Lonely Planet'sYear of Adventures

Wednesdays at 7:30pm from 29 February

The world is a playground for adventure for British TV presenter Ben Fogle, as he travels the globe in the pursuit of the ultimate challenge.

  • Celebrating the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, Ben will be taking to the Thames in June, as part of the giant flotilla for the first time, in the same boat that he rowed across the Atlantic in 2005.

  • Ben has been honoured with a waxwork at Madame Tussauds in Blackpool.

  • Ben had to sit on a rubber ring for over two weeks, to recover from his two months at sea, rowing across the Atlantic.

  • Ben beat Eastenders’ Ricky (actor Sid Owen) in a three-round charity boxing match for BBC Sport Relief in 2004.

  • Ben had a minor operation after getting a jelly bean stuck in his throat on the night before he met the Queen at Buckingham Palace at a reception for adventurers and explorers.

  • Although Ben looks healthy and sporty, he has a penchant for eating crisps – any flavour, he’s not fussy.

  • Ben adores his 12-year-old black Labrador, Inca, and credited her with finding him a wife!

  • Ben has made documentaries on Prince William in Africa, disease in Ethiopia, Captain Scott in Antarctica and Crocodiles in Botswana.

  • In 2000, Ben volunteered to be marooned on Taransay, a remote island in the Outer Hebrides as part of the BBC’s TV project Castaway 2000.

  • Ben spent several years in Latin America, working on a turtle conservation project on the Mosquito Coast of Honduras and working in an orphanage in Ecuador.

  • Ben doesn’t like being called ‘posh’ – his mother is an actress and his father is a vet so claims to have not had too privileged a childhood.

  • Ben is an ambassador for WWF, Medecins Sans Frontier & Tusk, fellow of the Royal Geographical Society and President of the Campaign for National Parks.

  • Ben writes regularly for the UK's Sunday Telegraph and The Independent and has written five best-selling books.

  • Ben has presented numerous programmes including BBC’s Animal Park, Wild In Africa, Countryfile, Crufts, One Man and His Dog and Extreme Dreams.

  • Ben has rowed the Atlantic Ocean in 49 days and crossed Antarctica in a foot race to the South Pole.

  • Ben is a presenter, writer and adventurer. His achievements include racing 156 miles across the Sahara desert in the notorious Marathon Des Sables.

Go Explore Episode One

Episode 1

  • Ben Fogle

    Job Title
    The Accidental Adventurer
    Born
    1973
    Fitness/Expertise Level
    Outstanding
Follow @benfogle
Official Website

Episode One

All Terrain

Episode One sees Ben complete an escape swim from Alcatraz and kayak the infamous Bitches in Wales, in preparation for his main challenge, the world's largest adventure race, The Anaconda, where he will run, kayak, swim and cycle through the wilderness of Western Australia against 1,800 competitors...

Explore his adventure below...

Team Building

Joining Ben on this adventure is marathoner and Michelin-starred chef Tom Aikens. Tom, who is a keen cycler, first met Ben in 2010 during the Marathon des Sable, a 156 mile ultramarathon, which is the equivalent to six regular marathons.

year of adventures

Trying a triathlon with a difference, Ben and Tom enter The Rat Race, London's 70 km urban assault course lined with mystery events and challenges at various points along the route. As local lads who are happy to blag their way through activities, what could go wrong?

The friends soon discover how the different terrains test various parts of the body and push their abilities to the limit - a great taste of what is to come in the Australian adventure race!

View the best bits

5 minutes with Ben

“Swimming from Alcatraz...
I think that's one of the most magical mornings I've ever had.”

GoDo It!

Over 250 experiences in 115 countries. Share you experience. Discover and share tales of adventure.
A Year of Adventure

PAGE 113

DO: Kayak The Bitches in Wales

As the daily tide rolls in across a line of reef and rock between Ramsey Island and the Welsh mainland, it creates a tidal race that has become a favourite with rough-riding kayakers.

Named for its habit of destroying ships, most kayakers set out three hours before high tide for their slice of water rodeo. Kayakers surf the waves or perform manoeuvres (known as playboating) in the holes created by the waves.

Even to contemplate tackling The Bitches, you should be competent in grade-four water.

When

Best done in the summer months.

Where

800m off the coast of St Justinian in Wales.

Fact

The Bitches can create waves of up to 3m in height.

Episode 2

Episode Two

Pushing Limits

Knowing your limits and pushing past them is one thing but, in this episode, Ben has to confront his biggest fear: climbing. Aiming for the summit of the Dolomite Mountains in Italy across terrifying drops without ropes, lowering himself into a freezing glacier in Iceland and scaling the world’s tallest trees in California are all going to push Ben to the limit.

Team Building

Lying just south of the Arctic Circle, Iceland is where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates meet and is the perfect place for Ben to take his climbing to the next level, with an ice climb.

He is joined by his friend Patrick Woodhead, an experienced Antarctic explorer, who has taken part in record-breaking expeditions to the South Pole and led the first team to cross Antarctica from East to West.

Episode 1 Team

Even though Patrick's experience gives him confidence, whenever Ben has been near ice, the crevasses have always been his biggest fear – so how will he cope plunging into one and pushing his personal fear factor into its highest limits?

Roles are reversed when it is Ben's team mate who is challenged during a diving experience that is like “walking on thin air” as they head for an underwater Cathedral. Later, the team mates must support each other as the temperatures plunge - creating an ice hole of 5 cubic metres to weather the night out on the ice results in an unexpected bromance!

Been there? Done it?

Share your experience

Join in on Twitter.

#BBCYOA

“We all have our weaknesses”

GoDo It!

Over 250 experiences in 115 countries. Share you experience. Discover and share tales of adventure.
A Year of Adventure

PAGE 133

DO: Dive tectonic plates at silfra lagoon

A three-day climbing and diving expedition taking in Iceland’s stunning landscape and ending in a journey to the centre of the Earth - a dive to where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates meet in Iceland's crystal clear waters.

Adventure addicts fly into Reykjavik. The geological rifts of fire and ice are explored before plunging into the depths - the glaciers and ice walls that encapsulate the volcanic fury of Iceland will be walked and climbed.

When

Summer months, when the water is 4°C.

Where

Siffra Lagoon, Iceland.

Fact

Water clarity allows divers to see further than 100m.

Episode 3

Episode Three

Endurance

The 24-hour Bike Marathon through the mountains in Moab, Utah is an adventure which would test the endurance of any competitor, but with Ben Fogle’s status as a self-confessed enthusiast, although certainly no expert, this is a challenge that will push him to the limit. Fighting through the desert both day and night, it will require sustained effort and teamwork to reach the finish line.

Team Building

Ben has chosen Bernie Shrosbree to be his team mate on this adventure. Having served 16 years in the Royal Marines and represented Great Britain in the biathalon, Bernie first met Ben on his arctic challenge.

year of adventures

The pair head to Pembrokeshire in Wales for a spot of team-building via the sport of coasteering. This involves climbing, scrambling and jumping along the rocks and cliffs of the shoreline.

If Ben has a weakness, it is that he’s not good with heights. When he needs literally to take a leap of faith, he finds himself hesitating and stalling. Can his team mate Bernie help him through?

Adventure Snaps

See Photographs

"Suddenly these mountains look very large
and everyone on their way to register looks very fit"

GoDo It!

Over 250 experiences in 115 countries. Share you experience. Discover and share tales of adventure.
A Year of Adventure

PAGE 133

DO: Coasteering in Pembrokeshire

Equipped with a wetsuit, flotation jacket and helmet, become your very own superhero and turn rocks, cliffs, caves and waves into playthings as you coasteer along the cliff-rimmed coasts of Wales.

Using a combination of climbing up through natural rock arches, traversing the craggy landscape, scrambling, cliff jumping from a vertical rock face and swimming into sea caves, you can coasteer around the Pembrokeshire routes, which are graded according to level of difficulty.

When

At the height of Summer - the Irish Sea isn't known for its warm waters.

Where

Try its birthplace, St Davids, or head north to Snowdonia.

Fact

Coasteering was first pioneered on the Pembrokeshire coast in the 1980s.

Episode 4

Episode Four

Speed

Having relied on his body for many of the challenges, Ben now must trust machines to enjoy the thrill of speed. And what bigger, faster rush than in a military jet! To sync man and machine and master vehicle control, Ben will try his hand at hovercraft racing in preparation for his goal: a two-day motorsport rally in the spectacular but unforgiving terrain of the Australian outback

Team Building

The race director of the Gascoyne Dash, Paul Kelly, has agreed to be Ben's navigator for the gruelling two-day rally. Having organised the race since 2004 and participated in the last two previous years' event, Paul's quite an expert.

And he'll have to be, as the pair face strong competition in the extreme 4x4 class and Ben suddenly feels out of his depth when he hears the power of the engine...

year of adventures

The Gascoyne Dash was originally a white-water boat race but, by 2003, the continuing droughts had dried the river bed completely and locals evolved it into the car rally known today. Following two identical circuits of 187 km each, this gruellingly fast race typically sees only half the cars finish.

Ben's never raced before and Paul has never sat in the navigator's seat before. Can they overcome their inexperience and follow the course through deep sandy river beds, up steep climbs and along fast station tracks right through to the finish line?

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Been there? Done it?

Share your experience

"Considering I was sitting still, I feel absolutely shattered.
I'm almost shaking!"

GoDo It!

Over 250 experiences in 115 countries. Share you experience. Discover and share tales of adventure.
A Year of Adventure

PAGE 199

DO: Plymouth - Banjul Rally

Like the look of Ben's Gascoyne Dash and fancy trying a motoring rally for yourself, but want something altogether a bit more sedate, then perhaps the Plymouth - Banjul Rally is the event for you.

To take part in this annual, non-competitive rally, your vehicle must have cost less than £100 (Ladas is a favourite) and you must have spent no more than £15 preparing your car. The rally then requires you to nurse the thing across 6 countries and 6000 km to the Gambian capital!

When

Around Christmas time each year.

Where

England, France, Morocco, Mauritania, Senegal, Gambia.

Fact

At Banjul, at the end of the rally, the cars are auctioned in aid of local charities.

Episode 5

Episode Five

Ultimate Heights

It’s the ultimate climbing challenge for Ben – an ascent to the dizzying heights of the 400 foot high iconic sandstone Castleton Tower, with a hair raising overnight stay on one of its ledges and facing his fear of heights. From testing his nerves in the skies over Australia to battling high anxiety over the Italian peaks, the sky’s the limit for Ben in this set of adventures!

Team Building

Joining Ben is TV presenter and friend, Kate Humble. They’ve known each other for about 15 years, so Kate has trained hard for this shared adventure.

He’s terrified of heights, she’s terrified of falling off things. Together they hope to make it to the top of the 400 foot high sandstone giant that is Castleton Tower.

year of adventures

Castleton Tower is one of the most famous and yet challenging climbs that the USA has to offer, with its exhilarating approach, four to five challenging pitches of crack and face climbing, one of the finest summits in the world and three enjoyable rappels back to earth.

Of course the famed story of a man stuck 127 hours in a slot canyon, before cutting off his own arm to save himself, doesn’t play on their minds at all...

Missed this episode?

View the best bits

Been there? Done it?

Share your experiences

"I’ve never been very good with heights"

GoDo It!

Over 250 experiences in 115 countries. Share you experience. Discover and share tales of adventure.
A Year of Adventure

PAGE 167

DO: Tandem Paragliding

If Ben's tandem paraglide in the Dolomites has inspired you and you fancy the notion of plummeting off a cliff with another person strapped to your back, you won't find many better places than Turkey's resort town of Ölüdeniz.

The descent from the 1900m high Mount Baba can take as long as 45 minutes but offers amazing views over the beautiful, sheltered lagoon and on a clear day, you can even see as far as the island of Rhodes.

When

October usually offers clear skies.

Where

Ölüdeniz, on Turkey's South West Coast, on the Aegean Sea.

Fact

Ölüdeniz has become the venue for the paragliding International Air Games each October.

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