Category: Rowing Home

Try and imagine what it is like to row a tiny boat in a huge ocean for two hours in the rain and wind with large waves surrounding you.  After your two hour shift you come into a tiny claustrophobic sleeping cabin which is also wet through.  Your mattress is sodden, the condensation drips off…

UPDATE DIRECT FROM AXE ABOARD SIMPSON’S DONKEY: 1000 NAUTICAL MILES PASSED!!! So a lot has gone on since yesterday’s update… first of all, after a brutal, brutal slog, the guys have made it now to within 20 kilometres of the coast of Bali and can now see the mountains of the island looming ahead of…

UPDATE FROM EXPEDITION MANAGER DAVE FIELD AT DONKEY HQ: Back in 1977 when Colin Quincy became the first man to row across the Tasman Sea, he scrawled across his boat a scribbled note to himself where he could see it as he rowed through his toughest times… It read: “Row You Bastard, Row!” and it…

UPDATE FROM EXPEDITION MANAGER DAVE FIELD AT DONKEY HQ: So after having a good time of it speeding across the remainder of the Java Sea at high speed for the past couple of days, last night a dose of reality hit the guys in the form of some rough weather and uncooperative winds. It got…

TODAY’S WORD FROM THE DONKEY: We have gone banana’s! We are currently 70nm away from being the first people to ever row across the Java Sea! It’s been a grey, overcast and wet last 24 hours but we don’t care as the wind has been right up our tail pipe with speeds not dropping below…

So as we left Bawean yesterday morning in the rain after a short 3-day break on the island, there was a certain edge to the mood aboard Simpson’s donkey… Because even if this 3rd leg from Bawean to Bali is the shortest by a long way… And even if we are full of confidence after proving…

Crossing the Java Sea was the most difficult challenge we’ve faced to date, and to arrive at an island which is not much more than a dot in the middle of it is an achievement we are very proud of, so we have a lot to be thankful for! Especially since this island, Pulau Bawean…

Simpson’s Donkey has made it safely to Pulau Bawean! 805 nautical miles from Singapore; Axe and Charlie have made it safely to the little island in the middle of the  Java Sea and once again had a very special welcome from the locals! The guys are in great spirits and still in one piece! Pulau…

Hi Folks, Have a read of the latest update from Simpson’s Donkey on another milestone reached!! “Yesterday at 1700hrs we reached the exact halfway point in our crossing of the Java Sea – 200nm (370km)from Bangka Island with 200nm to go to reach Pulau Bawean Island. It took us 4 days of 24 hours continuous rowing…

Hi All, Catch Episode 6 of the epic adventure to catch all the action of the final farewell! A special thanks in this episode goes out to Axe, Charlie, Stephanie Rawlinson, Peter Hutton, Brent Rubbo Raffles Marina and Axe’s parents Ngaire and Jack!

The last three days have been very eventful since leaving Belo village in Bangka Island.  As we departed around 3PM in the afternoon we made for the middle of the Selat (Strait) where we thought would be the strongest currents.  We soon picked these up and rode them for 1.5 days, averaging over 2 knots…

Hi Team, This afternoon Simpson’s Donkey completed another epic milestone! We arrived safely and in one piece to Bangka Island. The surroundings here are beautiful and the locals are showing a lot of interest in the boat and expedition; it is great to have the local support and be surrounded by so many smiling faces.…

SIMPSON’S DONKEY HQ UPDATE:- “On Saturday evening at 2030hrs on Day 5 of the expedition we crossed the equator, Axe rowed hard up until 20m before the line then we sat in the cabin together and watched the numbers tick over as we left the Northern Hemisphere and entered the Southern Hemisphere – we celebrated…

Hello from Simpson’s Donkey! It 1200hrs on day 5 here on Simpson’s Donkey as we send this update on our progress. The last 5 days have seen us make some decent progress but not without out share of challenges! Our farewell departure from Raffles Marina on Day one was everything I wished for. I did…

Hi folks, A quick update for you! It was a tough day of 7.5 hours of two up rowing with one 15min break last night just to reach Nongsa; it was a good honest workout! Customs has been cleared, the tides are right, the wind is behind us and we are headed off into the…

Ladies and Gentlemen, Simpson’s Donkey has left the building… well, we’ve left Singapore at least! Today was a big day because crossing the shipping channel between Singapore and Indonesia was our first big challenge… but everything went off without a hitch and we even had time for one last quick call home before entering Indonesia…

Finally after two and a half years of preparation the wait is over!!! We pushed off today from Raffles Marina at 14:00 to begin the most epic adventure of our lives! Thanks to all the supporters and sponsors who came down to wave us off. Stay tuned and spread the word, Simpsons Donkey is on…

Hi folks, As departure looms closer and closer – please see the link below where you can follow our progress in real-time.  This is an on-line interactive map which updates our position every few minutes. Check out the page attached at this link to see our position! https://axeoneverest.com/spot-page/ Cheers, Axe

In a few days time we will push off from Raffles Marina for the very last time.  Using the assistance of an outgoing tide, we will dip our oars into the water and turn Simpsons Donkey south, finally begin the Rowing from Home to Home expedition. This is the biggest and most committing expedition of…