LEVISON WOOD
WALKING IN WOOD’S FOOTSTEPS
Words Tracey Croke
Images Tracey Croke and Tom McShane
Levison Wood of “Walking the Nile” fame is
back with his new four-part series “Walking
The Himalayas.”
We only have to look in our own outback yard
to know that tens of thousands of years before
a chap in a safari shirt dreamt up a pioneering
expedition in the rooms of the Royal Geographic Society, nomadic tribes were there, doing it
without the maps, compasses and survival gear.
It’s a point modern-day explorer, Levison Wood
(Lev to his mates) has lauded to packed audiences on his speaking tours.
The ex British Parachute Regiment Officer shot to
fame in 2014 after he became the first person
to attempt to walk the whole length of the River
Nile. But Lev, who was forced to skip a 400-mile
section of South Sudan after conflict broke out,
insists, “It’s not about firsts, it’s about the journey
and the people”.
“There is a unique bond that unites walkers everywhere,” Lev recounts of his latest feat of
endurance, which began in Afghanistan and
travelled through the foothills of Pakistan, India
and Nepal before finishing in the Secret Kindom
of Bhutan. “Travelling on foot is the only way to
really explore the backcountry and villages hidden from the main trails and roads.”
The 1,700-mile Himalayan epic wasn’t entirely
exploratory. Fourteen years earlier, Lev was a
teenage backpacker escaping an insurgence
in Pokhara. A Nepali guide – Binod - gave Lev
food and shelter, despite having little himself
and a young family to support. Lev didn’t forget
his longtime friend when it came to hiring local
guides for his Himalayan documentary.
It’s not the only time Lev put himself in the line of
fire during his nine-month expedition of almost
4,000 miles to walk the world’s longest river. He
introduced us to the lighter side of himself and
the so-called dark continent by joining in local
customs such as a hair-rinse ritual, which involved
shoving his head under a peeing cow.
His mischievous Afghan guide, Malang, is a
natural entertainer who enjoys a good joke –
sometimes at Lev’s expense. Lev is happy with
Malang stealing the limelight. He’s often said it’s
not about him, “it’s about the people you meet
along the way.” On meeting Malang, Lev said at
first glance he sensed “intelligence, humour and
an indefinable madness”. He was referring to
the hardiness of Malang, a shepherd and Wakhi
tribesman, who was the first Afghan to summit
Mount Noshaq (7492m), Afghanistan’s highest
peak.
In his new series “Walking The Himalayas” Lev returns with his handheld camera and continues
with his mix of confronting and quirky commentary. “The aim of this new expedition was not to
climb or break any records, but instead to meet
the people who call the Himalayas their home”.
It’s not all heart-warming though. Walking The
Nile viewers were shocked by the sudden and
tragic death of Matt Power – a journalist covering part of the expedition - who suffered a severe heatstroke and died just two hours after
feeling unwell.