Tom Rowland Podcast Episode 125 is one of the most meaningful conversations I have ever recorded. Josh Collins is a special operations combat veteran who retired out of Delta Force and lives with traumatic brain injury and PTSD. After hitting the limits of his ability to function, he discovered a stand-up paddleboard at a VA hospital that steadied his world, then turned that into Veteran Voyage 360, a 2,742-mile paddle from Texas to the Statue of Liberty to raise awareness for veterans struggling when they come home.
Listen now: press play in the player above to watch the full conversation, or stream Episode 125 on your favorite podcast app.
Josh Collins is a special operations combat veteran who retired out of Delta Force, the U.S. Army's first Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta. He served multiple rotations to Iraq, Afghanistan, and Bosnia and other deployments around the globe. A wounded warrior living with traumatic brain injury and PTSD, he became an advocate for veteran mental health and the founder of Veteran Voyage 360, using stand-up paddleboarding to raise awareness and help others find a path to recovery.
Veteran Voyage 360 is the awareness mission Josh Collins created after paddleboarding helped him recover. Its centerpiece is a 2,742-mile stand-up paddleboard journey from Texas to the Statue of Liberty in New York. Josh chose a feat dramatic enough to hold public attention so he could shine a light on veteran PTSD and traumatic brain injury, and share the idea that movement and time on the water can be a path back to health.
Josh first tried a stand-up paddleboard at a VA hospital, having never been on one, while dealing with balance issues and a compressed cervical spine. He describes how, once he was standing on the board, the earth and the horizon seemed to stand still because of the movement of the water under his feet, like a sailor getting sea legs. Time on the board helped retrain his perception and balance, and it became central to his healing.
After leaving the hospital, Josh wanted to do something to help others and raise awareness for the plight of veterans with PTSD and TBI. He decided the message needed a feat big enough to keep people's attention, so he set out to paddleboard from the Gulf up the entire East Coast, a 2,742-mile route that finished at the Statue of Liberty in New York.
Josh is a special operations combat veteran with multiple rotations to Iraq, Afghanistan, and Bosnia, plus numerous other deployments in support of the war on terror. He retired out of the first Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta, known as Delta Force, and continued to support the military as a contractor both stateside and abroad before his injuries led him toward recovery and advocacy.
Tom Rowland Podcast Episode 125 with Josh Collins is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and wherever you get your podcasts. The video version is embedded at the top of this page.
I had done a little research before we sat down, but I knew Josh had far more to tell than any resume could capture. He is a combat veteran who hit the absolute limits of his ability to function and found a way back. This is one of the most meaningful episodes I have ever done, and I am grateful he was willing to tell his story on tape.
Press play in the player above to hear the whole conversation.
Josh had never been on a stand-up paddleboard when he tried one at a VA hospital, fighting balance issues and a compressed cervical spine. He describes the moment he stood up and the horizon settled, the movement of the water under his feet steadying everything. It is a stunning description of how a simple thing became the start of his recovery. Worth hearing in his own words.
Josh realized that to raise real awareness he needed something big enough to hold people's attention, so he set out to paddle from the Gulf up the entire East Coast to the Statue of Liberty. He explains the thinking behind a feat that dramatic and what it took to actually attempt it. Listen to that section of the episode.
Josh served in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Bosnia and retired out of Delta Force, then kept working as a contractor before his injuries caught up with him. He is open about reaching the limits of his ability to function while self-medicating, and about the long climb back. His honesty about that low point is what makes the recovery land. Press play in the player above.
Beyond his own story, Josh lays out how he believes we can help veterans who come home struggling, as a country and as individuals. He frames movement, fishing, and paddleboarding as real modalities toward mental and physical health, and challenges all of us to do better. Scroll up and watch the player above.
Listen to the full conversation: press play in the YouTube player at the top of this page.
What stays with me about Josh is that he took the worst chapter of his life and turned it into a mission for other people. He found one thing that helped, then paddled almost three thousand miles to make sure other veterans knew it existed.
If you know someone who served and is struggling, this is the episode to share. Josh offers something most conversations about PTSD do not: a concrete path forward.
Press play in the player above to hear how it all fits together.
Josh Collins · Veteran Voyage 360 · Delta Force · Statue of Liberty · Miami, Florida · Effingham, Illinois · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
The Tom Rowland Podcast brings you long-form conversations with the most accomplished anglers, hunters, conservationists, and outdoor professionals in the game. Listen to every full-length Tom Rowland Podcast interview.
Josh Collins is a special operations combat veteran who retired out of Delta Force after multiple rotations to Iraq, Afghanistan, and Bosnia. A wounded warrior living with traumatic brain injury and PTSD, he founded Veteran Voyage 360 and completed a 2,742-mile stand-up paddleboard journey from Texas to the Statue of Liberty to raise awareness for veteran mental health and to show that time on the water can be a genuine path to recovery.
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