Dougal's Epic Adventures
Update 25 June 2022
In 2021 Dougal set off from the west coast of the Calais peninsula, with no direction, no dates, no constraints, and no support.
By October he had kayaked over 2500km,to Genoa, Italy.
In June 2022 he has set off from Genoa - for his own Italian job...
Of my 22 years on earth, 17 have been spent in formal education, the last 3 at the University of Nottingham where I studied biology. My future now lies before me like a blank canvas, and I’m trying to figure out how best to fill it. My heart longs for a life of adventure, and right now I’m letting it win over.
I was always the feral kid at school and most of my childhood was spent outdoors in a rural corner of Somerset; foraging in the woods, building shelters and exploring the surrounding country, documenting my discoveries in a notepad labelled ‘adventures’. I remember telling Mum that when I was older I wouldn’t work, I’d just live in the woods, and part of me still wants to.
Aged 15 fate had it that I cross paths with Jim and Annabel Taylor-Ross. Their infectious enthusiasm and extraordinary energy made me fall in love with kayaking, and I started spending more time on the water than in the woods. I embraced my competitiveness and have spent the last 5 years racing on rivers and oceans around Europe, having many adventures with friends along the way. I love the physical sensations of being super fit, be it running, cycling or paddling, and the beautiful environments these activities take me to.
After school, I spent a year travelling around Indonesia, Malaysia and New Zealand. My childhood holidays were always on the Isle of Mull, but I already knew I loved travelling before I even travelled anywhere. Travelling under my own steam combines my passion for adventure, sport and the simple life of survival.
In September 2019 I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. I became interested in the science behind this disease and studied it at university. My philosophy brings out the positive in anything, and while diabetes may have changed me, it hasn’t changed what I can do in life.
To find out more about this truly authentic adventure read Dougal's extremely engaging Blogs.
Dougal has thoroughly tested the V8 Tourer. More used to racing V12s, the V8 has proven itself as the ideal versatile touring surfski: surfing in down winds despite the loaded hatches, coping with squalls and gnarly coves, efficient on the flat inland canals, eating up the kilometers and raising eyebrows and impressing even the most hardened European paddlers.