Overall this has been a real once in a lifetime experience. It was hard, really hard and unforgettable. Sometimes the hardest things are the most memorable and that’s certainly true of this. I remember the journey between Dogpack and Tincup most vividly. I had difficult times and great times. I had one of the most beautiful places on the planet all to myself, I could swim naked in the lake, get up in the middle of the night and howl at the moon and I came pretty close to some of the big icons of the wilderness. At my first camp got within 20 metres of a large moose and on the creek I almost bumped into a moose surrounded by white timber wolves. I came pretty close to a bear and filmed a caribou swimming across a lake, American eagles would come and check me out and for 50 days I lived off the wild. It makes me smile to think of it – a big smile.

I missed human company, kindness and reassurance. Part of that need was because I was trying to make a TV series and that’s a lot of pressure. Normally I’d be talking to tens of people every day in that situation; reassuring each other, bouncing ideas and helping to produce the right films. Out there I found it hard without any communication.

I didn’t have any idea what was going to happen in the next ten minutes and I never knew where my next meal was coming from. It was hard to manage my expectations. I missed knowing that I could have food whenever I wanted.

I missed having anywhere to sit down. It might sound strange but out there I was constantly bending down, balancing my pots of food on logs and crouching down or lying on the ground. I wanted to sit down on something the right height and eat my dinner at a table.

After I decided to come out I wanted to see people I knew. Coming home has been about seeing my friends and family, being alone in the wild made me realise how important they are to me. And I was amazed to discover the support everyone around the world had been sending me on the web sites.

My grandmother died while I was out there. She was very special and would listen with wide eyes when I would come home and tell her about my adventures. She was a very adventurous woman in her time and travelled the world in the 60s which must have been very courageous. Between this adventure and climbing Everest in May I’ve spent more than 5 months away from home. I‘m lucky to be able to do what I do but its inevitable I’ll miss other bits of life and this time I missed an important bit. It wont stop me, I know she would want me to carry on leading a full and extraordinary life.

The isolation was the most difficult element of this adventure. With no contact I immediately began to lose direction and reason. Without food I lost concentration and the ability to think straight. I worked hard from week one to keep myself motivated and keep going and by the end I was spending hours every day just convincing myself to carry on one day at a time. When I was travelling or doing something physically hard I had a military voice superimposed on my thoughts keeping me going and getting me organised, other times I had a female voice that would tell me to be sensible, breathe and take it easy on myself. They helped and I could feel them getting stronger and more necessary as time went on.

Now I feel good. Physically I’ve been checked out by the doctors in London and they say I’m fine. I’ve achieved something extraordinary. I lived in the wilderness, alone, surviving off the wild for 50 days. I went on an extreme adventure, a solo mission and I made my dream a reality. I experienced starvation, challenged my motivation and my skills and my independence to the limit and found new strengths. I believe each time I push my limits I redefine myself and this adventure certainly did that.

Would I go back and do it again? Yes, of course. I miss it already. I might take some food and a few friends next time but I’ll be back.