‘I traveled 435 miles through the Congo Basin – the scariest part isn’t what you’d think’

Ash Dykes had TikTok in a chokehold after revealing he was going to kayak through the Congo Basin – somewhere he calls 'the baddest place in the world'.

Now back home, his journey looked a little different to what he (and TikTok) expected.

The Congo Basin is home to some seriously dangerous wildlife, including deadly hippos, crocodiles and silverback gorillas. TikTok viewers were on the edge of their seats during Ash's daily updates, especially when he 'lost contact' with his team for almost 24 hours after his portable satellite kit lost power.

Before setting off down the Sangha River with his local guide Obed Temba Tuyumvire and videographer Will Perez, Ash told UNILAD he was 'prepared for the worst'.

Despite coming within just five metres of a silverback gorilla, Ash completed the expedition unscathed. But with few other major wildlife encounters, some viewers were left wanting more.

While the wildlife might have been Ash's biggest fear at the start of the expedition, it wasn't the biggest challenge the team faced. In fact, they found themselves in a pretty frightening situation when their water filters stopped working.

Ash found himself just five meters away from a Silverback gorilla (Will Perez)

Reflecting on the trip, Ash told us: "I don't mind openly admitting that I went out there expecting all of it to be there and I'd be dodging it."

"I think maybe we got a bit lucky and unlucky. So it's very bittersweet," he added.

"It's the wildest place in the world. The Congo Basin is the baddest place. But we picked a really good season whereby if it was the dry season, maybe the risks would have been higher and one of us wouldn't have made it home."

Despite sharing heaps of content in real time, including TikTok Lives, many viewers branded Ash's expedition 'boring', while others went as far as to make the 'ridiculous' claim that his 'disappearance' was a publicity stunt.

Addressing the negative comments, Ash continued: "I think there was a lot of people following for ill intentions. A lot of people were wanting one of us to die and that's their entertainment."

"When you go so viral you can't have 100 percent support from everyone. And that's fine, I get it," he noted.

'We were in a doomed state'

When we caught up with Ash halfway through his expedition, he was facing a serious problem.

With his water filters broken, he had no idea how he and the team would get access to safe drinking water without risking illness or parasites.

"We're currently sorting the water situation out, which has left us in a doomed state," he told us at the time.

The team had been boiling water and relying on chlorine tablets, although these weren't necessarily effective against all the parasites that could have been lurking in the Sangha River.

Optimistic as ever, he assured us that he'd get it sorted, and of course, he did. During their stop-off in Ouesso, Ash and his team bought 'three huge 16.5 litre water bottles' and tried their best to make them last until the end.

Ash has completed the first expedition in Project 6 (Will Perez)

After completing one of the toughest expeditions in the world, with what looked like ease, Ash and the team ran into another frightening problem that his TikTok viewers didn't see.

"The day before we finished, we came across a military base camp and they bribed us," he claimed. "They took our passports away from us and said that we're not giving you them back unless you pay us."

With their passports allegedly being held, Ash and the team couldn't simply leave. They ultimately ended up handing over some money.

Aside from that encounter, Ash says his interactions with everyone else he met along the way, including members of the Baka community, were overwhelmingly positive.

Ash's next expedition is going to be 'completely different'

Ash completed the expedition with his Obed and Matt (Will Perez)

Now he's back home, Ash is taking the time to recover before he embarks on the second expedition of Project 6.

The location is set to be announced next week, but Ash has given us some hints on where he's heading off next.

A complete 180 on the Congo, Ash hints that the next location will be extremely cold. He won't be on foot, but he assures us he's left the inflatable kayak in Congo.

"It's going to be different. And the thing I'm doing, I don't know how to do that..." he teased.