The Hidden Pathways journey began in earnest in 2010 with the discovery of a 100 year old map of the rainforest in Trinidad, found at the Royal Geographical Society London.

Richard Wood the map's discoverer, had already travelled to the rainforest of the Amazon and Trinidad several times. He decided that the Trinidad jungle would make an excellent location for a personal development project with adults, who could look at the changes in the forest trails over the last 100 years. Thus began a four year period of training and exploration targetting a group of 14 people who might never have done anything like this in the past.

An extensive training programme in the UK followed up by jungle training in Ecuador culminated in 2013 with a very succesful re-mapping project in the Trinidad rainforest using Global Positioning Systems and good old fashioned maps, compasses and pacing.

After this success it was decided to take Hidden Pathways under the wing of Richard's company "Outdoor Learning in Northumberland Ltd" who would help Hidden Pathways to develop further opportunities to help others to experience some of our world's wonderful rainforests.

We have been lucky enough to experience the natural beauty of the rainforest and through immersing ourselves in the local culture we have found our common bond with the natural world . Our strong links formed over the last 14 years with the Shuar people in the Amazon Basin Ecuador have allowed us to develop opportunities for jungle experiences from which you too can truly benefit.

Our Mission

We want to share our knowledge and understanding of this amazing environment to give others an experience which they will talk about and cherish for the rest of their lives. Through shared expedition experiences, school resources and lectures we will broaden public awareness of the jungle environment and the diverse flora and fauna living there. Through this we aim to help others to understand the world better on a global dimension and help them to explore the links between their own lives and people, places and issues in the Amazon and beyond.

Expedition leader Richard Wood is an ex- Search and Rescue Helicopter Pilot who has been leading groups in the outdoors for over 30 years. During that time he has led expeditions to South Africa, Namibia, USA, Europe and the rainforests of Ecuador and Trinidad. He has also worked in Mountain Rescue and was a qualified Search and Rescue Dog handler. Most of the time he works as an outdoor learning consultant with children and schools and he is a qualified Forest and Beach School Trainer. He is supported by a very competent team of leaders, experienced in overseas expeditions and the jungle.

What is Hidden Pathways?

Our Mission

Our Team