In 2005-06, Julie Angus rowed nearly 10,000 kilometres across the Atlantic Ocean, from Lisbon, Spain, to Limon, Costa Rica, becoming the first woman in the world to voyage across this vast expanse of water in a rowboat. She was accompanied by her soon-to-be husband, Colin Angus, as part of his epic expedition to circumnavigate the world by human power. For their remarkable journey, the couple won the Adventurer of the Year Award from National Geographic.

Interestingly, Julie admits she still thinks of herself as a shy nerd who used to walk to school with her nose buried in a book, and finds it strange to hear people calling her an athlete or adventurer. “Colin tells me that nerds make the best adventurers. It’s not necessarily about athletic prowess, but paying attention to detail, researching, problem solving and perseverance,” she says. Indeed, one of Julie’s favourite adventurers is Dervla Murphy, an Irish woman now in her 70s who cycled and trekked to many isolated places, often with her young daughter and then with her grandchildren.

While planning her journey, Julie was surprised that no one who knew her well tried to dissuade her from such an ambitious undertaking. She notes that her parents were the most worried about the trip, but eventually they just resigned themselves to it. “It’s like calling a cat back from the edge of a busy freeway. If it doesn’t listen to you, what can you do?”

Julie and Colin rowed across the Atlantic Ocean during the worst hurricane season in history and were hit by two anomalous hurricanes — the first one was the easternmost in history, and the second came after the end of the season. Both Julie and Colin found the experience psychologically daunting. “We had no choice but to persevere, and emerge, battered and bruised, but alive.”

With a master’s degree in molecular biology, Julie also frequently writes about the ocean environment and the many creatures she encountered throughout her journey. She decided to write a book chiefly to draw attention to both the beauty of the ocean and the multiple threats it faces. She notes that “rising ocean temperatures have changed a lot of things including hurricane patterns, and as we were in the midst of the first hurricane I couldn’t help but feel it was symbolic. We were in a tiny boat, facing a devastating storm in a section of the Atlantic that is reputed to be one of the most placid areas. The battle to save our oceans from climate changes, overfishing and pollution is a storm humankind will be weathering over the following decades. We are facing a barrage of challenges, sometimes seemingly impossible hurdles, but we have to persevere in order to succeed.” WAITING TO HEAR IF THIS IS FROM BOOK OR INTERVIEW.

Julie also has advice for couples who might think about attempting their own ultimate journey. “If you’re barely managing your relationship in civilization, don’t even bother. If you’ve got a sound relationship to start with, go on a few smaller adventures first to see how well you work together in stressful situations. Make sure to have dialogue beforehand on how you work through difficulties when you’re in a less calm and rational state of mind. We call it the ‘Doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde pact,’ she says. “Love me when I’m Doctor Jekyll and ignore me when I’m Mr. Hyde.”

Julie and Colin have been in Canada for four weeks, after completing an expedition they dubbed “Rowed Trip.” They designed and built two amphibious rowboats, that they towed on trailers behind bicycles. On the water, the bikes and trailers fit inside the boat. The couple travelled 7,000 kilometres through 12 countries, from the northern tip of Scotland to Syria, on a number of rivers and canals, across the English Channel and the Black Sea. They live in the Comox Valley on Vancouver Island, enjoying domestic adventures and working on a book and film detailing their latest journey, which will be released in fall 2009.