Latvian adventurer Karlis Bardelis has completed his human-powered journey around the world by returning to Luderitz, Namibia, where his round-the-world voyage began almost eight years ago, as Bardelis’ representatives informed LETA.
Bardelis spent a total of 2,898 days, or seven years and 11 months, traveling around the world. He covered 46,326 kilometers by rowboat and 11,972 kilometers by bicycle.
On the first leg, he and his friend Gints Barkovskis crossed the Atlantic Ocean from Namibia to Brazil in 142 days, he then teamed up with Linda Zuze to cross South America on a tandem bike in 101 days.
On his own, Bardelis crossed the Pacific Ocean in over two years, stopping at several islands along the way to wait out inclement weather. On the Indian Ocean crossing, Bardelis rowed together with Dimitri Kiefer from Sri Lanka to the Maldives for nine days, and for the remaining 163 days alone.
Arturs Skroderis joined Bardelis for the challenging three-day ocean crossing from the Somalia-Kenya border to Kenya. Bardelis’ round-the-world voyage ended with a solo cycle trip across Africa, from Kenya to Namibia.
Bardelis says the feeling is surreal and he has become a completely different person.
“Fortunately, I always focus on the next day and not on the thousands of kilometers that lie ahead,” says the circumnavigator.
Bardelis encountered multiple difficulties during his almost eight-year adventure and has also had to endure a one-and-a-half-year hiatus due to the restrictions imposed during the Covid-19 pandemic.
In a dangerous turn of events, unexpected strong winds diverted Bardelis’ boat from its destination on a Tanzanian beach to the dangerous coast of Somalia. Although Bardelis was able to escape from Somalia, his boat remained in the country and was only recovered after lengthy negotiations and paying a ransom.
In the Pacific, Bardelis’ boat was nearly hit by a huge fishing boat and attacked by sharks, while in the rough waters of the Indian Ocean, the boat capsized.
Bardelis achieved six Guinness World Records during the voyage. Together with Barkovskis, they became the first team to row across the South Atlantic. Bardelis also became the first person to row across the Pacific Ocean from South America to Asia, and the Indian Ocean from Asia to Africa.
Bardelis used the last stages of his round-the-world adventure to raise funds for Hospiss LV, a charity that helps terminally ill patients receive care.
Bardelis chose the slogan “Bored of Borders” to start his first adventure in 2013, rollerblading from Nordkapp in Northern Europe to its southernmost point in Gibraltar. After that, Bardelis embarked on several expeditions before starting to plan his own circumnavigation, which has now concluded.
Source: BNS
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