Preparing for the next Expedition

www.mikaelstrandberg.com

2009-10-20T19:22:00.001+04:00

From now on, this is the end of this blog and from now on, the one and only blog will be at www.mikaelstrandberg.com !

Honorary member of La Rahla

2009-10-18T16:29:00.001+04:00

Just after arriving in Parsons Green, this sunny and warm day, I turned on the computer and saw these great news :

Dear Mikael,

We made you a honorary member in La Rahla so that if you need to consult any of our members we can put you in touch with them for information on the regions of the Sahara you intend to cross. We can also facilitate you buying photocopies of maps of the Sahara as we have practically full coverage of this part of the world. We can also help you on historical events which took place in the areas you will be crossing. It will add interest for you and the people you will be describing your expedition to.

We also feel that you are intending to do something particularly difficult physically and near impossible in this day and age with all the red tape problems in crossing borders that we can but admire your optimism on being able to conclude this venture. You are going to cross a part of the world we enjoy so much visiting and reading about. It will be a pleasure for us also to follow your itinerary and telling our members how it is progressing.

Mikael, "La Rahla, Amicale des Sahariens" 116 rue Damrémont 75018 PARIS FRANCE, is an association created over 80 years ago with over 1000 members across the world. Publishing every quarter in french a review of 80 pages on the Sahara excusively, and that this month it has just published as well a booklet of over 128 pages on an epic crossing of the Tenere desert done in 1927- 1928 when this part of the world was just a blank on the map with the title "EXPLORATION DU TENERE à la recherche du Tafassasset avec Ch. Toubeau de Maisonnneuve". To see more about this Association visit their internet site :

http://www.larahla.com

Good luck

Best regards

André Hesse, president

Explorer encourages others to "lead from the saddle"

2009-10-14T11:05:00.021+04:00

Equestrian Exploration Program Developed Leading Explorer Oversees Historic Effort

Mikael Strandberg isn’t very tall but his name carries a lot of weight in the international exploration community.

He started his professional career as an explorer two decades ago by bicycling 27,500 kilometres from Patagonia to Alaska, via the infamous Darien Gap jungle. Then he pedaled another 90,000 kilometres from New Zealand to Cairo.
After that he parked the bike and explored Latin America on horseback, which won him admittance into the Long Riders’ Guild, the world’s first international association of equestrian explorers. When he hung up his saddle, he spent a year living among the Masai in Kenya.

Then in 2004 Strandberg made an astonishing winter crossing through Siberia. During this five month sledge journey, mainly done in utter darkness, he experienced a terrifying cold with average temperatures around -50°F, day and night. This trip through the coldest inhabited place on earth caused the King of Sweden to award his intrepid subject a silver medal for courage.
Strandberg has produced three internationally renowned television documentaries, written six books, lectured around the world and been deemed “the best contemporary explorer in the world” by the Explorers Club in London.
Now he’s preparing to begin the Great Desert Expedition – a camel journey that will take him from Oman to Morocco.

But before departing on that adventure, the Swedish Long Rider will tackle a unique educational challenge. He has agreed to assume responsibility for developing a new Equestrian Exploration Department for the Long Riders' Guild Academic Foundation.

“With Mongolia having become the fortieth country to field Long Riders and join the Guild, there is ample evidence to demonstrate that interest in equestrian exploration is exploding,” said Basha O’Reilly, one of the Guild’s Founding Members. “Earlier this year an impassioned debate was held regarding the fact that a London-based geographic society hadn’t fielded a single expedition in more than a decade. While other organizations vote themselves into obscurity, the Guild has sponsored, mentored or encouraged more than a hundred equestrian expeditions on every continent except Antarctica in less than ten years.”

Yet while enthusiasm runs high, O’Reilly reported, leaders of the equestrian exploration movement remain concerned that this mounted renaissance must adhere to the highest principled standards. As Director of Exploration for the Guild, Strandberg will help the LRGAF promote and develop ethical, safe and responsible equestrian exploration and long distance travel.

“This is an honour that I accept with dignity. I am looking forward to using my experience in organizing different types of expeditions so as to encourage and educate would-be Long Riders around the world,” Strandberg said.

Skeptics may argue that Strandberg and his fellow Long Riders stand little chance of encouraging a generation to take to the saddle and explore Earth. Yet history demonstrates that one person’s passion for exploration and education can indeed change the course of events. This occurred in the fifteenth century when Prince Henry of Portugal established the world’s first school for explorers. At Sagres, on the southwestern tip of Europe, he brought together geographers, cartographers, instrument-makers, astronomers, and mathematicians. The institute was designed to teach navigation, to collect geographical data, invent seafaring equipment and to sponsor expeditions.
The sturdy Swedish explorer is a modern day graduate of that school of thought who has already shared his expertise with the first team of Afghan mountain climbers and a Scandinavian camel expedition crossing the Sahara, not to mention dozens of young adventurers eager for more generalized advice. Strandberg now believes he can help inspire others to explore the world as their forefathers did.

“Although Prince Henry never sailed on any of his expeditions, he is credited with instigating the Age of Discovery. Unlike Henry, who inspired but did not travel, we modern Long Riders’ Guild are determined to lead from the saddle.”

In Strandberg’s case, this means a camel saddle, not an equestrian one.
Though the intrepid Swede has more than twenty years of experience surviving in dangerous places, overcoming tropical diseases, etc., he is about to venture deep into a remote part of the Muslim world on a desert expedition which will certainly require him to deal with cultural and religious challenges, as well as the everyday dangers of trying to survive a trip that would cause Ibn Battuta to have second thoughts.

“I’ve just returned from studying Arabic and Islam in Yemen. The wonderful experiences I enjoyed there have convinced me that this trip will allow me to build a bridge of exploration which runs between the Islamic world and the West,” the enthusiastic explorer explained.

While the Long Riders’ Guild is famous for having protected the ancient art of equestrian travel from going extinct, the organization has spent the last two years quietly working to create a new camel travel division as well. The world’s leading camel travel experts, such as Arita Baaijens who travelled across the Sahara with her dromedary camels and John Hare who journeyed across the Gobi with Bactrian camels, have agreed to lend their academic support to this unique educational effort.

Because of the length and significance of Strandberg’s journey, the Guild has honoured him by presenting the explorer with the first LRG flag to accompany a camel expedition.

“Insh'Allah, we're going to make exploration history of an unexpected and unprecedented nature,” Strandberg said.

When asked to explain what prompted the equestrian organization to include Strandberg and his camels, Basha O’Reilly of the Guild replied, “What we envision is an organization that grows out of the original Long Riders' Guild, and goes on to publish books, sponsor new research, and provide funds and equipment to Long Riders. This is a new type of exploration foundation, one that preserves mankind’s ancient methods of travelling safely and successfully with horses, and now camels. Regardless of what he is riding, Mikael is a perfect example of this blending of mounted courage.”

To learn more about Sweden's most celebrated explorer and Long Rider, please visit Mikael’s exploration blog –
http://explorermikaelstrandberg.wordpress.com/

For an interview with Mikael Strandberg regarding his career as an explorer –
http://blog.cheaptents.com/interview-mikael-strandberg-legendary-explorer-and-adventurer/

Read article in Horsetalk! and in ExplorersWebNews! and in Voices for horses!

Visit the Long Riders Guild!

His hair has three different colors....

2009-10-13T00:45:00.000+04:00

...and he will travel the world.

That is what my sister said when she was pushing me around in a stroller 47 years ago, when she met a neighbor and briefly stopped and talked to her. I learned that yesterday when I visited my American sister Sarah and met the neighbor. Since than I have traveled to 113 countries and spent more than 2500 nighs in a tent, many of them in a tent which you see to the right here. Photo is taken in the Sinai desert and this was one of the scariest nights in my life. Soon I will pass here again and I will worry less. Since than I have already met the worst demon of all.

As you can see, if you click on the photo to enlarge it, I have even been able to get my bicycle in, the one I used when I cycled from New Zealand to Cairo 1994-96, The reason was that i had been attacked the night before and was worried beyond belief. And trying to sleep then, isn´t easy. I just lay there in the dark, shivering, frightened, listening to every movement, just in case, somebody had spotted me leaving the main road and hiding behind this set of rocky outcrops, coming there to rob me, kill me...well, that is how the mind goes. Eventually i fell asleep, probably an hour before the arrival of dawn. Suddenly it happened!

Somebody attacked me, hit me hard in the right eye, I screamed and yelled, kicked and fought back against the attacker, and I shouted:

"You shouldn´t have done that!"

The attacker turned out being.....my bike. Strong wind had arrived and the bike just fell over and I got the end of my handlebar in my right eye....I did manage to brake a spoke and make life even more complicated, since I still, after almost 90 000 km:s and 7.5 years on a push bike, I still didn´t know how to adjust a spoke properly.

Another voice from the past also turned up yesterday, Bengt, a guy I worked with 1984-85, when saving money to do my first Expedition, from Chile to Alaska on a push bike, at a workshop manufacturing saw blades. He was my boss than and he´s kept track on me ever since and remembers the day I left for Chile. It was the same day the premier of Sweden, Olof Palme, was executed on a street in Stockholm. He came to honor me, traveled a big distance to do that, and that is such a privilege to experience.

I wish I was in Chile right now, because strong winds, grey sky and damp, bone chilling cold has arrived to Stockholm. I thought about yemen this morning and than thi article by a friend, Tim, showed up. Read it here!

The real Expedition is a fart compered to this!

2009-10-09T13:34:00.001+04:00

Stockholm early morning, autumn has arrived, it is windy and it has been raining all night, but days are sunny and the autumn colors are fantastic! However, I feel real heavy headed and extremely tired. I just get a few hours of sleep right now. And my mood is swinging from desperation to joy....It is always the same story....time to leave, not knowing when I will return....I am kind of packing everything together, cleaning out the apartment, phoning my friends, saying good bye, storing the extremely few things I have after a disastrous divorce and I am ready to take the big step and leave Sweden for awhile, sweating away for awhile in a desert.

Right now I get many questions from you readers about when is the Expedition taking place, and I answer:

"In shallah, when the time is ready..."

I just don´t know, this Expedition just grows, and is getting quite difficult to handle. I have pretty much worked day and night since the vision arrived. I do need 8 hours to feel human, but 5-6, it is tough, but I am living on all the joy all this gives me! But I am leaving Sweden now, getting ready to leave on The Expedition as soon as I have acquired camels, trained them, set everything up with my partners, Salim and Nasr, and have most permits needed, so if all goes well, between 3-12 months from now.....however, remember Chrsitian Bodegren, the Swede I helped with my experience, he is on his way! Go for it Christian! (See http://www.christianbodegren.com/ ) Even though his English sometimes makes things hard to understand, it is an interesting read from a guy who has put his life at stake and wants to become an explorer!

"And the funding?" people ask. Same answer:

"In shallah, when time is ready, all things will fall in place...."

I have slowly turned my mind into the Arab way of thinking, as you see, all is written in the stars already, so why worry....;-)....So right now, am trying to check out of Sweden, which isn´t all to easy. There´s the Internet company who says I need to pay another three months, the gym wants an additional month and so on.....times are hard, so nobody is really helpful, they want their money, whether they need it or not...hardest is getting the time to meet all my best friends...I will soon say goodbye to my family, which is always a nightmare, but I have done so many times now, so it is part of life....

But, once on the Expedition, all these normal day worries will be gone with the wind!

Just a small report from the flat....

"Your life is more interesting and unusal than a science fiction book!"

2009-10-05T11:35:00.003+04:00

One of my oldest friends, Marc, said yesterday when I told him about another roller coaster story of my life which is happening right now:

"I say, go for it! Can´t wait to hear what comes next! Your life is more interesting and unusual than a science fiction book!"

It´s Marc and me on the photo to the top right here. It is taken by our common friend Steve Jewell in Mikumi National Park in Tanzania, I think 1988, when I was cycling from North-Cape in Norway to South-Cape in South-Africa and Marc started his 7 year all around the world cycle tour. The reason we are armed is that earlier that day, whilst walking through the high crass of the park, following a group of baboons and the two female scientists who´d been tracking this especial group and family for a year, suddenly we heard a roar and a female lion stood up in the grass!

I remember the female scientists had told us before, if this would happen, don´t run! They did! And so did the two armed rangers we had with us, so the only one´s left, glued to the ground like three termite mounds, where Steve, Marc and me. Most likely by pure shock, even though I do seem to remember that Steve, also one of my best friends, afterwards said that he was cool as a postcard and just wanted to study the behavior of the lion...Sure, Steve, I also remember you were having it off with one of the scientists....

I also remember it all happened so fast, and since I am such a coward, I took a step behind Marc, so if the lioness would go for an attack, it wouldn´t be me who got killed. Sorry Marc, I do believe it was all instinct....Anyway, the lioness, as all wild animals, feared us more, and turned around and slowly ran off away from us. That is why we are armed. And that is also the reason we have hair and look young, which is not the case today...

I often get questions what my old partners on route are doing today. Steve, he joined me in Maasailand aswell, where he met his wife Theonestina, with whom he lives in Canada today and have two children. Last time I saw him was 5 years ago and he was extra-ordinary fat. He is still one of the funniest people on earth and i talk to him on Skype irregularly. Marc isn´t to thin either, today, but a successful business man and runs a spa in Williamstown. On and off he´d like to hit the road again and just came back from a tour in Namibia. read about it here! Marc is a very generous, smart, funny and extra-ordinary kind person who right now lives by himself with his love of life, the Golden Dream, his dog. He will in some capacity be involved in the Expedition and my future. He is one of my very best friends. Last time I met him was also years ago, I think 2 years ago, when I visited him in Williamstown for the second time. He was known as Hub Sprockett in Africa. And Steve went under the name of Steve Clitoris. Or at least that is how he was presented at a conference somewhere in Africa. I think it was Mbeya. That time was the funniest in my life. I had ten good laughs a day, African style. An African laughter is different to all others. It begins in your stomach, than kind of rolls all the way up to your mouth where it explodes! Best feeling on earth it is, and it is a long time since I was even close to a laugh like that. I think it was very close in Yemen though.

There´s not a lot to laugh about in Sweden. Maybe life was better before, as the old people tend to say. Nope, from now on, I will find my old habit to laugh! This is my next little personal project, laughter!

Ardi, my 4.4 million old sister turns up, some news from Yemen and a word about a digital explorer

2009-10-02T13:51:00.001+04:00

Mankind, or the human being, has fascinated me more than anything the last 10 years of my life. That fascination was the main reason for me going to Maasailand in the year 2000 to get closer to the birth place of us humans. I passed through Olduvai Gorge for example, which is commonly known as the Cradle of Mankind, and there´s definitely a specific feeling of belonging here. And since than, humans more than spectacular scenery, amazing culture or animals, has enlightened my wanderlust. This morning, when I started to read the morning papers, I read that a sister of ours, called Ardi, have been discovered, a vital link between the apes and humans in Afar, the Rift Valley in Ethiopia, of course. 4.4 million years old...now, that gives a lot of perspective on a lot of things! It is, still considered, that we humans as we are today are around 150 000 years old, so it took some time for us to develop to this interesting species that we are today!

But complicated as well, I still follow the developments in Yemen closely everyday. Regarding humans in Yemen, I read this editorial today called Suffering is the rule, not an exception. isn´t it amazing, really, even though we have the resources globally, still, to make everyone relatively content with being alive, we just don´t care, it seems like. This is so hard to understand. However, there´s always exceptions to the rule. everywhere. I am very privileged to know quite a few out of these amazing humans who spend there life's thinking about how to find ways to help others. One of them is Jamie, who fully has understood that education is the only way, really, to give everybody the same opportunity to live.

I met Jamie in London, in the exiting Soho district to discuss how to implement his ideas on the upcoming Expedition. Jamie is a laid-back, intelligent, soft spoken explorer of sorts, who has decided to move the class-room out into the bush! I am mean this is an amazing development of the resources we have today, to build bridges between cultures, educate and create opportunities. It just shows how far we´ve come since Ardi lived on this fantastic globe of ours.

So, my hope is that Jamie will be able to help the expedition with his expertise! Since I know that the potential to make a difference with an Expedition like this, is without limits.

On the subject of travel photography....

2009-09-28T13:25:00.001+04:00

I receive a lot of emails right now about my photos from Yemen.

Justin wrote:

Magnificent! Well done you. Am hideously envious. Keep up the qat - are you seeing Tim Mackintosh Smith the travel writer??

Salaams

Justin

And Saad Sabrah from Sana´a wrote:

Many thanks Mikael..

Very nice pictures. Yet a lot of work to be done to improve Yemen’s economy with out spoiling such a rich culture …

I noticed a few naming mistakes on some of the pictures.. I have attached a few of your pictures after saving them with the correct names for your kind reference..

Regards,

Saad Sabrah

Marianne Ahrne wrote:

I had no idea that you were a world-class photographer as well. Your photos are world class and they really makes me wanna go to Yemen. How long are you staying for?

Lots of praise and, of course, that makes life easier. However, do see the Yemeni photos here!

And I get a fair amount of questions if I have any more slide shows from my travels to show. And I do.....but it was in Yemen were I finally got back to my old passionate photography, which have been on holiday for three years. However, why not have a look at these series of slide shows: (Have in mind though they´re quite crappy in comparison.)

And why not finish off with a little slide show from The Kolyma Expedition in Siberia?

Go here!

PS. Photo from the Maasai Expedition from the year 2000. the year I actually had hair. And a big stomach. DS

Ollie, Jamie, Gunnar, Sam, my brother and Mohammed Asad

2009-09-27T13:43:00.002+04:00

Just came back from London and ended up at my brothers house in Dala-Järna. Which is where I am born, bred and educated. Kalle, my brother, is out of work, 60 and don´t know what to do with life. Any suggestion from me, which includes him cycling from Sweden to Oman, writing a blog about his thoughts and inspiring other people in his situation how to do with life, ends with:

"Am sixty for Christ sake!"

This is putting limits to oneself, just because of age. I don´t believe in setting any limits to what is possible or not. Neither does my friends Ollie, Jamie, Gunnar and Sam whom I have met during my visit to London, this cosmopolitan and great city. I will write a bit about all of them -these inspiring people- in the upcoming blogs, because the response from my blogging from Yemen, has been amazing, an average of 1200 readers a day the last three weeks, and it is still continuing. Let me start with Olly.

He is still only 33 or something, but mature like a 50-year old, extremely helpful and generous and I have a feeling there´s no limits to what he can do. It wouldn´t surprise me if he would be running Great Britain at the end of the day. He is that good. But most of all, he is a genuinly good human being who wants to make a difference. And he is every day of his life. I am very lucky and privilaged to have a friend like him. Or, as I say after I have entered the Arab World, he is a genuine brother. And I think, having good friends, is a major part of understanding the meaning of life.

Talking about the meaning of life, I went to London to meet a person with profound contacts, Gunnar, with the very exiting country called Saudi-Arabia, who after every new visit with people who have an intimite relation with this giant of a country, grows and I really want to go there more than ever! Next country to get into deepely as part of the preparation for the Big One, Anyway, on the trip over to London, on the plane, I started to read Mohammed Asad´s book, The Road To Mecca (photo at the top right) and suddenly I realised how simple it is to make a change in life. I started to think about my brother, who is suffering from not having a job, and that just be reading you can get very inspired to change your life. Mohammed Asad changed his dramatically, from being an Austrian Jew to a Pakistani Arab, and Mohammed Asad would easily be another brother had we met or he would be alive. The book is one of the most inspiring books I have ever read.

He is a true explorer in the sence of the word and his exploring, which I personally think should be the base of all explorations, is a cultural bridge builder and a search for the meaning of life. He found his version and he found in the Arab desert as so many others. Like the Prophet Mohammed and Jesus Christ. So, maybe even mine might become a pilgrimige than....This is the book I would suggest for any upcoming explorer to read, when to find out, why do I want to explore and what is true exploration. His prose is beautiful, adventures many, knowledge of desert great and his historical significance is amazing. I will bring his book on my upcoming trip, to bring out when I need inspiration, help and peace of mind at the same time and he wrote this strophe in his book about the eternal question, why do I and we travel, upon meeting a Kurdish Beduoin in the desert: (This will become my quote of life.)

“If water stands motionless in pools, it becomes stale, muddy and foul, only when it moves and flows does it remain clear.”

This will become my quote of life. Next I will write about Jamie.

The Arabian Vision, Amazing Meetings

2009-09-14T16:02:00.020+04:00

It just came as a matter of fact. The vision.

Ever since returning home from the Siberian Expedition I have had no idea at all what my next Expediton would be. Or what to do with life. That is my life. To do Expeditions and hopefully build bridges of understanding between cultures. When returning home from Siberia in May 2005, life first when to the highest peak professionally in life, than it went all the way down in the gutter privately. Such is life at times. I ain´t complaining. It could always be worse. Suddenly, during a trip as a guide to the Galapagos I was asked by a great guy, Håkan, if I possibly could bring some shareholders of a company he was part of as a leading profile, to Oman. And guide them around this amazing country. I said:

"I would be delighted to do just that, but I need more information."

At which Håkan answered:

"Came to this meeting of ours next week in Stockholm, the VD is introducing our concept to our shareholders."

So I went there, mid-December last year, 2008, and when the very amicable and humble, but extremely knowledgeable and sharp VD, Magnus, showed a map over the area, where they had a succesful business, I happened to notice a long word at its top hand right corner. It said;

"Rub Al-Khali."

Suddenly I remembered a hidden dream of mine! The giant Desert Expedition! Biggest of them all! At that moment I remembered reading Wilfried Thesigers book, probably the best desert travler book ever written -Arabian Sands- regarding deserts and, of course, I said yes, please let me take your clients to this great country. However I didn´t know a lot about Oman, but it was decided I would go there for an inspection tour within a month. Which I did.

On the flight over, I took a break in reading about the country, brought out a flight magazine and happened to end up with a map of the world in front of me and what did I see, if not the perfect Expedition by camel, from Oman and the easternmost tip of Arabia to Mauretania or Morrocco and the westernmost tip of Arabia. Just like that! And I have always dreamt about doing an Expedition in the Arab World, somehow to try to build a bridge between these, as it seems according to media, opposite sides of civilisation and suddenly i just realised...THIS IS IT! We have an Expedition, opposite to my cold expedition in Siberia, now I had the hottest and I had a strecth which has never been done before in one go and, most important, a chance to build a bridge of understanding between these opposites and educate each other! But, the question was, how to get it going? I realised on the plane over that I needed the Expedition to be funded half by the West and half by the East.

After a week touring this amazing country called Oman, which I fell in love with immediately, both the nature and its people, I went to the airport to catch a plane and go to Salalah, where two local Bedus would bring me in to this the most beautiful of deserts on earth, Rub Al-Khali. I sat down in front of an Omani shouting orders on the phone, a man used to power, no doubt, and than he started reading a book from The Explorers Club, in which I had written a chapter!

"Woow!" I thought whilst getting on the plane. "Another coincidence!"

Turns out the guy has the seat next to me. He is one of my best friends today, Talib, and I sold him the vision on the one hour plane trip. In Rub Al-Khali, I fell in love with camels, Bedus and realised I was ready for a big Desert Expedition! With Talibs help and contacts I have been able to get very far in my planning and possabilities to put the expedition on its feet!

And from than on, I have just run into an array of personalities and amazing people who understands the vision, the possibilties and the need for such an expedition, and right now, back home again in a grey Stockholm, after ten weeks in Yemen, life looks better than ever!

Yemen even changed my life more than I thought possible, killed the awful memories of the time in the gutter and more than ever, I realise the importance of doing this Expedition. It can change how we look upon life today. That big.

Please see this film/pilot regarding the expedition!

And, do not miss this slideshow from my visit in this greatest of countries called Yemen!

And, if you haven´t read the reports from the Expedition, please go here!

The picture? taken with the group I guided in Yemen, when they were riding camels in Sharqiya Sands.

Hatred and bitterness

2009-08-22T12:00:00.009+04:00

http://explorermikaelstrandberg.wordpress.com/

The blog mentioned above here, is the blog to keep track on until the end of September, when I will return back and fill it with all the exiting details of life and the upcoming Expedition!

I am in Yemen at the moment studying Arabic and I am also trying to understand Islam and the Arab world better, not only as preparation for life, but also for the preparation of the Big Expedition! It is slowly coming to life…..

Why have I than created another blog? Well, as you understand of the title of this report, it has to do with hate.

Ramadan has arrived to the Arab world and Yemen and I wouldn´t like to be at any other place at the moment. It is an exiting time when Moslem's rejoice in a festive mood interlinked with spirituality. I was woken early today by the muezzin calling for the beginning of the first days fast and I just realized, that I am in a country, maybe on the brink of a civil war, dominated by aggressive hatred from all involved, and every day, the local newspapers are filled with stories about violence, hatred, bitterness and reports about loosely knitted Al Qaeda build ups, external countries interfering and, suddenly, I remembered all the local people I have come across lately, from the poorest to the powerful, who believe in this upcoming Expedition and vision and who will do their best to help me pass through Yemen. And they all say that they are inspired by what I want to do and it makes them think good and they see a future. They see hope. So, this morning, as a kind of revelation, I woke with the muezzin and realized that I have, the last two and a half years of my life; I have been dominated by one person’s hatred and only wish in life, to destroy every hope I have to do good things in life. To make a difference. To inspire and educate in the overwhelmingly good things in life.

Every time I have written something on my blog, this person have phoned, written or personally visited most people I have described or written about, telling them all about all mistakes I have done in life, what an awful and evil human being I am. This person has even written to newspapers all over the world to inform them about my evil side. It has caused me an enormous amount of worries, loss of work and damaged reputation and at times I have been so scared stiff of this persons hatred, bitterness and stalking that I have been paralyzed. It has been very difficult to do my job. But, suddenly I realized this past night, if I am going to help to inspire people who are really suffering, well, than I can’t hide away like a sissy and let one single person ruin my life. So my life in hiding just ended a few hours ago. But the blog to read for another month is:

http://explorermikaelstrandberg.wordpress.com/

So, if you, or anyone, get mentioned in any of my blogs, you might be harassed with a call or email from the messenger of hate and bitterness. Please tell me if. It will help me continue to live a dream and at the end of it all, make a world easier to understand!

Why hate when life is so short, instead of living and love?

The pressure is on after a visit to London

2009-04-25T09:59:00.007+04:00

This piece is written in great rush and under lots of stress in between airports! But, the thing is, I love it! The stress I mean....

However, to avoid, which occurs a lot, not too loose my train of thought....A visit to London to check the possibility of any Expedition and its success, is a must! So is connections which you have built up throughout the years. Two of the most important I have is friends doing pretty much the same thing - continuously putting pressure on life!

I am talking about two of the nicest people I have ever come across, my old friend and chairman of the British Chapter of Explorers Club, Barry Moss and the new Face of Discovery Channel - Olly Steeds. They have both helped me for many years with their belief, compassion, friendship and extraordinary kind words.

Ollie had set me up for a lot of meetings with some amazing people in his range of friends. Stephen and Jamie taught me pretty much about everything about the Gulf area and the digital side of exploration. As always I went to Stanfords to pick up some maps over Rub Al-Khali and went to the Royal Geographic Society to browse thru old Expedition papers and reports in the area where I am setting up my two upcoming Expeditions....didn´t find anything I dind´t know about though, Internet has changed a lot, for the better....and went to a lecture at the Scientific Exploration Society on Wednesday evening and had a chat with Sir John Blashford-Snell and then the pub again. The London Pub scene....I like it.

I spent all Thursday meeting a lot of people, who gave me a lot of positive and negative output on my upcoming Expedition. Most think it is impossible, which I like. I need to hear these things to concentrate and focus. And Thursday evening I spent at the Polish Club with some of my London friends....I have always been an Anglophile by the way....and I believe I have a new very good friend after that meeting, old Sam from the Hebrides. Same age, exiting life, gone through many obstacles, fantastic guy!

Came back three in the morning, went to the airport at 5....well, I am extremely tired...but, once again, the adventure is on!

Inspiring explorers, inspiring times.

2009-04-18T10:04:00.006+04:00

My life, since I last wrote on the blog, has been one of the most exiting, tumultuous, interesting and tiring time of my life. Getting your vision down on paper, having an idea which will stick and which will make people love what is coming up, well, at times I have thought:

"How in earth am I going to get it all together and get an Expedition on its feet? Impossible!"

However, I have now decided what Expeditions I will do, when, I have the project descriptions ready -after a great amount of reading, research, email exchanges and telephone calls- and I have started looking for people who would like to sponsor the vision. In these economical times of distress, not the easiest thing, but what a challenge! Then again, it has never been easy, so, I see no real difference. It is just that I a moment ago read the news and bought their constantly negative message that we´re going down the drain, we humans.

But as always, it is the courage and help from other people which makes visions possible. Because it is always like this, when you are more stressed out and heavy with work than ever, things happen which makes life more complicated. This fact has been a plague for the last 2½ years for me. Last week the auditor called me, a very nice old lady, and said she needed all my receipts and economical transactions from the last year, I panicked, called the person closest to me and she raced over to help me and sorted it all out. That is the thing, it is impossible to make a vision a reality without the help of others. During these weeks I have met some of earth's most interesting people, experts on camels, travellers of the the world, the Bedu and experts on branding. All very interesting people. I couldn´t do this without their words of encouragement, wisdom and help. And I am very lucky to come across a lot of helpful and great people. I have the greatest friends and family on earth. But, I think two of the most inspiring people, and helpful, loving and encouraging folks, who have helped me survive and live a dream through the last years, have been two amazing Swedes living in the US, running the most exiting and biggest website for adventurous reading in the world, Tomas and Tina at ExplorersWeb. (See photo, they´re the Santa Clauses on ice, Tomas used to be an expert figure skater, among many other issues he has excelled doing in his life.)

Tomas and Tina, which seems to be neglected and forgotten in this Duck Pond of a country I live in, belongs to some of the best merited and famous explorers on earth right now. (Sweden is a small, but a stunningly beautiful country, full of lovely people, but we tend to buy the American Dream in many ways, by which I mean, it is not what you have done, the merits, which are important, but whether you have a PR company behind you which penetrate the media and if you spend all your time trying to get noticed, I call it the Big Brother mentality, the soap opera, not the Orwellian thought...therefore Sweden isn´t big on decent explorers) Tom and Tina, though, together they have climbed Everest and skied to both Poles and are now getting ready to shoot of to Mars! It seems impossible, but if anyone can do it, it is these two warm-hearted people. I just can´t comprehend the thought!

Anyway, Tom and Tina have inspired me more than most people these last years, Tom has spent lots of time helping me and advising me and know then, I have met and communicated with many famous and well-known people. What differs Tom and Tina from most, a way to be I admire a lot, they always stick to their own beliefs. They´re 100% honest, straightforward and tell you exactly, good or bad, what they think. They don´t let anyone, no matter how powerful, famous or impressive person, company or organisation, tell them what to do. The don´t sell their soul as so many wannabes do, to become noticed by the media. They totally run their own show, are fiercely independent and most of all, they have gone through good and bad times and know what life is all about. Which many young explorers of today, many lacking any kind of insight into real life, would need to become interesting. There´s no doubt, the more you have gone through in life, bad and good, the better human you become. And much more interesting. And, for me, two of the most inspiring and interesting people I have ever come across, is Tom and Tina at Explorers Web.

A note on two explorers, Thesiger and Gienieczko, and a word about the Theatre of Dreams

2009-04-06T23:53:00.007+04:00

I got my first Manchester United jersey when I was 5 or 6 years old. My sister was married at that time to an English bloke who turned me immediately into a Manchester United supporter and he used to send me, as a Christmas gift, either number 7 or 11, a shirt number which belonged to the 5th Beatle, George Best. I have kept a close eye on them since then. But it took 47 years for me to make it to Old Trafford, a dream I shared with my brother and his son. Together we spent 4 days in Manchester, not the most exiting cities in the world, but it was a complete visit to Man Utd land and we quickly realized that we were not the only supporters who wished to have a feel for the club. Many Asians, like these Vietnamese ladies on the photo, had spent a lot of money to come and visit the Theatre of Dreams - Old Trafford. It also turned out the most dramatic of games!

However, I did have some time to read and finish my book about Wilfried Thesiger, who I consider as one of the greatest modern explorers, who, even though he wanted fame and recognition like all of us, he did a serious job to discover, explain what he saw and experienced and most of all did his very best to blend in with the locals and lifting their way of living to heaven. Like me, he didn´t understand the sporting aspect of adventure. he was genuinely a true explorer. A definition which, according to Consise Oxford Dictionary is somebody who travels to learn and discover, to inquire into, to investigate thoroughly. But, there is always a but, of course, there is always a backside to everybody, no matter how good we try to be, there´s always a dark side to everyone. We are after all, only humans. The saddest thing with Thesiger, if I am to believe Michael Asher, his biographer, isn´t that he was a misogynist and seemed to lack humour, it is the fact that he seemed to become very bitter in his last years. Just because he couldn´t accept that the world was changing in a way he thought was disgusting. Therefore, I ask myself, what in earth did he learn from his brief visit to earth? In my eyes, bitterness is the evil on earth, no matter what you have gone through. Life is too short to waste your energy on bitterness.

One guy who is not bitter is my very good friend Marcin Gienieczko, the fast and strong Pole, who have returned home from his Expedition to the Kolyma where he has done a fantastic trip! And, it turned out he fell in love with the Kolyma as well. Please do see his film on Youtube. I like this guy a lot, he is so full of spirit, joy and like all Slavs, he understands the backside of life as well. He will go very far in life. He sent me this piece this morning which gave me a lot of warmth inside:

Dear Mikael!!!
for me you are the best becaus you are done whole Kolyma I only One part.....
I neve Know How you done ther very big snow and samethims you can
doing few kilmeters
When you are comning to Poland maybe in may???
When you are going to arabia.is it possible going wthe you???
If not Im going november to Niger and mali on sahara.
your frend martin!!!! for me you are the best !!!

The Fear Factor

2009-04-01T12:57:00.007+04:00

I just finished a book that I have had tucked into my bookshelves since 1988. It is called The Fearful Void written by a bloke called Geoffrey Moorhouse. It was given to me by a very good friend that I have lost touch with, unfortunately, for more than ten years, Ed Sismey. He is the one to the right on the photo, next to Steve Jewell and me, all resting whilst cycling through the Atacama Desert 1986. Ed gave it to me, because he knew I was going to pass the Sahara on a pushbike. The book scared me then, asmuch as it does today. Regarding, Ed, or Lucky Ed, as we called him, I am sorry to have lost tocuh with him. I don´t even know where Steve is at the present, even though he is one of my best friends. I believe somewhere in Africa, since he is married to a Pare woman he met during our Maasai Expedition 2000. Probably looking, as always, for food. And that brought me back to the book I have just finished, as part of my research into the upcoming Expeditions.

It is an odd feeling planning an Expedition, sitting in a comfortable environment, not realizing all the immense hardships waiting, until suddenly, most likely in the middle of the night, you wake up and feel terrified. This happened to me at four a clock this morning. I suddenly realized, soon I will suffer from the discomfort of immense heat, millions of flies, gut rot, incredible pain all over, acute tiredness, lack of hope, worries of surviving and tons of misunderstandings with people I come across or travel with. Easily forgetting to overwhelming positive experiences waiting. What I look forward to the most is getting away from the Duckpond I live in called the West, away from all gadgets and time limits. But, the book scared me, it showed everything that can go wrong. This git called Moorhouse, writes lovely, but he lacks most things an explorer should have, because everything possible, and then I mean everything, goes wrong. He sets out to become the first person ever to cross the Sahara by foot and camel, makes it half way, ending up in Tamanrasset , which I passed on a push bike and liked 1989, but the story is full of terrible mistakes and he is complaining about everything. Most of all the people, locals, he travels together with. They try to cheat him all te time. He almost perishes but still doesn´t forget what painting he has seen at Le Louvre or chapels visited. Themes he comes back to regularly. It is written in 1973. He does so many errors, because he wasn´t properly prepared and doesn´t just have what it takes.

But the book should be read by anyone attempting to cross the Sahara or doing a major Expedition. Because it shows what one should not do. And it is a good read. He reminds me a lot of Lucky Ed, who is, together with Geoffrey Moorhouse, the unluckiest guy on earth. But Ed never complained about other people. I will dive into Thesigers book Arabian Sands for awhile, to set my heart right.

Arab terms, Arab time - the issue of women

2009-03-28T12:48:00.014+04:00

This is a very strenuous time, I hardly get more than a few hours of sleep every night, plagued by thoughts of the past plus worries trying to get the puzzle together. It feels almost impossible to achieve just that. But, at the end, there will be an Expedition!

I have forgotten during these four years of inactivity all the enormous work involved getting an Expedition on its feet. And I am working on two at the same time, plus I have a third in the back of my head. Biggest worry of course is how to get the funding. Will potential sponsors understand the need of such an Expedition? Especially in these times of global economical worries? I have done a quick calculation on the costs and they´re more than double compared to the Siberia journey. Gee, I say....

But there´s also a lot of joy. Like slowly seeing the puzzle becoming a picture is fascinating and in some ways I think, putting together an Expedition, is like having a child born. But, I think most of all, the biggest joy, is all the people who are getting involved. Potential sponsors, regional experts, friends of the same trade and global big wigs. And, the growing interest amongst readers of my blog and fans who´ve followed me for many years. Unfortunately, or fortunately maybe, because one needs critics to stay objective, along with a growing interest you also get the back side of it, peoples jealousy and aggressive emails about your plans. I have been called a lot of things lately, everything from pro-Arab to an enemy of women. A frequent question is, how can you do an Expedition in an area of the world where women are treated like secondary human beings? What about the Honour Killings still going on, even in Western countries where you have Moslem populations? All these mails originate from Sweden...

Let me first of all assure you that I really love and appreciate women. Maybe too much, because it does make life more complicated in many instances, especially whilst needing to concentrate on getting the plans for he Expeditions together... I adore women. Secondly, yes I am pro-Arab in the sence that I think the way they live and think is of great importance to the future and to the well-being of our globe. And, to be able to understand the Arab world, like all things in life, to be able to fullfill my dream and wish, to build a bridge of understanding between their world and the west -well, even in between Arab countries a bridge is needed- the only way to understand the Arab world, is of course, one cannot hope to understand Arabia through the prism of western modernism. I have to understand it on Arab terms, in Arab time. And even though I have some experiences from the Moslem and Arab world (not the same thing, because for example, Indonesia is the biggest Moslem country -population wise-in the world), how can I give judgement, except happiness and joy which is always needed, until I really have experienced Arabia from within and understand all the intricancies involved? If there´s one thing in life I dislike, it is people giving judgement without knowing. This ignorance is, as I see it, one of the major obstacles to a much more peaceful world.

What then do I personally think about Honour killings and the subject of women in the Arab world?

I will give you a complete answer once I return from the two Expeditions, when have a full picture, until then I just want to say, and this applies to all countries, cultures, tribes and walks of life on the globe, for me it is impossible to understand why women and men get treated differently. Once everybody understands that when everybody has the same value, possibilities and wages, society has developed a grand step forward, but, being a Swede, where we are supposed to have equality, there´s still...which is almost impossible to understand.....a difference in pay for the same work. How can this be?

My only concern, a very big one, for my upcoming Expeditions, is how am I going to get in touch with the Arab women? And how am I going to describe their thoughts and lives? This worries me a lot.

A major reason to choose a life as an explorer

2009-03-21T14:50:00.004+04:00

It is of course a very privileged life to be an explorer, to have in your mind that everything is possible and fulfil dreams most people never even get close to realising. Not even in mind or thought.

For me, proper exploration today has to do with connecting cultures, opening up horizons in other peoples mind, with the help of a camera, written words with the all mighty pen and by simple and genuine travel, e.g. not using a motorised vehicle. If an explorer turns up in a motorised vehicle, he or she has closed a door before it is even on the way to open up another horizon. By that way you build a new wall, not a bridge over the existing one. A true explorer shows other human beings first of all, this is the way, for example, that the great people along the Kolyma River in Siberia live. Exploration is about building bridges between people, not that ridiculous male theme, I am strongest and I can do this and that. Very tiring indeed.

Another important issue of today's exploration, is to try through science to open up other peoples eyes about the realities we live in. And help to put together this eternal puzzle, concerning the meaning of life, our globe and why are we here.

Hmmm, lost a bit of my train of thought there....what I want to write, is to tell you readers, that one of the most fulfilling aspects of having chosen this life, is all the great people you come across, not only whilst travelling, but people doing what you are doing, exploring!

Two of my best friends, even though I have so far never met them in person, is CuChullaine and Basha O´Reilly. (See photo)These are some of the most intelligent, warm hearted and generous people I have ever come across. Everything they do is to make this a better world to live in. Two grand personalities and human beings who run one of the most prestigious Societies in the world, The Long Riders Guild. I have communicated with them a lot the last two years and they have in many ways done my life a lot of good. Some of the most inspiring people I have ever come across and CuChullaine has also written one of the best books I have ever read. They´re ready for one of the most compelling challenges in history really, a four year global ride! See http://www.theworldride.org/

They are exactly what a world full of copies need, two original thinkers and genuine human beings! I am honoured in many ways to be part in their team of advisers.

Basha as asked me to quote her, because she has a very important job to do and need help:

"Because you have travelled from the Pampas of Patagonia to the frozen tundra of Siberia, we are urging all of your friends throughout the world to check the master breeds list on the World Ride website. If their horse's breed is not represented, I would ask them to print off the DNA form, complete it and send it to The Long Riders' Guild with some mane or tail hairs. In this way, everybody who contributes will become part of the largest collection of equine DNA in history. Horse owners are rushing to represent their favourite breed, including White River horses from Mongolia, Manga Largas from Brazil and Marawaris from India. Yet there are still hundreds left unaccounted for, and we particularly anxious to obtain DNA from the fabled horses of Yakutia."

Mikael, here's the link to the Breeds page: www.theworldride.org/breeds/breeds.htm

The quest of assisting other Expeditions

2009-03-18T20:54:00.005+04:00

One of the biggest honours you can get as an explorer, is of course, being asked by other explorers or explorers-to-be who wants advice regarding their upcoming Expeditions. I have been fortunate to have had many queries throughout the years, maybe 50-60 serious ones, and three times as many not so serious ones. That is why I once upon a time started an expedition school which today has hit the grave, unfortunately. To teach people how to do Expeditions, because it is not an easy topic. Almost 80% of the people who have asked my advice and who have set off have failed to do what they hoped to achieve. Basically due to that they lost their enthusiasm after 3-7 weeks. And they had prepared badly when it came to sleeping in a tent, cooking under difficult circumstances and lacked the proper motivation to, why do I do an Expedition?

Right now I have one guy I´ve assisted, my friend Marcin´s Kolyma Expedition, who has had serious problems with the extreme cold and his equipment braking and he has changed his initial route, ending in Bilibino instead of Chersky. And it seems like he has been backed up by two friends most of the time in a vehicle, I am afraid, due to the cold. Still he is fast! But he is a true explorer, no doubt.
Christian Bodegren (see photo above) however, is planning his first Expedition. Travelling by camel from Egypt to Morocco, a great feat. He came to visit me today, we spread maps on the floor, chatted about oasis, where to start and we´ve been looking at what is waiting for him. Question is, he could do as good with a piece of sand paper. His Expedition though, is of great interest to me, since a crossing of the Sahara is part of my great Arabian project. Christian has dived into pretty much all books on the project and he is well versed of all existing routes through this great desert. As far as we know, the only crossing with camels of the Sahara desert by white people, was done by Michael Asher and Marieanetta Peru in the 80`s, but Christian would then be the third European to cross the lot and the first Swede in history. (There are some amazing ultra runners which have crossed it, supported, a reader told me, for example http://www.runningthesahara.com/ , but I consider this sport, not exploration of another culture. Still, what a feat!) Christian, though, is very eager to do it with 5 camels and wants to leave as soon as possible. His only worries are the visa regulations in countries like Libya and Algeria, stupidities is hindering every explorer worldwide, these ridiculous obstacles making life so much harder for the good of all human beings. Christian is also reasonably ambitious and sees the Sahara as a project of three big challenges in his life, which is a great thought and that makes me believe he will do it. No matter what. He is also very sensible regarding sponsors, one of the most frequent questions I get and I have always answered, first do a big Expedition, then ask for sponsors, when you have a better CV. Christian understands this, even if he comes from the south of Sweden.

However, he didn´t like my moose heart stew today, which makes me wonder how he is going to handle a casserole made up of local intestines mixed with goat testicles....

The value of books, new and old

2009-03-15T13:20:00.004+04:00

Happiness is to wake up a Sunday morning, dizzy from worrisome thoughts from the day and night before, and pick up one of the loads of books you have next to your bed, and start reading and suddenly realizing you´ve forgotten all worries and suddenly feel full of joy, happiness and see no obstacles att all waiting ahead for you in the future!
The book I picked up this morning was an old book that I picked up back in the late eighties, which I then used for research to write a book about my 2½ years on a push bike from New Zealand to Cairo, The Arabs by David Lamb. A tremendous human being and journalist I came across the first time when doing research for a book after my 2½ years on a push bike from Norway to South-Africa. He had then written a, in black Africa a very controversial, book called The Africans. As good as his about the Arabs.
But the first book on the subject of Arabia I wanted to read, was however, Edward Saids book Orientalism, which has attracted extreme attention globally. I thought that would be a good introduction to this extraordinary subject called Arabia. What a bore! It amazes me that anyone can read more than a few lines before falling asleep. Written by a scholar, for sure. Yawn!
So this morning I started off instead with David Lambs book The Arabs, and he of course is a writer and a story teller and it is a great book. And even though, it is two decades since it was originally published, the book remains a lucid introduction to the main themes of Middle Eastern politics, history and social issues that most westerners find intractable. And, with a bokk like this, suddenly you experience that great feeling of learning and adding new insights into lifeto add to ones knowledge, a supreme feeling.
So, 50% of my research material is 20 years of age almost, but still valid, and I have picked up a lot of new books on the Internet, whose titles have been supplied to me by experts on Arabia, especially my new friend, the humourous Justin Marozzi. One of the more interesting books I have found was whilst walking into a second hand bookshop on Drottninggatan in Stockholm, just to get away from the cold for twenty minutes, waiting to meet my friends Anders and Solan, and then browsed through a section where they were selling books for 2 euro and found Raphael Patais book The Arab Mind! Excellent!
These are happy times, after all!

Communication between humans

2009-03-10T01:59:00.004+04:00

I think communication between human beings is the most important aspect of life. If we humans would communicate better and more, we would have less wars and aggressions, there´s no doubt about that. And if I have anything, regarding my abilities to do Expeditions and making them into a success, to brag about, it is my ability to listen to people and get them to talk, to communicate. And only talk when I have to motivate other people to comprehend the necessity to understand what I am doing and why.

The same applies when you go looking for sponsors before a major expedition, because I reckon the upcoming Expeditions, both of them, or should I say, all three, they will cost a huge amount of dollars. Therefore, the last week I have started looking for partners, but it takes a lot of work. And meeting a variety of people who can help, inspire and give you ideas is extremely important and that is what I have done for a month now.

Today I went to Travellers Club of Sweden to listen to a lecture by a well-known Swedish TV-anchor, Arne Weise, and shared a table with my friend and new partner Anders Åberg and a very good friend of his, Claes Ahlin, a lawyer with a big smile. We were able to shoot some ideas around and now we have one very good idea of a possible major sponsor with international connections. See how it goes, I will keep you updated on the developments. And to give you an idea what I look for regarding the choice of sponsors, just have a look at the sponsors from the Siberian Expedition here.

Opportunities arises and a 2500 km drive from Murviel to Stockholm in a 2008 Ford Mustang convertible, with a new 425 hp V-8

2009-03-08T19:43:00.004+04:00

“It is travelling like this you really get to know people” , Anders said whilst having a short brake at a Truck Stop in Luxemburg yesterday, “And it is impossible to hide from other people who you really are.”

Anders is a great guy. Middle aged, with a bit of a pouch and an everlasting smile, once an actor who received the Swedish variety of an Oscar –Guldbaggen- who turned into an award winning scriptwriter and documentary maker. He´s extremely honest, agreeable and socially outgoing. He’s a member of Travellers Club of Sweden, just like me, and that is where I met him the first time years ago and we have on and off said that we just have to do a project together. And since we´re both soul searchers, the main project we´ve had in mind for a couple of years, is to do a documentary about people who do a pilgrimage, like the very popular one to Santiago de Compostela. A pilgrimage made famous on our time by the Brazilian writer Paul Coelho. Then we realized not long ago, that this pilgrimage has become something very popular among Westerners, as kind of another hike to add to their trekking CV and we agreed at that moment, that it then had turned into something not so interesting to document. Kind of old news. Then I introduced Anders, just by pure chance, to Facebook, which changed his life in many ways and a discovery he will make a documentary about. Anyway, when I sent out a Newsletter about me preparing for the next Expedition, which would involve deserts, he said he knew a French bloke who 30 years ago walked three times through the Sahara, and I just had to meet him in his village not far from Anders grand house in Murviel. That is how I ended up in Murviel, a picturesque village I left yesterday together with Anders and a relative of his wife, Svante, in a new 2008 Ford Mustang convertible. And quite a few bottles of local red wine in the boot. Now, this amicable bloke named Svante, is kind of an oddball in his own ways, brought up in the U.K and posh schools, meaning he speaks perfect upper class English with the odd hint of a stiff upper lip, who turned into a construction worker living in Surahammar, a kind of a back of beyond settlement in the middle of Sweden, who recently lost his job and came to Murviel to help Anders out. I just want to add that I speak cockney Essex English. All this has made Anders laugh even more than before. Together we´ve travelled three days through Europe and become great friends. That´s what happens whilst travelling in the intimacy of a Ford Mustang Convertible.

However, professionally, the most important thing is that we have realized that Anders would be a perfect partner for me at base. We don´t know how yet, but we´re making plans. It could mean a major difference in every single way, when it comes to everything that concerns the build up for a great and major Expedition. Keep your eyes open, we will know soon….the thing is, time is running fast and the Expedition is not far off and I hardly have neither any cash or sponsors ready…..but I feel very confident regarding the future.

This week has made a major difference. It could mean much more then a series of six documentaries broadcasted globally. It could mean there is a future after the Great Expedition To Come….

Old contacts, becoming new, creating the most amazing possibilities

2009-03-04T15:48:00.004+04:00

I met the Samwells just through a coincidence really, 9 years ago. Chris sent me an email basically saying that I am working on a project for the National Geographic regarding Explorers and are you interested to be part of it? I said yes, of course, and we went through a lot together. A film came out of it and then we lost touch due to a specific obstacle that has and still is making life very difficult.
However,why dwell on obstacles and problems in these dififcult times where other people worry too much?
Anyway, Chris and his family, a tough lot, living out in the sticks in an old farm outside Girona in Spain. It is Chris, his wife and four daughters and a bunch of dogs, ducks and hens. See photo here to the left. Chris is like the rest of his family great personalities. He is a producer of film and documentaries, who has gone through a lot of hardships in life and I respect that a lot. It is, for me, easy to respect people who have gone through a lot and return to life full of possibilities and free of bitterness and hate. If it is one thing I dislike is people in the West who complain about life, simple things, when they have all possibilties most people just dream about. Not an unheard of thing in Europe, complaining and moaning about nothing. And becoming bitter from nothing.
I went to visit Chris because I wanted him to be part of the new set up for the great Arabian project and I also brought a very good friend o f mine, Anders Åberg, who had, as always a bunch of great ideas, and as always -you tend to forget these things with time- we ended up in a roller coaster visit. Chris is not the slimmest person on earth and talks incessently, throws out a hundred ideas per second, phones half the world on one of his 3-7 mobile phones and at the end, you wonder if he heard a thing of what you said, since you never get to finish a sentence and if he will be alive tomorrow. Because it is all based on his great generosity, big heart and plenty of food and booze. Not a dead moment with old Chris.
At the end we signed an agreement with Chris on a handwritten piece of paper and if all gos well, which it at the end always does if you have a positive outlook on life, we will produce a series of six programmes. Great news as you can understand! Expedition Arabia here we come!

The South Pole of the deserts, Face 1, intitial research

2009-02-25T20:15:00.013+04:00

I almost love the research before an Expedition as much as the journey itself. And I know, it has to be thorough, professional and open-minded, because a lot of the success of any serious Expedition has to do with the amount of good research an explorer puts in. For me who love books, maps and since the Internet appeared as a research tool, unfortunately meaning the death of the libraries, this period is a big journey in itself. You almost have to become a scholar. Even though I will only remember a few percent of what I learn now and put into use on the expedition in itself, it will, still, most of it, be there in the back of my head, when the Expedition is over and it is time to do something with all the collected material. Like writing a book, doing a film or preparing for lectures. And it will put you in the right frame of mind already now, even though I am in reality holed up in a small, dusty little apartment in a dark and boring suburb to Stockholm. But already now, I will for example remember, knowledge gained from just the couple of days of research that I have done now, whilst doing research on Westerners Travelling in Rub Al-Khali or The Empty Quarter -well, the Bedu have travelled there for thousand of years of course, something the white West tends to forget, but they have no written material left behind, unfortunately- that one of the legends of the area is Bertram Thomas.

The Empty Quarter, or Rub Al-Khali, was often referred to in the first part of the 20th Century as one of the few remaining genuinely unexplored regions of the world, on the same scale as the South and North Pole. Therefore many explorers wanted to do the first crossing of this vast sandy desert, 650 000 square kilometres in size, like putting Belgium, Holland and France together, but first of all gold digging explorers to catch this price -forgetting the local Bedu who lived here- turned out to be a simple civil servant from Bristol in the UK, Bertram Thomas. He crossed the Empty Quarter together with local Bedu 1930-31 and wrote an excellent book called Arabia Fenix. Amazingly enough his book can be read on the Internet!

At this stage when I have decided on where to go, understanding the objective of the expedition, all effort has to be put into finding the right contacts and background material. Both tasks filled with joy. Communicating with experts on the area is half the fun. And so far almost everyone I have contacted have been very helpful, showing a camaraderie unknown between people in the same business as me here in grey Sweden. One of them is the Grand Old Dame of desert and Camel travel, Arita Baijeens. And as always, you come across people associated with other things and other dreams you have had. Today, by pure coincidence during my research, I came across an old acquaintance of mine, Dan Mazur, and remembered that I had told him a few years ago, that I of pure interest after reading Hillary´s account of his conquest of Everest, wanted to make an attempt on Hillary´s and Tenzing´s original route. Dan Mazur, like me using Facebook, so I contact him and said, I am still interested. He advised me to go for it, if prepared, april 2010. Why not then....life is short.

Second task is to put an enormous effort into getting a picture as big and broad as possible regarding the area. What I have to learn and try to understand in a very short time, 10 months or so, is a gigantic task. Even though I have already had quite a lot of insight into Islam, Arabs, the Middle East and desert travel from earlier travels, I know almost nothing about the Gulf, camels or, most important, their original inhabitants, the Bedu. And I need to learn Arabic, in shallah.

At the same time I have to try to support myself, find sponsors, set up the media kit, keep extremely fit, eat the right food, be relatively happy, have a social life, but still spend most of the time studying, no easy thing. Gee, there is some sacrifice indeed! It is at the same time, one of the best moments of an explorers life, but also the worst in some ways, because you love it more than other parts of your life. But it is the same thing before every Expedition. Most people who are close to you, genuinely fear and hate it! This is what a true explorer want to do more than anything else in life! travel, be it through books or in reality. I do look forward to this Expedition more than ever before!

Why I love Oman

2009-02-19T15:28:00.004+04:00

Oman! I have just been back in Sweden for three days and I wish with my heart that I was back in this spectacular country. What then is it I miss and long for?

Well, it is a country with lots of diverse natural beauty. The coastline in itself is amazing with its natural reserves like the diving at Dimaaniyat Islands and the preservation of the green turtles, Ras Al Jinz, great wadis, sandy beaches and charming cities like Sur, Salalah and Muscat. But for me, the best side of Oman is the interior. This is where you find a feeling of the old Arabia and Oman with its castles, palm oasis’s, giant wadis, deserts like Wahiba Sands and the great Rub Al-Khali and amongst the spectacular mountain scenery at Jebel Shams and definitely amid picturesque towns and settlements like Misfah, Bahla, Al Hamra and Nizwa. And cruising the souks of Nizwa and Muttrah smelling the frankincense, seeing the diversity of stalls and all the people, is a strong memory. Not for the shopping, but for the atmosphere and one has to stop at one of the coffee stalls and have a kavva whilst watching life, that is happiness! I also have a strong memory when my guide Kamil Al Raisi and me avoided one of the more upper class touristic restaurants –after awhile, since it is all buffets and full of tourist from everywhere, you get fed up, after all one is in Oman to meet local people- and instead just sat down on a mat on the parking lot outside the souk in Nizwa and had a bunch of tasty mutton kebabs together with two rough looking Yemenis who had come in for the weekly cattle market. That is the true Oman. It´s people.

It is the people I met I remember the most. Oman is unique in many ways. And when I talk about people it is not just the Omanis themselves, but all the Indians, Pakistanis, Baluchis and also Europeans who live here. There´s such a spirit of pioneering, dignity, kindness and generosity, that I am amazed that distinguished behaviour like that still exists in a world which by the day is getting harder, more violent, stupid and more difficult. There´s a few meetings I remember more than others, due to their dignity. One was an old man, a beekeeper, living in a small village compromising a few houses, all his family, somewhere in the Jebel Akdar range. The bees had once come from Yemen and had travelled all the way to his village and he kept this tradition alive with a constant twinkle in the eye. Kamil had warned me before, he will invite us and we will not get out before we are stuffed with honey more than we’ve had all together before in our lives. Very true indeed! During this visit, my first day in Oman, I witnessed the dignity of just serving a cup of coffee to a visitor. As a visitor you feel honoured indeed! He didn´t only look like one, but had the awareness of a great mullah! We felt sick for a couple of days after that, Kamil and me. Too much honey!

Next stop was a visit to a Bedu family living deep into the great Wadi Ghul. Carpet weavers for generations. I asked one of them through Kamil, if everything was better nowadays, since Sultan Qaboos Bin Said had modernized the country and he answered:

“Everything! Nowadays we can travel anywhere without being worried to be attacked by another tribe.”

He and his family had ended up far into this deep wadi to get away from hostile tribes once upon a time. We sat there in the shadow of a big ghaf for a long time, eating dates and drinking tea. If it hadn’t been for the parked cars and the eternally ringing mobile phones, it could have been a scene from a time hundreds of years back.

In Wahiba Sands we came across the desert Bedu. And I stopped to take a photo of the first camel I saw. Big mistake. Suddenly a car shot out of the desert with a yelling woman. After some continuous yelling which felt like a long time, I thought she was screaming at the guy who came to pick up the camel, maybe her husband, so I didn´t realise it was at me. Then she drove up to our car and screamed through the window:

”Is he stupid. Surely he must see that she is pregnant and if he takes flash photos, she might loose her baby!”

“No, he doesn’t know anything about camels” Kamil my Omani guide and very good friend said, “He didn’t understand that you were shouting at him.”

“But he is English” she said a bit surprised, “They know everything!”

She looked both stunned and upset at us for a moment. The finger tips on both hands were henna painted black, she had a scarf slightly covering her very dark hair, lots of golden looking armbands on both wrists and her stare was proud and free of any worries. Except for her female camel.

“You see?” Kamil said grinning when we continued our trip on the sandy and bumpy, very corrugated, desert road, “Just like the story from Africa you told me yesterday? That local people believe white people are better? And that a flash can kill the baby of the camel? This is because they are not educated. They live here, they’re people of the desert, hard and tough people, but they are not educated all of them. Then they would know what I know, I know you are not better than us!”

Next we visited a bedu camp located in between two great dunes. An old woman and her son who treated us to their generosity and I didn´t even know that they survived on selling carpets to tourists, because nobody told me. That is another great thing with Oman, there´s no hassling by tiresome sales people. Not even in the Muttrah Souk. The same regards the issue of religion. In some countries you get a 50 minute lecture from a local if you by chance don´t belong to the same religion. The word is dignity. Oman is a country to love.

See the slideshow from Oman here!

Regarding Rub Al-Khali and Oman

2009-02-18T13:50:00.004+04:00

It´s me and my very good friend and guide Kamil Al Raisi on the photo, standing in front of the tomb of Bibi Miriam. Both Marco Polo and Ibn Battuta stopped here on their travels. Very good company indeed. And that is what I will miss the most from my two weeks in Oman. The people. Like Kamil, Robby, Salim and the two Mussalems. I miss Oman more then most countries I have visited. Anyhow, here´s the link to my visit in Rub Al-Khali.

http://rubal-khali.blogspot.com/

On top of that, I have done two slideshows, one about Rub Al-Khali, the other about Oman. To see them, just click the links below.

Rub Al-Khali
Oman

Looking for the next Ibn Battuta

2009-02-07T23:54:00.007+04:00

I´ve just come back from a press conference at Al Faraj Hotel, arranged by my friends at Discover Oman, in the capital Muscat, a meeting filled with joy and hope. But right now, half an hour after midnight, I am dead tired. So much emotions, so many great people, so many questions and on top of that, all the strong impressions that I have collected during these four days of touring parts of Oman with Kamil al Raisi, my friend. But, I guess I can rest the day I stop kicking. Could be sooner then I think....Tomorrow I am off to Salalah and time to see if I still have what it takes! My first little outing in almost 4 years....Rub Al-Khali!

I just have to say:

There´s such a positive spirit going on in Oman that it is almost impossible not to feel that everything is possible! And even if they -the local journalists from all media- probably thought that my idea is close to suicide, I did get the feeling that they saw a lot of possibilities in the upcoming Expedition. And I was amazed at their genuine interest. I just love the spirit and sense of pioneering that is going on at the moment. There´s no limits in Oman. I hope, because one thing I specifically asked for during the press conference, was help to find a young Omani, who would like to become the next Ibn Battuta. Because this is not a project for me as an explorer first hand, but I see it as a chance to build a bridge between Arabia and the West. And then, of course, I am just the tool for a young Arab, preferably Omani, to join me and then do what his great compatriot, the great Morroccan, Ibn Battuta did in the 14th Century. He travelled for over 30 years and covered 117 000 kms, traveling mainly by foot and camel. He makes Marco Polo look like a nobody.

Maybe I will meet him, the modern day version of the great Ibn Battuta, in Rub Al-Khali. Wait and see for my next report!

Angresi, are you stupid?

2009-02-06T18:17:00.004+04:00

”Is he stupid?!” the annoyed Bedu woman shouted through the window of her rusty pick up car, pointing at an illustrious camel next to the desert road, “Surely he must see that she is pregnant and if he takes flash photos, she might loose her baby!”

“No, he doesn’t know anything about camels” Kamil my Omani guide and very good friend said, “He didn’t understand that you were shouting at him.”

“But he is English” she said a bit surprised, “They know everything!”

In that instant I was experiencing both sides of Oman, this spectacular country. On one side the very modern, educated and forward-looking state with a very proud modern Omani-people. On the other side, still, primeval Arabia, like a 1000 and a night, both romantic, harsh and stuck ancient traditions. But very proud. This reality is what makes Oman so different from its Gulf neighbours like Dubai, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait and UAE. They haven’t fully bought the modern society with all the good and bad things. Sure, it has in many ways, like one directly notices when arriving in the capital Muscat, modernized the country, but Oman has also kept its great ancient Arab and Bedouin traditions. Which a visitor will be clearly aware of when doing a tour of this beautiful country. Since I arrived three days ago it has been like a dream in many ways. First we passed through the Rocky Mountain-like western Hajar Mountains, picnicked at the green and lush oasis of Wadi Ghul, passed through the antique cities like Bahla and Nizwa and crossing the sand dunes at the Wahiba Sands (Sharqiya Sands), and, everywhere, the old traditions are kept. Not only through preserving their immense forts, and mud cities of past, but mainly through the great kindness of the local people. Even though Oman has surprised me a lot with its diversity and natural beauty, it is the people I’ve met which have fascinated me. They’re free from any aggression, very service minded, kind, generous, interest and full of wisdom. Wherever we come we get invited for kahva (Arabian coffee) and dates. It is served with great dignity, sitting down the Arab way, legs crossed and one is continuously served until you shake your right hand as a sign that you are satisfied. Dignity is the word describing these meetings the best.

“Is he not married then? No children?” one old man asked, a keeper of a 200 year old tradition to keep bees, a query which is one of the most common questions I’ve always received in Moslem countries I have passed through in the world, when they find out that I have spent my life travelling and when I answered no, the old man said: “Ah, he’s lucky then, free from worries and responsibility.”

In many Moslem countries an answer like that from me would have put me in a 30 minute interrogation regarding this odd behaviour. The same applies to the religious issue, which is always the main question you always get in a Moslem country. In Oman they respect your answer and don’t continue to pursue the issue even if they disagree. The Omani people are a very dignified and respectful people. So far, I am in awe over this country, its people and coming here is the best choice I have done in a long time. My Arabian dream has been awaken again and I am eager to get into Rub Al-Khali soon. Until then I will enjoy the coast of Oman and its fruits. And yes, the generosity of the people have made me put on a lot of fat again, so I guess I am getting prepared in every way. But, yes, when it comes to camels, I am still very stupid!

I think it will be very hard for any future projects to compete with your Kolyma expedition

2009-01-30T20:01:00.004+04:00

"I think it will be hard for any future projects to compete with your Kolyma Expedition" , wrote Shane in an email I wrote her regarding assistance to find people with knowledge of camel travel. The planning for the next major expedition has begun.
Shane knows. She has had to do with more Expeditions than probably any other human being on earth. I agree, of course. When I reached Ambarchik Bay in April 2005, I felt like I had done the Expedition of a life time. It turned out bigger than I dreamt about once upon a time as a kid. In this email to my friend Shane, I also asked her to evaluate my new Expedition, by camel through Arabia. Meaning the Arabian Peninsula. Her answer was:
"I think it will be hard for any future projects to compete with your Kolyma Expedition".
At the same time I recieved an email from one of my best friends, Ollie Steeds, one of the globes most adventurous blokes, and amongst a lot of positive wordings, he wrote a warning:
"Your plan sounds epic but I can see huge problems being allowed to travel through saudi and yemen is still incredibly unstable and potentially dangerous - even if you are travelling as and with the bedu."
Now, this is where you mentally start to prepare for all the obstacles waiting, because it is alway the same story, every unique Expedition is full of obstacles mainly in the shape of bureaucracy, and of course, some physical hardships. But I know, from 25 years experience, especially in the situation I am facing and going through today, I have only one chance to turn things around, especially for myself, I just need to make an Expedition on the same scale as the Kolyma Expedition. Even though the Arabian Peninsula offers a very challenging and very difficult environment, it will not be on the same scale as the Kolyma. So, what then does a real explorer do? First of all, he asks himself, what is it that I want to do, more important than anything else?
Well, what I want to do, the foundation of the Expedition, the main reason, is to build a bridge between the Moslem East and the Western World. It is probably the most important mission I have ever had. I want the Arabs to tell their own story. Just as the Russians, Even, Evenk and Chukchi during the Kolyma Expedition. I want to put a face on the Arabs for the west, so that we can kill all this animosity which occurs at the moment. I want to make a film, a book, lectures and an Expedition to show the rest, very ignorant at times, of the world, this great part with some of the most fantastic people on the globe - Arabs and Arabia.
Secondly, you bring out the maps. Today on the Internet. Now, when you look up Arabia on the net and on the same time, check a map of the worlds deserts, we do get a different picture. And a different expedition. Woow! Now, when I as a professional explorer look at this new Expedition and evaluate it, the Kolyma Expedition looks like a warm up.
By the way, looking at the same map, I realise that I have actually passed through some of them on the ole push bike. The Thar Desert, Iranian Desert, The Sahara, The Atacama Desert, The Mojave and Sonoran Desert and also, on horse back, the Patagonian Desert. The photo is from the Sahara desert, which I crossed on a push bike in the 1989-90, the Tamanrasset Route. I did the most difficult part, the stretch between Tamanrasset in Algeria to Agadez in Niger together with two excellent chaps, Charlie, on te picture, and Mick James. I´ve lost touch with Charlie a long time ago, but I communicate with Mick on and off, who lives in Scotland. Now, what o you think about all that?

Meeting a Swede who dreams to cross the Sahara desert by camel

2009-01-24T17:29:00.003+04:00

Almost as quick as I dropped the news about my next Expedition, I received an email from a young Swedish bloke, who wrote that he for years have dreamt about crossing the Sahara desert from east to west. As you well can understand, a magnicificent journey, which as far as I understand, has been done only once before, by a couple. A pom namned Michael Asher and an Italian lady namned Marianetta Peru. A magnificient feat. I bought this book years ago, about their trip, called Impossible Journey from 1988. For some unknown reason, I remember their personal quarrels more than anything else from the book about their journey. Maybe because I knew this very well from my own Expeditions with my ex, which were plagued by quarrels. I don´t have any memories of the way they felt or appreciated the desert. I will read it soon again, as part of my planning. And, after having read Wilfried Thesigers book, Arabian Sands, I have to say, it is a beautiful book, one of the best I have ever read, a book I will bring with me on the Expedition. It is a book about life itself. Then again, Thesiger is a legend, a true human being. No wonder.
Which, yet, doesn´t apply to Christian Bodegren from Vingåker in the south of Sweden. I met him here in Stockholm a couple of days ago, where he was contemplating life, a break from his work in construction in Norway. He inspired me a lot and told me many valuable things about cameltravel. He had already done a small trip, a test Expedition, in Tunisia for a week and loved every bit of it. (The photo is from this trip, courtesy of Christian Bodegren) He doesn´t remember anything negative. He is definitely a true explorer in mind. He was also very laid-back, calm and probably got more worried after the meeting than before, me scaring him with my stories from my travels. I just llike scaring other Explorers, I don´t know why...Anyway, I did once cross the Sahara, 1989, north to south, by push bike. I don´t remember anything bad either, except thirst and a terrible heat midday. But, I do remember the feeling of total peace, happiness and a great sence of freedom. That is one reason I want to return. It is part a spiritual journey, to find my ways again. I haven´t been in the great outdoor for over two years now. And the call to return has come, especially after meeting Bodegren, and conversing with some great Omanis by email, who I hope can become somebody to discuss camel issues with. Christian did say he found the handling of camels easier then horses, animals which I know quite well. And that made me even happier. After meeting Christian Bodegren, I took an immediate desicion. I will leave anyday on a trip together with Bedoiuns and camels. Keep your eyes open for this testtrip, which will tell me, whether I still have what it takes.

Exclusive Interview! Mikael Strandberg - Legendary Explorer and Adventurer by Ben Athletes & Interviews, Outdoor Industry News

2009-01-08T16:16:00.003+04:00

Exclusive Interview! Mikael Strandberg - Legendary Explorer and Adventurer
by Ben
Athletes & Interviews, Outdoor Industry News

CheapTents.com contacted Mikael Strandberg just a couple of days ago, along with a select few other MSR sponsored adventurers…and he kindly agreed to give us an insight into the life of this prolific adventurer…literally one of whom who has traveled into virgin territory on remarkable expeditions.

Mikael Strandberg Interview

CheapTents.com: What inspired you to make exploring your profession?

Mikael: Many things, but first of all a curiosity to try to understand the meaning of life. More an intellectual challenge, then simply a physical one. the physical aspect, the limits of a human being, are less interesting, but I prefer traveling by my own means, since it is far easier to get in touch with these cultures and peoples I want to get to know and understand.
Mikael Strandberg, Explorer

Mikael Strandberg, Explorer

CheapTents.com: What has been your biggest adventure or other exploratory achievement?

Mikael: Exploring the Kolyma River located in the north-eastern part of Siberia. the coldest inhabited place on earth. See www.siberia.nu

The Purpose of the expedition along the Kolyma River:

The main aim is to use words, pictures and film to make a record of this unknown part of our world. This is a vital task, since in the course of our extensive research work we have realised that not even the Russians or the Siberians themselves have a comprehensive picture of the area along the Kolyma River. The obstacles are the cold, the distance, the size and the isolation.

The area is untouched, remote and unknown. Nonetheless the area is as rich in gold, oil and mineral deposits as the rest of Siberia. This part of the world is one of the few remaining places on earth that is virgin territory. This is a genuine journey of discovery.

We also believe that it is in this untouched area that the answers to many of the questions asked by modern men are to be found: What are we doing here? What is our task? How do we find calm, harmony and satisfaction in our lives?

Here’s a snippet of the time spent in North-East Siberia:

The day I arrived to the small Siberian settlement of Kolymskaya was the happiest moment of my exploring life. It was the end of the most demanding part of my Expedition along the Kolyma River, one of the coldest inhabited places on earth.

I had, together with my assistant Johan, spent most of the past 5 months hauling 660 pounds of necessities, mainly in utter darkness, experiencing a terrifying cold with average temperatures around -50°F, day and night. A reality which made sleep almost impossible, giving us plenty of frostbites on both fingers and cheeks and it ruined most metal parts in our equipment. Like our ski bindings, and therefore, we arrived walking, not skiing, to the village.

It seemed like every inhabitant were there to greet us with customary warmth, joy and most of them were dressed in their colourful traditional dress. We saw Chukchis, Even, Yakuts, Yugahirs and Russians. After the traditional welcoming offerings to the spirits, we were brought into the local museum, where more cheerful and hugging villagers awaited us, around a table full of local delicacies. After having survived mainly on moose meat and raw, frozen fish during most of the winter, we nearly cried when we came across big plates of fried reindeer brain and cooked bone marrow.

At that stage, I suddenly realized, after spending 20 years of exploring extreme parts of our world and trying to understand the meaning of life, from now on, I’ll stop thinking about the big worrisome issues and simply concentrate on the uncomplicated ones. Like the thought of some more cooked bone marrow.

CheapTents.com: What is you biggest weakness? Sport or otherwise…

Mikael: My biggest weakness….but it would also be my biggest strength….I am very naive and trust everybody. Unconditionally.

Plus that I am not very technically skilled. I am an intellectual, not somebody who can repair things…. ;-)

CheapTents.com: When did you feel like you ‘made it’ in your field of exploration? And do you feel like you’ve satisfied your goals?

Mikael: I felt like I made it after Siberia, getting a lot of worldwide attention. And after Siberia, felt like I had done everything in my wildest dreams and, life fell a part, 2½ years later, I am back with a search to find a new Expedition worthy Siberia…visit: http://preparingforthenextexpedition.blogspot.com/
Mikael Strandberg, Prolific Explorer

Mikael Strandberg, Prolific Explorer

CheapTents.com: What do you find most challenging about training / keeping fit? Any tips to overcome these challenges?

Mikael: The mot challenging is to avoid training getting static and boring, so I find new ways to train all the time. Right now, since I don´t know what kind of an Expedition I will set out on next time, i am bodybuilding, adding on big muscles, since it makes a difference in many ways when penetrating other cultures. And it makes your body very strong overall. When i finally know where to set up my next Expedition, I will change my training and tune in on that. Before Siberia I did a lot of hunting and fishing plus dragging tires all over the place, I lived then in the north of sweden, where I am born and hunted and fished 150 days a year. Now, I´ve left the bush, to live in the city. Which I love. i don´t want life to become static, boring and without challenge.

CheapTents.com: Blood thirsty question now, what has been your worst injury (if any) from your multiple adventures and how did it happen?

Mikael: No injuries at all. Physically, on the outside of the body. However, I did a test with a world famous polar scientist and athlete, Dr Arkady Maximov, and he said that my body takes a damange every time, every year on Expedition, which equals 5 normal years of living. So, I am therefore 150 years old…..but i have had pretty much all tropical diseases you can think about. Malaria, dengue fever, typhoid, etc. The reason, touch wood, for not having had any external injuries, is due to all year around training. And new techniques all the time.

CheapTents.com: What will be your most challenging adventure for next year?

Mikael: Am slowly preparing for the Empty Quarter, so see when it will be time to leave….

CheapTents.com: You’ve obviously been heavily involved with multiple explorations around the world, which has been your favourite and why?

Mikael: Siberia, see above. It changed my way how to look at life.

CheapTents.com: Where would you like to be in 5 years time? Main Ambitions?

Mikael: I have no idea at all, and it doesn’t bother me one bit. You only have ambitions until you realize the workings of life. One day at a time, who knows what tomorrow will be like?

CheapTents.com: For other budding outdoor sports enthusiasts, what tips can you provide to help other compete at a higher level?

Mikael: The only way to reach the top is to become a fanatic. Train harder then anybody else, read and prepare yourself harder than anybody else and fully concentrate all your life on the goal. The issue.

CheapTents.com: What are your favourite bits of gear, and why?

Mikael: I like a good tent and a good stove, the essentials of surviving nowadays….

CheapTents.com: Any people or sponsors that you’d like thank? Any other comments?

Mikael: Gee, so many, so many…see the sponsors list at www.siberia.nu

CheapTents.com Thank you Mikael, from all of the CheapTents.com team for the time spent answering our questions so openly and honestly, and for discovering and sharing so much!

The mission to lecture about the Siberian Expedition

2009-01-07T11:01:00.003+04:00

I´ve been very lucky to be able to travel all over the world lecturing about the Kolyma Expedition. I´ve been to New York, London, Kuala Lumpur, Dubrovnik, Berlin and many more. The last one was in Poland this past weekend. It was a very short version, to fit into Marcin´s press conference. But I did get time to show the film from the Siberian Expedition. And the response, which is so important for me, especially since the audience in many way have been affected by Stalins gulags, was so full of passion, feelings and awe in many ways. And most of all, they like my way to take away my own self and the macho part, and showing the lifes of people who live in the area. After every of these lectures outside of Scandinavia, I feel so happy that I´ve been able to build a bridge between cultures. the mission will continue. Some reviews:

"It was the best time in my life, Mikael, you have helped me to focus on the important things of my Expedition to the Kolyma. You are an amazing person. "

Marcin Gienieczko

“You have an amazing ability to

present all the dramas and traumas

of your expeditions in a lighthearted

– but not flippant – way

which enhances the toughness of the

situations in which you found (got)

yourself. You have a great sense of

timing, humour and ‘cool’ which is unusual

in a language not one’s own. You

took about 20 years and 50,000

kilometres to have learned ‘almost

nothing’ but your demeanour and

presentation show that you ‘know’

more than anyone I have met. Your

lecture at our company is one of the best

ever. We look forward to

having you back soon, Michael.”

Marc Freedman, Chanderley Enterprises

“You are the funniest, most inspirational speaker I´ve ever heard.”

Alicia V. Stephens, American Museum of Natural History, New York

"Dear Mikael, for me the best part of the weekend was meeting you. I believe that you embody the point of exploration, which does not often happen these days. I also like the idea of having you back here and Moscow as well so I will follow up."

Lorie Karnath, chairman and boardmember Explorers Club, Berlin

"Dear Mikael, I have seen every Monday lecture for the last twenty years and I have once been the president of the Royal Geographic Society
myself. This is the best lecture I´ve seen in twenty years.

I have seen all the great once, but they couldn´t tell a story like you. Now, you´re one of the great ones!

It was remarkable!

The Earl Jellicoe

"Your lecture is one of the most inspirational I have heard in my 29 years at the Royal Geographical Society. "

Shane Winser, chairman Expedition Advisory Board

“Last year we had Michael Jordan in Singapore, this year with had Mikael Strandberg in Kuala Lumpur. Two truly amazing lectures, sportsmen and human beings.”

David King, vice president UT Star.com

"It was a remarkable lecture! Mikael´s a great storyteller and it is very important everything he has to tell us about
that part of the world. We don´t know anything a people´s every day life in such an extremely cold temperatures. He
captivates his audience immediately, has great humour and a lot of charm."

Dr Rita Gardner, director of the RGS

"Great news your lecture turned out to be such a success… just so sorry I was there to lead the applause! I had a lot of
friends there who all said it was the best lecture they’ve heard! Beating Buzz Aldrin! "

Oliver Steeds, ABC correspondent Peking

"Mikael, I was lucky enough to find a seat in the packed Ondaatje Theatre last night at the RGS to hear your fantastic lecture.
Good to see you looking well after such a trip, and the fact that you haven´t changed a bit, after such a life changing experience.
Many of the explorers who return after a trip are not as quite as they were before leaving, they always seem a little to confident.

have you ever thought about stand up comedy? I have never laughed as much as on Monday! your Essex accent is spectacular!"

Justin Hobson,picture Library manager at the RGS

"Mikael, it was the funniest, most informative and exciting lecture I´ve heard in years. Yoú do really know how to
captivate your listners. And thank you for your great work for all native tribes. It was interesting to hear your story about
the white male explorer wanting tobe a hero, when actually people live in these temperatures daily! You have a charisma
very few people have and I think it is because your down-to-earth, lack of badges from millions of sponsors and one
immediately feels that you are a genuine bushman and human being. Congratulations and hope to see you again at the RGS!"

John Murray, publisher at Cambridge Books

"Mikael, during the last ten years I haven´t come across the interest you´ve stirred. A ten minute applaude,
I can´t remember when that last happened! I think it was Borge Ousland a few years back. But this doesn´t happen very
much. Congratulations!"

Steve Brooks , Boultbee&Brothers

"I have heared lectures all over the world for the last twenty years. Only two people have stirred my emotions the way
you did. Both austronauts."

Alexandra Foley, FoleyPR

“Incidently, I got multiple complimentary comments following your talk. One email simply said 'best ever'.”

Jonathan Wilson, Exxon Oil, London

Giving a helping hand to a Polish Expedition heading for the Kolyma

2009-01-05T13:44:00.006+04:00

I´ve alway felt a bit like an ambassador for the Kolyma Region. Very few people know anything about this the greatest place on earth. And during the years since I returned home from this the most fantastic Expedition of my life, I´ve had a few requests to help travellers who´d like to visit the region. One of them, the most persistent of them all, was from a young pole namned Marcin Gienieczko And he even managed to get me to come over to visit Poland as a special guest during his preparations and during his press conference. He is leaving for the Kolyma, to ski from Seimchan to Ambarchik Bay in three months, mainly by himself. A great feat. He is also one of the foremost young adventurers in Poland with a lot of smaller Expeditions on his back. None as big as the Kolyma, of course. So I went over to this grand country, my first visit ever, for a 5 day visit, which was just what I needed to gain some energy and ideas regarding my next Expedition. I met so many great people. The Poles, a Slavic people like the Russians, are a tremendous lot of people. They´re very generous, friendly, caring, interested, knowledgable and they´ve gone through many hardships in life, which of course makes better human beings. I feel like I have made some very good friends during this time, Grazyna, Daniel, Anja and of course, Marcin. I feel a lot for his Expedition and himself. Unlike far too many self obsessed young western adventurers, I think Sweden and the US are the worst, his own perfect self isn´t the major reason for going to the Kolyma, the people are. Mainly because there were a lot of Polish prisoners in this the worst Gulag area of all Stalins nasty and inhuman workcamps. Anyway, this is the story of my visit:

I immediately recognised the worries, the stress, that comes with just leaving for a big Expedition, when Marcin picked me up at the airport in Gdansk. Winter was here, lot´s of snow and relatively cold. His jeep was full of gear, two dogs, Brenda and Fidel, and I hardly got in myself, we headed immediately, after picking up his girlfriend Anja and a stunner called Grazyna who we also managed to fit in to the car, before continuing for the Polish bush, were we spent a great New Year Eve! An evening with great food, too much vodka and no sleep in a log cabin in the forest belonging to Daniel, a great fella who spent 30 years living in Canada, which he missed a lot. A soul mate, no doubt. I am so priviliged to meet these soul mates all over the world. We cruised a village by foot, full of vodka, meeting laughing and celebrating people everywhere and during the night Daniel lost all his horses in a runaway, due to the fire works. So we spent next day looking for them and didn´t find any, really, but I got to see some of the Polish back country and it reminded me of Russia. A distinct smell of coal, half ruined buildings, flat and undulating fields and a penetrating cold.

From here we travelled for a few hours to a Sports Center, who was sponsoring Marcin with the hotell, preparations and the press conference and we spent many hours pouring over the maps and the equipment he had. And I have a few small worries, because he will be travelling in total darkness, minus 50 degrees temperature and his equipment is quite used from other expeditions, but then again, he is after all Polish, and they´re tougher then other Europeans, and especially Americans. Follow his Expedition on www.zewpolnocy.com

Next day we went through all the equipment again and I felt more tired then in a long time. I could feel Marcin worries. It was like he was draining me of energy and of course, I immediately picked up a nasty polish flu, which bedded me immediately. I had a dream that night, that Marcin lost all his fingers and I was stupid enough to tell him about this, and it made him even more worried. the cold terrifies him, which I can understand. Grazyna seemed to be responsibel for my well being and she took care of me as good as it is possible. And that is my major feeling from this visit, the love of this great people.

The third was the day for the press conference and my lecture. Polish TV, radio, sponsors and others were there, plus a lady, Tatiana, who was born in Zyryanka and had spent a big part of her life in Seimchan along the Kolyma. A real Kolymanian! She told the group of her own experiences living in this coldest inhabited place on earth. Very interesting. She felt like a sister to me. I will tell you in a seperate article about the lecture and the response. Another visitor to the press conference was a famed Polish polar Explorer and a guy writing for National Geographic, Marcin Jamkowski, who just spent a long time in the Sudan desert travelling by camel!

Next day, the fourth, I left with Grazyna, early at 6 a.m, after no sleep at all, to travel by car, train and taxi to the airport. Then back to a grey stockholm, hit badly with the flu, but feeling very inspired indeed and with a great longing to return to the Kolyma area again. Marcin is very priviliged!

The Best Travel and Adventure Reading in the history of Exploration and Adventure

2008-12-27T16:24:00.003+04:00

For me books have had a enormous impact on life. When I was ten years old it made me realize, since I am grown up in the country side, that there was life beyond the limits of the village. Books made me explore, it has given me so much joy, hope, wisdom and perspective on almost every aspect of life. Books means a lot to me and I´ve always had a big library of books. I always have books lying aroun everywhere. In the kitchen, next to the bed, heaps near the sofa, today, even spread around the country in cardboard boxes after the divorce 2½ years ago!

Not long ago I had a question from Geographical to pick the 5 best Travel books I´ve ever come across. Here they are:

1. Annapurna by Maurice Herzog. This is the way real climbs, real exploration should be done. Before you had set routes and ropes fixed to the mountain. This work presents the enthralling account, by the leader of the French expedition, of the first conquest of Annapurna - at that time, and at more than 8000 metres, the highest mountain ever climbed. It is a story of breathtaking courage and determination against appalling odds. In records of mountaineering, in tales of human endeavour, there is nothing so unforgettable as the account of the descent by the triumphant but frost-bitten men, after the monsoon had broken, through the flooded valleys of Nepal. As well as an introduction by Joe Simpson, this new edition includes 16 pages of photographs, which provide a remarkable visual record of this legendary expedition.

2. The worst journey in the world by Aspley Cherry-Garrard. This book gave me and Johan Ivarsson great insights into the cold during our Siberian Expedition. One of the youngest members of Scott's team, Apsley Cherry-Garrard was later part of the rescue party that eventually found the frozen bodies of Scott and three men who had accompanied him on the final push to the Pole. This is his account of an expedition that had gone disastrously wrong. No episode in the history of human endeavour reads more harrowingly than Scott's last expedition to Antarctica. Scott reached the South Pole in January 1911 to find Roald Amundsen had beaten him to it; then perished with his companions on the way home. 'Yet, "tragedy"', Apsley Cherry-Garrard was to write a decade later, 'was not our business.' Cherry-Garrard was just 24, the youngest but one of the team when he joined Scott. Left behind for the final leg, in accordance with Scott's original plan for a four-man advance, it fell to Cherry-Garrard eight months later to be a member of the search party which discovered their frozen bodies. The experience permanently damaged his mental health. For the rest of his life he was haunted by the fear that, but for what he perceived as an error of judgement on his part, they might have survived. Yet this book, his story of that and earlier expeditions, is in no way self-indulgent or sensationalist. Despite his name, aristocratic birth and classics degree from Oxford, Cherry-Garrard was no arrogant nobleman. Rather, this not especially robust but intelligent man well understood that polar exploration requires a singular fortitude pushing beyond brute strength to what Ranulph Fiennes was later to term mind over matter. Cherry-Garrard's descriptions of the conditions suffered are rendered all the more diabolical by prose as stark as the landscape traversed. As for hyperbole, the 'Worst Journey' of the title in fact refers to an earlier expedition investigating nesting sites of the Emperor penguin. A work of supreme dimension, this masterpiece remains as compelling today as when it was first published 80 years ago.

3. The Heart of the Hunter by Laurens Van der Post. A beautiful book about travels among the Bushmen. In this stirring sequel to "The Lost World" of the Kalahari Laurens van der Post records everything he has learned of the life and lore of Africa's first inhabitants. He explores the very sources of the Bushmen's spirit and imagination - their dreams and stories, the legends that guide them and inspire them in their daily battles with that harshest of environments, the Kalahari.

4. Arctic dreams by Barry Lopez. An amazingly inspiring account from the northern part of the globe. The European picture of the Arctic is usually of snow and ice: the inhospitability of the terrain and the frigid wastes of the tundra contribute to our incapacity to imagine ordinary life there. In this magisterial book Barry Lopez draws on this hazy understanding of the far north to provide a compelling account of the land and its hold upon the psyche.It is a book which could be compared to Chatwin for its combination of travelogue and poetic vision. Yet the beauty of the prose and the thought-provoking evocations of modern culture's shifting relationship with the environment are in a league of their own. Here are sparkling descriptions of the lives of caribou, muskoxen, polar bears and narwhals, and extraordinarily moving passages which meditate on the nature of our relationship with the world, the inter-dependence of ideas, desire and science and the possibility of dignity and compassion in the contemporary world.It is a measure of the respect which Lopez has for his subject that his book exemplifies the supreme importance which he ascribes to the ethics of respect in the face of all existential paradox:"There are simply no answers to some of the great pressing questions. You continue to live them out, making your life a worthy expression of a leaning into the light".

5 Khyber Knights by CuChullaine O´Reilly. A very good friend of mine. It is an account of perilous adventure and forbidden romance in the depths of mystic Asia. A real modern day tale!

These are all books which wants you to leave on an adventure, change your life and gives insights to the meaning of life.

The life of a tour guide and a few reviews from clients I have had on the 6 weeks of guiding in South America

2008-12-21T16:49:00.010+04:00

Being a tour guide is very fulfulling in many ways. Most of all, when it comes to making other peoples dreams come true. It is a very demanding job, you are a 24 hours service unit, you always have to be in a good and organised mood and, most of all, you have to fulfill the dream for all people, your clients, who for years have dreamt, maybe all their lives, to visit places like Rapa Nui or the Galapagos Islands. I just love that challenge!
I really love telling stories, lecturing, inspiring people, opening their minds, building a bridge from their culture to the one we are visiting, adding to their lust to live and explore, and living very close with people for 3 weeks at a time, gives a rich experience. I learn a lot from my clients, most of them over 45 years of age, full of the wisdom of life, and they´re well educated, so they don´t take any gibberish for right or wrong, so you have to be very well prepared and know exactly what you are talking about. It is like a small Expedition in itself. It is an honor and a privilege to be a guide and I want to be the best there is, of course.
On top of just having the opportunity to educate people, I love the locals along the way. The interaction makes me happier then anything and the most difficult issue of all, is returning home to the cold and dark place called Sweden. I´ve been home for two weeks now and I feel like I have been run over by the train. I miss the smiling, passionate and energetic people of South America. If it wouldn´t be for family, friends and love, I wouldn´t return. However, I have received great reviews from my clients, which shows that a good guide need to be educated and full of passion, yes, more than anything, passion!

The lovely Larson couple who joined me to Ecuador, Peru and the Galapagos wrote:

"Hi Mikael! We just want to say thank you for your extraordinary way of guiding us during this spectacular journey! We will never forget your humble way to confront nature, people and life in itself. We have never met a captivating human being like you. You have experienced so much in your life and you told us just fragments of it. We will go to Patagonia next year, only if you will be the guide!

Marianne, on the Patagonian journey said this:

"This was the best journey I have done in my life. All thanks to your guiding. It was exiting all the time and very funny. I haven´t laughed like this in twenty years! "

The Lawrences wrote:

"You are not only an excellent guide, but a genuinely sincere and honest human being. We are sure that you will have a very rich and engaging life, no matter what path you follow. We admire your courage and enthusiasm."

Rub´al Khali

2008-12-14T22:20:00.004+04:00

Part of preparations for any expedition, whether you know what to do or not, is reading, of course. I will later come with a suggestion of the best Travel/Expedition books every written, but until then, well, the other day I went to a lecture by an Oil Company I might work together with in the future and they were talking about Oman. And to prepare myself for the lecture I browsed through the Internet and I came across one of my favouriet travel writers, who has done what I consider one of the most fantastic Expeditions in history. Wilfred Thesiger´s explorations of Rub´al Khali, or the Empty Quarter. It has been a long dream of mine to explore this area of our world. But not that easy, since a major part is located in Saudi-Arabia. But then again, nothing is impossible. I will start looking into the subject. The joy I feel, when knowing that this might be the upcoming Expedition, well, it is the best feeling in life. And, it is after all, the true Arabia. And considering the worry the west feel regarding islam, well, this feels like the time to do it!

On special request, article about the Kolyma Expedition published in Geographic Journal

2008-12-09T14:58:00.002+04:00

“Mike!” Johan whispered anxiously,” Look out!”
As I turned around I saw a big brown bear standing on the beach only 20 metres away, between us and our canoe, intensely sniffing and staring at us. It was one of the most beautiful bears I’ve ever seen. His fur was radiant in the sun, his rams were grey from age and he seemed startled by our presence. At that moment I had no idea whether it was the same bear I had shoot at from the canoe ten minutes earlier or whether it was another one. The first bear had fallen over, having been hit at least three times in the area below his left shoulder and before I had time to reload, he slowly crawled into the thick taiga. This one, however, took a step forward, stopped again and stood up on his hind legs, sniffing even more eagerly. I took a quick look at my young partner Johan and I suddenly realised that he was unarmed. The Russian authorities had allowed us to bring one rifle only and at that moment I remembered the words of my wife Titti before setting out on the Expedition:
“Don’t ever forget that you have the same responsibility as any parent regarding Johan. It is better you die if things come to that.”
“Maybe you should have a go”, I said calmly to Johan and handed him the rifle as I took a step down from the steep bank and out of the thick forest.
My appearance startled the bear initially, but suddenly the giant charged off up the steep slope, turned around facing us and came at us with determination.
“Whatever you do, don’t miss”, I told Johan quietly as he raised the rifle.
The bear suddenly stopped 10 metres away from us and stood up on his hind legs again. Johan shot the bear in the stomach; the giant fell backward, rolled down the bank and straight into the fast current of the river. Stunned, we watched the bear being swept away. We had killed for nothing and I felt more miserable than ever before. And painfully hungry. Our expedition down the Kolyma River, located in the far north-eastern part of Siberia, was only one month old, it was the end of August and we were already on the verge of starvation.
“We better stay sharp and focused” I advised Johan with an exhausted voice whilst he reloaded, “we still don’t know if it’s another bear around. If it is, it’s badly injured and therefore very dangerous.”
It was useless advice. Johan, only 21 years old and on his first expedition, was full of adrenalin. He trembled from excitement, concentration and nervous tension. I grabbed an axe from the canoe, in the hope to use it as some kind of a defence weapon if needed and together we went cautiously into the dense taiga. We spent an hour doing a thorough examination of the area and concluded that it was the same bear and that his odd behaviour had to do with him being badly injured from me shooting him from the canoe. (A Swedish authority on bears, after having heard measurements of its paws, estimated that it was a male bear weighing around 400-450 kilogram’s.)
“No meat, no fur and no food”, Johan said downheartedly when we returned to the canoe, ready to continue down the river, “And we don’t seem to catch enough fish. Maybe we’re not good enough trappers?”
“Don’t worry”, I answered reassuringly, “if we keep working hard, sooner or later things will change.”
But, in reality, I knew if we didn’t get the local hunting- and fishing Gods on our side within a week, we would never make it to our final goal in Ambarchik Bay, 10 months and 3500 km:s of travelling further north.

One of the less important aims of the Expedition was to investigate whether our ability to hunt and fish would be sufficient enough to survive the wild Siberian taiga and tundra along the Kolyma River. More important, however, was to make a full record of this unknown part of our world. This was a vital task, since in the course of our extensive research work we did realise that not even the Russians or the Siberians themselves had a comprehensive picture of the area along the Kolyma River. The obstacles were the cold, the distance, the size and the isolation. The area was untouched, remote and unknown. And one of the coldest inhabited places on earth. The main aim was to build a bridge between our cultures, widen the western world’s knowledge about the Russian and Siberian way. We wanted to find the Russian and Siberian temperament. We believed this could provide a perspective on the way of life in the future. We also wanted to ascertain how the area had been affected by the enormous changes in society that have been the result of the collapse of the Soviet Union. And we knew 3.5 million people had lost their lives in Stalin’s concentration camps –gulags- along the river. Another genocide which had to be documented thoroughly and quickly. The documentation of the native people was another important issue. The Yakuts, the Even, the Chukchi and especially, the Yukahirs, of whom only 400 individuals had survived the Soviet era. All of them living in one of the coldest inhabited places on earth. Therefore, another specific aim was to examine if the native people along the Kolyma were genetically different to us Western Europeans when it came to their ability to cope with this extreme cold. And, during our research work we became conscious about the fact, that polar travel throughout its short history, a record full of frostbites and death, had been dominated by people being brought up and living in cities. We believed that people like ourselves, born, bred and still living in the North Scandinavian outback, were much more physically tolerant when it came to handling the cold and hardships of the polar areas. For this reason, we had for example used the old lumberjack tradition of putting on enormous amounts of extra weight in the shape of fat, before the arrival of winter, so that day in the beginning of August when we first put the canoe down the river, we had put on 20 extra kilos each. However, it was all gone by the time we had the hunting incident with the bear, after only a month of paddling. All due the fact that we had been pushed to our limits, both physically and mentally, since the first day we put the canoe down into the river at the beginning of August.

“Johan!”, I shouted in panic, “I am stuck under the canoe!”
At the same time Johan, with all his strength, managed to pull the canoe away from me, I went under the rapids and was quickly pulled away by the strong current. It tossed me around like a piece of paper and I would have drowned if I hadn’t been lucky to end up on the sandbank which we had tried to avoid crashing into and who had forced us to jump out of the canoe to try to change its direction.
“Are you ok?” Johan asked exhausted.
“Yes”, I answered terrified, “but I am scared stiff every second we spend in the canoe. If the canoe turns, we’re dead.”
“We better not turn over, then”, Johan said quietly, which made us laugh and relax for a moment.
We pulled the overloaded canoe up on the bank and took a short break, to give us some time to sharpen our concentration, whilst enormous masses of water passed us on both sides. Rain was pouring down and it was the third day on our expedition and our lives had immediately turned into a constant struggle for survival. A nasty typhoon had hit this unpopulated, untouched and very wild mountainous area and this reality made the water level of the river rise 7 metres in a couple of days. We had expected a fairly calm river, with relatively easy paddling, since it was in the beginning of the autumn, where we could put up camp on the banks of the river and spend the evenings fishing and hunting. Instead the typhoon had turned it into a torrent of a wide river full of fast moving logs, violent rapids and unpredictable sandbanks which were hard to spot whilst we steered through high waves.
“Time to concentrate fully again” I told Johan as we pushed out the canoe from the sandbank straight into another rapid.
I was terrified every single second as I was sitting in the front of the canoe. Our survival depended a lot on the knowledge of my young comrade and his ability to steer through the rapids, avoiding getting run over by fast moving logs or getting stuck on a log that’s come to a halt. We didn’t talk at all. That would have meant a dangerous loss of concentration. I just sat in the front and waited for his screaming instructions when we hit a stretch of high waves:
“Paddle harder!”
At that moment I paddled for my life. After a couple of hours of paddling we saw a cloud of water spray and heard a thunderous noise ahead of us and we realized that something even worse awaited us. Amazingly enough we spotted a stretch of calm water to our left and I yelled in a slight panicky voice:
“We have to get out of the canoe and check that stretch out now!”
Johan yelled back:
“Look out! I will turn the canoe around and when I scream paddle, we need all your strength to make it!”
To my amazement he managed to turn the canoe in a nasty rapid and we ended up front to front with the current and we crossed the river, paddling like mad for what seemed like ages. Eventually we made it over to the side of the river. We hadn’t come across such calm water since we began paddling. For a short moment it felt like we’ve entered a sanctuary of peace. At least until that second clouds of mosquitoes arrived and caused havoc amongst us. We tied the canoe to a tree and entered the taiga. It was our first contact with the wild Siberian taiga and it was a nasty surprise. We were true forest people, but we were used to the easy cultivated Scandinavian taiga, where one can travel easily and right now we couldn’t even moved forward one single step.
“It’ll get better once we’ve made it inside the forest”, I told Johan reassuringly; “The same way it is in all Jungles all over the world.”
It didn’t. It was almost impenetrable and it took us one hour to advance only 100 metres ahead. And it took the same time to return back to the canoe. We never got to see what waited ahead of us.
“We just have to give it a try and hope for the best”, I said, “And if we keep our concentration, we’ll get through.”
We tried to traverse the river once again, since we figured we had a better choice of routes from that side. But once we made it to the middle, the current and the rapids were too strong. Whether we like it or not, we ended up in the worst possible route through the rapids. Before I had a chance to yell out my feelings of terror, we went into a series of high waves, which we one second had above us and the next moment we were on top of them. The waves just tossed us around, uncontrollably, and the canoe moaned of the damage it was taking. Suddenly, just as I was sure we’ve had it, we were through on the other side.
“I have never been as scared as that in my 20 years of extreme exploration” I told Johan in terror and relief.
“I love it!” Johan yelled happily, “I want more of this!”
If I would have had my rifle next to me at that moment, I would have shot him! Luckily, he didn’t say anything more for the upcoming two hours. We just went through one series of rapids after another and after 5 hours of avoiding turning over, we were too knackered to continue. We stopped at the first high ground we could find. A muddy opening in the taiga with clouds of mosquitoes waiting for us. It took us two hours to carry all our equipment a few hundred metres inland to avoid getting flooded, but once we started pitching the tepee, we realised we wouldn’t get any sleep the upcoming night either. The level of the river was rising quickly. At 7 p.m. it got dark and we set our alarm clock ringing every 15 minutes to remind us to check the level of the river. At 11 p.m. we knew that we would get flooded during the night. And we were well aware that paddling in the dark would kill us instantly. We just had to hang on somehow until the brake of dawn. In the dark we packed the canoe, attacked by uncountable amounts of mosquitoes, gnats and flies and we stood in the dark next to it until water reached above our knees at 3 a.m. in the morning. Hence we took our seats in the canoe, tied it to a sturdy tree and waited. It was a demanding wait, as we were freezing cold from being constantly wet and soaked to the bone. As soon as dawn arrived, we took a deep breath, untied the rope and fully concentrated we set off for another day of uncertainty.

We didn’t get any sleep for ten days and the lack of proper rest made it real hard to stay focused. We had many near-accidents every day. Most difficult of all, however, was the lack of food. Even though we carried 350 kilogram’s of equipment, only a small percentage was provisions. Like rice, pasta, cooking oil, wheat flower, lots of salt, sugar, 30 portions of dried frozen food, coffee, teabags, stock cubes and oats. And our original idea was that we would fish and hunt not only to survive, but also to collect enough meat and fish to dry as stores for the upcoming winter. The flooding, of course, made this impossible. And when we encountered the brown bear, after 4 weeks of troublesome and demanding paddling, it was pure survival instinct that made us shoot. We had pretty much run out of all supplies, except salt and pasta. Even though, we tragically took a life, lost a big amount of meat and good fur, it sharpened our instincts dramatically. And after that we got the Gods of Nature on our side. The flooding stopped and just a couple of days after loosing the bear, we caught 15 kilogram’s of trout and local fish in our net, shoot two massive hares and a pheasant. During the upcoming two months, September and October, we caught over 150 kilogram’s of fish in our nets and very few of them were caught with western lures or flies. And, every day, a couple of hours before darkness, we took turns to be a hunting dog with the sole purpose to force giant Siberian hares out of its hiding. It was dead easy. We just established the area where they hid; one of us took the role of a barking dog and went off into the dense taiga. The one with the rifle took position waiting eagerly for the dog to do its work. It was some of the most interesting hunting I’ve ever done. When the human dog barked once it meant a hare had been spotted, two barks, that he was coming straight for the spot and three barks in row, meant that the hare should be in front of the shooter at that moment! During this time we managed to hunt enough game and catch an adequate amount of fish not only to survive, but also to put on additional body weight to face one of the coldest climates on earth – the Kolyma Winter.

“That’s another frostbite” Johan stated through his facemask in despair, “That means I’ve got one on every finger.”
He was having another bout of diarrhoea. It was the third time in an hour he had to squat down and pull his trousers off. And his three sets of gloves. On every occasion he had experienced that burning feeling followed by numbness in one of his fingers. The first stage of a frostbite. I could barely make him out in the eternal darkness of Mid-Winter and I shivered violently. The same way I had every day since we left the settlement of Zyryanka four weeks earlier, in the middle of November.
“I think we better move on”, I whispered.
I then exhaled, coughed and heard that familiar tinkling sound which occurred when someone’s breath turned into a shower of ice crystals, which locally was referred to as “the whispers of the stars”. It was -70°F and it was impossible to form a decent thought or even to daydream. Or feel any worries. By pure survival instinct, we knew we had to keep moving and never stop. Therefore, we continued with great effort in the darkness, pulling our 330 pounds each behind us. Even though the river was covered with only a couple of inches of snow, it still felt like pulling the sledges over sand. It didn’t help that we both were walking, not skiing, since our ski bindings had broken when the temperature dropped below -58°F, as with most metal parts of our equipment. The heavy load made us sweat profusely the whole time, but we just couldn’t stop and have a break. Every time we did, we seemed to pick up more frostbite’s on fingers or cheeks, and it felt like the liquid in our elbows and knees froze and we started to shiver uncontrollably. Consequently we kept moving in complete darkness. Hour after hour. Steadily putting one foot in front of the other. The darkness didn’t matter since our eyebrows were always iced up, making it hard to see anything. But, as long as we kept moving, at least it made us aware that we were still alive. At least until that dreadful moment it was time to get inside the tent.

After 16 hours of skiing it only took us a few minutes to pitch the tent, but it took at least an hour to get the stove going. Some nights it didn’t work at all. Poor quality Russian petrol was the problem. It froze solid. As a result, we carried the petrol bottle under our armpit the last hour of the day to keep it warm. We always knew when it was usable, since the bottle would then leak. It still took an hour to get the stove going, since it was completely frozen and we had to pour petrol in a cup and light it to defrost the stove. We both had to keep busy during these attempts in order to keep the dangerous apathy at bay. The cold still made us tremble, sometimes almost hysterically. When the stove finally worked, we could momentarily form a thought, but unfortunately this relief just made us more aware how cold it was. Once inside the sleeping bag, we knew we had at least 6 hours of unrelenting pain to cope with. Not due to the frostbites thawing up, but because it took at least three hours to gain control over your body. During this terrifying time we lay on our backs, the body arched, just trying to keep the worst shivering away, trying to rest as much as possible. We hardly slept at all. Sharing the sleeping bag with the facemask, the PDA, satellite phone, torch, spare batteries, boots, stove and gloves didn’t help. As usual, it was dead silent outside, even if we at times had heard a lone howling wolf in the distance or the odd explosion when a tree detonated from the cold. We didn’t thaw up completely this night either.

“It is time to get up”, I said through my breathing hole in the sleeping bag; “Four days to go before we reach Srednekolymsk.”
“What time is it?” Johan groaned and my answer was simple: “I don’t know. Does it matter? It’s dark all the time anyway.”
As quick as I moved cold snow fell into my face. Just to make me aware of the hell I was in. It was pitch black and it always took some time to find the torch. I’d slept on it most of the night. When I switched it on, still inside the sleeping bag, I noticed as usual that our breath had formed giant stalagmites of snow hanging down the tent roof. And when I heard Johan moving, I realized I had to try to get out of the sleeping bag. It felt almost impossible. The body was still stiff; every muscle ached, my cheeks, nose and hands were burning, I felt no energy at all and I found it hard to concentrate. Johan was first as usual out of the bag and immediately put his down jacket on, followed by his facemask and then started the struggle to get his boots on. He was very weak after days of diarrhoea, but still worked heroically hard and did everything purely by instinct. He handed me the stove by routine. To work it I had to remove a layer of gloves and I had problems getting the lighter to work, even though I’d kept it in my underpants all night. My hands were to stiff. And the stove was frozen solid. Johan gave it a try with no luck.
“I think we have to give breakfast a miss today”, I told Johan; “We forgot to take the petrol bottle and stove into the sleeping bag last night.”
The only positive aspect with not being able to cook was that we didn’t have to suffer condensation, which iced everything up badly. We didn’t waste any time getting out of the tent. It took us just a few minutes to get all the equipment out of the tent, dissemble it and pack everything together in the dark. This routine was followed by one of the coldest moments of the day, when it was time to take the down jacket off and start moving. It took at least 3 hours to feel relatively warm. During this time the face, nostrils and eyes were covered by ice again, making breathing difficult and we pretty much coughed continuously. And to save batteries we travelled in darkness. All day. Three days later we reached the Yakut settlement of Srednekolymsk.

We spent January thawing up in Srednekolymsk. Temperatures were constantly below -60°F. And amongst some of the nicest and most generous people on earth we put on a lot of weight needed for the remaining 1500 kilometres to reach Ambarchik Bay before the end of April. We sampled their local delicacies like stroganina, frozen raw fish eaten like ice-cream, maxa, frozen raw liver eaten the same way, cooked moose nostrils, stewed moose heart, fried liver from wild caribou, cooked moose muzzle with pasta, raw frozen horse testicle’s and much more. And the local people gave us a healthy perspective regarding extreme cold. Some of them had amputated fingers, arms and legs. Almost all had scarred cheeks and had lost the tip of their noses. And, as they told us, it could have been worse. We could have been unfortunate prisoners in one of Stalin’s gulags whose remains dotted the Kolyma. Many of whom froze to death within two weeks.

Even though we encountered temperatures below -55°F most of February, travelling was a holiday in comparison with the dark Mid-Winter travel. We froze badly throughout the month, but at noon every day the temperatures rose to -30°F and that was enough to thaw up and we could even stop for a short brake without getting a frostbite. We pulled the sledges from early morning until a couple of hours before darkness, having encountered no problems to form thoughts during the day, and then we pitched our tent and spent a couple of hours trying to get the stove working. Eventually it did. Equipment continued to brake in the cold, but we came across trappers almost every three or four days and their log cabins gave us enough warmth to do decent repairs. In March we had plenty of daylight and temperatures rose to -40°F even in the night and we experienced day temperatures up to 0°F! We reached the tundra in April and travelled quickly over the sastrugi and made it to our goal in Ambarchik Bay at the end of April 2005.

Half a year has passed since we returned back home to Sweden. It hasn’t been easy returning. I miss Kolyma every day. Not the hardships, the suffering or the extreme cold, but the people. It is the best people I’ve come across during 25 years of exploration. Generous, funny, intelligent, knowledgeable, open-minded and extremely warm. Even though all the goals we set before the Expedition have been fulfilled, we’ve discovered a lot of unknown knowledge, I think the most important thing I’ve brought with me back home, is understanding the major difference between us humans and other species. Our communication. Jag skriver mer sedan….

Bone marrow and fried reindeer brain

2008-12-09T14:46:00.002+04:00

The day I arrived to the small Siberian settlement of Kolymskaya was the happiest moment of my exploring life. It was the end of the most demanding part of my Expedition along the Kolyma River, one of the coldest inhabited places on earth. I had, together with my assistant Johan, spent most of the past 5 months hauling 660 pounds of necessities, mainly in utter darkness, experiencing a terrifying cold with average temperatures around -50°F, day and night. A reality which made sleep almost impossible, giving us plenty of frostbites on both fingers and cheeks and it ruined most metal parts in our equipment. Like our ski bindings, and therefore, we arrived walking, not skiing, to the village. It seemed like every inhabitant were there to greet us with customary warmth, joy and most of them were dressed in their colourful traditional dress. We saw Chukchis, Even, Yakuts, Yugahirs and Russians. After the traditional welcoming offerings to the spirits, we were brought into the local museum, where more cheerful and hugging villagers awaited us, around a table full of local delicacies. After having survived mainly on moose meat and raw, frozen fish during most of the winter, we nearly cried when we came across big plates of fried reindeer brain and cooked bone marrow. At that stage, I suddenly realized, after spending 20 years of exploring extreme parts of our world and trying to understand the meaning of life, from now on, I’ll stop thinking about the big worrisome issues and simply concentrate on the uncomplicated ones. Like the thought of some more cooked bone marrow.

I was brought up in a working class environment, where the basic values of life was hard physical work, loyalty to your employer, never forget where one came from and stick to your own kind. For this reason, we only had two books at home, The Sea Wolf and White Fang by Jack London. My father had them on loan indefinitely from the local library, for the simple reason to show our neighbours that our family had ambitions beyond the village limit. I wouldn’t have touched those books if I hadn’t caught the measles as a bored ten year old and with plenty of time to kill, I started reading them. I just couldn’t stop. Once finished, I knew I had discovered an unknown, very exiting and important world. That discovery, in combination with a mother who loved me above all, gave me a self-confidence and a sense of uniqueness, to know that my future lay beyond the limits of the village.

Consequently, as quick as I turned 16, after spending most of my time avoiding the utterly boring knowledge taught in school, I set off for India, prepared to spend a year studying Mahayana Buddhism. Those studies only gave me diarrhoea and gut pains. Instead, I ended up hiking, reading and travelling around. When my money eventually ran out, I returned home with a wish to build bridges of understanding between people by writing, lecturing, filming and through photography. I met a total lack of interest. At that moment I realized, that I had to do something that nobody else had done before. So over the next 7.5 years I cycled from Chile to Alaska, from Norway to South Africa and from New Zealand to Cairo. I pedalled a total distance of 90000 kilometres passing through difficult terrain as the Sahara Desert and the Darien Gap. Since then, I’ve been privileged to live a dream.

The true explorer is unselfish, curious and ready to sacrifice his life in the quest of discovering unknown areas and human limits. An explorers life is a mission to make this earth of ours a better one to live in. For everybody.

Just a short note from Macchu Picchu and Lima

2008-12-07T19:42:00.005+04:00

I wrote these lines three weeks ago...I´d like to add, well, I still don´t know....what to do with life....;-)

Just finished one group, on my way to Argentina for another.....sitting in a dump called a bar in Lima, however I like it! I´ve always liked this atmosphere so full of character and flacas. It has been a fantastic three weeks, this revival of my life!

I have done my first visit to the Galapagos, of course, a highlight of life, however, it is the people of Peru and Ecuador that I like the best. Great people! Time for me to think about what I want to do with my life.

I have had 24 people with me for three weeks now, a great lot, and considering the tips they gave, a record fee, I have done my job. Passion and love of life is the answer. So, I feel life returning again!

One thing, life is far too short to worry, just live and enjoy. I have no idea at all what I will do with my life after this, however I am on my way back for three weeks in Patagonia and Rapa Nui, and I have a feeling, I will know when it is all over. Somehow, I feel stronger, wiser and more experienced then ever....

After six weeks of guiding in South America

2008-12-07T15:12:00.004+04:00

Well, I thought I would get lots of time to write, but being a guide takes all your energy. But I love it! But, see this letter below written a day ago in Rapa Nui:

It is once again time for me to return back to Sweden. This time after six fantastic weeks as a guide in South-America. At the same time, last year, also after guiding a group through Patagonia, I felt the biggest worry of my life. I had no idea at all what was waiting for me back home. And the time that followed, turned out to be some of the worst moments of my life. This time however, even though I still don´t have an idea what life has in store for me, I look forward to whatever, a lot! I have healed well during these six weeks and a genuine return to life again, it is. Well, as healed a complicated personality like me can feel.....

I have once again had the privilege to return to Patagonia, so during the last three weeks, I have heard the thunder from the great Iguazu Falls, I´ve seen the gigantic southern right whale starring at me from a yards distance, been to the end of the world, had some great seafood in Ushuaia, ridden over the dry Patagonian Steppe with a great group of clients, but most of all, I have had the uttermost privilege to visit Rapa Nui, or Easter Island. This very mystic island located, really, in the middle of nowhere, so far from any other land, around 4000 km from the Chilean Mainland and as far away from Tahiti. Before arriving to the island, I´ve heard quite a few positive comments about the Island, but also, far more, negative comments about Rapa Nui. Man has really changed the face of the Island, there´s hardly any trees left on this piece of volcanic rock that once, before the arrival of man, was entirely covered by a native palmforest. Personally, after having been a professional explorer for the last 25 years, I thought I had seen pretty much everything. I was wrong. I wasn´t prepared at all for Rapa Nui. It is, no doubt, a highlight of my life. There´s definitely something very special with this odd island, surrounded by this vast ocean called the Pacific. It is a tiny spot in a vast ocean of blue. It is indeed the statues, or the Moais, as they´re called who has made me full of awe. They´re put there by the local Polynesians, facing the land and its people, with its backs towards the Ocean, so free of worry that other people would arrive, but they´re still doing what they were set there to do. To inspire people, to give people the strength of their forefathers. It is called mana in the local Polynesian tongue. And, even though, we, me and my group of 16 people, have encountered and experienced some of the most spectacular scenes made by nature on this trip, the Iguazu Falls, the glaciers and icebergs of southern Patagonia, still, we all feel knocked over by the sight of the moai. Maybe because they´re man made. However, personally, the most intriguing discovery is that these Polynesians who arrived here, forget the Heyerdahl theory, about 1200 years ago from, well, maybe as far away as New Zealand on the other side of the Pacific, they did start to navigate this gigantic part of the earth, around 40 000 years ago. Now, this is far before the arrival of man to the Americas.....It has given me ideas....

One of the things on my wishlist before leaving Sweden, was that these 6 weeks in South-America would pave the way for a new Expedition, since after doing the Kolyma expedition, well, I felt, what more can I do? It felt like an end, an enormous emptiness. Well, things are once again beginning to develop....

Another thing which I have had in my thoughts, is that I´ve spent a lot of time thinking about emigration. Patagonia in itself is made up of pioneers and emigrants, people who have left their countries of birth to begin a new life. It sounds like a great prospect. Something worth trying. I am getting fed up with the foreseeable.

Finally, being and working as a guide is pure joy. It seems that I am very lucky with just having great clients all the time. They teach me so much about life and things, and for me, to share my experience of life and my travels and perspective of life, well, it is an honor.

You never know what expect of life and the legacy of the Kolyma Expedition

2008-10-27T04:50:00.005+04:00

Can you imagine this scenario? I am visiting La Bombonera, the homeground of Boca Juniors, almost 58 000 visitors, an atmosphere which is unbelievable. They´re playing their worst enemies, River Plate, with an old favorite of mine in midfield, El Burro Ortega, who is meeting Juan Riquelme, in his best moments, propbably the best player in the world. Nobody knows me. Suddenly I guy walks up, and says in English:
"I´ve read about you in Justin Marozzis book Faces of Exploration."
I did loose my face there, my jaw hanging down in surprise! Turns out to be a friendly Brit, working for the MI 6, who loves travelling. And exploration. He has read about my travels in Geographical as well. Well, such is todays world, you never know what to expect from one moment to the other. Great!
Another thing which has evolved after the Siberian Expedition is all, and we´re talking quite a lot, people who wants to travel and explore the Kolyma region. The latest one is Marcin Gienieczco, a young pole, who wants to ski the Kolyma from Seimchan to Cherskiy. He has invitied me early January as a consultant of the Expededition, to visit Gdynia, his hometown, to be part of the offical media presentation of the trip. He sees me as a hero, the poor chap.
The good thing with all this, of course, is that all these fellas, yes, they´re all men, are very positive, outgoing and full of life and they inspire!
And, there´s always a reason for everything, don´t believe anything else, last night, I went to a meeting for oil prospectors, and they were talking about the sultanate Oman, and there...I just remembered a long forgotten dream to explore the Empty Quarter...well, well, here we go...I have strated to read my old books by Wilfried Thesiger again!

On the subject of physical appereance

2008-10-25T13:30:00.004+04:00

In January this year I had the opportunity to visit Papua New Guinea. It was definitely a highlight of my life. I loved the people. They were unspoilt by life, funny, kind and full of charisma. Whether they were islanders, coastal people, forest dwellers or highlanders. Simon to the far right on the photo is one of the kindest, most impressive people I´ve come across. He´s a coastal man from the Madang district. he was part medicin man, bush expert, ornitologist, teacher and a guide. Spoke excellent english. He was also a genuine story teller. He said he had left the coast twice in his life and that was the scariest experience, so bad that he caught pneumonia and almost froze to death, he said. It was a visit to the western highlands and a town called Mount Hagen. What scared him was the local people, the highlanders. Still warriors and fierce.

"They are so big and muscular and they look at you as they could kill you instantly."

After that comment, I met a lot of people from all over the island, and they all said that the scariest lot of them all, in wars and in a matter of fact meeting, was the Western Highlanders. Now, look at the photo to left, it is me and a Huli namned Paulus, a great guy and typical highlander. Muscular, fierce and with penetrating eyes. I can well understand Simon´s worries. However, even if I am short in a western perspective, I was still bigger then most. At one stage I was joking with Paulus and we were kind of armwrestling and suddenly he said;

"You are abig and muscular guy. Let us stop."

Then he laughed. Then I realised the importance of a strong physical appereance. Even today in modern society. It is such a well built in mechanism in our genes, amongst males, do not ever forget, which far too many people do, we are after all a 150 000 year old product physically, and you don´t change that in a day, so the outer physical appereance, it is still of great importance. Then I realised it was time for me to work the weights again and specialize my preparations for the next Expedition in the gym. It has helped me in many ways, even at the extreme end, when it comes to pure survival, but also, it does appeal to a certain amount of ladies. They seem to think it makes a real man. There´s no harm in that.

I think we all, we folks living in the Western Hemisphere, would be happier, much happier, if we did take some time to think about our genes. Our backgrounds. By far, the happiest time in my life, was those three months of pure survival on hunting and fishing that Johan Ivarsson and I had to do on the Kolyma Expedition. Nature, stillness, instinct and awarness.

The great liberator

2008-10-24T12:43:00.002+04:00

I am on my way back to Ecuador again, 22 years after I passed there the first time. On a pushbike going from the southernmost tip of South-America to the northernmost tip of North-America. This time, however, I have a great, but short and very comfortable adventure, coming up. Right now, I am reading a biography about Simón Bolívar, written by John Lynch, and not only does it give me a much better picture of how the modern South-America was liberated and created, after having been dominant by colonial powers, but it also inspires me a lot. Simón Bolívar was, of course, a complex person in many ways, but believed in personal freedom, loved literature and had an enormous vision and will power. But, his fight to liberate his country of birth Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia, didn´t come easy and his life was continously a series of tragedies and recoveries. But he never gave up his dream and never left his original trail of sticking to his beliefs. I believe that is of great importance, no matter how much damage you take, never leave your principles and always keep your back straight and proud.
This trip of mine now, will be a tour of recovery. I will keep you up dated with insights to how this will be reached and it will, hopefully, give me an idea to a new Expedition.

The physical preparations has begun

2008-10-21T20:53:00.007+04:00

For me, an Expedition is a challenge for at least 8 months, otherwise I see it as an adventure. A walkabout. To do a proper analysis, both when it comes to making an assesment of the area you are exploring and your inner self, you need time. The same applies when getting prepared physically for a real expedition. It takes time. I normally need two years getting into shape. I´ve used all kinds of techniques. But when I was preparing for my first real Expedition, the one on a bicycle from the southernmost tip of South-America to the Northernmost tip of Northamerica, a two year trip, I prepared myself physically by building muscular mass in a gym. It has helped me really throughout all these years of hard Expeditions, because what you do in a gym, if you do it properly, you build up and strengthen every muscle on your body. More or less. So, since I still don´t know where I will end up on my next Expedition, I have once again started going regurlarly to the gym again. And I love it. I think I love this type of training more than any. Most likely because it knackers every single muscle and it feels like I take a good beating. I seem to like, punishing myself...I go to the gym three times a week, train an hour and on Mondays I work on my chest, shoulders and triceps, on Wednesday on my legs and calfs and on Friday, my back and biceps. I work the stomach every time. And after working out regurlarly since March, I am actually in a better shape than I´ve been since 1986, when I set off on that trip! See the photo on the horse, it is taken in March 1986. Northwest of Santiago de Chile in the Andes. On top of the physical training, to gain any results at all, one has to eat properly, a low fat, high protein diet, and that makes you even feel better. But I don´t overdo the training and overexert myself, since I know by experience that this is what you do most of the time on an expedition, so one needs to recover and rest in between the expeditions. Especially when you are 46 years of age as I am. But, having muscles as a male is of great importance in other ways as well. I will tell you more in the next report.

Siberian Films on You Tube

2008-10-21T10:32:00.003+04:00

Whatever I do, when trying to find a new idea where to set up my next Expedition, Siberia turns up in my head the most mysterious ways. This morning I receieved a request from a Polish Expedition, who´d like to explore the Kolyma. One of many after Johan and my Expedition along this great river 2004. He´d seen my film, or parts of it, on Yout Tube. It was one of my best friends, Ollie Steeds, who showed me You Tube. He is one of the modern versions of a true explorer, but he is using the new techniques to get his messege across and whilst helping him to do a few slots about the Samí situation, this great Nordic people, when he was doing a job for Al Jazeera, he showed me how to use You Tube. And he said, why not set some Siberia slots up there, for people to view, which I have done. I have, since then, received a lot of response worldwide. It seems like a lifetime ago and I really wonder, what can I find to equal the Kolyma? because, the thing about exploring is of course that for every Expedition, you want it to be the best you´ve ever done. But still today, this hour, the Kolyma seems unreachable. Do see the 7 programmes we did from the Kolyma for a Swedish Television sit com. They´re all in Swedish, but footage should be enough. Just click here.

Another new book! Another honor!

2008-10-16T12:11:00.005+04:00

The Siberian Expedition made headwaves around the world. Still is. This is the latest honor. Book can be bought at http://www.amazon.com/They-Lived-Tell-Tale-Adventure/dp/1592289916

Want a glimpse of the world as few have seen it before? In They Lived to Tell the Tale, members of the world-famous Explorers Club share their spectacular journeys from the depths of the world's oceans to the canopies of the Amazon rainforest to the dark vastness of outer space and all points in between. As we turn the book's pages, we climb the highest mountains, slog through jungle swamps, crawl into spider-infested caves, trek across vast deserts, and gasp in astonishment at the sheer audacity of our guides. All from the comfort of our own living rooms.

These adrenalin-filled moments in the lives of the world's most death-defying scientists, researchers, anthropologists, and explorers redefines any preconceived notions we might have about what exploration is. Captured here is the modern adventurer whose aim has shifted from thrill seeking for his or her own sake to protecting national treasures, preserving the planet, and making discoveries that will benefit the whole of humankind.

These incredible firsthand accounts, ranging from the remarkable to the captivating to the bizarre, are sure to become a memorable part of the exploration lore for generations to come.

New book!

2008-10-16T11:57:00.002+04:00

I´ve been honoured to be one of these individuals mentioned below: (Book can be ordered at http://www.amazon.com/Adventurous-Dreams-Lives-Jason-Schoonover/dp/1894765915)
In Adventurous Dreams, Adventurous Lives, 120 outstanding individuals representing a who s who of international exploration recall the indelible moment in their youth when the dream that launched their remarkable lives was born. As they recount the turning points to fulfilling those dreams often overcoming enormous physical, emotional or other obstacles we learn how incredibly inspirational their lives are. Included are Meave and Louise Leakey, Buzz Aldrin, Robert Ballard, balloonists Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones, Sir Ranulph Fiennes, Lucy discoverer Don Johanson, Jack Horner, Sue Hendrickson, Jean-Michel Cousteau, the Ra s Capt. Norman Baker, George Bass, Eugenie Clark, Richard Fisher, Trieste s Don Walsh and Nobel laureate Charles H. Townes. That 24 of these dynamic individuals are Canadian such as paleontologists Philip Currie and Eva Koppelhus; Survivorman Les Stroud; Sea Hunter Jim Delgado; National Geographic explorer-in-residence Wade Davis; veteran climber Pat Morrow; circumnavigators-by-human-power-alone Colin Angus and Julie Wafaei; photographers Pat and Rosemarie Keough; and naturalist Robert Bateman is testament to Canada s significant contribution to world exploration.

What is the reason to explore?

2008-10-14T21:44:00.005+04:00

The other night I went to the monthly lecture at Travellers Club in Stockholm. I try to go there frequently. I like the surroundings at Sällskapet, the atmosphere, the lectures, but most of all the people, the members of the Travellers Club. A great lot of people with the most extra ordinary experiences from all over the world. I also go there to get inspired and maybe find an idea to what my next Expedition will be. This time it was a young fella who lectured, a great guy, very friendly and an interesting lecture. Technically. BUT, I am so fed up the attitude of todays adventurers and so called explorers. They are always the best on earth and they only talk about themselves. Incessently. And it is always the same message:

Everything is possible!

We´ve known this for the last 150 000 years, maybe even 3.2 million years back when Lucy went out for a excursion. I don´t know why it is so popular today to listen to this kind of extremely no-good-for-mankind-talk. And that lecture reminded me of the one I witnessed together with my very good friend, La Contessa here on the photo, in February. Same deal. Then I remembered I did write an article about the same issue two years ago after having had the honour to lecture at Explorers Club in New York. This is what I wrote for Utemagasinet:

”...and then the mountain spoke to me, saying: ´Have faith in me, Ed, and you will reach your final 8,000-meter peak.´ And look, there I am on the mountain top!”

This is, more or less, how the famous American mountaineer Ed Viesturs closed his lecture at the Explorers Club´s 102nd Annual Dinner at the Waldorf Astoria in New York. Before him, a young guy named Andy Skurka, elected Man of the Year by Backpacker Magazine, had recounted the story of how he crossed the U.S. by foot from west to east in record time.

”Nothing is impossible! Anyone can do it!” he summarized, displaying a photo of himself posing in the sunset; his gaze fixed beyond the horizon, his muscles flexed and back held straight. An extremely traditional, male image of Adventure and Expeditions. I think I saw Buzz Aldrin, astronaut and second man on the moon, smirk. Woman kosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova simply left when the so-called adventurers entered the stage. Passionately, she had told her own story, filled with fear and amazement at the incomprehensions of life while she, as the first woman ever, rampaged round the moon 48 times.

The Annual Dinner carried the theme ”What´s Left to Explore”. And how this should be brought to an audience. I think very few of the 1,100 spectators enjoyed the adventurers´ talks. One of our neighbours at the table, the editor of a wellknown American outdoor magazine, said:

”Every day, as I receive letters and articles from people making expeditions and wanting to sell their material, I ask myself: ”Hasn´t Adventure come further than this? Is it still just white males with icicles in their beards dishing out the same old silly story?”

The reason why I´m bringing up this very important subject, is that every week I get a number of e-mails from men and women, young and old, who want to take off on an expedition or adventure. The majority want to know three things: ”What kind of equipment should I use?”, ”How do I get sponsors?” and ”How do I get the media interested in me, so I can make a living selling articles and lecturing?”

There is only one answer: Our view of Adventure and Expeditions must be renewed. Firstly, there has to be an interesting story. The times are gone when a spectator finds it interesting to listen to the hackneyed theme of ”anything is possible”; a story centered around dirty underwear, heroic struggle and white men with icicles in their beards who have managed to reach the North Pole, using a shopping cart and an oar as their only means of transport. Secondly, we need more women narrators. We need a female perspective. Men have to start thinking like women. I think this is crucial to whether the public will continue being interested in expeditions at all.

There are still considerable differences in how a story can be told. For example, I was searching the internet for stories about Swedish expeditions in the Himalayas. A couple of men report as follows:

"It´s been tough and troublesome. Our backpacks weigh about 15 kilos, but all has turned out well. Today we struggled for six hours. Tomorrow we will continue, and then we will use our final camp at 7,500 meters. We will rise at about 12 o´clock local time, put our tents up and melt snow for water. We won´t sleep much, but we are feeling all right."

Incredibly boring for everyone except the storyteller´s closest relatives or someone else in the know. To be compared with another account from an expedition on the same mountain, at the same time, written by a woman in the same situation:

"Why am I never satisfied? I´m thinking I should have exercised more. Actually, I´ve been exercising at least five days a week. I think I should have been more mentally prepared. Actually, I´ve been preparing for five years. I don´t think I´m a good enough climber. But that´s the way I am in everyday life as well. I could be better at cooking, decorating, fashion, my job. I could be a better wife, friend, and so on. Maybe I need the inherent power of dissatisfaction to be able to hold on and not give up my dream of climbing an 8,000-meter peak. Because it has been necessary - but now I´m going to give it a try."

Wonderfully thrilling and dramaturgical! The fact that the men reached the top and not the woman, is utterly unimportant. What is interesting is her story. This is how tomorrow´s adventurers on expedition must think to survive. Even better is to tell a story of someone else but yourself. Which is what I did in New York. When I took the stage after Ed Viesturs, the first thing I talked about was how ridiculous all the clever white males with icicles in their beards are. I continued by informing the audience about the Siberians and their everyday life, which makes a contemporary expedition look like a school outing by comparison. The response was fairly good - a ten-minute standing ovation.

Expert at World Reviewer

2008-10-14T09:46:00.003+04:00

I´ve been asked to be one of World reviewers experts on travel, which of course is a great way to help people make their travel dream come true. Lately I have worked a lot within the Travel industry and finds it very interesting. I am, for example, working as a guide with South America as a speciality. I just love it. It is all I believe in. It is about making a group of people aware of the great world they live in, building a bridge to the culture they visit and making their dream come true. It is also a challenge to myself to in the best possible way present this dream. So, being a expert at World Reviewer also gives a perspective on the rest of the world. I´ve, so far, offered 10 reviews of places to visit on this great globe of ours. See http://www.worldreviewer.com/member/mikael-strandberg/

This is the idea with the award winning World Reviewer:

World Reviewer is all about holiday experiences. We have taken a completely new look at how travel is presented online – starting with what you want to do, rather than where you want to go, and starting with experiences, rather than the products or services.

First we collected the best travel experiences in the world – not according to us, but according to the over 200 travel specialists, experts, scholars and scientists we have assembled to help us. Clearly there is no such thing as the definitive list, which is why the site is open for users to add to, to rate, and to review. You can browse all the experiences we have on the main travel ideas page, and filter by category (what) and location (where).

Next we have linked them with selected holiday products and services, from holidays to hotels to flights to get there, as well as further resources to find out more about the destinations - also ‘what’s nearby’, the weather to expect at certain times of year, local tours, and so on. We still have a way to go here, but we are steadily building sophisticated trip planning tools that will provide you with a range of choices as to how you want to book your holiday – through a tour operator, by putting the trip elements together yourself, or by using the personalised service of a travel expert.

Above all, the experience of finding ideas and planning your holiday online should be fun, which is why we are using the latest technology – thousands of stunning flickr images, the latest google mapping, videos imported from YouTube and Geobeats, and fun tools like our weather map, or our ‘experience of the day’.

World Reviewer aims to be:

Inspirational
Authoritative
Visually appealing
Simple to use
Practically useful
Technologically savvy

Published in new book from The Swedish Society for Anthropology and Geography

2008-10-14T00:11:00.003+04:00

Dear Readers, I will on and off publish news from my way to initiating a new Expedition. If there is any news to publish, that is....First out is an article from the Kolyma Expedition which is presently published in the annual book from The Swedish Society for Antropolgy and Geography. It is, of course, an honour having been published in their annual book called Ymer.

SSAG was founded under its present name in 1877, as an extension of the activities of the Association for Anthropology founded in 1873. This was a time of great exploratory expeditions, and the SSAG took a particularly active part in the scientific description of the Arctic region, highlighted by the ‘Vega’ voyage through the passage north of Siberia led by Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld in 1878-1879. The symbol of the Society shows a woman with laurel wreaths, a native with a globe, and the Vega ship at a rocky coast.

The spirit of Nordenskiöld permeated much of SSAG’s activities with lectures and expeditions by geographer Otto Nordenskjöld to Antarctica in 1901-03, anthropologist Erland Nordenskiöld to South America and by explorer Sven Hedin to Central Asia. But SSAG’s activities also included research on Swedish Ethnology (Sigurd Erixon), Baltic urban geography (Sten De Geer) and the beginning of geopolitics (Rudolf Kjellén), to name a few of renowned members during the first fifty years.

In recent years SSAG is more dedicated to the popularization of the three disciplines and to current topics, e.g. environmental degradation, physical planning, political geography and questions of underdevelopment. The gold medalists of later years include Eric Bylund 2000, Sherry B. Ortner 2001, Lonnie G. Thompson 2002, Doreen Massey 2003, Tim Ingold 2004 and Françoise Gasse 2005.

A new beginning, of life and the start of finding a new Expedition

2008-10-09T14:08:00.001+04:00

Just a small note to say that life has returned and that I am breathing freedom again. The most magnificent feeling on earth. This is the first time in two years that I have been able to think freely without the deepest worry. It cannot be underestimated what a supreme feeling that is!

However, the past two years have been very strengthening for my character, I´ve learned a lot and I´ve been eating the humble pie. A visit to hell have been for the better. I come out of it as a better human being. More humble, more understanding, kinder, warmer and ready to live to its fullest limits again.

What I have learned more than anything is:

1. Never, ever underestimate the love of your family. And the importance of having one. the same applies to truly good friends.
2. One can loose nothing by being a true human with all its good and bad sides. The truth in everything, but with some time of thinking before revealing it. Think before talking. Time heals. And wherever you are, no matter what circumstances, stand for who you are. Don´t try to be anyone you can´t be.
3. Never judge and condemn. If you don´t know the true story. One can have an opinion, but try to put yourself in the other persons place. It makes a difference.
4. Positive thinking always overrules negative. If you have negative people around you, get rid of them until the´ve eaten the humble pie.
5. Take time to be there for other people. You never know when things go wrong.
6. Accept responsibility and sort out the problem. Then move on.
7. Better give then take. In every aspect of life. One can never be to kind.
8. Be true to yourself.
9. Enjoy every moment of the day, you never know, when it will end. So then, why worry at all?
10. Never, ever complain. there´s always tons of people who are worse off, no matter how bad your situation is. If you have been a good human when everything falls apart, there will be people there fore you. So being good and kind is a winner.

Mahatma Gandhi is still my hero. Time to look for another Expedition.