The sea is a war zone. Lithuanian to cross the Baltic in a canoe
“The sea is like a war zone, where you can‘t hide from the waves, sun, or rain,” says Domantas Laukevičius, a Lithuanian who is planning to cross the Baltic Sea alone in a canoe.
Laukevičius is starting his journey in mid-July at the northernmost point in Denmark, hoping to finish it in Lithuania by September. But according to the adventurer, the exact length of the trip will “depend on the weather conditions, especially wind”.
The entire route from the Danish town of Skagen to the Lithuanian port city of Klaipėda will be around 1,300 kilometres in length. Laukevičius will pass by the coasts of Denmark, Germany, Poland, and Kaliningrad, staying from hundreds of meters to 40 kilometres away from the land and disembarking from the canoe only at night.
Although the longest so far, the canoeing trip from Skagen to Klaipėda will not be the first adventure of Laukevičius in the Baltic Sea.
The first journey covered 300 kilometres from the Lithuanian resort of Palanga to the Swedish coast, which Laukevičius canoed with two other friends.
“Back then, we had to learn everything from scratch. We trained in the sea and in the pool, learnt how to stay in the canoe when the sea is wavy, how to turn it around if the waves tip you over,” the man says.
Later, his canoe journeys got longer. The second trip from the Estonian capital Tallinn to Klaipėda covered 700 kilometres.
Laukevičius travels with his 10-year-old canoe that he calls Little Lightning.
“It [the canoe] is a reliable friend. We have experienced a lot together. My canoe is 6 metres long, it has a compass and a few hermetic tanks where I keep my necessities,” Laukevičius says. “In the sea, one has to always be alert and the success of the journey depends on the canoe one travels with.”
The canoeing enthusiast explains that the sea is a dangerous place for canoes because of fog, big waves, and tides.
“The coast is not always easily reachable when you’re in the sea […]. It’s not a very pleasant feeling when you’re all alone and the waves are rocking you. But that‘s also probably what I like the most,” explains Laukevičius.
If this year‘s journey from Skagen to Klaipėda is successful, next year the adventurer plans to travel further to the west or go round the entire Baltic Sea.
