The Next Challenge

Tag: Patagonia

  • Masochism?

    —

    by

    Tim Moss
    in

    Mine and Laura’s different reactions to the hardships in Patagonia made me wonder if I was some kind of masochist… After the tough two days at the start of our trip, we resolved that no subsequent days should be as long. Well, they may have been reduced in length between Chalten and Tres Lagos but…

  • Adventurous, Not Arduous

    —

    by

    Laura Moss
    in

    Laura’s reflections after another difficult stretch down south: With aching shoulders and throbbing feet, today I spent several hours pondering the question of hardship on expeditions. I understand that suffering means the ultimate goal is much sweeter and that in hindsight, pain will seem a mere inconvenience – indeed, my memories of the Carretera Austral…

  • 400 Metres

    —

    by

    Tim Moss
    in

    This is a piece I wrote after our route in South America joined a popular trail: Because our route today took in part of a relatively popular walk, we have the luxury of an information sheet containing times, distances, descriptions and, notably, an ascent profile. This showed a steep 400-metre ascent over a short distance.…

  • What’s the Point?

    —

    by

    Laura Moss
    in

    Long days slogging next to a road have Laura questioning the purpose of our South America trip… Don’t get me wrong, I love expeditions – whatever that term means. I love a physical challenge, feeling my body become harder and tougher and pushing myself both physically and mentally. I love being outside, followering the natural…

  • An English Concern with Manners

    —

    by

    Tim Moss
    in

    Here are two forgotten diary entries from the start of our trip to South America. Forgotten because we couldn’t find the diary at the time so Laura wrote them on some scraps of paper which got mislaid. This is a description of our New Year’s Eve: Last night was pretty wild. We started with wine…

  • Hitching Along the Carretera Austral

    —

    by

    Tim Moss
    in

    These two entries come after a long period of travel in an attempt to reach the west coast of Chile. Laura first: Dusty clothes, sandpaper throat, gritty eyes. Thirsty. Sun-induced headache, hurts to move. Thirsty. Listless torpor punctuated only by brief spells of action as we drag ourselves up to flag down the infrequent vehicles. Heavy…

  • Out of My Depth but Swimming Strong

    —

    by

    Tim Moss
    in

    This is something I wrote shortly after reaching Patagonia last month: From Rio De Janeiro to Buenos Aires and Comodoro Rivadavia, things have gotten stranger. Big cities the world over have many similarities as a result of increasing globalisation but the further out you get, the more the differences start to show. From the little…

  • The Light at the End of the Tunnel

    —

    by

    Tim Moss
    in

    Our diary entries one week before departure for South America. This is what Laura wrote (probably at her desk): Christmas is coming and Patagonia preparations are going well. Parcels containing shiny new kit arrive at work almost every day, and every spare moment is spent planning the trip. The contrast between my working life and…

  • This Life of Uncertainty and Wandering

    —

    by

    Tim Moss
    in

    In Patagonia, Laura and I each kept a diary. Instead of just documenting the events of the day, we took the opportunity to write a brief reflection/pondering around an idea that the journey had sparked. We wrote a couple of entries before we departed for which the brief was to write 200 words on the…

  • What It’s Like

    —

    by

    Tim Moss
    in

    The wind buffets me from behind and I continue to stumble forward in the heat. Twenty kilograms of rucksack crush down on each shoulder. It is not an unbearable weight but it means that everything requires extra effort. Everything, like, thinking, smiling, suppressing sobs and trying not to be sick. I lean forward to transfer…

  • Back from South America

    —

    by

    Tim Moss
    in

    I’ve just got back from Patagonia. The normal blogging schedule will now resume. In a nutshell down south, we spent close to a week making our way to the Pacific coast, followed by a week and a half of hard walking, then about the same amount of time doing some more relaxed exploration. Getting to…

  • Across the Waste Lands

    Across the Waste Lands

    —

    by

    Tim Moss
    in

    The route we have followed so far has either been popular – in the case of the last few days through the mountains – or at least a necessary leg of a journey – in the case of our march to Villa O´Higgins. But ask anyone about the territory to the east and you get…