Ian M Packham is a scientist, adventurer, writer, and speaker. A quest for challenge has taken him across the globe, by way of a PhD in Biomedical Sciences. Encircle Africa – the first solo and unassisted circumnavigation of Africa by public transport – was his first big adventure.

A 25,000 mile by-any-means journey through 31 countries, Ian travelled through Africa at its most raw and real. He experienced life without schedules, riding beaten-up bush taxis, flatbed trucks, dugout canoes, and a van delivering freshly-made meat pies in order to traverse the continent. Entirely reliant on local populations for more than 13 months, Ian fights off thieves in Senegal, is mistaken for an undercover UN official during Liberia's presidential election, and while in Sudan becomes perhaps the only person to be tear-gassed visiting a museum.

Stuck in the Mud

Fishing Boat Detail

Chameleon

Tug Boats at Dar

Lighthouse