I Crossed The World's Deadliest Jungle- Darien Gap
Category
😹
FunTranscript
00:00 since forever. But that is now slowly changing. With migrants needing a cheap way to get from
00:06 South America to the United States, the Darien jungle has become the world's most lethal
00:11 migrant route. Every day, thousands of desperate people from all over the world begin a journey
00:17 in which they will risk disease, robbery by the cartel, injury or something worse to cross
00:23 the deadly piece of land that separates Colombia from Panama. And despite the repeated warnings
00:29 not to, I decided that I too would join them on their perilous walk, secretly filming my
00:35 experiences and avoiding the cartel to report first hand on the desperate struggle the migrants
00:41 face in their search for a better future. Join me as together we enter the Darien.
00:55 Well guys, now the trip gets a little bit more serious. We're now going to the bus station
00:59 to find a bus heading north from Medellin to the town of Necoclin on Colombia's Caribbean
01:06 coast from where the Caminantes begin their journey across the Darien Gap. Timmy, how
01:12 you feeling? Born ready my friend, babe. I'm scared. I'm scared. You're scared? I'm scared
01:18 too. But let's do it. Everywhere there's here people with their bags and their suitcases
01:25 just crashing out, all their worldly possessions all around here, whole families all along
01:30 here and over there. Look at this. These are all the Caminantes going north. Oh, different
01:36 places. Estados Unidos. You can see here. Everyone's here.
01:41 Otra vez. Segunda vez? No. Wow.
01:45 Por que segunda vez? Deportaron?
01:46 This guy's going across the Darien for the second time.
01:49 You know he was deported, that's why. Si. De donde? De Panama?
01:52 No, de Montreal. Canada, I understand. And deported. Goodbye.
02:00 Like three days? Three days. Two days and a half.
02:04 Is it dangerous? A little bit.
02:07 There's a guerrilla there.
02:09 So the guy behind us is saying that crossing the Darien is dangerous because of the guerrillas,
02:13 not monkeys, guerrillas, guys with guns who come to rob you and take everything you've
02:18 got, maybe kidnap you if they know you're a foreigner.
02:20 You've got to say you're a Russo.
02:22 Russo, si.
02:24 Russo, el habla Russo.
02:26 Si, si.
02:28 So the man's also saying I have to say I'm Russian.
02:32 Yeah, it's starting to dawn on me, if it didn't already, that what we're doing is really,
02:38 really dangerous. The most dangerous thing I've ever done, definitely for YouTube, probably
02:42 in my life.
02:44 [Spanish]
02:52 From now on, we only go north, all the way to the American border.
02:56 So how are you feeling about the trip?
02:59 Muy emocionado, excited, and I'm scared.
03:02 I'm scared. I think it's normal to be scared in this situation.
03:04 I mean, some of the stories we've heard about being robbed, just we heard today in the bus
03:08 station while we were waiting for our bus.
03:10 You'd be insane if you weren't scared, especially to tall gringos.
03:14 We stick out of the crowd of Venezuelanos.
03:16 [Spanish]
03:20 It's going to be dangerous, but I think we're going to be okay.
03:24 [Spanish]
03:28 All these little kids traveling across the Daddy Inn.
03:31 Mums carrying little babies, bags of stuff.
03:34 [Spanish]
03:37 All going on the greatest adventure that those children will ever have.
03:41 Adios, Medellin.
03:43 Gracias, Neil.
03:50 Gracias, Neil. Adios.
03:53 [Spanish]
03:57 It's our friend from the bus station.
03:59 [Spanish]
04:05 So the guy that we're with is saying, "Do not tell anybody that we're foreigners."
04:11 There are just people sleeping on the streets all through this town,
04:15 waiting to cross the Daddy Inn, I suppose, in the next couple of days.
04:19 Just all along here, Caminantes, all up there, Caminantes.
04:30 A town just completely overtaken by people trying to get to North America.
04:37 [Spanish]
04:42 [Spanish]
04:54 Oh, shit.
04:56 [Spanish]
05:01 Why is that? Because you speak Spanish, and I have about ten words of Spanish.
05:06 So they said I should just pretend I can't speak any language, just be like, "Oh."
05:10 Like a dumb person.
05:12 So, otherwise we're going to get robbed by the other Venezuelans, basically.
05:16 [Spanish]
05:20 Yeah, yeah, yeah. Let's see what happens.
05:22 [Spanish]
05:29 We stay here, bro. We stay here. This is where we sleep, on the street.
05:32 Myself and Timmy have to be very careful here.
05:37 These people have nothing.
05:40 And it's not only the cartel we need to be afraid of.
05:45 It's the other Caminantes who can rob us.
05:51 If we fall asleep here, you wake up with your teeth kicked in and your back gone.
05:57 So we have to be on guard constantly now.
06:02 Anyone asks why I don't speak Spanish, I'm from Russia, I escaped in the war.
06:10 [Spanish]
06:17 Another bus has just arrived with immigrants.
06:20 And it's just an immigrant town.
06:26 So this is people from all the poor countries around the world coming here to escape and get to America to build their dream lives.
06:34 People from Haiti, Venezuela, Russia, Greece, Vietnam.
06:40 [Spanish]
06:47 [Spanish]
06:50 [Spanish]
06:56 Well, it's a couple of hours later and we've had about half an hour sleep on the streets.
07:03 And now we're going to buy some stuff because we're going to take a boat across in a couple of hours, across the delta to the start of the Darién.
07:12 Let's see what happens.
07:14 [Spanish]
07:18 A tent. We've got this.
07:21 And this is what you put all around your tent at night time to stop the snakes and the animals from coming and going.
07:26 Scorpions.
07:28 Tigers, elephants, whatever.
07:31 So we've now bought gloves because you can't go into the jungle without gloves.
07:35 If you touch something on a tree, some poisonous branch, like in fever, die.
07:40 I don't want to die. Do I want to die in the Darién?
07:45 I mean, it's kind of a heroic death.
07:49 Let's see what happens.
07:51 [Spanish]
07:54 Wow, he thought I was Venezuelan.
07:56 [Spanish]
08:02 Wow. Here we have the Samaritans who are feeding a lot of the, especially the Haitian refugees who really come here with nothing.
08:11 [Spanish]
08:19 They get free food.
08:20 They get free food, right?
08:21 Yeah.
08:22 They're very poor people.
08:23 Some people come here to do this trip with like no money at all.
08:26 We're lucky that although we're facing the same dangers that they are, we're doing it without the stress of having no money.
08:36 So now we're walking down to the beach to look for a boat across the water.
08:46 So you can just see down here all the refugees.
08:50 You need to be a little bit careful with the camera and a little bit careful speaking English.
09:04 Well, behind me are hundreds and hundreds of immigrants from all different countries waiting to cross over to what I can see in the distance is the Darién jungle.
09:12 Have a look over there.
09:14 The camera doesn't zoom in, but you can see the steam rising off those tropical mountains.
09:18 That is the Darién, the most famous, I should say, the most dangerous jungle in the world.
09:25 Nothing in there.
09:26 Once we go into the Darién, we're on our own and we're at the mercy of the people who are going to take us across.
09:31 But that is it. Our first sight on this trip of the Darién.
09:36 Well, we're all packed in. All different nationalities. There's a Greek next to me.
09:47 I don't know who else is here. There's an Afghani guy behind us.
09:49 There's an Afghani guy, there's an Iranian family at the back.
09:52 There's a Vietnamese dude at the front. Venezuelanos.
09:58 Chinese guy.
10:05 Let's cross the sea to the Darién.
10:21 Well, we've arrived in one of the most beautiful places I've ever been.
10:24 Tropical waters, jungle everywhere. An unlikely or unexpected start to what in the next video will be our trip into that jungle across the Darién.
10:38 See you next time.
10:45 Good morning from a town called Cuperganá here on the very northern coast of Colombia.
10:50 I've been looking for someone who can take us across the Darién. Some people smugglers for the last day.
10:55 I think I found someone. Seems a little bit dodgy.
10:59 Or actually it seems very dodgy. Cartel, mafia, who knows exactly who we're dealing with.
11:04 But they've said that at some point today they're going to come and get us, take us on a boat up the coast to some jungly part of the country.
11:12 And from there we're going to go inland and try and walk across the Darién.
11:15 Probably with some other migrants. I don't know. I don't know what I can film.
11:18 I don't know what I can say. Just the video will be what it is.
11:21 It's the first time anyone's ever done this from YouTube.
11:24 So let's just see what happens. Hopefully everything goes well.
11:27 And in three or four days or however long it takes, I'm in Panama in the safety of Panama.
11:32 But yeah, hang tight. Get ready for an adventure. See you in a bit.
11:35 [Speaking Spanish]
11:57 So we're saying goodbye now to the guide or the man who arranged our trip through the Darién.
12:04 He's given us the name of a guy called Juan López, an indigenous guy that we're going to meet somewhere.
12:09 We pay him some money, put our bracelets on, and then we go through the Darién. Let's see what happens.
12:15 We're in the middle of the ocean with this Nutter driving this dodgy boat, no life jackets.
12:30 It goes down in these troppy seas. We go down with it I think.
12:35 So there's something I've got to tell you guys.
12:42 The guy who arranged this trip, the mafia guy who works for the government somehow,
12:47 gave me and Timmy a bracelet each.
12:50 This bracelet is so we can join the other Caminantes and be protected by the cartel.
12:55 If we went through without this bracelet, there's no chance of getting through.
12:59 So this is what we're paying for, protection from the cartel by having this bracelet.
13:04 So we've been brought to a small town up the coast where this guy is going to hand us on to someone else
13:11 who's going to take us in another boat further up the coast to the start of the Darién where we're going to walk.
13:17 Let's see what happens.
13:20 Now we're fucked.
13:22 Buenos días señor.
13:30 Well guys, our first attempt to cross the Darién was a failure.
13:38 As we entered the jungle we were caught by the Panamanian army and they're now escorting us back to Colombia.
13:45 First attempt, failed.
13:49 This has been a fucking crazy day.
13:57 What the fuck?
13:59 Arrested in Panama, escorted back to Colombia, crazy boat driver, what the hell is going on?
14:06 And we still haven't even crossed the Darién.
14:12 Well guys, yesterday was a total disaster.
14:16 We were caught by the military in Panama, arrested, stuck in a prison cell and kicked out of the country.
14:24 So we either quit or we go again.
14:28 We're going to go again.
14:30 We found someone else in this town who's going to take us another route, much more dangerous, much longer, maybe five days.
14:36 But we can't quit now, we've come all this way.
14:38 So yeah, let's see what happens.
14:41 The following morning, members of the Gulf Cartel drove us deep into the forest to their camp,
14:46 from where we would begin our hike through the Darién.
14:49 The coyotes who escorted us constantly told me to stop filming.
14:53 So what you're about to see is the footage I managed to take on the journey.
14:57 Hundreds of us heading to America.
15:06 Every step we take into the Darién is one step further away from the safety of Colombia,
15:12 deeper into the territory of the Gulf Cartel.
15:17 For the United States of America, through the Darién jungle,
15:24 do you want to change your life?
15:27 Yes, I want to change my life because you can't survive in any way, not even economically.
15:36 Your mind doesn't rest because you don't enjoy your life, your health, your family, your home.
15:43 You don't even have time to watch a documentary.
15:46 Wow, it's amazing.
15:48 The noise of the jungle, the noise of the jungle.
15:51 The dark green colors, untouched forests.
15:57 Not many people from my country have seen this spot, that's for sure.
16:03 Onwards we go, onwards we go down this river, across rocks and rapids,
16:09 helping people as we go, kids screaming, mums panicking.
16:14 We're not going to get there.
16:16 We're not going to get there.
16:18 We're not going to get there.
16:20 We're not going to get there.
16:22 We're not going to get there.
16:24 We're not going to get there.
16:26 We're not going to get there.
16:28 We're not going to get there.
16:30 Kids screaming, mums panicking, dads almost in tears.
16:34 And put their children through this, all for a chance to get to the United States of America.
16:40 Wow, it's only getting worse.
16:55 If I can see...
16:59 Everything is fine.
17:02 It's difficult.
17:07 So it's these bits of blue plastic that are leading the way, out of the Darien Gap.
17:12 Just every 100 meters or so, there's a bit of blue plastic.
17:15 But sometimes, they're missing.
17:18 And when they're missing, you have to guess what your next move is.
17:22 And just guess the one that you think is your best option.
17:27 But, we're only guessing.
17:32 Just following this river downstream, hoping for the best.
17:35 We've got another blue flag hanging, so we know we're on the right track.
17:39 Our lives depend on those bits of blue plastic.
17:44 We're having a little break in the middle of nowhere.
17:50 There's a little camp that's been set up to get some food and some water.
17:54 Yeah, I think...
17:58 I think Timmy's a little bit more nervous than me in this.
18:01 He's getting a bit more stressed.
18:02 But the reason for that is, he understands what people are saying about us.
18:04 My Spanish isn't that good.
18:05 So when the guys are asking questions and saying like,
18:08 "Hey, why do you think those Russians are here?"
18:11 "Why do you think those Russians didn't fly directly to Mexico or something?"
18:15 He hears all that stuff. I'm oblivious to it.
18:18 So I'm kind of like, taking it kind of blasé.
18:20 But, yeah, it is definitely dangerous being here.
18:24 We're in the middle of nowhere. There's no laws.
18:26 We're at the mercy of the cartel guides behind me in the camp.
18:29 I've been told to stop filming numerous times.
18:33 Which is making me really nervous to get the camera out.
18:36 Which is why I've come some distance from the camp.
18:38 But, yeah, what to do? Just carry on, I suppose.
18:42 Hope for the best.
19:02 [Speaking Spanish]
19:30 So if you look on the floor, there's all these.
19:32 These are the protection from the cartel to get you to the frontera.
19:37 But now we've reached the frontera, so we're on our own.
19:40 And now this is the jungle we're going to be going down into in Panama.
19:46 We've crossed the frontier, and now we're kind of without protection.
19:49 We've taken off our bands.
19:51 We're going to go down through this jungle path.
19:53 Deep, deep, deep into the Darien.
19:58 There were robbers up ahead, so we had to stop all in this bush.
20:01 Everyone just stopped here.
20:02 We've just crossed this river here, and we notice a disgusting stink in the air.
20:15 And that's because over there you can just see a body.
20:18 Just in the rocks, basically a naked body.
20:20 You can't pick it up, but there you just see his hands and his bum sticking out and his leg.
20:26 Oh man, just a rotting body.
20:28 Those are the dangers of travelling here in the Darien.
20:31 It's real dangers.
20:32 It's about a life.
20:35 It's a survival.
20:37 Oh man, this is difficult.
20:45 Little kids, babies, trying to get up this mountain of mud.
20:51 [SIGHS]
20:53 What a journey.
20:57 God knows what they're escaping, but it must be important.
21:00 It must be terrible if they're willing to put their family through this.
21:04 Just to get to the USA.
21:15 Well, this is what one day, or two days now I suppose, in the jungle does to you.
21:21 It absolutely destroys you.
21:23 I lost one toenail to Buran. I think I'm going to lose another nine to the Darien.
21:27 We'll survive.
21:39 [WATER SPLASHING]
21:41 It's about five o'clock in the evening.
21:47 I'm just sitting here by the water.
21:49 The usual story, the trash strewn beach.
21:52 People, because it's so difficult this part of the journey, people just discard everything they can.
21:57 So anything that's not essential, they discard.
21:59 Shoes, jackets, tents, backpacks.
22:02 Whatever they can discard to make their bag lighter.
22:04 It's been such a difficult climb today.
22:06 And I've seen the most amazing things.
22:08 I've seen an Afghan man climb over this peak that I struggled to climb, to be honest with you,
22:13 with a baby strapped to his chest.
22:15 I've seen pregnant Haitian women do it.
22:17 I've seen bodies, dead bodies, people who didn't make it.
22:20 It's been insane.
22:21 I'm now waiting for Tim, so that we can push on to tonight's camp.
22:27 It's been the craziest experience probably of my life.
22:31 I found Timmy. Finally. How do you feel?
22:35 I lost you for fucking three hours.
22:39 Yeah, you did.
22:41 Oh, maybe, let's go.
22:43 Look at this place. Oh, look.
22:45 People come in.
22:46 More people come into the camp.
22:48 But look at the camp. It smells of shit.
22:50 Look at the rubbish here.
22:52 Everything has been discarded.
22:54 Look at the river. I've never seen a worse river.
22:57 Look at it.
23:02 Look at what's happened to Darien.
23:05 The filth, the stink. I wish you could smell what I could smell.
23:09 Well, actually, I don't wish you could smell it, because it's absolutely disgusting.
23:12 The refugees are just shitting everywhere.
23:16 I mean, no other choice.
23:18 So over there on the other side, we're going to sit a little bit cleaner and bed down for the night.
23:24 Me and Timmy in our one-man tent, both six foot, well over six foot.
23:29 We're going to bed down for the night.
23:32 Look what my friend's shoes are.
23:34 His shoes are absolutely destroyed by the Darien.
23:37 Oh no, sir, what are you going to do?
23:40 Stand up?
23:42 Die.
23:43 Die?
23:44 You're a fucking mother.
23:46 A fucking mother.
23:48 Well, guys, we've set up our tent.
23:51 There's a bit of our tent here by the river.
23:54 We moved away from that filthy area.
23:56 And we're here next to some river in the Darien.
23:59 God knows what it's called.
24:00 Timmy, it's been a long day, mate.
24:02 Yeah, man, it's bad.
24:04 Destroyed.
24:05 We lost each other for four or three hours.
24:07 He was alone, I was alone, but finally we made it.
24:09 God knows what's going to happen.
24:11 Hopefully, we're not robbed in the night, and hopefully, the river doesn't rise up and flood us.
24:15 But this is as good as it gets in the Darien.
24:17 Check it out.
24:18 It's the best campsite you can get for your money.
24:21 [indistinct chatter]
24:24 This guy's crazy, man.
24:28 This guy's crazy.
24:30 Luis!
24:31 Luis is crazy.
24:33 This guy's fucking crazy, man.
24:35 What's happening?
24:36 I don't know, man.
24:37 Our friend is fucking screaming to his wife, to his daughter.
24:40 And then the daughter says, "Shut the fuck up," to her dad.
24:46 Oh, the woman says, "Are you going to shut up or are you going to fucking shut up?"
24:50 Oh, wow.
24:51 These Venezuelans don't mess around.
24:53 Guys, we're in the middle of fucking nowhere, in the middle of Darien jungle,
24:59 the most dangerous jungle in the world.
25:01 We have no clue where we are.
25:03 The only thing that keeps us alive is some cartel guys.
25:06 And we're where we are, in a freaking one-man tent, me and Señor Calvo.
25:10 Turn up, turn up, show your face.
25:12 Hi, guys.
25:15 In this nasty environment.
25:17 It's 40 degrees outside.
25:19 Inside, it's 60 degrees.
25:21 It's raining.
25:22 And now we're going to spend the next 14 hours here.
25:26 No complaints.
25:30 We decided that.
25:32 And we're seeing the reality of the Caminante.
25:34 So, it is what it is.
25:37 Let's appreciate we're alive.
25:39 And we take it from there, step by step.
25:41 Fuck.
25:43 Señor Bolt eating breakfast in the jungle of Darien.
25:46 Tuna.
25:49 Would you give to Timmy some tuna?
25:51 No.
25:52 Because Timmy gave away one of our cans of tuna to a random camel.
25:57 He said, "Yeah, have a can of tuna."
25:59 So, now I'm going to go hungry today, because he gave away my tuna.
26:01 Yeah, that was my mistake, man.
26:04 Guys, in the jungle, if you're with your partner, soldier, you have to ask before you do something.
26:08 I didn't ask him, I just gave out the tuna to a random guy.
26:12 My fault. He's right.
26:14 Morning from the next day.
26:17 We're about to climb a mountain.
26:19 And then down the mountain.
26:22 We'll see what happens.
26:24 Zero sleep.
26:25 Look at my eye bags.
26:26 What a nightmare.
26:29 The view of the Darien mountains, the Darien forest.
26:40 Wow. What a beautiful sight.
26:42 If only we weren't so tired, exhausted, scared, we might actually enjoy it a little bit more.
26:47 But there it is.
26:48 The mysterious, dangerous Darien.
26:53 Something just brought home the real danger of this trip for us, and that was a dead body.
26:58 Half covered in a blanket.
27:01 A temporary cross made from some kind of tree, bamboo, just left by the side of the track.
27:09 Not everyone makes it across the Darien.
27:11 Hopefully we will.
27:13 One more dead body.
27:16 Like I said, not everyone makes it up the Darien.
27:20 Oh man.
27:23 This is a dangerous part. Check this out.
27:28 Look how steep it is.
27:30 Thank God it's not raining, otherwise we'd be totally screwed.
27:33 As dangerous as it is.
27:37 How are you, Ivana?
27:38 Good.
27:39 How are you?
27:40 Good.
27:41 How are you feeling?
27:42 Good.
27:43 Wow. More people. We're out.
27:45 People coming down with kids, look.
27:48 Over the mountain, they've made it.
27:50 A major step on the Darien, on the road to the United States.
27:57 Look at this, this river.
27:59 Once a beautiful river, now just trash from immigrants everywhere.
28:05 Look at it, there's trash everywhere.
28:07 But that's not something I can worry about right now.
28:09 Instead, we're going to continue down, follow the river downstream, downstream, downstream.
28:15 Until, I don't know, maybe we come across some army, Panamanian army, some camp to stay the night.
28:23 I don't know.
28:24 No one quite knows what happens next, what the next step is.
28:26 So we'll just see.
28:29 Push on, carry on.
28:31 What an adventure.
28:34 What an adventure.
28:36 I don't know if you can hear this, because my camera is probably full of water, but we're now marching down.
28:43 We're further down the river in a tropical storm.
28:47 The rain started.
28:51 We still don't know where we're going.
28:53 We're almost all fucked up.
28:55 We all wait.
28:56 As you can see behind me, you can see all the immigrants.
28:58 We've been crossing over 40 rivers.
29:02 But yeah, keep going.
29:04 That's exactly what the ultimate experience.
29:06 This is fucking insane.
29:08 This is insane.
29:09 Just people trying to cross the river.
29:10 We just crossed, having to hold hands in this powerful river.
29:13 And we have people from India and Afghanistan and China who just can't swim.
29:16 So they're terrified.
29:19 They're carrying babies.
29:20 They're crossing this.
29:21 This is going to help out a little bit more.
29:23 Guys, this is just so intense.
29:28 The first part, the first two and a half days were avoiding the cartel and all that kind of stuff.
29:33 Here are some friends on the journey.
29:35 The United States?
29:37 Of course.
29:38 People heading to America.
29:42 The first few days we were worried about the cartel, but now this is insane what we're having to do.
29:49 It's not a problem for me and Tim, big strong lads.
29:52 But for these little kids being carried by their fathers across these raging rivers, check them out.
29:58 I mean, I've seen so many people come close to dying and drowning.
30:02 It's pretty mental.
30:04 But still, we got to push on to tonight's base camp.
30:08 Oh, man, what a place.
30:12 We've stopped for the night at our campsite.
30:22 Well, I call it a campsite.
30:23 Rubbish dump, basically, by the river.
30:25 Like every other place we stayed.
30:27 There's Timmy Carter.
30:29 That's all the water we got left.
30:32 So basically, we've got no water.
30:36 We've got zero.
30:37 We got zero food.
30:39 We're cold, we're tired.
30:42 My feet are destroyed.
30:43 Timmy's too.
30:44 Timmy almost sprained his ankle, or did sprain his ankle.
30:46 But the journey continues.
30:50 We thought we'd be reaching our final destination today.
30:55 But that's not the case.
30:56 So tomorrow, we're going to have to head on deeper and deeper into Darien until we get to whatever the end is.
31:03 I don't know what the end is.
31:04 I think there's a Red Cross center or something, a refugee center, or some village.
31:09 I don't know.
31:11 I'm destroyed.
31:12 I've never been this tired.
31:13 And I'm going to go to bed now.
31:16 Wet, cold, hungry, thirsty.
31:19 But so is pretty much everyone else here on this trip.
31:23 So I can't complain too much.
31:24 I'm here voluntarily.
31:25 Some people are here out of necessity, trying to escape terrible situations.
31:32 Mate, tomorrow we do it.
31:35 Tomorrow we do it.
31:37 But we've got to be careful tonight.
31:39 Why?
31:40 Smell it.
31:42 What, bro?
31:43 Rain.
31:44 Rain?
31:45 Mate, it looks clear.
31:47 Oh.
31:49 Looks clear sky. What rain?
31:51 I smell it to me.
31:52 Storms approaching.
31:53 Guys, I think both turned to a wise expert, jungle expert after five days.
31:59 I've been in the Darien for five days.
32:01 I know more about the jungle than any Englishman.
32:03 You can smell it.
32:04 Or Russian.
32:05 Fuck, man.
32:06 Good morning from another day in the Darien.
32:12 It's 5.30 in the morning.
32:13 Everyone's packing up their tents after another horrific night.
32:17 I mean, rain just, ah, just awful.
32:20 As bad as you can imagine.
32:21 Everyone's hungry, tired now.
32:23 But the plan is to walk down the river for maybe five or six hours.
32:27 No one really knows what the exact plan is.
32:29 And get to a village where there are some boats.
32:32 And from there, that's going to hopefully take us down one of those boats to a Red Cross refugee center.
32:38 So, yeah.
32:40 Let's begin today's journey.
32:42 Another day in the Darien.
32:43 Join me.
32:45 [Water splashing]
32:47 [Baby crying]
32:55 The sound of screaming babies just fills the air.
32:58 As they realize we've got to traverse now.
33:00 Look at this.
33:01 Wow.
33:03 Relying on old ropes that have been left here by other immigrants.
33:07 Hoping they still hold.
33:08 Because if they break, you're going to fall and hurt yourself badly.
33:12 [Music]
33:15 Just discovering more and more migrant camps along the river.
33:19 What was once a beautiful river.
33:22 And now, probably the trashiest river in the world.
33:25 I mean, look at it.
33:26 Kids clothes, medicines discarded.
33:28 Tins of tuna.
33:30 Tampons.
33:31 Bras, knickers.
33:33 Needles.
33:35 Anything you can imagine.
33:38 That the Caminantes didn't want to carry with them anymore.
33:41 Has been discarded here.
33:42 I just saw one of the most distressing sights that I've seen on this trip through the Darien.
33:49 And believe me, I've seen some distressing things.
33:51 Some things that will never leave me.
33:53 But I just saw a family.
33:55 A mum and dad and a baby.
33:57 Venezuelans begging for food from passing Caminantes.
34:01 But no one's got any food for them.
34:04 I've got nothing for myself.
34:06 Didn't eat last night.
34:07 Barely ate yesterday.
34:10 One tin of tuna.
34:11 And so, yeah.
34:13 I don't know if anyone's going to stop and try and help them.
34:15 But probably not.
34:17 People have to look after themselves.
34:18 It's difficult to have compassion here in the Darien for other people.
34:23 And that sounds brutal and harsh.
34:24 When you're sitting at home watching this video on the internet in America.
34:28 In your comfy homes in England.
34:30 Wherever you are.
34:32 But when you're here.
34:34 And it's a matter of life or death.
34:36 Yeah, that's the reality of it.
34:39 You can either save yourself or you can save someone else.
34:44 And when it comes down to it, we're all selfish.
34:47 Holy shit.
34:56 Look at this muddy place we've come to.
34:59 That we've got to cross.
35:01 Just nothing but slimy.
35:04 Feet disappearing.
35:06 Into the quagmire.
35:08 Trampled, mud trampled by a thousand immigrants' feet.
35:12 Just created this slimy mess.
35:15 Whoa, which is almost impossible to stand up in.
35:17 Gracias.
35:18 Just trying to make it through.
35:25 As best as we can.
35:27 Apparently, we've been told there's a village an hour and a half from here where we can buy food and have a sleep.
35:32 Some indigenous village.
35:34 I don't know if that's true or not.
35:35 We've been told so many lies by the guides yesterday about how far this trip was going to go.
35:40 So I don't know what's true and what's not true.
35:42 But I'm here with my Chamo friend from Venezuela.
35:44 And so we're going to go and look.
35:46 Look at the state of me.
35:47 Why am I doing this?
35:50 It's all Elinchik's fault.
35:54 She suggested it about two years ago.
35:56 She said, let's do the Darien Gap.
35:57 And here I am.
35:59 Thanks, Elinchik.
36:00 So we just met these two native people.
36:05 And they warned us that we should be careful of snakes in this part of the Darien.
36:10 I've only seen a couple on the journey so far, but so close to civilization.
36:14 I don't want to get stung by or bitten by some kind of...
36:18 Well, probably in the Darien, they have the world's most venomous snakes.
36:22 I mean, everything hurts here.
36:24 You can't touch a bush because it's got spikes on it.
36:26 Can't do anything.
36:28 We've just seen a sign here saying that 3.5 kilometers to the next or to the first little baby village.
36:34 So, good morning everyone.
36:37 Let's go, United States.
36:39 So from being in the absolute depths of despair and having no energy and just wanting to give up.
36:48 To be honest, sometimes you do just want to give up.
36:50 You think to yourself, I'll just sit down and not continue.
36:52 I can't do anymore.
36:54 But now we found out there's a village, hopefully 3.5 kilometers away.
36:59 If someone's not trolling.
37:01 If that's a troll, Jesus.
37:03 So now we've got renewed vigor, renewed energy.
37:06 There's one, two, three, four, five of us together.
37:09 Two Rolos, that means they're from Bogota.
37:12 And one Chamo, that means he's from Venezuela.
37:14 A Greek guy and a Brit.
37:16 We're no longer Russians.
37:17 We feel safe enough now just to be who we are.
37:21 So, yeah, 3.5 kilometers.
37:24 Should take about an hour and a half maybe, depending on the terrain.
37:27 And hopefully there's some food there and some clean water.
37:30 Let's see.
37:32 Exciting times ahead.
37:33 We've seen a boat.
37:38 Oh, woohoo!
37:41 Al final!
37:43 Al final!
37:45 Woohoo!
37:48 Where?
37:49 Where?
37:51 Oh no! Why?
37:54 So, we've made it to the river.
37:58 We've seen a boat go past, which just feels so weird seeing like a motor.
38:01 Which I don't know if that means we were Venezuelanos.
38:04 Petare.
38:06 Petare!
38:07 Marina!
38:09 Hola Marina.
38:12 We're all going to America.
38:14 And all cross the Darien.
38:16 It feels like we've finally made it.
38:18 I thought we'd made it yesterday.
38:19 We hadn't.
38:20 But now that we've seen a motorboat, surely that means we can claim we've crossed the Darien.
38:24 I don't know.
38:25 Maybe there's another day or two to go.
38:26 But there's some relief in our souls, that's for sure, that we've got to this point.
38:31 Wow, what a journey it's been.
38:32 What a journey it's been.
38:33 And some people are still in there that we met along the way.
38:35 They'll have another two or three or four days even, some of them with kids and injuries, to complete the journey.
38:42 But anyway, here, con los chamos de Venezuela.
38:45 De Venezuela.
38:46 Con los chamos de Venezuela.
38:47 Well, after five days of walking through the world's deadliest jungle, avoiding kidnap, murder, deadly diseases, injury, death,
39:00 there is a sight for sore eyes ahead of me.
39:03 A little village, place to buy, hopefully, water and whatever else.
39:13 We've made it through the Darien.
39:15 Well, Vans, you got me across the Darien, but I'm not taking you any further.
39:26 Thank you and goodbye.
39:31 And hello, Gopnik.
39:35 Gopnik Crocs, that's what I'm wearing from now on.
39:40 So, this could go two ways.
39:43 This could be funny.
39:44 When we turn up, all these people from Angola and all these countries with poor passports registering,
39:50 and then we turn up with a Greek and British passport, they're going to be like, "What the fuck? What are you doing here?"
39:56 Or that could be the best case scenario, they laugh.
39:59 The worst case scenario is they say you've crossed into Panama illegally,
40:02 and because of that, you're going to pay a fine or be deported or be put in a cell.
40:09 Who knows? We have no idea.
40:10 We are the first, well, I'm the first British passport holder to cross the Darien probably in 30 years
40:17 and definitely to be registered with the Red Cross a refugee.
40:20 I'm escaping Rishi Sunak and his London congestion charge.
40:26 That's my reason for being a refugee.
40:28 Wow, all these people that have made this amazing journey.
40:37 Just relieved and happy, smiling faces once again.
40:39 Well, very naively, myself and Timmy thought that once we got to Panama and we spoke to immigration,
40:56 they'd just kind of say, "Oh, you silly boys. Here's a stamp in your passport.
40:59 Continue on your journey to America."
41:01 But it didn't work out like that.
41:04 We've spent the last few days in an immigration camp, unable to leave, waiting to be kicked out of the country.
41:10 It's been bloody awful.
41:12 But let me give you a tour of what is now my home here somewhere in deepest Panama.
41:18 So first of all, let me show you the essentials of life in the camp, where we wash, where we shower.
41:25 And here is where we shit.
41:32 That was actually quite a good one. They must have cleaned it today.
41:34 What's this one like?
41:36 Bleh! Nasty.
41:38 Those are our lovely toilets here in our prison camp.
41:44 Over here, this is where we shower.
41:52 These are our little shower cubicles.
41:54 Only cold water, but better than nothing.
42:00 Got me. A little bit of privacy with the door. Like that.
42:03 And over here is where we wash our clothes and wash our faces in these concrete basins.
42:10 And here we have a chama washing all her clothes.
42:16 Washing her kids' shoes.
42:18 Here she is. She's going to wash all her stuff.
42:27 How many days did you walk through there?
42:30 Four days.
42:32 Very hard?
42:34 Very hard.
42:36 So that was where we wash.
42:38 And now I'm going to show you where the bad boys hang out behind the shed.
42:41 You're not allowed to smoke here in the camp, but there's one place where people come to smoke and hang out.
42:47 Let's go and have a look.
42:49 Oh, my love!
42:52 This is my Venezuelan love.
42:55 How are you?
42:56 Malandra de Petare.
42:59 Malandra de Petare?
43:01 She is a Malandra de Petare.
43:04 And a Melandro.
43:06 And here we have a little Melandro.
43:08 We have Mommy Melandro, Papa Melandro, Baby Melandro.
43:12 Let's go behind the shed.
43:15 Tell me about Chavez and Maduro. What do you think?
43:24 Well, to be honest, Chavez was a good president.
43:27 Excellent.
43:29 But Maduro, no.
43:31 After Chavez died, Maduro left everything to go to hell.
43:34 So life was...
43:36 Everything changed.
43:38 Gasoline, food, everything went to the floor.
43:41 The oil barrel, all the sanctions.
43:43 All that affected Venezuela.
43:45 Bolivar was worthless.
43:47 Before, Chavez and I were rich, and we didn't know that.
43:49 And those who knew didn't value that.
43:51 And what is your plan? Where are you going?
43:52 United States.
43:54 United States?
43:56 And what do you want to do in the United States?
44:01 Give my son a future in Venezuela.
44:04 Make money, work.
44:06 What do you think about Maduro?
44:08 No, Maduro, fuck your mother.
44:11 I'm now going to show you where I live.
44:13 This is my dormitory.
44:15 With all the lovely refugees in here.
44:17 We've got refugees from China.
44:19 We've got refugees from Venezuela.
44:21 We've got refugees from Haiti.
44:23 Here's my favorite family here.
44:28 Venezuelans.
44:30 And here's my favorite family.
44:32 And here's my favorite family.
44:34 And here's my favorite family.
44:36 And here's my favorite family.
44:39 Venezuelans.
44:40 Your name is Toxica?
44:44 Toxica from Venezuela.
44:46 How are you?
44:49 Good.
44:51 Let me show you, Melandro, let me show you where my bed is.
44:54 My bed is here at the end, next to the window, so I can try and get some fresh air.
44:57 This is my bed.
44:59 Little blanket on it.
45:01 I treated myself to a $5 blanket.
45:03 There's my towel, which is also my pillow.
45:07 And over there is where Timmy sleeps.
45:09 And that basically is our lovely dormitory.
45:13 We have a little Brazilian kid.
45:15 I think he's from Brazil.
45:17 He speaks Brazilian, or he speaks Portuguese.
45:19 Do you speak Portuguese?
45:21 Do you speak Portuguese?
45:23 No.
45:25 Do you speak Portuguese?
45:27 Do you speak Portuguese?
45:29 I want to hear Portuguese.
45:31 Yes.
45:33 See the kind of people I've got to put up with here.
45:36 I don't know.
45:37 What else are you saying?
45:39 What are you doing?
45:41 Why are you attacking me?
45:43 I'm being abused in a concentration camp.
45:45 Hey, you're old.
45:47 Get out of here.
45:49 The man walking down there is from Angola.
45:58 And he lost his mother, his father, and his daughter, I think, and his wife too,
46:03 in one of the rapids in the Darién.
46:05 Now he just wanders around in a daze,
46:07 looking in bins for food,
46:10 no money to escape this god-awful bloody place.
46:13 Terrible tragedies here in the Darién.
46:17 This is a kid we were working with for a few hours.
46:21 We were working with him for a few hours.
46:23 A new kid brother.
46:25 It's so nice to bump into people that we met on the road.
46:29 Because some of them we thought might not make it,
46:32 but we make connections on the journey.
46:34 Different people that we just helped out maybe for an hour or two or three,
46:37 sometimes for a whole day.
46:39 And to see them here, that they made it, is just amazing.
46:41 It fills you with...
46:43 It fills you with emotion.
46:55 Good luck.
47:00 God be with you.
47:03 Look, more people escaping over the fence,
47:05 trying to get out of this bloody prison camp,
47:08 seeking their future.
47:10 Prison camp.
47:11 Seeking their future.
47:13 Seeking their future.
47:14 I've been robbed by some kids.
47:42 Oh my god, they're wild here in this camp.
47:43 Okay, no more, no more, no more.
47:46 Well, after seven long, hard, terrible days in this camp,
47:52 it's finally time to say goodbye and jump on a bus to Costa Rica.
47:57 The journey continues.
47:59 Hello.
48:00 Sir, good luck. God be with you.
48:03 Thank you, chamo.
48:05 My friend, my best friend.
48:09 Madam, good luck. Thank you for everyone.
48:12 Chamo, bye.
48:14 In Venezuela.
48:16 Right, we're out of here.
48:18 Saying goodbye to all the people that have been my neighbours for the last week.
48:23 Let's see if the bus is here.
48:25 Adios, Melandro.
48:26 Adios.
48:28 Melandro.
48:30 Melandro.
48:32 The biggest melandra in this camp.
48:36 Well, as I said before,
48:49 after seven horrendous days in a refugee camp,
48:53 myself and Timmy are on a bus.
48:55 We're going to Costa Rica.
48:57 I think we can finally say that our adventure across the Darien is once and truly over.
49:04 Over.
49:06 Congratulations, Timmy, we made it.
49:08 It's been a lot of fun.
49:10 Would you repeat it?
49:12 Would I repeat it? Never again.
49:14 Once is more than enough.
49:16 Vamos Costa Rica y vamos Mexico frontera con Estados Unidos.
49:23 Until next time, guys.
49:24 Adios, amigos. Hasta luego.
49:26 [Music]
49:38 (whooshing)