Comments on: Trail Notes: Camel Camaraderie

By: Paul Salopek

Paul Salopek — Fri, 03 May 2013 12:55:16 +0000

I wouldn’t dream of teasing a camel—not after walking too close behind our old bull, Modaita, and nearly having my chest caved in by a rearward kick. The three eyelids factoid is new to me. They do, however, have Marilyn Monroe’s eyelashes.

By: Kathy Gabriel

Kathy Gabriel — Sat, 13 Apr 2013 14:07:45 +0000

You are very courageous. This post reminds me of a Bedouin guest speaker who came in to talk to my class of seventh graders in Abu Dhabi. He said that camels have an amazing memory. He admitted teasing and torturing 1 of his grandfather’s camel herd when he was a child, visiting the camp in Liwa. He swore that when he went back a couple of decades later, that camel remembered him and bit him! Do camels really have 3 eyelids?

By: Robert Perkovich Cobb

Robert Perkovich Cobb — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 03:55:13 +0000

May the bones of our ancestors mark your path and bring you home…happy trails!

By: Jim Manning

Jim Manning — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 22:30:26 +0000

Hi Paul–
Your walk is not only interesting and educational, it is outstanding. I am a long distance hiker/backpacker–53,000 miles since 1995 and still going at age 80–mountain area mostly, some mild desert areas.

Take care of your feet.
jim

By: barbara

barbara — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 17:24:22 +0000

i love the notion of you and your gentle friends bedding down for the night, on the desert floor. and i am so happy to know that i’ve now listened to a camel chewing, most especially as i sit here in 02139, where camels never roam…bless you this day, or whenever you stumble upon these humble words…

By: Tyler Miazga

Tyler Miazga — Sat, 16 Mar 2013 07:06:50 +0000

I loved the sound recording at the end! Added a whole dimension to your experience which one day I hope to replicate in a similar manner (a visit to every national park in the world for instance could be a good 7+ year project)

By: Ilse

Ilse — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 05:43:36 +0000

Didn’t know until I saw your picture that camels can be told apart by their hairdos Thank you for sharing that special moment with the rest of us. Thank you, too, for sharing your journey with those of us who can only dream …I will follow every step

By: Paul Salopek

Paul Salopek — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 13:59:44 +0000

Gracias, Enrique. Captaste las ideas detrás de esta jornada perfectamente.

By: Paul Salopek

Paul Salopek — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 13:56:51 +0000

Thanks for writing, Gail. I agree, the granular details of walking and camping across landscapes can be interesting to readers. But as someone who’s undertaken long, muscle-powered journeys before, I also know it can devolve into repetition pretty fast. That said, I will leave a few more breadcrumbs along the trail. In general, my walking days are defined by the quality of the stories I encounter along the way. I take turns leading or following the camels. (Afar pastoralists don’t ride.) I camp out. I stay with nomad families in their huts. The walk’s route is continuous. And so far, I haven’t had to resort to mechanized travel. To see a map of the journey, go to “Map Room” and click on “See the Route.”

By: Paul Salopek

Paul Salopek — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 13:49:49 +0000

Love your idea about creating a “sound map” of the route, Jan: We’re working on it, using audio snippets from the “Milestones” that I’m recording every hundred miles. I think auditory landscapes must shape human culture. (An Ituri pygmy’s heard universe differs significantly from a Chicagoan’s.) Local ambient sound must also mold language in subtle ways. On a similar track, a friend has suggested that I study the rhythms of the many languages that I’ll be walking through, and then attempt to walk to that beat for a day.