Matthew Mohlke

The Amazon is the planets mightiest river at 6,437 km long. Only half of this is navigable though, and it is this distance that Martin Strel is intending to swim. He is no stranger to long distance swimming; he holds a number of records and firsts, including being the first to swim from Tunisia to Italy without being killed by sharks.

This was to be his longest and most challenging swim. The Amazon river contains a number of animals that se the lone swimming human as a source of lunch. As well as the notorious piranha that can strip a body in no time at all, there are anaconda snakes, the native crocs and river sharks. On top of that there is the environment, the sun is fierce, the river is hugely powerful and full of bacteria causing horrendous stomach bugs to Martin and the rest of the support crew. And then there is the monumental effort required to complete a swim of this length; it is exhausting, relentless and the physical strain on his body brings him very close to death.

But his epic swim brought much needed publicity and attention to the plight of the Amazon rainforest. His arrival at the towns and villages was celebrated frequently, he gained the accolade of The Fish Man from the locals, and his progress was tracked by thousands on the internet.

It isn’t a bad book overall. Written as a diary, Mohlke has managed to convey the effort required by Strel in undertaking this astonishing challenge, as well as the stresses and strains of the team supporting in his record attempt, as well as giving a flavour of life on the Amazon. The writing is a bit clunky, though that is probably because Mohlke is not an author, but an expedition man. Worth a read though.… (mehr)