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A safety consultant faced his own bush tucker trials and encountered snakes, spiders and kangaroos during a trek of the Australian bush.
And now Dean Howells has set himself a 10-year challenge to complete the Aborigine bush walk after completing the first section earlier this month.
Mr Howells, of Geddington, spent four days camping outside in the bush and trekked 60 kilometres over five days.
He came face-to-face with kangaroos, got bitten by a spider and met a poisonous tiger snake along the way.
He got involved with Bibbulman Track Walk after hearing about it through his brother-in-law, who lives in Australia, and after meeting some Australian Rotarians.
Mr Howells said: "One of the toughest things was missing a good night's sleep.
"You go to sleep as soon as it gets dark but you don't really sleep because of the noises – the rustlings and things crawling by.
"One morning I woke up with bite marks and it gave the Australians some amusement when they told me it was a spider.
"Luckily the guys I was with knew what they were doing because you're miles from civilisation so if anything was to happen, it could get difficult.
"But it was an absolutely breath-taking experience and I want to go back."
The 48-year-old is hoping to become an 'end-to-ender' and each year he wants to complete a section of the 1,000km walk in Western Australia, which would take him about 10 years in total.
Mr Howells, managing director of Essential Safety Ltd, said: "I tried to prepare myself the best I could for the challenge, ensuring I have the right equipment.
"It would have been a little embarrassing if a health and safety professional from England was the one to have an accident and hold up the Australians."
He said his adventure had given him sympathy for the contestants facing their own Australian challenge on the ITV show I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!
He said: "I know how it feels not to have any amenities for a few days."
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Weather for Kettering
Saturday 04 February 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: -1 C to 1 C
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Wind direction: South
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