Face to face with spiders, sea lions and sharks
17-year old sixth former Ben White refused to let his severe haemophilia A stop him embarking on a trip of a lifetime – a month trekking and experiencing life with local communities in Ecuador and the Galapagos
Four weeks spent living with villagers, exploring the Amazon Jungle and discovering amazing creatures have given me memories that will last all my life as well as some new ambitions.
The trip was organized through my school and over 40 of us were on the expedition. There was going to be a lot of walking – often at altitude – so I knew I would need to be fit. I’ve battled with ankle problems throughout my childhood and teenage years, but it’s never stopped me taking up sports. I’ve captained the school basketball team and I play in international tournaments at county level.
Well prepared
Nevertheless, I was worried about my ankle, but my physio gave me all the reassurance I needed. I normally inject myself three times a week with Factor VIII, but we increased it to 4 times a week so there would be no chance of any problems. I also made sure I had plenty of medication with me and took some with me on hikes just in case.
As it turned out I had no bleeds or ankle problems – I was physically fit and well prepared for all the walks. The people who really struggled were those who don’t really play much sport. I was also really lucky because I didn’t feel any symptoms of altitude sickness – whereas some felt ill as soon as they stepped off the plane at 2,400m!
Experiencing life in the community
When I look back on the holiday I can’t believe how much we did – from playing football with the locals in Ecuador to swimming with sea lions off the coast in the Galapagos.
I started my journey in a village just outside Cotacachi near Quito (the capital), where I spent a week living with a family and helping the community with gardening, farming, painting their community centre and repairing a village memorial.
Experiencing daily life with the family was a big highlight of the trip. They had to survive with so little and it really made me realize how lucky I am. I loved getting to know the locals and be able to have a laugh with them. Twenty of them played against 10 of us in a football match and we taught them card games.
Walking in the Valley of the Volcanoes
The trekking really took off in the second week of the trip when we moved to the “Valley of the Volcanoes.” We stayed in a mixture of hotels and hostels and did four walks around different types of crater lakes – we even walked up a dormant volcano. The longest walk was six hours round a crater lake – the views from the top of the lake were absolutely amazing.
One of the walks was at the foot of Cotapaxi Volcano, which, at nearly 6,000m high, is the highest active volcano in the world. I had nothing to fear though – it’s not due to erupt for at least another five years. The walk was round a peaceful nature reserve and we were lucky enough to see some condors.
Face to face with a tarantula in the rainforest
In the third week we moved to the edge of the Amazon rainforest for a completely new experience. We stayed in little huts with no electricity or hot water and slept on little wooden beds with just our sleeping bags and mosquito nets. Within moments of putting my bag down in what was to be my new home for the next 5 days I spotted a massive tarantula on the window. Seconds later I noticed a huge gap between the roof and the wall – it was going to be an interesting week!
And it absolutely was – and for all the right reasons. We learnt how to make traps for hunting, played another football match against the locals, learnt some of their dances and went “tubing” down a river – that’s riding inner tubes off tractor wheels.
At one of the nursery schools they sang to us and danced, and we taught them “head, shoulders, knees and toes.” The most unusual experience though was getting up at 5am to join the locals for one of their rituals – drinking a special herbal tea for the spirit and soul.
Wildlife encounters in the Galapagos
From the rainforest we moved to Quito, then flew to the Galapagos for what was to be another major highlight of the trip. During our 5-day stay we went snorkelling, walking and visited wildlife centres, including the Charles Darwin Research Centre. I encountered giant turtles, black and white tip sharks – which fortunately aren’t dangerous – sea iguanas and sea lions. The sea lions are so tame that you can walk right up to them on any of the beaches. I even swam with sea lions who clearly wanted to play with us.
From the Galapagos I headed home with some amazing memories. I loved the trip so much that I’m already hoping to return in my gap year. I would love to climb the Cotapaxi Volcano in Ecuador, return to the Galapagos to see more of the wildlife centres and do more snorkelling, and visit some of the other islands.
Advice for others with haemophilia
What would I say to other people with haemophilia? Just go for it. Don’t hold back. If you plan for it and make sure you take enough treatment you’ll be fine.
UK/HAETDEV/11-0006
