Hauser Bears Evening at the RGS

It is not very often that I attend an evening of talks which goes so well and is utterly enthralling.

Starting with Kartick Satyanarayan - the "Bear man of India" - and he was too! Larger than life and very charismatic Kartick gave a speech about his Wildlife SOS organisation and its work throughout India. It was informative, enlightening and wholly inspiring. What I particularly took away was the fact he tackles not only the actual bear problem but the resultant social issues surrounding the problem; bear poacher to protector, for example. What fantastic work he does! And fully supported by Hauser Bears. www.wildlifesos.org

Next-up, the multi-award winning filmmaker and presenter, Fergus Beeley had us sitting on the edge of our seats as he built up the story of trying to find and film the elusive spectacled bears of northern Peru. I began to think he wasn't going to find them! But eventually he did of course and showed some fascinating rushes (unedited footage) of his encounters. He ended on a teasing note of his latest film about the rescue of a bear cub in Georgia - I can't wait to see it! www.fergusbeeley.com

And then my great mate BAFTA and Emmy award winning wildlife cameraman Ian McCarthy had the room captivated by his first-hand accounts of filming grizzlies in the wilds of North America. I did feel compel to heckle however (in the nicest possible way!) when in one sentence he told of how he was advised never to embarrass a bear it is very dangerous and in the next he beautifully described an incredibly close encounter with a mother and her cubs when he was stark naked! If that is not embarrassing a bear then I don't know what is! Fantastic and funny stories and footage - a true raconteur! www.ianmccarthy.co.uk

Finally - and briefly - it was was my turn to announce to the audience a series of fund raising and purposeful Hauser Bear Expeditions to visit all eight bear species in the wild; real expeditions way beyond tourism and carried out in what I hope will be a much more special, engaging and informative way. The idea is for prospective team members to register interest (name and email address) and then receive updates, telling the story of putting on such an expedition using a "members only blog" and describing every step - from research, to safety plans, to equipment lists, to food, to logistics, to capturing the event on camera, etc. All told in detail and as it happens. I can't wait!
If you're interested in taking part just drop Ian your name and email address and we'll add you to the blog. ian@ice-warrior.com

A huge thanks to a wonderfully nice and enthusiastic audience and to Kartick, to Fergus and to Ian for such a fantastic night - and of course to the wonderful Hauser girls, Anna and Karine, founders of such a worthy charity. www.hauserbears.com
When is the next one?

Polar Training - great feedback!

Thanks so much for your kind comments - Justin Miles and Adam Browne:

"I can’t thank you enough for last week. Every day was a pleasure and your teaching style was simply brilliant." Justin Miles.

SEE HIS VIDEO

Adam Browne said, "Thankyou for an amazing week. The accomodation was awesome and extremely friendly, Im glad to have had the opportunity to go to Svalbaard, which means that I now need to go back to see more of it.
I found the training very informative in a casual way and enjoyed undertaking the tasks.
Jim's wealth of knowledge and experience shines through his friendly and approachable teaching style, this and meeting like minded people has made this experience unforgetable"

Tranquil Start

The first thing we saw when we opened our eyes was that snow had landed on the roof of the tent. Silence prevailed apart from the various snorts, wriggles and gaseous exchanges of people stealing themselves to tackle the day.
We had camped further up the valley right at the base of Longyearbreen and the snow was still gently falling as we were breakfasting on scrambled eggs with bacon or hot muesli and mango (sounds better than it is, dehydrated and out of a packet!).
having packed away pretty proficiently the guys embarked on their morning sledge haul route.
Afternoon was spent back in the hut going over daily routines, polar tips and tricks and through a full Safety Strategy form top to tail.
A quick sort of the gear and then down to town for a proper meal.


- Jim

Location:Longyearbreen Glacier - 5th Morning

Day Three - Polar Training

And the third day they rose from their pit and ventured out.
Daily ski in the morning, Matt, Justin and Adam making it to the top of the Longyearbreen glacier.
Session on maps, navigation and GPS followed by walkies to discover what information you can gleam and how from your GPS.
Video and slides to illustrate protecting yourself from polar bear encounters (the only land mammal which will actively hunt man) and then their first pulk pull on skis – which proved shockingly difficult slightly uphill at minus 18.
Didn’t go very far but swirling wind made it slightly tricky putting up the big 8 man Marmot Lair tent but although it took 40 minutes it was secured very well.
Turned in after an good feed thanks to Adam and hot drinks from Matt (Justin in full support of both – me hovering and bothering as usual!) Beginning to really gel now as a team!

Day Two - Polar Training

A powerful ski first thing is always good for the soul – and for perfecting the little bits of technique we use for pulling our bodyweight and a half over rough sea-ice!
Then after a good breakfast we dug out all the equipment in the store – pulks, tents, ice axes, shovels, bear protection, ropes and stoves – and got to grips with the MSR XGK multi-fuel stove. Because it is your only means of melting snow and re-hydrating it’s essential that what ever goes wrong and in whatever conditions you can repair it.
After a light lunch we talked through tents, first erecting a Mountain Hardwear Trango 4 followed by an 8 man Marmot Lair.
A dip down into town for a good supper and back up the hill to end the day discussing how to mitigate and manage the risks involved in extreme expeditions. A good time had by all.

The only disappointment has been perfect conditions ): with temperatures hovering around minus 10 degrees, beautifully clear skies and no wind – far too nice for training!
But I’ve ordered some wind for when we’re camping tomorrow night!

- Jim

Location:Nybyen, Svalbard, Norway

Location:Svalbard

First Day of Polar Training

Having collected the three chaps Matt, Adam and Justin from the airport at one o'clock in the morning I thought we'd have a bit of a lie in and got stuck into the training after breakfast at a leisurely 10:15hrs.
Bit of getting to know each other and understand each others expectations and aspirations our first session was bringing a polar perspective on clothing and how to get to the stage where you are properly clothed and you can manage that clothing to best effect.
Then we got the skis out, talked through the skis themselves, the bindings and ski poles and got straight out into a calm snow clad valley at minus 8 degrees - perfect learning conditions.
After inputting the few but vital set of techniques which we use to ski efficiently, the session was all about trying to perfect these.
All three of them were downhill skiers so I knew there would be some heavy re-training necessary. Matt was a natural, Adam started slow and unsure but quickly got to grips and Justin was slower but not that far behind.
The session ended down the valley in Longyearbyen with a naughty bun and wonderful, richly deserved cup of hot chocolate.
Quick bit of shopping for a lunches and snacks and then second ski session up the hill to Huset for our supper. This time the wind had got up and was blowing a blizzard right into our faces.
Squeezed in a final bit on risk appreciation to finish the day off.
- Jim

Location:Nybyen, Spitsbergen, Svalbard