At 7.15pm NZ time on Friday 9th February, the New Zealand coastguard received an almost indecipherable transmission on channel 16 from a vessel identifying itself as 'Kayak 1' in the Fiordland. Andrew was within sight of land.

When no further communication was received, ships in the area were diverted to investigate. A full scale aerial search ensued, and Andrew's kayak was located, capsized, late the following evening approximately 30 nautical miles off the coast of New Zealand. Andrew was not found, yet his spirit will live on forever. In my mind, he achieved his goal.

Ant, you live for adventure, and you've just had the most incredible adventure this time. We were with you all the way! You have lived life to the fullest, and you'll live on in our hearts forever!

Andrew's family and support team wish to express our utmost appreciation and thanks to all those involved in the search — the New Zealand Rescue Coordination Centre, the Te Anau police, the Australian government and all the wonderful New Zealand local people who have extended their hearts and offers of help in this most difficult time. We are indebted to you all.

We are extremely proud of Andrew and will always remain so. His incredible achievements in adventuring are without parallel. Whilst being driven by the challenge of making the impossible possible, much of Andrew's motivation was also based on inspiring others to get up and have a go at exploring their own limits. He was and will continue to be an inspiration to others in their own personal endeavours.

Ant, we love you and will miss you more than words can express.

With only 120km to go, Andrew claims he'll see us "Sunday 9am sharp!?!". His friends all know that he's not renowned for his punctuality, but here's hoping!!

We, the landcrew, have been anxiously awaiting his daily situation reports. Yesterday he alerted us to the possibility of loss of communication — he's down to one remaining sat phone and can't charge the batteries for some unknown reason. We were hoping, but not really expecting, to receive tonight's report. Big sigh of relief when it came through!!!

He's right on target. You have to hand it to him — that's some pretty impressive navigation to be right in line for the mouth of Milford Sound. Conditions are looking OK for the last couple of days. Fingers crossed they stay that way!

For your interest, the tally of equipment failure thus far... tracking beacon (carked it after first capsize 3 weeks ago); secondary sat phone (suffered same fate in same capsize); watch (no longer knows what time it is, so he's figuring if it's dark, it must be time to transmit his report!); broken pivot arm on Casper (apparently not affecting his performance); cracked lens on bullet camera (we'll have to look at stripey footage!). That's all we know of...we'll get the whole story in a couple of days!!

Waiting! Waiting! Everyone is on the edge of their seats waiting! It's something I'm getting pretty good at by now! Last week we were expecting Andrew in on Wednesday or Thursday. Now it's looking like Saturday.

He seems to have escaped the main force of that dratted current, and managed to clock up 50km today. It was calm out in the Tasman this afternoon, although a light NE headwind made it a hard slog for most of the day. Only 200km to go. This last stretch is taking an eternity! I'm sure Andrew is thinking the same!

Winds and currents were all conspiring against us today! Andrew has been battling through strong SE currents and feeling like he's going nowhere. And that's not far from the truth — looks like he's been drifting in the wrong direction overnight. The net result was a mere 25km progress for the day.

You'd almost call that soul destroying, but I know it will take more than that to break Andrew's soul!

The good news is he's on course, and the currents will dissipate closer to the coast.

Battling into headwinds is really not what Andrew needs at this stage of the game! 15 knot easterlies may not sound that bad, but believe me — he's working very hard and earning every inch!!!

Progress seems unbearably slow now that we're all waiting in anxious anticipation. Some nice brisk westerlies are what we want!

Lee Killingworth has kindly sent through his recommendation for Andrew's first big celebratory meal — the local Speights beer and big Bluff green lipped clams as entree before a big lamb roast. Sounds great. Good thing Andrew can't read this right now — imagine how his mouth would be watering!!

With only 300km to go, we can almost relax (well, a little)! Andrew had a calm morning, which then blew up to 30kn SW. He reckons it'll be another bumpy night, but he sent a message for everyone... "Sleep well y'all!"

He must be feeling pretty happy with himself. He can see the mouth of Milford Sound in his mind, and he knows it's only a few days paddle away — psychologically a far more appealing position than what he faced a few weeks ago!!

Now, speaking of sleeping, here's a pic of Andrew deploying his sea anchor. He does this every night before going to 'bed'. The sea anchor keeps his nose into the wind for greater stability, and can help prevent drift. (And don't get too excited about that land in the background — this image was taken during testing.)

Phew!!! After surviving the nightmare of the last few days, Andrew reported that winds abated to a pleasant 15kn SW after a "bloody windy" morning. He is desalinating all his daily H2O requirements now, and is "looking forward to a beer at Milford"! I reckon we might even give him two!!!

He's inching closer — getting exciting, isn't it?

From an altitude of 38,000ft, the Tasman looked quite benign today. Little did I know!!!

Andrew has been staring down the barrel at 30ft waves!! That's Sydney to Hobart '98 size. Just ask Jonathan, our weather forecaster — he knows, and he was there in '98. No wonder Jonathan didn't sound entirely convincing when I phoned him last night!

"Terrifying start to the day, then settled a bit", Andrew's message said. Casper broke a pivot arm, but is reported to be OK.

The wind dropped to 25kn SW to allow for good progress eventually, which must have been a huge relief for him (and us, of course!) after being tossed around like no-one could imagine for the last 48 hours.

Finlay and I flew into Queenstown this afternoon. We'll head down to Milford Sound in a few days to anxiously await daddy's arrival.

Less than 400km to go now. Put that champagne on ice!!!

Whether the weather is rough, or whether the weather is not, he'll weather the weather, whatever the weather, whether he likes it or not! And I'm thinking he's NOT at the moment!

It was no day for paddling. Andrew has been tucked in tight, riding out this storm. He reported 40 knots WNW all day, with seas huge and confused.

A quick call to Jonathan Bogais, our weather forecaster, has eased my mind though. Conditions will abate, he said. Hopefully he's in for a much smoother ride for the remainder!

A few people have asked how Casper breathes. A good question, since Andrew has spent the last day and a half holed up in there. Casper is fitted with a yacht ventilator, which has a bunch of little balls inside that rise to block the holes if it's underwater. When it's upright, air flows freely through these ventilation holes.

Here's Casper with the ventilator on top. (That's the solar panel on the back.) Just imagine how comfy Andrew is, hanging about inside, contemplating his navel!

Today was one of those days when Andrew would have been asking himself, "What am I doing out here?" (no doubt with a few expletives thrown in!!!)

It was a bit of a wild rollercoaster ride in huge seas, with 35 knot northerlies tossing him about before a change came through.

The good news is he's getting there! Only about 500km to go!!!

"Barnacles on hull! Don't ask how I know!!" That was the message for the day. Oh well! He was probably due for a bath! Hope he knocked the hitchhikers off while he was there — they could cause a bit of drag.

Today's weather produced 20-30knot sou-westers, with thunderheads and squalls up to 40 knots — I guess they were responsible for his discovery of the barnacles!

After that little eposide, the bilge pump would have had a good workout, so it seems an appropriate time to answer some questions regarding Andrew's electronics...

He has a 5W flexible solar panel on the rear deck, with 2 x 3 amp sealed gel cell batteries with diodes fitted to prevent reverse charging at night. These live in a waterproof box inside the rear bulkhead, accessible only from a hatch inside the cockpit.

Andrew can isolate one battery while charging accessories, eg phone, beacon etc, leaving the dedicated bilge pump battery fully charged. The bilge pump has a deck mounted switch for operation while paddling & another switch mounted inside the kayak for use when holed up inside Casper during bad weather or at night. Both batteries can be fully charged from flat in approx 20hrs.

Here's a pic of Paul & Andrew fitting the last of the electronics at the shop. Note Andrew doing the hard work!!

I don't know about Andrew, but I certainly felt a bit low when I read his report tonight. He was caught in the middle of a nasty low pressure system that made for a very rough night out there. He capsized many times, so I can't imagine he got much sleep last night! If it's any consolation Ant, neither did I!

At least the wind was pushing him in the right direction. Things improved a bit today, with 20 knot nor-westers to help him along.

I've had a few questions regarding sea sickness. All I can say is, Andrew has a cast iron stomach. Although he does have a rather comprehensive medical kit (practically a pharmacy), including sea sickness pills, antibiotics for possible skin infections, antifungal creams, lotions to prevent chafing etc. He's also wearing those sea bands that work on the pericardium 6 acupoint — great for preventing or relieving sea sickness. Hope they're working!!

Apparently fun was not on the agenda in the Tasman today. Andrew battled 35 knot northerlies for most of the day and this is what he had to say about it — "NOPICNIC2DAY"!!

And to top it off, his watch stopped working. Hopefully he's now so in tune with nature that he won't need to rely on such mod cons — so long as he knows when it's time to send his daily reports!

Back on the home front, I was a bit perturbed when Finlay (our 3 year old) announced, "When I'm as big as dad, I'll borrow his kayak and paddle across the Tasman Sea to New Zealam!" Yeah, great!

He's started training already! (He may attempt a trans-Tasman trip sans paddle!!)

Instead of the usual Aussie Day BBQ, Andrew celebrated in style — he was escorted across the half way line by a whale. He then had the company of a couple of fur seals later in the day. What a bonus!

Andrew's daily average has been given a boost these last few days. He clocked up 80km today, with 20-25knot nor-westers giving him a push.

You might expect him to be a bit tired after that. Well, he still needs some muscle power to pump his Katadyn Survivor-35 manual desalinator. He took 50 litres of fresh water, with the aim of working through most of it in the early days to lighten his load. He'll now be desalinating his daily H2O requirements — 15 minutes of pumping yields one litre of fresh drinking water.

After all the years of planning and preparation, he's finally out there — literally in the middle of the Tasman now! He'll paddle past that flashing neon half way banner early tomorrow morning, so I reckon he's feeling pretty happy with himself.

It's been two weeks since Andrew had his last glimpse of land, and another two before he'll set eyes on it again. And what a glorious sight that will be!

See the blue thing around Andrew's neck? He claims this to be the most valuable piece of equipment he has on board. It's a home-made 'cockpit change bag' (maybe we should patent it!) It's like a giant, spacious spray skirt that comes up to the neck.This allows him to perform delicate tasks (some requiring a large cut-off soft drink bottle) in the upright position without the cockpit being flooded by waves over the deck.

Andrew made close to 70km again today, with a 25knot following breeze. He had some fast downwind runs in squally conditions this afternoon.

Imagine being inside a washing machine on full spin cycle. That's what it must have been like for Andrew last night when he and Casper did a complete roll in very rough seas.

It didn't dampen his spirits though. He clocked up close to 70km today in 15-20 knot sou-westerlies and all's well.

He's getting there!! The 25-30 knot nor-westerlies gave him a bit of a push today and he's closing the gap! His boat is getting lighter too, as he eats his way through the supplies, so that must be helping him pick up a bit of speed. He'll be flying across the finishing line!

I've had a few enquiries about what technology Andrew is using to send photos back to us. Well, unfortunately his little Toshiba Libretto notebook wouldn't fit in, so he has no means of sending us live photos. We'll get to see the real Trans Tasman pics when he gets to the other side!

All these pics here are from archives and testing days. Here's another one!

The 5.30pm report came in early this afternoon. Andrew has been holed up inside Casper all day, riding out a gale. After spending the best part of the day twiddling his thumbs, the 40+knot gale finally backed off at around 4pm. He said "EASED NOW SO IMOFF4 APADL". Not much else to do, I guess! He'll paddle into the wee hours of the night. Think of him out there as you tuck into bed this evening!

I could sense the excitement in Andrew's text message this evening. He'll pass the one-third way mark tonight. A momentous occasion — wonder if there'll be a flashing neon sign out there. He'll be celebrating with a Back Country Cuisine of some exotic flavour, heated using one of those flameless heating kits. He'll probably even have dessert tonight. Back Country Cuisine Apricot Crumble or something like that! (His ration packs have a dessert for every second day.)

Here's an Andrew's-eye-view pic. In case you were wondering, this is what keeps him going!

We've been receiving heaps of encouraging and supportive messages from people all over the world. I just wanted to thank everyone for cheering Andrew on — I'm sure all those positive vibes are helping him out there!

He's travelling well and feeling right at home in his kayak (says a lot for his home life, eh?!) Today's message was "WIND 10KTS NNE SKY LOW CLOUD,RAIN.POS 44 19S,153 10E. ALL OK. ARE WE THERE YET?!" Well, only about 1100 odd kms to go!!!

I was telling my friend in Hobart yesterday about Andrew's less than favourable winds thus far. He said he'd point his bum east and fart. Well, it did the job. That's some wind ya got there, Kieran! Keep it coming! Andrew reported 10-15 knots Nor-west today and "YAY!!!"

Speaking of bums, Andrew's is a bit sore (not enough fat on it). But thanks to his very luxurious and spacious accommodation, he's able to sleep on his side, for a bit of relief.

One whole week's gone by and Andrew is almost one quarter of the way across. So he's right on target for the estimated 30 day crossing.

Those nasty northerlies were replaced by a gentle 10knot sou-easter, so he had a bit of a headwind, but it was a far better day than yesterday.

Casper (the cockpit canopy) is certainly earning his keep! Andrew was very excited to report that he capsized several times during the night, but Casper simply popped him upright every time, and he was all smiles! Good on ya Casper!

Here's a pic of Andrew tucked into "Casper" the cockpit canopy. Looks cozy, doesn't it?!! The bean bag seat is his pilllow. He's been in here since 3.30 this afternoon — an early finish for the day, due to the particularly unpleasant 40 knot northerlies. Lucky for him, the weather is due for a westerly change overnight.

With not much else to do, he decided to phone home, much to the delight of Poor-old-long-suffering-one. He's in really good spirits, and said he has too much food! "Start eating more", I said.

And, he's looking forward to being there. I told him he's closer than he was before!!

A bit of excitement on the water, or rather IN the water today — Andrew was capsized by a huge wave, but nothing he or the boat couldn't handle. Apparently the only tragedy was that he didn't capture it on film! "Bummer dude", as our 3 year son would say!

Apart from that, it was just another day at the office. Ho hum. And like all days at the office, we don't always get everything our own way — who asked for those wretched nor-easterlies?? Andrew's message said, "LKG FWD TO ENDOF THIS NEWIND"!!! Bring on those westerlies, please!

While we're lounging around, sipping our warm tea and maybe having a bowl of icecream while reading a novel before bedtime, Andrew is still clocking up the miles out there.

He'll bunk down around midnight — not much else to do really, other than paddle. He has no books, no mini DVD player, he didn't even take the ipod this time. So I guess he'll be singing to himself (it's a good thing he's so far from civilization!) He's cruising along, averaging around 50 km a day, and feeling good.

Andrew had his first encounter with an unidentified swimming object out on "Lake Tasman" yesterday. Something very huge, but it wasn't a whale! Lake Tasman turned into the rough Southern Ocean during the night, but settled down to allow for good progress this morning. He also had a bit of a cheer squad out there today — with big dorsal fins and big teeth!!

Things are looking pretty good out in the Tasman at the moment. Andrew paddled late into the night and pulled up for a comfy first night's sleep. He has this really neat hammock system (home made) that will keep him off the cockpit floor and help avoid pressure sore problems.

So he should have been cozy, wrapped in his Mountain Hardware synthetic sleeping bag. Meanwhile, I was sweltering on my rock hard futon in a 42 degree heatwave!!

Well,he's off again! Customs officials stamped Andrew out of the country and he departed the shores of Fortescue Bay, Tasmania, at about 3.30 this afternoon, with light westerlies to push him off shore. The forecast is looking great for the next few days, so he should be able to settle into a good rhythm and get some miles under his belt.

He was all smiles as a small group of friends and well wishers waved him off and watched him disappear from land. Just think — 30 days (give or take) living in that tiny little kayak all alone at sea! Sounds great doesn't it?!! Wish I was there!

This time he has promised to meet me (his poor old long suffering wife) in New Zealand!!! Hopefully in a few weeks! Watch this space!!!"

The decade is flying by! There's plenty happening in the world of sea kayaking this year. I'll be off for my second attempt at the Tasman crossing soon. We're just waiting for a good weather window now.

There's been several modifications made to the kayak over the last few weeks to deal with the problem of sleeping in a wet cockpit area. I've also made some changes to make the general task of living at sea in my kayak a little more bearable — 'fun' might not be the word! Though I do enjoy it in an odd sort of way. I'm looking forward to getting out to sea again and doing lots of paddling. It won't be long now, so keep an eye on this website for updates.

Happy New Year to you all! All the best for 2007.

Stuart Trueman paddled from Tasmania to King Island several days ago. He took a seldom travelled route from Tasmania up the west coast of Hunter Island, and waited for his moment there before taking the 80km leap to King. This crossing is subject to strong tidal movement, especially in the area of Albatross Island.

He's been shacked up with John Brewster, one of the team to do the first circumnavigation of Tasmania back in 1979. Sounds like a good way to wait out the weather — hope you didn't drink too much of his beer Stu!

After almost a week of strong wind, the weather's looking good for the 100km crossing to Apollo Bay in Victoria either today or tomorrow. We wish Stu all the best with it. The western side of Bass Strait doesn't get done very often due to the longer crossings and higher level of commitment required. Stuart was very nearly the first person to cross this route several years ago, but he was beaten back by 35kt south-westerly winds. He's earned this!

I am stoked to be home for Christmas with my family. It's a special time of year and soooooo nice to just hang out with some of the most important people in the world to me. Unfortunately I couldn't make it to see my parents, brother and sister, who are all interstate for this Christmas. The Tasman Project has consumed a lot of energy and time over the last few months. I'll be off again for another crack at it within the next 2-3 weeks, with the exact date being weather dependent. As a result its a quiet festive season close to home this year.

Best wishes to you all for a happy, safe and enjoyable Christmas and New Year.

Thanks to my land crew for the updates below. I'm back home again — sooner than I thought I'd be! It's a little unexpected, but I'm comfortable with my decision to turn back. The Southern Ocean is a cold place, and cold is dangerous. I felt that the difficulty I had warming up while sleeping pushed the risk of the trip up to a level that was outside the boundaries I was willing to accept. I've said many times to friends and family that safety is paramount. While some might argue that if that's the case, I should stay at home... that doesn't fit my risk profile or ethic of adventure either! Responsible adventure is character-building and good for people, but I felt that to continue on this occasion was not on. Without wanting to sound too melodramatic... making the right decisions in situations like this can save your life.

So what's next? I've been working with some great folk already to gather some good ideas to solve the problems. Laurie Ford in Tasmania has been a source of inspiration and helpful ideas. Friends John Tot and Grasshopper have also stepped in with some valuable input.

We've had a great sea trial in the Southern Ocean that has proved many of the concepts underlying this expedition, and identified a couple of problems to resolve. The next little while will be spent working on these issues in that great outdoor laboratory, the Tasman Sea. Stay tuned...

Andrew made excellent progress in his first 24 hours of paddling. With 40 knots of wind up the tail at the start, he delayed departure slightly until the wind had abated somewhat. Then in good conditions, he paddled all night on the first night, clocking up 80km. He pulled over for some sleep at 4am.

Casper the Cockpit Canopy worked very well, keeping out the weather and locking out all the water and waves from the cockpit area. The feisty 30 knot winds and big southern ocean swells are a great proving ground for the concept, and it worked well. However, Andrew had trouble warming up inside the cockpit. This is one of the compromises inherent in doing this crossing in a conventional kayak — there is no dry cabin to retreat to. Andrew felt that later in the trip, the problem of cold could prove dangerous. As a result, he made the courageous decision to retreat back to Tasmania. With favourable westerly winds making the push to New Zealand an easier path, Andrew spent two days battling 30-knot headwinds to make landing on Maria Island, off the east coast of Tasmania. He returned safely to the Tasmanian mainland last night.

Andrew's effort has been applauded by veteran Tasmanian sea kayakers. He made a responsible decision in difficult circumstances, and had no reliance on external resources. This is the kind of self-sufficient adventure that we'd like to see more of in today's society. Well done Andrew!

We expect to have a personal update from Andrew when he returns home in a few days.

AND... THE FAT LADY HASN'T SUNG YET!!

At 8:30am this morning, Australian Customs stamped Andrew's passport and cleared him out of the country. It was a teary farewell with wife Vicki and son Finlay, then he jumped in the kayak and started the long paddle east to New Zealand.

What a moment!! There was a small crowd of well-wishers including Tasmanian sea kayaking identities Jeff Jennings, and Laurie Ford, many of the Maatsuyker Canoe Club, and a bunch of friends from NSW. Even the hardened Tasmanians had a lump in their throats as Andrew disappeared out of sight towards the Land of the Long White Cloud. It's one for the sea kayaking history books and those present could feel the significance of the moment.

The forecast is still looking good for the next few days, so keep your fingers crossed, send Andrew some positive energy and wish him well!! New updates will be posted every few days...

Standing on a remote beach on the east coast of Tasmania, what am I thinking as I look out over the ocean towards New Zealand? Am I looking forward to it? Am I scared? Am I excited? I'll be honest — it's all of the above. The balance of each emotion changes from time to time, but over all I can't wait to get out there and get it done. I'm hungry for some paddling! A couple of small delays have held us up a little longer than expected, so now I'm keen to get out there and get wet (I mean, get the boat wet!!)

Here in Tassie I've been staying with Wade Fairley and Fred Olivier, Antarctic film shooters extraordinaire, and now good friends. I've spent the last few days with Jeff Jennings, working with the filming gear and refining the techniques I'll use out in the wild blue yonder to capture the moments you all want to see! Everyone has been so friendly and supportive of this trip, including the authorities — it's been fantastic. On Saturday morning December 2, Tasmanian Customs staff will come up to stamp me out of the country, and I'll be off. Keep an eye on the website for updates, they'll be posted every couple of days or so by my land crew, who I'll be in touch with via satphone. See you soon!