Walking the Nile

Product Information

The legacy of those awful times still persists so it is only correct to respect the wishes of the local people to make certain we do not wander into ‘the killing fields’ that surround most villages. Guarding against the perils of nature is an inherent part of any trek throughout Africa, but with the added risk of being shot at or worse, makes lighting a fire and camping at night in the bush seem doubly dangerous. A vast natural region, which can expand to the size of England if the seasonal rains due in May come earlier than expected.

With the problems of South Sudan now well behind him, Captain Levison Wood, aged 32 of Cheadle Road, Forsbrook, is back on track to complete his 4250 mile epic journey to walk the length of the River Nile in Africa.

Checking my rapidly wearing footwear for stinging hitchhikers is becoming a frequent morning routine. Obliterating any visible man made track way, we are forced to follow the winding, dusty red dirt road that runs parallel to the river. The country is the newest political entity in the world, having only come into being in July 2011, when it gained independence from its northern counterpart.

Although the course of action he took is not the one he would have chosen for baby Samuel, at least he will have a chance for long term survival and in the fullness of time be able to join an adult troop and be released back into the wild. The babies in particular begin interacting from a very young age and develop strong social bonds which are known to last for life. Crocodiles, land mines, malaria and rebel militants are just a few of the dangerous obstacles Captain Levison Wood, (pictured inset), aged 31, of Forsbrook will have to overcome as he attempts to become the first ever recorded person to walk the entire length of the River Nile in Africa over the next 12 months. Day 143-147 – “The difference between South Sudan and its northern neighbour – and former master – the Sudan couldn’t be more striking. Tonight as usual, Moez and I are camped out under the stars, but this particular evening we have found a bed in the forecourt of a petrol station.Before we knew it we were surrounded by an entire family of at least fifteen gorillas all sitting and munching on leaves.

Within the next ten years the entire wild herd of elephants across the African continent will no longer exist if the amount of poached ivory being exported to the Far East is allowed to continue. Following the recent, sad and tragic death of American travel journalist Matthew Power who was reporting upon Captain Levison Wood’s attempt to become the first person to walk the River Nile in Africa, the news released from the expedition has been respectfully muted.Having endured being robbed and hunted by poachers, suffered near starvation and the tragic sadness of a colleagues death, South Sudan will without doubt pose even greater problems for him to overcome in the coming weeks. Leaving Juba the capital city of South Sudan on his journey along the river Nile, Captain Levison Wood, aged 31, of Cheadle Road in Forbrook is attempting to become the first recorded person ever to walk the entire 4,250 miles from its source in Rwanda to the Mediterranean Sea in Egypt. This is probably the wildest adventure of the expedition yet and there’s another week of this to go.

Having been extremely gentle with Kej and Azamak over the last two days, they have repaid our misplaced kindness by doing a runner when we were just about to start the next leg of our journey.Although I was feeling very frustrated and angered by the enforced extra distance, this was tempered by the emotion of sheer joy when I discovered the blissful opportunity to soak my feet and sip a cold beer. Still the whole incident was made very real when we came across a butchered carcass of an adult male elephant whose tusks had been hacked from its lifeless body lying just metres from the roadside. The explorer then tackles his toughest physical challenge - crossing the Bayuda volcanic field - where temperatures can reach 55C. Visitors flock to see the ‘Source of the White Nile’ and also to get stuck in to some white water rafting on the famous rapids.