MARAPANIM, Brazil - He fought tropical disease and deadly snakes, was held captive at one point and collapsed just short of his goal.
Still, Ed Stafford ended his 2 1/2-year journey Monday as he planned - leaping into the sea as the first man known to walk the length of the Amazon River.
"I've been told I was going to be killed so many times," the 34-year-old former British army captain told The Associated Press. "But I'm not dead. I'm here now and . . . I've proved that if you want something enough, you can do anything!"
Stafford had collapsed at the side of the road early Sunday, just 53 miles short of his destination. He was back on his feet after a few hours of rest, however, and looked like he had all the energy in the world as he ran into the Atlantic Ocean at Crispim beach Monday morning in northern Brazil - popping champagne and spraying Peruvian forestry worker Gadiel "Cho" Sanchez Rivera, his expedition partner.
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It was not the quest of an eco-warrior, Stafford is quick to point out, though he hopes the feat will raise awareness of the Amazon and the complex forces that are leading to its destruction.
Rather, it was the personal challenge for a man who left the military to be a stockbroker, was bored by finance and ended up leading student expeditions in Belize, then supervising the building of a BBC base camp in Guyana.
"The crux of it is, if this wasn't a selfish, boy's-own adventure, I don't think it would have worked," he said before completing his quest. "I am simply doing it because no one has done it before."
There have been at least six known expeditions along the course of the Amazon River, from its source high in the Peruvian Andes across Colombia and into Brazil before its waters empty into the ocean 4,200 miles away. But those used boats to advance their travel.
Stafford and a British friend began the walk on April 2, 2008, on the southern coast of Peru. Within three months, his pal left.
Stafford carried on, walking bits of the route with hundreds of locals he met along the way. Sanchez Rivera, 31, joined him a few months into the walk - which cost $100,000 and is paid for by sponsoring companies and donations - and completed it with him.
He lived off piranhas he caught, rice and beans, and store-bought provisions found in local communities.
To relax at night, he downloaded podcasts by British comedian Ricky Gervais and episodes of the TV show "The Office" via Internet satellite phone.
Stafford and Sanchez Rivera encountered 18-foot-long caiman crocodiles, enormous anaconda snakes, illness, food shortages and the threat of drowning.
Stafford said he ended the walk with some optimism.
"I think the average Brazilian is a lot more environmentally conscious than the people in power," he said. "I think when the next wave of Brazilian politicians come through - fingers crossed - they will be more conscientious."
On the Web
Learn more about Ed Stafford's adventure at: www.walkingtheamazon.com
