Doug Gunzelmann
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When Doug Gunzelmann set off to bike 6000 kilometers through the heart of the Amazon, he had never been on a cycling tour before. But that didn't stop him from planning an epic adventure that would take him across the Transamazonica, or Trans-Amazonian Highway. Along the way he would raise awareness of sustainability issues in the rainforest, a pressing issue in this region.
We caught up with Gunzelmann to learn more about his trip and his message.
Planet Green: You had never been on a cycling tour before this. Why then throw yourself onto such a demanding journey for your first tour experience?
Doug Gunzelmann: To be honest I probably got myself in over my head, but that ended up being beneficial. I had been an avid road cyclist out of college, racing as a category 3, and figured an average of 50 miles a day should be manageable. My lack of experience riding a heavily laden mountain bike on dirt kept me from realizing how difficult it would be to cross the Amazon in this way.
Photo credit: Doug Gunzelmann
Once I reached Humaita' and paved road, some 1500 miles into the trip, I was thrilled with the ease of cycle touring on pavement. Had I been accustomed to touring under these conditions I most likely would have given up in the dirt, dust, and mud of the Transamazonica.
My naiveté put me in a situation I grew accustomed to; riding 8-12 hours a day, on washboard gravel or 6 inch dust/sand or mud, over endless hills, in 100+ degree heat alone day in and day out. Cycling the coast of New England probably wouldn't have prepared me much for this trip anyway.
PG: A biking trip like this one is a feat in and of itself, what inspired you to add a sustainability element to the journey?
DG: Whenever I am on a bike I am amazed at the simple mechanical advantage offered by the machine. I wanted to show that you can traverse amazing places and distances on a bike while showing people the Amazon isn't just an empty expanse of jungle filled with anacondas and jaguars. There are thriving communities that have lived here for generations that need to be considered when addressing sustainability in the region.
I learned about the TransAm when reading an article in a 2007 Nat Geo article about deforestation and the roadways that play a part in the destruction. I thought the TransAm would offer a perfect corridor through the jungle to give me the challenge and adventure I was looking for while serving a greater purpose of illuminating this often debated but perhaps not well understood area. I have never met a person in my travels across the US that has even heard of this road so the opportunity to report back seemed like a worthy pursuit. Biking was only logical... a perfectly sustainable mode of transportation... aside from walking over 3,000 miles.
Photo credit: Doug Gunzelmann
PG: How many times has the Transamazonica been bicycled before?
DG: The TransAm has been biked to this extent by maybe three other people. First and most impressively, was by a nurse from New Zealand named Louise Sutherland. The TransAm construction project was abandoned in 1973 and Louise made the first traverse a few years later on a steel framed 5 speed Raleigh. She wrote a now discontinued book about her ordeal titled "The Impossible Ride." From my experience I can't imagine how she managed to pedal such an old school bike while weighing only about 100 lbs herself. To this day this is the frontier of Brazil with very little law enforcement (meaning zero outside of cities) where gold miners still have shootouts in the jungle and pay for rum with gold dust. Reading her story was a big inspiration for me.
I also contacted a German man who made the journey from Belem to Humaita' in 1999 and I used his account as a very rough guide for myself. Finally, a few months ahead of me, there was a French man who rode the same route I did linking up with the still unfinished Trans-Oceanic route through Peru. We are the only two to cross the continent by bike via the TransAm and TransOceanic routes which would have been impossible until very recently.
PG: You biked east to west for 6,000 km, what did it feel like to finally reach the Pacific Ocean?
DG: I set up the camera and posed from some "victory" shots at the water's edge but in all honesty I was frustrated. I had battled a headwind for the past week which climaxed as I approached the coast. I also had been experiencing repeated fevers and had a bad case of the runs. My overall body weight was down about 20 lbs and I was nervous about the possibility of having contracted malaria weeks prior. That being said, I sensed my physical location on the planet like never before. I watched the continent change under my feet and under my own power. Overall, I was emotionally spent.
Photo credit: Doug Gunzelmann
PG: Why did you choose cycling as a vehicle to raise awareness about sustainability in the rainforest?
DG: Like I have said before, I love bikes, cycling, and the simplicity and mobility of riding a bike. I think they are very underutilized in the US. I can't believe when people think 4-5 miles is too far to travel by anything human powered. I think my ride shows you can travel long distance over difficult terrain while carrying a heavy load. But this is nothing new.
From a practical standpoint cycling was the cheapest, simplest, and most practical mode for me to undertake this self-financed and self-supported expedition. Driving a high-powered off-road vehicle across a continent seems to negate a message of sustainability. Some would argue that flying to reach my starting point would as well, but it'd be tough to investigate the Amazon without doing at least this much via airplane. I had just less than 4 months to complete the trip and cycling would put in closest contact with those living along the TransAm.
PG: Tell us a little about the environmental issues currently facing the Amazon.
DG: During my trip I saw three major issues concerning the Amazon, its resources, and the people living there (of course there are more). First is the creation of dams for hydroelectric power. The Tucurui dam is one of the largest in the Amazon Basin and will be joined by a dam in the Xingu river area around Altamira. The dam will of course result in flooded jungle which will displace the people and animals that live along these waterways as well as disrupt the livelihood of those living down stream of the dam. I witnessed protests for water rights and against the construction of these dams in Belem and Altamira.
Next is the popular deforestation issue which is easily observed on nearly all of the Transamazonica. I spent nights with the men and woman responsible for some of this destruction as well as time and meals with people who now depend on the cleared land for a living. It's a complicated problem for me to comes to terms with now. There needs to be a resolution that preserves the jungle yet allows these people to at least maintain their livelihoods and better yet to prosper. Brazilians have every right to work towards a higher quality of life and are competing on a global market to accomplish this, as are Americans.
Finally, the roadways themselves are a major issue in this part of the world. Roadways, like the Transamazonica or the TranOceanic highway, offer access to these remote areas and the potential for exploitation of the jungle and people. However, the people I came to depend on for my own safety and well being also depend on these roads for transportation of their goods and themselves. These roads allow Brazil, Peru, and other countries of South America to move their goods to ocean ports to sell on the world market. For instance, parts of the Transamazonica between Santarem and Cuiaba have been widened and paved since I rode them a few months ago, to transport truck loads of soybeans. Roads will bring destruction, no question about it, but how does one meet Brazil's right to compete and keep the Amazon from being mowed down in the process?
Photo credit: Doug Gunzelmann
PG: Now that you've completed your trip, how will you use what you've learned to continue talking about sustainability issues in this area of the world?
DG: I think, is a tricky issue for people of developed nations to address. People living in the Amazon have every right to work towards a better life, as we have in America or Europe etc. Brazil wants to compete on the global market to prosper in the ways other countries have, and sometimes this has been very negative on the environment. That is a function of consumer culture that the whole developed world is responsible for, and to ask the people of the Amazon to be more responsible than we have been is hypocritical. That being said, something has to be done by all peoples to ensure the Amazon, and other environmental treasures around the globe, aren't ravaged.
Sustainability is being addressed by Brazilians because in reality it is the best possible path forward, especially considering the nature of soil in this jungle. Cattle ranching, in most areas of the Amazon, leads to desertification due to the soil's inability to retain its nutrients. Eventually cattle won't even be able to graze and then no one is making a profit.
PG: Is this a stepping stone for future extended bike trips? Or other types of trips focused on environmental issues?
DG: I'd say I have the experience and confidence to tackle nearly anything after this trip, but in due time. The mental fatigue from completely this trip solo will take some time to recover from.
While taking a long walk in the dunes of the Atacama desert in Peru I noticed how the wind piled trash in depressions at the base of the dunes. The desert has fascinated me but I think it's even more imposing than the jungle. Maybe someday I could explore some of earth's desert by bike.
PG: How do environmental issues in the Brazilian Amazon affect us here at home in the US?
DG: I'd say it's mostly the other way around. Decisions we make here in the US can have an effect on what happens with agriculture and deforestation in the Amazon. As Brazil makes efforts to meet world demands for certain products whether it be for soy, acai, mahogany, beef, leather, etc certain parties will use both ethical and reprehensible methods to gain profits from this demand. I saw this with the expansion of the Transamazonica south of Santarem in efforts to facilitate the transport of soy from the region.
The desertification of the Amazon due to this development will in turn have untold affects on the entire planet. We'll lose precious species, weather patterns will be affected and already have been, and CO2 levels will increase from the two fold release of carbon from the destruction and the loss of CO2 scrubbing from the air the Amazon vegetation is responsible for to a great extent. There is a myriad of affects you could Google about on this subject alone. I realized how closely knit we are as a global community even in some of the most remote places on earth.
PG: What do you think is the biggest obstacle in making people understand that their choices at home, like what they eat, what coffee they drink, etc. often have a global affect?
DG: I have learned the significance of culture through this trip and realize how deeply we are all effected by the culture in which we are raised. Our culture is how we see the world, how we make sense of our surroundings, what defines our values and what we despise. To have the ability to see outside of ones culture is a feat alone.
To tell people that their material goods, which for so long have typified success and a high quality of life could possibly be a bad thing isn't going to be easy. It might make practical sense to someone but through much of westernized culture we value new goods frequently. An enormous effort will be required to shift this cultural perspective.
PG: What can people do to take action that will help this region?
DG: Oh boy... the best answer for anybody who wants to help is to consume less and consume intelligently. I know that's a boring answer but when it gets down to brass tacks it makes the most sense.
All I can advocate for the Amazon really is that if you are buying something of questionable original do due diligence in where it comes from and how it is produced. For example, if you're vegetarian, don't eat beef because of it's affect on the environment; make sure your soy products aren't resulting in the same sort of destruction.
The Amazon is a place that has an enormous role for world health but also the livelihood of those that have lived there for generations. They deserve a right to thrive, as we have, and if we can support them through commerce in a sustainable fashion for their good and the jungle's then all the better.
Unfortunately, through the thriving of the western world the environment has paid the price. This is a question experts around the world are working to solve as well and there is no simple solution.
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