Can you see it?
Oh, it's still there.
You only have time to watch down there sideways.
Yeah.
Uh-huh.
Yeah. My eyes aren't very good, but...
Oh, yeah, yeah.
God, I'd be awful at spotting them.
How did you see that from there?
Oh, shit.
Over 50% of the world's population now live in cities.
We are the most disconnected we have ever been from the natural world.
With the rapid pace in growth in which us humans live,
it would be easy to believe that there's no area left unexplored.
But you'd be wrong.
There are still majestic pockets of land
that are truly rugged, wild and untouched.
It's just brutal.
We just haven't seen proper sunlight in, like, 21 days.
It's so dark under the canopy.
And the critical thing is we need them for the health of our planet.
I'm Lucy, and I'm an explorer.
I've been leading expeditions across the world for over a decade,
and now I'm on a mission to take you with me.
On my biggest and most dangerous adventure yet,
I'm trying to cross one of these last-remaining wildernesses
located deep in the Amazon rainforest,
a journey many think is impossible.
I want to show you the beauty...
Oh, my God, look at this...!
..the surprising...
It's magic in here. It truly is magic.
..and the downright ugly.
Oh...!
With my team, we'll seek out the weird and wonderful creatures
that call this unrelenting place home.
And as we journey on foot through inhospitable jungle,
we'll learn to work with the wild, not against it.
We're very, very far from help right now.
If something happens, we are on our own.
We just got attacked by the really big wasps.
Because it has never been more important for us
to build up our relationship with the natural world...
..and protect these last wildernesses at all costs.
This is the hardest thing I have ever done.
Guyana.
It borders Venezuela, Brazil, and Suriname,
and is the only English-speaking country in South America.
With a population of just 800,000,
most living by the coast,
it's one of the most sparsely populated countries in the world.
Guyana gets less tourists in a year
than Machu Picchu gets in a single day,
so it's easy to see why this rainforest
is so impenetrable and unexplored.
For this adventure, I've teamed up with a group of guys
who I've known from my previous visits to Guyana.
They're all Amerindian, are all up for a challenge,
and all know the importance of protecting this forest.
We'll be attempting to cross, on foot,
almost the entire width of the country,
a journey that's never been done before.
We are heading to King William's Falls,
and it's a journey that's going to take us, on this motorboat,
you know, a couple of days.
And then, from there, we're going to head west on foot
across the Kanuku Mountains.
And we don't know what's out there, but what we do know...
..certainly, it's going to be a big adventure.
The majority of Guyana is covered with a green blanket of trees,
and we'll be attempting to trek, climb, wade and crawl
our way through a lot of them.
We'll start on the eastern side of the country, moving west.
And for the first leg, we'll be in the lowlands
and expect to be in thick forest and swamps.
At the first major river, we'll have to find our first resupply,
barrels left at specific coordinates.
From here, we'll have to find a way to cross the river
and begin the next leg.
The GPS device is unlikely to work here,
which means rescue could be weeks away.
And if we're successful with leg two,
we'll reach a second river and another resupply.
And after crossing the wide and caiman-infested Rupununi River,
we'll be into the Kanuku Mountains, a protected area.
This final leg will push us to our limit.
We'll be at our weakest here as we try to cross the mountains.
And so, if we can make it past all that,
we'll finish at the savannah, the border of Brazil.
We've no idea how long this might take,
or if it's even possible.
Helping set up the resupplies and joining us for the boat ride
is my good friend and jungle expert, Anders.
Well, the expedition that Lucy and the crew is about to start on
is-is-is absolutely insane, to be truly honest.
It's going to be 45 days, at least.
They're going to be covering some of the least-explored places
on the surface of the planet.
Lucy is probably the only person I would trust
doing an expedition like this.
It doesn't matter how strong you are,
you need to be able to endure this extensive stress
on your physique and your mental state as well.
And, at the same time, you need to be overseeing your team out there,
and you need to wake up,
and even though a day is looking terrible and it's raining
and you've got blisters and you're bitten everywhere,
you still have to pack up, carry on, and continue until the ultimate goal
of reaching the most western point of the Kanuku Mountains.
And I think that makes it one hell of an amazing journey
that very few could achieve.
But as well, like, very few of us could only dream of.
We've only been going for a few hours,
but already the jungle is throwing up its first surprise.
Rivers like this pose a big risk.
Tonnes of water is not to be messed with.
MAN: No, no, we're done. We're done.
I cannot tell you how happy I am to hear that.
I am happy.
Yeah, we...
We can stop before. You guys are amazing.
Now we just need to get the last boat up here.
Just when you think you're clear of trouble
is exactly the point you should never assume you're out of danger,
especially when the local wildlife is waiting.
It wouldn't be fun to capsize here.
Something doesn't feel right.
Come on.
So, we've just capsized, and we lost stuff.
Try and keep out, cos we lost a lot of important things.
Oh...!
You've seen that happen? Yeah.
It's good that no-one's hurt,
but let's just see how the equipment has fared.
Wow!
If ever there was a time to smoke a cigarette, Anders.
I'm going to have two!
Mikey, how are you? Are you all right?
I think this stayed dry.
A brand-new jumper.
Oh, my God...!
It's nearly dry.
I'm putting up my washing.
I'm washing documents, release forms here.
Nice.
You're OK, Michael, right?
None of the other guys hurt themselves, did they?
Yeah!
Wow, that could have gone horribly wrong.
I don't even want to think about it. What a way to start an expedition.
And we did lose one thing. Really important that we...
You know, it's gone, and that's the water filter.
So that means, for however many weeks, months even,
however long this is going to take,
we are not going to be able to have fresh water or clean, safe water,
we're going to have to just drink it.
We don't really have a choice. There's no way we can get one.
Erm, we'll boil it as much as we can, but...
..yeah, I hope we don't get sick.
Just making our first camp, and there are red ants everywhere.
Lionel and I have been bitten alive.
So a little bit of Vaseline onto the threads,
so we don't have a little ant army coming to visit me,
or not visit, attack, in the night.
Cos they're already in my hair. I need to jump in the water.
Welcome to the jungle!
The rainforest in Guyana spans three quarters of its landmass,
which makes it home to some of the highest levels
of biodiversity in the world.
But like so many wild places, its future is uncertain.
What is certain, though, is the amount of predators
that call this place home.
The rivers are infested with black caiman
growing up to whopping lengths of 16 foot.
But if they don't get you, the anacondas and piranhas will.
On land, you've got the big cats, the sharp-toothed jaguars and pumas.
And then there's the peccaries,
wild boar that charge through the jungle in packs of up to 500.
But, of all of these creatures,
there's one that my team fear the most.
Bushmaster snakes.
They are very aggressive snakes.
They're venomous. They're beautiful, beautiful creatures.
But one bite and you're a goner.
And they're so invisible.
And these things are sort of 12 foot long.
They're huge, but they're camouflaged.
They travel in pairs.
They have this whistle,
this whistle of the bushmaster snake,
and if you hear, it'll haunt you.
And the guys have already told me that, if they come across one,
they would kill it.
I'm very much in their world here,
and I hope that we don't come across too many,
cos, yeah, they are aggressive, aggressive snakes.
It's time.
Today's the day you leave us.
Yes, it is.
I'm going to be out there checking your every movement.
Tracking us. Yeah.
Making sure we're not slacking.
So, guys, we have been training, we have been preparing.
And this is it, right?
I want to wish you all the best.
You guys know exactly what you're doing,
so, I'm not afraid of anything.
But I will still be bold enough to ask you
to take a little care out there, take your time, enjoy the jungle.
Take care, hey?
Lionel. Yeah, man.
Fucking hell, pleasure to have you on the team, right?
Take care, Lucy. Bye-bye. See you soon.
Yeah, definitely.
Here goes the jungle commanders, ready to move into the unknown.
Yeah!
Phew, that's a pack.
This, is it.
Into the jungle we go.
The problem with moving through deep jungle like this
is you never know what's ahead.
And, at times, we might find we can walk half a K an hour,
which is actually a good pace.
Then, at other times, it could be one kilometre in a single day.
We've found a short cut.
This unspoilt wilderness isn't just nice to look at,
it's crucial for maintaining global ecological balance
and preserving genetic diversity.
And what makes this jungle even more special
is it's home to some species that are found nowhere else on Earth.
It really is an area filled with the untamed.
But that also means a lot of these creatures are ones to look out for.
Bullet ant nest.
They have been known to take down the strongest of men.
You thought you'd seen a spider's nest before?
You ain't seen nothing until you've seen this.
Whoa. They're attacking it.
Goliath birdeater.
And what happens if it...?
Just hurts if their fangs get you? Yeah.
It just hurts. It doesn't kill you.
But they have big fangs. Yeah, they do have big fangs.
They are the biggest spider in the world.
One of your pets.
This spider hunts birds.
And then we spot this, a tarantula hawk wasp.
This wasp hunts the spiders.
You don't want to mess with that wasp.
I'm never going to complain about the UK wasps again.
No.
Whilst we want to make good progress,
it's essential we always remain alert.
All of our senses have to be on the lookout at all times.
That's why it's vital to have a great team.
So we've got Vivian.
Vivian is head line cutter and lead snake eyes,
looking out for the deadly snakes ahead.
Vivian is so strong, and the kindest guy you'll ever meet.
Then we've got Lionel.
Lionel and I go way back. I met him in 2014,
and we've remained friends ever since.
His knowledge of the jungle is incredible.
Lionel will be cat eyes,
on the watch for any big cats around us.
Then we've got Mikey.
Mikey is the youngest on the team,
and he'll be assisting me with the filming.
And Aaron.
Aaron's a good friend and great to have around,
and his role will be lead fisherman.
And my role? I'm responsible for the navigation
and making sure that we're all as safe as we can be.
We've only managed three kilometres today
and it's tempting to want to press on,
but, in the jungle, there are hard-and-fast rules
you must never break.
Number one, by 3:00pm, the wildlife come out.
And I'm not even kidding. It's like they have a clock on them.
3:00pm, and you have to start getting your camp ready,
you have to be by some sort of water source.
Whatever that water might look like,
you need to be setting your fire up, eating your dinner.
And then, you know, by the time 5:00pm, 6:00pm hits,
you need to be getting your feet off the floor
and away from anything, like bushmasters and big cats.
Number two is always travel in a line.
The first person, if they spot a snake, they can tell you,
if there's wasps, you can run the other way.
A line is also there so that I can,
me being the navigator with the compass,
make sure people are on the right track, on the bearing.
Number three, you must never shout.
This is because you'll upset the Bush Dai-Dai.
The Bush Dai-Dai is this spirit.
Well, it's a mythological creature
that is very much believed by Amerindians.
And it's sort of half animal, half human,
a sort of yeti-like creature a lot of the time,
bigger than a human, though,
and it's sort of like the guardian of the forest.
And you do those three rules,
and hopefully the jungle will be kind to you.
So it's ten to three, and we've just made it to a little water source.
Erm...
Oh, good. Good to be at our first camp.
Firewood comes in the form of standing deadwood,
and that means chopping it down.
So, the problem with doing these things is, where we want to camp,
the wildlife want to come and hang out for the night.
There's just no getting around it, everyone wants water.
Some fire.
Fire, firelighter.
In our bags, we've got tarps, we have hammocks,
we have a medical kit.
And then we have a lot of filming kit.
But the other thing we carry as much as possible as we can
is noodles and farina.
Erm, and the farina is the local food.
It's the best field food I've ever had because,
as soon as you add water, it just expands like nothing else,
so it fills you up.
It's made from cassava, and we're just adding it to everything.
We're adding it to noodles, we're adding it to our oats for porridge.
And when we catch fish, we can add it to that as well.
But it is the best, the best thing to make you feel satisfied
after a long day on the hill.
WHISTLING
Already the sound of bushmasters.
So, it's day one. We're in our camp.
We've already heard the bushmasters.
Shows we're already in the wild, so we don't need to go far for that.
But, yeah, I'm looking forward to tomorrow
and gradually seeing us move across that map,
albeit slowly.
I've got the fire going, I'm up above the ground,
and, er, we can start the night.
WHISTLING
We're trying to sleep, but the bushmasters are getting closer.
I want us all to keep our feet above the ground,
but the guys have other ideas.
WHISTLING
We're surrounded, and it's terrifying.
We try to locate them,
but can't go too far without getting into more danger.
WHISTLING
There's no choice but to roll over and hope a bushmaster
doesn't slither underneath any of our hammocks during the night.
That was a bad night's sleep, but no-one was bitten.
And another reminder that nothing here can be taken for granted.
So, this morning we realised that
we didn't actually cover much ground yesterday,
and that was a little bit worrying
that this expedition might take much longer than we thought.
Bushmasters last night, but they're not going to stop us.
Atchoo! Bless you.
We're really in no-man's land here, and a long way from help.
So, I had forgotten that walking through this jungle
is like walking through a compost bin.
The forest needs to be in a constant state of decay,
it's what keeps the soil rich in nutrients
and the overall forest healthy.
BIRDS WHISTLE AND CHIRP
The birds, they're called piha.
When they're chirping and happy like this,
it usually means that there's going to be rain on the way.
So we'll probably be expecting a bit of rain as we walk.
WHISTLING AND CHIRPING
They're very happy.
Well, the pihas were right, it is...
It's raining.
Makes a nice change from being wet from sweat.
Because of the rain, it now smells more like a compost bin.
Woohoo.
I knew it wouldn't be long before Aaron was bringing out the rum.
Yes, yes!
Mikey was about to duck under this little tree,
and, yeah, there's a snake.
So it's our first snake of the trip that we're seeing.
Luckily, this is just a vine snake, not deadly to humans,
but a little reminder that snakes really can be anywhere here.
We have to keep alert.
The terrain has changed and we're moving faster today,
but what's good for us is also a good area for wildlife.
So the guys have noticed evidence of a jaguar,
who's been around here recently.
Generally, they're OK if you're in a big group.
But if you stray, get behind, or if you crouch,
say, for example, you're getting water or going to the loo,
that's when they might get you.
Or, if they're going senile,
they've been known to just go for you.
So...
..these big cats are not something to mess with.
I can definitely see why big cats like this area because,
I'll be honest, I like moving through this area as well.
Oh, last night I kept hearing the sound of, like, footprints,
what you could imagine, like, a cat paw to be going on the leaves.
So I kept shining my torch out into the forest.
They're always watching.
We might not know it, but they know we're here.
Rainforests not only produce oxygen,
allowing for every living being to breathe in clean air,
they are also the solution to our biggest problem.
They literally take in carbon dioxide,
and, by doing so, regulate the Earth's climate,
the very thing we are building man-made machines to do.
The answer is right in front of us, ancient forests like this one
that have been doing it for millions and millions of years.
It's never been more important to preserve them.
The jungle is the place to look if you want to, like,
spark up that childlike curiosity again.
Everything here is just incredible,
despite it being, like, a lot of things, like, very deadly.
And the jungle really does sometimes feel like
everything just wants to kill you.
But once you start sort of getting into the way of things,
getting into the swing of things, it sort of becomes manageable.
And, of course, as soon as you relax,
then something else that you hadn't heard of,
something else as deadly that you're about to stand on or touch.
And this is pristine rainforest that you don't want to mess with.
And we have to keep it that way. There's so few ancient forests now.
We're cutting them down at crazy rates.
Look at how much biodiversity and how much life,
and these are the lungs of the planet.
And, yeah, it's magic in here. It truly is magic.
We're behind schedule.
Two weeks in, and with only 40 kilometres covered,
our rations are running low.
Our first resupply is another 50 kilometres away,
but what stands between us and that is thick and unpredictable jungle.
Good morning, Vivian. Good morning, Lucy.
It's so wet out here, they're just...
They very easily get manky and rot.
And they will eventually.
But it's just a case of trying to stop them rotting as fast.
Wild places are not uniform,
but instead are magnificently unpredictable.
But that also means we faced a gruelling start
and haven't progressed as much as I would have liked.
Already I sense some of the guys might be having second thoughts.
Come on, guys, happy. Yeah.
We are happy.
So, in all honesty, the team's working really well,
but I'm a little, a little bit worried about Aaron.
He's just not his usual happy self in the day,
and I can tell that he's finding the whole thing a little bit daunting.
So I've just got to monitor him.
If we need to, like, get him out, we'll have to figure something out.
Vivian is an absolute trooper,
he's been cutting the line every day since we got here.
He is a strong, strong, strong guy.
We're not even in the Kanuku Mountains yet.
We have got such a long way to go.
The team's lack of fresh food is causing spirits to drop a little.
Napoleon famously once said that an army marches on its stomach,
and we need more than noodles to keep this one up.
Monkey pot. Can you eat it?
Oh, you can't eat it. It looks like a fried egg.
It looks tasty.
Give it...
Give it a few more weeks and I might eat it.
We'll see if it's poisonous or not.
The guys are always showing me the secret wonders of the forest,
including things to eat,
and they take fresh food to a whole other level.
This nut, on the other hand, has a little gooey goodie inside of it.
A kukrit grub.
Cheers.
Cookies? Yeah.
It doesn't taste like cookies.
Oh, when you toast it? Yeah, when you toast it.
It does taste better.
Still, definitely not cookies.
Whoa, today was the hardest day so far, I would say.
Yeah, we struggled to find water at the end of the day.
We just went a bit longer than normal.
And we are camped next to a sort of vaguely running little creek.
That looks really idyllic, right?
But our bathing system is not.
SHE CHUCKLES
We bathe in the puddles, in the muddy puddles.
LAUGHTER
Urgh!
Slow terrain today.
This is the worst place.
Bush cow flies. It's horrible.
They've been following us all morning.
The first time I've seen proper blue sky in ages.
It's nice.
It reminds you that not everything is in the shadows.
Urgh, I'll tell you what are in the shadows,
these bush cow flies.
Yes.
Oh, you've got bush flies on your bum.
This is not easy.
Ow! I just got bit on the bum.
We're in thick bamboo bush, so we're just...
Well, the guys are clearing a space
so we can put the drone up and see what's beyond,
cos this is just ridiculous, this bush.
Yeah, today was hard.
Urgh, we only covered, like, two kilometres in the whole day.
Large, thick bush.
If it carries on like this we're not going to make it.
Like, we'll just...
You know, our bodies will rot before we can get to the end,
cos we're not seeing any good rivers to wash in.
Like, we're not...
It's way harder than anyone ever thought it would be.
And you can't see what it's going to be like on the map.
Yeah, OK.
A hard day.
But we're going to have to, yeah...
..see what tomorrow brings.
It is relentless. It is...
..so hard.
Yesterday, I really struggled.
Everyone struggled.
Oh, my gosh, when the bush is thick...
..it's...
You just feel like you've got so much ahead of you,
and that what we've taken on is just too much.
I have to say, as much as I wash,
I wash and I wash...
..I still absolutely reek.
And there's no getting around it.
It's...
It's a smelly business.
We've actually found a spot that we can actually swim in,
so we can actually get a good wash, or rinse, as we like to call it,
it's not really washing.
But...
Oh, my God, look at this.
This is something special.
We may be the first humans who have ever bathed in this.
We're certainly not the first living things.
I'm sure there's going to be a lot of visitors during the night.
But, wow, what a place to end a good day.
THUNDER RUMBLES
This is the first time we can really get clean.
Every day we've been covered in tree dust, mud, ants, and ticks.
We've been craving to fully submerge in water like this.
Swimming in the tropical rainforest storm
while there's thunder and lightning above.
THUNDER RUMBLES
And just when we're winding down...
..Aaron has fresh food on his mind.
Oh, yeah, quick, quick, quick.
This is the traditional Amerindian way of fishing,
and the guys are masters at it.
Dinner is served.
That is big.
And how long do you think that will feed us for?
LAUGHTER
Whoa, that could give you a bite, right?
But Aaron's not done yet, and catches an electric eel.
This is an electric eel.
Electric eel. Whoa!
Be careful.
It went through the wet wood? Yes.
LAUGHTER
I tell you it's going to shock you. Yes.
But you got an aimara.
So far we've been going 17 days,
covering only 45 kilometres through this totally unforgiving wilderness.
But no matter how tough it gets,
I've never lost sight of the importance of this habitat.
The Amazon rainforest is made up of a whole interconnected web of life.
Every creature has a role to play.
Take, for example, the humble termite.
Its job is to clean up the forest floor,
breaking down organic matter
to create a habitat for other organisms,
recycling the nutrients as it goes.
But it's not just the small critters that play a part.
Jaguars are key in maintaining biodiversity
by preventing one species from dominating the ecosystem.
One of the jaguar's main food sources is peccary.
Peccary are a wild pig.
In this wilderness, it's the white-lipped peccary that roam,
and they travel in herds of up to 500
and can become very defensive.
You don't want to come across them.
Peccary.
HIGH-PITCHED GRUNTING
How many?
A lot of peccaries.
So, peccaries are super dangerous.
They take out anything in their path.
And we have to climb a tree if they come.
They're only a couple of hundred metres away.
There's a lot of them.
They came through here. Whoa...
This is what I mean when they take out everything in their path.
Look at that.
That was close.
Our peccary encounter was a little too close for comfort.
But, for dinner, we've got our left over
and slightly questionable fish.
We're willing to take the risk
because hunger is really taking over.
We try to enjoy it as the light fades.
But then, like clockwork,
we hear that familiar whistle once again.
WHISTLING
So many here, aren't there? Yes.
WHISTLING
You can't help but think the snakes are communicating with one another,
guarding their territory, warning us from continuing on.
WHISTLING
Oh, I'm feeling pretty ropey this morning.
Ropey, ropey, ropey.
Just starting the day wearing Crocs...
..because it's too early to get our boots,
and our socks and our feet are soaking wet.
At this point, it's hard to tell whether we're feeling ropey
because of the 90% humidity, the unfiltered water,
or maybe it's the old fish.
Either way, it's taking a toll on our bodies,
and our feet are suffering being this wet all of the time.
It's just brutal out here. It really destroys everything.
It destroys your body. It destroys your kit.
It destroys your mind.
Oooh, la-la, be careful.
Erm, you need to get some foot spray.
All of this here. Yeah, that's not good.
All this here, and all of that.
Yeah, you're getting a bit of trench foot there, I think.
Go on, then, let's see the other one.
Oh, nice, nice, nice, nice.
Aaron's fixing his boots.
They're going through...
..going through hell.
Today was hard trying to stay positive.
But, you know, there's so much ahead.
I think some of the guys are showing signs of wanting to leave
as soon as we reach resupply one. I don't know.
Although Vivian is really up for it.
So, yeah, we're forming a really good bond.
Yeah, what a day. This place is not easy.
It's raining again. Our energy is really dropping.
Our feet are really mouldy.
We are doing all the right things. Like, we are doing it to the book,
how you're meant to do it in the jungle,
but you just can't avoid your feet rotting
when you don't have any rest days or any sunlight.
Trying to keep everyone's spirits up is harder than it seems.
It's been three weeks
of continuously moving through the lowlands,
but we've done it and reached our first major river
and the coordinates for our resupply.
HE BLOWS A DEEP CONTINUOUS NOTE
We've got more noodles.
Sardines!
Yeah, sardines!
Oh, it feels really good.
I'm hoping that the next leg
isn't going to be as soul-destroying as this one has been.
It's pushed us.
We are going to try and make a raft out of bamboo
and also the barrels that were left that had our resupply rations in.
It's going to save us quite a lot of Ks, quite a few days,
which we need to do because we're behind schedule.
So we're going to go and find some bamboo now.
Like everything in the jungle, bamboo has a defence mechanism...
..these lethal spikes.
We're cutting the final cane, but then...
..disaster strikes.
One falls right on to Vivian.
It might not look like much, but a spike's penetrated deep into his arm
on to a nerve.
I can't get it out, and Vivian's hand is paralysed.
I need to cut him up, but then we really risk infection.
Sepsis is a real threat here.
He needs to get help, and quickly.
I've sent an SOS for Vivian,
but whilst we wait, another fear sets in.
I'm worried that some of the team will see the boat
and want to flee themselves, because, really,
there's nothing stopping them from quitting when that arrives.
So I'm trying to keep up the excitement
of our imminent raft journey because, once we set sail,
they'll have no choice but to stay.
Hello, guys.
Go and get fixed up.
Come back.
We'll see you in a couple of days. Yeah.
Yeah, you, too.
Yeah, I know. I've got to defend myself now.
Yeah.
Just remember to come back.
No!
You don't want to spend eight hours in a boat.
So while we wait for Vivian to return...
..we wait.
The guys fish.
And we wait some more.
Yeah.
What's that one?
Oh, that's the black piranha?
Oh, hello!
This is one of the last remaining pristine wildernesses,
and the fish here are much better.
But the global water cycle means that, even here,
where there's almost no human activity,
the fish will still have a level of contamination.
So we've just heard from Anders that the medical people, or someone,
tried to get the bamboo out of Vivian's arm, but couldn't.
But that means they've cut him up a lot,
and he can't come back, at least for now.
Which means we need to get another person, which is a big shake-up.
It kind of sucks. Right, Mikey?
He was a bit like my...
Oooh, no.
Yeah.
I felt like he was a little bit like my good-luck charm.
So the fact that he's gone, it's kind of worrying.
It's silly, I know.
There'll be other good people, but...
..he was, like...
..he was the strongest team member.
So the fact he's gone is kind of a blow.
A new team member arrives.
Nice to meet you.
I hope Anders said that there was going to be a camera.
It's time to put the raft through the ultimate test.
These guys, you're amazing at building this thing.
The mountains throw everything at us.
It's hard.
I learn what it means to get up close and personal with a caiman.
This is absolutely mental. This is the real deal.
Whoa...!
Things don't go to plan.
We just got attacked by the really big wasps.
And after months of hearing them,
we get face to face with the dreaded bushmaster.
Over 50% of the world's population now live in cities.
We are the most disconnected we have ever been from the natural world.
With the rapid pace in growth in which us humans live,
it would be easy to believe that there's no area left unexplored.
But you'd be wrong.
There are still majestic pockets of land that are truly rugged,
wild, and untouched.
It's just brutal.
We just haven't seen proper sunlight in, like, 21 days.
It's so dark under the canopy.
And the critical thing is,
we need them for the health of our planet.
I'm Lucy, and I'm an explorer.
I've been leading expeditions across the world for over a decade -
and now, I'm on a mission to take you with me.
On my biggest and most dangerous adventure yet,
I'm trying to cross one of these last-remaining wildernesses
located deep in the Amazon rainforest -
a journey many think is impossible.
I want to show you the beauty...
Oh, my God, look...at this!
..the surprising...
Ah, it's magic in here. It truly is magic.
..and the downright ugly.
Ohhh!
With my team, we'll seek out the weird and wonderful creatures
that call this unrelenting place "home".
And, as we journey on foot through inhospitable jungle,
we'll learn to work with the wild, not against it.
We're very, very far from help right now.
If something happens, we are on our own.
We just got attacked by the really big wasps.
THEY LAUGH
Because it has never been more important for us to build up
our relationship with the natural world
and protect these last wildernesses at all costs.
This is the hardest thing I have ever done.
The expedition is almost over before it even began.
So, we've just capsized, and we lost stuff.
We did lose one thing - the water filter.
The bushmaster-snake whistles haunted us.
DISTANT WHISTLING There's so many here, aren't there?
Peccary.
Our tree-climbing came into play.
They came through here. Whoa.
Team morale was put to the test.
This is...not easy.
Vivian was evacuated...
He was the strongest team member.
..leaving the whole expedition in jeopardy.
I'm in Guyana, journeying across
one of the most untouched rainforests in the world.
This majestic and rugged wilderness threw everything at us
in the first leg - but now, we're at our first resupply,
waiting for the new team member.
So, this should be an opportunity for rest.
But instead, losing the water filter has finally caught up with us.
SHE SIGHS
I went down last night with sickness,
vomiting, and diarrhoea.
But I feel a lot better now.
It was going to happen at some point.
This was the best time for it to happen.
Hopefully it doesn't happen again.
How are you feeling, Aaron? Rough?
Minor thing - we'll get over it, and we'll be strong again.
Yeah, yeah, yes, Lucy. Yeah. HE CHUCKLES
Eventually, after days of waiting,
we hear the distant murmur of a motor.
Yeah! Yeah, man!
Because we're so remote, it's taken Anders three days
to reach us, even by river.
Nice to meet you.
I hope Anders said that there was going to be a camera.
I already told Carlos how grateful we are that he's coming in on,
you know, such a short notice. Yeah, amazing.
It's good we've got our - another fifth team member again.
I'm sad that Vivian's not here, but we move on.
I cannot wait to get the next... leg done.
And then, we'll be, like, two thirds of the way, and then,
I could be able to see the end.
Right now, the end feels a long way away,
especially the way I've been feeling.
So, the raft is ready - and tomorrow, we set sail.
We're going to have to give all we got for leg two.
First, it'll see us heading north, downstream -
Well, that's if the raft holds out.
We hope to sail all the way to where Rewa River meets Kwitaro River.
And from here, we'll be back on foot,
heading west through the lush forest.
We'll be gaining height as we cross the Mapari Mountains,
finding a way through the lush vegetation
until we reach the Rupununi.
But our first obstacle to tackle is keeping the raft afloat.
Let's hope it works.
Let's see if the caimans stay away,
or if they become a little curious about a little raft going along.
I'm going to try and sit in the middle, with my machete, ready.
Not that I'm sure I stand much of a chance with a machete
and a black caiman, but... a girl can dream.
A ship isn't a ship without a flag.
Final touches?
SHE CHUCKLES
Yeah.
Right, leg two.
Let's get this done.
You, you paddle out, Aaron. Yeah, paddle.
You paddle, you paddle. Nice. Not bad, not bad. Yeah.
Good, good, good.
It's working.
Guyana, in native Amerindian,
translates to "the land of many waters" -
and it's easy to see why.
Its majestic forest is interspersed with an abundance of rivers,
creeks, and waterways.
Having plentiful water keeps the forest resilient
and allows the animals and plants to thrive within.
Looking at it now, it's hard to believe,
but this area has actually seen a drop in rainfall
and had more frequent droughts.
These drier conditions threaten habitats
and increase the risk of wildfires.
And this, of course, has a far-reaching impact.
A mass die-off of trees would lead to the release of huge amounts
of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere,
making us all more vulnerable by
driving global temperatures even higher.
This plan is working. Yeah, yeah. SHE CHUCKLES WRYLY
I'd much rather be in here... than in there,
moving so slowly next to the river.
Properly living a childhood dream right now.
We're about to get very wet -
and not from having a dip in the river.
Ready?
Now. It's pouring with rain.
Nice little, erm...shower.
But we're almost there.
One more turn.
We've made it. Yeah. Five hours?
Five hours, instead of five days.
The raft... Did work.
..did work, yeah.
Oh, thank God. I can't believe that raft worked so well.
We've got to Kwitaro Mouth.
We start our next leg tomorrow.
That worked incredibly.
Better than my wildest dreams.
Team spirit is good.
That was amazing. Best day yet so far.
Leg two.
Let's do it!
Wasps, Lucy. Wasps. Yeah.
Yeah, we're forever either standing still because of wasps or bees,
or running through them.
It's one of the two.
In the Amazon rainforest alone, there are hundreds,
if not thousands, of different species of wasps.
So, it's no surprise that wasp nests are a daily encounter.
Normally, we're able to spot them before creating a disturbance
and give them a wide berth,
but some just come out of nowhere.
LOUD BUZZING
Wasps!
We just got attacked by the really big wasps.
I just got about... two stings on the head.
Er, yeah, some on my head.
One on my neck. One on my arm.
SHE CHUCKLES WRYLY
And one on my back.
But it's OK. Just quite sore.
SHE CHUCKLES
SHE CHUCKLES NERVOUSLY
Mm-hm.
THEY LAUGH
There's going to be a little bit of a swelling on my head,
I think. Me, too.
I'm hoping for a good night's sleep to recover from the wasp attack.
But of course, the guys have other ideas.
THEY STRAIN LOUDLY
Whoa!
STRAINING CONTINUES
No, it's not. THEY LAUGH
Dinner is served! LAUGHTER CONTINUES
During the last leg, the guys' feet really began to rot.
So, for this one, they've opted for long boots -
otherwise known as wellies.
Further up ahead, we're stopped by a river obstacle.
This river might look tame,
but it's filled with electric eels.
And just recently, there's been a new species discovered.
These eels generate electricity of a voltage of
up to a whopping 860 volts -
that's more than three times the voltage from our home power points.
What's your idea, Aaron?
Aaron, why are you going that high?
I'm quite worried for him, actually. It's really high.
Jesus Christ.
Aaron, that was amazing!
That's ridiculous!
I can't believe you just did that in Wellington boots.
Aha!
Aaron has me worried a lot on this trip.
OK, so it looks like we're actually going to chuck the rope over,
and we're going to try and get the bags across,
and then, get us across.
You know what? I don't think it's going to be a dry crossing.
Let's see.
Oh, man.
The faster we go, the less likely we'll attract the electric eels.
Yes!
Go, Lucy! Yeeeah! Wow! SHE LAUGHS
You've got the arrows and everything? Yep!
Your hat! Your hat!
THEY LAUGH
Nicely done.
Ah!
SHE LAUGHS
Your tree climbing - your tree climbing was amazing!
Thanks.
Our plan worked - no-one was electrocuted.
Now, only about 300km of jungle to get through.
The Amazon rainforest is home to 390 billion trees.
That's so big that it's three times more trees
as there are stars in the Milky Way.
But they're not all the same either.
There's approximately 15,000 different species of tree here,
each with different properties to make the whole ecosystem stronger.
This is the Balata tree -
also known as the rubber tree.
And that makes rubber?
Or that is latex, and that makes rubber?
The white liquid was exploited for latex in the late 19th
and early 20th centuries,
and was big business for Guyana's rubber industry,
until synthetic alternatives came along -
one rare bit of good news for the rainforest.
Really?
And the tree can recover quite well?
Yeah.
The beautiful thing about the tree diversity here is
the potential it has in medicine.
The indigenous communities still hold vast traditional knowledge of
the medicinal uses of many of these plants.
There's secrets everywhere.
The Mora tree.
LOUD SCREECHING AND CHATTERING
Whoa.
A tree like this can be home to tens of thousands of different species,
and, left untouched, can live for hundreds of years.
But just 200km away,
across the border and into Brazil,
it's a different story.
The Amazon rainforest loses around 1.4 billion trees each year
from deforestation, and the loss of these trees means we risk
losing potentially life-saving cures that are yet to be discovered.
It's a race against time to preserve this wilderness
as much as we can.
So, this part we're in now... is so, so unexplored.
Very likely that no human has ever walked these mountains, and...
..we are the first to go through them.
This really is like us covering new ground.
Real, real exploration.
SHE EXHALES
This terrain might be hard for us,
but it makes for the perfect home for the Bush Dai Dai.
And, before we know it, there's evidence that it's been here.
What? So one there. And where's the other one?
Oh, one of the, yeah... Yes, yes. This is the sign.
These broken trees next to one another are a sign that
the Bush Dai Dai has passed through.
And feared by many. Yes. Yeah.
The Bush Dai Dai is from an Amerindian belief.
It is a half-human, half-animal-type figure,
a Yeti figure, bigger than a man, hairy,
claws, that sort of thing.
And it is essentially the guardian of the forest.
Keep respecting the jungle, as it deserves to be respected,
so that the Bush Dai Dai stays on our side.
Yeah.
Second sighting evidence of Bush Dai Dai.
I expect we'll see more as we go into the mountains, as well.
So, no shouting.
Cos if you shout, the Bush Dai Dai will know...
..where you are and come.
Legend says that the Bush Dai Dai can shapeshift into any animal.
So, perhaps it's been watching us all this time -
because then, we hear our biggest fear.
BUSHMASTER SNAKE WHISTLES
Bushmaster snake. Mm-hm.
Come around?
WHISTLING CONTINUES
Can you see it? Yeah.
Don't get too close.
You can see it?
Where? Where, where, where?
How are you seeing it?
No.
We've been surrounded by whistling bushmaster snakes
during the day and night.
Now, it feels like they're getting closer.
But we're weeks from help.
One deadly bite and it's game over.
WHISTLING CONTINUES Bushmasters...everywhere.
The land of the bushmaster snake.
We hear them a lot, but we haven't been seeing them that much.
Yeah, we don't want to be running into them,
or stumbling into them.
Very dangerous...
..and we are far from help.
Good to know that that one ran away.
DISTANT WHISTLING
Two bushmasters.
DISTANT WHISTLING
Phew. Scary.
The light fades very quickly in the jungle,
and so, it makes seeing things on the floor very hard
as soon as it gets to, like, around 3pm.
And 3pm is also the time at which the wildlife comes out.
DISTANT WHISTLING
We just ran down that mountain to get away from the bushmasters.
Well done for getting us away from the bushmasters!
We cannot hear them, so we have to be careful.
Don't go walking at night.
Very dangerous. Yeah.
But, yes, once again,
we are surrounded by bushmaster snakes.
Yeah, we knew it when we were coming down to find the water,
but this place is full of bushmasters.
They're everywhere.
DISTANT BUSHMASTER SNAKES WHISTLING
It's getting pretty exhausting, being in danger all the time.
But, erm, just one foot in front of the other, and we will...
..eventually get there.
Oh, yeah. Found a snake.
Let's...let's get rid of it.
Keep an eye out where it goes.
It's going to Lionel.
You see? Exactly?
You just can't take your eyes off the ball.
Bloody snakes...everywhere.
I'm pretty tired today.
Everyone's pretty tired.
Running low on food...energy.
I just want to get to the next resupply.
Good exercise, yeah.
That's most people's daily exercise. Yes, yes, yes.
Yep. SHE CHUCKLES WRYLY
Sometimes that happens.
CHUCKLING CONTINUES
Yeah, there's a really nice moment that keeps happening -
and that's that Mikey is teaching Aaron how to use the GPS.
I don't know, it's really nice, cos Aaron's been teaching Mikey
how to use the bow and arrow - so it's quite a nice crossover
of knowledge, from one generation bushman to the next.
Quite nice to watch, and that they're both wanting to learn.
And that's the way it should be.
Whoa! A nice shot.
We've been together for over a month in the jungle -
and I think it's fair to say we're all going a little feral.
Tapping into our childlike selves.
There's no going back now.
Woohoo!
EXCITED CHATTER
Whoo! Hoo!
EXCITED VOCALISING
Higher, Lucy, watch that peccary!
Well, I am thrilled to report
that Aaron will be staying for the entire time.
So, I was a bit worried that he might want to leave in the next leg,
but he's going to continue.
I think Lionel is stepping out,
cos of his knee and the mountains ahead,
which is fine.
He's done remarkably well.
But it will be very sad to see him go.
Today should mark the end of leg two,
and we get to our next resupply point,
which is going to be amazing -
because I also hope that
Vivian's wound will have healed,
and he should be waiting at those coordinates.
And we'll also be meeting our next team member,
Max, who will be replacing Carlos.
So, big changes. But last resupply point,
and leg three means we head into the mountain stage -
the steep mountains of the Kanukus.
Ohh, he's going straight in!
Watch out for the caiman.
Watch for the caiman! That's the deep bit.
Oh, my God. Yes!
SHE LAUGHS
THEY LAUGH
Woohoo!
After 39 days, we have really done it.
Leg two complete, and we've made it to the coordinates
of our final resupply.
And, look who's waiting for us.
Morning. Nice to see you.
How's your arm?
Yeah? Can I see it? Can I see?
Oh, God. Actually, that's na...
Yeah. Oof! Ouch.
Are you looking forward to the trip? Yeah?
I'm hap...
Yeah, we're going to have a good leg. Yeah, yeah.
Lionel, I know everyone likes to fist bump,
but I'm going to give you a hug.
Thank you so much...for everything.
Carlos, I'll give you a hug. This is how we do it.
SHE CHUCKLES
Let's go cross this river. Wish us luck.
SHE CHUCKLES
Leg three sees us crossing the caiman-infested Rupununi River -
and then, we'll have really have gotten started.
The Kanuku Mountains are a protected area
and the only part of the forest where logging and mining are banned.
These mountains are 3,000-foot tall,
and we have dozens and dozens of them to cross.
But if we can make it, we'll finally emerge onto the savannah
and the border of Brazil.
So, we've spotted a place to cross the river.
It's still pretty wide, I have to be honest,
and we have seen two caiman already.
But we're going to get Aaron, the water dog -
he's going to swim across with a rope,
and then, we're going to swim with our bags and get across.
But am I nervous?
Yes, I think this is probably the most scariest,
nerve-racking swim I've ever done in my life.
The bushmasters, the jaguars... it's all right,
we'll take on the next predator.
Now, the black - oh, the piranhas, they're small fry.
LAUGHTER
These caiman are not to be messed with.
These black caiman, they can grow up to 14 feet,
15 feet, 400 lbs, some of them.
They'll easily eat you up,
take an arm and leg off without even thinking about it.
And if you splash in the water, it'll attract them -
so, whilst we swim across, we've got to be very silent.
Careful. Don't splash.
OK, Aaron, you can come back now.
What have we got ourselves into?
There's a caiman right there.
Now, it's my turn.
All right. Yeah. RELIEVED CHUCKLING
Don't sit. Yeah!
Our final leg begins.
The Kanukus were made a protected area in 2011,
securing this area's future.
How beautiful is this?
Hitting the mountains, and it's starting to get really stunning.
We are in the mountains now.
The mountains have begun.
Steep, steep, steep.
Yeah.
Phew.
Yeah, the Kanuku Mountains are big. SHE CHUCKLES
THEY STRAIN
Well, we started climbing the Kanuku Mountain.
I think it's safe to say... it's hard.
I'm not even kidding, I've actually got the shakes,
because this is...
We are...climbing really,
like, the incline, may be, like,
steeper than 45 degrees.
Sometimes, I-I honestly think it's sometimes like 60 degrees.
So, we are actually rock climbing using roots and trees.
And this is the first time I've seen Mikey tired
in the whole trip.
It feels really nice,
after being in the sort of valleys and the darkness,
to be up high on the mountains.
This is what the Kanukus is all about,
being on these mountaintops.
Whoa! Misty.
How high is it, Mikey?
Whoop-whoop. Yeah, man. SHE CHUCKLES
Over here...
As always, just as we start to let down our guard,
the jungle reminds us she's always in control.
Yeah?
Oh, yeah?
Ooh! It's hard to see, look.
With your film camera, you'd have to zoom in.
Oh, it's ready for you, as well.
Oop!
The bigger these black scorpions are,
the worse their sting,
so this would cause some extreme pain.
My skin is suffering big time.
My legs are bleeding, like, everywhere from all the bites.
A tick's trying to get to me.
Actually, there's two in one area.
Look at those guys.
So, Mikey's got mosquito larvae.
Vivian's managed to get one of these out,
but the other one is still inside.
So, I think we'll use some cigarette ash to try and kill it.
A mosquito larvae is like a botfly.
It's likely it's been growing in there for weeks.
And every night, it breaks through Mikey's skin to come up for air.
If we just left it, it would just get bigger,
and then, grow hairs, and then, wings,
and eventually fly out.
And then, you felt it moving, right?
The ash should suffocate it,
and then, it'll be a case of squeezing it out.
Right, we're going to get this out, Mikey.
SHE CHUCKLES
Is it dead now?
Oh, is that it? Yeah. Oh, let's see, let's see...
So, he came out for breath, and then, died?
Ohhh!
Christ! No wonder you could feel that.
HE WINCES
I don't know how you're watching.
Ugh!
That's its belly? Ugh.
God. Oh, I'm glad you got that out.
Yeah.
It's a new day - and with one less larvae in Mikey's arm,
we should be feeling good.
But before we know it,
it's that familiar sound again.
BUSHMASTER SNAKES WHISTLE
Fear consumes us.
WHISTLING CONTINUES
Bushmasters really like mountainous areas.
They sound like they're coming from all directions.
The whistles have haunted us for months now,
and it feels like there's no escape.
WHISTLING CONTINUES
Tonight...
Tonight, we're surrounded by bushmaster snakes.
We have to be very careful tomorrow, watching our footing.
Cos one wrong step...
There is not a population problem with bushmasters here.
They're just so camouflaged you can't see them...
..but they're everywhere.
WHISTLING CONTINUES
WHISTLING INTENSIFIES
So, the bushmasters are close.
That's why I've been filming...
BUSHMASTERS WHISTLING
WHISTLING GETS CLOSER
That whistle is close.
Oh, can you see it? Can you...?
Oh, it's still there. Shit.
WHISTLING CONTINUES
Yeah.
Uh-huh.
Yeah. My eyes aren't very good, but...
There's a bushmaster right in front of us.
Vivian had a lucky escape and almost fell onto it.
I can tell he's shaken up.
Aaron doesn't hesitate to get his bow -
and I feel a little helpless as I watch what's unfolding.
WHISTLING CONTINUES
WHISTLING STOPS
Yeah, there's another one around.
WHISTLING INTENSIFIES
Despite these creatures driving fear into us for so long,
this disturbs me.
I'm so glad Vivian is OK,
but it doesn't sit well.
WHISTLING STOPS
The team believe that the bones of this snake are venomous,
and if it strikes and misses, it'll then jump onto you
and whip you with its tail.
This is their belief -
but you can't argue that there's something strange about the tail.
The bone appears to be coming out,
a bit like a needle.
Yeah. Yeah. So strong.
Whoa, it's big.
Bloody hell.
Yeah. Yes.
Whoa.
DISTANT WHISTLING
Another Amerindian belief is that, if a bushmaster is killed,
dead wood must be placed on top of it.
This is so, if another bushmaster sees it,
they think it's been killed by a fallen branch -
meaning hopefully, we'll be left alone
as we carry on into the mountains.
I do not want to see or come near any more snakes.
We're in the middle of the Kanuku Mountains -
but not remotely free from danger yet.
The end, in my mind, is in sight.
It'll be OK. It'll be good.
We've just got to really stay safe,
cos this place is so dangerous,
and we're so vulnerable to anything that could get us.
We're far from help.
On reflection of the bushmaster killing, I can't help
but still feel uncomfortable with the whole situation,
and I feel like maybe we've had it all wrong.
It was never the snake we should have feared -
but instead, and as it always is,
it's us who is the biggest threat.
I want to know how the team really feel -
and Max is the first to bring it up.
Yeah. Yeah.
Yeah.
It's so dark under the canopy.
It feels like night-time.
When the camera is off, without seeing it,
I disturb a tarantula hawk wasp -
and end up with the huge wasp stinging me.
It's officially one of the world's most painful stings -
and I can assure you, it's agony.
My eye has ballooned from the sting,
and it makes seeing things even harder.
Jungle's not done with us yet.
I'll admit, I am...tired.
LABOURED BREATHING
This has been a huge, huge undertaking,
this adventure...
..more than anyone could've ever thought.
But I can't wait for it to be over now.
It's been one hell of a ride.
I'm really... it's time to go home now.
LABOURED BREATHING CONTINUES
WHISTLE BLOWS
We are all fatigued.
My face burns, and the bushmaster killing
has hit me harder than expected.
I need a break.
Ugh.
I haven't had one of these days like this yet.
We've got...we've got two days left.
So, I just wanted to step away from the team a little bit,
and just let it out a little bit.
SHE SNIFFLES
Cos I haven't been able to, cos there's no privacy.
TEARFULLY: I'm ready to finish now.
Can't wait to be safe. SHE SNIFFLES
I've gotta get up.
Make sure I don't look like I've been crying.
I just needed that... I just needed that.
Sometimes, a little release is just what you need,
and I feel much better.
Today's a big day, cos today's our last full day of walking.
Oh, I'm not ready for civilisation.
Actually, that's a lie - I'm very ready for civilisation.
So, I'm going to miss this life.
I'm going to miss this life a lot.
This won't be the end of this life.
There'll be more expeditions, there'll be more jungles,
there'll be more other environments.
..so, so, so...
We've made it to our last campsite.
It's clear, it's open,
and we've just gotta go up the mountain up there,
and then, down into the savannah,
and we've done it.
Yeah.
SHE EXHALES Noodles for dinner tonight.
WHISTLE BLOWS
We've been through thick and thin together.
These guys are like my brothers now.
THEY LAUGH
It's time to go home now, right? Yes.
Like you can walk another trip?
Yes! I can't. HE LAUGHS
This is what the top of the mountain looks like.
ALL: Yeah!
We have come 200km in a straight line -
actually over 400km in the way that we've come,
to the savannah.
Done it. Brazil, that way.
We've almost walked the entire length - the width of Guyana.
Almost.
Phew. Mental.
SHE CHUCKLES
After 50 days and 400km in the deep and dark jungle,
we're out - and into the heat of the savannah.
And it doesn't take long before Anders rocks up,
our brilliant operations manager and resupply organiser -
and with a surprise.
Aaron's wife.
Aww! Big guy. THEY LAUGH
That is a nice surprise.
Go! Go!
Yeah, there we go! LAUGHTER
It doesn't work. You try.
Yeah! LAUGHTER CONTINUES
Before setting off, we could have never have known
what was in store for us.
The dangers and joys that lay ahead,
and the lifelong friendships to be made.
We came here to explore this wild jungle...
..and, along the way, have learnt just how vital
these ecosystems are for the future of our planet.
In a world where we're glued to our screens,
it's easier than ever to feel disconnected from the natural world.
We might assume there's nothing left to explore,
but these wild places, they do exist.
And the truth is, we simply cannot live without them.
Our future depends on these ancient landscapes,
so now is the time to celebrate and protect them with all we've got.
We all have a paradise to look after
and it's called Planet Earth.