out on an ocean voyage with 5 ships and a crew of 270 men.

Click here for the full story.

To become a part of the international adventure community, check into The Pioneers Checkpoint.

For the all the communications equipment you need for your next expedition, visit Explorers Web.

Completion Shirts now on offer!

Sun, 16 Dec 2007 18:37:59 +0000

A selection of commemorative shirts to celebrate the completion of Expedition 360 are now available through the website. The design marks the final route around the world from Greenwich, through the two antipodal points on the Atlantic and western Australia, and back to Greenwich again.

You can choose from three styles: a hoody, long-sleeve sweat or just a short-sleeve t-shirt. A range of different colours are also available.

This is the last in a total of seven designs that were printed over the years to raise funds to keep the expedition going in the absence of formal sponsorship. The original, as seen here worn by Steve and I at the Earl's Court Boat Show in January 1994, is printed with the hopelessly optimistic dates of 1994-1996! This final design gives the real tally of 13-years.

Visit the store on the expedition website to find out more. Please note that only 200 pieces have been printed as a limited edition series. Order now while they're available!

Jason

Support for Lee's bike ride to Barcelona

Thu, 06 Dec 2007 23:25:01 +0000

Some of you present at the completion of Expedition 360 at Greenwich almost two months ago now might have run into one of the central figures who worked tirelessly to ensure the day ran smoothly: the overall event manager Lee Reynolds.

On 5th April 2008 Lee Reynolds and his friends Rich Prowting and Michael Stoner will set out by bike from Southampton FC's stadium - St Mary's - and aim to reach the Nou Camp in Barcelona within two weeks.

As well as doing it for the adventure, they will be raising money for the cystic fibrosis trust.

Click here if you'd like to help!

Moksha on display at Earl's Court Boat Show

Thu, 29 Nov 2007 11:13:51 +0000

Moksha is being exhibited as one of the highlights of the 'Hall of Fame' display at the Earl's Court Boat Show from this Saturday the 1st December through the 9th. The display is being sponsored by Yachting World in association by the National Maritime Museum.

Round the world sailing pioneers like Sir Francis Chichester, Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, and Sir Chay Blyth are also being featured.

The Expedition 360 display will feature some of the other equipment and modes of propulsion that were used to circumnavigation using only human power: kayaks, rollerblades and an overland component comprising the bike and camping equipment.

Another reason to come along and visit the display is meeting Steve's father Stuart who has kindly offered to man the exhibit and answer any questions that aren't explained by the information boards and multimedia kiosk. He's knows the stories and tells them better than any of us, so you won't be disappointed! There will also be a limited supply of special edition signed T-shirts for sale.

More information about the show can be found here. We look forward to seeing you there!

The Sustrans Big Lottery bid - your vote needed!

Wed, 21 Nov 2007 07:34:03 +0000

Another impression from being away for 13-years is how backward the UK is compared to many other countries around the world in terms of providing sustainable transport alternatives for people - bicycle paths and lanes in particular. For poorer countries like India and China bicycles are the preferred method of travel mainly for economic reasons (people would start using a car in a heartbeat if they could afford one). But travelling through continental Europe - Germany, Austria and Belgium in particular, countries at least on a par with the UK economically - I was struck how advanced they are with the whole process of providing safe environments for cyclists and walkers to travel adjacent to established roads and thoroughfares both in the towns and the countryside. Sometimes almost to the point of irritation in terms of how prescriptive they were.

Sustrans is one organization that is actively working towards sustainable transport solutions for the UK however. As the UK’s leading sustainable transport charity its vision is a world in which people choose to travel in ways that benefit their health and the environment. Their Connect2 initiative is currently shortlisted with three other contenders for 50 million pounds of Big Lottery money that, if they win, will go towards creating 79 bicycle paths, bridges and walkways nationwide. I was invited yesterday to help promote their initiatives in Devon and Dorset which include a 1.8km traffic-free route in Newton Abbot and plans to construct a bridge over the River Otter in Ottery St. Mary, to create a safe, traffic free pathway away from the busy main road. You can find out more details on their Big Lottery bid here. For residents of the UK please consider giving them your vote starting the 26th of this month. To me it’s a win-win situation; riding a bike whenever possible means carbon neutral travel, saving money and keeping fit. And while the other three contenders are certainly worthy causes, the Sustrans Connect2 bid is the only one that will directly affect local communities nationwide.

jason

Back into Society

Fri, 16 Nov 2007 02:57:19 +0000

Its over a month ago that I re-crossed the Meridian Line at Greenwich along with Moksha and the other members and close supporters of Expedition 360. Having been riding towards this exact moment in time - 12pm on October 6th 2007 - for so many months coming up through Africa, the Middle East and Europe, it was predictably a very emotional moment. For so many years I'd been pushing myself on with the adage that it is the journey, not the destination, that is important. But I cannot deny that at the end of it all the destination was just as important too. After all, how can one have a journey without there being a destination? It would be impossible to have one without the other.

The first three weeks following the circumnavigation completion were a blur: back to back interviews by media to the point of losing my voice and nearly my mind. In amongst this frenzied activity I was trying to spend time with as many of the expedition family as possible, many of whom had traveled a great distance and gone to considerable expense to be there at the finish. The completion party at the Trafalgar Rowing Club was quite small and modest considering the scale of effort by so many over so many years. There were only a hundred there to celebrate. But I knew that never again in my lifetime would I get to share the same room with such an incredible bunch of absolutely top rate human beings. For me it was definitely the high point of the entire expedition.

Since then the media interest has thankfully waned, replaced by meetings with publishers, broadcasters and others interested in exploiting the story. I've always joked that at the end of X360 I'd be as broke as when I started, with little to show for it except a bunch of good stories, and that's pretty much the way it's turned out. But what's interesting is that there does seem to be value in these stories that I didn't fully appreciate until just recently. So if I play my cards right I might not have to go back to cleaning windows after all!

One of the most common questions I've been asked is how I will adapt back to a life without the expedition. Well, the truth is that aside from the physical traveling, not much else has changed. I'm still talking about it, writing about it, thinking about it 24/7. The monster still needs feeding and its appetite is growing if anything, rather than subsiding. So unless I do want to go back to cleaning windows it seems like I'll be living with the expedition for a while yet to come.

Adapting back to living in London has been a struggle though. The culture shock of transitioning from a largely freeform existence traveling through largely freeform countries and environments, where few rules exist that can't be circumvented either by greasing palms or shouting a lot, has been quite severe. In short I am not enjoying being back in the UK. Everyone complains about the cost of living, stealth taxes, CCTV cameras, loss of personal rights and an insidious bureaucracy gradually creeping into every aspect of their lives. Having been away for 13-years I can see it clearer than anyone. It's actually terrifying, and part of me wants to run screaming in the opposite direction as far as my world weary legs will carry me. And then there's the media. Oh Boy! How much more narcissistic, utterly base, pointless, navel gazing drivel can they cram on the box before people become completely disconnected from ANYTHING that is actually worth filling their heads with? So many lies, distortions, sensationalism, half-truths, non-truths, all for the sake of attracting more eyeballs and better serving the interests of greedy advertisers just so they can put more crap on the shelves that people don't actually need. So many hours of the average person's day already appears to be dedicated to earning money just to pay bills. As part of this new found awareness that people have of climate change and carbon footprints you'd think we'd be looking at ways of buying less stuff, rather than more, so we can spend less time working and more time at home with our children or doing exercise to keep healthy, or just sitting in a corner reading a book. Clearly a change in mainstream society's value system is desperately needed. But how to engineer this when materialism and obsession with money is so ingrained in everyone's thinking from early childhood on?

Admittedly I am the world's biggest hippocratic as far as time management goes considering how much a slave I still am to this project (that is supposedly now 'finished'). The challenge I see for myself from now on is to try and harness the legacy of the last 13-years into something that is interesting and useful for people to read or watch a program about. Recounting a straight adventure story doesn't interest me. Participating in a much needed public debate on how human behaviour might be adapted over the next 50 years to better serve the interests of a sustainable planet with people helping each other rather than exploiting and killing each other (as is our historic precedent) does. And if there's any conclusion that I can draw after traveling the world these past 13-years it is that education is where its at. That's the direction I need to channel my efforts from now on.

jason

Read a recent ESPN article

Memories of Greenwich - by Nancy Sanford

Sun, 21 Oct 2007 19:21:30 +0000

This journal entry comes quite late because it took me time to recover from my adventure in the UK and the Greenwich events to celebrate Jason’s completion of the expedition. It was a great time. It was in fact, incredible. Below are some of my memories. Nancy Sanford
-----------------
My experience started with chasing the team that had left Belgium for Dover via Calais following Jason’s unexpected early departure to cross the channel during a weather window. I arrived in Brussels from the US and after 3 trains, a ferry and a taxi ride later with what I later called ‘the grey beast’ of a wheeled suitcase, I was standing alone on a windy, cold pier in Dover at dusk with the cliffs looming ghostly behind me. I was feeling pretty lonely and very tired. But no amount of jet lag would beat me. Cell phone input couldn’t confirm it but I was sure Jason was coming. I waited and waited. It got dark. I waited. And then I gave up. I took one last look out toward the distant harbor entrance before heading back the half mile walk to the dock. But wait! There, at the far edge of the harbor entrance, were two tiny red and green lights winking close to the water and next to them, higher up, lights of another boat. It had to be them- Moksha and the chaperone boat.

I went from sad sack to ballistic in seconds. I began a mantra of ‘Just keep coming Jason, just keep coming’. After a lunatic performance of waving a white scarf that Jason later said he never saw, they came closer finally. I yelled ‘hello’ from the pier and began to run back like a maniac to the dock where I met up with the others –most of whom I hadn’t seen in years and others I met for the first time but certainly knew from journal entries. I hugged them all and Jason too and then asked permission to board Moksha whom I’d not seen since Hawaii.

Jason invited me to pedal ‘Moksha’ with him from Gravesend to Erith, about 10 miles, on the eastern end of the Thames on Thursday Oct 4th. It was a beautiful day with a beautiful sunset -and a wonderful incoming tide. Pedaling Moksha is like pedaling up a moderate hill that never ends. Once you get used to it, it seems reasonable. It’s the first 45 minutes that you wonder how they ever got across the Channel in the first place let alone across oceans. The steering was suffering a hang up but it is usually responsive - like turning a bus. Everything you need is within reach of either you or the other guy but you do have to be very mindful of the turning metal pedals that can claw down a misplaced leg. Jason boiled water for tea during our trip and we enjoyed some celebratory chocolate candy at journey’s end. I can’t thank Jason enough for the chance to pedal some distance in Moksha on the Thames. Jason said he wanted to return the favor.

What he was referring to was that in the summer of 95, during what turned out to be one of the hottest summers in the Southern US on record, Steve Smith and Jason began their way west from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida on the Atlantic coast to San Francisco, California. My ‘favor’ to them was to get 3 small pedal boats to the east side of Tampa Bay (Florida) for us to get across to St. Petersburg, about 9 miles, where I live. It was shorter distance and less of a hassle than getting there by bike and inline skates but turned out to be slow torture on the windless day under the sun –for 3 hours. I can only hope that neither Steve nor Jason remembers the deplorable heat that day on Tampa Bay.

By far, I got the better deal.

There are some Moksha maneuverings from water to land or land to water that we will remember from this time, but the trickiest by far because it had to happen then and only then with no real alternative with media live and a crowd watching, was her landing at the slipway in Greenwich.

Apart from the media jostling to capture ‘the shot’ of Jason stepping off Moksha, they call it a slipway for a reason. It’s incredible that Jason made it off without damage. However, imagine if you will, standing on slippery cobbles with cold, wet water sloshing around and a 3000 pound boat coming straight at you with only ‘Roman rollers’ (4 fence posts) to defend her keel against the stones. The rollers must roll her up the slipway ramp to the reach of a crane. We also had to keep her even keeled, as in from rocking to either side potentially squooshing crew on either side backed by narrow concrete walls. Chris Tipper deserves credit for executing the idea that I, prior to Moksha’s arrival, merely accepted out of hand as being entirely do-able. Standing there at water’s edge, at the moment of her arrival, her bow scraping Greenwich cobbles for the first time, I admit my confidence wavered. But, the fence posts got pushed into place and began to roll. I looked at Moksha as she lumbering toward us, unsteadied by the waves of wakes from nearby media boats and quietly said “Come home”, and she did. I know she would have come without my invitation, but she’d been so good for so long it was time for her to just do what she had to do. We just helped. Maybe it wasn’t pretty, but it worked.

Now strapped and held 15 feet overhead by a crane, Moksha had to be rotated mid air in close quarters surrounded by media and a crowd in order to be placed on the trolley that would carry her over the Meridian. ‘Close quarters’ is an understatement. Inches only between the buildings.

My notebook and photo album don’t compare to the ‘movies’ of memories I keep playing over in my head. It’s all too big to really put into words. I played a very minor part in the expedition’s effort through the years, but know that the mission of the expedition to educate on the environment, promote world citizenship, and to know your dreams and follow them impacted my life forever. I’ve done things I never would have done without the experience. I think perhaps now I have a soul that is my true home port and is the only way I will ever find my way away.

Thanks, Jason. I really did get the better deal.

Nancy
Pedal power, the pace for the human race.

Circumnavigation Complete!

Sat, 06 Oct 2007 11:16:21 +0000

LOCATION: Greenwich, England

At 12.24pm yesterday afternoon Jason Lewis, pedal boat Moksha and the Expedition 360 team crossed the Greenwich Meridian Line at the Royal Obseratory in East London, signfifying the completion of the 13 year expedition. The world has now been circumnavigated using only human power. (Guidelines issued by Explorers Web)

A big thanks to all of you who helped make the dream come true!

Click here for full size image.

** MOKSHA FUND **

Huge thanks to those of you who have pledged towards the costs of moving Moksha from Antwerp to Ostend ($850), the hire of a cross channel support boat ($1960) and a crane on the day of the completion ($950)

> Total to raise: $3,750
> Total raised to date: $2,445
> Still to raise: $1,305

You can make pledges here. Or email contact@expedition360.com

Sincerest thanks to the following for your pledges -
Darcia Wasarab-Rolland - $300
Suzanne Geller - $50
meredith schlegel - $50
Miroslav Novakovic - $110
Jeremy Gruse - $50
Terry Mason - $100
Shelly Colletti - $250
Sebastian Best - $100
Elizabeth Hunt - $75
A S E Feakes - $40
Sebastian Best - $100
Michael Appleby - $20
The Rollers - $200
Karl Sweeney - $100
Susan Schendowich - $50
Patrick Buckler - $50
Neil Reypert - $100
Gretchin Lair - $50
Tim Murfitt - $50
Samantha Carter - $50
Merlin & Carrie Lewis - $200
Jane Koca & John Caldwell - $100
Anonymous - $250

Up the Thames

Fri, 05 Oct 2007 14:06:52 +0000

LOCATION: The River Thames, England
SEE WHERE WE ARE!
Longitude: N:51deg.08'
Latitude: E: 001deg.19'
Kms from Istanbul: 3,236.50

Yesterday Nancy Sanford and I pedaled from Gravesend into the lower reaches of the Thames, signaling the start of the final furlong to Greenwich. The sun broke through after midday and it turned into a glorious autumn afternoon, perfect weather to be messing around in a boat on the water in England. There was more than just a hint of symbolism slipping up the river past the bustling activity of east London docklands in much the same way as ships returning from the far east laden with spices and other oriental treasures would have done back in the golden age of sail.

At the time of writing Moksha is moored outside the Erith Yacht Club, waiting for the next flood tide to assist the penultimate 'hop' up to the Greenwich Yacht Club. We rolled up just before dark last night completely unannounced. The club commodore and other club members didn't bat an eye, instead making us all feel instantly welcome to share their clubhouse for the evening - a converted Norwegian roll-on roll-off car ferry (the first of it's kind) moored alongside the river bank. We completely lucked out with it being bar night, and several club members offered their yachts for support team members to sleep on. What a wonderful extension of hospitality on home turf!

Earlier yesterday the team worked all through the night putting the 1868 names of supporters back on the side of the boat while she was in dry dock. Moksha now looks resplendent with her new figurehead that Eilbhe finished in the nick of time and the vinyl names in place. She still looks like she's been around the world, but a little spruce-up around the edges will allow her a slightly more dignified entry in the public eye tomorrow.

A huge thanks also to the members of the Port of London Authority (PLA) who have been absolutely fantastic, accommodating our last minute plans and giving us the red carpet treatment for the final run into London.

jason

CIRCUMNAVIGATION COMPLETION DETAILS

Date & Time: Saturday 6th October, 2007 at 11.30 am.
Location: The Royal Observatory, (Flamsteed House), Greenwich Park, London, SE10 9NF. t: +44 (0)20 8858 4422

Map & Directions

All are invited. Look forward to seeing you there!

Expedition 360 support team

** MOKSHA SHIPPING ANTWERP to OOSTENDE **

Huge thanks to those of you who have pledged towards the shipping of Moksha to Ostend from Antwerp. The response has been so successful we now have $350 surplus which we will put towards the hire of the crane to pull Moksha out of the Thames on the morning of the 6th (475 pounds sterling).

You can make pledges here. Or email contact@expedition360.com

Sincerest thanks to the following for your pledges -
Elizabeth Hunt - $75
A S E Feakes - $40
Sebastian Best - $100
Michael Appleby - $20
The Rollers - $200
Karl Sweeney - $100
Susan Schendowich - $50
Patrick Buckler - $50
Neil Reypert - $100
Gretchin Lair - $50
Tim Murfitt - $50
Samantha Carter - $50
Merlin & Carrie Lewis - $200
Jane Koca & John Caldwell - $100
Anonymous - $250

> Total to raise: $925
> Total raised to date: $1,435

> Surplus towards crane hire: $585
> Crane hire: $998.50
> Still to raise: 413.50

North to the Thames

Tue, 02 Oct 2007 23:46:34 +0000

LOCATION: Ramsgate, England
SEE WHERE WE ARE!
Longitude: N:51deg.08'
Latitude: E: 001deg.19'
Kms from Istanbul: 3,236.50

The weather was dreadful yesterday - the wind blowing up to 30 knots off the White Cliffs of Dover - preventing Moksha from leaving the shelter of the harbour. But earlier today the conditions improved enough for Sher and I to leave after high water, taking advantage of the ebb tide to help push us the 14 nautical miles up to Ramsgate at a blistering 4 knots.

We arrived just before dark. Chris, Kenny, Nancy (Sanford) and Eilbhe were in position with the trailer on the slipway ready to pull Moksha out of the water. First thing in the morning we'll start adding the names of 1,868 supporters of the expedition who will have their names in vinyl lettering on Moksha's hull forever. These names arrived from the printers in India at the 11th hour just as we were pulling Moksha out of the water. It'll be good to have them all on board for the finish.

Eilbhe will also have time to finish off the new figurehead. The boat will look quite dashing for her arrival. Then Thursday morning the expedition continues up the coast to Gravesend, this time using the flood tide to start the final run up the River Thames to Greenwich.

** MOKSHA SHIPPING ANTWERP to OOSTENDE **

Huge thanks to those of you who have pledged towards the shipping of Moksha to Ostend from Antwerp. The response has been so successful we have $350 surplus which we will put towards the hire of the crane to pull Moksha out of the Thames on the morning of the 6th (475 pounds sterling).

You can make pledges here. Or email contact@expedition360.com

Sincerest thanks to the following for your pledges -
A S E Feakes - $40
Sebastian Best - $100
Michael Appleby - $20
The Rollers - $200
Karl Sweeney - $100
Susan Schendowich - $50
Patrick Buckler - $50
Neil Reypert - $100
Gretchin Lair - $50
Tim Murfitt - $50
Samantha Carter - $50
Merlin & Carrie Lewis - $200
Jane Koca & John Caldwell - $100
Anonymous - $250

> Total to raise: $850
> Total raised to date: $1,360
> Total still to raise: $0

> Surplus towards crane hire: $510
> Crane hire: $998.50
> Still to raise: 488.50

Back on the Island!

Mon, 01 Oct 2007 11:23:27 +0000

LOCATION: Dover, England
SEE WHERE WE ARE!
Longitude: N:51deg.08'
Latitude: E: 001deg.19'
Kms from Istanbul: 3,213

Moksha slipped into Dover harbour yesterday evening, successfully avoiding being apprehended by the French authorities and completing a relatively smooth crossing from France in a little under 8 hours. The pearly white cliffs of Dover provided a beacon to which to pedal towards in the fading light, symbolising the long awaited return to the green isle of England for Expedition 360. The circle is now almost closed.

The departure from the beach at Cap Gris Nez didn't go so smoothly however, and we were VERY lucky launching Moksha in an unorthodox style never attempted before; reversing her on a trailer into the surf and pushing her out into deeper water before being wrecked onto the 'Dragon Teeth Rocks', just 100 metres apart either side of the beach. I still am in awe that we managed to pull it off at all without serious harm to either the boat or people. The day was saved by some incredibly nice locals from the village of Framzelle. At 11.30am, with just 30 minutes to catch the tide window, we still hadn't managed to find someone with a tractor to take Moksha plus trailer down to the beach for launching. 'Jean Calais' plus family and friends just happened to passing by from collecting cockles and mussels on the beach at low tide and enquired what this strange craft was. 20 minutes later Jean was down with his tractor and an assorted posse of helpers waded out into the surf to assist with launching.

The big worry was pushing Moksha around 180 degrees in the heavy surf to face the rollers and then push her out into water deep enough to fit the rudder, centre board and pedal unit - before being put onto the rocks. I almost made the call to abandon for the day and try for a deep water launching the following day in Calais. Losing Moksha would potentially jeopardize the successful completion of the circumnavigation. But on the flip side delaying for a day would seriously compromise the weather window. It was actually a prompt from the villagers that swung the decision. 'We know this water -you might make it if you go NOW'.

15 extremely chaotic and adrenaline pumping minutes later Chris and I found ourselves pedaling out through the surf into deeper water, the boat half full of water, but afloat and still operable. What a rush!! Pulling the whiskers of fate and making borderline decisions like this AND getting away with it is extremely exhilarating. But things could well have gone the other way.

Moksha was now in the water and in one piece. But in the confusion Kenny and Eilbhe, who we were going to ferry out to the waiting support vessel lying out in deeper water, were still stranded in the surf. I then witnessed one of the most incredible displays of bravery and gusto from our cameraman Kenny Brown - swimming 200 metres through the surf with his camera gear in a dry bag on his back. Eilbhe intercepted him in a kayak further out and the illustrious two managed to make it to the support boat intact. What a mad start to the crossing!

Chris Tipper

In a few minutes Sher and I leave Dover on the ebb tide to pedal around to Ramsgate, 14 miles around the corner to the northeast. More developments posted later today.

jason

Chris looking out past the white cliffs of Dover

** MOKSHA SHIPPING ANTWERP to OOSTENDE **

Huge thanks to those of you who have pledged towards the shipping of Moksha to Ostend from Antwerp. The response has been so successful we have $350 surplus which we will put towards the hire of the crane to pull Moksha out of the Thames on the morning of the 6th (475 pounds sterling).

You can make pledges here. Or email contact@expedition360.com

Sincerest thanks to the following for your pledges -
The Rollers - $200
Karl Sweeney - $100
Susan Schendowich - $50
Patrick Buckler - $50
Neil Reypert - $100
Gretchin Lair - $50
Tim Murfitt - $50
Samantha Carter - $50
Merlin & Carrie Lewis - $200
Jane Koca & John Caldwell - $100
Anonymous - $250

> Total to raise: $850
> Total raised to date: $1200
> Total still to raise: $0

> Surplus towards crane hire: $350
> Crane hire: $998.50
> Still to raise: 650

The Last Voyage of the Moksha

Sun, 30 Sep 2007 08:25:14 +0000

LOCATION: Cap Gris Nez, France
SEE WHERE WE ARE!
Longitude: N:51deg.14'53.
Latitude: E: 002deg.55'45.
Kms from Istanbul: 3,328

This is written on the slipway at Cap Gris Nez, 17 miles west of Calais on the French side of La Manche, or The Channel (as the English know it). The desired weather window presented itself on yesterday morning's forecast for crossing today. So we broke camp from Ostend and I rode the 145 kms down the coast to Calais yesterday afternoon in time to catch the ebb tide this morning, at 12 noon. This should hopefully assist with the crossing over to the white cliffs of Dover and around the corner to St. Margaret's slipway (west of Dover).

Moksha has been transported down here on a trailer, driven by Chris Tipper. No word still from the French authorities, so there's still the chance of being arrested. But after 13 years and all that has gone down with this expedition; from being run over by a car in Colorado, to being chased by a croc in Australia, to nearly succumbing to septicemia mid Pacific, the last thing that will stop me from reaching English soil now, and completing the circumnavigation, is a bunch of French bureaucracy. If they try and stop me I am resolved to keep on pedaling, even if they threaten to shoot me (which they won't I don't think - this isn't Indonesia or the Sudan!).

Chris Tipper will be with me, Moksha's builder and an Pacific leg veteran. It will be good to begin this Last Voyage of the Moksha with him.

My 'ocean ring' is now on my finger again. I wear this ring for all the ocean crossings so I am essentially 'married' to the sea for the duration of each voyage, prompting me to better read the fickle mood swings of the water and all her contrariness, and enable better decision-making. It has brought me good luck thus far. I hope it will today also. Fingers crossed the next update will be written from English soil later today!

jason

** MOKSHA SHIPPING ANTWERP to OOSTENDE **

Huge thanks to those of you who have pledged towards the shipping of Moksha to Ostend from Antwerp. The response has been so successful we have $350 surplus which we will put towards the hire of the crane to pull Moksha out of the Thames on the morning of the 6th (475 pounds sterling).

You can make pledges here. Or email contact@expedition360.com

Sincerest thanks to the following for your pledges -
The Rollers - $200
Karl Sweeney - $100
Susan Schendowich - $50
Patrick Buckler - $50
Neil Reypert - $100
Gretchin Lair - $50
Tim Murfitt - $50
Samantha Carter - $50
Merlin & Carrie Lewis - $200
Jane Koca & John Caldwell - $100
Anonymous - $250

> Total to raise: $850
> Total raised to date: $1200
> Total still to raise: $0

> Surplus towards crane hire: $350
> Crane hire: $998.50
> Still to raise: 650

Final preparations for the Channel

Sat, 29 Sep 2007 09:54:11 +0000

LOCATION: Oostende, Belgium
SEE WHERE WE ARE!
Longitude: N:51deg.14'53.
Latitude: E: 002deg.55'45.
Kms from Istanbul: 3,183

Belgium Moksha is having final preparations hurriedly done on a borrowed dock, we’re desperately running round town to every conceivable shop where we’re told they don’t have something in a foreign language and then nodding sagely as a man semaphores elaborate directions to some other shop to buy screws or sealant or something vital for the ocean. A weather window is looming for the crossing....No hang on... these are my notes from October 1994.It’s Europe 1994 and 2007 with Jason Lewis and the Expedition - nothing much has changed. OK, so we’re sleeping inside more often, we spend half our time messing around with laptops (which barely existed back then) and we’re actually paying for the occasional thing rather than having to beg and borrow every step of the way.

Eilbhe , who we met in France in 94, is painting new figure head on the pedal boat and Chris, who was one of the boat builders, is replacing the windows so they can actually see where they're going on the imminent Channel crossing.

Jason is barely sleeping, is surrounded by charts, electronics and dealing with the authorities in both France and England. He has finally stopped just shaving like an explorer. The generosity of friends old and new continue to propel this expedition westward, almost done - see you all in Greenwich.

Kenny
Expedition cameraman and photographer

** MOKSHA SHIPPING ANTWERP to OOSTENDE **

Huge thanks to those of you who have pledged towards the shipping of Moksha to Ostend from Antwerp. The response has been so successful we have $350 surplus which we will put towards the hire of the crane to pull Moksha out of the Thames on the morning of the 6th (425 pounds sterling + VAT).

You can make pledges here. Or email contact@expedition360.com

Sincerest thanks to the following for your pledges -
The Rollers - $200
Karl Sweeney - $100
Susan Schendowich - $50
Patrick Buckler - $50
Neil Reypert - $100
Gretchin Lair - $50
Tim Murfitt - $50
Samantha Carter - $50
Merlin & Carrie Lewis - $200
Jane Koca & John Caldwell - $100
Anonymous - $250

> Total to raise: $850
> Total raised to date: $1200
> Total still to raise: $0

> Surplus towards crane hire: $350
> Crane hire: $998.50
> Still to raise: 650

Entering the Whirlwind

Wed, 26 Sep 2007 06:55:12 +0000

LOCATION: Oostende, Belgium
SEE WHERE WE ARE!
Longitude: N:51deg.14'53.
Latitude: E: 002deg.55'45.
Kms from Istanbul: 3,183

We're into the final stages now and I feel like I'm being sucked into the centre of a cyclone with the volume of activity that has suddenly been generated by media interviews, chartwork & navigational planning, dealing with the officialdom needed to cross The Channel, and the most important part of all - getting the boat ready. Traditionally it gets very hectic before any sea leg, but this time there are other compounding factors such as judging the appropriate weather window to cross and having a very fixed date for the arrival on the 6th. Normally it's a bad idea to let external factors influence a decision on when to depart on a crossing, but this time it's a little different. I really need the weather to cooperate to allow the circumnavigation be completed on schedule.

Europe overland completion

Great assistance with Moksha preparations have been forthcoming from Nathalie and son Andreas with sanding down the boat hull prior to painting - Andreas especially (his mum just posed for the photo!). Two layers of undercoat are now on, and if it doesn't rain today I can slap on a layer of finishing paint before Eilbhe arrives from Ireland tomorrow to paint on Moksha's new figurehead. A team of helpers are working around the clock in Mumbai, India to finish work on the 1,800 names that will hopefully be sent by courier by the end of the week to be stuck on the hull before the arrival. This I think will be very tight. We may even have to pull the boat out of the water again once over on the UK side to complete this task.

Andreas Theys

Kenny and Chris arrive tomorrow evening with a rented van and trailer. While Chris is replacing some of the polycarbonate windows to allow the pedaler to see out properly one of us will have to scream up to Antwerp and back in the van to pick up the boat's trolley that we'll use to push her up from the Thames to the Royal Observatory on the 6th. All things being equal the channel crossing will happen this Sunday or Monday, depending on the wind direction.

Oh, and did I mention that the French authorities will arrest us if we leave from French territorial waters? Just one more compounding factor into the mix. But my luck has run this far over the last 13-years, and I've been keeping one my nine lives in reserve for this last crossing, so I'm sure a solution will be found....(?!?)

Thanks to those BTW who have kindly contributed towards the cost of getting Moksha from Antwerp to Oostende here (see below).

jason

** MOKSHA SHIPPING ANTWERP to OOSTENDE **

The crane hire and transporting Moksha from Antwerp to Oostende ended up costing a whopping $850 USD! Once again I have seriously underestimated European prices, with the result that a rather large dent has been put in the remaining budget for the expedition completion. I know many of you have already contributed generously to getting Moksha back from Djbouti, but if there are any of you that missed out on the funding drive the first time around, a contribution towards this cost would be greatly appreciated.

You can make pledges here. Or email contact@expedition360.com

Sincerest thanks to the following for your pledges -
Gretchin Lair - $50
Tim Murfitt - $50
Samantha Carter - $50
Merlin & Carrie Lewis - $200

> Total to raise: $850
> Total raised to date: $350
> Total still to raise: $500

Final bike odo reading from Istanbul to Oostende

Moksha at The Channel

Sun, 23 Sep 2007 07:54:45 +0000

LOCATION: Bredene, Belgium
SEE WHERE WE ARE!
Longitude: N:51deg.14'53.
Latitude: E: 002deg.57'45.
Kms from Istanbul: 3,174

Moksha has been relocated from Antwerp to Oostende ready for the prep work to be started for The Channel crossing. The weather is good until tomorrow evening (Sunday) but rain is forecast Monday through Wednesday, so tomorrow the repaint and other tasks begin in earnest.

Lifting her out of the driveway around overhead phone lines required a specialised crane

She's been sitting in the driveway of a house belonging to Robin and Kathleen who have kindly provided free storage since she was shipped from Djibouti. I'm always a little apprehensive the first time I see her after she's been handled by other people, in case of damage during transit. But she looks in pretty good nick - in about the same shape as when we left her in Djibouti almost 6-months ago: getting a little frayed and dog-eared around the edges but otherwise structurally sound. The only part of her that will be repainted is the hull where almost 2,000 names of expedition supporters will be replaced sometime the middle of next week - IF the printers from Mumbai deliver them on time!

Sleeping compartment filled with gear, also a large African spider that I caught a glimpse of briefly!

Things are definitely beginning to pick up momentum now we're into the final two weeks before completion. Today I rode the last 100kms from Nathalie's basecamp in Denderleeuw to her brother Gille's apartment in Bredene, just 4kms from Oostende (which I'll complete tomorrow morning). This will mark the completion of the 3,178km overland section through Europe by bicycle, and the staging point for the final crossing of The Channel, currently planned for next weekend.

Weather is everything for this final wet bit, especially now we're getting into typical autumn weather patterns with low pressure systems sweeping westwards across from the Atlantic every week or so. The ideal time to cross to the Kent coast will be when the tide is coming up to neaps (not as strong as springs), the wind is as light as possible (certainly no more than force 4-5) and from the southwest.

The likely scenario for the next week is that we'll work on Moksha here in Oostende at the Royal North Sea Yacht Club (who are kindly providing complimentary space on the quayside for the prep work) for the next 5-6 days. The Daily Mail (UK) come in on Tuesday for a preliminary interview and photo shoot for a 2-page spread next weekend. Chris Tipper (Moksha's builder) and Kenny Brown (film maker) arrive mid week for helping with replacing some of the polycarbonate windows on the boat and documenting the final event respectively. Eilbhe Donovan arrives Thursday to add a beautiful new figurehead design to Moksha's bow for the completion. And other expedition team members from previous legs start filtering in from next weekend onwards to assist with last minute preparations and to have one last pedal in Moksha before she's hauled out of the water for retirement post completion.

Moksha on the quayside in Oostende

Depending on the all important weather window Moksha will be relocated again towards the end of next week either to Dunkirk, Calais or even Boulogne. The stronger the wind from the west or southwest for the crossing, the further west she needs to be launched to compensate for the effect of windage. The last thing I need is to miss the English coast and end up in Denmark!

Meanwhile the UK support team, headed up by Lee Reynolds, a professional event organizer with Southampton University, is ramping things up the other side of the Channel. The myriad of small details these guys are currently dealing with, from securing keys to gates in Greenwich Park to liaising with The Duke of Gloucester's security team, is truly amazing. I am truly blessed to have all these people on board pulling out the stops at this critical time.

And a special thanks also goes out to the Lauwerier family for being such gracious hosts here in Belgium.

jason

** MOKSHA SHIPPING ANTWERP to OOSTENDE **

The crane hire and transporting Moksha from Antwerp to Oostende ended up costing a whopping $850 USD! Once again I have seriously underestimated European prices, with the result that a rather large dent has been put in the remaining budget for the expedition completion. I know many of you have already contributed generously to getting Moksha back from Djbouti, but if there are any of you that missed out on the funding drive the first time around, a contribution towards this cost would be greatly appreciated.

You can make pledges here. Or email contact@expedition360.com