Risky raft ride into danger on Nile

By AINSLEY THOMSON


A New Zealand woman is part of a team trying to be the first to navigate the length of the Nile on inflatable rafts.

Natalie McComb is the only woman in the seven-person team making the 6690km journey.

The team set off from the Nile's source, Lake Victoria, on Saturday and will travel through Uganda then through the vast Sudd swamp, war-ravaged southern Sudan and the deserts of northern Sudan and Egypt.

The journey is expected to take up to six months.

Ms McComb told the Herald by satellite phone last night from the banks of the Nile that she went to Africa 3 1/2 years ago as a backpacker.

On the trip she found work as an overland expedition guide and has been based in Uganda since.

During her travels, the 31-year-old, who was raised in Tokoroa and Katikati, met the men - three South Africans, an Irishman and two Britons - she is making the Nile journey with.

The team aim to be the first people to navigate the full length of the Nile and to draw attention to the lives of people living along the banks of the world's longest river by making a documentary about the expedition.

One of the most dangerous stretches will be the journey through southern Sudan, where a civil war that has claimed two million lives has raged for 20 years.

Ms McComb said she was chosen to be part of the expedition because of the contacts she had formed through her work as a guide with the Sudanese security forces.

It is hoped these contacts will allow the team safe passage through the danger area.

As well as the dangers of war, the team will face many natural hazards, the most alarming of which are the wild animals.

But Ms McComb said that as long as they respected the danger the animals posed, they should get through unscathed.

The animal that concerns her most is the hippopotamus.

"Hippos take more people in Africa than any other creature.

"They are very territorial - you cross into their territory and they are going to attack."

Avoiding the hippos will be arduous, as the areas in which they live have about 1000 of the animals every 5km.

Crocodiles were also a concern as they could attack the boats.

"And you have to watch at night when you are camped on the side of the river for herds of elephants coming through."

Last night the adventurers were preparing to navigate a 40km stretch of the river that will take them through fierce white-water. It is the part of the journey Ms McComb was least looking forward to.

"White-water is not my strength. When you come out of the raft and you are sucked right down underneath the river ... It's not a nice feeling for me."

The expedition is costing US$100,000 ($150,693) and is being sponsored by the international aid group Care, and companies from the region, which have provided supplies such as mosquito nets, insect repellent, radios and a laptop.