There are those people today who live the same life, day in day out, predictable, risk free, dreamless and they are the harshest critics of those who strive to break free from that mundane existence.
In this world, too many people are afraid to pursue the life they truly desire, too afraid of being criticised by others, too afraid of failing, too afraid of not knowing the way.
However there are also those who choose to follow their dreams, those who choose to rebel, those who strive to be free and to really live.
I say stay true to yourself; break free from the chains of society and really live.
It’s not about being the first person to do something or about being the youngest person or any other records, it’s just about getting out there and experiencing something you love, the other things become part and parcel of it.
 - Creek paddler.
The two most challenging moments of the trip were getting stuck out on West Portal, when I felt a warning sign this was a “danger zone” both due to the time of day, the weather/cold, our physical tiredness, and the terrain. And getting lost on descent to Bechervaise Plateau coming down from Federation Peak, where all the gullies were pouring waterfalls (running ice water down our jackets, wetting whatever slightly dry warm gear we might have had on initially) and doing so in total darkness with no real idea of where we were.
During these challenging moments I was never scared or pissed off but rather thought of them as fun “problems”. Like when you get stuck doing a really hard crossword or sodoku puzzle, the fun is in solving the problem and thus you don’t get scared or pissed off as it’s a challenge, a puzzle and puzzles are fun to do.
Mishaps, broken gear, getting lost, bad weather is not an inconvenient annoyance but rather another free bonus game that gets included in the whole package.
 - Quick pic, then off to Federation after a lard based breakfast.
What I enjoy about getting out there and why I do it are simple motivations, like being in touch with myself, nature, reality and to realize how small and insignificant I and my daily problems are.
I never measure pack weight, it’s all in the mind, once you weight it, it automatically feels heavy, though I do pride myself as being an ultra light hiker.
Some people slog up hills with heavy packs to enjoy their gourmet meal on the top; I’ll run up hills with a light pack to enjoy the atmosphere there.
The journey was not so much in the expedition itself but the whole trip, the planning and preparation, training, learning and research. The worst aspect was actually finishing. It was weird, leading up to the end of the trip I was dreaming of the meal I would have when I got out but as soon as we did, that very second, I suddenly felt depressed that it was all over and wished I was back there.
I wished the trip had never ended and I was still doing it. The best aspect was this dream trip actually becoming reality. I had been planning of doing it for ages since I’d done it in summer many years before and all the planning, logistics, funding, as well as finding a partner, so when it all started finally coming together, that was really, really good.
For me being an adventurer is not something for the elite, it’s a mentality and anyone can have it. It’s achievable by anyone, as it’s not a certain technical skill but just a thought process.
Anyone can do it, you don’t have to be anyone special.
GREEN EGGS AND HAM (MY SLIME DIET!)
During the expedition, my diet basically consisted of powder which was mixed up with water and then slurped down (supplemented with a handful of macadamia nuts for some extra calories).
So my slime diet (as can be best explained by an arts “student”, yes I know its an oxymoron!), was basically a very comprehensive (some say anal) and tediously measured/weighed concoction of various different amino acids, saccharides, lipids, vitamins, minerals and a whole horde(and I do mean that) of other supplements and chemicals.
Upon a lot of advice from various nutritionists and doctors, combined with A LOT of testing (you don’t want to go out into the field to eat just 3 months of slime without having even tested it first!), and then reconfiguring and bringing the results back to them, my diet slowly but steadily evolved into the green slime that it is today. This asking for advice, testing it out, coming back to them with the results, getting new advice, retesting it etc lasted about 9 months.
The “slime” itself was probably made up of around 40 odd different products, and not just your stock standard off the shelf supplement mix (half the difficulty was in sourcing it, and finding people who made/refined it). The hardest part was not actually trying to keep it down, but rather in motivating myself to create it.
When you’re weighing up 40 different powders, and bagging them individually into 300 different packages (I couldn’t mix them all together in one big hit, then divide it up which would have been WAY easier, as some of the supplements I literally only needed a few grams of per 10kg and couldn’t afford to get the balance wrong) this is a very time-consuming task.
This was a very slow and tedious process involving very finely calibrated jewellers scales. Imagine weighing one powder(plus taking it out of the tub and putting it into the bag etc, and further more making sure you had EXACTLY the right amount) took 30 seconds, 30X40X300=360000 seconds, which is 100 hours! My last week of packing before the trip consisted of weighing and packing powders till the wee hours of the morning, which was totally mind numbing, leaving me in a literal zombie like state.
Some people will think I’m crazy for doing this, saying I’m torturing myself by not eating real food, asking how much of a difference a specialized diet like this can really make. Well to answer to these three questions; to me part of the journey/experience/fun/learning of the expedition was creating this diet. 
My enjoyment from doing these expeditions comes from enjoying being out there, enjoying the scenery and views, enjoying the atmosphere of the location, enjoying the sights and sounds.
This cannot happen if you are too tired or exhausted, have a very heavy load to carry/pull or don’t have the energy or mindset/motivation to enjoy the scenery.
Thus this diet (which is more nutritious than a stock standard meal, and weighs a lot less) allowed to me enjoy these experiences even more. Some people on expeditions enjoy the taste of their food, I enjoy the feeling of cruising up a hill, and being able to relax at the top, enjoying the scenery and the atmosphere and surrounds.
Some people pack nice tasting food to enjoy it on the expedition. I go on an expedition not to enjoy the food, but to enjoy the locations. I can enjoy food anywhere, even in the comfort of my own home. These locations however can only be enjoyed whilst you are there.
Enjoying these locations and being able to appreciate the scenery and awe/feeling, comes from not being too tired or exhausted to do so, and being healthy enough to do so. A stock standard meal will either be not nutritious enough, or to make it nutritious enough will be too heavy. If your food is too heavy or you are malnourished you cannot enjoy the scenery, or the atmosphere or the experience, as you are either too exhausted or too mentally wrecked to do so. This is why I use the diet I do.
In reference to how much of a difference this diet makes, I have used this diet many, many times in past trips, as well as a stock standard diet, and I have felt the difference, my pack weights have been greatly reduced, and my energy and physical condition has been greatly improved. During the testing phase I would eat a normal diet and test myself after, and then eat my “slime” diet and do the same tests, in all the tests the slime diet out performed the normal diet.
I am not a scientist, these facts are not scientifically proven, and I don’t claim them to be. All I know is that they have worked for me!
Check out the Greenland trip report here Slime fueled my world!
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