A British man is set to finish a record-breaking 4,000-mile trek spanning the length of the Amazon river.
Former soldier Ed Stafford, 34, started his epic journey at the source of the river in Peru 859 days ago.
During his gruelling expedition he has dodged pit vipers, electric eels, anaconda and scorpions. He has been imprisoned, chased by natives wielding bows and arrows and wrongly accused of murder - on two separate occasions.
Since he started his jungle journey at the summit of Mount Mismi in Peru on April 2, 2008, he has also suffered hundreds of wasp stings and endured an estimated 50,000 mosquito bites.
A spokewoman for Mr Stafford said he was expected to reach the mouth of the river in Belem, Brazil on Monday.
She said when Mr Stafford completed the arduous trip he would become the first person to have walked the entire length of the longest river in the world.
Mr Stafford, from Mowsley, Leicestershire, has used the trip to raise money for charity and to educate schoolchildren from around the globe about the river.
He said: "The endurance, both mental and physical, has been the thing that's been the most wearing. I've been quite humbled by how much I've had to rely on other people and I've benefited greatly from the generosity of the people I've met along the way. The interest in the expedition has been mind blowing and all the messages of support have kept me going - that and the desire to bring life in the Amazon to the wider world."
Five months into his trip Ed was joined by Peruvian forestry worker Gadiel Cho Sanchez Rivera who pledged to complete the journey with him.
The pair have walked every day along the banks of the river living off piranha, rice and beans.
