He could afford business-class flights and stays at luxurious five-star hotels and island resorts, but 64-year-old English millionaire Ian Argus Stuart is choosing to spend almost a month alone on a remote island in the Pacific, building his own shelter and fishing for his own food as a voluntary "castaway."
The entrepreneur is spending 21 days on a volcanic island with no guides, no food, and no hotels, as a client of Docastaway, a company that offers "desert island" vacation experiences on uninhabited islands in Indonesia, the Philippines and Central America. Stuart, who doesn't know how to swim, also hope to climb to the crater of the volcano during his stay on the island.
(MORE: 50 Incredible Island Escapes)
This is not Stuart's first time alone on a remote island surrounded by jungle and wildlife.
In July, Stuart was also a "castaway" on an island for 21 days in Indonesia, where he built his own tent, camped in the jungle and the beach, and ate food—jackfruit, boiled hermit crabs, and even cabbage—he found on the island or washed up on the beach. When his day’s survival work had finished and he had a bit of spare time, Stuart would go up to the highest part of the island so he could use his smart phone to connect with the London Stock Exchange and buy and sell his shares, according to Alvaro Cerezo, founder of Docastaway.
(MORE: World's Most Isolated Destinations)
His second castaway adventure, which began on November 9, would be more difficult for Stuart, who knew survival techniques before embarking on his first trip. This new island is farther from civilization, with no beach to "land" on and is less flat than the island in Indonesia, said Cerezo. Stuart's equipment include a satellite Wi-Fi hotspot for communication, a machete, a solar charger, fishing lines and hooks, dust bin, a plastic sheet, a plate, fork and lighter, six bottles of water, and a camera to document his experience.
Adventure fans can follow Stuart's adventures as a real-life castaway on a Facebook page.
(For More Travel, Follow us on Facebook)