Two young men who spent eight days stranded in a dense ravine on Mount Popomanaseu in the Solomon Islands have detailed their survival story after being rescued on Tuesday morning, according to accounts from the pair. Keanu Isaksson, 25, and Luca Zylstra-Law, 19, became trapped during an expedition on the country’s highest peak after setting out to find an adventure with a tropical location and little trail. The pair survived by rationing their packed food supply and keeping their minds occupied while facing steep terrain and continuous rain.
How the Expedition Turned Dangerous on Mount Popomanaseu
The journey began smoothly before conditions deteriorated rapidly. According to Isaksson, the trip started out going very well and then most certainly was not. For several days, the pair navigated down a river leading off the summit of the mountain before deciding to set up camp next to a cliff. Zylstra-Law stated that everything seemed fine at first until the rain arrived and changed everything. The men found themselves in a dense cloud forest featuring little solid ground, surrounded by rotten logs, ferns, and moss that caused them to fall through into abysses or slip on moss-clad rocks, which Isaksson described as insanely steep and rather inhospitable. They faced 300-metre walls on each side and a 50-metre waterfall roughly four metres north of their camp, leaving a 3.5-metre by 3.5-metre square camp as their only protection from the rain during the eight days they were stuck.
Survival Tactics and Morale in the Ravine
To survive the ordeal, Isaksson and Zylstra-Law relied on strict rationing of their food supplies, which consisted of dehydrated mashed potatoes, dried meats, noodles, vegetables, and a Whitakers peanut slab every few days, leaving them very hungry due to the uncertainty of how long they would remain trapped. To pass the time and maintain morale, Isaksson noted they were firm believers that busy hands make a happy mind while an idle mind worries. The pair improved their campsite, crafted their own cutlery to bring home, journaled in their diaries, daydreamed about food, and held extensive conversations about family, wants, desires, regrets, improvements for the future, and poems they planned to write. Throughout the ordeal, Isaksson stated that while they never believed they were going to get out, they knew that they were going to get out, noting that if either person quivered in their mind, the other would reassure them.
The Rescue and Future Travel Plans
When the rescue helicopter finally arrived, the pair tried not to get their hopes up, but climbing aboard brought a feeling of relief that Isaksson could not put into words. Isaksson expressed gratitude to the pilot who rescued them, referring to him as big balls Paul because that guy has some balls to do what he did. Despite the harrowing experience, the ordeal has not discouraged their future hopes of embarking on other adventures to locations like the Amazon or Nepal. However, Zylstra-Law and Isaksson plan to make a few changes for their next trip, with Isaksson noting that one thing they have learned is to always pack a deck of cards.
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