My amazing trip up the Congo River (From Echo)

My amazing trip up the Congo River

8:00pm Friday 7th November 2008 in

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CANNIBALS, crocodiles and malaria may not sound like ideal features in a trip of a lifetime, but Phil Harwood would disagree.

The 42-year-old adventurer has just returned from paddling the Congo river, from its source to the sea, and said it was ‘a dream come true’.

“If you want something enough you are prepared to put up with the risks,” stated Phil, matter of factly.

“I have been an overland expedition leader in Africa many times and taken groups of people all over the land.

“I have travelled to probably 30 different African countries and become very fond of the continent.

“It is a place full of adventure. It is a wild, quite uncivilised place, and I like that.

“There is no law and it is great fun.

“It is not everyone’s cup of tea, but it is mine.”

The Congo trip took Phil three years to plan.

He originally sought two volunteers to go with him, but only one person responded to his appeal.

That person then changed his mind when he learned how intense the trip would actually be.

Phil left the UK on May 15 and returned to his Leigh home five months later, on October 16.

“The Congo River, in central Africa, has never been paddled from source to sea,” Phil explained.

“Dr Livingstone attempted it in the 18th century, but died thinking he was on the Nile.

“In 1877, Henry Morton Stanley was next, but was actually short of the source by some 800 miles.”

The river’s source is in north eastern Zambia and runs into the Democratic Republic of the Congo, formerly Zaire.

At 2,900 miles long it is the fifth longest river in the world.

“It flows through savannah, swamp and dense tropical rainforest, before finally draining into the Atlantic ocean,” Phil said.

“Due to generations of political instability, corruption and civil war, not to mention the crocodiles, cannibals and huge whitewater rapids, the area seems to have been given a wide berth by all but the most adventurous,” he laughed.

Prior to his Congo trip, Phil was an outdoor instructor for a charity which takes groups of young people on expeditions aimed at fostering team spirit and self esteem.

As a former Royal Marine, Phil spent time in the jungle, as well as Iraq during the first Gulf war.

He has also been a bear protection officer in Alaska, protecting archaeologists from the native grizzlies roaming around the US state.

“I have been into adventures all my life,” he said. “It is my thing.”

Phil was awarded a grant from the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust and was made a Churchill Fellow for 2008 for adventure and exploration, which enabled him to undertake the trip.

“It was everything I expected and more,” he said. “Physically it was exhausting. I was paddling between eight and ten hours a day and was often not aware of what was around the next corner.

“You had to remain alert. It was quite a strain on the mind”

There were the natural risks of water falls and rapids which Phil had to negotiate, as well as crocodiles all too eager to snap up a tasty passing snack.

There was also the problem of hippo congestion in the water.

“The crocodiles would slide into the water and leap up under the boat,” Phil recalled. “The first time it happened I was terrified, but after that I become quite blase about it as it happened so much.”

But it was the decidedly unnatural risks and confrontations which left a lasting impression on Phil.

He said: “I had to pass through an area which is well documented as being home to bandits as well as a tribe of cannibals.

“I paid for four local brothers with shotguns to come alongside the canoe. That particular section took a whole week to get through, but it seemed longer.”

“Some villages I went to were quite hostile.

“People would demand money and try and intimidate me. We stopped at one village and the villagers asked the brothers, ‘why don’t you just slit his throat and take his money? If you don’t I will’.

“A lot of time I got through it with bravado. If you appear fearful then people will smell the fear on you and take advantage.

“However, the majority of places were welcoming and hospitable.

“For some, I was the first white face they had ever seen. The whole village would come out and stare,” he chuckled.

Amazingly, despite the many confrontations Phil experienced, including being chased through the forest by a gang and manhandled by a rebel soldier, not to mention collapsing with malaria, the only thing he admits to being scared of in the jungle was spiders.

He said: “I hate spiders, always have done. So, I was constantly looking out for them. I still shudder at the memory of getting caught in a huge web out there.”

Now safely back home, Phil is hoping to turn the tales of his adventures into a book and documentary.

He filmed footage of his journey and is looking for help in editing his film. “I am so happy to have done it,” he said. “It has been my dream for so many years.

“But the one thing I won’t miss is fish and rice. That was the meal I had every day for five months. It’s deep fried fast food all the way for me now!”

If you can help Phil edit his documentary, e-mail him at philbobagins@ hotmail.com