“We were tourists, little more than unskilled migrant labourers with altitude sickness”
When Matthew Scott began his Gap Year he had probably seen the glossy pamphlets given out by companies advertising ‘the adventure of a lifetime’. However, nothing offered by any gap organisation could have been close to his actual experiences – ambushed and taken hostage by rebels in the jungle of Colombia, then daily route marches at gunpoint through tropical rainstorms on unknown. His final escape, jumping blind off a cliff towards the sound of a river below and the next 12 days spent trekking solo through the Sierra Nevada, surviving off river water before meeting an indigenous tribe and contacting civilisation is the stuff of action adventure films. However, for those who sign up with a gap company the experience is very different.
My time in the Ecuadorian jungle just south of Matthew’s escape was spent predominantly farming beans and picking coffee. While this was without doubt ‘character building’, there was no pretence that it was anything more than cosmetic – all the real work was done by locals far fitter and more competent than ourselves. We were tourists, little more than unskilled migrant labourers with altitude sickness. It was only when we’d left the clutches of our country reps and advisors that most of our group became truly independent, deciding for themselves where to go and when. Some did venture into Colombia as Matthew did, well aware of the risks they took. Others went against advice and took Ecuadorian night buses, and were occasionally held up at gunpoint by bandits. However, it was only by taking calculated chances like these and veering off the beaten path that one can get outside the superficial ‘Gringoland’ of the cities and into the heart of the continent. While I personally chose to avoid Colombia, I respect those that went, and as long as you are willing to accept the consequences of your actions the rewards for venturing outside the ordinary can be immense.
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