Hiking Gear Shopping in Hong Kong

Hiking Gear

Several people promised me that I could get good quality hiking and climbing gear in Hong Kong for a fraction of the price in Australia. I held off purchasing the all important mountaineering crampons and brand new overpants in Australia just to see whether I could in deed get some good gear here.

After visiting no less than eight so-called professional hiking gear shops all around Hong Kong, I felt extremely disappointed that most of them simply stock want-to-be brands that make clothing for college students for them to look cool in campus and not in the harsh, unforgiving environments in Nepal, New Zealand or Australia. Up in the mountains, I would rather dress like an idiot and live than to be found dead dressed in designer clothing. So I gave up looking for hiking clothing and concentrated on getting a pair of crampons. In the end, the only thing remotely resembling what I wanted was a pair of dodgy looking Korean made crampons that is heavy, has the points at the wrong angles and has no anti-balling plates. I convinced myself in the end that if I use those in New Zealand this year or Nepal the next, I am most likely going to be killed. Oh well, back to the my trusted stores - REI and Backcountry - here comes my credit card! :)

Mountain Run - Tough but Fun

I'm not sure why I did it, but I participated in a Mountain Running Race last Sunday at Dandenong Ranges National Park in the worst possible weather. It was three laps of running up and down the mountain, each lap is roughly 4.2km with the first 1km section having a 200m elevation gain. I knew it was going to be pretty tough so I only had three goals for the race.

1. Finish it
2. Not finish last
3. Don't get lapped by the front runners before I finish my 2nd lap
   

I also donated blood the week prior along with extra samples taken for testings to get enlisted on the Bone Marrow Registry. I knew the "new blood" wouldn't be charged up so soon...

Initially I thought it was going to be a race with 200 odd people so it wouldn't be too bad because with that many people I probably won't be last... So I was very surprised when only 35 or so turned up and all of them seemed to be the next Olympic champion. The 3 goals suddenly became really challenging!

In the end, after huffing and puffing the entire 98 minutes, I still have a huge grin on my face despite the following:

• I ran the 1st lap up the hill in pouring rain, driving wind and 5-degree temperature;
• The officials up the summit were briefed on stopping runners suspected of having hypothermia, I thought they looked at me for a little longer than others as I went past them slowly;
  
• It was so cold and windy on the summit I thought my arms were frozen solid;
• The downhill running bits were a bit testing on the knees and ankles as well as testing my courage to sprint;
  
• The 2nd lap was all about trying to survive and focus on getting up that hill again and shutting all thoughts about the THIRD lap;
• A few front runners overtook me near the end of my second lap to finish the race so my third goal was smashed...
  
• The 3rd lap was a killer. I was really exhausted and just wanted to get to the end, knowing I'm the last one holding up the officials who were working in the rain because of me;
  
• It was pretty cold once I finished the race as the body cooled down rapidly;
  
• Ran another 100m up the hill to Upper Fentree Gully Station to catch the train, only for it to wave goodbye to us. Thankfully, it wasn't the train going back to the city;
• I've been coughing for more than 24 hours since I finished the race, hopefully I haven't got the flu or pneumonia!
  

Most of my friends and colleagues said, "What a miserable weekend Tom!"

It's hard to explain, but it was quite a challenge, something that I wouldn't normally do and it was quite an experience I actually enjoyed in the end! That even surprised me! I learned a bit from it, especially how to deal with internal voices telling me, "This is absolutely ridiculous! What's wrong with sitting at home and watching TV? Give up now! Walk don't run anymore! It's cold!!!!!" It kind of reminded me how not to give up walking on 9 August 2007 in Tasmania when my body was telling me to give up.

Hopefully next time I can do better! (Internal voice: Do it in warmer weather at least!).

Post Blood Donation Test

I got nothing better to do today so I donated 470cc of my rare AB+ blood to the Australian Red Cross Blood Service. I was told that only 2% of the general population in Australia has this particular type of blood so they always love seeing me back. My haemoglobin level is always reasonably high so that half a litre will help a few people in need. Before I left, I picked up a form from the front desk to enrol on the Australian Bone Marrow Registry after reading about it on its website. If you don't have much to do, visit the website and register too! There's also the Organ Donor Register if you are interested. If you really like to help people, get onboard all three like I have!

Anyway, last time I donated blood, I wanted to see how running performance deteriorates within an hour. True to what they said (and recommend never ever do), I didn't even finish the run... Today, I tested cycling after donation and I'm surprised that for a short, medium level ride, it didn't make much difference. Will report next time around September for another stupid test. This time, a hill climb bike ride! The 12-week full recovery time will be just before the big winter trips so probably will only have time to go back to the donation centre in September...

Overland Track Part III

I'm almost certain to visit Tasmania for the third consecutive winter to do the Overland Track. The core group remains the same as the last two years but this year, we are more determined than ever to ascend to the majestic summits of Cradle Mountain and Mount Ossa. The plan is to stay in the northern section and we will have to wait patiently for the weather window to open to sneak up to the summits. The northern section is substantially higher than the southern end with lower temperature, higher winds and heavier snowfalls which means I probably need to carry some more food...

This will most probably be the last time I'll do this track in winter (for a while at least), so hopefully this year's mission will be a success. After experiencing the horrific weather in 2007, 2008 was relatively easy going but without one single mountain summited due to bad weather. Hopefully Overland Track Part III - The Final Act will be triumphant!