Dutch cyclist recounts monumental odyssey from North Pole to South Pole

By Kevin Rushworth Reporter

Nearly nine months after riding through the Crowsnest Pass and Pincher Creek on his cross continental journey, Dutch cyclist Aart Huijg, 31, is a year into his lifetime adventure and half a world awaydeep in the jungle of British Guyana. Huijgwho is from Amsterdamquit his economics PhD and flew to Alaska to begin a cycling odyssey from the Nor th Pole to the South Pole. Five hundred days and 30,000 kilometers after starting out from Deadhorse, Alaska, Huijg will arrive in Ushuaia, Argentina in 2013. Now a year into his journey, Huijgcurrently in British Guyanabought tickets to North America simply because he could. Well into his monumental journey, his mission statement has always been Today I Can, which is also the name of his c ycling blog updated nearly every day from new towns. Each month, Huijg captures a day in the life of one person he meets along the way in his video series titled As the World Turns. Once youre infected with the cycling virus, its really difficult to sit still and stay in one place, he said during a rest in Coleman. It will be strange (going home), but again, thats part of living your dream. In an email inter view, Huijg noted his message of living every day to its fullest has become even more important as he travels further into South America. Along the way, he said many people are always re l a t i n g a b e v y o f d a n gersreferring to snakes, bears, pumas, thieves, drug cartels and guerillasto name a few. If I had believed them I would have been dead twenty times by now, he said. People let their lives be dominated by fear and they should not. Though each and every day is an experience, Huijg recalled spending days living with the local community in the slums of Medellin, Columbia. I was part of the local community and drank beer on a Saturday morning as a good Columbian does, he said. I bet on cock fights and felt rich with nothing. The encounters with people from all layers of society have been the cornerstone of my trip. Where Western countries have become disconnected from family and their social environment, Huijg said other nations share and form a tight community. He noted the hospitality of the people hes met along the wayboth poor and richand how they want to be a par t of his exciting journey. Cycling into a new town or city, Huijg said people always allow him to stay with their families, regardless if its only for a shower and a meal or for the night. Well into Central Ameri c a , Hu i j g r e c a l l e d t h e depression he fell into; hot sweaty nights were spent on the side of the road with the climate changing dramatically. Circumstances in Honduras as well as Nicaragua were unsafe and Huijg began to feel lonely. The euphoria he felt starting his trip had begun to drain. Leaving Central America and his depression behind, Huijg cycled into Southern America and recalled what would be his next taskthe unpaved road from Georgetown, British Guyana to the Brazil border. The red gravel road turns often into big mud pools, he noted. Several times, my bike disappeared into it, the water reaching till my knees. Huijg recalled preparing his spaghetti on the side of the road t o a n o rc h e s tra of sounds parrots flying overhead, howler monkeys screaming and the incessant buzzing of insects. Unlike other travelers, who stay relatively on the beaten path, Huijg has cycled far from well-trodden certainty. It is so much more fun if

Submitted photo
Aart Huijg, from Amsterdam, cycles through the Rupununi Savanna in South British Guyana.

Submitted photo
Mud has been Huijigs arch enemy as he cycles through the Rupununi Savanna in South British Guyana. Huijg is well into his adventure as he bikes from the North Pole to the South Pole. people dont look at you as a wallet on two legs, he said. Choose your own path and take the first right into a village you never heard about. With two months of Brazils mighty Amazon jungle to cycle through, Huijg has many more adventures to go and will be tentatively reaching his destination in March 2013. Show the world your limits and the world will show you her limits, he said about his Today You Can message. There is a whole lot out there. Take the risks. Most of the time they dont ex ist. Enr ich yourself by getting to know (more) about yourself. Once at the most southerly point of Argentina, Hu i j g ha s a d e c i s i o n t o makewhether or not he should take a boat to South Africa and cycle home to Amsterdam. For more information, visit http:// today-you-can.com/ to follow his adventure.