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How one man’s adventures in the desert will help keep Beauly in bloom

Mark Evans crossed the Empty Quarter desert in the Middle East
Mark Evans crossed the Empty Quarter desert in the Middle East

Mark Evans calls them “long walks”, but in reality they are epic adventures that very few have undertaken.

From major polar explorations to marathon treks across vast deserts, the British explorer has been leading expeditions for more than 40 years.

His most recent mission was a 49-day journey across the biggest land desert on earth, the Empty Quarter, or Rub Al Khali, in the Middle East.

The next challenge is how to condense those 49 days, and his other international exploits, into a 40-minute talk he is giving in the Highlands next month.

Mark is giving the address to raise money for the village of Beauly where he and his wife have a home and where he visits from his base in Muscat, Oman.

What are some of Mark’s adventures?

With more than 20 years living and travelling extensively in the Arabian Peninsula, he has an unrivalled knowledge of the area.

He has completed 80-day camel expeditions, a 55-day 1,700 km solo kayak journey from the United Arab Emirates to Yemen, and remote 4×4 journeys throughout Saudi Arabia and Oman.

He has also spent a year on the Arctic island of Svalbard, including three months in  total darkness, crossed the Greenland ice cap and searching for the remains of Arctic explorer Captain Sir John Franklin in the North-West Passage.

Mark is a fellow of the Explorers Club of New York and the Royal Geographical Society in London. He is also an honorary fellow of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society.

He is also executive director of Outward Bound Oman. It is the first Outward Bound school to be established in an Arabic speaking country.

Mark was recognised as a Pioneer to the Life of the Nation at Buckingham Palace in 2003. He received an MBE in 2011.

The desert expedition will feature in a talk in Beauly

The Empty Quarter expedition saw Mark, two Omani colleagues and four camels recreate the journey of British explorer Bertram Thomas. He was the first European to traverse the inhospitable environment in 1931.

The desert covers 250,000 square miles – 40,000 square miles larger than France. It receives just 1.2 inches of rain a year, half that of Death Valley.

Mark said: “For the last 22 years I’ve lived on the edge of the biggest land desert on earth.

“And the longer I spend there, the more I’ve become fascinated by the people who probed and explored it in the early days.”

The 1931 trek saw Thomas start from Dhofar, Oman, arriving 59 days later in Doha, Qatar.

Future King contributed to explorer’s book

Eighty five years later, Mark set off to follow in his footsteps. Patrons of the expedition were the Sultan of Oman, King Salman of Saudi Arabia, Sheikh Joaan bin Hamed Al Thani of Qatar and the then Prince of Wales, now King Charles III.

Charles later wrote a foreword to a book Mark wrote of the expedition. In it, he said that ‘despite the huge changes that the world has seen since 1931, the harshness of the Empty Quarter remains undiminished.

‘I know that the team had to draw to the utmost on their reserves of endurances and toughness to cross it. I have the greatest admiration for them.’

Mark said: “It is one of the most pristine places on the planet. Not a footprint, not a tyre track, not a bit of plastic. No noise or light pollution, just utterly fantastic.”

He said it was relatively cool at the time – low to mid 20s C by day, but down to zero at night – with few scorpions or snakes to worry about.

“The biggest danger for us was if the camels broke down.

Mark Evans says he wants to give something back to the community

“Our journey was easy by comparison (to the Thomas expedition). I had a satellite phone and in an emergency could get a helicopter there.

“In comparison, no one knew where they were and they could not call for help. It was chalk and cheese.”

Details of his next major trip, the Heart of Arabia, will be revealed on September 27.

Starting in November, it will be a two-stage 1,300km journey across Saudi Arabia. It will loosely follow the route of the explorer Harry St John Philby. He first made the journey 105 years ago.

Like Philby, the journey, which has the Princess Royal as patron, will gather primary field data to support a number of areas of research.

“I do it because I enjoy it”, Mark says of his incredible voyages. “We’ve all got our niche in life.

Silence is so powerful

“I’m comfortable with a lot of silence and time on my own, making my own entertainment and making things happen rather than looking for things to do.

“I love the desert. I’ve spent a lot of time in the arctic and Greenland and there are similarities in the pristine environment and the feeling you’re the only person on the planet sometimes.

“The overarching sense of silence is so powerful. I don’t find that intimidating at all, I find the underground in London intimidating. In the middle of the desert I’m perfectly at ease.”

The money raised from the talk will be used to help pay for flower displays and Christmas lights in Beauly.

“I wanted to raise money for a good cause. We love the village and wanted to do something to give back to the community.”

Money raised at the talk will help pay for floral displays in Beauly

William Crawford is chairman of the Beauly Business Group.

He said: “We were delighted when Mark offered to do this talk to raise funds for the village.

“All the money raised will help us continue to support our floral displays in the summer and the Christmas lights in the winter. These are hugely appreciated by both our visitors and our local community.

“They’re all part of what makes Beauly such a lovely place to live and to visit.”

The talk is in the Phipps Institute on October 5 at 7pm. Tickets, priced at £15, are available from the Old School, Campbell’s of Beauly and Morison’s Ironmongers.

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