Saturday morning saw a handful of volunteers arriving at Rietvallei Secondary School in Krugersdorp with the single aim of doing some good in their community.  These volunteers then joined forces with the school pupils and various facilitators to plant vegetable gardens at the school, to help sustain the school’s food program. 

This event was organized by the Pangaea Food Gardening Project, which is a satellite project of the Pangaea Young Explorers Program, whereby young adults from across the globe get the chance to join the South African born explorer Mike Horn on various expeditions as he makes his way from continent to continent during the Pangaea Expedition, a four year environmental expedition around the world.  These Young Explorers are then sent back into their own communities and encouraged to continue with the goal of Pangaea and promote a sustainable way of living among their families, peers and others around them.

This is how the Pangaea Food Gardening Project came into being, as nineteen year old Carlien Wolmarans from South Africa and sixteen year old Simon Straetker from Germany decided to work together and launch a project of their own.  With the help from various Young Explorers and the Mike Horn team, they were able to raise the necessary funds.  From here they collaborated with Food and Trees for Africa, who were able to secure all the plant material and provide expert advice, as well as training for the children.

The day started at 09:00 with a cleanup of the immediate area, as the school grounds were so well kept it only took a few minutes before the real work could start.  Soon every hand was wielding a tool as these young adults worked side-by-side in the lazy winter sun.  Spirits were high as the saying that many hands make light work was proven correct. Within hours the stark landscape was transformed into the promising mounds with its precious cargo. Within a few weeks the school will be able to boast with a menu including lettuce, cabbage, Chinese cabbage, spinach and various fruits and herbs.

The day ended around lunchtime, and the fun continud over a well-earned meal. Armed with a new and very important skill, these young adults are motivated and equipped to continue on the example set by the Pangaea Food Gardening Project.

This project will continue with the planting of vegetable gardens at Just One Child Orphanage in Rietvallei on the 14th of August and an Arbor Week event at Rietvallei Secondary School on the 7th of September, which will include the planting of Spring vegetables and various trees.

For further information, feel free to contact Carlien Wolmarans

Unfortunately weather was not in Mike and Kobi's favour and they have decided not to make an attempt to summit K2.

Since reaching the summit of Broad Peak the two friends decided to head quickly to the basecamp of K2 and be ready to summit if the weather was obliging. It wasn't and the weather conditions gradually declined with very strong winds and heavy snow falls passing the region over the last few days.

After two months in the Himalayas Mike and Kobi decided that it was time to return back to civilistation, Kobi to Switzerland and Mike to Singapore to join his crew on Pangaea where he can prepare the next steps of the Pangaea Expedition.

Mike ans Kobi are a little disappointed not to make one summit attempt on the mighty K2 but they are happy to have been the first climbers to have summited Broad Peak in 2010.

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17.07.2010 – Pakistan. At 2am local time Pakistan, South African Explorer Mike Horn and Swiss mountain guide/alpinist Köbi Reichen reach the summit of Broad Peak without the use of additional oxygen.

"The climb was a tough one due to the large amount of snow that has fallen this year. For three weeks, Köbi and I have been waiting at base camp, ready and eager to attempt the summit. It was important that we waited for the quantities of snow to come down in recent avalanches and for a 30hr fine weather window. Patience is not one of my greatest strengths", says Mike, "but when in the mountains it is important to stick to the rules otherwise Nature will not reward us with this magnificent victory."

Mike and Köbi left Broad Peak base camp at 5'000m and climbed to the summit quickly in alpine style, stopping at Camp 3 (7'100m) for 6 hours before doing the summit push to 8'047m. 

Mike Horn's last steps to the summit were done in the memory of Jean-philippe Chatrier, journalist and ghost writer of Mikes four publications; 'Latitude Zero', 'Conquering the Impossible', 'À l'école du Grand Nord' and 'Objectif: Pôle Nord de Nuit'. "It was extremely sad news to hear about Jean-Philippe's sudden death. I took my last steps to the summit for Jean-Philippe. Over the years we developed a great understanding and friendship. He was much loved by myself and my family. I will miss him dearly when writing my next book."

FACTS

Mike Horn, a relative newcomer to the alpine world, climbed his first 8'000m peaks in 2007, Gasherbrum I (8068m) and Gasherbrum II (8035m) with team members Jean Troillet, Fred Roux and Olivier Roduit. Broad Peak is the third 8'000m summit he has now reached without additional oxygen.

Kobi Reichen, Alpinist and extreme skier from Lauenen in the canton of Bern, Switzerland, has many achievements to his name. The ascent of Broad Peak now brings his 8'000m summit climbs to five; a solo ascent of Cho Oyu 8201m, Shisha Pagma 8046m (South Face- up and down 19 hours), Makalu 8486m, Kangchenzonga 8592m (new route from 7400m) and Mt Everest South Summit at 8'749m. All ascents were made without additional oxygen.

Broad Peak is part of the Gasherbrum massif on the border of Pakistan and China. It is located about 8 kilometers (5 miles) from K2. Broad Peak was originally named K3 right after the naming of K2 but on closer inspection by a later party, it was discovered that the summit was over 1½ kilometers (1 mile) long, thus "Broad Peak".

16th of July – Mike and Köbi make a third attempt of Broad Peak summit.

The weather has once again cleared and conditions will remain stable for around 30 hrs – the time necessary to summit Broad Peak and descend once again to base camp.

Some other teams are also attempting the summit today so this should be to Mike and Köbi's advantage if they encounter deep snow conditions as they have previously.

It is Mike's birthday today!! Won't it be day to remember if he actually makes the summit!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MIKE and GOOD LUCK TO YOU BOTH FOR THE SUMMIT!!!!

13th of July – Mike sends news from Broad Peak

We had a very interesting 2nd attempt to the summit of Broad Peak. Although we did not make it all the way up because of very strong winds and a lot of fresh deep snow that tapped our energy, we were happy with our performance on one side but very disappointed on the other.

To turn around 200m from the summit is a very difficult but a very important decision to make. The rubicon or 'point of no return' we all so often reach in our life were from then on you have to live with the consequences of your decision. You grow with experience and knowledge and make the right decision the next time around.

We have been waiting in base camp for 4 days since our last attempt and the more we look at the film and photos we took up there, we realise we are happy that we are down at basecamp and that we can attempt a 3rd summit push. We have been the first this year to try for the summit and with the amount of snow on the mountain we have to change our game plan.

Before we climbed from basecamp to camp 2 non-stop at 6300m had something to eat and drink in our tent, and from there tried a return trip to the summit at 8000m and back to base camp. Now we have decided to climb from bace camp to camp 3 non-stop at 7100m, rerst for 4 to 5 hours and leave at 1am to the last summit push and return to base camp.

We will look at the weather today and if all goes well, we'll make the next attempt on the 15th or 16th of July.

Best regards

Mike and Kobi.

09.07.2010 – What disappointment for Mike and Kobi when they had to abandon their second attempt to reach the summit of Broad Peak.

"We had to turn back after reaching 7'900m of altitude. Once again the deep snow made it impossible for us to advance. What a struggle it was! We are just two people which makes it very tough. If we were a bigger team we would have more people available to share the hard work of opening the path through the snow.

We are both very disappointment but the mountain just wasn't ready. We certainly don't want to give up yet. We hope the weather will give us another chance and the next time the mountain will be ready for us!! After 32 hours non-stop walking we are ready for a much needed rest. Will send you the photos soon!"

MIke

8th of July – The long awaited weather window that Mike and Köbi have been waiting for has finally come! Four clear days have been forecasted for the Kakaroum Valley Region, giving our eager alpinists the chance to attempt the summit of Broad Peak.

At 6 o'clock this morning Mike and Köbi finally put on their climbing gear and left base camp. Within four hours they had reached Base Camp 2 at 6'300m. After an eight hour wait they will head off again and start the ascent to the summit.

We expect to hear more news from Mike and Köbi arounf 6 -7pm local time (10pm Swiss) prior to their departure from the summit.

We'll keep you updated on their progress!!

Karma Konsum 2010 – ‘A new spirit in business.

Have you ever heard about LOHAS? Maybe you are one without knowing it. LOHAS stands for 'Lifestyle of health and sustainability' and describes people who try to "do good with their money" by buying the right products, which are organic, fair, green and socially acceptable. They want to show a good "consumerism" that can change the world. So have you ever met LOHAS? We have – on the ‘Karma Konsum 2010’ day.

Funnily the conference is at the "Börsenplatz" in Frankfurt, the old stock market. At first glance you see people in wide trousers, natural colours and even turbans. As the word ‘karma’ already suggests, these kind of consumers are not only eating with their mouth but also with their mind. So don't be surprised by people meditating in front of the stock exchange symbols while in the background people are bombing down the road quietly with electric vehicles.

Another part of the conference (besides the workshops given inside) are the latest bikes, scooters and cars that are waiting to be test driven in front of this ancient building.

I was there to tell people about the Mercedes F-Cell car and the Pangaea project. Many people are interested in the car and just want to buy it immediately. You hear similar questions all over the day: Is this a gas car? When will it be released? Is it really emission-free? Why are you so late with this?

Myself, Simon and Rebecca were invited to attend this important day, to represent the Pangaea Expedition and answer the questions that came from an inquisitive public. We got into interesting dialogues. We realized that it is really important to sensitize people about this new kind of technology and to make them conscious towards the future of the planet and the responsibility towards future generations. We told people about the Pangaea Young Explorers Program and explained how Pangaea’s Environmental project and Mercedes work together.

We, the young generation favor new technology but criticize it at the same time. For example; we say that it's still too expensive and the question of producing hydrogen and supplying people with a good infrastructure is a problem that is not solved yet.

As young consumers and responsible consumers we have the right to say what we want. Because of this it is important to met people from other industries, from all kind of countries, Australia to China, and all walks of life.

We tried to share our imagination and present our cause the best way we could. We told kids about Pangaea and encouraged them to join. We asked young adults and others to tell their children, nieces and nephews, grandchildren and anyone else they knew about the Pangaea Expedition and it’s mission. Why? Because Pangaea is open for everyone and is working towards a positive future for our Planet. We need to ensure that research towards technology improvement gets continued support as we know that this emission-free mobility hasn't reached it's break-even point yet and still features some teething problems.

In the end, Emission-Free Technology will become eco-friendly and favorable for all of us, the consumers.

An eco friendly future should not be a question of money but should be free for everyone – this was the number one concern throughout the day.