Inspire by Ben Fogle

Author:Ben Fogle
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Published: 2020-09-11T13:22:38+00:00

CHAPTER SEVEN

WILD FOLK

‘In every walk with nature, one receives far more than he seeks.’

John Muir

My paddle dipped into the thick, brackish waters. Dense, green vegetation enveloped me like a cloak as I rowed gently upstream, against the invisible flow. A mighty clap of thunder preceded a biblical downpour that threatened to fill my entire canoe. In seconds I was soaked to the core. My clothes clung to me like a heavy second skin. Through the torrential rain, I weaved between submerged trees and branches. The rain fell so hard on the water that it bounced up, creating the illusion of thousands of balls of water dancing on the river surface. The rain burst soon subsided and was replaced by a hot sun that beat down with such ferocity that the rain turned to vapour, rising in a fine mist that shrouded the landscape.

Between two submerged trees, a huge spider had spun a mighty web. It was vast. As my eyes began to adapt to the jungle-like vegetation, I noticed more webs and spiders. Now was probably not the moment to admit a weakness for spiders. Okay, I’m scared of them. And I had just realised they were everywhere.

I was in the middle of a hot, stinky swamp in southern Georgia in the United States on my way to meet someone who had made the wilderness their home.

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