News is reporting that Aleksander Doba has passed today while climbing Kilimanjaro. I can’t find English-language news confirming this, but his wikipedia page has already been updated. Aleksander Doba - Wikipedia He was definitely an adventurer!
Summary from Wikipedia
Aleksander Doba (9 September 1946 – 22 February 2021) was a Polish kayaker known primarily for his long voyages crossing oceans. In 2010 and again in 2013 he kayaked across the Atlantic Ocean westward under his own power. The two voyages were the longest open-water kayak voyages ever made. He was named 2014 Adventurer of the Year by National Geographic. In 2017 he completed an eastward kayaking trip across the Atlantic. He died while climbing Kilimanjaro.
Died as he lived—
Like a legend
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I actually got to meet Aleksander (Olek) Doba when he was at the Columbia Island Marina in Arlington, VA. on May 1st 2014 with a Washington visit arranged by National Geographic and got to try paddling his boat. It was a bear at 600 lbs. And people complain about a 60 lb. boat! Can’t believe he paddled it all the way across the Atlantic. The marina meet & greet was organized by the Washington Canoe Club and also attended the the Chesapeake Paddlers Assn. CPA presented him with some CPA paddling shirts.
Olek himself was extremely friendly and a humble man, gladly answering our 10,000 questions in spite of the language barrier.
Sorry to hear about his passing.
I listened with great interest sometime last year to a NYT podcast about him and his journey. Fascinating person, RIP.
