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Human Edge Technology on the Amazon Queen
20:53 p.m. EDT Sep 26, 2003
So we have noticed a certain Captain Phil making beautiful pictures of French ocean rower Maud Fontenoy. Onboard his own Amazon Queen, down deep in the rain forests of Amazon jungles, Captain Phillip Gonzales has actually been staying up every night writing until 2 a.m. He has been looking for sponsors, organizing a radio communications program with schools as well as organizing material for his new website. "It's draining me" he told us in one of his mails.
Captain Phil is planning a 600 mile voyage on the Amazon from Leticia to Iquitos Peru in November. The interesting part is the communication he is setting up. Whilst the world buzz about blogs, wireless and satellites - our Amazon Captain has his own ways. Check out the picture to this story - it has been transmitted via not satellite, nor through an internet cafe - but through amateur radio:
- "I must admit there is a unique challenge in being able to transmit by radio, photographs and stories which may rival those of National Geographic... solely for the satisfaction of being able to accomplish this from a wooden ship navigating the rainforest tributaries of the Amazon River.
This mode of communication is called Pactor III and allows me "free" non-business transmissions as an amateur radio operator to be able to get out 30-50 kb perfect quality pictures from my ship and into the internet within a few minutes.
My ultimate goal after 4 years of navigation is to be able to transmit quality pictures and stories to adventurers who for what ever reason can't be along...and especially to students who would like to follow the voyages of the Amazon Queen as we rediscover the numerous isolated cultures of the Peruvian, Colombian and Brazilian Amazon.
My focus is to talk to schools around the world by amateur radio and direct from the ship into the internet. Share stories on topics such as tribal medicine, festivals along the river, navigation & mapping, how we make a film documentary, critters & creature etc. The beauty of this also is that you will be able to talk to us by HF radio phone patch as well as seeing us and writing to us through the internet."
This voyage is in preparation for the main trip next year: A 4-5 month voyage on the Amazon covering 6,000 miles, ... crossing through Peru, Colombia, Brazil and back to Colombia.
Captain Phil already mailed us a bunch of stunning pics. We look forward to follow the adventures of the Amazon Queen live - over Amateur Radio! There will be updates on both the HumanEdgeTech and Ocean section of ExplorersWeb, in addition to the Amazon Queen new website which is soon to be published.
So why the pics of Maud? Well, Phil is just one of this community that was captured by Maud:
-"I can't believe what good fortune and what a true "knight in shining Armor" came to her rescue. I have been loosing sleep thinking about Maud and her diminishing water supply. I was going to offer my assistance in going to the French Embassy here in Bogotá and explaining the seriousness of Maud peril" he wrote us after Maud received a gift of fresh water by an unknown sailor.
Well, we wrote about Phil in one of the updates on Maud. And we published a pic of Phil's boat to illustrate the far corners of our world that she had touched. This came to confuse the Captain:
- "I must admit I was surprised and confused to say the least. I had been sending some pictures from my desk top to a yacht off the coast of Venezuela and clicked on Explorersweb to update the yachtsman on Maud's progress ...I couldn't figure out how a picture of the Amazon Queen got into your website so I closed it out several time to see if I could display your picture instead of mine.
I though I had somehow entered you website with my picture by mistake and knew I was in big trouble...finally after scrolling down I saw my name and the rest of the story...very kind of you.."
And in his last mail, Phil wraps up the soul of this community:
"As Maud struggles to reclaim lost degrees, minutes, and seconds she surely gains internal strength... her reflection of Walt Disney's words..."you can't realize your dreams... if you don't have dreams" ... echoes her voice from within, more powerful than the body, often ruthless and cruel summoned up by the climber, the runner, the soldier, the young girl rowing to her home in France across a vast cold, desolate sea ... a voice of undaunting determination that tempers the spirit of a worthy adventurer. Thanks for sharing the dreams of the many explorers with all of us through the ExplorersWeb."
Thank you, Phil. And hey - take that radio and show us the great Amazon like we've never seen it before!
Photo of the Amazon Queen sent by Pactor III, Kenwood TS 450S, wire dipole antenna, and 40 watt's of power from( 04 40' N 074 00'W ),Bogota Colombia.
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