134
Whatwedidn’trealizewasthatourfoodsittingontheback
seatofthecarhadfrozensolid.Notonlythis,butourdrinking
andcooking waterwasnow alsoa solidblockofice,andthe
propanegasfromourcookerhadturnedtoliquid.
At1:00a.m.,wewerelyinginbed,ourlivetrackerproudly
pinging our locationtoeveryone back homeasjust 27 kilo-
metres beyond Deadhorse.Nowapprehensive forour seven-
continentjourneyahead,webegan askingquestions.Havewe
madethebiggestmistakeofourlives?Willwegetoursavingsback
if weselleverythingtomorrow?Howarewegoingtosurvivethis?ONEYEARLATERTopheris outsidesettingup campwhilethe 40°Cheat
of Namibiais workingits way insideGuntheras I writethis article.Last
year, we covered the Americas in eight monthswith only one tire
puncture,no moreflat batteries,neverrunningout of fuel,not having
lost anything,and withouta singlebumpor scratchon Gunther.The
secondleg of our journeyis now in full swing,and this year we navigate
our way up to EasternAfrica,throughthe MiddleEast,to the most
northerndrivablepointof Europe,NorthCapein Norway.Expedition
Earth has been the most brilliant and exciting decision of our lives.peciallyif youexpectyourrescuepartytobesober.Ourknight
inshiningarmorturnedupina brand-newredTundra.Ashis
windowcamedown,wewereface tofacewithsomeonewho
lookedandsmelledlikea modern-
day pirate.The man rolled out of
thedriver’sseatandwassoinebri-
atedheforgothowtopophishood.
After an irritable length of time,
Topher finally managed to locate
thehoodlatch.Guntherwasresus-
citated,andwewerebackinaction.
Withourenergynowa littlelow,
andtherealizationthatmechanical
experiencewasreasonablycriticaltoourventure,wetriednotto
mentionourcollectivefeelingofbeinga littleoutofourdepth.
It wasnow10:45p.m.Wewouldn’tmake ourtargetdes-
tinationforthenight,andthiswasonlythefirstdayof1,195.
Hungry,cold,andtired,wedecidedtomakecampjustoutside
Deadhorse.After findinga spot 30 minutesoutoftown,we
begantosetourselvesupforthenightahead.Forthenorthern
regionsofourexpedition,ourplanwastosleepinsidetheJeep
andthenusea tentforwarmerclimates. Topher began to set up
our beds while I prepared dinner.Continued from page 136As his windowcame
down,we wereface to
face with someonewho
lookedandsmelledlikea
modern-daypirate.The
manrolledoutofthe
driver’sseat and was so
inebriatedhe forgothow
to pop his hood.