With over 20 years of residence in Hua Hin, Howard certainly qualifies as one of the expat “old guard” in our town. The fact that, over this period, he has supervised his Thai wives, of which he has had two, serially of course, in the food and beverage sector, gained Howard a large group of acquaintances, many of whom became friends. Howard’s final endeavour in the sector, a bar called Blue Ice, suffered its demise during the Covid era, seeing Howard and his wife bow out of hospitality completely. In total, Howard has had involvement in five restaurants and bars, in diverse locations; from Poon Suk Road close to the nightlife district of Soi Bintabaht, to Khao Takiab, Soi 112 and even Soi 55. The first venture, Robin Hood restaurant, involved turning a small, rodent infested takeaway into a clean, modern open-air venue designed with comfortable seating and an arched roof to keep out the worst of the elements and attract Western customers. Robin was the name of Howard’s first Thai son, and the name Robin Hood was to signify the English connection. Howard’s wife sold the restaurant when the local temple petitioned local authorities to stop the sale of alcohol close to the temple. Howard’s marriage eventually ended after the couple’s third restaurant venture. Howard’s wife was addicted to gambling and the pair lost everything: home, car and eventually their relationship, as a result. Howard, ceded custody of Robin by a mother who saw him as a burden, was forced to start again from scratch.

Howard was born in Leeds, England, the eldest of three children with two sisters, 2 and a half and 12 years younger than himself. Howard’s father was in the army during WW11 and then continued working for the Ministry of Defence, but wielding a paintbrush rather than a rifle. His military service, however, impacted his home life as he carried a love of correctness and precision which he passed to his son. Howard is meticulous, punctual and reliable, traits that have stood him in good stead throughout his career, particularly the periods of time he has spent in treacherous and inhospitable places. Howard’s mother had a more nurturing and less regimented approach to parenting.  By profession, she was a nurse and from her Howard learnt about how to care for others, in sickness and health, and how to ensure his own ongoing health. He recalls being an “outdoorsy” kid from a young age, inseparable from the family’s Alsatian and a keen participant in the hiking and camping the family undertook. Howard enjoyed travelling in their old car, tents secured in the racks on the roof, to destinations all over Europe. By the age of 14, already a seasoned camper, Howard was allowed to undertake his own camping adventures in England.

As he moved into adulthood, this love of the natural environment drew Howard to mountaineering. Howard has scaled Mount Aconcagua, the highest mountain outside the Himalayas. Situated the Andes, in Argentina, its peak lies 6,961 metres above sea-level, considerably higher than England’s tallest peak, Scafell Pike, a mere 978 metres.  What Howard has done, however, is climb the tallest peaks in England, Scotland and Wales, all within a 24-hour period, a feat of which he is proud, especially as it was a charity climb. This was just one of many altruistic activities Howard has undertaken. Another significant one was cycling across Madagascar in support of people with leprosy. Howard also worked in a voluntary capacity, over six years, in mountain rescue. In those days, this involved carrying a pager, and responding as part of a team of four, when called to emergency situations, often as people were caving or potholing. As someone with considerable expertise, Howard took a particular interest in the successful, multinational cave rescue that saved 13 lives in Chiang Rai in July 2018.

Click through the image carousel to view some of Harold's exploits

As a child, Howard had a happy home life, despite the high expectations of his father, who demanded Howard excel at school, particularly in arithmetic and English. Despite enjoying school, being well-behaved and being academically near that top of the class, Howard choose to leave school early. At the age of only 15 years and a week, Howard embarked on a five-year apprenticeship as a gas-fitter. He quickly became one of the most sought-after apprentices, which suited Howard as he was keen to learn skills from a broad range of different tradesmen. With dedication as well as aptitude, Howard completed his apprenticeship in record time, becoming a qualified tradesman before his 18th birthday.

Howard’s desire for adventure led him to arguably the most inhospitable place on earth, Antarctica. 

Between 1989 and 1995, Howard lived, on and off, at bases in the Antarctic, run by BAS, the British Antarctic Survey, which controls a sliver of the coldest continent on earth. Howard was a prime candidate for the job as he had developed technical skills across a variety of fields in engineering, including electric work, and in addition had taken some courses in psychology. 

Howard’s job as general technican saw him complete a wide range of tasks, all aimed at ensuring the safety of all personnel on the bases. Howard was even involved in pioneering work to ascertain if solar panels would even function in such a challenging environment. In all, Howard completed five summers – if you can call them that- and two winters on the frozen continent, where it is too cold for it to ever rain or snow. Summer temperatures range from a “balmy” -15° to -20°, with winters ranging from - 55° to -65°. 

In these conditions, even getting dressed for an outdoor excursion is a chore. If you are really careful and the temperatures or accidents don’t kill you, you also need to have the mental strength to deal with the absolute isolation of living with a small team, separated from the rest of the world. In effect, in Antarctica, you may as well be on the moon. 

Although the situation has improved somewhat in recent times due to technological innovation in communications, wintering teams must be self-reliant and self-sufficient as there is no outside help coming in any emergency situation. Howard is proud that his technical efforts and expertise contributed to there being no deaths on the continent during his times there. He is one of only two men during the time who was allowed to complete two back-to-back contracts, a total of 30 months in one stint, a testament to his balanced nature and mental fortitude. Howard will admit though, that he is not always even-tempered. It takes a lot to push him to the edge, but a shove over the line can spark an explosive reaction, particularly if Howard is feeling cornered.

Click through the image carousel to see Howard getting dressed in Antarctica.

Howard responded to an innocuous-looking job advertisement in one of the national newspapers for individuals passionate about stopping ivory poaching in Africa. Howard became part of a team of 4 foreign nationals, accompanied by two local guides, tasked with deterring, or if needs be, eliminating ivory poachers. Howard described the team’s approach as merciless, so Howard’s familiarity with weaponry likely came into play. Sometimes poachers got a taste of their own medicine, marooned and left for predators in Tanzania’s game reserves to clean up. Howard openly admits that people can sometimes do bad things, for all the right reasons. There are always shades of grey, especially with elephants.

Rather than learning new things at this point in his life, Howard is focused on retaining the knowledge and skills he currently has. To this end, Howard has made a great start on his memoirs, handwritten in 3 separate books each covering two decades starting from his birth, since he has limited facility with modern technology and spurns Facebook and other social media as a waste of time. Howard is much more comfortable with a spot of gardening and a dose of fresh air if he has a spare hour or two. 

He acknowledges that parenting a child in his 70s is one of the most challenging jobs he has ever undertaken, despite the great rewards, amongst them listening to Swan’s happy singing. With a youngster to raise and educate, Howard has even more reason to prioritise his physical well-being. While his favourite places in the world remain the Lakes District and the Scottish Highlands, Krabi and here in Hua Hin are not far behind. Hua Hin is Howard’s happy medium, relatively dry for Thailand, and without temperature extremes. Howard is proud to have lived his life with honesty and trustworthiness, and now hopes for peace and an end to wars so Swan inherits a world worth living in, a universal hope for all parents, regardless of their nationality or age.