The Next Challenge

Tag: Stories

  • Cycling in Rajasthan

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    by

    Laura Moss
    in

    We wake at dawn and move quickly to beat the crowds and the heat. The village is already alive and our friends from the previous night have gathered to see us off. After the obligatory photos, we roll out of town, facing the desert and the day ahead. This is not the wild, desolate landscape…

  • A Night with an Orthodox Monk

    A Night with an Orthodox Monk

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    by

    Tim Moss
    in

    Let me this morning share with you a story about a monk, two ice creams and some fish. [divide] The evening was warm and the roads wide. A pregnant sun hung low in the sky. The morning’s mountain ascent – autumnal forests, bear warnings, vacant ski resorts – had been followed by an afternoon’s free…

  • Where Yes Means No: Albania

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    by

    Tim Moss
    in

    Croatia left us with a final flourish in the form of Marko. Dubrovnik had unleashed a series of hills on our weary legs that day and as the sun lowered, the road rose away from us, never ending in its winding ascent. We knew it was close but I’m not sure what first gave it…

  • Subtle Contradictions of Expedition Life

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    by

    Tim Moss
    in

    Below are Laura’s and my own diary entries, respectively, after our first day of walking in Patagonia: We wake around 7am and pack up the tent with few words. We walk, enjoying the morning peace and our rested legs. Before an hour is up, I feel a flash of irritation – at the incessant flies,…

  • Zombie State

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    by

    Laura Moss
    in

    Laura writes about our first few, hard days’ walking along the Carretera Austral: The last two days were tough. While they were happening, we were in a zone, a single-minded, zombie state focused only on walking nearly 100km in two days to make our ferry. Now finished, the lowest points stand out in stark relief.…

  • Adventurous, Not Arduous

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    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

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    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?

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    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…

  • Hitching Along the Carretera Austral

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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…