City worker Hugh Sawyer, whose six-week camping trip turned into a year-long stay in an Oxfordshire wood, is at last quitting his camp - for the Ecuadorian jungle.

Oxford law graduate Mr Sawyer, 33, has been living in a wood at Lewknor, near Thame, since last June, when he began a six-week stay outdoors to raise money for the Woodland Trust.

Despite having to bed down in bracken, in all weathers - and still holding down a job as a bids clerk at Sotheby's auction house in London - Mr Sawyer decided to extend his stay until June 21 - the Summer Solstice.

But now, instead of going back to civilisation - and a comfy bed - he's decided to rise to the even bigger challenge, of living and working in the Central American rainforest.

"Myself and my mate Mike Cormack are going to live in the jungle for a year, sleep in hammocks, catch fish, cook over an open fire, survive off the land - that sort of thing," said Mr Sawyer.

"We're doing this to raise money, through sponsorship, for Rainforest Concern, which protects areas of the forest from destruction. We're calling our trip Mission Improbable."

The daring duo are hoping to get out to Ecuador by Christmas and while they are there, plan to set up and run the World's first solar-powered, jungle-based online travel guide.

"There are two reasons behind this," said Mr Sawyer. "For one thing, we want to run an entirely environmentally-friendly business, and secondly we need to earn some money while we're out there.

"It sounds funny, but we'll be running our own business from inside the jungle, using a solar powered laptop."

In the coming weeks, the pair will be moving to a new woodland camp closer to Oxford, so they can use an Internet cafe and research their trip at the city's Central Library.

"We have a lot to learn before we go," added Mr Sawyer. "We have to be much better at lighting fires and tying knots, etc, and we also need to get much fitter.

"We have been making sloe gin with woodland berries recently and that's got to stop if we're going to get in shape."

Once they get to Ecuador, they will also be training for 10 days with the country's military special forces, before spending a further 15 days with indigenous people, learning about life in the jungle.

Mr Sawyer and Mr Cormack are seeking financial backers for their trip. See Mr Sawyer's web blog http: //ditchmonkey. blogspot.com and at www.bethejam.com