1 00:00:00,967 --> 00:00:02,100 I am Bear Grylls. 2 00:00:02,600 --> 00:00:04,700 I've served with the British Special Forces, 3 00:00:04,934 --> 00:00:06,600 climbed to the summit of Mount Everest, 4 00:00:06,634 --> 00:00:09,300 and crossed the frozen oceans of the Arctic. 5 00:00:09,800 --> 00:00:11,500 Now, I am in Ecuador, 6 00:00:11,967 --> 00:00:14,667 a country of extreme jungle and mountains. 7 00:00:17,233 --> 00:00:21,100 Every year, hundreds have to be rescued from its harsh landscape. 8 00:00:21,433 --> 00:00:24,700 I am going to show the skills needed to survive here. 9 00:00:30,700 --> 00:00:31,500 Ecuador, 10 00:00:31,767 --> 00:00:33,367 a country the size of Nevada, 11 00:00:33,667 --> 00:00:36,100 is home to the world's longest mountain range, 12 00:00:36,266 --> 00:00:39,433 and the world's biggest and most impenetrable jungle, 13 00:00:39,600 --> 00:00:40,533 the Amazon. 14 00:00:40,834 --> 00:00:42,433 Last year, over a million people 15 00:00:42,467 --> 00:00:44,634 came to experience this vast wilderness, 16 00:00:44,934 --> 00:00:47,333 where time has stood still for millennia. 17 00:00:47,600 --> 00:00:50,500 Many still get lost in the mountains and jungles, 18 00:00:50,533 --> 00:00:51,834 needing to be rescued. 19 00:00:52,166 --> 00:00:54,333 I am going to paraglide into this wilderness 20 00:00:54,467 --> 00:00:56,834 and I am going to need all my skills to survive. 21 00:00:57,100 --> 00:00:59,934 All I have is a water bottle, a knife and a flint. 22 00:01:00,233 --> 00:01:02,533 A camera crew will follow my journey. 23 00:01:02,934 --> 00:01:05,700 I am 13,000 feet up in the Andes 24 00:01:05,967 --> 00:01:07,634 and it is just beautiful. 25 00:01:07,667 --> 00:01:10,700 I am surrounded by some of the most spectacular mountains 26 00:01:10,734 --> 00:01:11,300 in the world. 27 00:01:11,900 --> 00:01:15,133 But it is cold up here, just a few degrees above freezing, 28 00:01:15,266 --> 00:01:16,133 and the air is thin, 29 00:01:16,367 --> 00:01:19,567 which means flying helicopters up here is dangerous. 30 00:01:19,667 --> 00:01:23,133 So the way, I'm going in, is by paraglider. 31 00:01:24,467 --> 00:01:24,834 Here goes. 32 00:01:25,734 --> 00:01:28,934 Using the rising air currents, I am going to fly over the Andes, 33 00:01:29,133 --> 00:01:31,000 in the hope of landing somewhere close 34 00:01:31,033 --> 00:01:32,133 to the Amazon jungle. 35 00:01:32,166 --> 00:01:33,700 (SCREAMING) 36 00:01:37,100 --> 00:01:39,066 The Andes are just immense, 37 00:01:39,100 --> 00:01:42,767 stretching over four and a half thousand miles from north to south. 38 00:01:43,333 --> 00:01:47,166 It has some of the world's highest and most active volcanoes here. 39 00:01:51,700 --> 00:01:55,266 These changing air currents are taking me down over the paramo, 40 00:01:55,533 --> 00:01:58,767 high altitude marshes that cover most of this area. 41 00:01:59,066 --> 00:02:00,734 Not a place I want to be. 42 00:02:01,000 --> 00:02:03,500 Whoa, this is going to be fast coming in. 43 00:02:08,834 --> 00:02:10,066 Look at that, if you can see, 44 00:02:10,300 --> 00:02:14,066 this is just like waist-deep horrible stuff. 45 00:02:14,533 --> 00:02:15,400 But it is cold up here 46 00:02:15,700 --> 00:02:19,333 and I need to get out of this bog as quickly as possible. 47 00:02:21,400 --> 00:02:24,634 It is thick, horrible sludge. 48 00:02:26,867 --> 00:02:28,500 This is not a good start. 49 00:02:29,734 --> 00:02:31,800 I am still roughly 12,000 feet up 50 00:02:32,066 --> 00:02:34,133 and the temperature is just above freezing. 51 00:02:34,600 --> 00:02:38,367 Being wet and cold at this altitude is a killer combination. 52 00:02:39,133 --> 00:02:42,734 Below me is mile upon mile of dense high altitude jungle, 53 00:02:43,200 --> 00:02:46,266 which, because of its height, is known as cloud forest. 54 00:02:46,734 --> 00:02:50,500 Below them is the hot and humid Amazon jungle. 55 00:02:52,200 --> 00:02:54,066 I am going to head down towards the jungle, 56 00:02:54,333 --> 00:02:56,233 as I know that's where the tributaries 57 00:02:56,266 --> 00:02:57,934 of the mighty River Amazon will be, 58 00:02:58,500 --> 00:03:02,400 and where there is a river there is often people and safety. 59 00:03:05,100 --> 00:03:07,834 Look at this huge, huge valley. 60 00:03:08,367 --> 00:03:10,266 And it is just cloud forest 61 00:03:10,867 --> 00:03:12,634 as far as I can see, 62 00:03:13,400 --> 00:03:15,066 and even though it is beautiful, 63 00:03:15,634 --> 00:03:17,567 it is also quite demoralising. 64 00:03:19,200 --> 00:03:21,266 That just means more hard work. 65 00:03:30,433 --> 00:03:35,033 Still soaking wet and I am cold, and I am about 12,000 feet up here 66 00:03:35,500 --> 00:03:40,200 and the danger is just exposure and hypothermia 67 00:03:40,467 --> 00:03:44,133 and I know from experience that both of those can come on very quickly. 68 00:03:44,166 --> 00:03:48,200 It is a lethal combination, the cold, wet and altitude 69 00:03:48,500 --> 00:03:51,066 and guys, I really need to be heading down fast. 70 00:03:55,033 --> 00:03:56,900 Every 1,000 feet lower I get 71 00:03:57,100 --> 00:03:59,533 means it is about two degrees warmer. 72 00:04:00,834 --> 00:04:04,200 I must have come down now at least 2,000 feet, 73 00:04:04,433 --> 00:04:06,300 probably about 10,000 feet here. 74 00:04:07,600 --> 00:04:07,967 It is raining 75 00:04:08,634 --> 00:04:10,734 but I am beginning to see some of these trees, 76 00:04:10,767 --> 00:04:11,500 which is a good sign for me, 77 00:04:11,934 --> 00:04:15,066 it means I am probably not far off the cloud forest below, 78 00:04:15,166 --> 00:04:16,467 so I am going to keep moving. 79 00:04:21,100 --> 00:04:23,400 But moving at altitude is tough. 80 00:04:23,867 --> 00:04:25,600 Up here, at 10,000 feet, 81 00:04:25,734 --> 00:04:29,166 there is 15 percent less oxygen than at sea level. 82 00:04:30,934 --> 00:04:32,767 You forget just how hard work it is, 83 00:04:33,233 --> 00:04:34,734 moving at altitude. 84 00:04:44,467 --> 00:04:47,867 And beneath me are these clumps of cloud forest, 85 00:04:48,100 --> 00:04:48,667 but that is good news, 86 00:04:49,166 --> 00:04:51,634 that is probably my best chance of finding shelter 87 00:04:51,900 --> 00:04:53,400 and some decent food. 88 00:04:55,600 --> 00:04:58,567 It is astonishing how quickly the vegetation can change. 89 00:04:58,934 --> 00:05:02,800 It is 20 degrees warmer and it is like entering a new world. 90 00:05:03,700 --> 00:05:05,667 It is a lush yet eerie place. 91 00:05:05,900 --> 00:05:09,533 As the warm air comes up from the tropical low lands, 92 00:05:09,834 --> 00:05:11,467 it condenses and you get this area, 93 00:05:11,567 --> 00:05:13,433 for about 8,000 to about 10,000 feet, 94 00:05:13,600 --> 00:05:16,500 where it is just solid just cloud and rain. 95 00:05:16,867 --> 00:05:20,066 And it's just so still around here, you can't hear anything 96 00:05:20,100 --> 00:05:22,934 apart from just the pitter-patter of the rain. 97 00:05:23,200 --> 00:05:25,133 Look how wet everything is, look at this. 98 00:05:27,500 --> 00:05:29,900 Look at this, you can just pull all of this stuff, 99 00:05:30,133 --> 00:05:32,867 a masses of it off and it's probably, 100 00:05:32,900 --> 00:05:33,834 yeah look at that, full of water, 101 00:05:33,900 --> 00:05:37,133 and I'll definitely find a stream lower down. 102 00:05:37,233 --> 00:05:38,000 But there is also this like 103 00:05:38,533 --> 00:05:42,800 just smell of rotting wood as if the whole place is just decaying. 104 00:05:45,500 --> 00:05:48,767 The cloud forest is far more abundant than the grassland. 105 00:05:49,200 --> 00:05:51,033 The temperate and damp conditions 106 00:05:51,133 --> 00:05:54,433 are home to 1,000 of different plant and animal species. 107 00:05:56,467 --> 00:05:58,734 Look at this guy I've just found on the forest floor. 108 00:05:58,767 --> 00:05:59,700 It is a caecilian, 109 00:06:00,133 --> 00:06:03,634 and these guys normally live underground, just feeding off worms 110 00:06:03,667 --> 00:06:05,900 and stuff. But because it is so wet here, 111 00:06:05,934 --> 00:06:06,567 it has been raining so much, 112 00:06:06,834 --> 00:06:09,800 he's literally forced up to the surface. 113 00:06:10,100 --> 00:06:11,400 And that is just amazing 114 00:06:11,433 --> 00:06:13,867 to actually come across one of these. 115 00:06:14,500 --> 00:06:17,700 Although it looks like a snake, it is actually a legless lizard, 116 00:06:17,967 --> 00:06:20,266 and it lives off worms, spiders and insects. 117 00:06:20,734 --> 00:06:22,233 And we're gonna let him go 118 00:06:22,834 --> 00:06:24,166 and get back to it. 119 00:06:25,834 --> 00:06:27,033 He might look good to eat, 120 00:06:27,367 --> 00:06:29,767 but he has poisonous glands under his skin, 121 00:06:30,000 --> 00:06:31,767 so he's not going to be my lunch. 122 00:06:40,634 --> 00:06:45,700 I know from my time in the Army just how slow jungle moving can be. 123 00:06:46,000 --> 00:06:47,266 You know and sometimes it would take, 124 00:06:47,500 --> 00:06:50,000 you know take all day just to move like a mile 125 00:06:50,367 --> 00:06:53,433 and in this sort of stuff, you can just see why. 126 00:06:54,000 --> 00:06:55,567 It's easy to end up going around 127 00:06:55,600 --> 00:06:58,166 and around in circles in these dense forests. 128 00:06:58,967 --> 00:06:59,667 In 1986, 129 00:07:00,133 --> 00:07:02,734 a team of treasure hunters came to the cloud forest 130 00:07:03,033 --> 00:07:04,500 in search of Inca gold. 131 00:07:04,900 --> 00:07:07,600 Legend says, the last Emperor, Atawalpa, 132 00:07:07,800 --> 00:07:11,400 ordered tons of it to be hidden in Ecuador's cloud forest. 133 00:07:12,200 --> 00:07:13,934 It is thought the treasure hunters died 134 00:07:13,967 --> 00:07:16,333 after becoming completely disorientated. 135 00:07:16,767 --> 00:07:20,333 Their bodies were discovered just half a mile from their camp. 136 00:07:23,500 --> 00:07:26,634 Jaguars and snakes live in the forests, but they are rare. 137 00:07:26,900 --> 00:07:29,200 The more deadly killers are the plants. 138 00:07:29,834 --> 00:07:33,166 This is a phyllotis mushroom this and these are poisonous 139 00:07:33,200 --> 00:07:35,100 and nasty and if I ate this, 140 00:07:35,133 --> 00:07:37,767 this could destroy my kidneys in 24 hours 141 00:07:37,934 --> 00:07:40,734 and really, in the wilds, you do not want to take any chances. 142 00:07:40,867 --> 00:07:43,300 Unless you are an expert in mushrooms and toadstools, 143 00:07:43,467 --> 00:07:45,934 your best thing to do is stay clear of them. 144 00:07:46,433 --> 00:07:49,634 The toxins are so deadly that once consumed, 145 00:07:49,800 --> 00:07:51,800 there is no antidote or cure. 146 00:07:54,000 --> 00:07:55,667 I am going straight down hill. 147 00:07:56,033 --> 00:07:58,400 This is the best way to find the river. 148 00:08:00,300 --> 00:08:02,467 But the going is painfully slow. 149 00:08:03,400 --> 00:08:07,667 The warm and damp conditions means plants grow up to 20 feet a year, 150 00:08:07,934 --> 00:08:08,433 that's fast. 151 00:08:08,867 --> 00:08:11,300 And the vines can form such dense screens 152 00:08:11,333 --> 00:08:13,000 you can hardly see in front of you. 153 00:08:13,300 --> 00:08:16,667 I just got completely tangled in all this stuff. 154 00:08:21,433 --> 00:08:25,200 And do you know what? Sometimes you just grind to a halt. 155 00:08:30,333 --> 00:08:33,000 I can't afford to waste energy pushing through this. 156 00:08:33,133 --> 00:08:34,767 I've got to find a better way. 157 00:08:39,166 --> 00:08:42,767 Suddenly the dense undergrowth gives way to a narrow channel. 158 00:08:43,967 --> 00:08:45,467 This was probably cut into the earth 159 00:08:45,500 --> 00:08:48,033 by hundreds of years of water erosion. 160 00:08:55,033 --> 00:08:57,867 It's like an express freeway through the jungle 161 00:08:58,066 --> 00:08:59,700 that could lead to a river. 162 00:09:02,533 --> 00:09:05,433 But the river bed leads to what looks like a cave. 163 00:09:05,767 --> 00:09:07,100 Let's have a look in here. 164 00:09:12,300 --> 00:09:14,533 Caves like this are forbidding places, 165 00:09:14,900 --> 00:09:18,367 but I have got to stick to my plan of following this channel. 166 00:09:19,967 --> 00:09:21,467 Something flying around up there. 167 00:09:30,701 --> 00:09:32,835 I am in a narrow cave, in Ecuador, 168 00:09:33,134 --> 00:09:35,401 that I hope will lead me to a jungle stream, 169 00:09:35,768 --> 00:09:36,835 but I am not alone. 170 00:09:37,601 --> 00:09:39,534 Hey look, put the night vision on, put that on. 171 00:09:39,835 --> 00:09:40,267 You see those? 172 00:09:40,868 --> 00:09:43,534 Yeah, look they are bats, just hundreds of them. 173 00:09:45,234 --> 00:09:47,768 You can feel their wings just flap past my head. 174 00:09:48,568 --> 00:09:50,768 And they are such extraordinary flyers, 175 00:09:50,801 --> 00:09:52,167 just flying all on sonar. 176 00:09:52,468 --> 00:09:56,534 These spear nosed bats live in colonies of around 5,000. 177 00:09:56,568 --> 00:09:58,868 There are so many here I could probably grab one, 178 00:09:59,368 --> 00:10:02,601 but I don't want to do that because if I got, got bit by one, 179 00:10:03,301 --> 00:10:05,201 they carry a risk of rabies. 180 00:10:08,401 --> 00:10:10,967 The stench in here is almost unbearable. 181 00:10:11,434 --> 00:10:15,334 The floor of this cave is covered in guano, or bat droppings. 182 00:10:15,735 --> 00:10:17,201 The fumes are highly toxic 183 00:10:17,401 --> 00:10:20,001 and it's a breeding ground for biting insects. 184 00:10:21,835 --> 00:10:23,501 I want to get out of this cave here. 185 00:10:33,501 --> 00:10:37,468 If there is one thing I really don't like its bats. 186 00:10:39,034 --> 00:10:40,601 Yeah, I need to find a better place. 187 00:10:41,901 --> 00:10:44,568 And that's back into the dense cloud forest. 188 00:10:48,635 --> 00:10:49,568 (GROANS) 189 00:10:50,368 --> 00:10:53,501 This is what I was hoping for, a creek 190 00:10:53,801 --> 00:10:58,701 and I can follow this all the way down, hopefully to a river. 191 00:10:59,368 --> 00:10:59,967 And these creeks 192 00:11:00,468 --> 00:11:05,034 and rivers really are the highways of the forest. 193 00:11:09,835 --> 00:11:11,334 And as I follow the stream down, 194 00:11:11,501 --> 00:11:15,001 the noise of crashing water gets progressively louder. 195 00:11:19,801 --> 00:11:21,534 There is no mistaking this sound, 196 00:11:22,768 --> 00:11:23,701 White water. 197 00:11:27,234 --> 00:11:28,267 Yeah, look at this. 198 00:11:28,967 --> 00:11:31,267 This fast flowing river comes straight 199 00:11:31,301 --> 00:11:32,835 from the snow-capped Andes. 200 00:11:33,067 --> 00:11:35,267 It's glacial and freezing cold. 201 00:11:35,835 --> 00:11:38,301 It demands a huge amount of respect these sort of streams, 202 00:11:38,334 --> 00:11:39,601 they are very, very powerful 203 00:11:39,835 --> 00:11:42,534 and you've got to be very careful moving along the bank 204 00:11:42,701 --> 00:11:43,768 where it's slippy. 205 00:11:46,935 --> 00:11:49,034 But it could lead me to the Amazon, 206 00:11:49,234 --> 00:11:51,334 where hopefully I'll find people. 207 00:11:53,701 --> 00:11:56,901 There is always food to eat in the forest if you know where to look 208 00:11:57,067 --> 00:11:58,701 and if you look at this orchid here. 209 00:11:59,101 --> 00:12:01,735 This is actually one of my favourite orchids 210 00:12:01,868 --> 00:12:03,267 because it is easy to identify. 211 00:12:03,301 --> 00:12:05,534 It is called a brown spotted yellow orchid 212 00:12:05,635 --> 00:12:07,835 because it has got brown spots and it is yellow. 213 00:12:07,967 --> 00:12:10,768 But what is great about it is that you can eat it as well. 214 00:12:12,601 --> 00:12:15,735 There are over 10,000 plants species in Ecuador. 215 00:12:16,301 --> 00:12:18,301 Flowers give me quick sugary hit, 216 00:12:18,601 --> 00:12:21,701 but I am also on a look up for something more substantial. 217 00:12:22,401 --> 00:12:24,901 These are little immature fern fronds 218 00:12:24,935 --> 00:12:26,001 and these are actually edible, 219 00:12:26,034 --> 00:12:29,167 and indigenous people around here will harvest these 220 00:12:29,201 --> 00:12:31,534 and then eat them, but you need to boil them twice 221 00:12:31,801 --> 00:12:32,401 before you do eat them. 222 00:12:32,935 --> 00:12:35,501 But you can recognise them just from this monkey tail 223 00:12:35,534 --> 00:12:36,334 shape that they have 224 00:12:36,501 --> 00:12:38,101 and also the way they are covered in this 225 00:12:38,201 --> 00:12:40,468 kind of horrible gloopy slime. 226 00:12:40,501 --> 00:12:42,935 However they develop this just to protect themselves 227 00:12:42,967 --> 00:12:45,001 from being eaten from, from bugs. 228 00:12:45,234 --> 00:12:48,668 But I am going to cut the top half of these off 229 00:12:49,534 --> 00:12:50,635 and then boil them 230 00:12:50,901 --> 00:12:51,967 and eat them later. 231 00:12:52,234 --> 00:12:55,267 Boiling them twice removes the toxic slime 232 00:12:55,434 --> 00:12:57,601 which can cause severe stomach cramps. 233 00:12:59,534 --> 00:13:00,267 God. 234 00:13:03,101 --> 00:13:04,768 But it's time to find shelter. 235 00:13:05,201 --> 00:13:05,801 I could build one, 236 00:13:06,267 --> 00:13:09,001 but there's plenty of natural shelter around here. 237 00:13:09,434 --> 00:13:11,234 There is a cave over there, just in the black 238 00:13:11,568 --> 00:13:13,635 and I am beginning to see a few of these now, 239 00:13:13,835 --> 00:13:16,368 and that will be a perfect place, somewhere like that, 240 00:13:16,668 --> 00:13:17,635 to spend the night. 241 00:13:18,668 --> 00:13:20,401 But first I have to get to the cave 242 00:13:20,801 --> 00:13:24,668 and this water is too fast flowing and deep to wade through. 243 00:13:26,101 --> 00:13:29,267 There is still no easy place to cross this stream, 244 00:13:29,601 --> 00:13:31,768 but I've just passed some bamboo back there, 245 00:13:32,067 --> 00:13:32,768 and that has made me think 246 00:13:33,201 --> 00:13:36,668 of how we used to cross a lot of crevasses on Everest 247 00:13:37,001 --> 00:13:38,434 and it has given me an idea. 248 00:13:41,534 --> 00:13:43,134 Yeah, this is what I saw, 249 00:13:44,001 --> 00:13:44,901 this clump here. 250 00:13:45,601 --> 00:13:49,768 And there are literally over 100 species of bamboo 251 00:13:49,935 --> 00:13:52,301 and what I'm hoping is that this stuff 252 00:13:53,167 --> 00:13:54,668 sounds thin-walled enough 253 00:13:55,201 --> 00:13:58,167 to let me get through with just this little knife. 254 00:13:59,967 --> 00:14:01,167 Let's see if this works. 255 00:14:05,434 --> 00:14:06,368 Yeah, this is, 256 00:14:07,301 --> 00:14:09,134 this is cutting through all right. 257 00:14:10,434 --> 00:14:11,301 Excellent. 258 00:14:18,468 --> 00:14:21,468 Two long pieces of bamboo and some cross struts 259 00:14:21,668 --> 00:14:25,601 attached with vine should be strong enough to hold at least 200 pounds. 260 00:14:25,901 --> 00:14:28,368 Then I'll be able to cross over to the cave. 261 00:14:29,067 --> 00:14:32,034 What I am looking for are some vines, just to 262 00:14:32,267 --> 00:14:34,101 lash these cross braces together. 263 00:14:34,401 --> 00:14:36,167 But the stuff I need is not, 264 00:14:36,635 --> 00:14:38,034 is not this, this is all dead 265 00:14:38,368 --> 00:14:41,267 and will break. I am looking for the living stuff. 266 00:14:42,935 --> 00:14:44,167 Like this, here you go. 267 00:14:44,601 --> 00:14:44,868 This is, 268 00:14:45,701 --> 00:14:49,067 this stuff I think is what they call a linglang vine 269 00:14:49,301 --> 00:14:52,234 and it is good, it is bendy, it is supple and it is living, 270 00:14:52,568 --> 00:14:53,301 so. 271 00:14:55,868 --> 00:14:57,301 Find a few more of these. 272 00:15:02,234 --> 00:15:05,234 I am going to use split saplings as cross struts. 273 00:15:08,401 --> 00:15:10,368 I have got the first cross brace. 274 00:15:10,868 --> 00:15:11,534 Here, 275 00:15:12,134 --> 00:15:13,701 and then all I need to do 276 00:15:14,501 --> 00:15:14,835 is use... 277 00:15:15,534 --> 00:15:19,568 Some of this nice flexible vine to tie it with. 278 00:15:20,434 --> 00:15:24,167 Nature provides all the resources that you need. 279 00:15:26,735 --> 00:15:29,768 The great thing about these vines is that just one 280 00:15:30,501 --> 00:15:31,134 or two hitches 281 00:15:31,468 --> 00:15:33,635 and because it is quite living and it is damp, 282 00:15:33,935 --> 00:15:35,768 they actually tighten on themselves, 283 00:15:36,167 --> 00:15:37,568 and they are really secure. 284 00:15:50,267 --> 00:15:51,701 The bamboo may be hollow, 285 00:15:51,967 --> 00:15:54,167 but a structure this big could be heavy. 286 00:15:54,501 --> 00:15:56,735 This probably weighs a 150 pounds, 287 00:15:57,001 --> 00:15:59,368 so build it near to where you need it. 288 00:16:01,334 --> 00:16:01,868 Once in place, 289 00:16:02,468 --> 00:16:05,468 I should be able to walk over the water to my cave. 290 00:16:07,635 --> 00:16:08,568 This ladder is almost, 291 00:16:09,001 --> 00:16:09,768 almost in place now 292 00:16:10,234 --> 00:16:13,735 and, even though all the materials are actually quite light, 293 00:16:14,301 --> 00:16:17,201 the ladder itself now is pretty heavy. 294 00:16:17,501 --> 00:16:17,768 But... 295 00:16:18,735 --> 00:16:22,701 It just shows what a little bit of lateral thinking can do. 296 00:16:22,768 --> 00:16:23,501 Here we go. 297 00:16:31,267 --> 00:16:32,267 Oh, no. 298 00:16:32,835 --> 00:16:34,701 It's just completely smashed. 299 00:16:35,635 --> 00:16:37,501 That is a disaster. 300 00:16:46,302 --> 00:16:48,435 I am in the cloud forests of Ecuador, 301 00:16:48,736 --> 00:16:50,202 trying to cross a glacial river. 302 00:16:50,802 --> 00:16:53,836 I have made a bamboo ladder bridge, but disaster struck. 303 00:16:54,068 --> 00:16:56,268 Well that is the reality of survival, 304 00:16:56,569 --> 00:16:57,669 it doesn't always work 305 00:16:58,035 --> 00:16:59,602 and I am back to the drawing board. 306 00:17:00,102 --> 00:17:02,836 But I have run out of time and it will soon be dark. 307 00:17:03,535 --> 00:17:05,402 It's getting pretty late in the day now 308 00:17:05,636 --> 00:17:08,202 and I haven't really got time for shelter and a fire 309 00:17:08,235 --> 00:17:09,502 and I've got to prioritise. 310 00:17:09,836 --> 00:17:12,736 But the important thing for me is really to get a fire. 311 00:17:12,869 --> 00:17:15,168 I need to get dry and I need to get warm, 312 00:17:15,202 --> 00:17:16,736 and the good thing about this forest, 313 00:17:16,968 --> 00:17:17,902 because it is quite dense above, 314 00:17:18,235 --> 00:17:21,035 there is quite a lot of natural shelter anyway if it does rain. 315 00:17:21,502 --> 00:17:23,802 But I have got to go and try and find a bit of tinder 316 00:17:24,068 --> 00:17:25,369 to get that fire going. 317 00:17:26,435 --> 00:17:29,935 Finding dry tinder in these wet conditions might look impossible, 318 00:17:30,268 --> 00:17:31,968 but it is not if you know where to look. 319 00:17:32,335 --> 00:17:34,602 If you look around here you see all these rabbit dropping. 320 00:17:34,968 --> 00:17:35,636 Yeah, look, more here, 321 00:17:36,002 --> 00:17:38,035 and these are rabbit trails and what they do, 322 00:17:38,068 --> 00:17:40,702 they create these burrows under all of this grass, 323 00:17:40,736 --> 00:17:41,836 look you can see here. 324 00:17:42,002 --> 00:17:43,968 And then inside it... 325 00:17:44,736 --> 00:17:46,702 You get this dry grass. 326 00:17:46,736 --> 00:17:49,569 It's like the rabbits have, you know done my job for me. 327 00:17:50,002 --> 00:17:51,402 So I need a few more of these. 328 00:17:52,102 --> 00:17:52,769 I have to be quick. 329 00:17:53,235 --> 00:17:56,569 The rains which fall every evening are just beginning. 330 00:18:00,669 --> 00:18:03,968 Everything just here is so wet. 331 00:18:04,302 --> 00:18:04,702 (SIGHS) 332 00:18:05,302 --> 00:18:08,002 It is just making getting this fire going... 333 00:18:09,068 --> 00:18:10,535 Really difficult. 334 00:18:11,869 --> 00:18:14,968 The problem is all of this grass that I've collected earlier 335 00:18:15,268 --> 00:18:17,135 is all now just soaking wet. 336 00:18:17,402 --> 00:18:19,968 My kindling is wet, my wood is wet 337 00:18:20,869 --> 00:18:22,402 and I am cold at the moment. 338 00:18:30,869 --> 00:18:32,002 Oh, dear. 339 00:18:32,968 --> 00:18:34,702 It's like every time I get a spark 340 00:18:36,402 --> 00:18:37,669 this blooming rain 341 00:18:38,669 --> 00:18:39,602 just puts it out. 342 00:18:40,369 --> 00:18:42,235 Do you know I don't think I have ever 343 00:18:42,769 --> 00:18:43,535 before... 344 00:18:44,235 --> 00:18:46,535 Actually, failed to get a fire going. 345 00:18:50,702 --> 00:18:51,535 Come on. 346 00:18:55,968 --> 00:18:56,636 Do you know what? 347 00:18:57,068 --> 00:18:58,736 This is a losing battle. 348 00:19:00,535 --> 00:19:03,502 The best thing I can do actually with this grass now 349 00:19:04,669 --> 00:19:05,569 is just... 350 00:19:06,869 --> 00:19:08,402 Stuff it down my shirt 351 00:19:10,669 --> 00:19:13,569 and use this as insulation, 352 00:19:14,636 --> 00:19:16,335 and hope that it keeps me warm 353 00:19:17,435 --> 00:19:18,135 through this night. 354 00:19:18,502 --> 00:19:22,636 And what this does is it acts like kind of down, 355 00:19:23,435 --> 00:19:27,302 and will insulate hopefully a lot of the heat. 356 00:19:28,168 --> 00:19:32,002 And it makes me look like I have eaten too many cheesecakes, 357 00:19:32,869 --> 00:19:34,102 but it should work. 358 00:19:34,636 --> 00:19:35,636 I tell you what, 359 00:19:36,836 --> 00:19:39,302 I'd murder a cheesecake as well at the moment. 360 00:19:49,435 --> 00:19:50,168 And it's... 361 00:19:51,369 --> 00:19:54,002 kind of weird sometimes being in these forests 362 00:19:56,369 --> 00:19:57,035 when it's dark, 363 00:19:57,669 --> 00:20:01,736 but my mission now is really just to try and get 364 00:20:03,268 --> 00:20:06,035 as warm as I can with this grass stuff, 365 00:20:06,736 --> 00:20:07,469 and... 366 00:20:08,902 --> 00:20:10,035 Keep my chin up 367 00:20:10,669 --> 00:20:12,202 and see this night through. 368 00:20:20,636 --> 00:20:22,335 It rained for most of the night. 369 00:20:22,702 --> 00:20:24,168 But when things seem really bad, 370 00:20:24,202 --> 00:20:26,402 it's often the little things that can give you hope. 371 00:20:26,569 --> 00:20:29,068 Look, you see up there, see that little purple flower, 372 00:20:29,402 --> 00:20:30,369 just on its own? 373 00:20:30,869 --> 00:20:32,102 So beautiful. 374 00:20:32,569 --> 00:20:33,369 And there is no doubt that 375 00:20:33,569 --> 00:20:36,168 moving though this sort of terrain is hard work 376 00:20:36,235 --> 00:20:39,068 and it is often the little things that give you a pick-me-up. 377 00:20:39,235 --> 00:20:42,302 But for me it is suddenly coming across that sort of a flower. 378 00:20:42,469 --> 00:20:43,335 And I always kind of think of it, it is like, 379 00:20:43,369 --> 00:20:45,836 you know it's like God's extravagance. 380 00:20:46,002 --> 00:20:48,068 You know it is there, nobody might ever see it, 381 00:20:48,102 --> 00:20:51,302 it is like nature can't help but create beautiful things. 382 00:20:51,636 --> 00:20:52,636 I just love that. 383 00:20:54,636 --> 00:20:56,202 I am still following my river down, 384 00:20:56,235 --> 00:20:59,369 in the hope it will lead me to a tributary of the Amazon. 385 00:21:01,002 --> 00:21:02,968 After being soaked for 24 hours, 386 00:21:03,202 --> 00:21:05,235 my strength is being sapped. 387 00:21:06,402 --> 00:21:07,268 I need food 388 00:21:07,669 --> 00:21:09,068 and I need to get dry. 389 00:21:13,102 --> 00:21:15,469 But before long my path along the riverbank 390 00:21:15,802 --> 00:21:17,302 comes to an abrupt end. 391 00:21:22,202 --> 00:21:24,369 I have got two options. I can either... 392 00:21:25,335 --> 00:21:26,035 Try and wade it. 393 00:21:26,636 --> 00:21:28,802 Thing is I am just going to end up soaking wet 394 00:21:29,135 --> 00:21:30,002 and this water is cold 395 00:21:30,035 --> 00:21:32,235 and that is the last thing I really want. 396 00:21:33,002 --> 00:21:34,135 The other option 397 00:21:35,502 --> 00:21:36,402 is just to jump 398 00:21:36,836 --> 00:21:37,902 and go for this tree. 399 00:21:38,569 --> 00:21:40,602 You know, and the worse thing that can happen 400 00:21:41,068 --> 00:21:42,669 is that I will end up in the drink, 401 00:21:43,469 --> 00:21:44,002 wet anyway. 402 00:21:44,602 --> 00:21:48,369 But at least this way there is a chance I can stay dry. 403 00:21:48,836 --> 00:21:51,068 I can't afford to get this jump wrong. 404 00:21:52,002 --> 00:21:53,369 Grab the branch with both hands 405 00:21:53,535 --> 00:21:56,168 and then use your momentum to swing your legs up. 406 00:21:57,068 --> 00:21:59,268 But watch out for loose moss. 407 00:22:06,235 --> 00:22:08,068 I'm right on the edge of the rainforest. 408 00:22:08,535 --> 00:22:11,736 From now on, my journey is gonna get a lot tougher. 409 00:22:21,936 --> 00:22:23,936 I am out of the cloud forest of Ecuador 410 00:22:24,203 --> 00:22:27,103 and I am entering the dark jungles of the mighty Amazon. 411 00:22:27,703 --> 00:22:31,936 The rainforest here has over nine feet of rainfall every year, 412 00:22:32,436 --> 00:22:35,370 and it's home to over a million species of plants 413 00:22:35,403 --> 00:22:36,169 and animals. 414 00:22:38,837 --> 00:22:41,902 I'm definitely now down in the rainforest, 415 00:22:42,203 --> 00:22:44,902 and I can tell this just because of the height of the tree canopies 416 00:22:45,169 --> 00:22:47,069 above me. Some of these are probably about, 417 00:22:47,236 --> 00:22:48,637 probably 80 foot high 418 00:22:48,936 --> 00:22:52,436 and also it is much, much more humid down here, 419 00:22:52,670 --> 00:22:54,103 really noticeably so. 420 00:22:54,403 --> 00:22:57,503 But I am down also in a pretty permanent looking creek, 421 00:22:57,837 --> 00:22:59,570 and it's this that I hope 422 00:22:59,902 --> 00:23:03,336 will lead me to eventually a river, the Amazon 423 00:23:03,737 --> 00:23:05,269 and eventually civilisation. 424 00:23:06,236 --> 00:23:09,069 In the wet season, this would be a raging torrent, 425 00:23:09,503 --> 00:23:13,136 but at the moment, I can use it to lead me down. 426 00:23:17,803 --> 00:23:21,603 So you see here where two streams meet in like a junction, 427 00:23:22,003 --> 00:23:22,737 but the important thing is, 428 00:23:23,103 --> 00:23:26,370 just keep following the flow of the water down hill. 429 00:23:29,169 --> 00:23:32,737 This part of the Amazon has a huge variety of wildlife, 430 00:23:33,069 --> 00:23:36,436 over eight percent of the world's animal species are here. 431 00:23:38,969 --> 00:23:40,303 Oh, look at these guys. 432 00:23:41,303 --> 00:23:43,069 Oh, these are palm weevil grubs. 433 00:23:43,603 --> 00:23:45,003 Wow, I tell you what, these, 434 00:23:45,603 --> 00:23:48,770 these are the biggest grubs I have ever seen, look. 435 00:23:49,536 --> 00:23:52,203 And this is just the sort of place that they like, 436 00:23:52,236 --> 00:23:56,436 they feed off all this rotting, soft interior of the palm tree. 437 00:23:56,703 --> 00:24:00,436 But these are absolutely massive. 438 00:24:01,936 --> 00:24:03,770 And actually the locals eat a lot of these, 439 00:24:03,803 --> 00:24:04,870 they are like a delicacy. 440 00:24:05,069 --> 00:24:07,403 They are full of good protein 441 00:24:07,837 --> 00:24:08,503 and... 442 00:24:11,303 --> 00:24:13,136 you can actually eat them whole. 443 00:24:14,103 --> 00:24:15,902 Look at it wriggling around. 444 00:24:21,870 --> 00:24:23,303 Holy smoke. 445 00:24:23,837 --> 00:24:24,503 That is 446 00:24:25,770 --> 00:24:26,036 just. 447 00:24:27,036 --> 00:24:30,936 The Huaorani tribe of the Amazon consider these a real delicacy. 448 00:24:31,637 --> 00:24:32,303 Horrible. 449 00:24:32,703 --> 00:24:33,603 And do you know what, 450 00:24:34,003 --> 00:24:35,670 they can keep their delicacies. 451 00:24:40,703 --> 00:24:42,269 I just gotta get one more down. 452 00:24:44,536 --> 00:24:46,069 They are a mouthful of goo, 453 00:24:46,269 --> 00:24:47,902 with a texture of cream cheese, 454 00:24:48,003 --> 00:24:50,003 with crunchy lumps of grittle. 455 00:24:51,336 --> 00:24:54,370 But that goo is also good protein. 456 00:25:00,670 --> 00:25:02,069 But the Amazon rainforest 457 00:25:02,103 --> 00:25:05,136 is also full of life that is easy on the palate. 458 00:25:08,703 --> 00:25:11,370 It is just beginning to drizzle again 459 00:25:11,703 --> 00:25:14,103 and that is a good time for a bit of fishing as well. 460 00:25:15,269 --> 00:25:16,902 The rain will distract the fish 461 00:25:16,969 --> 00:25:18,570 and make it easier to get in close. 462 00:25:19,336 --> 00:25:22,003 First though, I need some sort of weapon. 463 00:25:22,902 --> 00:25:24,637 As I've been walking along I've been looking 464 00:25:24,670 --> 00:25:27,470 for some sort of wood that would be suitable for making a bow, 465 00:25:27,803 --> 00:25:31,136 and this is old chonta palm here that has fallen down, 466 00:25:31,370 --> 00:25:33,536 and this stuff is ideal because it is very hard 467 00:25:33,570 --> 00:25:38,203 but also it allows you to splinter it length ways. 468 00:25:39,336 --> 00:25:42,370 The bow I am whittling is designed for fishing 469 00:25:42,770 --> 00:25:44,136 and the local Huaorani tribe 470 00:25:44,169 --> 00:25:46,770 have developed this over centuries of use. 471 00:25:46,936 --> 00:25:47,770 It's especially good 472 00:25:48,003 --> 00:25:51,603 for spearing fast moving fish in shallow pools. 473 00:25:52,236 --> 00:25:54,770 This chonta palm wood has just been perfect. 474 00:25:54,803 --> 00:25:56,036 It has taken me about 15 minutes 475 00:25:56,236 --> 00:25:58,069 and already I have whittled that down 476 00:25:58,303 --> 00:25:59,902 into something about the right length. 477 00:26:00,603 --> 00:26:03,503 A Huaorani hunter will take days to make one of these, 478 00:26:03,837 --> 00:26:05,837 but they expect theirs to last for years. 479 00:26:06,069 --> 00:26:07,936 Hopefully I will not need it that long. 480 00:26:08,236 --> 00:26:10,870 I just now need to cut a couple of notches 481 00:26:11,503 --> 00:26:15,637 in each end that I am going to attach the drawstring to. 482 00:26:15,870 --> 00:26:18,036 (HAMMERING) 483 00:26:19,236 --> 00:26:21,670 The pitta palm grows throughout the jungle. 484 00:26:22,136 --> 00:26:25,670 The leaves contain long fibres that make perfect bow strings. 485 00:26:26,236 --> 00:26:29,670 This pitta has these nasty little barbs all the way down it, 486 00:26:29,703 --> 00:26:33,069 so the first thing I need to do is just take those off. 487 00:26:38,269 --> 00:26:39,670 Once I have got it like this, 488 00:26:40,303 --> 00:26:41,303 I need to just 489 00:26:42,436 --> 00:26:43,503 open this out. 490 00:26:49,536 --> 00:26:51,136 And then I just want to separate 491 00:26:51,803 --> 00:26:52,969 the fleshy bit 492 00:26:53,336 --> 00:26:54,370 from the actual 493 00:26:55,770 --> 00:26:58,269 strong back of these leaves. 494 00:27:01,436 --> 00:27:04,470 And now I just take the strands of it, put it in my mouth 495 00:27:04,703 --> 00:27:06,236 and then start to weave it. 496 00:27:07,470 --> 00:27:10,370 Weaving the strands together increases their strength 497 00:27:10,403 --> 00:27:11,370 and durability. 498 00:27:11,737 --> 00:27:12,403 Once on the bow, 499 00:27:12,670 --> 00:27:15,169 it will need to cope with huge pressure. 500 00:27:16,436 --> 00:27:18,969 And now to attach it, what I've done down this end, 501 00:27:19,403 --> 00:27:22,503 I have put a simple bowline loop on to it there. 502 00:27:24,837 --> 00:27:27,902 And then on this side I do the same. 503 00:27:28,403 --> 00:27:29,536 To tie this bowline, 504 00:27:30,203 --> 00:27:31,036 all I do 505 00:27:31,870 --> 00:27:34,169 is make a little loop like this 506 00:27:35,503 --> 00:27:36,536 and I put this end 507 00:27:37,570 --> 00:27:39,403 through the thing, and a good way to remember it is 508 00:27:39,436 --> 00:27:41,236 the rabbit comes out of the hole, 509 00:27:42,370 --> 00:27:43,470 round the tree, 510 00:27:44,936 --> 00:27:45,902 and then 511 00:27:46,803 --> 00:27:47,703 back down 512 00:27:48,936 --> 00:27:49,670 the hole. 513 00:27:51,203 --> 00:27:52,703 And then all I have got to do 514 00:27:53,936 --> 00:27:55,403 is now bend this 515 00:27:55,803 --> 00:27:57,136 and hope like hell 516 00:27:57,536 --> 00:27:58,570 that it doesn't break. 517 00:28:05,837 --> 00:28:06,936 And that then... 518 00:28:11,969 --> 00:28:12,803 Is ready. 519 00:28:13,637 --> 00:28:16,403 The arrows are made of the same heavy wood as the bow, 520 00:28:16,803 --> 00:28:19,003 perfect for cutting through the water. 521 00:28:19,637 --> 00:28:22,169 But I didn't realise the stream would be home 522 00:28:22,203 --> 00:28:23,303 to aggressive piranhas. 523 00:28:23,737 --> 00:28:27,103 This is going to make hunting and fishing even harder. 524 00:28:38,838 --> 00:28:40,604 I am in the Ecuadorian Rainforest, 525 00:28:40,903 --> 00:28:42,404 hunting for fish. 526 00:28:44,371 --> 00:28:47,371 This vegetation is just the sort of place 527 00:28:47,804 --> 00:28:49,070 that fish like to hide, 528 00:28:49,404 --> 00:28:50,970 especially at this time of day now. 529 00:28:51,537 --> 00:28:54,937 Piranha live in these sort of streams and they can be vicious, 530 00:28:55,237 --> 00:28:58,604 stripping animals that fall into the water in seconds. 531 00:28:59,070 --> 00:28:59,838 But that only happens 532 00:29:00,037 --> 00:29:02,604 when there are in large shoals of 100 or more. 533 00:29:03,104 --> 00:29:06,371 This pond is just too small to support that many, 534 00:29:07,237 --> 00:29:09,204 so it should be safe to be in. 535 00:29:16,437 --> 00:29:17,571 Piranhas are tasty 536 00:29:17,838 --> 00:29:19,937 but they are also difficult to catch. 537 00:29:21,004 --> 00:29:21,704 I tell you what, 538 00:29:22,204 --> 00:29:23,937 they are quick, these fish. 539 00:29:25,870 --> 00:29:28,337 Recently a woman was stranded in the rainforest 540 00:29:28,537 --> 00:29:30,170 and survived alone for two weeks 541 00:29:30,304 --> 00:29:32,970 by catching piranhas in a shallow river. 542 00:29:33,838 --> 00:29:35,870 She used only insects for bait. 543 00:29:37,404 --> 00:29:39,437 I need to find us some shallower pools 544 00:29:40,870 --> 00:29:43,638 where I can really see what's on the bottom. 545 00:29:51,870 --> 00:29:54,704 What's happened here is you've got this jungle pool 546 00:29:54,870 --> 00:29:56,937 where the water level actually is dropping 547 00:29:57,070 --> 00:29:59,771 and you can see on the bank, the level that the water was, 548 00:29:59,903 --> 00:30:01,537 and it has just left all the debris there. 549 00:30:01,937 --> 00:30:06,037 But this means that fish gets trapped in just these sort of pools, 550 00:30:06,337 --> 00:30:06,838 and it is shallow 551 00:30:07,237 --> 00:30:08,838 and this is going to be my best chance 552 00:30:08,870 --> 00:30:10,437 of actually catching something. 553 00:30:19,571 --> 00:30:20,937 I will just get the camera 554 00:30:21,537 --> 00:30:23,371 and put it into the water 555 00:30:23,404 --> 00:30:26,070 and you should be able to see them swimming around. 556 00:30:33,170 --> 00:30:34,237 And there are quite a few in here, 557 00:30:34,504 --> 00:30:38,070 and I reckon if I just spend a few minutes 558 00:30:38,771 --> 00:30:39,870 and am patient, 559 00:30:40,571 --> 00:30:41,638 I will get something. 560 00:30:43,970 --> 00:30:45,404 There is another one, here we go. 561 00:30:51,671 --> 00:30:53,304 Brilliant, look at that. 562 00:30:54,870 --> 00:30:56,404 And imagine 1,000 of those, 563 00:30:56,970 --> 00:31:01,037 you can see why it would just strip the flesh off a human in seconds. 564 00:31:02,070 --> 00:31:05,137 Razor sharp teeth and this guy is pretty well dead 565 00:31:05,170 --> 00:31:08,204 and he still have the power to go straight through this. 566 00:31:17,504 --> 00:31:19,771 Hunting in this shallow pool may look easy, 567 00:31:20,004 --> 00:31:23,170 but catching piranha this way takes patience. 568 00:31:24,070 --> 00:31:27,337 But in under an hour, I've got enough for decent meal. 569 00:31:30,070 --> 00:31:30,903 I am going to build a fire, 570 00:31:31,104 --> 00:31:33,937 as it is essential piranha are cooked thoroughly, 571 00:31:34,070 --> 00:31:36,437 because they carry harmful parasites. 572 00:31:40,337 --> 00:31:42,804 I have got a little cooking rack here 573 00:31:43,104 --> 00:31:46,037 and on it I have got my fern fronds 574 00:31:47,537 --> 00:31:48,037 bubbling away, 575 00:31:48,437 --> 00:31:51,004 and I have boiled these a couple of times 576 00:31:51,037 --> 00:31:52,170 and just changed the water, 577 00:31:52,471 --> 00:31:54,137 just to make sure they are really well cooked. 578 00:31:54,571 --> 00:31:57,404 And I have got some of the other fern fronds cooking 579 00:31:58,204 --> 00:32:00,070 in these bamboo sections here. 580 00:32:00,804 --> 00:32:02,704 And then wrapped in these leaves 581 00:32:03,137 --> 00:32:05,738 I have got my piranha that I've caught, 582 00:32:06,070 --> 00:32:09,237 and these should be, should be ready now. 583 00:32:12,704 --> 00:32:13,204 And look there you go, 584 00:32:13,771 --> 00:32:17,337 those are those nasty teeth grinning away at me. 585 00:32:17,903 --> 00:32:18,137 But that, 586 00:32:18,903 --> 00:32:21,604 that smells great, so I am going to put that 587 00:32:22,638 --> 00:32:24,137 onto this leaf here, 588 00:32:26,571 --> 00:32:29,638 and it is so nice just actually having a bit of time now 589 00:32:30,671 --> 00:32:32,237 to cook this properly 590 00:32:32,270 --> 00:32:34,404 and get something really decent to eat. 591 00:32:35,004 --> 00:32:37,037 Fish, the fronds 592 00:32:38,170 --> 00:32:40,471 and then really enjoy it properly. 593 00:32:47,337 --> 00:32:51,671 And this is now all looking like quite a substantial meal. 594 00:32:57,870 --> 00:33:02,371 And they taste like really gooey, gunky asparagus. 595 00:33:03,337 --> 00:33:06,537 Do you know what? These would be so nice with a bit of mayo. 596 00:33:07,337 --> 00:33:09,504 Let's try it with a bit of piranha instead. 597 00:33:14,571 --> 00:33:16,070 For such an aggressive, 598 00:33:17,838 --> 00:33:19,170 unpleasant fish, 599 00:33:19,804 --> 00:33:21,371 it doesn't half taste good. 600 00:33:24,970 --> 00:33:25,604 With a full tummy, 601 00:33:25,838 --> 00:33:28,903 all I need now is a good night's sleep. 602 00:33:32,070 --> 00:33:35,237 There have been a few of these caves along the river 603 00:33:35,537 --> 00:33:36,437 and this one doesn't look, 604 00:33:36,903 --> 00:33:41,137 look too bad, it might be big enough for me to spend the night in here. 605 00:33:41,704 --> 00:33:43,204 Always check the cave is empty 606 00:33:43,404 --> 00:33:45,638 by throwing in rocks or sticks first. 607 00:33:46,270 --> 00:33:49,170 Snakes and wild pigs also like caves. 608 00:33:51,371 --> 00:33:54,104 The darkness just came in about ten minutes, 609 00:33:54,137 --> 00:33:56,004 it just happens so quickly in the jungle, 610 00:33:56,371 --> 00:33:58,903 and all I have got to do now is clear it out 611 00:33:59,137 --> 00:34:00,937 and then try and get a fire going. 612 00:34:07,237 --> 00:34:11,437 I've made just a little pyramid fire out of some bamboo 613 00:34:11,738 --> 00:34:13,070 and some grass here 614 00:34:13,537 --> 00:34:16,371 and hopefully this should go. 615 00:34:25,437 --> 00:34:27,738 At last I've got a fire, 616 00:34:28,104 --> 00:34:31,371 so at least it means tonight I am going to be warm. 617 00:34:36,237 --> 00:34:37,804 It has been really hard to sleep. 618 00:34:38,638 --> 00:34:41,537 It is one of those nights you know when you are really tired but... 619 00:34:42,804 --> 00:34:45,270 you cannot sleep, my reason being though 620 00:34:46,270 --> 00:34:47,037 just all 621 00:34:48,137 --> 00:34:50,070 the things I keep hearing. I think that this 622 00:34:50,471 --> 00:34:53,337 cave is home to a lot of other creepy crawlies. 623 00:34:55,970 --> 00:34:56,738 But I have to rest, 624 00:34:57,004 --> 00:34:59,771 for tomorrow I will need all my strength to deal 625 00:34:59,804 --> 00:35:02,437 with the rapids of the mighty Amazon River. 626 00:35:13,305 --> 00:35:15,472 It's dawn in the Amazonian jungle, 627 00:35:15,838 --> 00:35:17,971 and I've seen loads of burrows near the cave. 628 00:35:18,372 --> 00:35:21,472 I am going to see if I can catch something special for breakfast. 629 00:35:21,971 --> 00:35:22,572 And once again, 630 00:35:23,105 --> 00:35:25,838 the local Huaorani tribe have an ingenious technique. 631 00:35:26,505 --> 00:35:28,238 I've been looking for one of these for a while 632 00:35:28,271 --> 00:35:31,338 and I think this is a comacchio plant. 633 00:35:31,538 --> 00:35:32,838 I can tell this just from, 634 00:35:33,105 --> 00:35:35,938 if you look at the white spots on the top of the leaves, 635 00:35:36,138 --> 00:35:38,138 also this thick stalk 636 00:35:38,305 --> 00:35:41,904 and then these little aerial white little shoots coming out. 637 00:35:42,171 --> 00:35:45,338 And what local hunters will do is cut this, 638 00:35:45,472 --> 00:35:48,105 and then it produces this like stink like a skunk, 639 00:35:48,271 --> 00:35:49,805 and then they will stick it down a hole, 640 00:35:49,838 --> 00:35:51,205 maybe like an armadillo hole, 641 00:35:51,472 --> 00:35:53,639 and that stench will then flush the animal out. 642 00:35:53,904 --> 00:35:55,705 So this is what I am going to try and do, 643 00:35:55,971 --> 00:35:58,338 but I don't want to get any of this on me, 644 00:35:58,505 --> 00:35:59,271 and soon as I cut that, 645 00:35:59,772 --> 00:36:03,305 I will be able to smell it, yeah. Oh, it is like pungent like, 646 00:36:03,904 --> 00:36:05,871 yeah it is like sort of ammonia or skunk. 647 00:36:06,205 --> 00:36:09,605 But that should, that should do the trick, let's see. 648 00:36:12,305 --> 00:36:14,871 This could help me catch a rodent or perhaps, 649 00:36:14,904 --> 00:36:16,971 if I am lucky, an armadillo. 650 00:36:20,739 --> 00:36:24,572 This is just the sort of place that might be quite good for this. 651 00:36:32,238 --> 00:36:33,938 Yeah, there is quite a musky smell around, 652 00:36:34,238 --> 00:36:36,904 so it probably means there is a rodent or something 653 00:36:37,305 --> 00:36:38,372 in these burrows. 654 00:36:40,071 --> 00:36:41,772 Burrows often have two exits, 655 00:36:42,138 --> 00:36:45,605 so the stench coming from one will force it out the other. 656 00:37:05,705 --> 00:37:07,071 There it is. There it is. 657 00:37:14,772 --> 00:37:18,405 What a time for the bow to break. 658 00:37:18,904 --> 00:37:22,005 And that must have been about two kilos of agouti 659 00:37:22,038 --> 00:37:23,538 that came scurrying out of there. 660 00:37:24,138 --> 00:37:25,904 I tried to get him but he is off. 661 00:37:27,705 --> 00:37:29,739 I have picked up a few cuts during the chase, 662 00:37:30,171 --> 00:37:33,005 but in the rainforest there is a tree that can help me. 663 00:37:33,772 --> 00:37:35,472 Yeah, look those are the heart shaped, 664 00:37:35,772 --> 00:37:37,205 heart shaped leaves I was looking for, 665 00:37:37,238 --> 00:37:39,305 and also this smooth trunk, 666 00:37:39,572 --> 00:37:42,805 and this tells me this tree is a sangra dae drago, 667 00:37:42,838 --> 00:37:43,871 which literally means dragon's blood. 668 00:37:44,205 --> 00:37:47,672 And the reason it is called that is because the sap inside it is red, 669 00:37:48,005 --> 00:37:49,138 and before I came out here, 670 00:37:49,271 --> 00:37:52,505 I was told to look out for this tree if I ever cut myself just 671 00:37:52,538 --> 00:37:55,938 because the properties of the sap are very good antiseptic 672 00:37:56,138 --> 00:37:58,938 and healing, and if you watch this, as soon as I tack in, 673 00:38:00,438 --> 00:38:05,305 you will see the blood sap start to ooze out. 674 00:38:08,238 --> 00:38:10,505 And then any little like nicks I've got 675 00:38:11,938 --> 00:38:13,071 I can put it on 676 00:38:16,105 --> 00:38:18,572 and look, if you watch this as well, as soon as you get it on, 677 00:38:18,904 --> 00:38:20,372 if you like lather it up 678 00:38:23,904 --> 00:38:25,405 it goes into this white paste. 679 00:38:27,438 --> 00:38:28,472 Like kind of soap. 680 00:38:32,205 --> 00:38:35,472 And that is very healing, good antiseptic 681 00:38:35,938 --> 00:38:39,071 and will help the blood to coagulate. 682 00:38:40,171 --> 00:38:41,071 Great tree. 683 00:38:44,005 --> 00:38:45,605 It is time to head back to the river, 684 00:38:45,904 --> 00:38:48,372 as that's my best hope of getting out of here. 685 00:38:50,605 --> 00:38:54,238 Well that looks like the big river I was hoping for. 686 00:38:56,938 --> 00:38:58,338 It's now deep enough to swim, 687 00:38:58,672 --> 00:39:02,505 and being in the river will allow me to cover many miles much quicker. 688 00:39:12,005 --> 00:39:14,438 The technique in rapids is to keep your legs 689 00:39:14,472 --> 00:39:15,639 and feet in front of you. 690 00:39:15,971 --> 00:39:18,171 This will help you fend off any rocks. 691 00:39:19,105 --> 00:39:21,138 But the rapids soon start to get bigger, 692 00:39:21,538 --> 00:39:24,505 and eventually it becomes just too dangerous. 693 00:39:26,904 --> 00:39:28,271 Well I've reached this big river 694 00:39:28,572 --> 00:39:33,005 and that has been a primary goal from the start of this journey, 695 00:39:33,038 --> 00:39:35,171 to reach a big river, but it is bigger than I thought 696 00:39:35,505 --> 00:39:38,338 and it has also got some sensible size rapids on it, 697 00:39:38,639 --> 00:39:42,171 which means it is too risky really for me to go down just on my own. 698 00:39:42,372 --> 00:39:45,238 I am going to need to find something that is going to help me. 699 00:39:47,238 --> 00:39:48,904 I need to make some sort of boat. 700 00:39:49,305 --> 00:39:51,838 These rivers are the highways of the Amazon, 701 00:39:52,138 --> 00:39:55,005 and if I can get onto it, it will take me to a settlement. 702 00:39:55,672 --> 00:39:58,438 I am making less than a mile an hour along this river bank, 703 00:39:58,938 --> 00:40:02,538 but I have seen a cluster of trees that will be my ticket out of here. 704 00:40:03,505 --> 00:40:04,505 The balsa tree, 705 00:40:04,871 --> 00:40:07,639 and you can tell these by their grey mottled bark 706 00:40:07,871 --> 00:40:10,105 and distinctive fan shaped leaves. 707 00:40:11,071 --> 00:40:14,071 It's very soft and very buoyant. 708 00:40:21,105 --> 00:40:23,005 Awesome, that is that down and then 709 00:40:23,904 --> 00:40:25,505 cut myself a length of it, 710 00:40:26,271 --> 00:40:27,005 about, 711 00:40:28,938 --> 00:40:30,038 about here. 712 00:40:30,805 --> 00:40:31,605 Ten years ago, 713 00:40:31,772 --> 00:40:34,038 a group of hikers were lost in the jungle. 714 00:40:34,338 --> 00:40:37,938 They survived by building a simple raft out of balsa, 715 00:40:38,205 --> 00:40:41,672 lashed together with vines, and they simply floated down stream. 716 00:40:42,038 --> 00:40:44,938 After three days, they reached a settlement. 717 00:40:49,138 --> 00:40:50,672 This river is heading east, 718 00:40:50,971 --> 00:40:53,138 and I know that's where I will have the greatest chance 719 00:40:53,171 --> 00:40:54,505 of finding a settlement. 720 00:40:55,639 --> 00:40:56,971 It's pretty smooth this bit, 721 00:40:57,305 --> 00:40:59,238 but I can hear there are more rapids ahead, 722 00:40:59,705 --> 00:41:02,904 and the worst bit of it is you can hear them before you can see them. 723 00:41:03,538 --> 00:41:06,271 And you don't really see what is ahead until you are kind of 724 00:41:06,739 --> 00:41:07,871 right into it. 725 00:41:09,238 --> 00:41:13,904 But this balsa wood is giving me so much buoyancy, 726 00:41:14,505 --> 00:41:17,005 and it means really I can just cling to it, 727 00:41:17,538 --> 00:41:19,271 keep my feet downstream 728 00:41:20,505 --> 00:41:21,938 and say my prayers. 729 00:41:24,305 --> 00:41:26,772 The river flows at up to 10 miles an hour, 730 00:41:27,071 --> 00:41:28,372 and if I can just hang on, 731 00:41:28,572 --> 00:41:31,138 this is my best chance at getting out of here. 732 00:41:48,838 --> 00:41:50,639 I landed right on that rock. 733 00:41:52,871 --> 00:41:55,238 The water level is now dropping lower and lower 734 00:41:55,538 --> 00:41:58,472 and the sharp bed rock beneath me can break bones. 735 00:41:58,871 --> 00:42:00,438 It's time to get out of the river. 736 00:42:01,005 --> 00:42:02,405 I will set that free now. 737 00:42:03,105 --> 00:42:06,505 It is actually quite nice to be back on terra firma. 738 00:42:08,538 --> 00:42:09,138 On this journey, 739 00:42:09,505 --> 00:42:11,938 it has felt like every step is a struggle 740 00:42:12,071 --> 00:42:13,739 against the forces of nature, 741 00:42:14,205 --> 00:42:17,639 but what matters in survival is just never giving up, 742 00:42:18,005 --> 00:42:19,238 even when plans fail. 743 00:42:19,805 --> 00:42:24,271 And every day you survive, you are one day closer to home. 744 00:42:27,071 --> 00:42:29,071 I'm just going to turn the camera around and look, 745 00:42:29,105 --> 00:42:30,672 I don't know if you can see that, there is a fire 746 00:42:30,871 --> 00:42:33,772 and what looks like a dug out canoe over there. 747 00:42:34,338 --> 00:42:38,171 And I always knew that if I just kept heading downhill, 748 00:42:38,472 --> 00:42:39,071 until I found a stream 749 00:42:39,372 --> 00:42:41,005 and then followed the stream to a river, 750 00:42:41,205 --> 00:42:42,904 that one of these big Amazon Rivers 751 00:42:42,938 --> 00:42:46,372 would eventually lead me to civilisation, and that fire 752 00:42:46,505 --> 00:42:50,305 and that canoe for me means the end of my journey. 753 00:43:10,105 --> 00:43:12,372 Subtitle Caption by ZestCorp