Every 11 seconds, the size of a football field of Amazon Jungle is destroyed by human beings. One football field less jungle in the time it took you to read this post. The Young Explorers will try and slow it down and we need your support!
Team Efforts vs.Team BEAST – Day 1 :
We woke up to the usual early morning exercise, only this time there’s a catch. We were warming up for the legendary RAID ! We were all nervous and excited for what awaited us, ready to plunge into the unknown and discover what we are capable of. The weather was really amazing with lots of sun and of course… SNOW ! We packed for the raid ready for any weather, especially preparing for freezing temperatures. We all got a harness, helmet, ski-poles, snowshoes and a pulley for the flying fox.
At ten we got our maps and the coordinates for the different checkpoints we would reach in the next two days. Bags packed and bursting with enthusiasm we were off to the first checkpoint to meet our guides. The first checkpoint : The much anticipated and somewhat dreaded Ice wall climbing ! I have never been so amazed ! It was beautiful, we climbed up a waterfall ! We went up one by one belaying each other. It was a great way to practice teamwork, you had to rely on both your equipment and your team. We all made it up in great time, shouting encouragement all the way.Next we hiked up a mountain, finding a quick checkpoint on the way. We worked together to hoist everybody up and over a wall, the rest of the obsticle course covered by a fallen tree.
Next we hiked further up the mountain following the ski-lifts to lead the way. All the way wishing we were inside the lifts rather than under them. When we reached the next team activity, a high up ropes course we were all rallying to go first ! We soon devised a method to keep the path open and easy to navigate for the person in the air. This was the most unbelievable teamwork I’ve ever experienced, we gave all our effort to help our fellow team members. With all the support we overcame fears and completed the course without a hitch.
A short walk away was the next undeniably best part of the raid. Of course it was the flying fox and sledding !! we made our way back down the mountain at high speed with a few spectacular wipe outs. It was every man for himself and we had a great time, especially documenting each others falls. Once we were down the mountain in in what felt like seconds we took off to the next checkpoint. The long awaited snack table. From there we found our way up another mountain to the hostel we would be sleeping in. All the way we were led to believe we were going to sleep in snow caves. When we got there at ten, we were all so relieved to be sleeping inside instead of freezing conditions tat we bombarded Martin with a huge group hug ! Team BEAST soon joined us, finishing off the days activities.
Zzzzzzzzzzzz… After a long night of getting to know each other more and the past young explorers we were finally allowed to sleep in until 8:00. We woke up straight for breakfast, contrary to the morning excersize we have all become custom to. After breakfast was a mapping and orienteering work shop. We learned about maps and how to use them. We then went into the field to test our newly acquired navigation skills.
We walked up hills, through the woods in deep snow bareing the chilli weather and amazed by the wonderful view. Once back at Hotel De' ville we were greated with a pheonominal lunch. After lunch we had some time to finish up with our video editing which will soon be online. Some us, who finished our videos, had some time to rest. Some even had three hours of sleep!
The atmosphere around is excellent, we can really feel the group coming together. Tomorrow we will embark on the legendary raid, which will require each person to give his best for his team.
On this very fine fresh morning we were greeted with a fresh serving of morning exercise and a new friend, called Tire. As the Hotel is very full at the moment with young explorer’s, our morning exercise took a new direction, and turned into a full blown team race. With some of the old Young explorers making up two teams competing against three teams of Amazon Expedition Young explorers. The challenge was to get a tire up and down a mountain with your whole team together for the duration of the race. What an event! We were all pretty frozen at the end, but it was a great experience.
After an exhilarating morning we were brought back down to Earth by a First Aid course presented by Luke and Martin. This served as a reminder that what we are doing, on camp and back home, is not safe, and that accidents do occur. Thankfully Luke and Martin had a very spontaneous presenting style, keeping us on our toes and engaged.
If this wasn’t enough, the next part certainly was. After a hearty lunch we drove to a nearby town which has a great indoor swimming pool. Here we spent a couple of hours having a blast. In other words we used the facility to its fullest potential, flipping of the diving board, swimming marathon under water lengths and purely just messing around. A great treat for all the New Young explorers, maybe not as physical as the glacier climbing, but just as memorable.
Arriving back we sorted our gear and once that was done we inhaled another amazing evening meal. This however was only the start of the end of the day, this is where the presentations started. Presentations about how to do your own project or meeting and presentations about previous projects and expeditions. This was super informative and extremely interesting because it allowed us insight into the expeditions that the media/blogs would never be able to convey.
All in all we have to say that it was a productive, entertaining and exhilarating day, day 6, RAID is drawing near.
Blog :
Tom Van Maarseveen
Alizee Cugney
Yesterday evening we were given a breifing on what the conditions of today had in store for us and I think it is fair to say not one of us were prepared for what the experience that we had lined up.
As dawn broke on Château-d’Oex, we all had to somehow figure out how we were going to fit five layers of thermal clothing on our bodies to resist against the -35°c temperature along with the 60kph winds that come hand in hand with glacier Les Diablerets. We didnt know what to expect from a name like Les Diablerets which also meant «Devils Glacier », all we knew is that it towered over Château-d’Oex at 3000m altitude and was a mountain not to be reckoned with.
As we got to the base of the mountain and were given our mountaineering equipment, the cold really started to step in. We boarded the cable cars, which brought us to the top of the ski runs from where we began our ascent towards the summit of Les Diablerets. During the trip to the summit we experienced mountaineering at its finest form. Although it was tough in some aspects, it was well worth the climb due to the breathtaking landscape, the fresh Swiss air and the pleasure of group bonding.
For all of us, the view from the peak was unbelievable, really marvelled at the beautiful environment that surrounded us. As we descended from the glacier and got closer to the cable cars, we were faced with one last hike up the ski run. Turns out, the forcasted 60kph winds turned into 80kph and when compiled with the beyond freezing temperature we all were put to the test to push our limits.
Apart from freezing the majority of our apendiges, almost being blown off a ski run due to gale force winds.
In the evening after dinner, we attended a conference by none other than the shark expert himself, Michael Scholl, about sharks conservation and their behaviour which is commonly mistaken.
Overall the day was both physically and mentally challenging so we are off to bed to rest up for tomorrows excitement !
Before biting, tarantulas may signal their intention to attack by rearing up into a "threat posture", which may involve raising their prosoma and lifting their front legs into the air. Don't worry they have never killed humans, I'm still alive!
This morning when we set our feet outside the door, the cold hit us in the face like a wall ! We had a short run through the beautiful snow-clad streets of Château-d’Oex to an open field of snow. There we divided inti three teams, each person getting a harness. We did relay runs while dragging tyres behind us ! This was surprisingly challenging, seeing that most of us have never done this before ! We saw some good team spirit when some of the last runners pushed hard all the way to the end !
After (yet again) a good breakfast, one group started with the last of the Mayo Clinic tests, including stretching-, pulmonary-, balance- and Cooper tests. This was great to see how hard we can push ourselves mentally and physically ! The other group had a video course with Moose. We learnt so much about angles, voice work and cool things like exposure ! Each team got an assignment to make a video to promote PANGAEA on social networks etc. Each group’s video has to be creative and original, seeing that the staff will be voting for the best one !
While washing the dishes, we had the chance to listen to some of Mike’s stories on climbing mountains, how to survive the Amazon (mostly on crocodile that tastes like bad chicken) and how he met his entertaining Swiss friend ! We then headed off to learn more about the sustainability, systems and projects related to Geberit. We tried to find out as much as possible about the upcoming project in South Africa, but our attempts to get a sneak preview was fruitless ! Instead we learnt more about the projects in Kraljevo and India.
We started to prepare for our glacier trek tomorrow ! We checked to see whether our clothes is warm enough to withstand the predicted -35 degree temperatures ! Luckily we’ll have experts guiding us on our mission ! We received snow boots and backpacks and started to dance in celebratory fashion ! Being goos young adults, we decided to slow down and take part in an intense group stretching session ! It felt so good to relieve our painful muscles !
We are looking forward to tomorrow’s exploration ! Every day just keeps getting better ! We are off to bed now to get a good night’s rest before the big trek ! Boa noite !
We awoke nice and early and put on our layers, new headlamps, beanies, gloves and ventured into the -10 degree conditions for a “casual” run up a mountain. The run was challenging, with many of us running in the snow (and seeing snow!) for the first time. Due to the large snowfall, we couldn’t get to the very top, but were still extremely high, about a thousand metres above sea level. Running down was extremely exhilarating and the sun was just peeping up, revealing a gorgeous snow covered Chateau d’oex village. The views were just breathtaking.
Hungry from our morning run, we ate a hearty breakfast and went to our first session which was on social media and journalism. We delivered ‘elevator pitches’, learnt about speaking to media and using social media to spread the Pangaea message – so watch out for us in your local paper (and do ‘like’ Mike Horn and the Young Explorers Program on facebook!)
Next was lunch and following this was our session with much anticipated Mayo Clinic. We all had our blood pressure and heart rate measured and did the VO2 max test. We had to run and run, and run, on a treadmill until we reached a point of exhaustion. The elevation and speed kept increasing and we all pushed ourselves and encouraged each other to keep going. It was very challenging but extremely satisfying.
The final session for the day was from the Mayo Clinic, and we spent the evening working on our proposals for projects we want to implement during the Amazon expedition. It’s all very exciting and now we are about to head to bed, tired, exhausted but feeling very happy.
The Amazon estuary is some 325km (202 mi) wide. When I swam out into the mouth of the river, the only way I could tell I was in the Atlantic and no longer in the Amazon was by tasting the water. I will never forget the moment I tasted salt water for the first time after 6 months in sweet water.
After seeing the fresh coat of snow that blanketed Château-d’Oex overnight, we all hurried to put on our still-fresh running shoes to prepare for morning exercises. Together, we briskly walked through the village to a nearby gym, where our physical training began. This morning proved to be surprisingly exhausting! For about an hour, we did a series of sprints and exercise routines that ended with some difficult rope climbs. The combination of mountain air and early morning challenges left us very motivated for a large breakfast and the exciting day to come!
Next, we were introduced to the Mercedes-Benz team who informed us of the exciting ecological and technological advancements that they are making in the automobile industry. After receiving a brief presentation about some awesome alternative-fuel technology, we headed out into the winter wonderland to test the gear for ourselves! Although it takes most parents years before they trust their children with the family car, the four licensed YEPs were quickly entrusted with prototype technology that is insured for over half a million Euros! It took the drivers a couple of minutes to acclimate to this responsibility, but then we were able to enjoy a beautful, environmentally-friendly drive through the snowy mountainside. Some of the technology was so surprisingly silent that the drivers weren`t even sure that the vehicles were on!
Later on, we were given more thorough advice on how to reduce fuel consumption while driving all automobiles that we will surely use once we return from Selection Camp. By utilizing these tips during a second test-drive and comparing our fuel efficiency with the results of the original test-drive, we saw how effective these tips truly are! Rolling downhill, avoiding excessive braking, and maintainence of a constant speed allowed out drivers to increase average speed, decrease fuel comsumption, and decrease travel time.
In the afternoon, we learned about how to successfully use photography to spread ecological messages. Since pictures really can be worth a thousand words, they can be much more powerful when trying to recruit the public to join a worthy cause. Finally, representatives from the Mayo Clinic informed us of the comprehensive physical tests that they will be performing on us in the coming days, which left everybody eager to get some sleep!