EXPEDITION / FEAR / FITNESS / GERMANY / HUNGARY / REAL LIFE / SOLO AND FEMALE TRAVEL

AMY AED IS THE FIRST PERSON TO WALK THE DANUBE RIVER

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…is probably what the news articles will say once I finally reach the Black River this December. (update: it took significantly longer, but people still wrote about it.)

walking the danube

This September, I began walking along the river Danube, with the hope that I might just become the first person to walk its entirety from source to sea. For some reason, no one had tried to walk all 2,850km of the river before, so I thought that I may as well attempt it myself. 

When I later told my spicy little Spanish friend, Inés González Miguéns, about the trip, she ended up booking a last-minute flight out to Germany and joining me for a grand two weeks. That was until Vienna, where she slinked off to a back alley hostel in Slovakia to lead bar crawls and get foot tattoos.

To date, I’ve covered 550 miles out of a (suspected) total 1,770, with the last major city stop being in Vienna, Austria. The Danube flows through more countries than any other in the world, so I still have Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova, and Ukraine to look forward to. If they’ll have us, that is.

So far, we’ve slept in nunneries, communes, Mc Mansions, farmer’s sheds, luxury apartments, forest floors, “man caves”, and old bank buildings. We’ve stayed with spiritual healers, MLM pushers, cult leaders, Michelin star chefs, homophobes (oops), tea masters, and one guy who tried to molest us in the night. Every evening, we stay with a new stranger, relying on their kindness for food and a place to rest our heads, and have met some truly incredible people along the way (apart from that last guy, who ended up calling us “unworthy” for rejecting his advances).

Each night is completely new and a little crazy, and I’m absolutely loving it.

first person to walk the danube

One question that we’ve been asked a lot along the way is, what’s the motivation for doing something like this? Apart from the temptation of international fame or elevated success within the adventure industry (neither which, unsurprisingly, have happened… yet), there were a couple other reasons to set out on a journey like this.

Doing it for the girls and the gays

Firstly, one of the biggest motivations for undertaking this expedition was to break down stereotypes for female and LGBTQ+ travellers.

I’ve always been told that travelling as a woman is dangerous, and that we simply aren’t made for this sort of thing – and yet, here I am, doing something that was previously deemed impossible. I don’t know if you’ve noticed the straight white ‘heroic’ male archetype that seems to plague the travel isles at Waterstones and the interviews on Good Morning Britain, but frankly, it’s started to grate on me. The industry is completely over-saturated with people like this, and as such, those who don’t quite fit that criteria face incredible prejudices when undertaking similar expeditions.

And so, I hope that by doing a walk like this, I will be able to challenge the stereotypes and expectations for queer female travellers in the industry, breaking down whatever walls that have been put up to stop us from doing exactly what we’re meant to be doing.

So far, this journey has been empowering unlike anything else I have ever experienced. Amongst the fairytale beauty of the Black Forest, the quaintness of European villages, and the wilderness of the continent’s many great forests, I can’t help but think, holy fry, I’m really doing it. Being able to roam the earth freely in a way that my female ancestors could not makes me feel both honoured and empowered.

And frankly, that’s enough motivation for me.

Doing it for the crohnies

Or at least, it should be, in theory.

But then there’s also the fact that I have Crohn’s Disease.

On average, I aim to cover around 35km a day, burning no less than 3,000 calories in any 24-hour period. This would presumably be quite difficult for an able-bodied person, but for someone that suffers with Crohn’s disease and everything that comes with it, it often feels pretty much impossible.

I was diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease in 2014, and since then, have constantly been battling against an autoimmune response that aims for nothing other than shutting down my whole body. I get blepharitis, psoriasis, and all of the blood, sh*t, and tears that come along with not having a single functioning intestine. It is, quite frankly, the most horrendous thing to ever happen to me, and I still battle with it daily.

Still, I knew that I wanted to do something big, and there was no way in hell that I was letting this illness get in the way. So I bulk ordered my medication, bought endless digestion tablets, and told my doctor that I was about to do something incredibly reckless and it would be great if he could remain contactable, and booked my flight.

Luckily, we haven’t been camping as much as I expected we would (in fact, after the first night we camped and woke up covered in parasites, we sent the tent home to never be used again), so I’ve had steady(ish) access to people’s homes, and the stability of a bed and toilet each night. Regardless, the seven hours minimum of walking each day leaves a lot of room for error, and it’s been especially challenging to keep it all under control.

Regardless, I am constantly impressed that my body even has the strength to do something like this. Who knew that my diseased, withering, pathetic human shell could walk 550 miles in a month and still be ready to function the next morning? Now, I truly realise just how strong I am and how much potential my body has, and want to shout to the world about it. This is a massive difference to when I was first diagnosed and wanted to keep it all under wraps, too ashamed to tell anyone about it, and I’m proud of just how far I’ve come.

With the finish line looking to be in eastern Romania in late December, I’m super excited to see how cultures, languages, and landscapes change along the way. And of course, I am honoured to do so as a female LGBTQ+ traveller with Crohn’s disease, with my head thoroughly stuck in the clouds.

Doing it to save the river

Over the past century, the Danube River has been gradually polluted with micro-plastics, chemicals, antibiotics, and other waste, which has resulted in a decline of the many rare and endangered species that live in it. What sort of fate awaits this incredible river? This is yet another thing I was itching to find out for myself.

In fact, the Danube is the most polluted river in Europe. A thousand cubic metres of Danube water contains – on average – 317 plastic elements, and fish are filled with it. In 2020, a lot of the pollution was coming from Serbia’s capital of Belgrade, where the trucks queued to dump waste into the river on a daily basis – but the damage has been continuing for numerous years.  

Truly, the fate of the river is bleak, and no one seems to know or care about it. Millions of people rely on the river Danube, and it’s pretty messed up just how polluted we’ve allowed it to get. As such, by doing something like this, I hope that we can raise awareness for the importance of protecting the Danube. I have already learnt so much about the river and the people that live alongside it, and would like to bring all of this knowledge back home and help people to understand the current situation… and the fate that awaits this incredible river.

Doing it, quite simply, for the vibes

But of course, there are endless reasons at the heart of why I wanted to do a trip like this. When people ask, I sometimes just skip all of the above and go off on something else: I read a lot of Levison Wood, I have nothing better to do, I want to be known for doing things that no one else has done, I like rivers, I wanted to explore Europe, I thought that it would be a great way of sampling each town’s version of dumplings. Whatever the reason, though, no one seems to be satisfied… So quite simply, I am doing this whole darn thing for the vibes.

the three muskateers

Of course, I will let you all know how we get on over the next few months. To stay up to date with the expedition, you can always follow my Instagram at Wandering_Everywhere or sign up to the newsletter (subscription box is at the bottom of the page).

UPDATE: We finally finished the walk on the 14th September 2022, more or less a year after we started. Stay tuned for the next adventure!

BUT BEFORE YOU GO – WHY NOT SHARE THE LOVE AND PIN THIS POST?

first person to walk the danube river

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Congratulations! I have biked along the Danube starting at Melk. What my husband promised to be downhill the whole way, was not at all.

Fantasitc! Great work so far Amy, Emily and Inés! I love that you are doing this for the river, the LGBTQ+ and for the Crohnies. It sounds like the kind of adventure that could end up being a really fun book if you make notes along the way. 🙂

I just followed you on insta so I can keep up with it all.

Wowww!! You are a totally loving beaut! Yeah, sometimes people tend to forget the real thing. Like, we really need to focus more on the polluted ones than the clean and the go-to place. Btw, thanks for sharing this blog!

That is an amazing goal! I didn’t know how many countries the Danube flowed through. Good luck on your continued journey!

This is so incredible! Good for you for being bold and going for it. Love what you are supporting and praying that your travels remain safe. Can’t wait to hear all the details when you are done!

You are doing whaaaaaat? Geez what an undertake! GO FEMALE and LGBTQ+ TRAVELERS!!!!
I will follow you on Insta, I’m really curious.

How amazing! You are such an inspiration!
xoxo
Lovely

¡¡Hola Amy!! No me sale la casilla de comentarios, así que he tenido que escribir aquí, es este recuadro de respuestas.
Vaya, si me dices previamente que vas a hacer este viaje con tu novia y con una gallega y tú con tu enfermedad, te hubiera dicho que estás loca, ja, ja, pero eres Amy, y Amy puede con todo. Maravilloso viaje, bonitas motivaciones para llevarlos a cabo y para hacerte aún más fuertes. Las mujeres siempre hemos sido fuertes, y afortunadamente, ahora tenemos más medios y más valor para hacerlo. Disfruta mucho de esta nueva aventura. Besitos.

That’s great!!!! You are really doing an amazing job!
Congrats to you all 3!
XO
S

What an amazing challenge! Good luck on your journey and can’t wait to hear all about it!
Julia x

Wow Amy this sounds like a spectacular challenge! Good on you for taking it on and for such noble reasons too. Will be cheering you on! Best of luck and stay well while you do this!

This just looks so amazing. And the perfect place to explore. Hope you are having a great week. My birthday was yesterday and I am celebrating in style!

You have to be so proud!!!
I’ve just followed you on instagram, looking forward to see how your adventure continues!
Stay safe and have lots of fun,
S

This is SO EXCITING I am so excited for you and jelly! Good that you are traveling with other people and it sounds amazing except for the homophobes and the guy who tried to molest you guys. YES, the “heroic” white make archetype. Not sure if you heard about the big story over hear about the traveling YouTube couple where the guy killed his girlfriend and then when on the run and killed himself in the woods. Two people called 911 to report that a male was hitting a female, but when the police show up and pull them over they arrested no one. They were going to arrest her, but didn’t arrest anyone even though IT IS THE LAW. When police are called out to a domestic abuse situation someone has to be arrested. The cop on the video even admitted he was not following protocol.

Even though they were told the male was hitting the female, they did not arrest him and it is because he looks and sounds like them–he got a free pass, and they felt bad about arresting her, so they arrested no one, and now both of them are dead.

Sorry for the sad story. And wow I did not know the Danube was so polluted.

Allie x

That’s awesome, congrats Amy!
Kisses, Paola.

This is so impressive. I wish you the best of luck and will follow your progress!

I am cheering you on all the way from the States! I love your attitude and your why’s behind this adventure. Hopefully no more incidents like that creepy guy- seriously, how awful. Glad you are safe!

-Ashley

Oh, that sounds like an amazing trip! Wishing you all the best with it.

(I’ve had people surprised that I was travelling on my own on what I would have called a pretty tame Interrail trip – or that I was walking the Camino without an official tour – all a matter of perception, I think.)

Sounds like a great journey

Incredible journey girls! I wish you three the best of luck and will be following along via your Instagram and newsletter. I cannot wait to see you complete this epic adventure!

What a great and ambitious goal to walk the Danube River. Awesome progress so far! It is important to raise the issue of the state of this important river as you travel. I am sure the rest of your walk will be equally as interesting.

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