Read Lost... In the Jungle of Doom Online
Authors: Tracey Turner
Lost... In the Jungle of Doom
WARNING!
The instructions in this book are for extreme survival situations only. Always proceed with caution, and ask an adult to supervise – or, ideally, seek
professional help. If in doubt, consult a responsible adult.
STOP! Read this first!
Welcome to an action-packed adventure in which you take the starring role!
You’re about to enter the Amazon rainforest, where danger lurks at every turn. On each page choose from different options by clicking on the links provided –
according to your instincts, knowledge and intelligence – and make your own path through the jungle to safety.
You decide . . .
• How to escape a ferocious jaguar
• Which foods you can eat, and which could be poisonous
• How to survive rivers teeming with piranha
. . . and many more life-or-death dilemmas. Along the way you’ll discover the facts you need to help you survive.
It’s time to test your survival skills – or die trying!
Click
here
to begin your adventure.
A
harsh squawk jolts you awake. You open your eyes: in the dim, greenish light, tree trunks stretch into the distance in
all directions. A red and yellow parrot swoops up to the tree canopy far above you.
You try to get up but something’s holding you down. It’s a seatbelt. You’re sitting in the remains of a plane seat.
In a sickening rush the events that brought you here come flooding back to you: the bumpy flight in a small plane, the crash as something hit one of the propellers, then the
terrible silence after the engine sputtered and died and the plane began to plummet . . .
You don’t remember anything else. You must have blacked out. But by some miracle you’re the sole survivor. You unfasten the seatbelt with shaking hands and check
for wounds: apart from some painful bruises and a few scratches, you are fine.
You were flying from Bogota in Columbia to Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. You calculate that you must be somewhere in the middle of the Amazon Rainforest. You are completely lost,
and, apparently, alone.
You set off with nothing but the clothes on your back, your trusty Swiss army knife and a dented metal container you find in the wreck...
How will you survive?
Click
here
to find information you need to help you survive.
T
he Amazon Rainforest is the largest rainforest in the world, stretching for more than five million square kilometres
across the top half of South America. More than 30 million people live in the Amazon – most of them live in towns and cities, but some live in the rainforest itself. Hundreds of thousands
of different plant and animal species live there too. It’s so vast and so hazardous that many people have walked into the Amazon never to return. If you’re going to survive
you’ll need to have your wits about you.
Perils of the Rainforest
The Amazon is home to several large and deadly predators, including black caimans, jaguars, cougars, anacondas (the world’s largest snake) and electric eels. Small but
dangerous creatures include poison-dart frogs, piranha fish, vampire bats, various venomous snakes and spiders, and biting insects that can transmit life threatening diseases such as malaria,
yellow fever and dengue fever. There are also the terrible dangers of poisonous plants, water-borne disease and flash floods, which are common in the Amazon.
Vicious Vegetation
There aren’t many low-growing plants on the rainforest floor. Because of the dense tree canopy, there’s not very much light to make them grow. You’ll have to
negotiate tree roots and trailing creepers, but you won’t need to slash through thick undergrowth. There are lots of thorny plants, though, and some of them can irritate your skin as well
as scratching, so watch out. You also need to be careful of the leaf litter on the forest floor where slithering snakes can often be found lurking ready to attack their prey.
Night Noises
The rainforest can be a noisy place, especially at night. There are hundreds of different types of frogs that make whistles, shrieks, and even knocking sounds. There are more
than a hundred species of monkey – the loudest are howler monkeys, which make an alarming screech that can be heard for miles! You’ll get used to the noises of the jungle if you stay
here for a while, but in the short term you’re going to have to tell yourself not to worry about them too much.
Click
here
to find out some useful jungle survival tips.
• The right clothing is essential in order to protect you from thorny and poisonous plants, biting insects, spiders and other creepy crawlies, and snakes.
You need stout boots, and as much of your skin as possible should be covered. Luckily, you are wearing jeans, a hooded sweatshirt and walking boots, and have a thin waterproof jacket bundled
up in a pocket along with your trusty Swiss Army knife.
• Bacteria breeds quickly in the jungle, so stay as clean as possible. Wash in running water and remember to wash your clothes too.
• Wash and dry out your feet and footwear too. You might get warm water immersion foot from walking in wet footwear, which can be extremely painful and if
left untreated can become infected and lead to death.
• Always check the ground for snakes as you walk – many are well camouflaged and some are deadly. Use a stick and swish it in front of you to uncover
dangers and alert small creatures.
• Wash any cuts and scratches with boiled water if possible – they can easily become infected if you don’t. Luckily you remember to search the
plane wreck before setting off and find a slightly dented metal container that you can boil water in.
Click
here
to continue your adventure.
The light is failing. Soon it will be completely dark. You can’t begin your journey in darkness, and you need to be safe from night-hunting
predators, which will be able to see you far more easily than you can see them. You need shelter. You spot a cave not far away. Should you sleep there, or use some of your valuable energy to
build your own shelter?
If you decide to sleep in the cave, click
here
.
If you decide to build your own shelter, click
here
.
Y
ou make your way towards the cave in the twilight, stepping over gnarled tree roots and pushing past dangling creepers.
As you approach the cave, you smell a horrible, musky scent that grows stronger the closer you get.
The cave entrance is completely black, twice as tall as you and about three metres wide. The smell is almost overpowering now. What can it be? As you approach the entrance,
the ground beneath your feet becomes very soft, and every step you take releases more of the powerful smell. It must be the droppings of some creature . . . maybe birds . . .
Just as you are about to investigate the inside of the cave, you hear shrill squeaking sounds. Something flaps past your head, missing you by inches. More of the flying
creatures swoop past you . . . suddenly you are surrounded by thousands of bats! In a panic you throw yourself against the cave wall, covering your head with your arms. You look up as a great
black cloud of bats streams out of the cave. You notice the tiny points of their fangs glistening in the half-light: vampire bats! As they disappear into the evening sky, you shakily go in search
of shelter elsewhere, afraid they might return to their cave.
Click
here
.
Click
here
to find out more about vampire bats.