Walking the Nile is perilous, singular adventure
L evison Wood makes Bear Grylls look like a wuss.
Well, that’s unfair. I’m sure that Grylls could walk the length of the Nile if he had the time. He’s just too busy these days with his survivalist gear empire.
Don’t get me wrong. I love Grylls and never missed an episode of Man vs. Wild while it was on. I even bought his Ultimate Pro fixed blade survival knife. I’m now ready for the zombie apocalypse.
Grylls’ survival knife would come in handy for Wood. I’m betting he used something like it on his odyssey we’ll witness on
Walking the Nile. The three-hour adventure special airs at 7 p.m. Wednesday on Animal Planet.
The title just about sums it up. The former British Army paratrooper hikes the entire 4,250-mile length of the river from its source to the Mediterranean Sea. It took him nine months and more than 7 million steps.
No one has ever completed the length of the Nile on foot.
Just how far is 4,250 miles? To put it in perspective, that would be like walking from Fayetteville through Denver to Seattle — and back.
To accomplish the feat, the British explorer and author stepped off on Dec. 13, 2013, from the Nile’s source in the Nyungwe forest in Rwanda and trekked through jungles, savanna, deserts, cities and war zones in some of Africa’s most remote and spectacular locations.
Along the way, Wood encountered modern Africa, its people and its wildlife face to face.
“I saw shocking sights and incredible animals,” Wood says on his website. “I shared laughter and tears. I felt fear, anger, excitement and joy.”
The river pushes Wood to the edge of his mental and physical limits as he is forced to live off his wits and bushcraft skills in 120-degree weather.
Wood had close encounters with crocodiles, hippos, roadside robbers and local gangs. He got caught up in the civil war in South Sudan, was tailed frequently by local law enforcement and experienced the sudden death from heat stroke of friend and journalist Matt Power, who had joined him along the way.
Heads up, Bear: A film crew followed Wood for only part of the expedition. He filmed most of it himself and had only two guides, each for just a portion of his walk.
Why the Nile? The 32-yearold Wood has long had a passion for Africa, and the Nile is the world’s longest river. There are those who would argue the Amazon is longer if you tack on this headwater and that estuary, but for our purposes, it’s a close No. 2 at 3,976 miles.
More perspective: It’s 3,902 miles if you go up the Mississippi River to the Missouri, then head all the way up that river to the headwaters of the Jefferson River in Montana. If you just count the Mississippi River from Lake Itasca in Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico, it’s only 2,320 miles.
The Nile is the life source for six African countries — Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, South Sudan, Republic of Sudan and Egypt. The Nile also is known as the cradle of civilization. The first cities were developed on its shores.
Animal Planet reminds us, “The Nile snakes its way through a region that’s full of duality: It’s both peaceful and dangerous; it is a source of life and cause of death; it’s remote and urban; and it’s the epicenter for a diverse mix of religions and cultures, both modern and primitive.
“Every day of the journey, Wood faces physical and mental struggles, which could ultimately derail him in achieving his goal. Perhaps for him, the tallest hurdle is confronting his psychological resolve — resetting his intention to carry on despite all the predictable and unpredictable challenges that lay ahead.
“Fortunately, disaster gives way to unique, wondrous moments. Wood crosses through a world of incomparable beauty seemingly as infinite as the Nile itself.”
Note: Walking the Nile is rated TV-PG. Some parts may be too intense for the small fry.