Working Day 1 and 2
After arriving at the forestry centre (see http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=21426 )and taking a rest I did a recce of the trail we were going to send the clients along. Even though we have used the trail before a recce is necessary each time because of conditions like tree fall, landslides etc. You never know what happened 24 hours ago. And it is not a good idea to let an expensive hard-to-replace seismologist get injured on your watch!
I love these recces. Because Im old and decrepit I often ask someone younger and fitter as they go around faster but this time I was going to do it myself. Being alone in the forest and being able to take my time, I get to see and experience more things
This is a bend in the river along which they will body raft. There was a sweeper in the bend but it wasnt a real problem.
[bridge]
This ugly suspension bridge replaced a nice one built by Operation Raleigh. Unfortunately lack of maintenance caused it to collapse and several US Navy personnel were badly injured in 2003. The Americans had come to do joint exercises. The river has no human settlements upstream and is pristine with all that goes with it. Raleigh lost a volunteer as few years before when a wall of water came racing around a bend and took him out in mid stream. I know the guy who had just crossed in front of him. He says it was a life changing event for him.
[temuai
This temuai is leaving a RGS field station on the tributary river. That is a really nice place too
[plank]
On the trail now. This is an obstacle they have to cross. The photo is actually birds eye view looking down into the gully and the plank they will cross. They could do it at night, or with a mock casualty or blindfolded.
[/IMG] [rotan]
A rattan had come down over the trail which I tied off to a sapling so it would not get damaged by the clients. I thought of Tom (Galemys) who wants some rattan but resisted the urge to harvest this one! I used a vine to lash it to a sapling. You can see why they are used as lashings as they take hitches easily.
These two vines did a good job of two ply cordage
At the end of the trail are 4 connected towers giving a great view over the forests of Sarawak and Brunei. They are about 60m high. I didnt go up as these should be checked by the forestry people. I once found a U-clamp and gate installed the wrong way around though!
The return trip was on a boardwalk. It had started to rain softly which was very pleasant
[rain]
This is a close up of the apiang palm used for tinder for the fire piston, fire thong and the flint on bamboo methods of fire lighting
[apiang]
I returned back across the bridge to my bunk to await the clients.
[room with a view]
This was a no camping event. This is a view of the river from our chalet ( just over 8 UK pounds a night)
The next morning the clients walked the route in reverse, boardwalk then trail, after a stop at the canopy walkway. They were given a casualty and had to manage him and the risks of the trail.
This seemingly simple obstacle uses a liana. (It was not cut or harmed in any way). Lianas do not behave like rope and transmit any knock or movement throughout the entire plant which may be very many metres long making them a very long and effective trigger. There is a prop stick on the left which will fall if the liana is moved or knocked.
The group took over 30 minutes to negotiate it as the track was on an incline downward of about 30 degrees or more in places. Too high to jump safely. They could not understand why, at first, that a person at the rear of the column who leaned on a tree (around which the liana coiled) was the cause of the prop falling. Useful learning for project management and the environmental and other externalities generated from oil and gas extraction.
They took the plank in stride and returned to base for indoor brainstorming etc.
The next day we went upstream for lunch to a couple of small water falls
A couple of these photos were taken on a previous trip. Having clients around I was fairly busy and missed opportunities to video as usual. Also when the rapids became Class 2 the camera had to be covered
We started walking along a stream but this was a bit of a scramble in places so no photos. We came across an American day tripper and his wife whom amazingly I knew! He had slipped on a mossy rock and dislocated his shoulder. I was delighted to see him and so pleased that I had a patient (but one who wasnt a client) to practice my FA skills on. Strapped him up and sent him on his way. Because of this delay, I reached the waterfall after everyone else
[tree]
I found them sitting under a large tree. I pointed out, as my colleague had earlier, that it had been sawn through and reminded them of Aron Ralstons maxim - geological time includes now and the huge risk assessment NO NO that this was. Most listened but some more adventurous ones felt it was an acceptable risk. Statistically, it was safer than driving to work. Well we are there to facilitate not dictate but I did say that if it did slip out anyone underneath would not be coming out for a long time and would have to be left behind.
Eventually we lost interest in tempting the forest gods and went upstream to another fall where we played in comparative safety. I am the one in the bush hat
We returned to enjoy lunch on a pebble bank where butterflies entertained us and then returned to base.
orange
I think the butterflies congregate based on color as these 2 ignored the lifejackets and T shirts
After arriving at the forestry centre (see http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=21426 )and taking a rest I did a recce of the trail we were going to send the clients along. Even though we have used the trail before a recce is necessary each time because of conditions like tree fall, landslides etc. You never know what happened 24 hours ago. And it is not a good idea to let an expensive hard-to-replace seismologist get injured on your watch!
I love these recces. Because Im old and decrepit I often ask someone younger and fitter as they go around faster but this time I was going to do it myself. Being alone in the forest and being able to take my time, I get to see and experience more things
This is a bend in the river along which they will body raft. There was a sweeper in the bend but it wasnt a real problem.
[bridge]
This ugly suspension bridge replaced a nice one built by Operation Raleigh. Unfortunately lack of maintenance caused it to collapse and several US Navy personnel were badly injured in 2003. The Americans had come to do joint exercises. The river has no human settlements upstream and is pristine with all that goes with it. Raleigh lost a volunteer as few years before when a wall of water came racing around a bend and took him out in mid stream. I know the guy who had just crossed in front of him. He says it was a life changing event for him.
[temuai
This temuai is leaving a RGS field station on the tributary river. That is a really nice place too
On the trail now. This is an obstacle they have to cross. The photo is actually birds eye view looking down into the gully and the plank they will cross. They could do it at night, or with a mock casualty or blindfolded.
A rattan had come down over the trail which I tied off to a sapling so it would not get damaged by the clients. I thought of Tom (Galemys) who wants some rattan but resisted the urge to harvest this one! I used a vine to lash it to a sapling. You can see why they are used as lashings as they take hitches easily.
These two vines did a good job of two ply cordage
At the end of the trail are 4 connected towers giving a great view over the forests of Sarawak and Brunei. They are about 60m high. I didnt go up as these should be checked by the forestry people. I once found a U-clamp and gate installed the wrong way around though!
The return trip was on a boardwalk. It had started to rain softly which was very pleasant
[rain]
This is a close up of the apiang palm used for tinder for the fire piston, fire thong and the flint on bamboo methods of fire lighting
[apiang]
I returned back across the bridge to my bunk to await the clients.
This was a no camping event. This is a view of the river from our chalet ( just over 8 UK pounds a night)
The next morning the clients walked the route in reverse, boardwalk then trail, after a stop at the canopy walkway. They were given a casualty and had to manage him and the risks of the trail.
This seemingly simple obstacle uses a liana. (It was not cut or harmed in any way). Lianas do not behave like rope and transmit any knock or movement throughout the entire plant which may be very many metres long making them a very long and effective trigger. There is a prop stick on the left which will fall if the liana is moved or knocked.
The group took over 30 minutes to negotiate it as the track was on an incline downward of about 30 degrees or more in places. Too high to jump safely. They could not understand why, at first, that a person at the rear of the column who leaned on a tree (around which the liana coiled) was the cause of the prop falling. Useful learning for project management and the environmental and other externalities generated from oil and gas extraction.
They took the plank in stride and returned to base for indoor brainstorming etc.
The next day we went upstream for lunch to a couple of small water falls
A couple of these photos were taken on a previous trip. Having clients around I was fairly busy and missed opportunities to video as usual. Also when the rapids became Class 2 the camera had to be covered
We started walking along a stream but this was a bit of a scramble in places so no photos. We came across an American day tripper and his wife whom amazingly I knew! He had slipped on a mossy rock and dislocated his shoulder. I was delighted to see him and so pleased that I had a patient (but one who wasnt a client) to practice my FA skills on. Strapped him up and sent him on his way. Because of this delay, I reached the waterfall after everyone else
[tree]
I found them sitting under a large tree. I pointed out, as my colleague had earlier, that it had been sawn through and reminded them of Aron Ralstons maxim - geological time includes now and the huge risk assessment NO NO that this was. Most listened but some more adventurous ones felt it was an acceptable risk. Statistically, it was safer than driving to work. Well we are there to facilitate not dictate but I did say that if it did slip out anyone underneath would not be coming out for a long time and would have to be left behind.
Eventually we lost interest in tempting the forest gods and went upstream to another fall where we played in comparative safety. I am the one in the bush hat
We returned to enjoy lunch on a pebble bank where butterflies entertained us and then returned to base.
orange
I think the butterflies congregate based on color as these 2 ignored the lifejackets and T shirts
