Expedition

-

Steve

It's been years since I've paddled whitewater this big. Finding my stroke again is crucial. (water splashing) (water rushing) There's no way I can attempt a first descent alone. I need a world class kayak team. Darren Clarkson-King, our lead kayaker, is a Himalayan veteran. I've been kayaking in the Himalayans for 20 years, across Tibet and Pakistan, Nepal, and India. But I've never been into a river like the river we're going into now, with so little data that's surrounding it, and so much myth, so much legend. And I'm just hoping that we have a safe and secure passage through really. (dramatic music) -

Steve

James Bebbington is a champion freestyle kayaker. And on this trip he's our kayak cameraman. Sal Montgomery is our safety kayaker. She's pushed the envelope of kayaking around the world, and is a waterfall big drop specialist. We are going into the unknown. We know very little about where we're heading, and no one's really sure what to expect, so I think there's a bit of apprehension, but mostly excitement because we've all been waiting for this day for quite some time now. -

Steve

To paddle a first descent, we'll need to stop, get out, and assess every major rapid we encounter. As it curves, we'll come down, we're gonna take a conservative line, just to the side, because we don't want to be near the hole at the bottom. What you see on the surface is only half the story. Understanding what lurks beneath could make the difference between life and death. Scouting rapids is absolutely critical, and even more so when you're going down a river that's un-run, undescended, because you just have no idea what's going to be around the next corner. And getting up close to it, looking at it from river level, you can get a much better idea of what the potentials are from a rapid. So what we've got here are a couple of holes or stoppers. The river, it changes direction by a rock under the water, driven up and then driven down, and it recirculates. Coming out of your kayak in a stopper can be fatal. The force of the water pulls you under into a deadly spin cycle. Breaking free to catch a breath can be impossible. (dramatic music) As our safety kayaker, Sal will run each rapid first. She'll then be ready with a throw line in case any of us get into trouble. Next will be Darren, he'll pick the best route through each rapid, and I'll stick to him like glue. You learn so much from paddling with someone with super experience like Darren. Just sitting right in their tracks, watching how he reads the river, following his line, and that's everything. And in whitewater this ferocious, even the smallest mistake (kayak thudding) could have serious consequences. (water rushing) (tense music)