'It is tempting to feel free and safe on top of the mountain'

'It is tempting to feel free and safe on top of the mountain'

Frank remembers mountail climbing in Malawi.

Frank Gaynor

Trinity College Dublin

1985

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Frank Gaynor

Work and Employment

Life Story

Malawi, Africa

1980's

We joined Mulanje Mountain Club and gradually explored parts of this great mountain. There were 7 or 8 recognised climbing paths. For a day trip we drove to the Likhubula gorge, and then did the two and a half hour climb to Chambe plateau. As we huffed and puffed on our way up we met local men coming down in a trot, with well - timed steps, and planks of timber on their heads. Back at the bottom we freshened up in the natural swimming pool, among the rocks and waterfalls on Likhubula river. Other climbs were more demanding and required 5 or 6 hours climbing. Climbers had the option of hiring a porter to carry baggage and act as a guide. Most climbers had rucksacks. I recall one lady arriving with a large laundry basket which I thought would pose problems for any porter. One strong porter stepped forward, placed the basket on his head, and went trotting up the path. Most of the porters came from the nearby Palombe district, which was one of the poorest districts in Malawi. At certain times of the year the money earned on the mountain by the porters could be the difference between one meal per day and one meal every two days for their families. Most of the climbs led to a forestry hut at the top. Mountain Club members had access to a room in these huts where mattresses and kitchen equipment were stored. One year a group of about 12 teenagers, who were in Mulanje for Christmas, decided to climb the Elephant Head path and spend a couple of nights on the mountain. I was the only Club member free to accompany them and give them access to the storerooms in the forestry huts. When we were halfway up it started to rain heavily. The combination of rain and fading light fairly quickly reduced visibility. It was my first time on this path. As I struggled to negotiate my way over some steep slippery patches my mind was haunted by the thought of some of the teenagers falling off the mountain as they giggled their way along. Falling off that path was most likely to end in death in the valley 1,000m below. We all did get there safely, but I never again took sole responsibility for so many young climbers. The following morning three members of the group gave me some anxious moments when they raced ahead as we headed for the next hut, and were out of contact for a couple of hours.It is tempting to feel free and safe on top of the mountain. It is also easy to get into a very difficult situation. Fog and mist can engulf the mountain, without warning and in a matter of 30 minutes or so, and reduce visibility to a few steps. With visibility reduced it is difficult to maintain a sense of direction. If you move it is likely that you will fall and be injured on the rocks; if you stay put there is an equal danger of being overcome by the cold. Over a number of years we stuck with the basic rules and managed to avoid difficulty. Monica did many successful climbs, and crossed the mountain plateau many times, accompanied only by her porter, Ronald, and our dog Rex. At certain times of the year the sunset colours, as seen from our house, were majestic. As the sun went down behind the Thyolo Hills, shafts of light like great torches generated a variety of colours on the granite face of Mulanje Mountain. The waterfall glistened, the gorges brightened up, and the vegetation took on a strange purple colour. It all lasted just two or three minutes, and then it was all over, and the night insects started to tune up. To help us enjoy these great moments, while reclining in an easy chair with beer in hand, we decided to extend our konde. I engaged a local handyman to do the job. It was difficult to tell his age. He had a small shrivelled body, a wrinkled face and slit eyes. He looked more Asian than African. When I explained what I wanted done, and asked if he could do it, he said 'It is my duty Master'. I worked with him as he built the support wall and filled in the hard - core. I then explained that I wanted a gentle slope on the finished surface so that the rain water would run off into the garden. He held his thumb and first finger very close together to indicate the slight slope that was required. When I asked if he could continue with the surface, while I was away for a few hours, he said 'It is my duty Master'. When I returned I found something like a mini ski run, sloping at a rate of one in five. When I explained that we would have to re - do the surface he said 'It is my duty Master'.My best year on Malawi's golf courses was 1990, when I collected prizes at competitions in Mulanje, Thyolo, Blantyre and Zomba. The following Easter I travelled to Lilongwe to take part in the Malawi golf championships. This was a 3 - day event, which usually ran from Good Friday to Easter Sunday. I did not play well. On the Sunday night I went for drinks and a barbeque with a few of the Malawi golfers. For the 300km drive to Blantyre on the Monday there were four of us in the car with four sets of golf clubs and I was the only driver. Not long after leaving Lilongwe I first felt tired and drowsy. It got progressively worse and I struggled to stay alert. I opened the car window, took off my shoes, stopped frequently for short walks, but still I was inclined to doze off as soon as I started driving again. I was hugely relieved when we reached Blantyre. Feeling a bit better the following morning I attempted to play golf with my colleagues but had to retire after a couple of holes. When I reached Mulanje I went to the CCAP hospital where the doctor told me that I had both hepatitis and malaria, and that I must take at least two months off work. Ten years earlier I had Hepatitis A in Manzini, and apparently you don't get that one twice. Later tests confirmed only that my hepatitis was Non - B. I'm not sure what that means, but my doctor said it was better than testing positive for Hepatitis - B. Whatever it was it had a big effect on my health for a year, and left me with a headache, that varied from mild to severe, for the following 15 years. During that time I drank very little alcohol as one glass would set off a severe headache. In the absence of any other explanation I blamed the meat at the barbeque in Lilongwe.

Irish Research Council for Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences (IRCHSS)

Dr Kathleen McTiernan (Trinity College Dublin)

Dr Deirdre O'Donnell (Trinity College Dublin)