“There is something in us,” nature writer Jay Griffiths says, “that detests the tepid world of net curtains … the chloroform world where human nature is well schooled, tamed from childhood on, where the radiators are permanently on mild and the windows are permanently closed.”

Lost with her life and desperate to escape the confines of the modern world, Jay set out on a journey to explore the world’s wildest places. She would explore ice, earth, water, fire and air. It would take seven years and all her savings. She would sing with cannibals in the highlands of West Papua, drink ayahuasca with shamans in the amazon. She explored the frozen arctic with Innuits and the fire desert with the aboriginals of the Australia.

Through her travels Jay learned the wisdom of the indigenous people that call these elements home. She discovered how they shaped their culture and beliefs, and in time how they shaped her too. She was seeking wildness. She was following her ‘feral angel’, listening to its call to take flight and reconnect with the wildness inside her.

This episode is the original interview I did with Jay a few years ago. The documentary ‘Adventure’ episode is about 100 episodes back in the feed. Check out it out on Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your show. 

I’m re-running the original interview now for a couple of reasons. Firstly, it’s an amazing chat, and I had to cut so much good stuff out to make the documentary. And secondly, it’s Native American Heritage Month and although Jay doesn’t spend time with Native Americans, her story is about learning how indigenous people connect with the wild in ice, earth, air and fire. 

This is a story for anyone that’s ever crawled up the walls, stared out the window and dreamed of escape. This is a call to the wild.

Highlights include:

·   Take ayahuasca with shamans in the Amazon

·   Walk naked and alone into the frozen wilderness of the Arctic

·   Trek the highlands with the freedom fighters of West Papua, one of the most remote and least-visited places on earth

·   Have dinner with cannibals

·   Find out how to apply the wisdom of the wild in our own life

Jay’s book of this adventure is called ‘Wild: an Elemental Journey’. It is one of the most beautiful pieces of nature writing I have ever read and couldn’t recommend it highly enough. Her latest book ‘Why Rebel?’ is awesome too. Search them up wherever you get your books – you won’t be disappointed!

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CREDITS

Armchair Explorer is produced by ⁠Armchair Productions⁠. Aaron Millar wrote and presented the show, Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit ⁠megaphone.fm/adchoices⁠.

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