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Colin Angus (explorer)
Encyclopedia
Colin Angus is a Canadian author and adventurer who is the first person to make a self-propelled global circumnavigation
. Due to varying definitions of the term "circumnavigation," debate has arisen as to whether or not the route travelled fulfilled the strictest criteria (for further discussion, see World Circumnavigation). As part of the circumnavigation, Angus and his then fiancé Julie Wafaei
made the first rowboat crossing of the Atlantic Ocean
from mainland Europe
to mainland North America
, and Wafaei became the first Canadian woman to row across any ocean.
Other expeditions Angus has completed include the first descent of the Yenisei River
(the world's fifth longest river) and a complete descent of the Amazon River
from source to sea.
Colin Angus has written four books: Lost in Mongolia (2003), Amazon Extreme (2004), Beyond the Horizon (2007), and Rowed Trip (2009). He has co-produced two films for National Geographic Television
. Outside Magazine
included Colin Angus in a compilation of 25 people changing the world in its December 2005 issue.
Colin Angus began his adventuring lifestyle at nineteen with a five year sailing odyssey in the Pacific Ocean, half of it done with his best friend Dan Audet. In 1999, along with Australian Ben Kozel and South African Scott Borthwick, he was among the first to raft the Amazon river from source to sea. The trio retraced the route of Polish
kayaker Piotr Chmieliński's 1986 historic first-ever descent of the Amazon River from source to sea, which used a kayak
.
To follow up the rafting of the Amazon, Angus put together a team which would accomplish the same task on the previously untraversed Yenisei River
in Asia
.
Most recently, Angus traveled around the world using exclusively human power, biking across land and rowing across water. The expedition began with partner Tim Harvey. However, in Siberia the pair parted ways due to interpersonal conflict. Harvey continued and eventually circled the planet, but on a longer route than Angus, including Africa and South America. Angus was joined bicycling in Europe by his fianceé Julie Wafaei, who purchased a rowboat for them to cross the Atlantic. The British adventurer Jason Lewis
, claims that Angus' journey was not a circumnavigation, because it did not pass through two antipodal
points on the globe, although this is not required by Guinness World Records.
The ship's log on the Russia
n research vessel Professor Khromov cite a high-seas
rescue in support of the expedition. Angus had to fly to Canada for medical treatment during the expedition, but flew back to Russia to continue from the point he had left beforehand.
Circumnavigation
Circumnavigation – literally, "navigation of a circumference" – refers to travelling all the way around an island, a continent, or the entire planet Earth.- Global circumnavigation :...
. Due to varying definitions of the term "circumnavigation," debate has arisen as to whether or not the route travelled fulfilled the strictest criteria (for further discussion, see World Circumnavigation). As part of the circumnavigation, Angus and his then fiancé Julie Wafaei
Julie Wafaei
Julie Wafaei is a Canadian Rower and cyclist.Wafaei is the first woman to row the Atlantic Ocean from mainland to mainland. Her Atlantic row was part of an expedition with her fiance Colin Angus to circumnavigate the Northern hemisphere entirely by human power...
made the first rowboat crossing of the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
from mainland Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
to mainland North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, and Wafaei became the first Canadian woman to row across any ocean.
Other expeditions Angus has completed include the first descent of the Yenisei River
Yenisei River
Yenisei , also written as Yenisey, is the largest river system flowing to the Arctic Ocean. It is the central of the three great Siberian rivers that flow into the Arctic Ocean...
(the world's fifth longest river) and a complete descent of the Amazon River
Amazon River
The Amazon of South America is the second longest river in the world and by far the largest by waterflow with an average discharge greater than the next seven largest rivers combined...
from source to sea.
Colin Angus has written four books: Lost in Mongolia (2003), Amazon Extreme (2004), Beyond the Horizon (2007), and Rowed Trip (2009). He has co-produced two films for National Geographic Television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
. Outside Magazine
Outside (magazine)
Outside is an American magazine focused on the outdoors. The first issue debuted in September 1977 with its mission statement declaring that the publication was "dedicated to covering the people, sports and activities, politics, art, literature, and hardware of the outdoors..."Its founders were...
included Colin Angus in a compilation of 25 people changing the world in its December 2005 issue.
Adventure
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
kayaker Piotr Chmieliński's 1986 historic first-ever descent of the Amazon River from source to sea, which used a kayak
Kayak
A kayak is a small, relatively narrow, human-powered boat primarily designed to be manually propelled by means of a double blade paddle.The traditional kayak has a covered deck and one or more cockpits, each seating one paddler...
.
To follow up the rafting of the Amazon, Angus put together a team which would accomplish the same task on the previously untraversed Yenisei River
Yenisei River
Yenisei , also written as Yenisey, is the largest river system flowing to the Arctic Ocean. It is the central of the three great Siberian rivers that flow into the Arctic Ocean...
in Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
.
Most recently, Angus traveled around the world using exclusively human power, biking across land and rowing across water. The expedition began with partner Tim Harvey. However, in Siberia the pair parted ways due to interpersonal conflict. Harvey continued and eventually circled the planet, but on a longer route than Angus, including Africa and South America. Angus was joined bicycling in Europe by his fianceé Julie Wafaei, who purchased a rowboat for them to cross the Atlantic. The British adventurer Jason Lewis
Jason Lewis (adventurer)
Jason Lewis is a self-powered English circumnavigator accredited with being the first person to circumnavigate the globe by human power....
, claims that Angus' journey was not a circumnavigation, because it did not pass through two antipodal
Antipodes
In geography, the antipodes of any place on Earth is the point on the Earth's surface which is diametrically opposite to it. Two points that are antipodal to one another are connected by a straight line running through the centre of the Earth....
points on the globe, although this is not required by Guinness World Records.
The ship's log on the Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n research vessel Professor Khromov cite a high-seas
International waters
The terms international waters or trans-boundary waters apply where any of the following types of bodies of water transcend international boundaries: oceans, large marine ecosystems, enclosed or semi-enclosed regional seas and estuaries, rivers, lakes, groundwater systems , and wetlands.Oceans,...
rescue in support of the expedition. Angus had to fly to Canada for medical treatment during the expedition, but flew back to Russia to continue from the point he had left beforehand.
Recognition
- Adventurer of the Year Award 2007 from National Geographic Adventure presented to Julie and Colin
- Four International Books including two National Bestsellers written by Julie and Colin
- Outside Magazine named Colin as one of the Top 25 “bold visionaries with world changing dreams” along with three full-page articles detailing his most recent expedition.
- Men’s Journal honored Colin and eight others for being part of a new breed of explorers, as well as covering their adventures in other articles
- Three Documentary Films produced by Angus Adventures, collectively won 11 awards and aired on National Geographic television around the world
- Globe and Mail Newspaper (Canada’s National Paper) published a 16-part series by Colin, as well as five articles written by their own reporters detailing their recent expedition.
- CBC Radio conducted 26 interviews from the field for the national program “As it Happens”
- Reader's DigestReader's DigestReader's Digest is a general interest family magazine, published ten times annually. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, its headquarters is now in New York City. It was founded in 1922, by DeWitt Wallace and Lila Bell Wallace...
, the world’s number-one selling magazine, published a 5000-word article written by Colin Angus.
Books
- Lost in Mongolia: Rafting the World's Last Unchallenged River. Anchor Canada: 2003. Paperback: ISBN 978-0-385-66014-3, ISBN 0-385-66014-6.
- Amazon Extreme: Three Ordinary Guys, One Rubber Raft, and the Most Dangerous River on Earth. Anchor Canada: 2004. Paperback: ISBN 978-0-385-66009-9, ISBN 0-385-66009-X.
- Beyond the Horizon: The Great Race to Finish the First Human-Powered Circumnavigation of the Planet. Doubleday Canada: 2007. Hardcover: ISBN 978-0-385-66123-2, ISBN 0-385-66123-1.
External links
- "Adventurers of the Year: The New Magellans" — National Geographic Adventure magazine, November 2006.
- Angus Adventures website.
- Colin Angus on The Hour, April 12, 2007.