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In this emotional and unfiltered episode of Adventure Diaries, we welcome back Paul Harris, aka The Warrior Walker, for Part Two of his astonishing journey: walking over 20,000 kilometers around the UK—twice. From sleeping in graveyards and castles to withstanding minus 16°C winters alone in the Highlands, Paul opens up about solitude, near-death moments, mental health, kindness from strangers, and the aftershock of completing an adventure of this scale.

🦌 Ever been stared down by a wild stag while sleeping under the stars?

🥾 What does walking 135km on 90 minutes of sleep really do to your body and mind?

💬 Why did people across the UK start calling Paul a brother, son, and friend—without ever knowing him?

In this conversation, we go deep into:

What You’ll Learn

IDEAS
• How a solo walk turned into a national movement of kindness and reconnection.
• Why adventure isn’t about the destination—it’s the coffee stops, the hugs, and the small talk.
• The reality of post-expedition burnout and how to find purpose again.

INSIGHTS
• You don’t need a plan, you need to start.
• Community isn’t built on followers—it’s built on honest moments.
• Letting go of baggage—literal and emotional—is freedom.

QUOTES

Resources & Mentions

• 📚 Book coming Autumn 2025 – Stay tuned!
• 💪 Rock to Recovery – Veteran mental health support
• 🌍 Doctors Without Borders – Global medical humanitarian aid
• 🧭 Follow Paul: https://www.instagram.com/thewarriorwalker
• 🗺️ Try the Local Adventure Tool (by Chris): Hiking Routes - Adventure Diaries

Episode Takeaway

Hardship doesn’t define us—how we share it does. Start walking. Start talking. And don’t carry it alone.

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Today on Adventure Diaries, we welcome Nina Helen Watson—a bright, inquisitive young explorer who turned a school assignment into a beautifully told podcast on one of the world’s greatest rivers: the Amazon.

At almost ten years old, Nina guides us through the source of the Amazon near Mount Quisha in Peru, its astonishing biodiversity, and a few facts you may not believe—like how it once flowed in the opposite direction. She talks jaguars and giant otters, pink river dolphins and capybaras (her personal favorite), all while threading it together with the clarity and confidence of someone twice her age.

What starts as a geography lesson quickly unfolds into something bigger: a celebration of curiosity, family support, storytelling, and the way learning can become magical when it’s shared.

We talk about:

• Where the Amazon River really begins—and how close it is to the Pacific
• The complex ecosystems that sustain some of Earth’s rarest wildlife
• How the river flows through nine countries and multiple indigenous cultures
• Nina’s personal favorites: from capybaras to rain-soaked camping trips
• Why local river cleanups matter—and how you can take part

Her ‘Call to Adventure’ is a gentle one: go camping, reconnect with nature, and bring good snacks. And her ‘Pay it Forward’ is equally grounded—help clean up a local river and notice what grows around it.

This episode is packed with joy, insight, and the reminder that wonder doesn’t need to be complicated. Sometimes, it sounds like a capybara pencil case and a story well told.

📚 Resources & Mentions

• 📍 Apacheta Valley & Mount Quisha, Peru – Source of the Amazon
• 🐬 Pink River Dolphin – A unique Amazonian species
• 🐊 Black Caiman – Apex predator of the Amazon
• 🐒 Capybara – The world’s largest rodent
• 🐍 Green Anaconda – One of the world’s biggest snakes
• 🧭 Francisco de Orellana – Spanish explorer who named the river
• 🌿 Indigenous river names like Riomar Tama
• 📖 Dork Diaries – Nina’s favourite book
• 🎬 The Lion King – Her favourite film
• 🌍 Local River Cleanup – Nina’s Pay it Forward suggestion
• 🏕️ Go Camping – Her Call to Adventure

If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a rating, share it with a curious soul, or ask a young person what they love about nature. You might be surprised by the answer.

Thanks for listening.

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Paul Harris: The Warrior Walker joins me for an unforgettable two-part conversation that begins in trauma and ends in transformation. A man who’s walked over 24,000 miles around the UK coastline—twice—Paul wasn’t chasing a record. He was trying to survive.

From his early years as a shy, lost kid to becoming a Royal Marine, then a private security contractor in Kabul, Paul’s life has veered from extreme danger to deep reflection. He’s witnessed war, grief, and collapse. But it was a moment of breakdown back home, in the wake of losing a dream life in Thailand, that led to a message from a friend: “You should walk around the UK and write a book about it.” Paul did more than that. With no plan, no tent, and just £300, he started walking. And never stopped.

In this episode, we go deep into:

• Walking as a tool for mental recovery and reconnection
• Life in Afghanistan: the beauty, the trauma, and the wild stories
• How teaching kids in Thailand gave him more peace than war zones
• The power of vulnerability and why Instagram became his support network
• Finding purpose through simplicity, grief, and cold nights under the stars

Whether he was being watched by a wild stag in the middle of the night, dodging Taliban checkpoints, or sipping overpriced espresso in Kabul’s “Secret Garden” café—Paul’s story is one of radical honesty, resilience, and the healing magic of walking forward, one step at a time.

Resources & References Mentioned
📷 The Warrior Walker on Instagram

🌟 What You’ll Learn
IDEAS: How walking becomes a metaphor for rebuilding a broken life
INSIGHTS: Grief can be fuel. Walking can be a spiritual act.
QUOTES: “Be careful what you say to yourself. The warrior within you is listening.”
FACTS: Paul walked more than the circumference of the Earth—twice.
RECOMMENDATIONS: Don’t wait. Just take the first step.

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Thanks For Listening.

If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a comment and subscribe for more exciting content.

Follow us https://linktr.ee/adventurediaries for updates.

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AdventureDiaries.com

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