Book description
In April 2008, Ed Stafford began his attempt to become the first man
ever to walk the entire length of the River Amazon. Nearly two and a
half years later, he had crossed the whole of South America to reach
the mouth of the colossal river.
With danger a constant companion - outwitting alligators, jaguars,
pit vipers and electric eels, not to mention overcoming the hurdles of
injuries and relentless tropical storms - Ed's journey demanded
extreme physical and mental strength. Often warned by natives that he
would die, Ed even found himself pursued by machete-wielding tribesmen
and detained for murder.
However, Ed's journey was an adventure with a purpose: to help raise
people's awareness of environmental issues. Ed had unprecedented
access to indigenous communities and witnessed the devastating effects
of the deforestation of the Amazon rainforest first-hand. His story of
disappearing tribes and loss of habitats concerns us all.
Ultimately though, Walking the Amazon is an account of a world-first
expedition that takes readers on the most daring journey along the
world's greatest river and through the most bio-diverse habitat on earth.
Ed Stafford started running expeditions after retiring from the
British Army as a captain in 2002 and has led expeditions all over the
world. Whilst not leading trips, Ed worked alongside the United Nations
in Afghanistan assisting with the running of their first-ever
presidential elections. Prior to this journey Ed was in production with
the BBC on their conservation series
Lost Land of the Jaguar
. In August 2010, Ed became the first man to walk the length of the
River Amazon, accompanied by forestry worker Gadiel 'Cho' Sanchez Rivera
for all but four months of the 28-month journey.
