Explorer Mireya Mayor on Expedition Africa: Stanley and Livingstone

Text by Daniel Grushkin

Anthropologist, television host, former NFL cheerleader, National Geographic Emerging Explorer . . . Mireya Mayor is many things. A homebody isn’t one of them. In the past year, she has led expeditions to Madagascar (where, in 2003, she discovered the smallest primate on Earth, the mouse lemur) and helped set up a program to protect lowland gorillas in Congo (“Have you ever had a 300-pound silverback run at you?” she asks. No. No, we have not). Oh, and she also squeezed in a trek from Zanzibar across Tanzania, re-creating Henry Morton Stanley’s 1871 quest for David Livingstone while filming a new History Channel show produced by Survivor’s Mark Burnett. The making of Expedition Africa: Stanley and Livingstone (which premieres on Sunday) will be particularly grueling: Mayor and her three traveling companions were given nothing but a compass, a few maps, and Stanley’s journals from the original trip to guide them. Someone almost died, she tells us, but you’ll have to watch to find out who.

Q. You followed Stanley’s trip to meet Livingstone, one of the most famous expeditions in Africa. Why did you do it? Why now?

This was a terrific mission–an opportunity to experience what explorers of a historic time encountered while traveling through some of the most challenging terrain on Earth–then and now. As explorers in the 21st century, we have an array of marvels like GPS and other high-tech support that we might use. As a result of all this technology, have we gone soft? Can we do what explorers in an earlier time could do? In Expedition Africa, we put ourselves to the test. 

How long did it take you?

We traveled nearly 1,000 miles in 30 days, a lot of it on foot, along the route that Stanley took in the 19th century.

How was working with the other members? Who were they? What were they like?

My fellow explorers are all professionals with incredible experience in their respective fields. They are: Pasquale Scaturro, a seasoned navigator and explorer; Benedict Allen, a survivalist and adventurer; and Kevin Sites, a war correspondent and solo journalist. We were tasked with a major undertaking. We’re all Type-A, “leader” personalities. How do we choose one leader from amongst us?

What was Mark Burnett like?

Mark Burnett is an amazing producer and he is very passionate about this project. Also it was great to work with his A-team of producers and the camera teams that were with us 24/7. I feel very lucky to have been able to participate. It has been an astonishing, life-altering experience.

What modes of transport did you use?

We traveled a lot on foot, encountering the most difficult historical challenges that Stanley faced, sometimes even slogging through water, traversing an array of African terrains, from swamps to mountain to barren desert.

What tools did you use?

We used compasses and basic maps from Stanley’s time.

Were you armed?

For protection against wild animals, we were accompanied by Maasai warriors.

Can you describe some of the encounters you had?

I can’t reveal details of what took place, but what I can tell you is this: We ultimately encountered the same dangers faced by Stanley–sickness, life-threatening diseases, and injuries as well as internal conflicts within our group. We did not come out of it unscathed.

Stanley leaves a pretty miserable legacy in the Congo? Is this addressed in the show?

Stanley did leave a miserable legacy in the Congo. But as you’re aware, the events in the Congo took place well after Stanley’s mission to find Livingstone, so it’s beyond the scope of the series. However we do discuss Stanley’s mistreatment of his porters on this expedition.

What did you learn about Stanley? What did you learn about modern Africa?

The Africa of Stanley’s time lives on in many respects today; though of course towns have sprung up in some areas that were unsettled and completely wild then. Still, we were able to immerse ourselves to an amazing extent. I’ve never experienced anything like it before. It was a remarkable, personally challenging adventure.