From scientists to athletes, we’ve got experts from different fields of life revealing their adventures for the world to witness on ‘The Joe Rogan Experience’ podcast. And how can we talk about adventures without mentioning Paul Rosolie? The survivalist, wildlife conservationist, and author truly became a hit among fans of the podcast due to the tales he shared in episode #2013 of the show.

So when he reappeared in the latest edition of the podcast, episode #2209, he definitely did not disappoint fans. How? Well, he revealed a near-death experience in the Amazon rainforest involving fellow podcaster Lex Fridman that shocked host Joe Rogan as well as all the listeners. So what actually happened?

Well, Rosolie revealed the tale of when he, his crewmate JJ, and the AI researcher Fridman got lost in the jungle during what was supposed to be a fun exploration of the woods. While it is a relief when you have an expert such as Rosolie by your side, the story took a harrowing turn when the wildlife author revealed that he wasn’t equipped with survival equipment. In fact, all he had were their tents and some matches. This truly shook Rogan, as all he responded with was, “Oh Jesus Christ!”.

Rosolie further revealed that they were severely dehydrated after spending an entire day without water. And by day three, Fridman was ready to take a fatal step. He said, “Lex was crouched by this puddle with his backpack on, and he’s like looking at the water. He looks at me and says, ‘I’m going to drink it.’ I said, ‘Do not drink that.’ I was like, “Please don’t drink that.” And he goes, ‘I’m going to drink it. I don’t care about anything else on Earth right now except for water.’ I was like, ‘Please don’t drink it.'” 

Fortunately for them, the podcaster did not drink the water. As drinking it would mean that they would have had to carry a sick person through the forest while making sure he stayed alive. This truly would’ve turned disastrous for the group. They had no satellite phone or any other method of communication with the outside world. Rosolie further revealed that the nearest river was at least 30 miles away, while help would be around 100 miles from them.

So how did they finally survive the whole ordeal?

Well, after being stuck in the forest for a few days, Rosolie and co. decided to stop at a spot to replenish some energy. After chewing on some nuts but with still no water around, they decided to move on and continue their trek until they came across a road in the middle of the forest. An awkward sight for many that JJ and the author were accustomed to. As such, roads are often created and used by loggers as they decide to chop down more trees. This time it was the ancient mahogany trees or the ironwood trees on their target.

But since they were lost in the wilderness for more than 48 hours, they decided to follow the road until they found a stream that finally helped take them home. As Rosolie revealed, “We used the road and hiked out. When we reached water, it was amazing. We plunged into the river, drinking as much as we could. We had some iodine tablets, so we put them in our water bottles. After drinking, we had to raft for an entire day back to the place where we got picked up.”

However, with the relief of survival came the painful realization that those ancient trees will now be chopped down. Something that he, along with his organization Junglekeepers, have been trying to prevent. But what do you think? Would you ever like to visit the Amazon rainforest after hearing a tale like this? Let us know in the comments.