:00:02. > :00:10.Hello and welcome to Inside Out South-West, stories from close to
:00:10. > :00:15.home. Tonight, an adventure holiday that
:00:15. > :00:20.descended into disappointment. call it a joke of an operation.
:00:20. > :00:26.track down a Somerset businessman with some very unhappy customers.
:00:26. > :00:31.We want to ask you some questions. Also tonight: Nick Baker on the
:00:31. > :00:39.Devon Wildlife wander under threat from the advancing sea. This bank
:00:40. > :00:43.is vital. If it does get breached by the urgent, we is everything. --
:00:43. > :00:52.the urgent -- the ocean. I'm Sam Smith and this is Inside Out South-
:00:52. > :00:58.We have all had a holiday that did not live up to expectations. But
:00:58. > :01:03.imagine if it was billed as the trip of a lifetime, cost �17,000
:01:03. > :01:10.and you still were not happy. We have been investigating a row
:01:10. > :01:16.involving south-west skydivers that has been going on for three years.
:01:16. > :01:23.This is the story of a skydiving adventure to the Himalayas. Nobody
:01:23. > :01:29.has ever done this before. You are the makers of adventure history.
:01:29. > :01:33.is also the story of a warning and an accident. A you say you don't
:01:33. > :01:39.need to go over safety. I think you should do on the first one. And the
:01:39. > :01:45.fall-out, captured on the holiday video from hell. Sorry you feel
:01:45. > :01:48.that way. That is all you say, but you don't do anything about! I am
:01:49. > :01:53.seeking answers from the trip's organisers who say it was a
:01:53. > :01:58.success! There were plenty of people who were extremely happy.
:01:58. > :02:02.But we have spoken to plenty of people who were unhappy. How many?
:02:02. > :02:06.Tonight, we reveal how some of those who took part in what was
:02:06. > :02:12.billed as the trip of a lifetime got more and -- of an adventure
:02:12. > :02:17.than they bargained for. David Wood from Cornwall is one of
:02:17. > :02:23.Britain's top skydivers. In 2007, a Somerset businessman offered him
:02:23. > :02:29.what seemed to be an unmissable opportunity. Would you be
:02:29. > :02:35.interested in helping me with an Everest skydive? I thought it would
:02:35. > :02:41.be an amazing expedition to take part in. The offer was made by
:02:41. > :02:47.Nigel Gifford who uses this film to promote himself on the internet.
:02:47. > :02:53.expedition is a journey with a purpose and an adventure is an
:02:53. > :03:00.undertaking of which the outcome is uncertain. Bet on any expedition,
:03:00. > :03:07.safety has to be certain. So Nigel Gifford employed four south-west
:03:07. > :03:14.skydiving experts. Dave Boyd was head of operations. His son Ben
:03:14. > :03:19.also joined the team. Along with Devon-based Andy Montriou and Leo
:03:19. > :03:25.Dickinson, who was to film the trip. Mr Gifford also persuaded a
:03:25. > :03:28.business associate to invest in the project. I ended up lending about a
:03:28. > :03:33.quarter of a million pounds in total. I trusted him, he was a
:03:33. > :03:42.friend and I had known him for 30 years. But not everyone was charmed.
:03:42. > :03:49.My wife did not like Nigel from the first time she met him. She warned
:03:49. > :03:53.me on a number of occasions that I would not be paid.
:03:53. > :04:03.In May 2008, the team set off for Everest on a recce for the main
:04:03. > :04:05.
:04:05. > :04:09.trip which was built Skydive But when they arrived at the so-
:04:09. > :04:17.called drop zone where the skydivers would land, the mighty
:04:17. > :04:21.mountain was nowhere to be seen. When I got there I was surprised,
:04:22. > :04:25.it was 18 miles away. You could not see it from the drop zone. If he
:04:25. > :04:31.went up a bridge behind it, you could see it. But if you had gone
:04:31. > :04:35.to the top and done that, you would have obscured it. Nonetheless test
:04:35. > :04:43.comes went well and the team set a world record for the highest
:04:43. > :04:48.altitude landing. But the excitement was short lived. BT
:04:49. > :04:52.needed to practise a tandem jump where a novice is harnessed to an
:04:53. > :04:59.expert, but it had to be cancelled because Nigel Gifford had not
:04:59. > :05:04.obtained the correct permit. Frustration was building. We would
:05:04. > :05:08.have known before if you had mentioned it. We would have taken a
:05:08. > :05:12.Nepalese person on a tandem and people would have said yes or no,
:05:12. > :05:22.all we can sort it. Not one we have got the guy in the honest about to
:05:22. > :05:24.
:05:24. > :05:28.take off! Lino. -- I know. So now you are expecting a tandem master
:05:28. > :05:32.to come out in September with no expense of landing at this altitude.
:05:32. > :05:40.It is a paying customer and it cannot happen. You would not be
:05:40. > :05:43.happy with that, or would you? To make sure a tandem jump at
:05:43. > :05:51.altitude could be done safely, they had to make a separate trip to
:05:51. > :06:01.Switzerland. In Cornwall, things became more strained between Nigel
:06:01. > :06:02.
:06:02. > :06:12.Gifford and his recce team that. has been my company for a number of
:06:12. > :06:27.
:06:27. > :06:32.years. This will be your first, you After that, relations plummeted. Mr
:06:32. > :06:38.Gifford sacked Andy and Leo, and then decided he wanted out as well.
:06:38. > :06:45.Any Dave was left on board. It was a difficult decision to make
:06:45. > :06:50.because without the three guys, it left me in quite a spot of.
:06:50. > :06:54.main Everest skydive trip went ahead in October 2008. It was
:06:54. > :06:59.recorded by young film-maker the Stephen Slater. This began as an
:06:59. > :07:03.idea. It became a dream and you are the reality of this dream. We will
:07:03. > :07:08.have a fabulous adventure. We are going to have a fabulous time.
:07:08. > :07:14.Nobody has done this before. You are the makers of adventure history.
:07:14. > :07:21.You are. Three dozen people certainly hope so. They had paid
:07:21. > :07:26.Nigel Gifford's company up to �17,000 for the chance to Skydive
:07:26. > :07:30.Everest. Mr Gifford told us that the drugs Don't was as close to
:07:30. > :07:34.Everest as it could debt -- it could get and still jump safely.
:07:35. > :07:40.But as the flights at -- Klein's arrived, at least one felt he had
:07:40. > :07:46.been misled. You can see Everest 20 miles in that direction. But if you
:07:47. > :07:53.look at the brochure, beat non- refundable deposit that we all paid
:07:53. > :07:58.for... It has been called scandal of Everest now. Film-maker Stephen
:07:58. > :08:02.Slater was getting more than he had bargained for. I thought we were
:08:02. > :08:06.going to make an adventure film, lots of people excited, and
:08:07. > :08:11.everyone seemed to be upset. I just realised that this was not what I
:08:11. > :08:16.thought it was going to be. Nigel Gifford's publicity promised four
:08:16. > :08:21.aircraft, but only one turned up and that was two days late. When I
:08:22. > :08:30.put my money down for this, I wanted to make a decision in
:08:30. > :08:36.investing in this. No one Tommy -- no one ever told me. We did tell
:08:36. > :08:41.you that the flight was not here any more. We did. He had all my
:08:41. > :08:48.money, it didn't you? I did not realise there would only be one
:08:48. > :08:53.aircraft. It became even more difficult. You go around 36 people
:08:53. > :08:57.and not one of them is happy. They are getting more and more angry.
:08:57. > :09:00.have been trying to keep the Parachute programme up and running.
:09:01. > :09:08.The war that has not helped as a tall, the aircraft came in late and
:09:08. > :09:14.we know why that is, I have already explained out. -- the weather. That
:09:14. > :09:20.is because of requirements with the Nepalese government.
:09:20. > :09:25.To make matters worse, be a single plane it wasn't able to carry 10
:09:25. > :09:34.jumpers like it had promised. is no chance you are going to take
:09:34. > :09:40.10 people to 30,000 ft in any less time than a couple of hours. So we
:09:40. > :09:44.are limited it at four people which was taking 50 minutes. It is meant
:09:44. > :09:49.to be a fast turnaround and this has been another 45 minute
:09:49. > :09:55.turnaround. This is just another under resourced joke of an
:09:55. > :09:59.operation. Why call it a joke of an operation. Eventually, the jumping
:09:59. > :10:07.got underway, only for those predictions of an accident to come
:10:07. > :10:17.true. One jumper broke her ankle and has debtor did not fit into the
:10:17. > :10:24.
:10:24. > :10:28.stand by helicopter so the jump Unbelievable. Nobody could believe
:10:28. > :10:32.what was actually going on. The staff had been told that the
:10:32. > :10:35.helicopter could take her down the mountain. They tried everything to
:10:35. > :10:41.squeeze her into the helicopter on this stretch and it wasn't going to
:10:41. > :10:46.happen. We had to make arrangements to load the border and take her in
:10:46. > :10:50.the porter. Nobody had anticipated that and so consequently, the
:10:50. > :10:56.clients were even more annoyed to find that the aircraft was now
:10:56. > :10:59.going to be a way and not be there for them to use. Nigel Gifford
:10:59. > :11:07.maintains the jump plane was used because it was quicker. Whatever
:11:07. > :11:11.the truth, he was now falling out with the guy filming him.
:11:11. > :11:15.remember going to the drop zone and he said, you are no longer welcome
:11:15. > :11:21.in here. I want you to take your camera, take a Sherpa and you can
:11:21. > :11:27.walk back to the airport. Stephen refused to leave and carried on
:11:27. > :11:32.filming what to the -- what was to be High and Wild's last adventure.
:11:32. > :11:38.Two months later, Nigel Gifford but the company into voluntary
:11:38. > :11:47.liquidation with debts of more than �500,000. Among the creditors,
:11:47. > :11:57.David Wood, owed his �18,000 fee. Lots of things I would have liked
:11:57. > :12:00.
:12:00. > :12:06.to have done to the guy. I was very, very disappointed. As was the High
:12:06. > :12:14.and Wild investor who lost �180,000. I trusted this person. I loaned him
:12:15. > :12:20.a lot of money to be let down like that. I am a fall, but I felt very
:12:20. > :12:25.sad and disappointed. They Nepalese company that worked with Nigel
:12:25. > :12:29.Gifford lost �80,000. It took its case to local police who issued an
:12:29. > :12:33.order for Mr Gifford's arrest should he reappear in the country.
:12:33. > :12:37.But that was not the end of it. This year, five people made
:12:37. > :12:42.complaints to the police in the UK about financial aspects of the trip,
:12:42. > :12:48.but no action has been taken. After repeated requests for an interview,
:12:48. > :12:52.we caught up with Nigel Gifford in his Somerset base. Nigel Gifford?
:12:52. > :12:58.Sounds nip on the BBC. We want to ask you some questions about your
:12:58. > :13:05.adventure holidays. Mr Gifford says his treatment of
:13:05. > :13:11.his creditors followed the rules. My company was wound up in 2010.
:13:11. > :13:15.That was in June. Everything was fully investigated and the DTI it
:13:15. > :13:18.has had a report done on the company. I was not struck up as a
:13:18. > :13:23.director. Everything I had done in the circumstances was the correct
:13:23. > :13:28.thing to do. My company was one of many companies and many adventure
:13:28. > :13:32.companies who got into financial difficulties in 2008. And he
:13:32. > :13:38.insists the expedition was a success. The the majority of the
:13:38. > :13:42.customers were satisfied. Of the top of my head, and it is back in
:13:42. > :13:46.2008, there were probably buried at the time, at the end of the
:13:46. > :13:50.expedition, who were not happy. addition to unpaid staff and
:13:50. > :13:54.suppliers, we have been in touch with 10 paying customers who were
:13:54. > :13:58.far from happy. Mr Gifford is planning a return to the adventure
:13:58. > :14:03.travel business. I have decided that I will not offer these
:14:03. > :14:07.holidays, but in the future come up with my record and with my success,
:14:07. > :14:12.I intend to go back to offering adventure holidays. But one of
:14:12. > :14:17.those left out of pocket says he has learnt an important lesson:
:14:17. > :14:22.Always trust your wife's intuition. She warned me on a couple of
:14:22. > :14:28.occasions that I would not be paid. I had said that we have got a
:14:28. > :14:35.gentleman's agreement and I expected him to pay me. But I wish
:14:35. > :14:39.I had listened to her now. Nigel Gifford is free to offer more high-
:14:39. > :14:47.cost holidays to faraway places, but at least some of his former
:14:47. > :14:51.associates will not be getting on board.
:14:51. > :14:58.The High and Wild referred to it no longer exists and any other company
:14:58. > :15:01.trading under that name isn't connected to our report.
:15:01. > :15:05.In the south-west, we are lucky to live in one of the most scenic
:15:05. > :15:10.parts of the UK. The great places like this are under constant
:15:10. > :15:20.pressure from the forces of nature. Nick Baker has been to one of the
:15:20. > :15:22.
:15:22. > :15:32.Slapton Ley is the largest fresh water lake in the South West. Home
:15:32. > :15:37.to rare flowers and some great wildlife. If you want a good
:15:37. > :15:41.introduction to what this is about, this is the bridge that separates
:15:42. > :15:46.the lower ley from the upper ley and there is not many bridges in
:15:46. > :15:53.the South West or anywhere in the UK where you can see as many
:15:53. > :15:59.species of bird as you can from this spot. On the upper ley the
:15:59. > :16:09.reeds have been allowed to flourish, that creates a habitat for birds
:16:09. > :16:11.
:16:11. > :16:18.moving through. A reel reed specialist is the reed war bler.
:16:18. > :16:28.They are feasting on the midges on the water. Over the road you get a
:16:28. > :16:31.
:16:31. > :16:38.view of the lower ley. The muddy banks are a great place for these
:16:38. > :16:48.young birds. On the banchs they can clean under the eye of their mother.
:16:48. > :16:49.
:16:50. > :16:55.-- bank. This reed bunting is balancing on a reed and like the
:16:55. > :17:03.gadwall, they in decline. But they seem to be doing well here. The
:17:03. > :17:08.lake is separated from the sea by this feature, a three mile long
:17:08. > :17:14.shingle ridge, known as a barrier beach. This is the formation that
:17:14. > :17:18.makes Slapton Ley what it is today, I am referring to these countless
:17:18. > :17:24.pebbles. This process started at the end of the last ice age, the
:17:24. > :17:29.sea-levels rose and pushed with it these billions of pebbles, which
:17:29. > :17:35.formed the barrier to the fresh water flowing from the land,
:17:35. > :17:39.creating the ley. But the ridge is more than just a barrier. It is an
:17:40. > :17:44.important habitat and full of interesting plants, like this
:17:44. > :17:49.yellow horned poppy a speciality here at Slapton. The leaves are
:17:49. > :17:56.covered in hairs, which limit water loss in the dry air. Take a couple
:17:56. > :18:03.of steps up the beach and you enter this bizarre kingdom. There is not
:18:03. > :18:11.much to grow in, there is only salty gravel. But these plants have
:18:11. > :18:18.overcome this and my favourite is this plant. This is sea spurpblg.
:18:19. > :18:23.It has long roots that penetrate down into the gravel and help bind
:18:23. > :18:32.the ridge together, protecting it from the ocean. On top of the ridge
:18:32. > :18:36.there are plants like this bugloss. Along with this rest harrow. All
:18:36. > :18:44.are important in providing stability. Various spots you will
:18:44. > :18:50.see these fenced off areas. They're here to preserve the flora. But
:18:50. > :18:55.proserve it from what? Well from these, human feet. They are
:18:55. > :19:01.detructive when they come in -- destructive when they come in their
:19:01. > :19:06.thousands. And the difference between when is is not walked on is
:19:06. > :19:11.quite apparent. But they will need more than fences to counter the big
:19:12. > :19:17.erosion threat here. The single is being eaten away by storms. A
:19:17. > :19:22.decade ago the road was part washed away and eventual think ridge will
:19:22. > :19:30.get breached and the lake will no longer be fresh water. Many locals
:19:30. > :19:35.want the road to stay. But it is difficult to hold back these forces.
:19:35. > :19:41.To protect the barrier beach from the ocean, and of course everything
:19:41. > :19:48.that lays inlapped of the ridge, the ley and the have been, these
:19:48. > :19:54.have been created. They don't look like much, this is a single bastion
:19:55. > :20:00.and these piles of gravel, the idea is that this single will break up
:20:00. > :20:10.the energy of the ocean more effectively than hand standing sea
:20:10. > :20:11.
:20:11. > :20:18.defences. But now let's enjoy what we have got. A lake that sustains a
:20:18. > :20:23.valuable population of fish and the wild fowl that is are supported by
:20:23. > :20:30.them. On the nature trail you come across these viewing that the forms
:20:31. > :20:35.and in summer you should catch a great sight. Like this great
:20:35. > :20:42.crested grebe. Its feathers were once so prized for hats the bird
:20:42. > :20:47.was hunted to near extinge. Now it is common nationally -- extinction,
:20:47. > :20:53.but now it is common nationally. And it is carrying a chick less
:20:53. > :20:58.And it is carrying a chick less than a week old. That is a nice bit
:20:58. > :21:01.of behaviour. This is what grebes do. They will nest in the edge of
:21:02. > :21:07.vegetation area, where they will incubate the eggs and look after
:21:07. > :21:10.the chicks. But as soon as they become active, they accompany their
:21:10. > :21:16.parents. What better way than to bring your young to the food? It
:21:16. > :21:21.cuts down on food miles and the adult uses less energy than going
:21:21. > :21:29.back to the nest. Only this fish seems to be bit too big and the
:21:29. > :21:39.chick rejects it with a shake of its head! But when every fish
:21:39. > :21:47.counts, nothing is wasted. What the grebes are doing? Well I think that
:21:47. > :21:51.answers it, they are fishing. The fish are depenitent -- dependent on
:21:51. > :21:56.the creepy-crawlies in the water. And that is dependent on the
:21:56. > :22:03.vegetation and that is dependent on the quality of water. If we mess
:22:03. > :22:10.that around, it messes up this whole system. When you go below the
:22:10. > :22:20.surface you can see the problem. This water contains algae that can
:22:20. > :22:21.
:22:21. > :22:31.bloom uncontrollably and the knew trients - e nutrients come from the
:22:31. > :22:35.farms. The algae grow at the expension of the fish. There is
:22:35. > :22:42.concern over the number of breeding birds like grebes and that breeding
:22:42. > :22:48.success is linked to the water quality. Poor water is also bad
:22:48. > :22:54.news for wild fou, who depend on eating the water plants. The feed
:22:54. > :22:58.study council have worked on study council have worked on
:22:58. > :23:03.improving things. We go and talk to locals. Particularly farmers who
:23:03. > :23:09.are the people farming and putting fertilisers on land that flush out
:23:09. > :23:12.into the ley. It is working together, not just at a single
:23:12. > :23:22.point of management strategy, but looking at the whole area and the
:23:22. > :23:23.
:23:23. > :23:30.water that flows it into. -- into it. Where they have controlled the
:23:30. > :23:38.impact of man they have protect rare tab at the. -- has been tated.
:23:38. > :23:43.This area is kept looked to avoid This area is kept looked to avoid
:23:43. > :23:47.visitor numbers. This ib like walking back in time to pre-war
:23:47. > :23:57.Devon where many of our lanes would have looked similar. There have
:23:57. > :24:00.
:24:00. > :24:05.been no fertilisers and it is full of life and totally unfettered.
:24:05. > :24:12.Butterflies thrive here. This meadow brown is taking nectar from
:24:12. > :24:21.this bramble. The pollen beetles are all over this red clover head
:24:21. > :24:26.and a spar row hawk is on the hunt for small birds. What is amazing is
:24:26. > :24:32.the sheer mosaic of different habitats, here there incidence
:24:32. > :24:39.woodland with birds like this greater spotted woodpecker. But in
:24:39. > :24:47.places they thin the wood to create a has been at the for the dormouse.
:24:47. > :24:52.This beautiful place is a hazel wood and coppiceing is where we cut
:24:52. > :24:56.the tree and the tree responds by sending this vaguious growth up to
:24:56. > :25:02.the light. And after a few years, this is what you get a coppice
:25:02. > :25:08.stand and it has been doing its for several years and created this
:25:08. > :25:18.multiple trunk effect and all the branches interlock and that creates
:25:18. > :25:23.this perfect runways for dormice. I'm with a local resident and
:25:23. > :25:27.reserve volunteer, who spends time tending to these creatures. They
:25:27. > :25:37.have 25 boxes in the woods here, finding the dormice in the day time
:25:37. > :25:39.
:25:39. > :25:47.is an art in itself. OK. On the ground. And... This is where we
:25:47. > :25:56.check to see if there's anyone in. Is there anybody home? And there is
:25:56. > :26:04.no one home. But that is a perfect dormouse nest. It is not a bad
:26:04. > :26:13.consolation prize. It is gorgeous. A lot of little bit of grass. Is
:26:13. > :26:18.that honey suckle? No that is pussy willow seed. So a great ners, but
:26:18. > :26:22.no dormouse. They have to have a good habitat. -- great nest. They
:26:22. > :26:27.have to have seeds, fruit and insects. But how are they doing
:26:27. > :26:31.here? This year has been a bad year, because of the cold winter. When
:26:31. > :26:36.they go into hibernation they weigh about 30 gram and when they come
:26:36. > :26:41.out, normally in April, they weigh about 15 grammes. This year they
:26:41. > :26:46.have not come out of hibernation until May I have been weigh them at
:26:46. > :26:51.eight and nine grammes. The cold winter took it toll. But there
:26:51. > :26:58.could be dozens around in the trees watching us now. The woods mark the
:26:58. > :27:04.ends of my visit. But it is obl a - - only a short walk back to the
:27:04. > :27:09.bridge and the beach. Is not many place where you get all this within
:27:09. > :27:14.a a half mile walk. You have fresh water, you have got woodland and
:27:14. > :27:19.pasure and hedgerows and they have a rare shingle ridge and the marine
:27:19. > :27:26.environment. This is the best place to watch it all from, right on top
:27:26. > :27:36.of the ridge. Out at sea, there is a gannet on the look out for that
:27:36. > :27:37.
:27:37. > :27:47.elusive fish. It goes into its characteristic steep dive... But no
:27:47. > :27:48.
:27:48. > :27:57.luck. That fish remains elusive. Over the reeds a lone marsh harrier
:27:57. > :28:03.is being mobbed by a gull. It is all here. I guess it is poignant
:28:03. > :28:07.that this bank is vital to all that continuing to exist. If it does get
:28:07. > :28:15.breached by the ocean, of course we lose everything. So it is a case of