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Levison Wood interview: journeys through the badlands and beyond
Professional explorer, writer and photographer Levison Wood will appear at the Adventure Travel Show in London tomorrow to discuss his recent 5,000 mile circumnavigation of the Arabian Peninsula, from Iraq to Lebanon.
Ahead of the show, The Week Portfolio caught up with Wood to discuss what adventure means in the 21st century.
What does adventure mean in a world that has been completely circumnavigated, measured, summited and plumbed?
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For me, adventure is all about a sense of freedom, it’s about pushing your own limits, and leaving certain things to chance and serendipity, embracing risks in order to get the best reward.
What did you think of the race across the Antarctic between Colin O'Brady and Capt Lou Rudd? Worthwhile adventure or dangerous stunt?
You know, in any expedition where you’re pushing yourself and the boundaries of human limits, then why not? I don’t think it was a stunt, I don’t think either of them saw it as a race, neither of them knew that they were in it until it’d actually begun. You know, it’s a great achievement by both.
What have been some of the hairiest moments of your own travels?
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Everything from my recent trip around Arabia, including when I got caught in an ambush by Isis. What else? I was shot at by rebels in Sudan. But actually it’s usually the “chased by crocodiles and lions and everything else in Africa” things, and the more mundane stuff like being involved in a car crash in Nepal. I broke my arm and the car went flying off a cliff there. Also I got dengue fever and malaria… I don’t know, the whole spectrum.
Did your recent adventures in Arabia change you? Were there any things you encountered that you didn't expect or that challenged you?
Plenty of challenges. Going to places like Yemen, which is in the middle of a terrible civil war. Seeing the destruction of places Homs, Damascus, and Mosul in Iraq. But also I think the most surprising thing was challenging the stereotypes, you know, the conflict is very localised, and actually most people there are getting on with their normal lives and are very welcoming and hospitable.
What five pieces of kit would you not leave home without?
I always pack light, and just take the essentials, depending on the journey, but I always carry my camera, because that’s a part of what I do - I like a camera. Even though on most of my travels it’s easy to navigate via Google maps, I’ll always carry a compass just in case. I always take one set of nice clothes - sort of a white shirt - just in case you get called to go to an embassy to present yourself, or you meet a dignitary. In the Himalayas for example, I met the Dalai Lama - so always best to carry one clean set of clothes.
I hide some ready cash under the insoles of my shoes, so just in case you get robbed, you've got something. I don’t miss the luxuries, the only thing I really miss is a good cup of tea; you can’t get a good cup of tea anywhere. Or toast.
And if you could take just one luxury with you out into the wild, what would that be?
A luxury? Often it’s a bit of tabasco sauce, just to spice up a bit of food, it can get a bit monotonous sometimes, can’t it?
Why do you think humans crave adventure?
I think there’s something in the human psyche, that’s always been, ever since the Early Man left Africa. There’s something about exploration, and seeing what’s over the next horizon, that’s deep within our DNA. And I think that’s always been there.
There have always been outlets for adventure and for exploration. But now, in today’s modern world, where everything has been mapped, and we live in quite a restrained society - especially in the West where we’re mollycoddled - there’s a lot of repressed adventurers out there, and I think there’s a need, an essential requirement; it’s not a luxury.
I think something that human beings need for their own sanity is that unpredictability. Risk is a good thing. We shouldn’t shy away from it. Risk is something that keeps us alive and makes us human. It’s an important part of pushing ourselves and self development and embracing change. Adventure is all of the above.
What travels have you not yet done that you would still very much like to do?
I’ve still not spent that much time in South America, I’ve only been to Colombia and Chile, so I’d love to go and see Peru, and Brazil and the Amazon... places like that.
And if you had to hang up your adventuring boots and stay in one country, where would you pick to settle down?
To settle down? Probably here. Home is home, isn’t it? Summer in England, no better place!
Now in its 23rd year,The Adventure Travel Show will take place this weekend at Olympia, London on 19 and 20 January, bringing with it a line-up of inspiring seminars, workshops and talks from professionals, including explorer Levison Wood.
Levison takes to stage on Saturday 19 January at 11:45am to talk about his “Journeys through the Badlands and Beyond”, sharing tales from his most recent journeys across some of the most perilous places on Earth.
Arion McNicoll is a freelance writer at The Week Digital and was previously the UK website’s editor. He has also held senior editorial roles at CNN, The Times and The Sunday Times. Along with his writing work, he co-hosts “Today in History with The Retrospectors”, Rethink Audio’s flagship daily podcast, and is a regular panellist (and occasional stand-in host) on “The Week Unwrapped”. He is also a judge for The Publisher Podcast Awards.
