Rowed Trip expedition update from England’s Lake District

Now five-plus weeks down the hail-pocked, self-propelled track, Julie Angus e-mails her second Rowed Trip expedition update, en route from the northern tip of Scotland to Syria.

“The challenges of pulling 18′ rowboats behind our bicycles through congested England are numerous. Busy towns with their narrow streets and roundabouts are no-go zones, and steep mountain inclines are a place of sweat and despair.

So it was a great relief when we reached the banks of the Swale River where we could launch our rowing vessels, Tantalum and Niobium, and allow the current to carry us downstream in a world without cars, trucks and hills. Instead, we drifted slowly past weeping willows and bleating lambs transported from hectic modern England to the timeless joys of river travel.

We were no longer being chased by lorries and cars, but little did we know that downstream awaited a creature that would tail us with indefatigable determination. It was after descending a lock leading into the tidal section of the river that our stalker greeted us. As soon as the lock doors opened a swan paddled straight towards Colin imploring with black beady eyes to be fed. When Colin ignored the giant bird, instead focusing on the complexities of navigating the lock, the swan began pecking and biting the rowboat and Colin himself.

We drew hard strokes on the oars putting distance between us and the gregarious creature, until finally it was out of sight. After traveling a few kilometers, we set up camp on the grassy river bank. The following morning we climbed out of the tent only to be greeted by our bold avian friend. It glared at us while periodically glancing at our bulging food bags. To further stress the point, it periodically pecked Colin and I as we packed the boats.

“I’ve heard swans are strong enough to break human bones,” Colin finally said.

The swan unfolded its wings looking strangely like a cross between an angel and a demon and we finally relented. Half a pack of oatmeal cookies and a few pita breads lighter, we waved goodbye to our swan and paddled on to new adventures.”

Until the next forthnightly update, in adventure.

—Andrew,
Senior Producer, Los Angeles Times Travel

[Photos: Colin & Julie Angus / Rowed Trip Expedition]

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This entry was posted on Monday, April 21, 2008 at 10:30 am by Andrew and is filed under Eco-Travel, Great Britain, Outdoors & Adventure, Rowed Trip. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a comment, or trackback from your own site.