Latest Post: Q&A for National Geographic Poland
I have not been able to blog for some time now, so I would like to share a copy of the Q&A I did during lockdown via Garmin Inreach messages earlier this year with Piotr Chmielinski for an article in Nat Geo Poland. Piotr was the first person to complete a full descent of the … Read more »
Marooned In The Amazon
This blog has been painstakingly recreated by a friend from 74 separate satellite text messages. Apologies for the lack of new photos – although I have many, I can only send text. Now, where to start… Well, so much has happened since I last posted that I could probably write five new blogs trying to … Read more »
Billion-Star Accommodation
Every delay in this journey leaves me feeling anxious. I left Requena knowing that I had to reach Pucallpa before the rivers flooded again. I could not have known that the flood would come early, leaving me a long way from Pucallpa and having to go further inland now to avoid the deepest part of … Read more »
Guardians Of The Forest
The crossing Walking (& swimming) from Nauta to Requena had been playing on my mind for months. I just could not see a way across, and even at low water the route seemed impossible. I met Jorge, an out of work maths teacher, when I was in Nauta standing on the bank of the Marañón river … Read more »
Rumble In The Jungle
As Diego and I headed into the low-lying, tangled jungle and said our goodbyes to the people of the tiny community on the Rio Orosa, our packs seemed heavier than ever. We were carrying two weeks of food supplies, and the pack straps were already digging into my shoulders. With the oppressive heat and humidity, … Read more »
Still Waters Run Deep
We were lucky it was raining… It was nearing 3pm, and I was looking for a suitable place to make camp. Diego and I, and Diego’s young son-in-law Liacon, had been walking through the heavy rain for the last few hours. We climbed a steep forested bank, cutting vigorously to reach the top, all the … Read more »
Eyes Of The Jaguar
Diego and I are currently at a large community only a few weeks walk (and swim!) away from the biggest city in the Peruvian Amazon, Iquitos. We have found WiFi in a school that is a mere hour’s boat ride downriver in Yanashi, where I had planned to re-supply food and rest a day or two. Diego … Read more »
Jungle all the way
Apologies for the big gap since my last blog. All the goings-on over the last few months are far too numerous to mention in detail, but here`s a quick overview to give you some idea. The main task was to complete the final leg of the Brazilian Amazon from the large Ticuna community of Feijoal, … Read more »
The Law of the Jungle
After staying two nights at a unique community called Jerusalem, that sits atop a rare hill with wonderful views across the forest canopy and a large lake, and then several days later stumbling across the tiny village Nova Informa do Uruá, we were now supposedly heading for an island community named Tupi, near the Solimoes river. It was … Read more »
Rivers in the Sky
After two unsuccessful starts with different Ticuna guides, I was looking for a third-time-lucky break. I was resigned this time to doing a solo crossing, after having had to turn back twice, the second time being much more of a challenge. It had taken two days and a looong river paddle to get back to … Read more »
To the Brim
After a long stop in Amaturá re-organising, re-routing, having meetings with Ticuna chiefs, finding a Ticuna guide, having to go to another city to get cash and access WiFi, having various encounters with Federal and Military police and sourcing stuff to repair kit etc, including spending days sewing up all the holes in my mosquito net, here’s … Read more »