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15th January 2009

Voicemail message - click here

Message from Simon:

Well, I gave it another chance but its not going to work as I hoped. Ed is very physically strong and has no fear so we made the 80km to the next town fine. We had a bad landing here in Farafangana where one off my hatches came off in the surf dump and Ed took a swim. I think that it's all a bit too much to push it this far with someone I don’t know. I'm not keen on the idea of going alone as that is not the experience I'm after here. Unfortunately I have been ill with a stomach bug for the past 3 days and now the conditions are not right. With 15 days gone and not feeling confident to do this with Ed I have decided to be sensible and stop the circumnavigation. Instead I now intend to use the time I have left to pick out some of the more interesting parts of Madagascar and still explore areas unexplored by a kayak. Hopefully without the pressure of time I can explore more of what this amazing country has to offer. This decision has been difficult to make but I am now happy that this is the right choice. The experiences I have had over the past two weeks with Joe and Ed have been amazing. The decisions, difficulties and environment have made it something I will never forget. Ed and Joe have been great companions on and off the water and I highly recommend using them if you come over this way to paddle rivers or the sea. I will hopefully spend some time training them up so that they have the skills they need to run sea kayak trips out here as Gilles now has 4 sea kayaks. In some ways I feel like a new adventure is starting.

On another note I'm not sure why but myself and Jeff are jinxed with fires while we are away on expedition. Last year Jeff had to come home early because his house boat that he lived on caught fire destroying a lot of his property. Well yesterday I got news that my house I renovated in Holyhead caught  fire. Everyone made it out okay but the smoke has damaged it a fair bit.

Thank you to everyone for their support and I will continue to post images and updates on the rest of my time here.
 

13th January 2009

Jo and Gilles (I presume?):

Simon launches Jo:

More photos to come...

12th January 2009

Voicemail message - click here

Last night, after Simon left us his voicemail, he had a great local experience. He watched while a relatively big fishing boat landed, after having been out to sea for a few days. All the locals from the village came out to help land the boat and get it onto dry land. Simon saw huge fish he had never even seen in pictures before coming off the boat, including a small hammerhead shark and what he thinks might be a small great white. The locals argued over the price of each fish, offering to sell the sharks to Simon for £10.

Today Edmund and Simon reached Farafangana, having travelled 100km in two days. Great progress. Both got caught out in the surf landing, Edmund taking a swim and Simon's day hatch cover popping. Simon managed to recover most of the hatches contents, including his beloved i-pod!.

The next 5 days will take them into a remote section of the trip, leaving behind road access. The weather forecast looks good and Edmund is feeling strong. The dangers of the sharks and surf will always be on their minds but we wish them the best of luck.

Fara forecast: Tu N,E 5,18km/h. SE3-5ft 7sec. We NNE,ENE 5,18km/h SE3-5ft 8sec.

Photo of Simon and Jo (not Edmund):

More photos to come...

11th January 2009

Voicemail message - click here

Not much to report today. Edmund seems to be strong and paddling into the headwind like a trooper. Simon recons they kayaked 40km today which is good progress.

More photos to come...

10th January 2009

Voicemail message - click here

Simon has now returned to the coast with Edmund. Both are resting tonight in a beach cabin, preparing for an early 4.ooam start tomorrow. Simon got Ed out in some chunky surf today and he got on well, rolling up quickly. Simon said that while he wasn't looking Edmund lifted up the fully loaded kayak on top of his shoulders and walked down the beach. Simon can't lift it off the ground! Edmund was a porter for years and is used to carrying heavy loads for 9 hours a day, he is used to hard work, so might be able to get through this hard section of the expedition. But it still is a very big challenge and a big ask, to paddle nearly 1000km in big sea conditions having never sea kayaked before. Click the link to hear a voice message from Simon (it's not perfect sound quality).

A cyclone Dongo missing Madagascar. Travelling 1400km to the east, heading south.

Simon becomes a point of fascination to a group of children at a village they land at:

More photos to come...

9th January 2009

The first photos from Simon have finally made it through:

Kayaks on the move:

Jo surrounded by curious locals:

Simon has spent the last few days debating the outcome of the expedition. Jo was physically and mentally finish at first sight of the road, which left Simon with the options of continuing alone, or giving up. Neither prospect was inviting, until a third option presented itself in the form of Edmund, another local kayaker. Simon travelled in-land to met Edmund and will be heading back to the same spot on the coast to continue the paddle. Lets hope for great weather conditions to help them on their way.

E-mail from Simon:

Well it has been on an emotional roller coaster this week. After 4 days on the water with Joe it was obvious that the circumnavigation was not possible, at that rate of paddling, in the time I have. I knew this might have been the case but I thought I would just go as far as I could and enjoy the adventure. What I didn't realise is that knowing I wouldn't make it around removed all of the motivation to do the boring sections. As a result I became disheartened. I thought about going on alone but decided that would not be enjoyable for me and wasn't worth the risk. So the decision was made to get away from the long sandy beach and use my time to explore the more interesting areas. I would not have believed you if you told me that I would be booked into a ride back to the beach tomorrow to continue but I am. Gilles has asked me to give his other local guide a chance to see if he is up for it. He is strong, skillful and speaks no English and a little French. Should be interesting. It is worth giving it a go because if I don't, I will always wonder "what if". I think it is a big ask to be able to do this beach as it is simply not sea kayaking. It is a mental and physical challenge. I know I will find the next few days hard but I am happy with whatever the outcome. I have to give it a try.

Simon

8th January 2009

Yesterday, Simon and Jo finally got to a road beside the beach and coast they are kayaking along. They have landed and are resting in a Hotel called Eden Sidi. I googled it and found this picture which I am fairly sure is the same place. Simon says they are surrounded by wild life including some pet Lemurs. Jo had his first taste of lobster ever, freshly caught for £2.

Simon will be off the water for a few days, working out the best way to continue with the expedition.  He says to say he is well and will record a voicemail as soon as he can.

6th January 2009

Simon has landed after another long day but unfortunately they have not reached Manakara yet. If Simon was by himself, he would have kayaked the distance from the starting point Mananjary to Manakara in two days. With Jo it looks like it will take four days. Both are in good health and are physically strong, but mentally they have decisions to make. Simon is unhappy with the progress. He says he will call tomorrow and let us know how things are.

5th January 2009

Voicemail message - click here

Simon and Jo had a fun night in the village and had a crowd on the beach this morning to see them on their way. Now after day two on the water, both Jo and Simon are feeling emotionally tired. They paddled for 7 hours into a head wind of about force 4. Unfortunately the forecast they are receiving says the wind will be light and behind them. The head wind is putting them behind schedual so lets hope things look different in the morning.

4th January 2009

Voicemail message - click here

Simon has finally gotten to the coast and has spent his first full day on the water with Jo. They paddled about 35km down south and got a great reception from the village they landed at. Simon is tired from the heat and Jo from his first day's sea kayaking (ever). After an hour of paddling Simon asked Jo why he looked so beamingly happy only to get the reply that it was Jo's first time on the sea in any type of boat. Perhaps not the best time to find out, but both are doing very well. Click the voicemail message to hear about the first day's paddling.

Happy Birthday to Gill

Photo from last year. Gilles is sending me ones from the last few days, so hopefully they will be up here shortly.

Previous messages and updates, from New Year's Eve to now, can be found in the "start" link from the map.

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