Extreme athlete and influencer Ash Dykes has been found alive after he went off the grid after being bitten by a mysterious insect in the Congo Basin.
“We JUST received a message from Ash’s sat-phone/Garmin! EVERYONE IS SAFE!” Dykes’ social media accounts shared on Wednesday, October 21. “The Starlink is out and their powerbank has died, there’s no way for them to send videos or updates, they can only send short messages whenever they get signal on the Garmin.”
The update added, “That’s all we know right now. We will update you when we know more. Thank you for your prayers!!”
Hours earlier, a distressing message was posted to his combined 6.7 million followers on TikTok and Instagram.
“Please bear with us, It’s been more than 16 hours since we last heard from Ash and the team which is concerning,” the statement said. “We will endeavour to keep you posted and let you all know as soon as we hear more.”
Dykes and a group of travelers are currently on a weeks-long journey through the Congo Basin in central Africa.
News of Dykes’ disappearance came less than a day after he shared a video after getting bitten by a mysterious insect.
“Had my first nasty little sting,” Dykes said on Tuesday, October 20. “It was right under my shirt, up my back. Just felt something moving and I went to grab it and it was a bee or something. I don’t know. Painful, though.”
Dykes captioned the video, “Something’s decided to give me a nasty sting out here in the Congo Basin! Not entirely sure what got me, but it’s certainly made itself known. Another reminder that out here in the jungle, it’s not just the bigger wildlife you’ve got to watch out for. All part of the adventure!”
Shortly after the bite, Dykes posted a video of him kayaking down the Sangha River.
“We have been chased by bees, we have stared silverback [gorillas] in the face, we have witnessed elephants,” he said in the clip, which also featured video evidence of all the group’s extreme encounters. “In fact, one pulled a tree down right next to camp. We have come across hippos that have traipsed beside our camp. We’ve seen buffalo. We’ve been eaten alive by the tsetse flies and the mosquitoes, trying desperately to avoid dengue fever and malaria.”
Dykes said he and the group had been traveling roughly 45 to 50 miles per day.
“We are getting it done, we’re winning,” he continued. “We have not seen any crocodiles. We know they’re here. We know the hippos are here. But through good planning and good due diligence and speaking to the locals, we are avoiding them. This is a minefield and we’re trying not to step on the mine.”
