Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Ishimka - Novosibirsk
Early Summer 2000
———
Tim
'See you in a week!' Chris said as he pedalled off.
From inside the shelter, I strained to hear his bike down to the last sound. I could
just make out his tyres, crunching the fine gravel and mud. Then came a breeze.
Then silence.
As reluctant as I had been to split up, I knew it was important to do so. Our
planned route was along the semi-steppe lands close to the Kazakhstan border. It
was agreed that one person would ride twenty-four hours ahead, and then wait
twenty kilometres from Novosibirsk. From where we were, it was a further 600
kilometres to Novosibirsk; so we approximated that it would take six days. The
crux of the decision for me was who would ride ahead and who would follow.
Although I had become more confident at bike repairs, I feared a breakdown. I
depended on Chris for back-up and knew that if he rode ahead, depending on him
wouldn't be an option. To add to my worries, my solitary experiences in the past
year, perhaps due to bad luck, had all turned into mini-disasters. The worst had
been in the Arctic during a solo trip in spring the previous year. I had fallen through
river ice, become lost and trudged on for three days almost without sleep, close to
delirium and hypothermia. Now, I feared that everything would start going wrong
the minute I was left alone.
I asked Chris what he preferred and he confirmed my suspicion. He wasn't go-
ing to let me out the easy way. 'This could be my last ever trip alone, Tim. Once
I get back to Australia it will be the beginning of a completely different life. I
think it's important that we do this alone, and that I ride in front.' I was amazed
by his courage and resilience. He would never be fazed by the child-like fears that
haunted me.
