Uncharted Territory: Two Expeditioners Probe the Unexplored Amazon and Reconsider the Modern Explorer

In December 2021, four indigenous Macushi and Wapishana brothers and a British woman emerged from a 253-mile journey on foot through the jungle of Guyana’s Kanuku Mountains, one of the world’s last unexplored wildernesses. Their extraordinary feat shed light on the unfamiliar — not only within the stretch of Amazon they took 50 days to cross, but also within our cultural understanding of who gets to be an explorer. Two of these expeditioners, Lucy Shepherd (presenting live) and Vivian Smith (presenting via video recorded exclusively for Hidden Compass), will share the story of their Amazon Uncharted Expedition and reimagine the modern explorer. In the process, they hope to shed light on the new faces of exploration, and the wild places contemporary explorers can help us better understand — and better protect.

Bios

At twenty-nine years old, Lucy Shepherd is at the forefront of modern exploration. From mountain ranges and tropical rainforests to the Arctic tundra, she has plotted a thrilling path into places about which very little is known — in the name of discovery. She has made it her mission to chart the uncharted, walk the un-walked, and challenge the un-challenged. Through film and writing, she documents her endeavors not only to captivate audiences, but to inspire a new generation of adventurers and stewards. Shepherd is a member of the Royal Geographical Society and was the lead expeditioner on the Amazon Uncharted Expedition across the untouched Amazon rainforest of Guyana’s Kanuku Mountains.

Vivian Smith is a member of the Macushi tribe, and has lived in Rewa Village, Guyana, his whole life. In addition to being a committed fisherman, hunter, and family man, Smith works as a senior guide and expeditioner within the spectacular Guyanese rainforest that surrounds his home village. He has assisted on international television programs such as Naked and Afraid, and was a principal team member of the Amazon Uncharted Expedition. Smith has high hopes for the future and wants to teach the younger generations around him traditional bush skills. Already on the village council, after he’s explored more of Guyana, he aspires to one day become a Toshao — village chief.