Ascension Island
South Atlantic Ocean
Position: 7° 56' S 14° 22' W
Contens:
August
2001
On a Friday evening I lay in my bed and could not sleep. A lot
of things run trough my brain. Business, spacecrafts, electronic circuits
and suddenly I arrived at Napoleon. I never think about Napoleon and history.
I am not very interested in history and so I don't know much about it. But
Napoleon and St Helena is one word. I know, St. Helena is somewhere in the
south atlantic. I like to travel and no wonder the next caught thought was:
"How can I go to St. Helena?" Now I fully awoke, running to my computer,
logged into the internet and ask for "St. Helena". I get a lot of crazy stuff
but nothing about St. Helena. So I find out the name of the capital from
a map and searched again. Now I get information about the island in the atlantic
ocean. Very fast I find out, the way to St. Helena is only possible via Ascension
or Cape Town. Ascension has an airport, to go to St Helena is possible
by ship only. The airline which flies to Ascension was very well known. But
that they have scheduled flights to several places in the world is very unknown.
The airline which flies to Ascension is nobody else then the Royal Air Force.
Ascension now was more interesting to me then St. Helena. By the way, once
I will visit St. Helena too!
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Even the Farest Journey Starts with
the First Step
To
organizes a journey like this, it is necessary to get information as much
as possible. A lot
of
information are available on the
Ascension
Island internet page and the
Obsidian Group internet
page. But I missed information e.g. about dangerous animals like rattle
snakes, lions and tigers etc. I wrote to the Ascension tourist information
and get the answer, there are no danger animals on Ascension Island, only
donkeys, sheep, rabbits, different kind of birds and turtles. The ocean around
Ascension contains a very different kind of nice fish. Different kind of
sharks (Six-Gill-Sharks, Whale-Sharks) sometimes around Ascension.
One day when I was swimming in the 27 degree centigrade water I saw an inkfish
down in the sea. The sea around Ascension is a paradise for fishermen. But
I don't go fishing.
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February 3rd, 2003
(Monday)
My luggage was checked in at the evening before at Munich airport.
So I carry my hand
luggage
only. I
go by the fast train (S-Bahn) early in the morning to the airport, because
the Munich S-Bahn system is not very reliable. I arrived early, passed the
security and passport control. The outside temperature is about the freezing
level, its a bit snow and the sky is cloudy. Two nights before we had -15
degree centigrade at the night. At the gate I start to read a book, I have
plenty of time. At about noon I fly with a well known British airline to
London Heathrow. I arrived Heathrow and searched for the bus to Reading.
On the bus ride I recognize, the spring must be very close. It looks that
all the leaves are ready to jump out of the trees. In Reading I buy
a ticket for the train to Swindon. In Swindon I have to stay over night.
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February 4th, 2003
(Tuesday)
At the next day on 7:15 PM I get an Royal Air Force bus from Swindon
railway station to Brize Norton. Brize Norton is an Air Force Base close
to Oxford. At the base I am very surprise. The airport does'nt look like
an air force base. It looks like a civilian airport. Then I recognize, the
air force has flight schedules in all parts of the world. Usually for military
people only. The exception is the flight to Ascension and to the Falkland
Islands. The check in is very easy. My ticket was on a fax from a travel
agency in London. I get my boarding pass and hat to wait. It is about
8:30 PM and the departure should be at 11:00 PM. I have to wait for the security
check to the gate and read in a book. Then the check takes place and I have
to wait again. I read in my book and occasionally I watch people. Very
interesting, far away I see a woman. She is reading like me and sometimes
she looks around. Sometimes our eyes meet each other.
Boarding is a bit later as expected. The flight delays about
half an hour. We depart from Brize Norton with a TriStar (Lockheed L1011)
to the southern hemisphere. The on board service is perfect. I did'nt expect
this on a military aircraft. I never before fly in an aircraft with so much
space between the rows!
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February 5th, 2003
(Wednesday)
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First in my life I cross the equator. The take off was delayed
half an hour, so we arrive half an hour later on Ascension Island. It is
warm and about 8:00 AM. I take out my warm closes. To enter Ascension is
a bit complicate. I have to show my passport, the administrator's permit
and the certification that my health insurance include air evacuation in
case of medical needs. And very important, I have to pay an entering fee
of 11 English Pound. For this I get a very nice stamp into my passport! Then
I have to wait again. The door to the Island is still closed.
I watch the people a bit and find out there is somebody with a
German passport. So I am not the only crazy German on this island. I am really
disappointed. It is MY island! So I ask the man what he is doing on this
island. And they are two. Both men are fishermen. They are coming just to
go out for fishing in the atlantic ocean. Last November, one of them caught
a Six-Gill-Shark with nearly 1300 lbs.
Now the door to the island is open and the luggage is arrived.
I get my two bags and find the transportation service to Georgetown and the
hotel. Georgetown is the capital of Ascension. The island has all necessary
facilities to run a community. The air field is about 3 km and is an emergency
landing strip for the space shuttle. The main roads are well maintained.
Sometimes it's a bit bumpy due to speed bumps. Mainly before the villages.
A tourist information and a hotel is the first place to go for a traveller.
Ascension has a hotel, a tourist information, restaurants and several pubs.
To run a community, it is recommended to have several kinds of facilities.
There must be a government. It is done by the administrator's office.
Firefighters are very necessary. Police, a hospital and a post office is
also very important. All this is on the small island Ascension available.
And hold in mind, the population is about 1000 people. In fact, everybody
knows everybody. It is a nice praxis to say "Hello" to everyone. Even
in a small community it is possible that two or more people have a difference
of opinion. So a court is available on Ascension. It is a room in the police
department. And for very hard cases there is a prison on the
island.
It was a long day for me, I can not sleep in an aircraft. I am
awake since more then 24 hours. In my hotel I unpack my luggage and later
I walk a bit along the Georgetown beaches. I found a tree close to the sea
and sleep a while in the shadow. At the early afternoon I return to my hotel.
In the front of the hotel is a very nice place for relaxing and reading.
I like to do both. At about 4PM a car stops in front of my hotel. The
woman I recognize in Brize Norton first get out and invite me to an island
round trip.
We meet us at the dinner to night again. Then a geophysicist
joins us. Scilla was 26 times and Chris 5 times on Ascension before.
I was very happy to meet them, because I get a lot of information about the
island, the people and the nature. |
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February 6th, 2003
(Thursday)
It
is a bit cloudy. The breakfast is good. I meet Scilla and Chis. Later on
Scilla give me an possibility to go to Two Boats Village by car. She gives
me a description about the way to the "Red Lion" (see picture to the left).
For the way up it is good to have a bit of power and plenty of water. Ascension
is close to the equator. The sun is very powerfully. Even people from central
Europe have to match their organism slowly to this unusual conditions. So
the way up to read lion is a good test, because there are a lot of trees
which give shadow.
I was warned about a special kind of animal. This animal
is called "Landcrab". Without this warning I believe I had become mad in
a very hard kind of this illness. Landcrabs are in shape exactly like a seacrab
as you find all over the world at seacoasts. But this landcrabs live fare
away from the sea in the mountains of Ascension (see picture to the right).
Even they are walking like a crab, very fast to the right or to the left.
It is funny to watch this animals.
After an hour walk and drinking a liter of water I arrive
at Red Lion. On the top is an old vetchtable farm, the Garden Cottage from
the Obsidian Hotel, a nice garden which belongs to the island's dentist,
and it starts the "Dew Pond" letterbox walk. I make a little rest.
On the way back I visit the Administrator's residence, a nice house with
a nice garden. And I get a great impression of the Wideawake airfield (see
picture on the left). By the way, the runway is about 3 km and it is
an emergency landing field for the space shuttle.
I go back now to Two Boats Village. Scilla picks me up to drive
back to Geogetown.
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February 7th, 2003
(Friday)
I
slept well and get up early. I meet Scilla and Chris at the breakfast. After
breakfast Scilla takes me to Two Boats Village. I will go up to Sister peak.
This
is
one of the nice letterbox walks. Presently there are 18
letterbox walks. In a small booklet sold by the tourist information is a
bit of information about the idea of the letterboxes. Even the walks are
describe exactly. The idea of letterboxes goes back to the 17th
Century. Outward bound ships would leave messages on the island
for the next ship to take home. Today there is an area on Ascension that
is still called
Letterbox. The letterboxes today are small boxes containing
a book to write something in and a stamp to prove that somebody was at the
letterbox. I did several of this walks and the first was the way up to
Sister.
The way up to Sister letterbox is close to Perfect Crater.
The way up is very easy. I
get
the letterbox and sit down to relax. Sister must be a very common place on
Ascension. After a few minutes time I recognize voices. Some other people
heading to the peak and we meet us on the peak. We talk a while and they
went back soon. On my way back I meet other people staying in the Obsidian
Hotel. Sister is a very busy place. I rest in Two Boats Village Club. The
way back from the pub to Georgetown takes about one hour.
Around Two Boats Village are a lot of nice Antennas. But there
are a few Antennas from a radio amateur. Very interesting!
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February 8th, 2003
(Saturday)
The
morning is cloudy. Every body is happy about this, even Chris, he wants to
do some measurements. By the way, it is Saturday morning, it is rush hour
at the main road in Georgetown. Three sheep walking slowly along the main
road.
The museum is open on Saturday. So I go down to the Ascension museum.
The museum is small but it has a very nice collection about things belonging
to
Ascension.
Very interesting is an old spectrum analyzer, I guess it runs up to 5 MHz.
Even some old communication receivers, special measurement equipment for
sea cable maintenance, and old electron power tubes. Further there are a
lot of pictures which tells the history about Ascension. Across the museum
is the Hayes Fort. It is just to look around. There is a room with many old
bottles. But I did not understand the meaning about this room.
The
re
st of the day I read in a book and write postcards. At the
late afternoon I go down to the beach. The turtle tracks are really huge.
A large bird is sailing through the air. Time for dinner.
I meet Chris for the dinner and a beer. Scilla has an official
invitation to night. After dinner we go to the VC (Volcano Club) at the air
force base. Ascension Island has a very good public transport system. Just
on the road, somebody gives us a drive to the base. Even on the way back
the same service works well again.
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February 9th, 2003
(Sunday)
At the breakfast chris and me decide to go to green mountains
at 10 AM. We take his car to "Red Lion" and walk from there up to Dew Pond.
It was the best idea in my life to take my long boots. The way up is very
muddy. It is along bamboo forests and banana trees. Dew Pond is just a small
pond with fish and water lilies.
Back
in Georgetown I change my dirty closes and boots. I have
to clean my boots. Later on it I meet Scilla and Chris for dinner. There
after we go out for a walk.
Later I go back to the beach. It is dark. There is a large stone.
This stone moves slowly away. What is this? I am very impressed, I never
in my life saw this before, a large green turtle moves over the beach. I
saw turtles in zoos, but never a large one like this.
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February 10th, 2003
(Monday)
In
the morning I decide to go to West Point Letterbox. I fill my water bottles
and
take my sport shoes. About 9 AM I start my walk to the
letterbox. Along the BBC antennas and transmitter stations I arrive at the
letterbox origin. It is just after the BBC tank farm at English Bay. The
way to the West Point Letterbox goes through a lava field. This is difficult.
It needs a lot of concentration to go across a lava field. Even large stones
can slide away. Each step has to be proved. It is dangerous to do a wrong
step. The lava stones are mostly very sharp. To slide into a gap between
lava stones can force a broken foot or a broken leg. The way over this lava
field sometimes sounds like to go over broken ceramics. There is no difficult
to find the letterbox. The lava field is flat.
I make a rest at the letterbox and decide not
to return the same way. I will try to cross the lava field in direction
of comfortless cove. This direction is marked with a large antenna mast.
After a short time the mast was in sight. My walk takes place during noon.
The sun nearly is over head. The distance between the West Point Letterbox
and the mast is about 1 km (3/4 statute miles). About 300 m away from
the antenna mast I recognize a dramatically drop down in concentration. My
steps are very unsafe. I need to rest. I need to drink water. And very important
I need shadow. It is very difficult to get shadow in an area where the sun
is over head. I search for a place to have a rest. About 200 m away from
the antenna mast I found a large rock with a small roof. This roof makes
enough shadow. With the last concentration and force I arrive at the rock
and sit down. In a situation like this it is very nice to drink a bit of
water. It tastes very delicious. I make a rest of about one hour. After this
rest I walk to the mast without problems. From the mast a paved way heading
into the direction of Comfortless Cove. At the end of the way was a barrier
and a plate. This plate told me "Dangers area, no entry". I am very happy
that this plate is here and not at the mast, because I did not like to return
via the lava field.
Up to now I drunk 1.5 litre of water. On the way back to Georgetown
I drunk the rest of the water.
Back at the hotel, Scilla return from the hospital. She talks about
swimming. Nice idea, we both drove to English Bay and jumped into the very
worm water. Never before I swim in a natural water with this high temperature.
A few days later I measured 27 degree celsius.
At
dinner time I meet Scilla and Chris again. Derric joins our small group.
He is a BBC reporter since about 40 years and on the way to St. Helena. He
has to do a very interesting job over there. After the dinner Scilla has
an appointment in the VC. So we drove to the base to have a beer.
Later on we went out for turtle watching. We saw several large
turtles. They are really very impressive animals! I can not describe what
I feel.
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February 11th, 2003
(Tuesday)
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Scilla, Chris and Derric have to leave to day. Scilla and
Derric will go to St Helena, Chris back home to Scotland.
The arriving of the HMS St. Helena is a great event on Ascension
Island. The ship brings goods which are needed on the island. The ship has
to anchor away from the coast in front of Georgetown's pier head. So all
goods and passengers has to be transported with small ships from and to the
HMS St. Helena. The goods, usually stored in container, transported by flat
ships like a low-loader lorry. It is very complicated but there is no other
way. There are large crane on a lorry, which moves the containers on
the pier head. You do not belief, Ascension has a lot of large equipment
like low-loader lorries and cranes.
By the way, the old drill machine really is placed in the "RMS
RECEPTION AREA"
I meet Chris in the evening for dinner and beer. Then he leaves
back home. This Tristar flight should have about 12 hours delay. Chris told
it to me later in an e-mail.
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February 12th, 2003
(Wednesday)
After my breakfast I walk up to the hill east of Georgetown. This
hill is called Cross hill. It is a pity, there is no possibility to go up
to the top. The road is closed. May be, it is a radar system up hill.
Down
from the hill I walk cross country into the direction of
Com
fortless Cove. There should be a pipeline. And if
there is a pipeline usually there is a way for pipeline maintenance. But
there is no pipeline. The map is about ten years old and so it contains a
lot of mistakes. But never mind, I arrive at Comfortless Cove and enjoy the
sea and the sun.
Back in Georgetown I ask Cara for a bike. She shows me a few bikes
and I rent one. This bike has a seat, a gear switch and pressured air in
the wheels. But it has no lock!
It is raining to night, a very warm rain!
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February 13th, 2003
(Thursday)
To day I will go to "Devil's Riding School" by bike. That sounds
very easy. But it is'nt. With my bike first I have to ride into the US-Base
direction. The difference in altitude is so much that I have to go off from
my bike sometimes. I arrive the starting point for the letterbox walk "Devils
Riding School". Up to here I need unusual much water.
The letter box walk is easy. The material under my boots sounds
like ceramic. I arrived at the letterbox but where are the devil and the
horses? The center looks like a small Grand Canyon. There a several Canyons,
washed into the weak stone.
I decide to go back to Georgetown via Two Boats Village. May be
this idea was'nt so good. It was
a
very hard bike ride (mostly I was off). About 500 m before
Two Boats Village I search for shadow. I found a dish antenna from Merlin
Communication and take a seat under this antenna. My water was a very nice
drink. It is difficult to find shadow if the sun is over head. This dish
antenna is fantastic to give shadow. I needs a time to recover my force.
It is a nice feeling to give everything and than to recover. After an hour
or so, I take my bike to go to Two Boat Village. At the top of this road
I ride my bike again. Now it was easy to go by bike. I am on the highest
point of my ride. At Two Boat Village I go to the pub to have lunch. Back
in Georgetown I recover in the front of my Hotel.
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February 14th, 2003 (Friday,
Valentines day)
Swimming
will be nice to day. I take my bike to ride to English Bay. I learn to manage
my condition. It makes no sense to try to go as fast as possible. I become
tired very fast. It is much better to bring a constant force to the bike.
The speed is governed by the gear switch.
The way to English Bay is along the BBC relay station. There are
a lot of nice antennas. I
am
fascinated from antennas since my early childhood. About 10 o'clock I arrived
at English Bay. The water is nice warm, 27 degree centigrade. There are a
lot of colored fish in the water. I was nearly alone at the beach. So I could
have the BBQ hut and its shadow. The roof is not closed completely. There
is a lath, a gap, a lath and so on. At noon the sun was overhead and I did
not recognize it. By going back in the afternoon, my back was burned. Not
very nice!
To night the Valentine Dinner should take place. But before I talk
with Kay, the new and old bar-woman. She talked about social life on St.
Helena and Ascension. It is an easy comunity. She introduces me
to her two children in the age of about 9 years.
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February 15th, 2003
(Saturday)
I had a bit of pain by my burned back to night. To day I
will not do to much. After breakfast I sit in front of my hotel and try to
read. Sometimes I was very tired, sometimes I was reading. I rains a lot
at this day. Fine to sit outside under a small roof.
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February 16th, 2003
(Sunday)
It
was
raining cats and dogs in the night. My burned back takes a lot of force
out of my body. I did a bike ride to the air field in the morning. I saw
large diesel generators. All completely defect and partly removed. I walk
down to the sea and back. I am feeling very weak knees. I stop the idea to
go to Travelers Hill or Two Boats Village.
The warmness, the moist air and my burned back keeps me down. Back
at the hotel I sleep a while. Thereafter I feel much better. I may not overdrive.
My organism is not matched to this extremes. Even it is astonished how well
I am doing.
The ship (HMS St. Helena) is back from St. Helena. May be, I can
go to Ladies Hill tomorrow.
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February 17th, 2003
(Monday)
It was a worst night. What is the reason, the climate or my burned
back. I do not know. In general I
am
feeling well. Every thing has to go slow. My organism has to manage the moist
warmness. In the night I was very restless like as I have fever. But I do'nt
have.
In the morning after breakfast I start at 8 o'clock to go to Lady
Hill. It is not very far, horizontal. The difference in altitude is the problem.
There was a lot of rain to night. Even now it starts to rain. I become wet
. After the rain stops I become dry much faster as I become wet! The way
up to Lady Hill is very easy. I have a rest at the letterbox. I ride my bike
back via Two Boat Village to Georgetown.
In Georgetown I meet Lenny. Lenny is the radio amateur on Ascension.
He lives in Two Boat Village. He is in an very exiting position, he just
wants to talk to somebody and produced a pile up. He do not like it. ZD8
is a very rare call sign. By the way, he makes the same observation as I
make on Cyprus. His transmission is much better than his receiving. Usually
it should be symmetrical. But it is'nt. May be somebody has an explanation
for this phenomena.
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February 18th, 2003
(Tuesday)
In
the night I sleep very well. And there was a strong wind. To day I will visit
the ARIANE tracking station.
The station is located at the end of a road close to the sea. The
way to the station goes through Two Boats Village. The tracking station is
small. There is a house, a
few
containers and a small dish antenna. I request to go in. The researcher takes
me to the container and shows me the station. In this container are a lot
of electronic boxes. Even two SMT03 RF generators from my company. The
station receives the ARIANE telemetry data and forward it to the main station.
The researcher tries to find out the date of
overhead
sun. He thinks it should be to day. This match
my calculation. But at noon I was disappointed, the sun was not
overhead.
The coast is different to the coast at Georgetown. Here is lava
only. The way down to the sea is difficult but possible. Close to the ARIANE
tracking station is the so called "Blow-Hole". This is a natural pipe in
the lava stone at the coast. One end of the pipe ends in the sea. The other
end of the pipe looks into the sky. If the waves pressing water into this
pipe the outcoming water looks like a geyser.
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February 19th, 2003
(Wednesday)
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It is cloudy in the morning. It was a rainy night. After breakfast
I start to go to the old NASA site. The NASA side is located at the end of
the "Old NASA Road" close to "Devil's Ashpit". The NASA site was a tracking
station in the seventies to monitor the APOLLO moon missions. After NASA
stops the APOLLO flights, they give up this site.
I ride with my bike into "Old NASA Road" direction. From this road
there is a good look onto Ascensions air field called Wideawake Airfield.
One Tristar was on the apron and one Tristar approaches to the field. A lot
of traffic!
A short time later I parked my bike. Due to the increasing altitude
biking is to difficult. The landscape is bizarre. There are a lot of ear
cactus, I like this plants! Do you know, you can eat the fruits from this
cactus. The fruits have a very sweet taste. Some of the hills are in clouds.
I walk up to the NASA site. It is a few miles only. Short before I reach
the site, somebody provide me a lift up. This save a bit of time. Geoffrey
is meteorologist at the air field. Today he has his free day. Even he did
not know the date for sun overhead. He drives me to the end of the NASA Road.
From there is a fantastic view to the sea. The hills are in clouds. It is
like a witched forest. Close to the end of the road the concrete bases for
the dish antennas only with cutted screws are there. No more dish antennas
there. The area around is wet. Mushrooms coming out.
At the entering of the NASA area there is a garage. This garage
looks like a replica of a very well known garage in Palo Alto, California
(round about 1933). Then the large building is in sight. The main door is
locked. I try to look into the dirty windows. Only a large merged US-UK flag
with a space shuttle is fixed at the wall. I walked around the building.
I am sure, it has seen better times in the past! On the back of the building
I found an open door. I go in. The room looks like a still life. The chairs
are fixed with cobwebs to the tables. I go more into the building, the kitchen
looks like unused for many years. There have been people with humor. The
latex glove at the kitchen door and the remark at the ladies restroom shows
it. But I guess some other rooms are still in use. Somebody in Georgetown
later told me, the scouts are sometimes in the building. I take a few pictures,
move very carefully, I do not want to change something. Buildings like this
in conjunction with "men in space" have some holly flair for me.
The walk through this building remembers me to the "old days of
space flying". It remembers me to MERCURY, GEMINI and APOLLO flights. I think
about the first landing on the moon in 1969. I was just 15 and watched the
first steps from Neil Amstrong on the TV. Then my visit of Cap Canaveral
and the Mission Control in Houston came up to my mind. And finally sometime
I did a few things for the
AMSAT organization. I
belief, the future of mankind is in the space. Not for my generation, not
for the just born babies, but for human in 200, 300 or 500 years. If there
is a possibility of hyperspace traveling, if there is a possibility of hyperspace
powering, future generations of scientists and engineers will find a
solution.
I go to my bike very lazy to ride back to Georgetown. The day closed
with a nice talk in the front of my hotel. I should taste the St. Helena
cake and I get a cup of tea.
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February 20th, 2003
(Thursday)
This morning looks very nice. It should be possible to go to Devil's
Cauldron to day. Arriving the
Old
Nasa Road all hills are covered in clouds. So I decide to go to an other
letterbox. Pillar Bay will be the right one. This letterbox is in direction
to the sea. There are no clouds. The way to Pillar Bay is a bit stony but
it is more easier then to go to North-West letterbox. Between the stones
is plain earth. The way to the letterbox is the easier because the box is
down at the sea. Sometimes it goes strait down. It is not difficult. The
rocks are like steps. I only have to find the right steps. That needs a bit
of experience.
I ask my self, why do I old, stupid, and pigheaded donkey things
like this. The answer is so easy as the question, I am an old, stupid, and
pigheaded donkey.
The mailbox is easy to find. A large white rock is in the
sea behind the box. It is very important to save water on the way to the
box. The way back is much more harder. I was a bit wrong on the way back,
I returned about 200 m away from my point of start.
It is cloudy and very warm. My burned back is better now. It was
a hard day but its nice to run up the organism to high power. It is nice
to drink water during and after such a walk.
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February 21st, 2003
(Friday)
I do not want to do so much to day. The day before where
a little bit hard. I was not over powered. I had a lot of reserves.
The way to Bullocks Pond is just an easy walk. So I had the opportunity to
think about many things. Even I was thinking about the end of my vacation
on Ascension. The sky is cloudy, the temperature is fine. It is a bit windy.
A bird flies over my head, stands moveless in the air like a helicopter and
looks on me. I look to the white bird which could be a seagull. Then the
bird flew to a tree to sit down on an branch. May be greetings from an other
bird?
To night was a fine BBQ in the Sunset Bistro. After the dinner
I go back to my hotel room. There was a small animal in my room. It looks
like a lizard, but the head was to wide. I catch it with my tooth glass and
put it out of the hotel. A lizard I never would catch.
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February 22nd, 2003
(Saturday)
This morning seems to be OK to go to Devil's Cauldron. There are
a few clouds only. I let my
bike
close to the start
of the Bullock Pond letterbox walk and walked the few miles to the start
of Devil's Cauldron letterbox walk. I walk like the description in the walk
book and come to a valley which looks like a cauldron. I was not sure whether
I am at the cauldron or not. Accidentally I meet Richard. He is from UK and
likes to walk. I guess much more than me. First he shows me the way to the
Weather Post letterbox and then the way to Devil's Cauldron.
The mailbox from the Cauldron is very difficult to find. It is
about 10 feet up in the stone wall. There is no hint to find, you have to
know the location or you are searching for hours.
It was a very nice walk to day. This area has very beautiful nature.
I guess on the island is a continuous fossilization in progress. The sand
is like lime. By the influence of water and sun the sand proceeds to a hard
material. I observe this procedure at several different places on the
island.
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February 23rd, 2003
(Sunday)
In the
mo
rning
I take pictures from several important buildings in Georgetown. Between 7:15
and 8:40 I had enough light but no sun. So I do not get hard shadows.
The morning I spend in Georgetown, watching the houses of the town.
The houses are so different as the human are living in. Out of Georgetown
is the cemetery. There is a stone wall around. A few of the graves (3 or
4) are out of this wall. I do not know why. Nobody really knows
why.
I read in my book for the rest of the day. I am not sure that there
is dinner to night. I did not ask to day. There was a dinner to night! I
meet the Cable&Wireless managers at the dinner. Later we join the Volcano
Club for some drinks. That was a very nice evening.
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February 24th, 2003
(Monday)
It was a bit much yesterday evening. The beer in the Volcano Club
taste very good!
Georgetown has two Forts. The first is close to the museum. The
second is close the pier head. I visit the Ford close to the pier head to
day. Later I meet Lenny the
Radio Amateur. We had a talk about interesting buildings.
One of the buildings in the harbour area should be the oldest stone
building in the South Atlantic Ocean.
At high noon I try to find out whether the sun is overhead or not.
The sun is still in the south. The shadow goes to the north (mind the picture
to the left). The sun is at the highest point at about 1:10 PM. My calculation
to have the sun overhead are wrong. By that calculations I expect the sun
over head at the 17th or 18th February.
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February 25th, 2003
(Tuesday)
It is my last day on the island. I do not like to go! Traveling
is like a drug. I do not feel that I have to go to day, everything is so
far away.
After
breakfast I make a walk to the sea. A lot of strong wave rolls came over.
I think about the possibility to get the energy from that rolls. It
should be possible but complicated and very expensive.
Later on I collect my belongings and put everything into my large
magic backpack. I visit Cara to pay my bill. To night I had my dinner, say
good bye and had to leave. I do not want to go. The air plane was in
time ...
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February 26th, 2003
(Wednesday)
... and the air plane arrives in time. Brize Norton in the UK is
really like a normal air port. It is warm outside, not like on Ascension,
you can imagine this.
I take a bus to Heathrow and then the fast train to Paddington.
This is the easiest way to go to London. I search a hotel close to Paddington
station. In Sussex Garden are a lot of small an nice hotels. But before
I buy a browny from a well known bakery. I get a hotel, take a shower and
heading to Covent Garden. I was not tired, amazing I did not sleep well in
the air plane.
I walked through London, just lazy. In the evening I had a Dinner
in a restaurant together with a good dry red wine. I walked back from Regent
Street to Paddington. At about half past nine I joined a pub and drunk a
beer. I drunk it outside of the pub because it was very warm in
London.
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February 27th, 2003
(Thursday)
I slept very well to night, have my breakfast and went out to London.
It is a fine warm day. The climate in London is milder then in Munich where
I am presently at home. It is nice to go around. I have the feeling not to
be from this world. A journey like I change a lot of the mind. I like London
and it is a good slide back into the reality.
At the late afternoon I go with the fast train from Paddington
to Heathrow. I was very happy because I did a pre check in at Paddington
in the morning. I had my hand luggage only. The queues in the airport are
so long, too long! I guess Heathrow is too small to handle all the passengers.
I am in the queue to the security control to go back to Munich
...
... Back in Munich now I take my luggage and go by train back to
my home. I am very disappointed, there is a lot of snow outside. I put my
magic backpack on my back and the last steps of this journey are made thought
frozen snow.
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Last modification: October 17 - 2008 DF2IR
To
organizes a journey like this, it is necessary to get information as much
as possible. A lot
of
information are available on the
Ascension
Island internet page and the
Obsidian Group internet
page. But I missed information e.g. about dangerous animals like rattle
snakes, lions and tigers etc. I wrote to the Ascension tourist information
and get the answer, there are no danger animals on Ascension Island, only
donkeys, sheep, rabbits, different kind of birds and turtles. The ocean around
Ascension contains a very different kind of nice fish. Different kind of
sharks (Six-Gill-Sharks, Whale-Sharks) sometimes around Ascension.
One day when I was swimming in the 27 degree centigrade water I saw an inkfish
down in the sea. The sea around Ascension is a paradise for fishermen. But
I don't go fishing.
