69-year-old Polish man to kayak all the way from New York to Portugal

A Polish grandfather left New York on Sunday on his third solo trans-Atlantic crossing in a kayak, aiming to arrive in Portugal in time to celebrate his 70th birthday on firm ground on September 9

New York: A Polish grandfather left New York on Sunday on his third solo trans-Atlantic crossing in a kayak, aiming to arrive in Portugal in time to celebrate his 70th birthday on firm ground on September 9.

Aleksander Doba leaves for his adventure from New York. Pic/AFP

Experienced
A star at home, Aleksander Doba gained global attention when he was named a National Geographic adventurer of the year in 2015. At that point, he already had two solo Atlantic kayak crossings under his belt. The first, between October 2010 and February 2011, took him across one of the narrowest points of the ocean from the Dakar to Acarau. The second saw him set off from Lisbon in October 2013 and arrive in Florida in April 2014.

Tough one
“I know that this will be the toughest of the three,” he said. “The water is cold. There are a lot more currents and storms predicted — this will be interesting. I believe now I’m only dealing with nature. I know how to deal with nature and what to expect.”

6,000
The distance that Doba plans on covering on his this trans-Atlantic crossing

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