Knapsack Treks Book Review by Chan Joon Yee

Silk Dreams, Troubled Road by Jonny Bealby

This is not just a story about an exotic adventure on the Silk Road. It is a brutally honest tell-all that reveals quite a bit more of the deeper, darker thoughts and feelings of the writer than what the average romantic adventurer would.
Jonny Bealby was contemplating an adventure travel business in Islamabad, Pakistan when he met Rachel, the woman of his dreams. The whirlwind romance brought on an idea. Bealby planned to travel across Central Asia from Kashgar to the Caspian Sea with his love on horseback. Then, he got dumped and his whole world came crashing down. The dream would have remained a dream but word of his planned trip got out and Beably was pleasantly surprised by the offer he received from Lion TV.

Bealby needed a companion. She had to be adventurous, ride well and also keep the audience wondering if they had sex on the trip. He thought Sarah was the most suitable simply by virtue of the fact that she loved his books and met him at a pub even before the advertisement came out. Sarah had confessed that she had a boyfriend but insisted that it was not going to be a problem. Most of the people advising Bealby deduced that her willingness to go on such a long trip with a male stranger was a strong sign that her relationship was almost over.

Their journey started in Pakistan and the pair ran into all sorts of delays from landslides and cancelled flights. By the time they reached Kashgar, Bealby noticed that Sarah was already “on her own”, spending a lot of time emailing her friends back home. After a wrestle with the Chinese authorities, they bought their horses at the animal bazaar and drove them to the border with their health certificates. Bealby chose a horse called Kara which turned out to be another reminder of his poor choices. More than once, Bealby ran into serious problems when his horse performed poorly on the snowy passes. Worse, he noticed that Sarah seemed to be drifting further and further from him. She refused to share a tent with him and was more interested to flirt with their gold-toothed guide Murat than concentrate on the filming. She also completely ignored him when he faced problems caused by a bad horse.

From the mountains, the pair descended into the plains and valleys. They had much fewer problems with the elements, but the people and the bureacracy frustrated them. Anyone who could help them seemed to be out to fleece them. The next horse Bealby picked was no better than the first. Sarah seemed to be drifting further and further from him. In an outburst, she confessed that she missed her boyfriend and was homesick. Bealby declared the trip a disaster. Worst of all, the first batch of tapes they sent home was strongly criticised by producer at Lion TV. A lot of the problems they had avoided filming were too obviously missing from the story.

On top of that, their money was stolen when they got drunk at a wedding. Images of the beautiful mountains, the steppes, the exotic, historical cities, the deserts and Heavenly Horses they were riding towards the end didn’t matter anymore. This was the stark reality of going on such an ambitious expedition. On their last leg heading towards the Caspian Sea, they were both virtually crying into their camera, wanting to get out more than anything else. The film was rejected by Lion TV and BBC, but Discovery Channel bought it. Back home, Bealby and Sarah met up and were deeply apologetic towards each other, but they also seemed to have had enough of each other for the rest of their lives. Would things have been very different if Bealby had gone on the trip with Rachel or any of the other seemingly less suitable girls he interviewed? Nobody knows for sure. Many of us have gone on long trips or started businesses with our best friends, only to return as enemies.

Knapsack Treks Book Review by Chan Joon Yee

Singapore To Beijing On A Bike by Khoo Swee Chiow

Singapore’s best known adventurer is at it again. This time, he’s not climbing a big peak, going to the Poles or staying submerged to break some world record. He’s cycling more than 8000km from Singapore to Beijing. According to Khoo, the idea was hatched when he was joining a group of cyclists on a 10-day ride in Malaysia to raise funds for a project. Since then, he had been contemplating the possibility of cycling all the way from Singapore to Beijing.
Then, one of his major projects - to sail around the world non-stop, came to a halt when his main sponsor pulled out. SARS hit Singapore and Khoo faced a lawsuit for failing to complete the purchase of the boat which he had intended to sail in. Depressed, Khoo managed to focus on something positive. That bike ride to Beijing.

With the SARS pandemic coming to an end and the eagerness of various parties to sponsor the event to put all the finger-pointing between China and Singapore behind them, Khoo planned his trip meticulously. He found a partner Amos who would support him on a 4WD. Then, his wife got pregnant, but she didn’t stop him from going on the trip. She only made him promise to be back to witness the birth of their second child, thus setting a time limit for his trip.

What follows is an on-the-road, every few days account of the journey. Starting at Suntec City, Khoo made it to KL on the 4th day and conveniently stopped over to autograph his books. Crossing the border into Thailand on the 9th day, Khoo broke the 1000km mark on his bike. On Day 17, he arrived at the capital. His wife was there to greet him. Khoo then pedalled northeast towards Isaan and the Lao border in Nong Khai.

Khoo crossed the border into Laos on Day 25. His route cut through a thin strip of Laos to enter Vietnam on Day 28. That was where Vietnamese red tape separated him from his partner, Amos. They managed to “enter the Dragon” on Day 34.

Then, it’s more pedalling into Guangxi, Guangdong and Fujian, Khoo’s ancestral home. Khoo went in search of his roots, got reunited with his relatives, stayed briefly in Yongchun and off he went again, reaching Shanghai on Day 59. By then, winter was approaching, Khoo struggled with the freezing cold. Crisis struck in Tianjin on Day 71 when the 4WD died on them. It only had 150km to go. Reluctantly, they abandoned the 4WD and let Amos and their liason officer, Shino travel into Beijing on a taxi. The next crisis to hit them was a serious case of food poisoning. Khoo prayed hard and forced himself to complete the final leg of the trip.

He made it into Beijing on Day 73. He received a hero’s welcome, appeared in the local papers and quickly flew back to see his wife.

I think Khoo accomplished a remarkable feat by cycling more than 8000km to Beijing. However, the story itself is not remarkable because it’s basically a touch and go experience. Frankly, I did not follow Khoo’s progress when his trip was ongoing in 2003. If I had, the breaking news would have been interesting. I only saw this book in the stores in 2007. In this form, the story is somewhat mundane as the subject is not timeless. It would have been a far better read if Khoo didn’t have the time limit that forced him to zip through places like Laos. But what is more ironic is that the traveller who goes to these places on motor transport would have seen and experienced a lot more in these countries given more than 70 days to explore them. It’s an impressive feat, but the story lacks depth.

Knapsack Treks Book Review by Chan Joon Yee

Surviving The Extremes by Kenneth Kalmer

For those unfamiliar with the author, Kenneth Kalmer was the only doctor on Mt Everest during the 1996 tragedy. This book touches on human physiology and how we adapt to and tolerate extremes in environmental conditions. It contains valuable information with which every adventurer should be acquainted. Though it is written for the layman, this is certainly not the kind of book you can read just before going to sleep. It’s pretty heavy on scientific principles.
Dr Kalmer begins with the jungle environment, namely the Amazon forest and swamps. Though heat exhaustion can be a problem here, most of the hazards of this environment seem to come from the denizens of the jungle. Survivors in this environment need to keep a constant lookout for the anopheles mosquito (malaria), black caiman, anaconda, venomous snakes, poisonous frogs and caterpillars, schisto worm (liver parasite), stingray, electric eel and a most interesting creature called the candiru. This is actually a very tiny catfish which has a great affinity for salt. When an animal urinates under water, this tiny creature will follow the stream of urine and lodge itself in the animal’s urethra. Surgery is required to remove it.

Ironically, the jungle is also a natural pharmacy that provides medicines to heal the sick as well as poisons for blowdart hunting. No wonder people still live there.

The next hostile environment is the open sea – endless stretches of water, not a drop of which can keep the castaway’s body hydrated. Dr Kalmer gives many examples of how castaways survive. The world record is held by Chinese sailor Poon Lim, who drifted on a raft for 130 days without supplies. He collected rain water and used a spring in his torch to catch fish. Methods thought up by other survivors include using improvised solar-powered stoves to distill seawater. The physiology of salt intake, dehydration and starvation are presented along with some coverage on cannibalism at sea.

The scorching desert is an even more hostile environment that causes heat exhaustion, dehydration and starvation to set in even more rapidly. Dr Kalmer explains in detail how the body regulates temperature and maintains a constant internal environment. He also explains how this system can break down under extreme external temperature and dehydration. Death occurs with the loss of 15-20 litres of body fluids. However, defying the limits of human physiology, is one Mauro Prosperi, who claimed to have survived for 9 days in the desert without any water.

Diving medicine is a very big topic by itself, but Dr Kalmer gives us the essentials on what happens to the body during free diving, the mechanics of SCUBA as well as the causes of decompression sickness. As with the other environments, many examples of diving accidents along with a microscopic view of what went on inside the victims’ bodies are presented.

High altitude medicine is one area where Dr Kalmer has the most firsthand experience. Bringing out actual situations he encountered on Himalayan expeditions, the author presents a flowing account of Himalayan expeditions alongside an “insiders’” view of the characters’ bodies. The mechanics of AMS (acute mountain sickness), HAPE (high altitude pulmonary edema), HACE (high altitude cerebral edema) and frostbite are neatly woven into the story. Dr Kalmer even proposes a somewhat controversial evolutionary advantage that the Sherpas may have over other people. Even more surprising but factually indisputable, is his mention of the “miraculous” survival of Beck Weathers and Pasang Sherpa.

The final chapter is really out of this world – space adventure. Space is the ultimate hostile environment combining extreme cold, extreme heat, vacuum and cosmic radiation from which the human body must be almost completely insulated. Topics covered include the physiological effects of G force and zero gravity. Also mentioned are research projects into building self-sufficient spacecrafts for interplanetary exploration. Interesting hypothetical situations are presented and Dr Kalmer manages not to bore the reader with his wit and humour.

a winter ascent of Island Peak at “Sherpa speed” by Chan Joon Yee, dedicated to the late Jason Ho

The Challenger

Name: Chan Joon Yee

Nationality: Singaporean

Born: 1-3-1964

Alpine Experience: climbed Mera Peak (6476m) in 10 days, descended into Hongu Valley, crossed Amphu Laptsa (5845m) into Khumbu Valley, trekked to Kala Patar and returned to Lukla on Day 18.

Latest major challenge: solo unsupported Old Elephant Trail expedition from Mae Hong Son to Samoeng in Northern Thailand December 2003.

——————————————————————————–

When I say that I miss Nepal, I probably mean that I’ve forgotten all about the urine, rubbish and cow dung on the streets. I definitely remember the beautiful mountains and monasteries, the fragrant curries, teas and aromatic spices.

The last time I had any close connection with the Himalayas was back in 2003 when I organised a climb of Mera Peak which I summited back in May 2000. That was when I was still a swinging single. I’m now a father of 2 boys and I run a practice at Orchard Road where the rentals seem to tick away like a taxi meter. That’s why I’ve decided to make this trip as short as possible. I’d have to trek and climb at “Sherpa speed” so my boys won’t miss me too much and I won’t be paying my landlord too many days’ rental without working. Here’s my intended itinerary. I don’t mean to show off. It’s just that I simply cannot afford the time for a more leisurely climb.

Day 1
Fly in to Kathmandu

Day 2
Fly in to Lukla, breakfast at Lukla, lunch at Phakding, dinner at Namche

Day 3
Namche (B), Tengboche (L,D)

Day 4
Tengboche (B), Chukung (L,D)

Day 5
Rest day

Day 6
Chukung (B), Island Peak Base Camp (L, D)

Day 7
B.C. (B), High Camp (L, D)

Day 8
H.C. (B), B.C. (L), Chukung (D)

Day 9
Chukung (B), Tengboche (L), Namche (D)

Day 10
Namche (B), Lukla (L,D)

Day 11
Fly back to Kathmandu (2 spare days)

Day 14
Fly back to Singapore

Crucial to the success of this expedition is hypoxic training. I not only need to be physically trained and prepared, I also need to be physiologically prepared by pre-acclimatising to the altitude. For this, I’ve designed a homemade hypoxicator. It’s a very simple device built at a total cost of less than $30. The most expensive item is probably the breathing mask. You can save on that if you don’t mind breathing through your mouth. The principle is very simple. You rebreathe air from a sealed air reservoir and the oxygen level keeps dropping. A box of sodium hydroxide placed inside the air reservoir absorbs your expired carbon dioxide. The lack of oxygen simulates hypoxia at altitude and stimulates acclimatisation. Sounds good in theory.

I’ll let everyone know if it works after this expedition. Pre-acclimatisation is extremely useful if high altitude tourism is to be promoted to busy Singaporeans. Most Himalayan trips are impossible for working people in Singapore because of the length of time needed for acclimatisation. Apart from hypoxic training, I also believe that there are herbal supplements and training shortcuts that can give the knowledgeable an edge. I’ve already discovered some tips and tricks in this area.

I think it would be a lie to say that I won’t feel proud of myself for accomplishing such a difficult task. I wish I still have that condescending email someone (thinking that I don’t even know what AMS is) sent me. It would be sweet if I can announce my success to him. For his sake, I may brag a little. Wish me luck. Flip to the next page for some cool 3D pics of the route I’ll take.

I’m back at Namche again. Let recap on the unbelievable events over
past few days.

Day 1 Lukla to Monjo
Day 2 Monjo to Namche
Day 3 Namche to Pangboche (an ascent of 500m)
Day 4 Pangboche to Chukung (an ascent of 800m)
Day 5 Chukung to base camp
Day 6 supposed to be summit day, but would you believe it, my
climbing boots broke into pieces just as I was preparing to hit the
snow at 1.30am.

We had some problems finding enough propane canisters at Namche.
That got sorted out. We moved at lightning speed. On day 4, the
altitude gain would have been fatal to most mere mortals. Obviously
my hypoxicator worked. I did have some mild headache and loss of
appetite, but they went away after a night’s rest.

Base camp gave me some idea of what would happen if hell freezes
over. Everything in my tent was frozen. A right of ice crystals
gather around my sleeping bag. They came from my breath. I shivered
for hours waiting for the time to depart for the summit. Everything
was ready. The weather was not too bad, I was feeling well and just
as I was about to put on my climbing boots, I found it difficult to
squeeze my feet inside. When I finally squeezed my feet in and
started waking, the plastic layer started cracking. My guide and I
examine the most curious phenomenon and decided that the boots would
not survive at 6000m.

I literally froze in my steps. The decision was simple. I either
aborted the climb or risk frostbite - or worse. Reluctantly, I
turned back. I was angry at first, but realised that nobody was to
blmae. Maybe Guru Rinpoche just didn’t want me to climb that
mountain that day. Anyway, I think my guide was probably the most
relieved person. My attempt to be the first non-Sherpa to do a
winter ascent of Island Peak had failed, but I also relised that the
Sherpas themselves are not too keen on such challenges. The biggest
success is probably my hypoxicator which definitely works wonders
for pre-trip acclimatisation. I need to do more research and refine
my crude prototype.

Well, I’m back in Namche and will be trekking to Lukla tomorrow. Day
after that, I’ll fly back to Kathmandu.

A very happy Chinese New Year to everyone. I think the most
appropriate wish would be “bu bu gao sheng”

Check out pics at Flickr

http://www.flickr.com/photos/knapsack/sets/72157613218596727/