Adventures in the frozen wilderness: a Hong Kong man’s trek across icy Lake Baikal gives him a new perspective on life
- Anson Lui, 30, says he used to think of himself as a quitter but tackling ambitious expeditions overseas has made him a lot more resilient
Waking up trembling in the freezing dark, Anson Lui Ching-fan notices a hole in his sleeping bag, out of which down feathers are escaping, fluttering like snowflakes in his tent he shares with three fellow explorers.
It is Lui’s fourth night on the icebound Lake Baikal, where in February temperatures drop to below minus 40 degrees Celsius. Hastily shuffling into all the layers of clothes he has to hand, the 30-year-old adventurer can’t help but think: “I don’t want to die here.”
“I stay awake the whole night, until the sun finally rises and I can light a fire to dry my shoes,” he says. “It’s the kind of experience that makes you feel alive.”
A cyclist and social entrepreneur, Lui trekked across the South Siberian rift lake two months ago, the first Hongkonger to do so. The Unesco world heritage site, covering 31,722 sq km, is the oldest and deepest lake on Earth.
Accompanied by three locals, Lui completed a 90km journey across the ice that took four days. His team was forced to change route halfway due to cold currents, before they succeeded in crossing the lake from east to west.
