A young man is dead, mauled by a polar bear on a rite-of-passage expedition to the remote Norwegian island of Svalbard. His family is in deep mourning at an unthinkable loss. And already the howls of outrage are echoing across the desolate scene of this bleak tragedy.
Horatio Chapple’s father, a leading surgeon, his GP mother and two brothers have paid a touching tribute to the 17-year-old Etonian, who planned to study medicine. He was, they say, with poignant simplicity: “strong, fearless and kind”.
Yet for all their unimaginable grief, it is not they who have been calling for similar extreme expeditions to be banned. The entirely understandable, instinctive reaction of parents is often to immediately demand change, in order to avoid a recurrence of the terrible circumstances that led to their bereavement.
But in this case it has fallen to others to express angry – occasionally intemperate - indignation that such trips can be allowed to take place. Some have even gone so far as to comment that humans have no right to stray into the wilderness and must therefore accept the consequences when they do.
“Horatio’s death is an utterly shocking accident, but it was just that; an accident,” says Ben Fogle, the adventurer, writer and broadcaster, who rowed the Atlantic in 49 days, crossed Antarctica in a foot race to the South Pole and has visited Svalbard twice.
After Fogle posted a message on Twitter expressing his condolences to the family, who live in Wiltshire, he was taken aback by the strength of feeling he encountered among other Tweeters.
“I was amazed by the number who said this sort of expedition shouldn’t have been allowed in the first place for “children”, although it’s debatable whether a 17-year-old can really be called a child,” he says.
“Other people argued that humans have no business entering a wild animal’s habitat and expecting there to be no element of risk.
“But I believe that any real adventure has an element of danger – that’s what makes it thrilling, but also what gives young people the opportunity to grow and mature and respond to challenges.”
For all the creeping modern malaise of cottonwool kids, there is something hard-wired in the British to explore – and conquer – mountains, oceans, poles. From mountaineer Sir Charles Evans to all-round action man Ranulph Fiennes, from Sir Francis Drake to Captain Scott, our national consciousness has long been peopled by old-fashioned heroes. Britannia has ruled much more than the waves, but the summits, ice caps and deserts as well. Would it really be fair to rob our youth of that sense of achievement?
The Norwegian expedition was run by the British Schools Exploring Society (BSES) and there is a bitter irony in the fact that Horatio’s grandfather, Field Marshal Sir John Lyon Chapple, was not only head of the British Army, having served as Chief of the General Staff from 1989 to 1992, but was also president of BSES and went on one of its expeditions in the 1950s. This legacy will, one hopes, offer comfort to Horatio’s family, but their pain can only be guessed at.
The BSES, a registered charity, has close links with the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award scheme (DofE) and both are hugely respected. That a BSES expedition has ended in such catastrophe has sent shockwaves through the sector.
“For expeditions in extreme conditions, expert training, guidance and expedition support is essential,” says Lizzie Bishop of the DofE. “The details of the recent BSES tragedy in Norway are still not clear and all providers of adventurous activity will be awaiting the outcome of their investigation. BSES are experts in this field and their guidance will be valued by other extreme adventure providers.”
More than 850,000 young people take part in DofE programmes across the world. For some teenagers, an expedition in a remote national park offers enough of an odyssey, but others crave more extreme adventures.
“We should continue to stretch the mind, body and soul of our young people through the matchless experience of undertaking an adventurous expedition,” says Bishop.
It’s a sentiment shared by Ian French, who set up the online charity Gapaid to advise parents after his 19-year-old daughter, Georgia, died in a coach crash in the Andes in March 2007. She and four others were killed when the bus veered off the road.
“Georgia was travelling with a group of friends rather than an organised trip, so she was in a very different category to Horatio, but I think that young people need to be educated about travelling abroad and gap year suppliers should be tightly regulated.
“Horatio seemed to be on a very well organised expedition, but being in the wrong place at the wrong time can happen to any of us. Despite Georgia’s death, my wife and I still believe travelling the world is a very good thing. We’re not anti-adventure.”
And adventure is what an increasing number of youngsters crave; an estimated 300,000 go on gap year expeditions annually. When Horatio Chapple and the other 10 young people on the £3,000 BSES trip set up camp on the Von Postbreen glacier near Longyearbyen, all were given training by their two leaders in how to deter polar bears.
Experts recommend a lookout, guard dogs and a warning tripwire system designed to scare off polar bears by setting off flares. But there was no warning before the bear burst into the tent where Horatio and two others were sleeping. It is understood that the rifle intended as a last line of defence didn’t initially fire and it took several attempts to kill the animal.
Investigations will follow, and quite possibly recriminations too; nonetheless those involved in adventure and gap year experiences are adamant that they should – must – continue.
“In Britain we have a long tradition of exploring the world and it would be very sad if we lost this spirit, which gives such a sense of fulfilment,” is the verdict of the intrepid Conservative MP Rory Stewart, whose colourful adventures alongside his military and diplomatic service included trekking 6,000 miles through the remotest rural districts of Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran, India and Nepal.
“Some of the most satisfying, most worthwhile experiences in my life entailed risk.”
Risk, of course, means different things to different people. Travel broadens young minds – as attested by the announcement last week that school leavers can put any gap year experiences towards the Certificate of Personal Effectiveness, a qualification equivalent to an A grade at AS level, which could help them secure a university place
But travel can also expose teenagers to hazards for which they may be unprepared. According to Stuart Rees Jones, founder and CEO of Camps International, parents should vet any organisation they choose to take their teenager overseas.
“The majority of our time is spent on safety; assessing any risks and minimising them,” he says.
Camps International’s global expeditions cost from £1,600 and participants can do anything from rebuilding a school to working on water supplies or setting up micro-finance initiatives to help the women in developing communities earn money.
“Once the risk assessment and risk management processes are in place, I apply my final, ultimate check; would I let my kids aged five and eight climb into that vehicle or enter that environment? If I’m not happy to do that then I shouldn’t be taking anyone else’s children.”
Clearly, there are questions to be asked after this tragic event; but even Ken Hames, who knows just how deadly polar bears can be, believes there is great value in letting young people experience the wild first-hand, as Horatio Chapple did. Ex-SAS officer, survivalist and arctic expert, Hames describes polar bears as “the ultimate killing machine” with a sense of smell 4,000 times more powerful than a humans; if they are known to be in an area then extreme vigilance is necessary, which means an armed guard.
“I’ve been stalked by polar bears for days; they have no fear and will pursue you relentlessly unless you have the means to frighten them away,” says the veteran expedition leader and presenter of the BBC series Beyond Boundaries, in which he takes groups of highly disabled youngsters on ground-breaking expeditions.
“A young person can be swept away in a Yorkshire river or killed by a bear in Norway; it’s about assessing risks and putting in place safeguards. It’s about balance,” he says.
“We shouldn’t ever stop kids going outdoors, because that’s how they gain a respect for the natural environment. If they lost the opportunity to immerse themselves in nature, that would be a monumental tragedy.”