Fons Oerlemans

The life of Fons Oerlemans (b. 1938), the Belgian adventurer who crossed the Atlantic five times in a self-built raft, a steam boiler, a truck, and a giant bottle. A war child turned explorer, filmmaker and record-breaker, who in his nineties still builds at Stormkop in Antwerp with his wife Kee Arens.

A chronological documentary of 22 moments spanning 1938–2024 on Loreline.

Curated by Olivier · last updated 2026-08-22

1. 1938-07-12 - Fons Oerlemans - born in Nieuwmoer, 1938 (documentary opening). ), from the documentary "De Avonturen Van Fons Oerlemans".
2. 1944-01-01 - Surviving the V1 and V2 bombardments as a child. "De Avonturen Van Fons Oerlemans".
3. 1952-01-01 - The boy who built his first raft at fourteen. "De Avonturen Van Fons Oerlemans".
4. 1960-01-01 - Building his own aircraft and flying machines. "De Avonturen Van Fons Oerlemans".
5. 1974-06-01 - The raft "Last Generation" mid-Atlantic (3 of 2). The raft "Last Generation" out on the open Atlantic during Fons Oerlemans's 1974 crossing.
6. 1974-06-01 - The raft "Last Generation" mid-Atlantic (2 of 2). The raft "Last Generation" out on the open Atlantic during Fons Oerlemans's 1974 crossing.
7. 1974-06-01 - The raft "Last Generation" mid-Atlantic (1 of 2). The raft "Last Generation" out on the open Atlantic during Fons Oerlemans's 1974 crossing.
8. 1974-06-01 - The raft "Last Generation" mid-Atlantic (4 of 2). The raft "Last Generation" out on the open Atlantic during Fons Oerlemans's 1974 crossing.
9. 1974-10-26 - 'De Laatste Generatie' - the 1974 Atlantic crossing from Safi, Morocco. "De Avonturen Van Fons Oerlemans".
10. 1974-12-01 - Three months on a raft across the Atlantic. "De Avonturen Van Fons Oerlemans".
11. 1979-01-01 - Gran Canaria to Barbados, 1979 - Kee Arens, first woman across the ocean on a raft (Guinness). ), from the documentary "De Avonturen Van Fons Oerlemans".
12. 1980-01-01 - 'Seaview' - crossing the Atlantic in a converted steam boiler. "De Avonturen Van Fons Oerlemans".
13. 1983-08-17 - The truck on a raft: New York to Lisbon, 1983. "De Avonturen Van Fons Oerlemans".
14. 1985-01-01 - Filmmaker, author and record-breaker - a life of expeditions. "De Avonturen Van Fons Oerlemans".
15. 1989-06-01 - Fons Oerlemans with his wife and fellow adventurer Kee Arens
16. 1989-06-01 - Boats and beer bottles - the improvised, self-built world of. (press archive).
17. 1990-01-01 - Fons Oerlemans and Kee Arens - a life of adventure together. "De Avonturen Van Fons Oerlemans".
18. 2007-01-01 - Crossing the Atlantic in a giant steel bottle. "De Avonturen Van Fons Oerlemans".
19. 2007-06-01 - The model of the bottle. A scale model of the giant bottle Fons Oerlemans built to cross the Atlantic.
20. 2019-01-01 - Koos Hogeweg on Stormkop and Fons Oerlemans - Part One
21. 2019-01-02 - Koos Hogeweg on Stormkop and Fons Oerlemans - Part Two
22. 2024-01-01 - Een dag uit het leven van Fons (92) - VRT NWS

Full text archive: /loreline-text/fons-oerlemans.md