Finding and organising guides/walking companions has proved to be time consuming and expensive. I have lost weeks – months even – over the course of this expedition, finding and waiting for guides, and I have just lost another month of good low-water walking time doing just that. However, the benefits of walking with a local … Read more »
Its dry season here in Amazonas now, the tropical downpours are few and far between, but when they do randomly appear they are spectacular. The flood waters have passed their seasonal height and are now receding. The people who live near the rivers say the fishing is good from September onwards as abundant amounts of … Read more »
The Juruá-Purus forest eco-region lies in the western part of the Brazilian Amazon basin between the Solimões (Amazon) and Purus rivers. This area lies entirely in the lower Amazon basin, and the terrain is mostly uniform, consisting of flat, forested plains dissected by large rivers that are characterised by endless meanders, frequent oxbow lakes and … Read more »
I was sitting in the little Igapo Açu Pousda alone, unable to find anyone who would walk with me, and thinking about attempting a solo crossing. I could see what looked like an indigenous guy sitting at the other side of the room. I went over and asked him if he was from a community … Read more »
It was three days before christmas and the night before my planned big swim across the meeting of the waters when a massive rain storm hit the city of Manaus. It was one of the first really big storms of the wet season, marking a definitive end to the dry season and almost the end … Read more »
The language barrier is still a problem for me, and the dialect seems to change slightly in different areas, but the mist and fog is very slowly evaporating. Little by little I find I can understand more of what people are saying to me and to each other. I managed to get to Manaus port … Read more »
We had just covered more than three hundred kilometres of scorching, winding and at times perilous tracks and roads that cut through the jungle. For most of the way we were dodging trucks, coaches, cars, domestic dogs, dehydration and sunburn. Now, finally, Valdo and I had arrived at the bustling, humid tropical city of Manaus, … Read more »
I could clearly see the sand banks of Jurura that the seasonal low water levels had exposed. The calm dark waters of the Nhamundá river reflected the blisteringly hot sun and deep blue cloudless sky, while in the foreground sprawled the lush greens of the jungle. Several times I had walked to this point contemplating and … Read more »
I had just completed the scary swim across the slow-moving Rio Trombetas and walked onto the gold/white deserted sandy beach With the blisteringly hot sun on our backs we said thanks and goodbye to the boat owner who had accompanied us, put on our enormous backpacks, and happily started to walk inland. The first community … Read more »
It was one of the hottest days of the year in England late August 2015. The fan was spinning full pelt directed at my mother as she lay in her orthopaedic bed. She had been tearful and was uncomfortable in the heat, unable to walk, move much or talk apart from the occasional few words. … Read more »
