Bill Arras ( aka Goldbaloon) is an adventurer extrordinaire and a silent member of the Goldtent .. Rambus Community

We last heard from him as he was preparing to take a hike through Northern Afghanistan.

I noticed he logged in from a remote location in Tajikistan.

Here is his Story

Ambushed by the Taliban

Grateful Greetings from the Aga Khan Medical Centre!

For the past month I have been hiking in the Wakhan Corridor of Afghanistan. The way people live there, it was like taking a huge step back in time, like no where else I’ve ever been. The landscape is also amazing and remote- in over three weeks of hiking in some of the most striking places on the planet, I never saw another foreign visitor, only locals in isolated villages.

On my second to last planned day of hiking in Afghanistan, I was high in the mountains, about a half hour from the Pakistan border. My plan was to briefly cross illegally into Pakistan, maybe soak in a hot spring that’s not so far across the border, then return to Afghanistan and begin the journey back to Tajikistan. With me was a young man and his donkey, which carried our gear. We had already hiked a few hundred miles together. It’s great to hike long distances in rugged terrain with only a day-pack.

Then it happened: while attempting to jump across a stream, I was ambushed by the Taliban. Allow me to explain what happened.

During our few weeks of travels together, my donkey man and I had crossed literally hundreds of streams and rivers. There was water gushing from the mountains everywhere. Some of the rivers were scary because of the depth and force of the flow. Also, the icy cold waters numb the bare feet, making it difficult -and painful- to feel solid footing. Whenever possible, we jumped across the narrow waterways, or from rock to rock in the wider streams.

At the particular stream near the Pakistan border, it was an ambitious distance to leap and maybe I was a bit too complacent, but instead of taking my shoes off I attempted to make the leap anyway. As soon as I was committed, I knew I wasn’t going to make it, but wasn’t concerned. A wet foot was no big deal and it wouldn’t be the first time. What I hadn’t accounted for was the slipping of my right foot as it landed on an unstable rock in the water. The bottom line is instead of my upper body moving forward to dry ground as planned, my foot slipped, knee bent, upper body went down against the now fully bent leg and Bam! It felt like my leg had been shot and the knee exploded.

Flat on my back in the water, donkey man quickly yanked me onto dry ground, saving not just me but also my cell phone and camera from being ruined in the water. Something was obviously wrong with my knee, but it was not clear what. Nothing appeared to be broken, but bones were definitely out of place. I made the mistake of trying to stand up and immediately crumpled to the ground in pain. I didn’t do that again.

Now we had to figure out what to do, since there was no possibility of my walking. It just so happened that donkey man’s wife came from a tiny village a stone’s throw from where I lay. While I improvised a leg splint using a blanket and my walking poles, he went for help. In less than 10 minutes, he returned with friends, a horse and lunch!

The rescue took two days on horseback, followed by a day and a half in a beat up 4×4 with no shock absorbers on the most rugged of marginally drive-able roads (ouch! on every one of the thousands of jarring bumps), then another few hours on a somewhat normal rugged road to the hospital in Khorog, Tajikistan, where I have taken up temporary residency.

The four hour surgery on Friday was successful to rejoin the severed patella tendon and severed middle collateral tendon, as well as repair the raggedly ruptured joint capsule. My leg is now immobilized in a classy splint, but I can use a wheeled walker for exercise and to get the blood flowing to promote healing. If everything heals as expected, physical therapy (PT) will begin in two weeks. Depending on what the doctor approves, at some point I will be released to continue with gentle travels and eventually make my way back to the US, continuing with a PT regimen on my own until back in the US.

For a number of reasons I chose to have the surgery and initial recuperation here at the Aga Khan Medical Centre, instead of returning to the US or going to some other closer place for what might well be considered top medical care, such as Dubai. One reason is it literally takes days to get from here to the US, which would have prolonged further the time between injury and treatment, not a good thing.

The main reason I chose to get treatment here is because it’s an excellent brand new modern facility with a wonderful and skilled staff. I felt good about having the surgery here and am glad I made that decision.

While recuperating, I will at least be able to start catching up on dealing with the mountain of photos taken during my travels up to now. Another side benefit to receiving care here is the possibility of my resuming my travels instead of returning directly to the US, even if any such travels will be in a somewhat limited manner.

What about my being ‘ambushed by the Taliban’? I asked my donkey man if the stream had a name and was told there were too many waterways to give a name to each one. So I took it upon myself to give a name to the stream that caught me by surprise. I named it ‘The Taliban’. So, that’s how I was ambushed by the Taliban and lived to tell the story.

There are a few more photos at this link: https://balloonbill.smugmug.com/Other/Ambushed-By-The-Taliban-August-2019/

In spite of what happened, I feel very fortunate. All things considered, including the heightened level of risk of hiking in rugged, remote places with no outside communication (and definitely no chance of helicopter rescue), things could have been much, much worse. I might not be around to tell any story. Here I am in very good hands, being well taken care of. I am infinitely thankful, happy to be so very much alive. In a strange way, the injury helps make me feel more alive than ever, increasing my appreciation for this thing called life.

Wishing you the best of outcomes in all your adventures!

Bill