My bookcase such as it is, sandwiched between a plethora of novels by female authors on broadly feminist subjects or issues, (observation only,) is made up almost entirely of books old and new, on the subject of exploration, adventure and discovery. They are treasures in themselves, currently safeguarded from young tearing hands by the highest shelf, where my sons gaze at them as I have done the summits of rediculous mountains, wondering whether I could ever pluck up the courage to climb that high.
My youngest, shows signs of intent and no fear. If I'm not careful, I might yet lose both the books and the attainment of my long held desire to reach out beyond what I think I am capable of, before he beats me to both.
That is unless, of course, I do something about it. Now, before it is too late.
I have scrabbled around on the very fringes of these worlds and I mean the extreme fringes, hesitant and envious, unsure and yet drawn by the idea of heading out into the unknown. I have climbed Mont Blanc, meandered around the Andes as part of an expedition whilst I was at Britannia Royal Naval College in the early 90s and spent weeks at a time weaving through the valleys and cresting the summits of Knoydart and Applecross in the western Highlands.
A couple of years ago, - born out of the frustration at not feeling able to launch myself on the yet unmentioned challenge in whose name this Blog is launched, - I planned a solo Land's End to John O'Groats, taking in the 3 peaks on the way, because it simply wasn't enough to simply cycle End to End.
I wrote a blog at the time that you can find if you google LEJOG4Samaritans. For those that are interested in that particular challenge, you might find some useful pointers in there. Though I wouldn't lay claim to any expertise on the subject, I might suggest that I was fortunate enough to have picked one of the most scenic and rewarding routes to the tip of Scotland and would recommend anyone to repeat that route. I hope only that you are blessed with the weather that I had back in 2010.This blog is not about that, however. This blog is about my desire, long held, to take part on the Talisker Whiskey Trans-Atlantic Challenge. To row a small boat across the approximately 3,000 miles of open ocean, to arrive some while later in the Caribbean.
By all accounts, the journey to the start line in La Gomera in The Canaries, is as great a challenge as the row itself and I suspect that to be true. I qualify on one count already, however, by having maintained the desire to achieve this goal for long enough for me to take myself seriously.
This is my first blog entry, though not my first step. I hope that you will enjoy the journey with me, as I chart my passage from desire to reality. Certainly, if the support I received whilst in the saddle back in 2010 is anything to go by, having you along for the ride will be of enormous benefit to me.
To encourage you, I should hint at having acquired at least some support team members and the very distinct possibility of a crew-mate, but more of that to come.
Have a read of LEJOG4Samaritans and welcome aboard. '1 Life Row it' is my attempt to row the Atlantic in 2017.
