Charging hippopotamuses, snakes and bugs have also been playing on the 21-year-old University of Otago arts and commerce student’s mind as the reality of going on a 600km rowing expedition down the African river starts to dawn on him.
Because civilisation is sparse along the banks of the river, he and a team of about a dozen other rowers from around the world will be camping on the side of the river in the wild.
No hotels or houses. Not even a hut, he said.
"I’ve been told we’ll have a soldier from the British SAS and a ranger with a gun coming with us, in case things go south with the local people and wild animals.
"Whenever we stop for the day, the ranger will go and check out the area to make sure it’s safe because, obviously, it’ll be in the middle of the wild.
"Sleeping on the river banks with crocs, snakes, spiders, hippos — it’s sobering.
"The fact that a rowing trip like this has never been done before makes it quite daunting.
"I’m quite scared, but at the same time, I’m very, very excited."
"It will be more like a three-person canoe or sea kayak, and we will have a support boat following us with all our gear."
He said he and the other rowers would take turns at rowing up to six hours every day.
The trip was expected to take about nine days.
"I’ve been doing lots of training on the rowing machine, but I expect blisters on my hands will be something I will have to contend with."
The team will make the journey in early June, and the aim was to raise funds for fresh water in central African villages and the Kansanshi Rowing Club, in northwest Zambia.
"We aim to raise as much attention as possible towards clean water charities," he said.
"However, the biggest motivator for me is the opportunity to raise awareness and money towards Kansanshi Rowing Club, where I had the privilege of coaching in 2020 for a month.
"This expedition will show that there are so many opportunities for Africans through the power of rowing, and through the only indigenous rowing club in the world," he said.
