Journey Down the Yukon - A Soldier's Challenge

Paratrooper Ben Parkinson is one of Britain's most wounded soldiers.

Blown up in Afghanistan, his injuries were so severe,

he was brought home to die.

When they started to take him off the sedation, there was

just nothing, nothing there at all.

Brain injured and with both legs amputated,

Ben's family were told he'd never walk or talk again.

-Back straight, come on, push! Push!

-BEN GROANS

But Ben Parkinson is a fighter.

And he began a long road to recovery that's seen him

push back the boundaries of what wounded soldiers can achieve

and become an inspiration to millions of others.

And his journey has brought him here, to the great Canadian wilderness,

where he faces one of his biggest challenges yet.

He'll be paddling hundreds of miles down the mighty Yukon River,

a daunting mass of fast-flowing water.

For Ben, it'll be much more than a trek into the unknown -

he'll be battling with his damaged and broken body.

There's his pillow, need that too.

Lance bombardier Ben Parkinson is packing for a journey

few imagined he would ever be able to take.

Your very patriotic hat.

Well, that's to keep you warm at night.

You going to put that on now?

-Yeah.

-Right, all right, then. But don't forget it.

In 2006, his battlefield injuries had left him in a desperate state.

Now Ben and his stepdad, Andy Durney, are heading for the Yukon.

Gold Rush country in north-west Canada.

Andy won't just be Ben's carer on the trip,

he'll also be his cook and right-hand man.

Right, there's the full washing kit.

We don't need them.

Put 'em in.

Ben and Andy are part of a team put together by the Forces charity,

Pilgrim Bandits.

They believe in pushing injured service personnel

to their physical and mental limits,

recreating the challenges the soldiers faced

when they were in the military.

The Yukon will be a big test for this lad from Doncaster.

Not only are there bears and wolves, there's 250 miles of canoeing

and a week of wild camping.

For a guy with no legs, it's going to be a tough expedition.

I'll be joining Ben on the trip.

Meeting him, it's clear what he's had to overcome.

Who are these people?

'The brain injury has affected his speech.

'And there were huge gaps in his memory.'

So, Ben, I understand your nickname was "The Big Unit"?

And you look a big unit there.

I have to say, it's one guy talking to another,

but you're quite a handsome boy.

What about this one? Any ideas?

Do you find it frustrating that you've got lots of your memory that's missing?

-That's Afghan, is it?

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

-But you can't remember this?

-Nothing.

-Nothing?

Nothing at all.

Before or after, or nothing?

A brilliant set of photos.

Just looking at these and talking to your mum and Andy,

you've made such massive progress since the incident.

Have you any hopes and aspirations moving forward?

I have no doubt this gentleman will float like a butterfly

and sting like a bee.

But once you've conquered the Yukon.

Ben's certainly not without ambition.

His Yukon adventure is just the latest in a long list

of epic challenges.

He's already skied across the Norwegian Arctic

and he still has the beating heart of a paratrooper inside him.

He's completed an astonishing 23 jumps since he was injured.

Ben's now a poster boy for wounded soldiers.

In 2012, he carried the Olympic Torch through his hometown.

12 months later,

"The Big Unit" got the big call to go to the Palace to receive an MBE.

But the Yukon is a whole new ballgame.

And while most people are taking it easy on a Friday night,

Ben's in a warehouse in the south of England

getting the lowdown on what he'll need.

So that, your tent, your doss roll, your thermals...

Ex-lads should have all their own.

'The expedition is being led by a group of crack ex-servicemen

'known as the pilgrim bandits.

'They've served Queen and country all over the globe.

'Now they're putting their military skills to use,

'pushing injured soldiers and civvies like me to their absolute limits.'

We're hoping to be on the water between half-past seven and eight o'clock.

MOBILE PHONE RINGS

There's always one, isn't there? Yes!

LAUGHTER

-BEN:

-Hello?

-LAUGHTER

-BEN:

-I'm on the phone, man!

Ben's not the only injured soldier on the trip.

There are other double amputees who were wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan

and we're all being warned that we're heading out of our comfort zones.

This is a solar charger, I believe.

And everyone's recommending that we take one, you know,

to charge your phones up and that sort of thing.

There'll be no signal for phones, but you can take pictures

and all that sort of stuff.

'There's lots to learn, and fast.

'But I want to understand what makes Ben Parkinson tick.'

Just why is he so driven?

And whether this incredible man has any limits.

Morning, Ben. You're looking the part!

All I can see is a little thumb sticking out the top. How are you, mate?

-Sleep all right?

-Yeah. Amazing.

There's your boat. What do you think?

Poole harbour in Dorset isn't exactly frontier land.

But after almost a year of preparation,

it's the last training exercise before we head for Canada.

Here we go.

Ben's off already, there's no stopping him!

LAUGHING: Look at him!

Glynn in the back is hardly paddling!

It's the open sea rather than a river,

but at least we can fine-tune our technique.

Right, brilliant. So as you're paddling along, Ben, we're going to try and imagine

you've got a punchball in front of your face.

And we're going to try and punch it with your top hand,

does that make sense?

Yeah, that's it, like that. So it gets your paddle upright. Yeah, that's good.

He's knocking 'em out, there.

Do you think he's going to have any specific problems with this

-kind of... With the duration of it all?

-Yeah, I think so.

The repetitive nature of it... Because obviously it will become fatiguing,

so we're looking at probably between 45 and 55 miles a day.

-So, so far today, we've probably done about four, and how are you feeling?

-Quite tired.

-Yeah, yeah.

It does become quite tiring, the repetitive nature of it.

But it's just the ability for him just to carry on, so just to get used

to getting in that zone and waking up and going and paddling and paddling and paddling.

He's so powerful, but he just compensates and keeps going, keeps going and keeps going.

Right.

He's just a bit like a Duracell bunny, wind him up and off he goes!

THEY LAUGH

-The power transfer goes through your body, through your feet.

-Yeah, yeah.

-So it's a full body workout, really.

-Yeah.

-How are you doing, Ben?

-All right.

-Good man.

Paddling isn't straightforward for Ben.

It's not just that he's an amputee, his back is broken.

To make him more comfortable,

he's been training in an open Canadian canoe.

It's constant, energy-sapping exercise,

but it seems Ben has a competitive streak.

Ben, thoughts so far, how's it going?

-Very enjoyable... Oh, very annoying?

-Very annoying.

-Why?

You're joking.

Every time I look up at you, all I can see is

just these pair of shoulders and paddle working.

You're doing pretty well. Every time I look up, you're in the front.

Thankfully, the Yukon expedition will be a marathon rather than a sprint.

It'll be tough, but if the weather's bad, it could be punishing.

When we were there doing the recce, we had freezing fog

and freezing weather for a couple of nights.

And it was cold.

You know, minus 12, I think it was.

But other than that it's just a fast-flowing river.

If we get any problems, you can't turn round.

The river is just too quick.

The Yukon will be a test of all our abilities

and Ben is up for the challenge.

Nice one, chaps.

I think he still thinks he's got something to prove

and I really don't think that anybody thinks he has got

anything to prove, but Ben just cracks on with everything.

He is not one for sitting around and watching TV, he doesn't do

much Facebook, he wants to do the experts and get there.

And he's a Para at the end of the day,

and failure isn't an option.

I've got you, Ben.

So as we set off for the Yukon, there must be something

Ben's worried about.

MIKE LAUGHS

'My travels normally focus on wildlife

'so I wouldn't mind an encounter with a bear or two.

'I'm not sure everyone else would be so keen.'

It seems Ben's beat us to it, he's just down here.

Let's see how he's feeling this morning. Ready for the off.

-You've got your haircut nice and short for it.

-You...

I've got no choice!

Morning, Andy, how's everything going?

All right, yes, first here, I can't argue with that.

The trip is a logistical headache for Ben and Andy.

As well as the camping gear, there's all the other medical equipment, too.

If anything is forgotten, well, the Yukon's a long way from Yorkshire.

Because he's got, you know, the legs

and everything you've got to make sure he's got

all the stuff for putting the legs on and off

and I'm always panicking that I've forgotten something

cos one little bit, and that means he can't put them on very well.

It's more than 4,000 miles as the crow flies from the UK to the Yukon.

It takes two flights to reach its capital, Whitehorse,

but from the air we can understand the kind of terrain that awaits us.

This is a land of vast open spaces.

No wonder this is the wilderness centre of Canada.

Let the adventure begin.

We are planning to join the Yukon River a few hours' drive

north of Whitehorse at the small community of Carmacks.

If all goes well, eight days later, we'll reach the former

Klondike Gold Rush centre of Dawson City.

That's the idea.

But the realities are daunting.

At 2,000 miles long, the Yukon is a giant of a river.

Yukon territory is also massive. It's twice the size of Britain.

Just 35,000 people live here.

There are more moose than humans.

The river flows like a superhighway.

Fed by glacial meltwater, it is both freezing

and its speed deadly.

We will all have to be on top of our game.

One of the problems when you are on it,

because it is like being on a conveyor belt,

you can be a bit blase about the fact that it's moving really quickly

but in actual fact you just need to be aware all the time,

never switch off.

Assume everything is trying to kill you, you'll be fine.

Well, it is the first kayaking day, everyone's suitably refreshed

after their first night under canvas and it's pretty cold at the moment.

We're having our first meeting, everyone getting familiar with who

they are going to be kayaking with. I think we are all feeling the same.

We want to get on the water and get paddling

but the devil is in the detail.

There is so much to sort out before we start to float.

You keep yourself dry, you keep yourself warm.

Religiously look after your sleeping bag

and your clothes to make sure that they are permanently dry.

As soon as they get wet we really struggle to dry them.

Most of us are using enclosed kayaks but because of Ben's back

problems, his open Canadian canoe needs a bit of tweaking.

These are sort of standard canoes and because we have got them

from the outfitters here in Canada they are very different to the

set-up that we've had for Ben when we have been training

over in the UK, so the difficulty is we are having to sort of be

a little bit Heath Robinson with the way that we set it up.

Well, obviously, without legs, stability's a massive issue...

-Oh, huge.

-..and these bags are there to just wedge him in?

-Almost, yes.

It is designed that you can press against it so when

he puts the paddle in, he's able to drive through his stumps

if you like and it pushes the boat forwards

so he's able to transfer the power through his body

and then transfer it through the legs and drive the boat forwards.

He's a real unit. He's strong and powerful

and, therefore, he is able to power the boat.

Nell at the back will essentially be trying to keep

it in a straight line and steering it. The power's up front.

I think for many able-bodied people they are worried about the

physical aspect of the kayaking and everything else is much easier.

For you, it is the other way round.

I think you'll be great in the kayak but struggle elsewhere.

Is it tough to have everyone do everything for you?

Not really, no.

THEY LAUGH

This is like rehab for Ben. He is used to walking on level ground.

If he can get walking better on all these lumps and bumps, that has got

to be brilliant because when he gets back on the level ground,

he'll be away. I won't be to keep up with him!

The expedition comes at a poignant time for Ben and his family.

It's nine years to the very day

since he was severely wounded in Afghanistan.

We normally make quite a big thing of it.

We call it Ben's Survival Day.

We don't call it the day when you got injured, it is

the day when he survived and, every year, apart from the first one

when you weren't well enough, we have had some kind of party.

-Happy Survival Day, Ben.

-Cheers.

-Congratulations.

Let's hope we survive the rest of the week.

And see you on the water.

Survival could be a big thing today

because there's one major obstacle to overcome.

A treacherous stretch of water called Five Finger Rapids.

And it's so called because there are five ways you can go down,

and, believe me, four of those ways you do not want to

take your kayak down because there is a lot of white water,

rocks, lateral water trying to flip the boat,

so it is crucial we pick the one way that it's safe to go down.

For inexperienced kayakers like me, and obviously Ben

with his physical challenges, that is going to be tough.

If we get down there, we're going to enjoy our dinner.

My first stroke.

Fabulous, see you later.

With no home comforts for the next eight days,

Ben will have little option on this expedition but to go with the flow.

It's my first hour on the water and I have to say I am loving it

but there is one person who's enjoying it more than me

and it is that chap over there, Ben.

He may have no legs but he is a powerhouse.

Ever since his accident nine years ago, he has spent time in the gym

bulking up, he has got massive biceps, huge shoulders.

The man was basically born to kayak.

We are following a well-travelled route to Dawson City.

Towards the end of the 19th century,

the Yukon River was the quickest way to get to the Klondike Gold Fields.

Thousands paid a small fortune to go by water, braving the river

with all its natural hazards.

Many more took their chances by trekking over the mountains.

Whichever way they went it was no easy journey

and one often made in vain.

Few ever found the riches they were looking for.

The river hasn't changed much and neither have the Five Finger Rapids.

With confined cliff faces and swift running water, this spot has

the potential to cause a whole heap of trouble.

One mistake and our boats could be tipped over.

That would be bad for any of us but especially if it happened to Ben.

The current is moving so quickly here that if Ben goes

overboard we'll have a job on our hands to get to him in time.

It's a tense few minutes but the rest of us make it through.

Well, that was fun.

Water splashing over the front of the boat

and any minute Ben's about to appear around the corner

and it is going to be a different proposition for him

because he's in an open kayak so it might just fill with water.

Let's see how he gets on.

Nine years ago in Afghanistan, Ben's life was hanging by a thread.

Now he's careering down the Yukon River.

What a way to celebrate your Survival Day.

When we first met Ben, he was in an electric wheelchair,

you know, going up and down, he couldn't virtually hardly talk.

No, he just looked a real sad bloke.

But you could see... Ben's... Ben's a kind of special guy,

you could see somewhere in there

that there was still something wanting to get out

and able to get out and he just needed...

It just needed the nut cracking, really, and that's all we've done.

The Pilgrim Bandits say they're not here to provide sympathy

for severely wounded soldiers,

but to help restore their confidence and self belief.

Former Royal Marine Vinny Manley lost his legs nine years ago,

working as a private military contractor for the Americans in Iraq.

This kind of calculated risk, you know you are on the front line.

In my mind it was no different from being in the Marines.

You do what you love and you take your chance.

Like many other wounded veterans, recovery hasn't been easy.

They kind of show you that if you are prepared to put 100%

effort in then your life can go back to almost as good as what it was.

Obviously there's a lot of different ways of doing things as an amputee,

but, you know, I'm here, I'm in the Yukon, it's awesome.

Tyler Christopher was just 25 when he lost both his legs after stepping

on a mine whilst on patrol with the Rifles regiment in Afghanistan.

I was lying face down and it just felt like warm water

pouring down my legs.

I was trying to get up but it just weren't working.

I was lying on my left arm so my right arm was out

and my right arm weren't working.

It was a life-defining moment but, since then, Tyler has refused

to let his injuries limit him and he now plays sport for his country.

I was always an outdoors person.

I thought, "Right, that's all that bit over,

"I ain't going to be able to do any of that again,"

so that's the good thing about this cos I never thought

I'd be camping in the middle of nowhere again.

For the charity that's brought these boys to the Yukon,

there's a bigger issue at play.

They say society's attitude to veterans needs to change.

The thing I always find striking is whenever we, as a charity,

go to America, and we do things in America,

you'll be walking down the boardwalk

with some of the lads and cars will come past, they will stop,

wind down their window and say, "Thank you very much, sir".

That would never ever happen in the United Kingdom. Never.

And I think that's the saddest thing about the country I represent.

Even as a youngster, Ben Parkinson only had one dream.

He was four when he first mentioned going in the Army.

There was never anything any different for Ben - there was

not the normal fireman, astronaut, none of that,

Ben wanted to go in the Army and it was quite strange

cos we've got no military history in the family

since the Second World War, but Ben wanted to go in the Army.

His heart was set on joining one of the Army's elite units.

At more than six foot four, this was someone who could more than look after himself.

Ireland was over. Basically, things had quietened down in Ireland

and it was before the problems in the Middle East.

There had been the first Gulf War but things were fairly quiet,

but we did say to him, you know, this could go wrong,

and he, the usual, sort of, "Well, I'll not be bothered,

"will I, if I'm dead?"

Typical young lads' thing and we sort of said, "No, Ben,

"there are a lot worse things than being dead,"

and that haunts me somewhat that that was

-a conversation that we did have.

-Yeah.

He eventually joined 7 Para,

providing artillery support for the Parachute regiment.

Aged 18, he was in one of the first British units

sent into Iraq during the Second Gulf War.

Four years later he was in Afghanistan.

He rang up the day before and said that he didn't think

he would be going out on any more manoeuvres

and he'd just be in Camp Bastion getting ready to come home.

His actual words were,

"I'm back in Bastion, I'm just cleaning the guns, waiting

"for the Marines,

"and I'll be home in ten days." And that was on Monday.

And then on Tuesday, um...

Tuesday was when it happened.

Ben was the gunner in a Land Rover which hit an old Soviet land mine

whilst on patrol in Helmand Province.

Two of the soldiers in the vehicle were wounded.

Ben's injuries were catastrophic.

We'd come home from work, it was six o'clock in the evening,

there was a knock on the door and I went to answer the door and through

the glass I could see a guy in green and I wouldn't answer the door.

I just started screaming.

We'd been told that if two people came to the door your son or

daughter had been killed, and I was walking,

and I obviously knew it was bad news,

but because there was only one there,

I thought, "He's been injured."

We'd just been watching the news thinking, "He's nearly back,

"he'll be back in a few days."

Ben's injuries were believed to be unsurvivable.

His pelvis was fractured in two places and all

but two fingers were broken.

He had an open fracture of his left arm,

as well as fractures of the vertebrae in his back.

Every rib had been damaged.

His jaw was also fractured as were his cheekbones

and there were further fractures to his skull.

In the military hospital at Camp Bastion, his legs were amputated.

His shattered body was then brought home to the UK

so he could die near those who loved him most.

His legs had gone, he was laid on top of the bed

and there were no legs.

He had got huge wadding going up his chest.

One of his arms, his left arm, was completely encased in bandage,

his fingers were all bandaged, his face was swollen and black,

and the thing that I still have nightmares,

he had like a hammock slung under his nose catching

the cerebral fluid that was leaking from his brain.

And...I walked up to him

but he was Ben and the only bit of him that I could touch was...

Well, actually, that arm was on his right arm, from there to there,

and there were drips and bottles and tubes and drains

and I just walked up to him and just smiled and laughed and I said,

"What on earth have you been doing?"

And I just sat down with him and just kept stroking his arm.

Ben would remain in a coma for three months.

His war was over but a host of other battles were only just beginning.

Given the extent of Ben's injuries, it is a miracle he's made

it to the Yukon.

This is a gruelling expedition

and as we head further north the temperature is dropping.

Life on the river is becoming more demanding.

Mega.

So far we've covered 80 miles but the adventure for Ben

and his fellow amputees is entering a new phase.

For the last few days of kayaking,

the Yukon River has flown north, parallel to the Klondike Highway,

and all of a sudden it's now going to change.

The Klondike Highway will disappear off this way,

ultimately ending in Alaska, and we are going this way, off-grid.

This is total Canadian wilderness, which is really exciting

because we will be miles from anywhere

but if there's a problem, it is going to be difficult to reach us.

As Ben spends more time in the canoe,

his technique is constantly improving.

Good balance, good power, apparently.

-Are you enjoying it?

-Yeah.

But Ben's fighting spirit is hiding a problem.

It was initially thought the open canoe would let him

exploit his powerful upper body strength.

His upright position, though, isn't fully supported

and a combination of the headwinds

and the repetitive action of paddling is playing havoc

with his broken back.

It's been our shortest day on the water but by far our toughest.

The weather looks lovely now

but on the way down it was really cold and really windy,

and, on top of that, Ben was having problems with his back.

We kept having to stop but because he is ahead of the flotilla,

we all have to wait so Glyn made the decision,

because people were getting cold with the constant stoppage,

that some would go ahead

and some would stay with Ben to support him.

So we finally arrived, everyone's exhausted,

and then we had to haul all the kayaks up from the water 15 metres

below, up a slope like that, and believe me, they're heavy.

Tough day.

Quite a short day on the water but a tough day for you, mate.

So if it was pain one to ten, where was it on the scale?

You told me a phrase about pain recently.

The ergonomics of where he sat in the boat and how he is able to hold

the paddles, he's finding himself slumping further

and further forwards so we're going to have a quick look

at the boat, we'll try and engage it a little bit.

We're changing the paddles he's going to use tomorrow

so we are going to try and engage it that way round.

But the key thing really is that he's doubled his mileages.

The biggest training weekend we did was 42 miles on the River Wye

over two days. We are currently at 89 miles, over three days,

so he is significantly increasing the effort he's having to

put in to be able to achieve the mileages we need to do.

Tomorrow we've got a 40-mile day planned

so we're trying to make sure he's got enough creams

and make sure he's massaged in the right way to ensure

he is able to continue, hopefully, in the right frame tomorrow.

We'll clean him up best we can.

Obviously we can only watch him fairly well.

And it's not just the daily wear and tear on Ben's body that's a worry.

Keeping his legs clean is a top priority.

The idea is to slip them on and give them a shove,

and then when Ben puts his weight on it simply drives the air

through this one-way valve and then they stick on to the silicon fins.

It's the first time in three days that Ben's been reunited

with his prosthetic legs and it comes as a blessed relief.

That's one way of putting it, isn't it?

Ben's frustrations are understandable

but while he takes it easy, I'm exploring our camp spot.

Selkirk would have been buzzing during the Gold Rush,

and although it's quiet now, it seems we are not the only visitors.

So far all the chat about brown bears has been hypothetical

because we haven't actually seen one yet.

But we've just found these footprints right the way along this track

and I know these are brown bear because if you have a look,

there's a massive pad at the back showing a really broad foot

and you can clearly see all the claw marks.

That's because, unlike cats, bears cannot retract their claws,

so they come out really clearly and I think that's the hind left foot.

But if we walk along, that's its back left, that's its back right,

that's its front right,

and that is its front left,

and casting a glance back,

I reckon that is a bear with a gait of about two and a half metres.

And the hilarious thing is, we are

camping just 50 metres in that direction.

Yikes.

While the bears keep their distance, Ben's thoughts are never far from

home and, using a satellite phone, he checks in with his mum Diane.

PHONE RINGS

Hello. How are you?

Hello, Ben!

-How are you doing?

-Very good, thank you.

-Are you enjoying it?

-I am loving it.

Go on, there is something everybody wants to know, have you seen

-any bears?

-No, I wrestled one.

You've wrestled one, great.

What about the Northern Lights?

I've been asleep so I never saw them

but everyone else saw it and it was incredible, apparently.

How's the camping?

Very cold, yes.

-But could you sleep?

-Yeah, like a baby.

I thought that might be the case.

Well, you be careful, we'll see you when you get back.

See you.

This is what Ben wanted, this is the life that Ben would want,

and that's our job, to get him the life that he wants.

He is off doing what he wants to do.

Is your mum missing you, or is she glad to be shot of you?

Are you missing her?

-She's really proud of you.

-Yes.

Diane and Andy have sacrificed everything to get Ben where

he is today.

But back in 2006,

they faced the fact that the little boy who wanted to join

the Army was now a 22-year-old soldier fighting for his life.

We did have the prognosis that he would never really know anyone,

he would probably only be sat up in bed...

They said he'd had a stroke. Um...

..I can remember one day I'd broke down and I was sobbing

because I wanted to see his eyes

and I just... That is all I could think,

I kept saying, "I just want to see his eyes", and when they started to

take him off the sedation, there was just nothing, nothing there at all.

After many dark months, Ben did the unthinkable.

He started communicating by blinking,

but as hopes rose, tensions started to develop.

On top of Ben's injuries there is this horrendous situation

where half of the family were saying, "Look, Ben's gone,

"let it go, let's grieve and get on with it",

and us who were saying, "He's not dead."

Ben's brain injury remained a worry.

He was transferred to another NHS unit - the Putney Hospital

for Neuro-Disability in London, but the strain was taking its toll.

Ben was in a ward of six people, and there were people screaming,

"Help me" all the time, and moaning, and for the sake of the patients

and the sake of the family, I cannot tell you what it was like at Putney.

But I was convinced that Ben would not want to be alive in those

circumstances and I actually thought about ending it for both of us.

Diane was struggling to cope as Ben's situation reached a real low.

He was eventually moved to Headley Court in Surrey where

most of Britain's severely war-injured were being rehabilitated.

Ben was back amongst his fellow soldiers.

But there would be more setbacks.

The relationship at Headley Court broke down somewhat

in that they were very much starting to take the attitude

Ben is now a finished product.

His back was still broken, he couldn't walk,

he was in the electric wheelchair, his left arm was useless,

he had very severe ataxia, he shook all the time, he didn't speak,

and they were saying, you know, "That's it."

Ben's recovery, though, was far from over.

Much of the focus up to this point had been on his brain injury

but two and a half years after the explosion,

surgeons attempted to fix Ben's back.

They operated on his back on his birthday,

on the 31st March.

On the same day, Headley Court discharged him

and said they wouldn't take him back for his rehabilitation.

And on the same day he came out of the operating theatre, he had grown

six inches in the operating theatre and he spoke his first word

as he recovered from the anaesthetic.

Because he was straight, his lungs could expand,

and he started to speak. Not...

I don't mean speak as in you and I

but he started trying to vocalise as he came out of the anaesthetic.

-And what was that first word?

-Balloon.

-Balloon!

-Balloon.

-I was just sat here trying to think what it was!

-Balloon.

How was Ben kind of mentally throughout this. Was he down,

up or was he always positive?

He was never down, never.

He was always positive and...

the doctors used to dismiss that as the brain injury.

"Oh, well, that's because he doesn't realise how bad he is."

Rubbish, absolute rubbish.

He was determined and the determination we caught from him.

Diane and Andy's determination has been relentless.

They continue to battle with the Ministry of Defence over

Ben's compensation.

Back in 2009 they realised that if Ben was going to

reach his full potential they'd have to adopt the role of full-time

carers and their home would have to become his rehab centre.

-REPORTER:

-Where do you see yourself going in the future?

-AUTOMATED VOICE:

-'Stay...

'in...

'the...

'..Army.

'Stay in the Army.'

Due to his brain injury, communication was a slow process.

-REPORTER:

-Where do you get your confidence from?

You must have an enormous amount of self belief to go through this.

I don't know.

'I...

'always...

'had...

'it.'

Physically, he was in a bad place.

Few gave him any chance of walking again.

Hello, Mum.

But Ben and his family refused to give up.

Come on, you are letting up, don't let him up. Finish him off!

Overweight and out of shape,

he threw himself into a tough physical

and mental regime.

Two, three, four...

Through sheer persistence,

and often bloody-mindedness, Ben wanted to prove the doubters wrong.

These small physical steps were part of a major leap

forward but for Ben there was still a long way to go.

Back in Canada, Ben is 4 days into his 240-mile expedition

but he's been struggling.

-Morning, Ben.

-Hello.

Paddling in the Canadian canoe has aggravated his back injury

but the Pilgrim Bandits think they've found a solution.

A change of plan today.

In order to try and help Ben's back, he is going to go in my kayak,

I'm going to go in his canoe because the idea is

if he's lower in the water he should be able to

get his paddle in much easier and hopefully power forward.

'The outcome is uncertain.

'Ben's still in discomfort.'

It's a new experience.

Victor is showing me the ropes behind.

There's more than 150 miles to go

before we reach our final destination.

Changing the boats round was an inspired idea

but I'm quickly realising I'm just not as fit as Ben.

Well, we've gone from the front of the group to the back

because this Canadian canoe requires probably 30% more effort.

The sun is shining, it looks like Ben is doing really well,

he's right at the head again, which is great to see.

When I eventually catch up, there is one question on my mind.

How's your back?

BEN LAUGHS

Ben is obviously feeling a lot better.

With Ben back in the groove, I'm appreciating the Yukon

in its full natural glory.

One thing is for sure, this place isn't short of trees.

There are thousands of square miles of spruce,

complemented by the changing colour of the aspen.

And where there are trees, you will find one elusive animal.

Just behind me, beaver have basically been felling these huge aspens.

They've got the most incredible teeth that grow throughout

the lifetime of the animal, they are impregnated with iron and they

use them like chisels to fell these trees to create their beaver lodge.

They are like habitat engineers and I think we've got here

beavers that are just starting off a new home.

The Yukon is a dream location for wildlife.

There are more bald eagles here than you can shake a stick at,

but they are not the only predator hanging out by the river.

HOWLING

Can you hear that?

OK. We haven't seen bears yet but I'm listening to a top carnivore.

That is the call of the wild.

Somewhere on the other side of the Yukon River

there is a wolf pack howling.

That's thrilling.

Despite the noise from locals,

we all have no trouble getting to sleep.

Ben, did you hear the wolves as we went to bed last night?

A nice sound, hey? The sound of the wilderness?

Are you missing anything,

are you missing food or friends or family or company?

So food first, and your mother second.

-They come together.

-Yes.

Watch that there.

Keep your shoulders back.

Home life in Doncaster has played a massive part in Ben's turnaround.

Almost every day a team of experts descend,

getting Ben back to peak mental and physical fitness.

We've spent years getting the body back

so that he can weight-bear better through his legs more,

and he's getting really good at the hang of it

but every so often, he twists

because it's easy for the big muscles to do that.

The little muscles don't work as well.

It's been painstaking work,

rebuilding the pathways between his mind and body.

'...27, ran through hell into insurgent machinegun fire

'and rocket-propelled grenades three times

'to save the injured comrades.'

-What did you think about that one, was that better?

-It was better.

His conservatory is now his gym,

a place where he pushes himself to the max.

GROANING

Come on. Get up there. And again. Come on.

-GROANING

-Two.

Three. Come on!

GROANING

This one, this one, right on your chin, come on.

Let it up. Let it up!

For all those involved with his rehab, Ben is an inspiration.

Get your hip pushing through so you flatten your foot.

A little bit quicker.

He's got the similar determination to do well that you

see in these athletes.

Not your normal everyday runner like me but elite athletes.

They are determined and Ben has the same sort of determination.

Good one, that was good. OK, let's get this last paragraph.

'I'm happy to hear...'

In 30 years of working,

I have never seen anybody as determined as Ben.

And I've never seen anybody make the progress

so many years after the accident as Ben has made.

Two more, keep that back straight, come on, come on. Push! One more.

I will literally put him through hell,

I used to have a sore throat every training session.

Purely, being ex-military myself, putting him

back into that mentality.

No retreat, no surrender mentality, you know

what I mean? So we did literally push him to his limits,

every session, about pushing him to his limits.

And this constant pushing of Ben is why

he is now able to deal with most of what the Yukon has thrown at him.

I kind of think that this is the kind of exercise that he

would like to do if he hadn't been blown up.

I think this is Ben.

So the challenge of the mobility is just an added...

It's like a bonus for him, it is something else added

onto the excitement of what he's doing.

He's got no fear of failure.

The biggest thing that holds every human being back,

the fear of failure.

Knowing the guys he's going with personally, he's going

to love every second of it.

I just feel sorry for the bears.

Ben's rehab hasn't just been a programme of blood,

sweat and tears, he's benefited from the cutting edge of science too.

-So how many times a week are you coming, Ben?

-Four times a week.

Four times a week.

'At the beginning of 2015,

'Ben was the first injured British soldier

'to receive hyperbaric oxygen therapy.'

Well, good luck in there, it has been nice knowing you.

HE LAUGHS

He always has to have the last word, doesn't he?

'He's been breathing pure oxygen in a pressurised chamber.

'The oxygen can help nutrients flow back into damaged cells.

'It is hoped it will help Ben's memory, speech and balance.

'Not a minute is wasted as the oxygen flows through his veins.

'Ben is on his tablet playing brain-training games in an attempt

'to improve his condition.'

You see him day after day and know him better than anyone,

do you see subtle changes?

His talking is better

but I don't notice that quite as much as everybody else because

I can understand Ben perfectly well because I live 24/7 with him.

The big change is just after a couple of...

Six days, I think it was, in the chamber, Ben's legs started

flicking uncontrollably and that was definitely nerves

being chimed in by his brain for the very first time after

the injury which is...

I mean, it is amazing when you look and it's nearly nine years

since his injury and he still making massive gains.

It just started when we started doing the oxygen treatment,

so it can really only be that.

Thank you very much.

Ben. Tell me, how did that feel?

You're not bored in there?

Yeah, but your lungs are feeling good.

-Fantastic, let's get you home.

-Cheers.

-Well done.

Back in the Yukon, we are all getting more than our fair

share of fresh air. This is about as remote as it gets.

As we continue north, the weather takes a turn for the worse.

The sunshine's been replaced with drizzle that chills to the bone.

It's probably only a couple of degrees above freezing.

It's been raining quite heavily this morning.

Everyone's tired, they are starting to wear the group down

and on top of that we have a really long day's paddling.

We're just going to have to tough it out. That's the only thing we can do.

I don't know how Ben's getting on but everybody able-bodied is

really struggling.

The water temperature's above freezing, the air temperature

roundabout freezing, the perfect combination for using up

a lot of energy, so we need the breaks to make sure the guys

get the calories in so they get lots and lots of food in to be

able to keep themselves going as much as they possibly can.

-This way.

-Yes.

The cold is no good for Ben's back

and the rain isn't lightening his mood.

-How do you feel?

-OK, thank you.

-You were cold this morning,

are you warm now?

You feel a bit warmer now.

That's good because you were very cold this morning.

Everyone was, yes. What about your back, how's your back doing?

The back injury has made this a tough expedition for Ben

but with more than 200 miles behind him, the end is almost in sight.

As we camp for the last night, Ben knows this has been no cushy number.

In fact, it has been a test that he

and the Pilgrim Bandits always wanted.

Cast your mind back to nine years ago,

the medics said you were going home to die but here you are.

But what you've done is you've tried to kind of confound medical opinion,

tried to prove them wrong for yourself.

If you could turn the clock back to five minutes before you got

hit by the IED, would you change events?

That's quite something to say.

After all he has endured, Ben's attitude is both humbling

and remarkable.

But his Yukon adventure isn't over just yet.

The locals call that rock there 20 Mile Rock because there's 20

miles from Dawson City, our final destination, so it is the final push.

We are very much on the homeward leg.

Hot showers and warm beds are not that far away.

Dawson City, Ben, can you see it?

Last tiny push.

Cold, tired, elated, and happy for Ben and the boys,

everyone's done an amazing job, a brilliant team,

can't wait for a cold beer now.

It's been an epic 250 miles.

Ben's display of inner strength is living proof of the ability

of the human spirit to triumph over

an adversity few of us will ever know.

Just over nine years ago, Ben Parkinson

put his life on the line on the battlefields of Afghanistan.

His injuries were so severe that medical opinion

considered his life all but over.

So the very fact he's here in northern Canada

and he's kayaked just over 250 miles down the mighty Yukon River

shows he has so much more to offer.

Ben's story is one of grit and determination to succeed

and defy the odds so no wonder everyone is gathering

around to mark the achievements of the wilderness warrior.

For all these guys, to complete what they have managed to do,

to get to here, through all that training, all the background

work they have had to do, time in the gym,

get themselves fit - amazing. Genuine inspiration.

It's incredible, really,

he's just completed 200 odd miles kayaking the Yukon River.

Who dares wins, as we say.

Ben's obviously got the determination

but the whole group's done amazing.

There's lots more goals he wants to retrieve and I'm sure he well.

-I hope I'm there for the trip with him.

-Proud of him?

Oh, it brings tears to my eyes to think about it,

so, yes, really proud.

He's got the will and the Pilgrim Bandits have got the way.

It's as simple as that.

And we don't know what we're doing next but he'll achieve it.

This is 250 miles almost,

just totally off the radar even a year ago.

So...

Thank you very much, well done, mate.

I am immensely proud of all our kids,

they've all done well in their lives, but Ben, being a soldier,

there was always something special about what Ben did.

We were incredibly proud of what he did.

But nothing even compares to how proud we are of the way

that he's coped with what has happened to him.

I don't think there's anybody who's got any doubt whatsoever -

your talking will improve, you will walk, the sky's the limit.