Venturing into the Amazon Rainforest is a difficult enough task on its own, but venturing into new and uncharted territory makes it all the more terrifying. A UK explorer and some of his friends discovered some uncharted territory near the Amazon River, and they encountered all sorts of wildlife along the way, including a jaguar. Learn of their incredible experience as they discovered this new part of the Amazon River.
New Part Of The Amazon River: An Unforgettable Adventure
Screenshot from Instagram
The NY Post shares the details of when the UK explore Ash Dykes, and his companions found the start of the Coppename River in Suriname. Dykes shared, "We've mapped the coordinates and took a screenshot for any mapping associations who want that."
This group of adventurers not only discovered a new part of the Amazon River but also two waterfalls. Dykes continued by saying,
"It is crazy to think that we are going to some places that the forest hasn't ever seen a human footprint before. And it's not surprising...It is brutal in the jungle."
The group discovered two undocumented waterfalls and named them after the team members who discovered them. The two falls are now called "Dykes Falls" and "Wallace Falls." However, this was not the group's only achievement. Besides discovering a new part of the Amazon River and two new waterfalls, the group also "earned a world record the following day for becoming the fastest group to ascend Julianatop, the tallest mountain in the South American country."
Not All Sunshine And Rainbows
Photocech via: Getty Images
While the rewards of this journey were great, they were not without struggle. The Amazon Rainforest is an unforgiving place, and this group of voyagers saw that. They spent the first six days of their voyage fighting their way upstream in kayaks. As if that wasn't hard enough, they did that with about 110 pounds of supplies.
Additionally, they were "bitten by 300 ticks and brutal army ants." Insects weren't the only creepy crawlies they encountered. The group also encountered "a goliath tarantula—the world's largest spider—as well as snakes and caiman."
As if all of that wasn't terrifying enough, Dykes also shared that one morning the group awoke to fresh jaguar feces near their hammocks. He stated, "We couldn't see it, but who knows how long it was potentially following us for, following our tracks to camp." He shares that the entire experience with the jaguar was "pretty creepy."
Dykes lost three toenails during the discovery of a new part of the Amazon River, as well as his team members being mercilessly bit by insects and a visit from a scorpion. Despite suffering various cuts, bruises, and harsh reminders of the Amazon's brutality, the team remained undeterred. The group is overjoyed at their discovery of a new part of the Amazon River and two uncharted waterfalls.
