Blogs sponsored by Piotr Chmielinski Canoandes.org 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 … Read more »
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 »
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 »
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 »
We must have looked a sight as we stumbled out of the jungle with our huge packs, our torn and filthy clothes hanging loosely from our emaciated forms. Everyone stared at us as we walked through the city in the afternoon heat to find accommodation, and it was no surprise to me when the police … Read more »
It would have been much quicker walking along the exposed banks of the Solimões (Amazon) river, but the risk of encountering river pirates was very high – so for this latest section, Coari to Tefé, we would just have to grit our teeth, sharpen our machetes, and cut our own path through the longer and … Read more »
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 »
