"The YEP's and I have parted company now. After doing the summit 'Pangaea Peak', they joined myself and Köbi to the base camp of Broad Peak where they were able to see the K2 Memorial - a touching memorial for all those alpinists who had lost their lives to the mountain. Our last night together with the Young Explorer's was spent in a large dome tent where we chatted about our adventure and shared our emotions and impressions of the last two weeks we had spent together.
Now it is just myself and Köbi who are left here in the high altitudes of the Himalayas.
I heard just now that the Young Explorers have reached Payu today and are once again back in the heat of the lower altitudes. They managed to have cold showers so I'm sure they must be feeling great. They are on track for Askole and Skardu and running to schedule.
Myself and Köbi have just returned to the base camp of Broad Peak. Köbi and I left at 4 am this morning and ascended 2'000m, up and down again in 9 hours. Köbi is an experienced Himalyan alpinist, having already climbed 5 summits above 8'000 meters.
The climb to 7'000m was difficult because of the quantity of deep snow we encountered but we are well acclimatised and are both in top condition physically.
At 7'000meters we set up camp in preparation for the summit attempt. We took up a tent, sleeping mats, food and cooker.
Now we must rest and wait for the correct weather window before attempting the Broad Peak summit of 8'047m.
I'm excited - You should have seen the view at 7'000m today! It was a beautiful day and the scenery spectacular. I hope we'll be so lucky to have the same weather in the next few days."
After 10 days of varied activities in the picturesque valley of the Pay d'Enhaut in Switzerland, 16 Young Explorers pack their bags and return to their respective countries around the world. Eight of them have been chosen to attend the Pangaea Expedition in January 2010 as Mike Horn and the exploration sailboat Pangaea sail into Indian territories to explore the biodiversity and the effects on humanity on the Ganges River.
The eight selected Young Explorers are:
Reuben Foster, 18yrs, South Africa / Paridhi Rustogi, 14yrs,
India / Mark Thompson, 16yrs, Australia / Lucie Knor, 16yrs,
Germany / Manuel Löffler, 19yrs, Germany / Valentina Marzola,
15yrs, Italy / Florence Beffa, 17yrs, Switzerland / Catherine Meyer, 20 yrs, USA.
More information about PANGAEA and Young Explorers on our website
BORGE OUSLAND, CLÉMENCE CADARIO AND NICOLAS VALDIVIESO JOIN MIKE HORN AND SKI THE LAST DEGREE TO THE SOUTH POLE. Mike Horn, Borge Ousland, Clémence Cadario and Nicolas Valdivieso arrive on ski, to the South Pole after several days of pushing their physical and mental limits. The team are thrilled to have achieved their goal and to be able to share in this victorious moment together.
Yesterday, on the 21st, we arrived in the morning to Trinity Island. We discovered a beautiful landscape. Lots of ice on the Island, glacier running down into the water, dream scenery.
We sailed a bit around the Island and discovered a small house with lots of penguins around. Unfortunately, while we were trying to find the best place to anchor, we touched the ground and the boat was stacked! As it was high tied, we had no way to take the boat out of the water during the afternoon. We decided to stay there for the end of the day and try to take the boat out of that place the following morning with the high tide. In order to secure the boat, we had to make lines run from the boat to the closest island where we could find a rock to moor the boat around.
During the afternoon, we took all the YE from the boat to the Island on the zodiac. We could then go and see the penguins. Fortunately we cross a sea lion with her baby! Amazing how close from them we could go without making them afraid. Of course, we were curious enough to enter into the small house. In it, we found some food, small bottles of wine and newspapers from… 1977.
We came back on the boat in the evening. At that time, Mike decided that, in order to put all the chance on our side for the following morning, we should take all the weight we could out of the boat to make her lighter and have the waterline lower. We then spent all the evening with the guides to offload equipment, using the zodiac to go from the boat to the island. The YE where not involved in this exercise. We took a good sleep and went to sleep, ready to try and move the boat the following morning.
23rd of October
We woke up early, full of hope and optimism to take the boat out of the place where she was grounded. We waited until the tide was high enough to feel the boat rolling a bit, what showed us that we could start to try and move her. At that time we brought all the YE to the Island and only a few people stood on the boat to make the maneuver. Less people on the boat means less weight also! Thanks to the line we had put the previous evening, we started to winch the boat and make it move. After half an hour, we could feel that she wasn’t touching the ground anymore and that she was back in her normal condition, floating on the water. Thanks to the reconnaissance made from the zodiac, we could find the best way to go out from that shallow water. Before mid-day, the boat was out of the water!
A new job was then waiting for us… bringing all the equipment back from the Island. We first took all the YE from the Island back to the boat. As the boat was no more at the same place as the previous evening, we had to find another way to take the equipment back. Using the same way we used with the zodiac to offload the material would have been too long. We then took the sledges to the Island and used them to carry the cases for a small way across the island. Each leg was not too long, but I'm sure that the penguins were quite amazed to see the guys on crossing the island with all this equipment! A great advertisement for them today.
While we were carrying the equipment, the wind started to become a bit stronger and it started to snow. Once we were finished loading the couple of tones of equipment we had on the island, we asked the YE to get ready to go to the glacier. Our plan was to set up a base camp on the ice and spend the night there. Unfortunately, as we were getting ready, the wind was getting stronger. The guides went out and tried to reach the coast with the zodiac. They quickly came back… completely wet! The waves were too high and all the water was coming into the zodiac. Unfortunately we had to decide to cancel our night on the glacier. The wind was not getting weaker at all and the forecasts were not optimistic at all for the night.
Better not to take any risk with the YE and postpone the trip to the following day. But that time not to the Island but to the Peninsula. The YE will then be walking on the Arctic continent tomorrow!
After what seemed like ages, the two weeks after the training camp was finally over ! I couldn't wait to get to Ushuaia, see everybody again and most importantly - set sail for Antarctica!
The few lazy days we spent in Ushuaia was fun, but we were anxious to start our expedition! Each morning we walked to the boat, trying to figure out what we were going to do. Most of the time our excitement was short lived. We scrubbed the deck and polished the rails, the dishes needed washing, the winches needed repairing – there was always something that needed doing, even though we sometimes couldn't understand why the windows needed to be washed while it was raining and we were freezing!
Finally we woke up one morning and at the breakfast table the rumour started... we were sailing that night! Within a matter of hours, our bags were packed, the last pair of boots were found, the keys handed in and we waved goodbye to the last form of civilization we would encounter on our trip.
The rush of adventure helped to keep the cold out for a bit, but the sea sickness was unstoppable! Two days of being almost paralyzed – the less you move, the better it gets – and then it was over. Soon it was just getting up for your shift and then crawling into your sleeping bag as quickly and quietly as possible. One morning Henry and I started our early morning shift. He went down to get some coffee and I decided to stay in the pilot's room. I was just staring out of the window, it was just ocean as far as you can see! My day dreaming was interrupted by rain, so I shifted my attention and watched the rain falling, it looked so weird! It took me about ten minutes to realize that this funny rain was actually snow! I was extremely impressed with my first sighting of snow falling! Soon everybody was on deck, snowball fights followed and even a little snowman was created by the Captain.
Ice !
I think the next morning – you lose your sense of time on board – we were woken up for our shift with very exciting news: Iceberg ahead! Running upstairs, we could see them, very distant at first, but before we could even finish our Corn Flakes, they were everywhere! Seeing them rising out of the mist was strangely exciting, knowing that they meant that we were close was almost unbearable!
Seeing Trinity Island for the first time I never could have imagined it being so beautiful! We reached the Island and after a while we could finally get off the boat and set foot on Antarctica! I don't think the goosebumps I felt had anything to do with the cold! It was just white and blue, penguins were walking, barely a meter from where we were standing, we where even lucky enough to see some seals. We got so close, we could touch them if we wanted to! The old house on the rocks, tells the tale of an expedition to the penguin Island a few years back. We might repair it if we have the time. Too soon it was back to the boat to prepare our gear for the base camp we'll be setting up.
I can't wait to upload my pictures and tell the stories attached, because my quick blog can't do the beauty we're experiencing justice. This is definitely something that has to be seen to be believed.
Il neige… On sent la glace se rapprocher dangereusement ! Il fait de plus en plus froid… Il paraît qu'on arrive en Antarctique dans 7h de temps ! Whoua … Je ne réalise pas que dans peu de temps, je vais apercevoir ce continent qui m'est si étrange et mystérieux.
J'appréhendais le périple en bateau… mais bonne nouvelle, je n’ai pas le mal de mer, ouf, au contraire j'ai souvent faim et Céleste est la meilleure des cuisinières que je connaisse. Today : hamburgers party ! On est gâté.
Et la mer se transforme en contient glacé
Maintenant que le trajet en bateau touche gentiment à sa fin, au tour de la glace… Là à nouveau j'ai un peu peur, peur du froid qui nous attend, peur des longues marches contre le vent… Et en même temps, j'attends ce moment depuis maintenant plus d'un mois, je me réjouis de pouvoir enfin le vivre et le vivre à fond !
Là, j'attends mon quart des 20h. On en a profité pour se laver les cheveux avec Maria. Mais attention, se laver les cheveux ici, ce n’est pas prendre une bonne douche bien chaude et se relaxer, bien au contraire. C'est mettre ta tête dans le lavabo et passer un jet d'eau gelé sur les cheveux. On devait procéder par petite doses pour ne pas littéralement mourir de froid. Ah la, la faut souffrir pour être belle comme on dit ! Mais ça fait parti de l’aventure et on a bien rigolé, toutes les deux trempées ! En plus ça faisait longtemps que je ne l’avais plus vu, c’est elle qui me réveille pour le prochain quart, et les seuls mots que l’on s’est échangé était : wake up, it's your turn ou encore Oh dear, I feel sick . Donc on a bien profité de ce petit moment.
Il nous attend encore tant de choses à vivre… Je reviendrai écrire deux, trois petites anecdotes.
Here is the feedback from the first Young Explorers who attended Mike Horn's Pangaea training camp. Salty... :-)
Henry Stanislaw, USA
Age: 19
Never have I slept so little, worked so hard, and thought so extensively in ten days. It was an intensive schedule worthy of none other than Mike Horn, and that is precisely why it was so. It has been one of the most rewarding weeks of my life. Epic and gnarly are a few words borrowed from the complicated language of ski bum that come to mind. The key has been a possitive attitude. Attitude changes everything.
Clémence Cadario, France
Age: 20
Juste exceptionnel ! Une semaine remplie d’émotions et de sentiments différents ! Nous étions 12 jeunes venant du monde entier, ayant la même passion, le même objectif, les mêmes envies. Dans la difficulté, et l’effort du camp, on a su s’entraider, se motiver et je repars maintenant avec 11 amis ! Cette expérience est unique, je rentre la tête pleines de souvenirs, et j’attends maintenant avec impatience la suite !
Alexandra Le Dily, France
Age : 17
Un rêve qui devient réalité, des projets pleins la tête ! Une expérience unique, avec des personnalités différentes, Mike Horn et son équipe, qui font de ce Young Explorers Program un évènement exceptionnel. Ce camp n’a pas toujours été facile, mais il nous a appris beaucoup ! Heureuse, je me suis surpassée et je sais maintenant que les limites n’existent que dans la tête. Je pars maintenant pour une nouvelle aventure encore plus extraordinaire: l’Antarctique !
Nora Haselbach, Suisse
Age : 19
Ces dix jours à Château D’Oex, sont indescriptibles… Une expérience forte en émotion, remplie d’entre-aide, d’une grande force mentale et physique, de fou rire et de quelques larmes… Nous sommes devenus une équipe soudée, des amis à vie avec la même passion : le sport et le bien être de notre planète ! Vivement le Grand Départ pour mettre tout ce que l’on a appris en œuvre et agir. A nous le futur ;-) !
La Mission de Pangaea : Encourager le respect de l'environnement
et participer activement au nettoyage de la planète pour la protéger
pour les générations futures.
Mike Horn, explorateur sud-africain renommé, a un rêve : embarquer
de jeunes explorateurs sur les océans et à travers les sept continents
afin de partager avec eux sa passion de l'exploration et de la
découverte, pour leur montrer l'impact de l'homme sur l'écosystème
mondial et ainsi offrir une plateforme pour des actions de protection
de la planète pour les générations futures.
Latest comments