User talk:RevdArthur
Much has been written about Neil Armstrong’s achievements as the “first man on the Moon” but hardly anyone knows that in 1976 he participated in an important scientific expedition to the Amazon rainforests. Back then Erich von Daniken had became a best selling author (similar to Dan Brown) by making sensational claims that aliens from outer space had visited planet Earth. Stanley Hall took very seriously the evidence presented in “Gold of the Gods” and so he set about organising a joint British and Ecuadorian expedition. It so happened that Stanley’s wife was a member of the Armstrong clan and so, after the super star’s visit in 1972 to his ancestral hometown of Langholm, she made contact and was surprised to find that he agreed to become honorary president of this jungle adventure! The expedition members consisted mostly of military and scientific types but when Stanley Hall realised the cave entrance was a 130-foot vertical shaft he wisely decided to recruit six cavers, including myself, so that the cave system could be safely and thoroughly explored. After all the book “Gold of the Gods” claimed that “the caves were part of an immense trans-Andean chain extending as far south as Chile and northwards to Columbia and that they contained evidence of previous occupation by an unknown early civilisation.” When we assembled at Heathrow there was much excitement that the cave might yield such treasures that would make Tutankhamen’s artefacts look like something out of Steptoe’s back yard! We flew via Miami and Bogata into Quito. Next day a military coach transported us through the Andes. The following day we flew again this time in a tiny aircraft to a remote military airstrip on the border with Peru. An advance party set off in a couple of boats fitted with powerful engines only to be swept away by the strong currents (almost a case of “last seen drifting down the Amazon”) until finally a helicopter ferried people and equipment in stages to a big campsite alongside of the cave entrance. If you remember the TV series “Mash” then you’ll have a good idea of living conditions at the campsite for the next six weeks. To cut a long and amusing story short, we found the caves were formed naturally and without the help of aliens carrying laser beams although on the plus side many new species of plants and insects were discovered. However, in the last few days we were fortunate to unearth some seashells and fragments of sophisticated pottery that proved to be of great interest to the archaeologists. News of these finds got back to Neil Armstrong who to our amazement flew straight down from Cincinnati, arrived by helicopter and suddenly wanted to go caving! It fell to me as health & safety officer to attach a safety rope around his waist before descending the 130 foot entrance shaft. The picture shows me (sporting a beard) struggling to tie a bowline knot around the astronaut whilst another caver looks on. I was never very confident about tying a safety rope onto another person when the knot is viewed upside-down and my only consolation was the thought that if I got the knot wrong then the Los Tayos Expedition would go down in history as the place where the first man on the Moon met an untimely death! Mercifully the knot held and Neil Armstrong seemed to enjoy being shown around the massive cave passages; in-fact our group were late getting back to the surface. By then the last helicopter had flown back to base so the few of us that remained had no choice but to sit around the campfire until collapsing into our sleeping bags. First, there was a magical interlude when Neil, who was by nature very reserved, glanced up through the trees and commented “the Moon was just like that when we blasted off in 1969….” For several minutes we were spellbound as he recounted highlights of the Apollo 11 mission. Although I didn’t make it onto Neil Armstrong’s Christmas card list (!) that brief period together in the jungle made a lasting impression. I was sad to learn that he died age 82 on 25th August. For verification I can send you articles written in speleological magazines, colour pictures, testimonials of caving friends who met Neil Armstong; as well as a reference to a British TV documentary about the Los Tayos expedition (VHS). RevdArthur (talk) 21:33, 14 October 2012 (UTC)
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