"The craziest thing is the generosity of people... If it weren't for the people I've met I would not be doing this trip anymore."
Meet Jacob Barnowski. Aka, Barno.
He's a real character. Since there’s no archetype for a person who decides to complete the Great Loop on a whim using a second-hand PWC they bought for $300 off Craigslist, that makes him an anomaly to say the least.
Whatever you may envision about a person who decides to run the Great Loop on a shoddy 1994 PWC, or what their personality might entail, you can be sure Jacob does not fit the mould. That's a good thing.
He was born and raised in Dousman, Wisconsin, about 35 miles west of Milwaukee, and he's as down to Earth as the dirt itself. His polite Midwestern manner radiates with the same shine as the righteously neon decals on his stock 1994 Polaris SLT 750. The moniker he uses online --- PWC Fubar -- is apt when you see his vessel of choice. His gentle demeanor and carefree attitude is instantly likeable.
There's a twinkle in his eye, too. You'll see it if you meet him. It's a little spark that says "yeah I'll drink a beer with ya, but I might be gone by sunrise." He might ride 200 miles the next day just for kicks, or he might grab a seat at a picnic table along the Loop's many locks and befriend whoever walks by. He's living by the ebbs and flows of nature, but at a tempo that can be reggae or heavy metal, depending on the day. And when it's all said and done he might just toss his thumb out and hitchhike home, inevitably making friends with whoever picks him up. It's just his nature.
Jacob’s journey began when he left Dousman with a goal of making it to the Gulf Coast. The 26 year old had been telling friends for years he was gonna make the run. Eventually, the promise he made couldn’t be ignored any longer, so he loaded up his stock '94 SLT and drove to the nearest boat launch. Springtime in Wisconsin is chilly, let alone while bombarding down Lake Michigan on a 30 year old PWC, but you can survive that, the next steps involve dipping into the river system south of Chicago, dancing your way across a litany lakes and rivers until you link up with the mighty Mississippi, and then making a dash for the southern coast.
Most boaters run the Loop on a yacht, or a midsize cruiser at the bare minimum. The reality of doing it on a PWC with barely enough storage to carry food, water, and extra fuel, let alone luxuries like a sleeping bag and a tent, is a daunting proposition. But for a guy who once spent a summer living in a truck bed camper in Colorado, the lack of material luxury foments a greater love for the luxuries of nature.
As Jacob tells it, his first victory was simply in making it to the coast. Nobody expected his machine to last that long. He didn’t. But the '94 SLT didn’t waver, and as you can infer from Jacob's character, the only logical thing to do was to keep going.
So he did.
Next goal: the entire Great Loop.
The Great Loop is a 6000 mile commitment around the eastern half of North America. You can start at any point along the route, and head in either direction, but it takes you through the Great Lakes, the Illinois River, the Mississippi River, around the Gulf of Mexico, into Chesapeake Bay, and up the Eastern Seaboard. The stories from Great Loop adventures are some of the most interesting you'll ever read. Most relish having a yacht to add some much needed comfort to their nautical commitment, which typically takes 10-14 months, although it's been done on things as silly as a pontoon boat and as quickly as a nineteen days.
It is not a trip for the faint of heart.
Jacob has been doing 'The Loop' in stages. He made it from Milwaukee to the Gulf in six weeks. The trip from the Mississippi to Florida added another three weeks. Next he rode from St. Augustine, Florida to Niagara Falls, NY in another six weeks. This portion has him going from Albany, NY, where he started on July 13th, back to his hometown of Dousman.
That's 6000 miles on a $300 PWC. That’s 5 cents per mile.
We heard through the grapevine that Jacob had crossed into Canada and was headed for the Trent-Severn Waterway, a keynote part of the Loop and a signature piece of Canadian boating, and not that far from us.
I’m recent weeks, people in the boating community have gathered quickly behind Jacob's journey. His Instagram following, where he posts videos of his daily travels, continues to grow by hundreds of followers a day. From following him ourselves, it wasn't surprising to see him befriending Ontario boaters at seemingly every lock he passed through. Many gladly offered up extra food or fuel, or offered him a place to crash for the night. The boating community is good like that.
We got even luckier when we heard he would be at Hucks Marine the same time we were passing through. Hucks is on the St. Lawrence River in the 1000 Islands, and it's one of the most serene boating hotspots in Canada. It's as good a place as any for a pitstop.
It's hard to miss Jacob and his PWC. If the neon graphics on his '94 Polaris don't get your attention, Jacob will.
We didn't chat with him for long (there was more adventure to be had that day, you see), but his perspective on life will resonate in the heart of every boater. Be sure to follow him (@pwc_fubar) on his journey. At the time of this writing, he's in the Trent-Severn Waterway and headed for the Great Lakes.
Below is the transcript of our conversation. You can watch his video interview at the bottom:
It sounds like this started as a simple idea but grew into a huge adventure. How did you go from picking up a PWC for $300 to ending up in Canada?
"I picked up this old girl for the sweet deal of 300 bucks. As a joke, I told my buddies I'm gonna take it down the Mississippi. And you know a few years later I fixed it up and got the cheapest gear I could find, loaded it up on the boat ramp on the Mississippi River and started going south. I had zero expectations of it making it to the Gulf, and when it did I'm like 'Well, I might as well continue and go for the whole Great Loop.'"
A $300 PWC is a steal and it sounds like it's held together. What's the story behind you buying the PWC? Where did you get it? Did you make any modifications for this trip?
"Well it all started on Craiglist, which is pretty much extinct now (laughs), but I found it and it was actually the ski, a lift, and a trailer for 300 bucks. I sold the lift for 600 and doubled my money right off the bat. I fixed it up, fuel system completely gone through, and as far as modifications go it's pretty much bone stock. But we added a nice 9" Garmin which, the first two years I didn't have that, and after having it I could never go back. And then just some cleats, strapped a bunch of stuff to it, filled the bow up with gear, and it's just been a peach."
How have you been meeting people throughout your journey?
"If it weren't for the people I've met I would not be doing this trip anymore. Because when stuff went bad, or when something broke, or if weather was blowing in, it kinda worked like clockwork that I always found someone, or someone was willing to let me stay somewhere or help me out with something."
What's the craziest thing that's happened to you on this adventure?
"The craziest thing is the generosity of people. You know you're going through all these places and everyone's generosity is everywhere I went. I mean, middle of America, Florida, the East Coast, New York. Numerous times in Canada here, just great people on the entire route. And I expect to run into many more on my travels back to Milwaukee.
How did your border crossing go? Did the border patrol have any questions for a guy randomly passing through on a PWC to visit Canada?
"The border (laughs). I've never been out of the United States until about 10 days ago on this thing. So when I went to cross the border I had everything ready, I did all this research, and made sure I was 100% legal. And I get there and they ask me a few questions, you know, everything that they're supposed to ask you, and they were like 'OK' and stamped my passport. But I ended up talking to them for like 45 minutes about my trip, all the gear. They were interested in everything I was doing and said they'd never seen it before."
If you could do this trip again, is there anything you would change?
"If I could do this trip again, or would I do this trip again. Two different questions. I mean, would I? Not on this ski probably (laughs). I would probably want a newer ski that could handle the rough water a little better, handle the gear a little better. But I totally would do it again. But if I had to do it on this thing? I mean, there's really not much I think I would change. I think I got it pretty dialed as it is. A total of 17 weeks on the water with it, I think all the nuances with it are pretty good."
What advice would you give to someone who wants to take on an adventure the way you have?
"I would say there's nothing to do but just to do it. I mean, when I left I didn't know what I was doing. I still don't know what I'm doing let's be honest here (laughs). I don't know where I'm gonna be. I rarely ever plan a day out (in advance). Most of the time I just go and I run into good people or I find a good spot. But, that's bit me a couple times. It's probably better to plan a little bit more than me because sometimes you get stranded in really bad spots cuz of it (laughs). I've lived out of tents in Colorado. I bought a 70's truck bed camper for $600 and lived out of that for a summer in Colorado. But nothing even remotely the level of this trip (laughs), and the stupidity of this trip (laughs)."
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