Canoetramp expeditions
Life is simple, just add water
Fellow adventurers,
Welcome to my new site, inspired by my desire to make a living doing what I love the most … remote, adventurous canoe expeditions, living as simply as I can and as close to nature as possible. That means fishing and foraging for food where possible, cooking on open fires and learning as many traditional skills as I can from local people. I also love coaching and guiding, and I would love to help you develop your skills and experience so you can set off on expeditions of your own.
ABOUT
My name is Phil Harwood and I’ve spent most of my adult life seeking out adventure and challenge in a myriad of environments, from steaming jungles to arctic wastes and deserts, from wilderness rivers to remote coastlines and mountains. I especially love the journeying aspect of paddling expeditions and have paddled rivers in Africa, Canada, the United States, Europe, Borneo, Indonesia and coastlines in the UK, Ireland, the U.A.E and Oman. I love wild places and the people that live there, and believe we could all learn a great deal in their company.
I’ve acquired a number of water, land and expedition based outdoor qualifications over the years, spent time in the UK military and worked as a ski-guide, outdoor instructor, expedition leader, leadership trainer and overland expedition leader, taking groups on three month journeys across Asia, Africa and the Middle East. For the last 11 years I’ve lived in the Middle East working for the UAE military, teaching personal development, leadership and resilience through the prism of adventurous expeditions and challenge in the outdoors.
I hope to grow this website and start running courses and expeditions in 2027 … so watch this space!
book & film
Canoeing the Congo
The book of my five month, two thousand nine hundred mile, first ‘source to sea’ descent of the Congo River in Central Africa.
Available to buy soon
Mazungu – Canoeing the Congo
The film of my five month, two thousand nine hundred mile, first ‘source to sea’ descent of the Congo River in Central Africa.
Available to buy soon
future expeditions
I’ve tried and failed twice to cross the island of Borneo by Canadian canoe, but hope to return soon for my third attempt. Criss-crossed by pristine beautiful rivers, especially in the interior, the indigenous people are a delight to spend time with and masters of their environment. A book and film hopefully await.
Partially completed, I also hope to return to Oman to complete sea kayaking the entire coastline. The Musandam peninsula in the Straits of Hormuz is an absolute gem of a sea kayaking destination. I’m also planning to get a crack at the island of Socotra off the Yemen coast. A book and film hopefully await.
I have a long list of future trips planned, and am always on the lookout for prospective twitchy toed, expedition loving, paddling partners. If you’re in a similar boat 🙂 please get in touch for a chat. It would help if we didn’t hate each other …
bespoke expeditions & training
It’s early days at the moment, but if you’re relatively new to all this, and would like some coaching or expedition guiding, please get in touch and we can discuss anything you have in mind. I’m also happy to suggest some locations for coaching and suitable expeditions.
I’m also developing a new non-canoeing related ‘Resilience Training’ experience. It will consist of back to back challenges in the outdoors, both physical and mental, with a view to unleashing the incredible potential we all carry inside us. Please get in touch if this interests you.
Wilderness Canoe Expeditions
Bespoke Expedition Guiding
Canoe & Sea Kayak Coaching
Wilderness Canoe Expeditions
Bespoke Expedition Guiding
Canoe & Sea Kayak Coaching
Wilderness Canoe Expeditions
Bespoke Expedition Guiding
Canoe & Sea Kayak Coaching
contact
It’s early days, but I hope to be up and running expeditions and courses in 2027. If you have any questions please feel free to contact me, I would love to hear from you
canoetrampexpeditions@gmail.com
"Not all those who wander are lost"
- J.R.R.Tolkein