YEP 6 Camp Mongolia Day 10
Day 10 – Blog written by Martin and Rebecca
The last 48 hrs have been a concentrated dose of emotions, action and tons of fun – an awesome end to the greatest experience of our lives!
The "Raid", the legendary 30 hours challenge through the Swiss Alps, that includes Hiking, Cycling, Via Ferrata, Team-work Exercises, Kayaking and Flying Fox (to mention a few), took place as a finishing challenge to our intense week. We were divided into two groups of 8, were given a map, compass and co-ordinates of the check points, and were set free in the wild. It was extremely hard for some of us and we had to try our best to push our selves to our limits. We discovered a whole new level of exhaustion, both physically and mentally. One of the main factors we learnt was how important group support and team-work is. When you are biking at 2am in the morning, wet and cold after summiting a 2160m mountain, having people around you who support you is vital to push you to your max. All we thought about was that we had to go on and not give up.
Our day started at 00:00 in the Alps, hiking in the rain, trying to get to the camp as soon as possible. We were not allowed to sleep anywhere else and if we arrived too late we wouldn't have enough time to sleep and recover . We arrived at the camp site at 3am carrying 15 hours non-stop exercise on every muscle of our body. After a fantastic 3 hours sleep and a quick delicious breakfast we were ready to go! The final day of the Raid started by kayaking to the next check point where we had to get on our foots again and started the last 6 hrs of the challenge. Finally both groups arrived with hurting feet and blisters at the Hotel de Ville around 4 o'clock in the afternoon. After all the effort the satisfaction of knowing that we pushed each other through all the way made everything worth it.
All in all this has been a great experience – we have gone from frustration to shouting with joy thousands of times. We learnt a lot about the environment, team work, and ourselves. Struggling through the elements (sun, snow, thunder showers and wind) truly gives one an opportunity to reflect on everything and find yourself within your environment.
We learned a lot about teamwork, including the fact that a group is only as fast as the slowest person. We got to know to our individual limits and our friendship grew stronger and stronger, since we had to trust each other and work hand-in-hand. We have been welcomed into and truly feel a part of the Pangaea Family. We all gave our best and enjoyed the ten days endlessly. We now know that our presence here demands responsibility to show the rest of the world what Pangaea is really about.
It's not about being selected for an expedition, it's about working together and believing we can make a change. We would all like to thank the Mike Horn Team for these ten days, for giving us the chance to live an experience that we will remember for life! Thank you!!