by ROSS MCGUINNESS - Sunday, July 27, 2008
The travels of Indiana Jones were gruelling but at least he had the odd car chase or plane ride to cover some of the distance.



Charles Montier: heading into the jungle
For British adventurer Charles Montier, life will be much harder as he seeks to become the first person to navigate Guyana's Essequibo river without motorised transport.

He will have only a canoe to negotiate 1,200km (745 miles) of rapids and dangerous creatures such as jaguars and anacondas.

'There are stories that hornets there have a sting so powerful it knocks you over with the pain,' said the 22-year-old. To eat, he will rely on his own skills and those of two guides from the South American Wai Wai tribe. But the challenge is more than physical.

'The isolation will be difficult, there will be one month when we won't even see small villages,' he added.

Mr Montier, from Kensington, west London, will begin the three-month trip next year. He plans to film it to raise awareness for Conservation International, a non-profit organisation that protects the Wai Wai's way of life.

http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.html?in_article_id=...e_id=34&in_a_source=

quote:

'There are stories that hornets there have a sting so powerful it knocks you over with the pain,' said the 22-year-old.

Poor guy never saw a marabunter yet, they would be 3 times the size of a wasp he sees in the UK. I hope he doesn't run into Fineman along the way.

quote:

He will have only a canoe to negotiate 1,200km (745 miles) of rapids

i hope he knows wuts in stored feh him, dat river is ruff like rant as yuh go past Bartica

Learning the law of the jungle
By CHARLES MONTIER - Friday, July 25, 2008

The fishing line yanks and, at once, I'm in a battle with one of the river's hidden predators. The line cuts into my fingers as I try to pull the writhing monster to the surface. My growing excitement at the prospect of catching supper is quickly replaced by panic when I finally see my prey thrashing around at the surface of the murky Amazonian water, here deep in the Guyanian rainforest.

A set of razor-sharp teeth snap away at the 15cm metal hook which has secured the much-feared black piranha to the end of my line. I feel my left hand desperately searching around our dugout for my machete, while my Amerindian guides encourage me to give the frantic creature a deadly blow to the back of its head.

Finding nothing but my empty scabbard, they tell me to wrench the fish out of the water and have it fall between my legs, where they'll finish it off. My mind flashes back to stories of piranhas bouncing around the inside of dugouts, attacking everything they can, even biting off toes.

Making a killing

Realising I'm in no hurry to share a canoe with this fierce carnivore and I'm losing the fight, the eldest guide, Harold, calmly raises his bow and lets off an arrow, piercing the shiny scales on the piranha's side, allowing me to pull it in and place it at the bottom of our dugout with the rest of our day's catch.

As we set off downstream, macaws squawking as they fly over us, I look down at the black shape of the piranha and, despite it not moving around, I keep my feet well away on top of one of our dry bags.

So yes, I'm a cruel bastard and a fish killer. But here in the rainforest, it's a case of survival of the ttest and that's exactly the point of my being here: to do survival training. Now, there are survival courses you can do all over the world but, short of being a marine commando, I can't think of a tougher one than this.

Run by Ian Craddock – a former British special forces of cer – the 16-day course sees attendees thrown into the jungle to fend for themselves.

Training starts with a day's paddle in dugout canoes before you learn the skills to find water, make shelter, light a fire and – crucially – procure food. It ends with three days on your own in the jungle where you have to do everything yourself with no more than a belt kit and the clothes you wear.

And if you're wondering why I'm putting myself through all this, it's because I have decided to attempt the first non-motorised descent of the 1,200km Essequibo River, Guyana, in December. It's a trip that will take around four months and, hopefully, raise money for Conservation International's work with the Wai Wai, Guyana's most isolated tribe, who still live a traditional hunter-gatherer lifestyle.

Which is why, now out on my own for three days, a loud crack coming from the canopy 100ft up causes me to shift nervously. The jungle goes silent in expectation and my mind desperately tries to picture the scene in the blackness of the night.

Then it happens: a massive thunderous noise as one of the large decaying branches finally gives in to gravity and comes crashing to the forest floor.

With 80 per cent of fatalities here caused by deadfall, I pray that I chose a safe spot to build my shelter. A few moments later and the rainforest is alive with sound again but I feel an overwhelming sense of loneliness.

Going solo

It's the last night of my threeday isolation test and I'm desperate to rejoin the guides in their camp downstream, where they have the 'luxuries' of hammocks and torches. A powerful roaring sound makes my heart jump but I quickly recognise the now familiar call of howler monkeys, the world's loudest land animal.

Dawn eventually arrives, bringing some peace to my mind and golden illumination to the forest canopy. Since being taught to fish three days ago, heavy rains have made a catch almost impossible so I've gone without food. As I spot the guides paddling up the river towards me, I can only hope that they had better luck.

Charles flew to Barbados with Virgin Atlantic and took an onward fl ight to Georgetown, Guyana, with Caribbean Airlines. Returns from London Heathrow start from £600.

Bushmasters (www.bush masters.co.uk) survival courses cost from £1,000. For more on Conservation International, visit www.conservation.org.
To sponsor Charles, e-mail charlesmontier@hotmail.com

http://www.metro.co.uk/travel/article.html?in_article_id=235488&in_page_id=5

This should be alot of fun. There is a great deal of literature on the Wai Wai and Macusi in that part of the world.