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Bryan Barrow    THIS PAGE IS CURRENTLY UNDER CONSTRUCTION
Bryan Barrow (30 December 1962--) is an adventurer and explorer. In 1992 he became the first person to circumambulate New Zealand's South Island via the natural shoreline with minimal use of roads or trails. He is also the first to walk solo in the same fashion the entire west coast of the USA from Vancouver, Canada to Tijuana, Mexico in 1984-1985. Due to his exploits people sometimes refer to him as the "coastwalker."

Early life

Barrow was born in Oakland, California and lived the first eight years of his life there before his single mother moved with him to Menlo Park, CA. When his mother remarried they relocated to southern CA and eventually settled in Tustin, where he lived until completing his freshman year of high school. After that he went to high school in Aurora, CO, Salinas, CA and graduated from Peters Township High School in McMurray, PA. He then went on to receive a degree in advertising design from the Art Institute of Ft. Lauderdale, FL.

An adventurous life

After graduating high school Barrow set out on his first big adventure, bicycling 3200 miles from McMurray, PA to Monterey, CA. This endeavor took him two months to complete. After college thoughts again turned to adventure. He drove a car from Florida to Oregon then caught a bus to the Canadian border and walked into White Rock, Canada, just south of Vancouver. He set off to be the first person to entirely hike down the west coast of America. Thirteen months and 3300 miles later he took the final footstep across the Mexican border. No simple beach walk, Barrow climbed sheer cliffs, crossed rivers, timed passage with the tides and endured miserable weather. There were several harrowing situations where he didn't know if he would survive.

More bicycle trips ensued. CA to CO. San Angelo TX to the Mex border then to BC Canada and to CA. Then in 1996 Lakeview OR to Yukon and Alaska. Then from canada border to CA.

New Zealand

In November of 1990 Barrow set off for New Zealand with the intention of hiking the entire perimeter of the South Island along its natural shoreline. Landing in Auckland, he first hitchhiked southward down the North Island, meeting and staying with people along the way and familiarizing himself somewhat with Kiwi culture. He eventually began the trek in Nelson at the top of the South Island.

On January 15, 1990 Barrow set out on what was to become his most grueling adventure. From Nelson he hiked with a pack that started out at 65-pounds, hiking along the northern coast heading west. Upon reaching the west coast he headed south. Stretching from Farewell Spit in the north to Fiordland at the south, the South Island's west coast is the country's wildest and most remote shoreline. Incredibly rough terrain and inhospitable weather combined to make passage extremely difficult. Barrow was not expected to survive. Many times, Barrow barely escaped with his life.

He was stuck in mud up to his waist, rushed past incoming tides, was nearly washed out to sea while rounding a point and crossing rivers. Realizing the severity of the rivers ahead, Barrow acquired an inflatable dinghy that he strapped to the back of his pack in order to continue. Even then, tragedy nearly struck when Barrow's pack tipped out of the tiny inflatable and he had to hoist it back in while paddling across the Hollyford River in the wilds north of Fiordland.

Barrow reached the northern edge of a region known to many simply as "Fiordland." Fiordland is one of the most rugged, wild and inaccessible places left on earth. It was also one of Barrow's greatest challenges -- a land of towering mountains, long fiords, impenetrable rainforest and some of the fiercest weather in the world. It can receive over 350 inches of rain a year. Barrow relied on fishermen to ferry him across the fiords, contacting them by hand-held radio when they were in the vicinity. He also relied on fishermen to bring him food drops which Barrow had packed prior to venturing into Fiordland. All along his trek Barrow supplemented his diet with food from land and sea. His pack weighed an average of 70 pounds while trekking through Fiordland.

He completed the Fiordland leg of the journey only to encounter another type of obstacle -- political. Barrow needed to extend his visa as the journey had been much more difficult than initially anticipated. Through reapplying, appeals and enlisting the help of Minister of Tourism John Banks, Mayor of Christchurch Vicki Buck,and speaking with Sir Edmund Hillary, Barrow attempted to smooth out hassles with the Department of Immigration and extend his visa.

On June 6, 1992 Barrow triumphantly returned to Nelson. A parade was held for him and he was greeted by TV cameras, the mayor of the city, and a victory party was held at a local establishment.

Against seemingly insurmountable obstacles ranging from the harsh terrain and weather to immigration hassles, Barrow had become the first person to achieve this adventure. Others such as Thomas Brunner, had attempted but never completed similar journeys.