( CNN ) In December 2013 , photojournalist Levison Wood set out to become the first person to walk the length of the Nile River . During his travels , he was robbed at gunpoint , evacuated out of a war zone and almost eaten by crocodiles . He crossed swamps , climbed mountains , cozied up to scorpions in the Sahara desert , and dined on rat stew and grasshoppers . Those months , he says , were the best of his life . `` I 've always been interested in the stories of the great Victorian explorers , like Livingstone and those guys , '' admits Wood . `` This was an opportunity to try and do something that nobody 's ever done before , but really , it was an opportunity to explore Africa in the 21st century and see how things have changed and how they 've stayed the same . '' Wood 's journey began in Rwanda , took nine months and spanned 3,750 miles . It was necessary to make the trip on foot , he says , because `` walking is the only way you can really get under the skin of a country . '' Occasionally , he was joined by a film crew from the UK 's Channel 4 ( the network is planning to air a four-part documentary on his travels ) . Sometimes he traveled with a local guide . Mainly , though , he walked it alone . `` The biggest difficult was keeping up the motivation and momentum to wake up every morning , walk 20 miles , and do it over and over again , '' he says . `` At times , the monotony was crushing . Khartoum ( in Sudan ) marked the halfway point , and the most difficult time was probably just before I reached it . I was n't halfway there and I still had 2,000 miles left to walk . That was pretty demoralizing , '' he admits . The kindness of strangers . Wood acknowledges that his survival was often dependent on the hospitality of local villagers , of which there was an abundance . The people of the Sudan , he says , were probably the most giving of all . `` It 's portrayed in the Western media as this pariah state , and the government does leave a lot to be desired , but it had by far and away the most incredible hosts I 've ever encountered across the world , '' he says . Even sharing water , he says , demonstrated an incredible act of kindness -- given it 's a 20-mile walk to the nearest source for many villagers . Half the time he slept outdoors , while the other half he would lodge with a local . Food was n't always a given . In Uganda , he recalled a two-day period when he went without food completely . `` My guide had a catapult , '' he recalls . `` He would shoot pigeons . We ate what we could catch . Other times we 'd eat with villagers . The local delicacies could vary , from grasshoppers to rats . '' Out of harm 's way ( almost ) The journey was n't without danger . Civil War in South Sudan broke out shortly after his arrival . As he ventured closer to the country , he started hearing tales of death , destruction , and a steady trail of fleeing refugees . He made it halfway through the country , to Bor -- the front line of the war . It was there that he was arrested and brought before an army commander , who told him he was not welcome , and threatened to kill him if he crossed into the rebel side . He was evacuated to the capital , and flew to North Sudan . `` I missed out 400 miles of the journey , but it was a sensible thing to do ; carrying on through would have been tantamount to suicide . '' Had he made the trip uninterrupted , he would likely have achieved a Guinness World Record . Now , he 's not so sure , though he says it does n't matter . `` It was never about breaking records , it was about taking the biggest adventure in my life , and it was certainly that . '' The finish line . Wood 's journey ended in Egypt , where the Nile meets the Mediterranean Sea . It was a cathartic moment , he says , and one that was bittersweet . `` When you 're doing something every day for months and months , to see it end , there will be some sadness , '' he admits . Mainly , though , he remembers it as `` one of the happiest days of my life . '' `` The first thing I did was run into the sea , and just enjoy the moment , '' he says .
Levison Wood spent nine months walking the length of the Nile River . In nine months , he walked 3,750 miles and crossed six countries . During the trip , he was threatened with guns , ate rat stew and slept with scorpions .