Windsurf Round Europe - officially open

In May 2017 Jono Dunnett will set sail from the Norway-Russia border starting an attempt to solo windsurf the mainland coastline of Europe.

I seem to have been here before. Two years ago I announced via Facebook that I would be attempting to windsurf round Britain. I remember very clearly the moment of going public, and the trepidation I felt at that time.

The response then makes me less nervous of posting the news this time round, but there are still butterflies. The click-to-share is to all intents and purposes the click of no return.

This scares me. So why am I doing it?

The short answer is that the decision to windsurf round Europe became an inevitable next step. Research and a site visit to Norway established feasibility, and it became an option. Then I mentally fastforwarded 6 months…a year…a decade… decades… and was reminded of how short life is, how painfully finite our opportunities. That focussed the mind. And here was – is - an opportunity to once again do something that inspires me. And what an enormous privilege that is. And how…negligent…it would be to turn my back on that opportunity. And most of all, how I would struggle to forgive myself if I didn’t at least try.

Once again, I’m asking for help. Contacts along the way who can offer a meal, bed, shower or wash of clothes. So please share this post. A friend-of-a-friend of yours is likely to be on my route. Another link down the chain and a helpfully placed Local Contact is almost a certainty.

That ties in to the expedition theme. I hope the expedition is something that will be interesting to follow in its own right. I pledge to supply content and keep you informed. But I also want it to encourage a greater appreciation for the fundamental interconnectedness of us all: regardless of how we choose to live or which bit of the planet we happen to live on.

We exist in bubbles. That is life. But whatever the size or location of our personal, family, community, national or continental bubbles, the one bubble upon which we all ultimately depend is of course our planet. Earth.

I say ‘of course’, but world events provide daily reminders that it is too easy to ignore this truth.

I almost called this expedition ‘onebubble.earth’, but was struggling to articulate the above, so didn’t quite have the courage to use it as the website name. But it can still be reached at that address.

World Wildlife Fund use the term One Planet. Their campaigns and lobbying are guided by this perspective, and as such I have chosen to support them as expedition charity.

So, introduction over. Cat out the bag.

Please do share. Please do register as a Local Contact if you are on the route. Please be inspired and please inspire me. Please paddle out, sail with me, wave, say hello, notice and engage.

Let’s do this journey together.