Tag Archives: Declan McEvoy

This Sunday, Clare adventurer Declan McEvoy will give a first-hand account of his mammoth, round the world adventure is a once-off talk to raise money for Cancer Care West. This is a rare opportunity to hear about the fascinating adventures undertaken by Declan as he recounts the journey which took him and his 20-year-old motorcycle called Agnieszka around the world. His journey crossed five continents, 59 countries and more than 92,500 kilometres, including passing through two exact opposite poles of our planet. Hear this fascinating story first hand as Declan talks about finding The Door to Hell in the Karakum Desert in Turkmenistan, riding through heavy arctic snows in North America, running out of fuel in the Atacama Desert, being marooned between countries in what is known as no-mans-land, not to mention being taken at gunpoint by rogue Militias in Nigeria. Agnieszka will be there too. This event is in aid of Cancer Care West and takes place on Sunday, …

QUIN adventurer, Declan McEvoy has successfully lead four co-riders on a Scandinavian odyssey, covering close to 6,000 kilometres over three weeks. After a solo polar adventure at the start of this year, Declan returned, this month, to Norkdapp in Northern Norway to recover the faithful motorbike that took him there. This time, he was accompanied by his wife, Jacinta and their friends Dave Barry and PJ and Hazel O’Gorman, all from Quin. Declan is no stranger to extreme conditions and arduous challenges, having biked up the west coast of Africa and, previously, set a new Guinness World Record for riding the length of a frozen Lake Baikal. His most recent voyage marked another first as he guided a group of relative novices on a journey from high above the Arctic Circle, at the most northerly point of the European continent, through seven countries in snow, rain and baking sun.  In contrast to his winter journey, which involved camping out in temperatures …

RECORD-breaking biker, Declan McEvoy, has started 2023 on a high by completing a polar extreme adventure. Over the past fortnight, he has driven solo on his Honda 250 Rally from Helsinki to the very northern tip of Scandinavia, a distance of over 2,000km.  Fresh from his adventures on the west coast of Africa in 2022, Declan set the Artic Circle in his sights. No stranger to temperatures well below zero, Declan previously set a new Guinness World Record for riding the length of the frozen Lake Baikal. This year, Declan set himself the challenge of enduring night-time temperature of minus 18 degrees as well as regular blizzard conditions in bitter winds en route to Nordkapp. Inclement weather almost put paid to Declan’s ambitions with authorities shutting the last let of the route. A last minute change-of-fortunes brought the smiles of the weather gods and Declan reached his goal early on Wednesday last.  Throughout the Arctic odyssey, conditions were truly gruelling. …

ADVENTURER Declan McEvoy is back on home ground for Christmas after completing the gruelling sixth stage of his round-the-world motorcycle odyssey.   In September, the Quin native set out from Lusaka in Zambia, with the aim of travelling along the West of the African continent, all the way to Dakar in Senegal. Last month, he reached Banjul in Gambia, after a marathon motorcycle trek. Throughout the epic African journey of more than 10,000km, Declan had been keeping friends, family and followers updated on WhatsApp. “Reaching Banjul could only be described as a surreal experience and if I’m to be honest I felt somewhat emotional on my arrival,” he said. “There had been times throughout this trip that I wondered if I’m ever going to make my planned destination, but for some reason it seems I just did. It takes more than determination and stubbornness, the latter apparently of which I have in abundance, to make such a journey through Africa …

ADVENTURER Declan McEvoy is back on the road for Stage Six of his Round-the-Word Motorcycle Journey.  The much-travelled Quin native has already broken records on his global odyssey. Earlier this month, he set out from Lusaka in Zambia, with the aim to travelling along the West of the African continent, all the way to Dakar in Senegal. His daring itinerary, which will involve diplomatic, navigational and mechanical skills. The 10,000km trek is set to take him through Namibia, Angola, Congo Kinshasa, Cabinda, Republic of Congo, Cameroon, Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea, and Guinea-Bissau. “Last year my efforts were thwarted in Oshakati due to the Angolan border being closed because of Covid,” Declan said. “This year I’m feeling more optimistic of making better progress and the visa chasing game is currently in full swing.” Arriving in Zambia, in the South of Africa, Declan was well prepared to make the most of local Irish contacts. “I immediately felt comfortable to …

A QUIN native is among the stars of a new documentary that had its world premiere at The Galway Film Fleadh last Saturday.  ‘One Mile Down: Siberian Scramble’ is the dramatic story of Declan McEvoy’s record-breaking motorcycle adventures across Siberia’s notorious Lake Baikal. The film follows Declan and fellow thrill seeker Gary O’Keefe as they put together an international team for an epic adventure in the winter of 2020. The documentary, which was executive produced by world-renowned cinematographer and director Claudio Von Planta, follows the team as they battle the odds to set two Guinness World Records – one for the Longest Motorcycle Journey on Ice and the other for the Longest 4×4 Journey on Ice.  A seasoned adventurer, Declan embarked on an epic Siberian journey, over seven days in February 2020, to drive 800km on treacherous ice over Lake Baikal. The lake is the world’s deepest, with a depth of over one mile and a length of 800km, it …

QUIN adventurer Declan McEvoy is back home now, having finished his African expedition a few weeks early, with problems at various border crossings leading to him cutting it a little short. Declan, who described himself as being on the fifth stage of a ‘Round the World by Motorbike’ adventure arrived in South Africa in early October, and began working his way north. Ultimately he would reach Zambia, not as far as he had hoped for as bureaucracy was very difficult to negotitate, but he is in a good position for when he gets back to his trusty bike. “I normally do these motorcycle trips over about ten weeks but I just came up against a lot of border closures and was finding it difficult to move. I finished up in Zambia and decided to store the motorcylce with the Irish embassy there. “Where Zambia is positioned, next year I could come up along the east coast, or maybe the west …

Quin man Declan McEvoy on the freedom, fears and challenges of his 5,000 mile motorcycle trip around Africa AN ADVENTURE addict from Quin is back on his motorbike with the easing of travel restrictions and making his way up the continent of Africa, a journey of around 5,000 miles. Declan McEvoy set a new Guinness World Record, just before the pandemic, when he rode across a frozen Lake Baikal. He now describes himself as being on Stage 5 of a ‘Round the World by Motorbike’ adventure. After arriving in Johannesberg in South Africa on October 7, with his beloved bike, Declan began the process of getting to the most southerly point of the African continent. At Cape Agulhas on October 18, he pointed his bike north and has been carefully plotting his course back home ever since. This journey, like many other of Declan’s has been fraught with challenges and hitches – both mechanical and bureaucratic. He admits some of …