Bob's Blog

Canoeing the Amazon

Embrace of the Serpent

22nd June 2016

To become a warrior, he must abandon all and go alone to the jungle, guided only by his dreams. In this journey, he has to find out, in solitude and silence, who he really is. He must become a wanderer dream. Many are lost, and some never return. But those who return they are ready to face what is to come.
—Karamakate, The Embrace of the Serpent

The inclination of the desire to row the Amazon began way back in early 2010, past the valley of the Kings, in Aswan, Egypt, where I met two South Africans, Davey and Ricky, who were cycling the length of the continent. The Arab spring was in full force, Mubarak had finally been ousted from his seat and I was in possession of a Sudanese visa, heading for the deep south into the endless desert. It was during our ride through the Sudanese Sahara that myself and Davey chatted endlessly of potential future adventures, but there was only one which really captured the imagination - canoeng the length of the Amazon river.

Davey went on to attempt source-to-sea of the Amazon and after climbing the mountain at the source, starting the rapids in rubber ring, and then into his canoe for the remainder. After several weeks paddling he was under taken by two locals in a dugout canoe, who then waited for him to pass. In range, the locals started shooting at Davey, he was hit several times and crashed out of his canoe. He managed to get to shore where he crawled into the jungle. From there he managed to get to a village, who passed him onto the next and eventually a hospital.

My plan was slightly less ambitious, I intended to canoe the length of the Brazilian Amazon, 3000km from Leticia on the border with Brazil, all the way to the Atlantic. I knew the dangers of the Amazon, and was well aware of what could happen. Often, when cycling, people warn of dangers ahead, but it is usually because they are scared of what they don't know. It's the verbal equivalent of the Daily Mail.

As a duty, I asked Davey about the dangers and his reply was that it was the kind of thing that could happen anywhere, just a bad chance encounter - he is from South Africa don't forget! I also read many blogs of other people's attempts, but I was rather like the three wise monkeys; when people started emphasising the danger, I closed my eyes, put my fingers in my ears and said nothing. I was going ahead with this trip come what may.

After arriving in Leticia, the Colombian gateway to the Amazon, I stayed with Angela, the director of Entropica. Entropica is a conservation NGO which aims to protect tropical diversity, whilst also investing in many community projects with the local indigenous population. Angela had long worked with the conservation of night monkeys, Amazonia's only nocturnal primates. The monkeys were traditionally captured and eaten by local communities, these monkeys are also sold to the pet trade, something which her organisation aimed to prevent.

She had an amazing history and before taking her PhD in Oxford, she lived deep in the Colombian jungle for two years working with night monkeys. The operation was started by two Americans and was 6 hour boat ride from the nearest town. The American couple were chased out by FARC, they upped and left one day in fear for their lives. Angela took over the project and lived there on her own, with barely any outside contact. She encountered FARC who, despite her Colombian nationality were far from happy with her presence, she lived there in defiance, putting her life on the line for almost two years. Quite an incredible story, and a modern day Diane Fossy.

My time in Leticia was spent looking for a suitable canoe. Unlike in the Congo, where I bought a dugout canoe - literally dugout from a huge log, the canoes in Leticia were built from several wooden planks. I fortunately had the help of a friend, David, who ran a local hostel - my limited Spanish could only get me so far, so I was very grateful for his help. We hunted far and wide but the canoes were either too small and unstable, or too big and unwieldy, designed for motorised use. Eventually we found a man would said he could build one suitable for its purpose - it needed higher sides, for protection against the waves, a wide base for stability and a platform for sleeping. It took a while, but with daily visits to the crafter, making sure progress was being made, I was very happy with the results, this canoe was fit for the trip to the Atlantic!

One day, when I was out with the canoe builder hunting for wood to build up the canoe, I met Torben, from Germany.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" I shouted across the water. "Looking for wood for a canoe... I'm canoeing to Manaus!" Torben said with excited pride. "No way, me too!" I shouted in surprise.

And from that brief encounter, our trips merged into one. We were both apprehensive about the path ahead, so it made perfect sense for us to join up. We spent the next days finalising plans, finishing the adaptations to my canoe, buying Torben's canoe and looking at the logistics of the trip.

One big issue that cropped up was the Brazilian federal police. In Peru and Colombia, anybody could just jump in a canoe and paddle where they liked. In Brazil, the police demanded a huge list of requirements to be allowed on the river. This included, things like RF radios, satellite phones, a guide and many other requirements. We visited the police station just across the border, in Tabatinga, to talk to the police to see how flexible these demands were. Not at all, as it turned out. Neither of us had the inclination, cash or means to get any of these items. We'd just have to roll past, and avoid the feds along the river at all costs. It seemed that out of all the dangers to the completion of the trip, red tape and the feds would be the biggest.

So then, we were ready. David, helped us on our way, I loaded up my canoe and slowly, with the canoe still rather unstable, paddled away from Leticia, on my way to Tabatinga to meet Torben where his canoe was waiting. And off we went, the serpent taking us in its hold, what it had it store we were not to know, we were now at its mercy. We spoke of the known unknowns, those we could deal with, but it was the unknown unknowns, that made us both nervous and excited for the path ahead. Whether we were to become warriors, in our hearts and in our minds, only the river knew.