Kid, Stéven The Hyaric dreamed of exploit on the roads of the Tour de France. Professional cyclist (Elite) until 2010, the tireless roller decides to leave the beaten track and paved roads. He moves away from the pelotons to give more meaning to his pedal strokes. A few years later, he decides to go explore Nepal. A cultural and spiritual shock. For 120 days on his bike, he furrows the paths, climbs two peaks over 6000 meters and goes to meet the inhabitants in the most isolated regions of the country. Transformed, this bearded man with a long mop even tries out silent meditation Vipassana, one of the oldest in India.
Become a backpacker on two wheels, this double winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans by bike crosses the mountains and the deserts, decides to found an association, White Dreams, to share with children some of his experiences in the mountains, his real passion. This great admirer of Jean Mermoz, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and Henri Guillaumet, pioneers of the air, can no longer imagine his life without adventure or transmission.
Preparation for the 666 project
A few months ago, he launched a demonic project, the "666 project". On the program, crossing the six hardest deserts in the world on 6 continents and over 6 months. Atacama (Chile), Gobie (China-Mongolia), the Arctic, Antarctica, Simpson (Australia), Kalahari-Namib (Namibia). There is no question of embarking on the adventure without heating your calves. Last April, he completed his 5,600 km journey in 20 days between Paris and Dakar, or 280 km daily. The opportunity to alert about desertification and the climatic emergency of these fragile natural areas. So much for the warm aperitif.
Make way for cold now. On March 7, he will tackle the crossing of the legendary Lake Baikal (636 km long) in total autonomy in the company of a young woman, Perrine Fage. “I need to have benchmarks for my 666 project. Crossing this mythical lake is also an opportunity to discover Russia that I do not know and to test the equipment in extreme conditions with temperatures varying between -15 and -35 ° C, ”he explains.
10 to 15 hours of cycling per day pulling 50 kg of equipment
Stéven The Hyaric will ride between 10 and 15 hours a day, pulling around fifty kilos of equipment behind it on its sled before mounting its bivouac. “What scares me is the quality of the ice and snow. It fell up to 1.20 m of snow there this year, it's exceptional. On this lake, it has the same effect as with the tectonic plates: small hills form which can reach 4-5 meters and it is better to avoid falling into it, ”he explains. He and his partner hope to complete the course in about eight days.
No time for meditation this time. A little regret. "I would also have liked to have done a survival type project which would go beyond the logic of the record (12 days for Lake Baikal, note) but it will go a little too fast this time", he continues, citing experience of the writer Sylvain Tesson, an inspiration. “I obviously read what he wrote about Lake Baikal. I know that he is part of the Société des Explorateurs français but he is not too phone and social media I thought I understood (laughs). Suddenly, I could not meet him but I would really like to be able to exchange with him ", he slips before continuing on another project that is close to his heart: complete the route of the" Longue by bike march ”, accomplished in 1941 by seven prisoners escaped from the gulag between the north of Siberia and India.
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“Before I was forty I had promised myself to live as a hermit in the depths of the woods. I settled for six months in a Siberian cabin on the shores of Lake Baikal, at the tip of the Cap des Cèdres du Nord. A village a hundred and twenty kilometers away, no neighbors, no access roads, sometimes a visit. Winter, temperatures of -30 ° C, summer of bears on the banks. In short, paradise ”S. Tesson. • In a few days, I too will leave for this paradise, not as a hermit in the depths of the woods but in tandem with @perrinefage for a journey of less than 8 days by bike. We hope so! • • A way for me to introduce you to the oldest and deepest of all the lakes in the world: 600 kilometers long and 80 kilometers wide, with bottoms over 1,600 meters. The lake alone contains 20% of the planet's fresh water reserves, making it the largest water reserve in the world. And like all corners of paradise, it is necessary to protect it. • As during each of my adventures, I will do my best to share with you images, live videos of my adventure. I can't wait to introduce you to Baikal. • And you ? • Credit Photo: Sergey Pesterev
A publication shared by STEVENLEHYARIC (@stevenlehyaric) on Feb. 26. 2020 at 10: 55 PST
"Sylvain Tesson was chased by wolves it seems to me, but they only track and attack when you are weak"
It will be for later. For the moment, wild animals await him on the shores of the lake, a “formidable crossroads of Christian, Buddhist cultures, shamanism and old beliefs and old beliefs”, described by the adventurer. “At that time normally, there are not too many bears, rather wolves but they generally stay on the banks. Besides, Sylvain Tesson had been chased by wolves it seems to me, but they only track and attack when you are weak ”, he reassures himself. "Anyway, I will only have my knife to defend myself."
Lake Baikal, the largest body of fresh water in the world
With the exception of wolves, crossing the lake will not allow him to trade as he likes to do during his journeys. He hopes to be able to meet the postman, one of the few to cross the immense expanse, and perhaps some researchers from weather stations. Because Lake Baikal, its 3.15 million hectares, the largest freshwater reserve in the world and home to 2,600 species is also threatened by climate change.
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