If you haven’t been following Ed’s progress at Walking the Amazon, you might want to check him out again. Our favorite 21st-century explorer is still out there hacking his way through the forest on his way to the coast. He is currently working his way across the varzea (flooded forests of the central Amazon) as the rainy season begins. While the forest is flooded, it sounds like Ed’s funding is drying up, so adventure enthusiasts might want to consider donating something to a very cool endeavor. Hang in there Ed, only eight months to go!

Also check out National Geographic’s stunning photo galleries of the crystal caves.

Do you have something better? Or something equally spectacular? We want to hear your nominations for the world’s most incredible locations. You can make your submission through the comment form below or send it through our contact page.

Don’t think this is some hair-brained publicity stunt that will never come to be, Ed has already been hacking and wading his way along the Amazon’s banks for close to 600 days. SIX HUNDRED DAYS!!! Yikes, that’s a lot of leeches. We’ll be keeping an eye on his progress. You can, too, by following his incredible adventure at his site Walking the Amazon.

Follow the link to view Part 2.

If you love her as much as we do, you’ll want to check out more of her performances at YouTube.

Can I get a screensaver like this?

That really whets my appetite for the whale sharks we’ll be seeing when we get back to Southeast Asia. Yes, I’m being an optimist, but I really think I deserve one after the great manta ray debacle in the Andaman Islands.