73 Riding the Desert Camel

Mention camel, and we quickly think of the desert—usually the Sahara Desert of North Africa. But did you know that the camel was native first to North America? This was 40,000,000 years ago. The camel probably got to Africa by migrating to South America. This was a large land mass that broke in two. The eastern part we now call Africa. The journey took millions of years.

Camels stand six to seven feet tall and weigh up to 1,600 pounds. They have long, strong legs and powerful muscles. A camel can carry as much as a thousand pounds for a short distance. But for long distances, its typical load is about 400 pounds.

When a camel walks or runs, both legs on one side of its body move forward at the same time. Then the legs on the other side swing forward. This leg action makes for a swaying, rocking motion. Some riders get “seasick.” This may be part of the reason that camels are sometimes called “ships of the desert.”

A camel’s back is broad. It is too broad to let both of the rider’s feet hang down. There is no use for stirrups. Well, then, how do you ride a camel? Camel drivers teach you to wrap one leg around the saddle horn. Then tuck the foot beneath the other leg. Let this leg just dangle. Or you can wrap both legs around the horn and sit cross-legged.

As for your hands, you can hold the reins gently. But if the going gets rough, you can clutch the saddle horn in desperation. Once you get used to the camel’s constant rocking gait, though, you can almost be lulled to sleep.

73 骑沙漠骆驼

一提到骆驼，我们很快就会想到沙漠——通常是北非的撒哈拉沙漠。但你知道骆驼最初是原产于北美洲的吗？那是在4000万年前。骆驼可能是通过迁徙到南美洲，然后到达非洲的。这是一块巨大的陆地，后来分裂成了两部分，我们现在称之为非洲的是东边的那部分。这个迁徙过程花了数百万年。

骆驼身高6到7英尺，体重可达1600磅。它们有着长长的、强壮的腿和有力的肌肉。骆驼短距离可以承载多达1000磅的重量，但长距离的话，它的典型负载约为400磅。

当骆驼行走或奔跑时，身体一侧的两条腿会同时向前移动，然后另一侧的腿向前摆动。这种腿部动作产生了摇摆、晃动的运动，有些骑手会感到“晕船”，这可能就是骆驼有时被称为“沙漠之舟”的部分原因。

骆驼的背部很宽，宽到无法让骑手的双脚都垂下来，所以马镫派不上用场。那么，你该怎么骑骆驼呢？骆驼夫会教你把一条腿绕在鞍角上，然后把脚塞到另一条腿下面，让这条腿就这么晃着；或者你可以把两条腿都绕在鞍角上，盘腿而坐。

至于你的手，你可以轻轻握住缰绳，但如果路况变糟，你可以在情急之下紧紧抓住鞍角。不过，一旦你习惯了骆驼持续的摇摆步态，你几乎会被哄得睡着。