I felt sick, I felt overwhelmed, I felt relieved.
Is it really possible to have so many feelings hit you simultaneously?
The truth is ‘yes’

I came out unscathed from the deadfall, although I witnessed it happening only 10 metres away from me, so it was difficult to get any peaceful rest. Also, I took the time to assess the damage and found that skin was torn from my shoulders and hips, and my toenails were ripped out—the exposed nerve endings kept surging me with pain—especially when I was back on the move.
Whilst following the river, I started to feel lost, and no sight of any communities or people as my guide promised — I was not meant to take on this part of the journey alone.

I began to have muscle spasms in my legs to the point it became debilitating, where I had to just take a seat and sit with my anxious thoughts. My chest was also in pain and I believed I might have picked up some disease from the insects.

The shared Border of Colombia and Panama the Darien Gap is home to one of the least exploited and most diverse regions in the world. Shareing two oceans to the north and west the pacific and to the east, the Atlantic the area includes two protected parks Panamas Darien National Park in and Los Katios National Park in Colombia. The area is 30 miles wide, from the North Pacific Ocean to the Caribbean Sea, and 54 miles in length, when measuring from the city of Yaviza in Panama in a straight line the region is home to varying landforms, from swamplands on the Colombian side to the mountainous rainforests with its tallest peak, Cerro Tacarcuna (standing at 5,535 ft or 1,845 m), on the Panamanian side. With more than 3 million acres of wilderness, the ecosystem found within is one of the most hotly contested, a political and environmental quagmire.
The region has an abundance of rare plants and wildlife. Besides being home to rare wildlife, the region is also populated by diverse groups of people from the indigenous communities, to the armed groups, which won’t go into in this post.

I've lost track of the number of times I'm asked how and what I eat in those situations. There is an idea that people that explore or spend extended times away from villages towns or even people, like me can rustle up a meal from the wild in any situation. Popular TV channels have reinforced this idea repeatedly over the last decade. However, the truth is that learning how to survive on wild fruit, berries, and bugs is a complex and often dangerous process. Unless you know what you have stumbled across, without any doubt, there is a good chance of poisoning yourself.

As I prepare for my next trip to Colombia, I can’t help but think of the last time I visited the frontier town of Jurado in Colombia, close to the Panama border. It was June 2021, and I had visited the small town to begin building a network that would assist me in my plan for an expedition to cross the Darien Gap. I knew that if I was ever going to be successful, I needed a base of operation where I could reliably call upon contacts to help.
It had taken a long time to reach the town, firstly in a small 6-seater aeroplane that nearly rattled the teeth out of my head, and then two small boats, known locally as Lanchas. It was hot and humid, with temperatures often exceeding 30 degrees.
I found myself in a local bar and struck up a conversation with a man I recognised from the boat that had finally brought me into Jurado. He regaled me with tales of his career as a captain of one of the two boats that ply the pacific coast from Bahia Solano. While he did tell me his name, I will not divulge it here for security reasons. Having visited and written about my trips to Colombia on several occasions, I have a Colombian readership. I will not put anyone at risk by naming names for reasons I’m about to explain.

June of 2021 I spent some time in Colombias Choco department the area is in the extreme north west of the country as rural and remote as a person can get in Colombia. This was all to do with planning and prepping for an expedition in the area where I looked for local guides who knew the area and could take me to some photogenic areas in the two days I was there I was referred to a local man called Marlom.

Working with Battleface Insurance; Protection for the Most Dangerous of Journeys

As I prepare for my upcoming trip to Colombia, it is vital that I take all possible precautions. The risks of this journey are numerous including, but not limited to being detained, going missing, and getting injured.

However, I feel as comfortable as I can knowing that I am protected through Battleface Insurance. Their adventure travel and crisis response insurance policies give me peace of mind that whatever may happen while I’m there, they will have my back. In this article, I want to briefly outline the purpose of my trip, provide an in-depth description of how Battleface is keeping me protected, and let you know how you can follow my journey and support me, if you are interested in doing so.

Those of you who follow my blog will know how much I enjoy travelling to Colombia. The country has had my attention since I first hopped off the plane back in 2014 on just a short layover. Since then, I have been back 4 times…and I am not done with the country yet! In a few weeks’ time I will be hopping on a plane back to Colombia; I cannot think of a better place to start travelling again after COVID restrictions lift!

I landed in Bahia Solano with the intention of staying no more than a week and a point at where I could head further north into Jurado to begin my crossing into Panama. By any means, I could.

It is now 40 days until I set off on my 50 mile expedition of the Darien Gap and I wanted to share my feelings as the trip draws closer.
Dangers I will face my preparation I have taken part in.