From climbing up mountains to jumping off them
Algeria has just opened its doors to visa on arrival. This gave us the perfect opportunity to explore the desert in the South. Although the check-in counter at Geneva airport had never heard of our type of visa we had no trouble making it to our final destination of Djanet. The internal flight across the desert was 4 hours long, which really gave us the scale of this huge country. Algeria is 90% desert and is the largest country in Africa.
We sat on top of our sleds waiting for our train, which was now 5 hours late. Staring across the tracks at the landscape. A man-made mountain of spoil. Kiruna is a mining town and everything here revolves around the iron ore mines. This was the reason for our late train. A mining carriage took priority of the single track and we had been waiting for it to pass, slowly watching the sun set over the black artificial mountain. It was -10 and we were well within the arctic circle – an imaginary line that shows the extent of 24 hour sun and 24 hour darkness.
Read moreDawn is just breaking in over the horizon. Zohre is perched on a limestone ledge, hanging out over the abyss, tethered to the wall with an anchor. As I take a photo she is painting her nails. It’s not a vain plight for the instagram followers but a sign of liberty. Out in the mountains she can show her personality. The mountains for most offer freedom, but for Zohre it’s freedom in the most literal sense. The mountains are a place where she can dance, put on her lipstick and wear the clothes that express herself as an individual, such things would be frowned upon in the cities.
Three years ago, a single picture took me halfway around the world. It was a picture of the cliffs surrounding Lake Michaelson on Mount Kenya. A lone figure stood on the edge of the cliff, looking down to the dark inky lake. Aptly named ‘The Temple’, these towering yellow cliffs became my fixation, and I wanted to make the pilgrimage there. I managed to BASE jump from the same spot in the photo. After the jump I looked further up the mountain to the great peaks of Batian and Nelion. This would be my new goal. Two years later i returned. The goal was to be the first person to wingsuit in Kenya; but the experience soon became about much more than just the jump. I got to know my team, explore the grand massif, and learn about the community and my own limits.
A powerful easterly wind rips up the great sand dune. It takes with it the desert heat and animates the sand into a frenzy, blasting my face. I have travelled with my wife halfway around the world in search of flight and by chance have met up with our African friends.
Tonsai is a paradise. Even with the whole world crumbling around us. Anxiety had hit the climbers in Tonsai. Last minute flights were booked in fear of being locked out of their own country. Apart from the wifi connection updating us with the progress of the virus, we were isolated. Disconnected from the world. Instead we spent our time focusing on the moves on a route or meticulously packing our parachutes.
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The Proposal
EWA: Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. I was finishing gearing up while Tim was putting the camera on a tripod. Aiming to capture the minutes before our first jump from Table Mountain. So there he was, approaching me; getting closer to the edge of the cliff where I was standing. He had a strange look on his face. He started speaking, with his voice shaking slightly and eyes weirdly glassed. Then I knew he was about to propose! He told me that he wants to spend the rest of his life with me, and that he was never so sure of anything in his life. He knelt on one knee and asked. “Will you marry me?”
A recce is seldom wasted, a phrase I have abided by ever since hearing it 10 years ago whilst serving as a Royal Marine. In this case it was no exception. We came to establish relationships with the locals, to set up a suitable camp and locate the access for the climb as well as landing for a potential BASE jump.
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I was dropped off at the Mozambique/Malawi border by a three strong gang of motorbike riders – I had a lot of kit. Behind the haze huge granite domes loomed in the distance, a seemingly endless amount of granite. I was surprised how swiftly my visa was issued but before both feet left the room I was ushered back in to see a ministry of health representative. After much rustling of papers he mentioned my paperwork wasn’t in order, but five dollars would fix this problem.
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Growing up I was surrounded by sailing. I would walk to nursery along the foreshore listening to the cables slapping against the masts. But while my friends grew up to become national champions and presidents of the local clubs, I instead looked up to the mountains. On ski holidays I would gaze up at the snowy summits and wish to climb them without the use of lifts. As a christening present a family friend promised me a set of sailing waterproofs when I came of age, and on my 21st birthday he reminded me of this offer. Instead I asked for a contribution towards my first parachute.
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