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Editor's
Notation: Jane Akshar's company, Flats
of Luxor, is a member of the AETBI).
There are not many
‘firsts’ left for the modern day explorer in this day and
age, so it was with great excitement that Luxor witnessed a
‘first’ on April 16th, 2004. This was an exploration team
of modern day Indiana Jones' making the first descent of the
Nile River from source to sea.
The team is headed by
Pasquale Scaturro http://www.pvsnet.com/
and Gordon Brown http://www.gordonbrown.net/
and they have navigated the Nile from Ethiopia through Sudan
and finally into Egypt. They have faced many dangers,
including deadly crocodiles and
hippos, class V to VI river rapids,  aggressive local
militiamen, bandits (shifta), temperatures in excess of 100
degrees, and the political upheaval of war zones run by rebel
factions (Pasquale has also been very ill with malaria).
The explorers of today
have to face the additional problem of obtaining permission
from the various governments to navigate these Nile waters. As
travelers to Egypt will know, foreigners are not allowed on
many stretches of the Nile. It is even more rare for them to
be allowed to travel independently without government
supervision. After crossing over the 22nd parallel, on the
border of Egypt, they had an initial confrontation with the
Egyptian military, but this was apparently soon cleared up. That the team  has been allowed
indicates the seriousness with which the Egyptian government
has viewed this expedition and, of course, the tenacity of the
team itself.
The object of the
expedition has been twofold. Not only did they wish to make
the actual descent but also film it. The
Blue Nile Expedition is sponsored by California-based
filmmakers MacGillivray Freeman Films and Orbita Max, a
Spanish film production company, who are jointly producing a
film for IMAX® theaters based on the expedition and the Blue
Nile region. The film, The Mystery of the Nile (working
title), is slated for release in February 2005.
 In
Luxor
we were privileged to provide accommodation and to show
members of the team around on a previous visit. Therefore,
when they approached Luxor on the actual expedition they
contacted us to assist with their overnight stop. The police
who had accompanied them from the moment they set foot in
Egypt were perturbed about them staying on the West Bank but
actually it made more sense as they could moor next to their
accommodation. The remainder of the day involved a busy round
of obtaining supplies and readying man and craft for the next
stage. My washing machine was going non-stop that night! Early
the next morning we were able to see them off from Luxor on
their next stage. They were expecting to reach Abydos that
night.
It
should take five to seven
days for them to finally reach Cairo where they will be
welcomed by
the American Embassy at a reception. Afterward,
they well begin their final leg to Alexandria
 through the Nile
Delta.
So
far Pasquale and Gordon have covered 4250 kilometers and their
aim is to continue covering 100 kilometers a day through Egypt
in order to reach Alexandria
on May 1st. This is later than
their original target and reflects the delays they have
encountered, primarily waiting for various permissions from
the governments of the territories they passed through along
the way. We
wish you guys all the best, and luck through the
remainder of your journey.
See
also:
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