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metro_weird (

metro_weird) wrote,
@ 2015-01-03 15:01:00

This man is the first person to walk the entire length of the River Nile

http://metro.co.uk/2015/01/03/this-man-is-the-first-person-to-walk-the-entire-length-of-the-river-nile-5008189/

http://metro.co.uk/?p=5008189

The 32-year-old, from Staffordshire, journeyed through six east African countries and his astonishing exploits were filmed for a Channel 4 documentary which will be aired tomorrow night. — Levison Wood journeyed through six east African countries (Picture: Facebook/Associated Press)

For most of us, a casual stroll on a lazy afternoon is the extent to which well engage with walking as an activity.

But be prepared to be put to shame by a former Army officer- who has become the first person to walk the entire 4,250 mile length of the River Nile.

Levison Wood, 32, from Staffordshire braved war torn regions, crocodiles and extreme temperatures in his quest to walk the entirety of the worlds longest river.

His journey- which stretched from the rivers source in Rwanda, to the shores of the Mediterranean in Egypt, went through six east African countries and was filmed for a Channel 4 documentary, which will be shown tomorrow night at 9PM.

His journey began in December 2013 and finished in September last year.

Levison Wood completed his epic odyssey in September (Picture: Associated Press)

Despite facing dangerous war zones and encountering tragedy on his journey, he told the Telegraph that he finished his journey feeling extremely hopeful.

He said: People were desperately trying to get themselves out of poverty. I also saw how incredibly hospitable they were to a man walking through Africa.

‘We had this terrible tragedy along the way. It really brought home the reality of the risks involved in undertaking a journey like that.’

A former Army officer and Afghanistan veteran has become the first person to walk the length of the Nile - braving blistering heat, war-torn regions and terrifying encounters with crocodiles on the 4,250 mile journey. Levison Wood's epic nine-month trek took him from the source of the world's longest river in Rwanda to the shores of the Mediterranean in Egypt. The 32-year-old, from Staffordshire, journeyed through six east African countries and his astonishing exploits were filmed for a Channel 4 documentary which will be aired tomorrow night. — Matthew Power, an American travel journalist, died of heat exhaustion after joining the epic trek for a week (Picture: Facebook/ Associated Press)

Matthew Power, an American travel journalist, died of heat exhaustion in Uganda in March, after joining the epic hike for a week.

Despite previously seeing action in Afghanistan, Mr Wood has also spoken of his fear when he was caught in the crossfire of a militia in South Sudan.

He said: It was a pretty hairy moment. Its one thing dealing with that sort of thing when you are in the Army, but another when you are there without back up.

Levison Wood stands at the top of Murchsion Falls. The River Nile squeezes through a gap of six metres and drops forty metres to create one of the most epic sights on the whole course of the river and is called Murchsion Falls, named after the president of the Royal Geographical Society at the time when Samuel Baker first caught sight of the falls. Levison is attempting to be the first person to ever walk the enitre length of the Nile. He is 1500km in of a 6500km total journey and started in Rwanda. He is expecitng to finish in Egypt before December 2014. — Levison Wood stands at the top of Murchison Falls, Uganda. (Picture: Associated Press)

Before reaching the end of his epic odyssey, it had been estimated that Mr Wood- who managed 20 miles every day, had walked 7 million steps.

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