On a hard jungle journey nothing is so important as having a team you can trust.

Most journeys have a clear beginning, but on some the ending is less well-defined. The question is, at what point do you bite your lip and head for home?

Contemplation is a luxury, requiring time and alternatives.

Usually, there is nothing more pleasing that returning to a place where you have endured hardship.

During the days I felt myself slipping into a kind of madness. Solitary confinement has an astonishing effect on the mind. The trip was to stay calm and keep myself occupied. I spent hours working out how to break free. But trying to escape would have been instant suicide.

Through bitter experience I have learned that it is best to promise little and then to reward hard work with generosity.

I felt sure we could gain the upper hand by putting ourselves in the mindset of the Incas.