Shakedown trip and final preparations

Rob and I arrived in Coyhaique (Coy aye kay) 6 days ago and have spent 4 of those days camping in the vicinity of a road pass at Cerro Castille in the company of Ben from the Patagonia Mountaineering School. We had beautiful clear and cold weather with scarcely a whisper of wind to interrupt our revision of mountaineering skills and discussions about what to expect on our trip.

We went through avalanche beacon use and search strategy, self arrest, knots, glacier travel, crevasse rescue and igloo making. The igloo maker was great fun - an ingeneous gadget that allowed us to build an igloo out of soft unconsolidated snow. We also sampled some of the food we are taking with us and reminded ourselves of our snow camping systems. We discussed local weather patterns and what conditions to expect on the glacier. We are looking forward to a challenging and spectacular trip.

Final Days before leaving home.

Today was my last day at work - and I left there feeling that I hadn't quite done what I wanted to but that it was all in good hands. I farewelled Pugsy as she headed off with one of my work colleagues for her holiday. She will love having a few weeks in a home with a fire on all the time and a doggy door that leads out to a backyard from which to sniff the kangaroos. It's empty at home without her but now the floor is filling with piles of gear so its probably good she's not here.



On my 'to do list' are the following:

• buy a pair of Goretex overgloves
• check the tent - repair a couple of rips
• check the repair kit - are there enough needles? How much thread is there?
• oad the software onto the PDA and check that the system works
• check with the electronics shop whether there is a way of linking my video camera to the battery pack for recharging
• make sure I've got all the contact numbers in my little travel contacts book
• heck the luggage allowance on the airline website
• pack and weigh my luggage
• make sure the mascot gets into the gear pile. The mascot was given to us by Strathfieldsaye PS students. It doesn't have a name yet - I think finding a South American name when we get over there will be appropriate.

There is a lot more - and I do want to fit in another couple of exercise sessions, catching up with friends and getting the house in order to leave for a while.

It's exciting thinking about what comes next.

Training, Training, Training

With 6 weeks to go before we leave Australia we have a lot to get ready. I've been doing fitness training for a number of months but the training now is pretty crucial. While I would like to be doing 10 fitness sessions a week I'm finding that I am managing between 5 and 7 - due to work and other commitments - though I know that if I tried really hard I could get out to do more. One of the key barriers is mental - the commitment and determination to do some excercise every day even if it means going out in the dark of the night or the very early morning. I can't always make myself do it.



My fitness activities include:

Basketball - Good for a fun activity, anaerobic excercise and speed work.

Gym - I have a 3 programs that I work through. These are mainly focused on upper body strength to make sure my back and arms are ready for sled hauling, lifting and snow shovelling. If I go in the mornings I only do one aerobic warm up and alternate between the stepper and the rowing machine. If I go in the evenings or on the weekend I will do both.

Running - I run once a week with a friend and we do about 5 kms. I do another run once a week and do between 10 and 15 kms.

Tyre hauling - this is the delight of icecap expedition training. Great for fitness because I work hard and for over 2 hours each time. I attach a tyre (with a wheel) by a rope to a backpack harness and drag it on dirt tracks for approx 11 kms each time. I have several options including adding wieghts, dragging the tyre on the side that has already worn through. This is hard work as the tyre picks up dirt and rocks and has a high level of friction.

Pack walking - I load up my back pack with 20 kgs of water, bricks, ropes and other heavy stuff and walk from my house for a couple of hours. I try to find routes that have hills.

In the last 3 weeks I've managed to do the following:
week 1: gym 3 times, tyre drag 2 hours and 20 mins, 24 km bike ride
week 2: basketball game, touch rugby game, gym 2 times, run 5 kms
week 3: basketball game, touch rugby game, gym once, tyre drag 6 km heavy/6 km light, run 8 kms.

I hope to do more sessions over the following 6 weeks - but to avoid injury and over tiredness.