Ash Dykes completes Congo Basin expedition after going ‘missing’ for 24 hours

Dykes was joined on his trek by local guide Obed Temba Tuyumvire as well as videographer Will Perez, who has been helping chart the journey with regular social media posts.

His popularity on TikTok has soared following his latest adventure.

Dykes said: “It felt like the world was on the river with us.”

But he added some followers were disappointed in the lack of drama.

“Everyone wanted that excitement, that danger, but if something was to happen, I’d be criticised: ‘this is dangerous’.

“Now that I’ve made it unscathed, everyone’s like: ‘It’s easy, there were no crocs’.

“So there’s no true winning when you go that viral.”

He said he lost 11lbs (5kg) during the trip, as he was relying mostly on ration packs of food.

In a social media post to mark the end of the first stage of Project 6, Dykes said: “It’s been a lot. We’ve faced ups and downs – seen some crazy wildlife, but more importantly we’ve survived.”

Dykes said he would reveal the second stage of Project 6 next week, and hinted it would be somewhere “a lot colder” than the Congo Basin.