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[William Shatner] Deadly
mountain ranges

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that draw thousands

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of ambitious thrill-seekers.

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Boiling hot eruptions

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whose lethal beauty

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lures scientists
to the edge of imminent peril

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and a lush mysterious island

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that hides the prospect of

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certain death.

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[man screams]

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All over the globe,

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there are places so hazardous,

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volatile and precarious,

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visitors are urged
to "keep out."

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And yet, despite
monumental challenges,

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unmistakable signs of peril

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and even deadly consequences,

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there are those who are
compelled to push fear aside

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and rush headlong
into the unknown.

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Why are some people
willing to risk their lives

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for the thrill of
experiencing a dangerous place?

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Well, that is what
we'll try and find out.

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? ?

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[Shatner] Every day, we all face
a certain level of risk

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in life's normal routines.

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We trust other drivers
on the road

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and fly in airplanes

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at 30,000 feet.

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We even take our chances
walking on a flight of stairs,

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a simple activity that claims
around 12,000 lives each year.

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But while danger
is an inescapable part of life,

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there are those
who choose to deliberately

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put themselves in
unmistakable jeopardy.

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[Ken Carter] There are

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some people who are
sort of drawn towards

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dangerous things
over and over again

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without really considering
the risks.

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You would think that danger

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would sort of
suppress curiosity.

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But for some people, the danger
actually heightens it.

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I would never want to go

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off of a cliff
or cliff dive or skydive,

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jump out of
a perfectly good airplane.

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What would make someone
want to do that kind of thing?

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And I think really,

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it's sort of
who they are as a person,

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as part of their identity.

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[Shatner] Through
human evolution,

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our brains have become
programmed to prioritize

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self-preservation
and survival above all else.

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So what is really
going on in the minds of those

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who seem to be all too willing

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to put their lives at risk?

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The psychological
concept is called

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sensation seeking, and there are

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different components to it.

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One is called
thrill and adventure seeking.

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These are dangerous situations
that are more physical.

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Like skydiving, bungee jumping.

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But there's also
experience seeking.

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That's sensations of
the mind and of the senses.

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The really interesting thing
about high sensation seekers

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is they have different
kinds of chemical alarms

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that may go off in their body

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during these really
chaotic situations.

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When we're around things
that are dangerous,

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we have that fight,
flee or freeze response.

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It gets our body ready to either

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fight the danger directly,

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freeze to avoid detection,

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or flee from those
dangerous situations.

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And that's set off by a chemical
called cortisol in our body.

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The high sensation seekers,
when they're around these really

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chaotic experiences,
don't have that much cortisol,

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so they're pretty calm
in those situations.

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What they do have is an increase
in a chemical called dopamine.

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It's a pleasure
neurotransmitter.

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So, when they're in these really
highly chaotic situations,

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they're feeling
a lot more pleasure,

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but less stress
than average people.

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The world is full of danger
and-and new things to explore.

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If we-we only had people
who were low sensation seekers,

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we would never
explore those things.

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[Shatner] Could unique brain
chemistry be the difference

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between a risk taker

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or someone who plays it safe?

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And while the pursuit of
a dopamine rush may trigger

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certain dangerous behavior,

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the prospect
of a life of adventure

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is also motivation

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for those
who seek their next thrill.

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I've had this conversation
many times with friends.

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"How did you end up
being this guy

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"who wanted to go off
and do these crazy things?

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To go off into the wild
blue yonder and risk it all?"

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It was born into me.
Something started very early,

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and it would often be fueled
by the books that I read

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of adventurers
and mountain climbers

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that I aspired to be like.

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And come hell or high water,

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I found a way to go find
some amazing adventures.

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There's a certain type of person

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who's just
looking for adrenaline.

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I'm more interested
in the unknown.

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I think I was born
with extra curiosity,

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and when I go to these places,
it's gonna be dangerous.

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And I'm like,
"Woo-hoo, this is cool."

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'Cause I don't want
my last few minutes

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to be filled with terror,

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if they are my last few minutes.

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I do have less fear
than most people.

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So, I think that's not normal.

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[Shatner] For some, walking in
the footsteps of their heroes,

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or simply experiencing
the unknown, is a rush.

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But is it also possible
that some adventurers are just

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addicted to danger?

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[Victor Vescovo] I feel most
comfortable and happiest

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when I'm pushing
the edges of risk.

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I don't know if I was
destined for adventure,

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but it certainly was a

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intense compulsion to explore.

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And it became
somewhat addictive.

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The Explorer's Grand Slam
is climbing the highest mountain

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on all seven continents

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and skiing at least

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100 kilometers
to the North and South Poles.

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I've done that.

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That took me on this

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25-year path to climb

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the Seven Summits.

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But after I climbed those,

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then I was very curious

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about the Poles.

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What would it be like
to go for a long distance

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in extremely
difficult conditions?

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I've been able to go into
high altitudes in aircraft.

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I've been to space
on a rocket that exploded

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a couple of months
after I went up in it.

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I've been
to the bottom of the ocean

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with my submersible.

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It takes four and a half hours

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to go from
the surface to the bottom.

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If there was any kind
of catastrophic failure

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with the submersible,

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you would be gone

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before your brain
could even register it.

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It was one of the most
dangerous things I've ever done.

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These are things

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that are not normal, and yet

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I have to explore or I'm bored.

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[Carter] One of the concepts we
look at for sensation seeking

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is called
"boredom susceptibility,"

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how easy it is
for a person to get bored

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and how irritated
they get when they get bored.

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I worry a lot about
high sensation seekers

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who get bored really easily.

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Those are the people
who are gonna try

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the next thing, the next thing
and the next thing.

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[Shatner] While elite explorers

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and highly trained athletes
venture into

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hazardous environments
for a variety of reasons,

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remarkably,
there's a growing trend

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where inexperienced people
risk their well-being

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in a dangerous pastime
known as extreme tourism.

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[Johnston] Extreme tourism is

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people wanting
to go into an environment

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that they are
not qualified to enter.

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Whether you're going into space,

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you're running
hardcore white water,

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you're going to high altitude.

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This is someone who,

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without the infrastructure
and the guide,

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cannot survive
in that environment.

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It's quite dangerous.

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Extreme tourism
makes an opportunity

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that was never there before,

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but it also means
that anyone can say,

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"I've always had a dream to
be able to go up into space."

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And so, if you have the money
to be able to finance the trip,

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then you don't have to have all
the training of an astronaut.

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I mean, it's always
been a dangerous thing

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to do, when you strap
someone to a big tube

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full of fuel and then you shoot
them rocketing up to space.

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And now, more and more
people can do that.

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[Ben McGee] Some people
will spend money

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to travel halfway
across the world

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to go visit something
like the Claw at Chernobyl.

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This was a grappling fixture

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which was meant
to move material around

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and got intensely contaminated
with a lot of radiation.

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That can cause
human health problems.

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Not just cancer, but a breakdown

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of the cardiovascular system,
Alzheimer's-like effects.

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And, well, there are people

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who travel all the way
around the world to see this,

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and, in some cases, sit on it.

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Tourists are lining up
all over the world

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to visit abandoned minefields.

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They could be war zones
or places where

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there have been
natural disasters.

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I think people are drawn to
places where they shouldn't be.

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This is a kind of
exploration of ourselves.

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If I had a box
that said "do not open,"

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there are certain people

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that are gonna want to
open it to see what's inside.

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[Shatner reads on-screen text]

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Breaking above
the horizon like a jagged

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20,000-foot granite tooth
is Mount McKinley.

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It is considered
the most dangerous mountain

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in North America,
having claimed over 130 lives.

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In 1994, mountaineer
and filmmaker Thom Pollard's

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attempt to scale McKinley
took a sudden turn

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when his high-climbing adventure

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became a harrowing
tale of survival.

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[Pollard] I was
guiding a trip on

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a semi-technical route
called the West Rib, and

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we became aware that

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there was gonna be
bad weather coming in.

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-[wind whistling]
-And that storm came in

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like a complete firestorm.

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The winds were over
100 miles an hour.

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Our tent
was completely destroyed.

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So we started digging
a small snow cave.

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And we crawled into
this snow cave,

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and the winds were so high,

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it literally shook the mountain.

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And we thought, well,

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we very well could die here.

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It is terrifying to think

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the force of nature,
how great it was.

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But we emerged the following
morning with our toes,

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with our fingers,
with our lives.

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And it was after that storm

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that I thought to myself,

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all right,
I had all the qualities

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that I could
ever imagine needing

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to go and climb a big mountain.

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I'm ready for Mount Everest.

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[Shatner] Why would someone who
had just narrowly escaped death

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want to take on an even bigger
and riskier expedition?

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Mount Everest,

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located high in the Himalayas

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on the border
of Nepal and Tibet.

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It is the world's tallest peak.

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At over 29,000 feet,

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Everest rests just below
the cruising altitude

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of most commercial jets.

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There have been
around 12,500 attempts

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to summit this iconic mountain,
which in many ways

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represents the height

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of physical human achievement.

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Mountain climbers are willing
to risk hypoxia, death or injury

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to have the sensations
that they're after.

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Do they have a death wish?
They say they don't.

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And the fear is just enough
to help them to feel alive.

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It's something spiritual
in terms of

257
00:12:14,375 --> 00:12:16,500
what they're seeing,
that sense of awe

258
00:12:16,708 --> 00:12:19,208
because they're just
after that experience.

259
00:12:19,209 --> 00:12:21,666
[Shatner] It's safe
to say that anyone

260
00:12:21,667 --> 00:12:23,333
that gazes up at this titanic

261
00:12:23,500 --> 00:12:25,875
heap of rock would know that

262
00:12:26,042 --> 00:12:29,208
climbing it would be
unspeakably dangerous.

263
00:12:29,375 --> 00:12:33,625
But just how deadly
is Mount Everest?

264
00:12:33,626 --> 00:12:35,832
[Johnston] I think
it's just over 300 people

265
00:12:35,833 --> 00:12:37,708
that have died on Everest,

266
00:12:37,917 --> 00:12:40,375
most of whom
are still on the mountain.

267
00:12:40,376 --> 00:12:42,916
Because there are places
on Everest where if you fall,

268
00:12:42,917 --> 00:12:45,041
you're falling
thousands and thousands of feet.

269
00:12:45,042 --> 00:12:47,458
We're just not gonna find you.
So that happens.

270
00:12:47,667 --> 00:12:49,500
But people that die on a route

271
00:12:49,667 --> 00:12:52,917
generally are found by other
people climbing that route.

272
00:12:53,083 --> 00:12:56,833
It's hard to get a body
down from that altitude.

273
00:12:56,958 --> 00:12:59,668
[Vescovo] Things can happen
very quickly on Everest

274
00:12:59,708 --> 00:13:01,000
that will kill you.

275
00:13:01,208 --> 00:13:03,417
It is like
playing Russian roulette.

276
00:13:03,583 --> 00:13:05,000
You can go hypothermic.

277
00:13:05,208 --> 00:13:08,292
If the weather is bad, it can be

278
00:13:08,458 --> 00:13:10,292
very dangerous very quickly.

279
00:13:10,375 --> 00:13:12,583
And then, of course,
there's avalanche.

280
00:13:12,750 --> 00:13:15,333
You cannot outrun an avalanche.

281
00:13:17,500 --> 00:13:19,833
Even at base camp of Everest,

282
00:13:19,958 --> 00:13:22,750
avalanches have struck

283
00:13:22,875 --> 00:13:25,542
and killed people
out of nowhere.

284
00:13:34,083 --> 00:13:37,417
If you do not clip in
your rope and you slip,

285
00:13:37,542 --> 00:13:38,958
you are going to die.

286
00:13:38,959 --> 00:13:41,791
70% of accidents
happen on the way down

287
00:13:41,792 --> 00:13:43,167
because you're exhausted.

288
00:13:44,708 --> 00:13:47,667
And so, Mount Everest
is a brutal place.

289
00:13:47,792 --> 00:13:50,000
It is not for
the faint of heart.

290
00:13:51,458 --> 00:13:54,625
[Shatner] And no place
on Everest is as brutal

291
00:13:54,792 --> 00:13:57,083
as above 26,000 feet,

292
00:13:57,250 --> 00:13:59,167
which is known
as the death zone.

293
00:14:00,125 --> 00:14:03,583
With shearing,
hurricane-force winds,

294
00:14:03,750 --> 00:14:05,917
minus-30-degree temperatures,

295
00:14:06,083 --> 00:14:08,083
and too little oxygen for humans

296
00:14:08,250 --> 00:14:11,000
to survive without
supplemental air,

297
00:14:11,083 --> 00:14:15,708
it's certainly earned
its menacing nickname.

298
00:14:15,709 --> 00:14:18,374
There's a lot up there
that can take your life away

299
00:14:18,375 --> 00:14:20,833
when you're going up
into the death zone.

300
00:14:20,958 --> 00:14:24,458
And it is almost
impossible to understand

301
00:14:24,625 --> 00:14:27,667
the bitter cold
at that altitude.

302
00:14:27,792 --> 00:14:31,542
If you were
to take off your glove

303
00:14:31,667 --> 00:14:34,417
for even just a few moments

304
00:14:34,583 --> 00:14:36,958
in a bitter wind up there,

305
00:14:37,125 --> 00:14:40,000
you could easily
lose your fingers to frostbite

306
00:14:40,167 --> 00:14:42,167
in just a few moments.

307
00:14:42,292 --> 00:14:46,792
Because of that
high, cold, thin air,

308
00:14:46,958 --> 00:14:50,167
your body is literally
dying up there.

309
00:14:50,292 --> 00:14:53,250
[Shatner] Not only do
people face avalanches,

310
00:14:53,375 --> 00:14:56,583
falls and
bitter cold on Everest,

311
00:14:56,750 --> 00:14:59,208
climbers are also
at risk for developing

312
00:14:59,375 --> 00:15:04,333
a mysterious mental affliction
known as "summit fever."

313
00:15:04,542 --> 00:15:07,312
[Carter] Summit fever is
a psychological phenomenon

314
00:15:07,333 --> 00:15:08,542
that happens

315
00:15:08,708 --> 00:15:11,042
when climbers are so focused

316
00:15:11,208 --> 00:15:13,250
on getting to the summit

317
00:15:13,417 --> 00:15:16,792
that they don't consider
the apparent risks

318
00:15:16,958 --> 00:15:18,542
that they're experiencing.

319
00:15:18,543 --> 00:15:20,457
Because they're so focused,
they're not listening

320
00:15:20,458 --> 00:15:22,958
to those obvious
signals of danger

321
00:15:23,083 --> 00:15:24,792
that might be around them.

322
00:15:24,793 --> 00:15:27,249
Um, people that are
telling them to turn back

323
00:15:27,250 --> 00:15:30,500
or even physical sensations
that they're ignoring

324
00:15:30,708 --> 00:15:32,208
in order to achieve their goal.

325
00:15:33,542 --> 00:15:36,083
[Johnston] The human mind
drives people

326
00:15:36,250 --> 00:15:38,125
beyond what they should do.

327
00:15:38,292 --> 00:15:41,917
And they ignore where they are,
they ignore what time it is,

328
00:15:42,042 --> 00:15:44,092
they ignore
how much water they've had,

329
00:15:44,093 --> 00:15:46,666
how much food they've had,
so that summit fever,

330
00:15:46,667 --> 00:15:49,458
it blurs people's judgment.

331
00:15:49,459 --> 00:15:53,582
[Shatner] Summit fever's
dangerous psychological effects

332
00:15:53,583 --> 00:15:57,083
can overwhelm a mountaineer
with the compulsion

333
00:15:57,250 --> 00:16:00,833
to completely ignore
their survival instincts.

334
00:16:01,042 --> 00:16:04,833
And perhaps even more
frightening is the uncertainty

335
00:16:05,042 --> 00:16:09,333
of who will be caught
in its fatal grip.

336
00:16:10,708 --> 00:16:12,833
I've been on mountains before

337
00:16:13,000 --> 00:16:14,792
where all hell breaks loose

338
00:16:14,917 --> 00:16:17,708
and I've seen people
completely collapse

339
00:16:17,875 --> 00:16:21,667
and lose
all senses of themselves.

340
00:16:21,875 --> 00:16:23,667
But here's the deal.

341
00:16:23,792 --> 00:16:27,083
You don't know
until something happens.

342
00:16:27,292 --> 00:16:30,292
The only way
to find out is to go there

343
00:16:30,458 --> 00:16:32,625
and learn if you have
what it takes.

344
00:16:34,042 --> 00:16:37,375
Standing on the top is great,
but believe it or not,

345
00:16:37,542 --> 00:16:40,958
when you are in those
times that are trying,

346
00:16:41,125 --> 00:16:43,333
that test you,
those are the times

347
00:16:43,500 --> 00:16:46,208
that I feel most connected
on the mountain.

348
00:16:47,208 --> 00:16:51,167
Climbing Mount Everest is not
only a monumental achievement

349
00:16:51,292 --> 00:16:54,417
in mountaineering,
it's also an unparalleled thrill

350
00:16:54,625 --> 00:16:57,542
that contains a very real
possibility that the mountain

351
00:16:57,708 --> 00:17:01,333
could become an adventurer's
eternal resting place.

352
00:17:01,542 --> 00:17:05,417
But there's another
beautiful location

353
00:17:05,625 --> 00:17:06,885
in the wilds of New Mexico

354
00:17:06,958 --> 00:17:11,417
that is possibly
even more dangerous,

355
00:17:11,583 --> 00:17:14,250
where unwitting travelers
seem to vanish

356
00:17:14,417 --> 00:17:16,250
without a trace.

357
00:17:20,708 --> 00:17:23,625
[Shatner] The Santa Fe
National Forest, New Mexico.

358
00:17:23,792 --> 00:17:25,833
This wild and scenic landscape

359
00:17:26,042 --> 00:17:28,512
draws upwards of
a million visitors every year,

360
00:17:28,625 --> 00:17:31,125
making it one of
the most popular outdoor

361
00:17:31,208 --> 00:17:33,833
recreational areas in the state.

362
00:17:34,875 --> 00:17:39,042
But this breathtaking wilderness
has also drawn law enforcement

363
00:17:39,167 --> 00:17:42,458
and independent
investigators to solve

364
00:17:42,625 --> 00:17:45,333
the mystery
of a dangerous expanse

365
00:17:45,542 --> 00:17:50,042
known in local folklore
as the Pecos Triangle.

366
00:17:51,083 --> 00:17:53,750
The Pecos Triangle
is a dangerous place

367
00:17:53,875 --> 00:17:56,542
because of the natural phenomena

368
00:17:56,708 --> 00:17:58,938
that you can experience
while you're there.

369
00:17:59,042 --> 00:18:02,083
You have cave systems,
you have sinkholes,

370
00:18:02,250 --> 00:18:04,583
you have weather patterns

371
00:18:04,708 --> 00:18:07,625
-that change within seconds.
-[thunder crashing]

372
00:18:07,792 --> 00:18:10,125
And what's interesting
about this place is

373
00:18:10,292 --> 00:18:13,125
that there are some people
who have gone missing

374
00:18:13,208 --> 00:18:14,833
that have never returned.

375
00:18:14,834 --> 00:18:18,624
[Shatner] While you won't find
the Pecos Triangle on a map,

376
00:18:18,625 --> 00:18:21,292
locals define it
as a region stretching from

377
00:18:21,458 --> 00:18:23,417
north-central New Mexico,

378
00:18:23,542 --> 00:18:25,417
and roughly bounded by Santa Fe,

379
00:18:25,625 --> 00:18:27,792
Taos and Las Vegas.

380
00:18:27,958 --> 00:18:31,667
At least 15 people
that we know of

381
00:18:31,792 --> 00:18:33,917
have mysteriously disappeared

382
00:18:34,083 --> 00:18:37,333
in this 6,000-square-mile zone.

383
00:18:38,333 --> 00:18:41,833
[Allan Pacheco] A classic
example would be Mel Nadel.

384
00:18:42,000 --> 00:18:45,750
This is September the 6th, '09.

385
00:18:47,417 --> 00:18:50,333
He's with some hunters,
and Mel says,

386
00:18:50,334 --> 00:18:52,374
"I'm gonna go down
into these trees here,

387
00:18:52,375 --> 00:18:53,667
"I'm gonna set up a blind.

388
00:18:53,875 --> 00:18:55,875
You guys, head on out."

389
00:18:56,042 --> 00:18:57,708
So, they come on back.

390
00:18:57,875 --> 00:18:59,083
It's dusk.

391
00:18:59,250 --> 00:19:00,667
Mel's not there.

392
00:19:00,668 --> 00:19:02,541
It's getting dark.
He doesn't show.

393
00:19:02,542 --> 00:19:04,042
They go to the ranger station,

394
00:19:04,125 --> 00:19:05,565
have to call the state police.

395
00:19:05,667 --> 00:19:07,042
Get a big search there.

396
00:19:07,208 --> 00:19:09,833
This search
has professional trackers,

397
00:19:09,958 --> 00:19:12,625
cadaver dogs, Cessnas.

398
00:19:12,792 --> 00:19:14,375
Since that time,

399
00:19:14,542 --> 00:19:18,000
no bone, no clothing
has been found of this guy.

400
00:19:18,125 --> 00:19:21,583
Another missing person
was Emma Tresp.

401
00:19:21,750 --> 00:19:26,500
She vanished
in the Pecos Triangle in 1998.

402
00:19:26,625 --> 00:19:28,833
She had gone
to Pecos many times before

403
00:19:29,042 --> 00:19:30,625
so she knows the area.

404
00:19:30,792 --> 00:19:33,250
They find her car up there
on this dirt road.

405
00:19:33,375 --> 00:19:36,667
And her footprints
go around the car,

406
00:19:36,875 --> 00:19:38,333
and that's it.

407
00:19:38,334 --> 00:19:40,041
They don't go up the road,
go down the road,

408
00:19:40,042 --> 00:19:41,292
go to either side.

409
00:19:41,293 --> 00:19:43,041
And people
want to say, oh, well,

410
00:19:43,042 --> 00:19:44,582
she just ended on up
going into the wilds

411
00:19:44,583 --> 00:19:47,208
and, uh, dying and succumbing.

412
00:19:47,375 --> 00:19:49,000
Well, how come there's no body?

413
00:19:49,167 --> 00:19:52,042
There's no sign
of struggle, of an animal

414
00:19:52,208 --> 00:19:53,708
or whatever taking her.

415
00:19:53,833 --> 00:19:56,792
How come her tracks
just end right there?

416
00:19:59,292 --> 00:20:01,042
Despite extensive searches,

417
00:20:01,043 --> 00:20:03,707
no one knows the circumstances
surrounding some of

418
00:20:03,708 --> 00:20:07,042
the baffling disappearances
in the Pecos Triangle,

419
00:20:07,208 --> 00:20:08,875
which is why researchers

420
00:20:09,042 --> 00:20:11,000
continue to risk
their own safety

421
00:20:11,125 --> 00:20:13,042
in this mysterious wilderness

422
00:20:13,208 --> 00:20:16,000
to identify
why people seem to just

423
00:20:16,125 --> 00:20:18,958
vanish into thin air.

424
00:20:18,959 --> 00:20:21,582
The facts surrounding
these two disappearances

425
00:20:21,583 --> 00:20:23,208
aren't normal.

426
00:20:23,333 --> 00:20:25,863
So when I started
to review national park reports

427
00:20:25,875 --> 00:20:27,500
and U.S. Forest reports,

428
00:20:27,708 --> 00:20:30,898
immediately, I started to see
that the New Mexico State Police

429
00:20:31,042 --> 00:20:32,917
would bring K-9s to the scene

430
00:20:33,083 --> 00:20:35,583
and the K-9s wouldn't
be able to pick up a scent.

431
00:20:35,750 --> 00:20:38,750
Or they brought
professional trackers in.

432
00:20:38,917 --> 00:20:41,333
Well, in a vast
majority of these cases,

433
00:20:41,458 --> 00:20:43,667
they can't find tracks either.

434
00:20:43,668 --> 00:20:45,749
So, when you have an instance
where someone's missing

435
00:20:45,750 --> 00:20:48,500
and there's no tracks
and there's no scent trail,

436
00:20:48,583 --> 00:20:51,750
that points to
something highly unusual.

437
00:20:53,083 --> 00:20:55,733
[Pacheco] As far as this
so-called Pecos Triangle,

438
00:20:55,792 --> 00:20:58,792
I've, uh, been on different
searches, investigations,

439
00:20:58,958 --> 00:21:02,542
and those scenarios
never made sense to me.

440
00:21:02,543 --> 00:21:04,374
You say to yourself,
how can this person

441
00:21:04,375 --> 00:21:06,875
vanish into thin air

442
00:21:07,042 --> 00:21:08,167
and there be

443
00:21:08,333 --> 00:21:11,042
no clues? Gone.

444
00:21:11,208 --> 00:21:13,042
[Shatner] With no tangible leads

445
00:21:13,208 --> 00:21:15,250
for investigators to follow,

446
00:21:15,458 --> 00:21:18,000
some researchers
have turned to native folklore

447
00:21:18,208 --> 00:21:20,000
surrounding the area,

448
00:21:20,001 --> 00:21:23,166
where the history and beliefs
of the local Indigenous people

449
00:21:23,167 --> 00:21:26,250
may provide surprising insights

450
00:21:26,417 --> 00:21:29,458
into the forest's
dangerous nature.

451
00:21:30,542 --> 00:21:33,000
[Thompson] The Pecos Triangle
has had a very,

452
00:21:33,208 --> 00:21:35,167
very interesting
and tragic history.

453
00:21:35,333 --> 00:21:37,750
It was once known
for the Pecos Pueblo,

454
00:21:37,958 --> 00:21:39,417
where the Pecos people

455
00:21:39,583 --> 00:21:41,693
had a very, very large
and thriving city,

456
00:21:41,875 --> 00:21:45,000
drawing people in
from all over to discuss things

457
00:21:45,167 --> 00:21:47,708
about spirituality, the cosmos.

458
00:21:47,875 --> 00:21:50,833
But after, you know,
attacks by the Spanish,

459
00:21:50,958 --> 00:21:53,667
violent attacks
and diseases during the 16th,

460
00:21:53,875 --> 00:21:56,542
17th and 18th century,
this pueblo was abandoned.

461
00:21:57,583 --> 00:21:59,833
So this once had
a major civilization here

462
00:21:59,958 --> 00:22:02,875
and that has all been
sort of wiped from the map.

463
00:22:03,042 --> 00:22:07,125
And so some of the legends
and the mystique of this area

464
00:22:07,333 --> 00:22:09,333
is that it regularly
does claim people.

465
00:22:09,542 --> 00:22:11,708
People have gone
in there and not come out.

466
00:22:11,709 --> 00:22:15,582
[Jeff Williams] The Native
Americans do have

467
00:22:15,583 --> 00:22:19,333
these folklore stories
about shadow people

468
00:22:19,458 --> 00:22:22,375
and giant snakes that
live there in the forest,

469
00:22:22,542 --> 00:22:25,042
whispers in the night,

470
00:22:25,208 --> 00:22:27,833
luring people off of the trail.

471
00:22:27,958 --> 00:22:29,250
These are the things that

472
00:22:29,417 --> 00:22:31,527
you can't rationalize
or put a finger on,

473
00:22:31,583 --> 00:22:34,667
and this only adds to the fear

474
00:22:34,668 --> 00:22:36,791
and the confusion
when you're out there.

475
00:22:36,792 --> 00:22:39,125
[Shatner] Are
supernatural forces

476
00:22:39,292 --> 00:22:41,458
behind the bizarre
disappearances

477
00:22:41,625 --> 00:22:45,417
in this foreboding section
of the Santa Fe National Forest?

478
00:22:47,667 --> 00:22:50,792
Allan Pacheco has ventured
into the Triangle himself,

479
00:22:50,958 --> 00:22:54,583
and based on his own
unsettling experience,

480
00:22:54,750 --> 00:22:58,458
he believes
these perplexing vanishings

481
00:22:58,583 --> 00:23:02,375
may involve visitors
from another world.

482
00:23:03,708 --> 00:23:06,375
I have seen
UFO activity on up there.

483
00:23:07,375 --> 00:23:09,875
I saw this bright light
coming on down.

484
00:23:10,042 --> 00:23:12,272
Fire, fire, fire.
White, white bright light.

485
00:23:13,208 --> 00:23:16,917
And in it was this purple
triangular-type of shape.

486
00:23:18,042 --> 00:23:21,125
As far as the vanishings
in Pecos, there is

487
00:23:21,292 --> 00:23:24,167
something there
that is intelligent

488
00:23:24,375 --> 00:23:27,667
that takes out people.

489
00:23:27,875 --> 00:23:31,375
As far as some of
the unusual things that are seen

490
00:23:31,542 --> 00:23:35,542
around the area where
Mel and Emma disappeared,

491
00:23:35,708 --> 00:23:38,625
one of
the consistencies are orbs.

492
00:23:38,750 --> 00:23:41,542
They're various colors.

493
00:23:41,708 --> 00:23:44,250
And imagine just a ball
of light.

494
00:23:45,292 --> 00:23:48,833
These orbs have been seen
where people have disappeared.

495
00:23:49,042 --> 00:23:51,167
But to explain

496
00:23:51,292 --> 00:23:53,000
how they disappeared,

497
00:23:53,001 --> 00:23:54,499
it's impossible at this point.

498
00:23:54,500 --> 00:23:56,000
The Santa Fe National Forest

499
00:23:56,083 --> 00:23:58,833
is a dangerous place.
It's a complete mystery.

500
00:23:59,833 --> 00:24:02,875
Could the vast landscape
of the Pecos Triangle

501
00:24:03,042 --> 00:24:06,667
be hiding the remains
of lost visitors,

502
00:24:06,833 --> 00:24:11,083
or is something far stranger
at work in this desolate area?

503
00:24:11,250 --> 00:24:12,500
We may never know.

504
00:24:12,708 --> 00:24:16,333
But there are
far more dangerous places

505
00:24:16,542 --> 00:24:19,500
that continue to draw
brave visitors every year

506
00:24:19,583 --> 00:24:23,167
like the openings
in Earth's crust,

507
00:24:23,333 --> 00:24:25,250
that at any moment can rain down

508
00:24:25,417 --> 00:24:27,875
a deadly storm of fire and ash.

509
00:24:32,708 --> 00:24:35,000
[Shatner reads on-screen text]

510
00:24:39,042 --> 00:24:42,667
The top of this active volcano
explodes in a jet of ash

511
00:24:42,833 --> 00:24:46,625
rising several miles
into the atmosphere.

512
00:24:47,583 --> 00:24:49,813
Hundreds of villagers
flee for their lives

513
00:24:49,875 --> 00:24:52,875
as an unstoppable
torrent of destruction

514
00:24:53,042 --> 00:24:55,875
moves towards their communities.

515
00:24:57,875 --> 00:25:01,167
There's no shortage of ways
for a volcano to kill you.

516
00:25:01,375 --> 00:25:04,042
You can have lava erupting.

517
00:25:05,958 --> 00:25:08,292
You can have pyroclastic flows,

518
00:25:08,458 --> 00:25:11,875
which are giant,
broiling clouds of ash

519
00:25:12,042 --> 00:25:14,667
at upwards
of 1,400 degrees Fahrenheit.

520
00:25:14,875 --> 00:25:17,208
You can have
toxic gasses be released

521
00:25:17,333 --> 00:25:19,333
and that can asphyxiate you,

522
00:25:19,500 --> 00:25:21,958
even if the burning
doesn't get you.

523
00:25:21,959 --> 00:25:24,082
Volcanoes can
also generate firebombs.

524
00:25:24,083 --> 00:25:27,792
They're ejecting rocks
that can smash people,

525
00:25:27,875 --> 00:25:29,792
and some of them are huge.

526
00:25:29,958 --> 00:25:33,292
Maybe the size of a car,
a house.

527
00:25:33,500 --> 00:25:35,000
And so, any of these things can

528
00:25:35,042 --> 00:25:37,208
just take you out
like you weren't there.

529
00:25:37,209 --> 00:25:40,041
[Shatner] It's estimated
that around the world,

530
00:25:40,042 --> 00:25:43,375
upwards of 800 million people
live within 62 miles

531
00:25:43,542 --> 00:25:45,500
of a dangerously active volcano.

532
00:25:45,625 --> 00:25:48,333
And history's
littered with tragic

533
00:25:48,500 --> 00:25:52,500
volcanic eruptions that have
extinguished countless lives,

534
00:25:52,667 --> 00:25:55,542
from the buried
residents of Pompeii

535
00:25:55,750 --> 00:25:59,042
after Mount Vesuvius
erupted in 79 AD

536
00:25:59,167 --> 00:26:02,917
to the largest eruption
in human history in 1815,

537
00:26:03,083 --> 00:26:08,417
when Indonesia's Mount Tambora
claimed 100,000 souls.

538
00:26:08,625 --> 00:26:11,667
With such perilous
prospects of human loss,

539
00:26:11,875 --> 00:26:15,500
why do people continue
to live near these

540
00:26:15,667 --> 00:26:18,375
unpredictable mountains of fire?

541
00:26:19,417 --> 00:26:22,875
[Oppenheimer] We often
focus in on the catastrophe,

542
00:26:22,876 --> 00:26:25,124
but people live on volcanoes
for centuries

543
00:26:25,125 --> 00:26:27,875
or millennia between eruptions,
and in that time

544
00:26:28,042 --> 00:26:30,458
they're living with the volcano,

545
00:26:30,625 --> 00:26:32,375
they're benefiting from

546
00:26:32,542 --> 00:26:35,167
the fertility
of the volcanic soil.

547
00:26:35,333 --> 00:26:37,792
The crops are very productive.

548
00:26:37,958 --> 00:26:40,083
And you can go up at altitude

549
00:26:40,250 --> 00:26:43,000
and have a nice
environment to live in.

550
00:26:43,001 --> 00:26:46,166
[Lance Geiger] People like to
live on the sides of volcanoes

551
00:26:46,167 --> 00:26:48,577
because, I mean,
there's just a natural beauty

552
00:26:48,583 --> 00:26:50,375
that occurs around volcanoes.

553
00:26:50,542 --> 00:26:53,672
There's reasons why you would go
to where we knew a volcano was

554
00:26:53,750 --> 00:26:55,190
to see the flora and the fauna

555
00:26:55,292 --> 00:26:57,402
and the geology
and all that sort of stuff.

556
00:26:57,500 --> 00:26:59,750
But any volcano
that's been active

557
00:26:59,875 --> 00:27:02,917
in the last 50,000 years
could become active tomorrow.

558
00:27:03,125 --> 00:27:05,167
And there's
inherent risk to that.

559
00:27:06,375 --> 00:27:08,125
[Shatner] Despite the benefits,

560
00:27:08,292 --> 00:27:11,500
we can't predict
when a community

561
00:27:11,625 --> 00:27:14,042
might be decimated
by lava and ash.

562
00:27:14,208 --> 00:27:17,208
It's a fragile existence
to be sure,

563
00:27:17,333 --> 00:27:20,583
but there are those
who embrace the danger

564
00:27:20,750 --> 00:27:23,917
like the risk-takers
who seek to witness

565
00:27:24,083 --> 00:27:26,417
a volcano when it erupts.

566
00:27:28,083 --> 00:27:31,208
[McGee] A volcano is you
watching that act of creation,

567
00:27:31,375 --> 00:27:33,042
geologic creation happen live.

568
00:27:33,208 --> 00:27:36,667
There's a little bit
of the thrill of the power,

569
00:27:36,833 --> 00:27:39,833
just glimpsing what
the Earth is capable of.

570
00:27:40,000 --> 00:27:42,458
And then there's also
a desire to see

571
00:27:42,625 --> 00:27:45,935
and understand more about these
processes as they're happening.

572
00:27:46,000 --> 00:27:48,583
The opportunity
to see something happening

573
00:27:48,750 --> 00:27:51,583
raw can just be too compelling

574
00:27:51,750 --> 00:27:54,042
to ignore, even if there's risk.

575
00:27:54,043 --> 00:27:56,874
[Oppenheimer] I think
of volcanoes,

576
00:27:56,875 --> 00:27:59,374
in some ways, they're
windows, they're apertures

577
00:27:59,375 --> 00:28:02,833
into the deep Earth,
from the Earth's interior.

578
00:28:03,000 --> 00:28:05,250
A volcanic eruption is-is such

579
00:28:05,251 --> 00:28:06,874
an extraordinary spectacle,

580
00:28:06,875 --> 00:28:10,167
to see the fireworks
go into the sky

581
00:28:10,375 --> 00:28:13,000
and ash clouds roiling up
into the atmosphere.

582
00:28:13,208 --> 00:28:16,167
Sonically, the detonations,

583
00:28:16,375 --> 00:28:19,042
the whistles,
the roars, the wailing

584
00:28:19,208 --> 00:28:24,167
from gas vents to the biggest
explosive eruptions

585
00:28:24,333 --> 00:28:26,500
where you can feel
the rumbling earth

586
00:28:26,708 --> 00:28:29,083
through your feet,
the seismic energy,

587
00:28:29,208 --> 00:28:33,542
and you can smell
and taste the gases.

588
00:28:33,708 --> 00:28:36,500
So volcanoes assail
all the senses and-and

589
00:28:36,667 --> 00:28:38,297
you can't
take your eye off them.

590
00:28:39,542 --> 00:28:42,833
[Shatner] An erupting volcano
is truly a profound sight,

591
00:28:43,000 --> 00:28:46,375
but it's not the only reason
why scientists are so willing

592
00:28:46,542 --> 00:28:49,667
to risk their lives in
these explosive environments.

593
00:28:49,875 --> 00:28:52,667
For centuries,
fundamental questions about

594
00:28:52,668 --> 00:28:54,541
the nature of
these earthly cauldrons

595
00:28:54,542 --> 00:28:58,083
has drawn researchers
directly into harm's way.

596
00:28:59,042 --> 00:29:01,833
As a volcanologist,
I'm always humbled when I read

597
00:29:02,000 --> 00:29:04,833
scientific works
from 200 years ago,

598
00:29:04,834 --> 00:29:07,666
and they're asking the same
questions we're asking now.

599
00:29:07,667 --> 00:29:08,987
Why did the volcano erupt?

600
00:29:09,083 --> 00:29:11,500
Why did it explode
in that particular way?

601
00:29:11,625 --> 00:29:13,333
We're asking the same questions,

602
00:29:13,458 --> 00:29:16,228
and we have, of course,
much more sophisticated tools.

603
00:29:16,292 --> 00:29:19,000
We can watch
volcanoes from space.

604
00:29:19,208 --> 00:29:21,798
But there's still so much
that we don't understand.

605
00:29:21,833 --> 00:29:23,083
And so,

606
00:29:23,250 --> 00:29:25,167
if we look
at the historical record,

607
00:29:25,168 --> 00:29:27,874
we have eruptions that are
more than a hundred times bigger

608
00:29:27,875 --> 00:29:29,135
than anything we've seen.

609
00:29:29,167 --> 00:29:31,708
We call them super eruptions,

610
00:29:31,709 --> 00:29:33,707
and these can change
the global climate.

611
00:29:33,708 --> 00:29:37,333
They can have enormous
impacts on pasture and crops.

612
00:29:37,542 --> 00:29:40,833
[Andrew Collins] You have
supervolcanoes around the world

613
00:29:40,917 --> 00:29:44,375
that have the potential
to destroy human life on Earth.

614
00:29:44,542 --> 00:29:45,708
I mean, this happened

615
00:29:45,875 --> 00:29:48,750
around 70,000 years ago

616
00:29:48,917 --> 00:29:52,375
with the Mount Toba eruption

617
00:29:52,542 --> 00:29:54,875
in the Pacific region.

618
00:29:55,042 --> 00:29:59,458
90% of humanity
were actually wiped out.

619
00:29:59,625 --> 00:30:01,708
So that could happen again.

620
00:30:01,875 --> 00:30:04,417
That's why what
the volcanologists are doing

621
00:30:04,583 --> 00:30:07,667
is just so important
to the future of humanity.

622
00:30:07,875 --> 00:30:10,105
[Shatner] Let's face it,
there's probably

623
00:30:10,208 --> 00:30:13,917
no safe place on the planet
if a supervolcano explodes.

624
00:30:14,083 --> 00:30:16,917
And it's believed that
there are between 12 and 20

625
00:30:17,042 --> 00:30:19,152
active supervolcanoes
across the Earth.

626
00:30:19,208 --> 00:30:22,042
But by putting themselves
in peril,

627
00:30:22,208 --> 00:30:25,125
perhaps scientists can
discover the secret signs

628
00:30:25,333 --> 00:30:30,000
to predict future
apocalyptic eruptions.

629
00:30:30,001 --> 00:30:32,916
[Oppenheimer] When it comes to
forecasting volcanic eruptions,

630
00:30:32,917 --> 00:30:34,333
there are things we can do.

631
00:30:34,334 --> 00:30:37,041
Gases will leak out,
and we can detect those signals

632
00:30:37,042 --> 00:30:39,292
and try and make an assessment

633
00:30:39,417 --> 00:30:41,527
of how likely
an eruption is to take place

634
00:30:41,625 --> 00:30:43,208
in a certain time frame.

635
00:30:43,375 --> 00:30:46,167
But there are
so many processes involved,

636
00:30:46,168 --> 00:30:48,124
that we will
never know with certainty-

637
00:30:48,125 --> 00:30:49,583
how would I forecast it

638
00:30:49,750 --> 00:30:52,833
to forestall a future disaster?

639
00:30:53,042 --> 00:30:55,000
So, there are
so many secrets yet

640
00:30:55,125 --> 00:30:57,542
to, uh, discover and unveil.

641
00:31:00,333 --> 00:31:03,463
Until scientists can actually
predict a volcanic eruption,

642
00:31:03,464 --> 00:31:06,166
when it comes to such
a destructive force of nature,

643
00:31:06,167 --> 00:31:08,958
it's probably wise
to keep your distance.

644
00:31:09,958 --> 00:31:12,333
But there's a remote
and forbidden island

645
00:31:12,500 --> 00:31:16,542
in the Indian Ocean where danger
is not caused by Mother Earth

646
00:31:16,708 --> 00:31:20,417
but rather by mysterious
inhabitants who think nothing

647
00:31:20,542 --> 00:31:24,417
of killing unwelcome visitors
on sight.

648
00:31:29,667 --> 00:31:32,167
[Shatner] The Andaman Islands.

649
00:31:33,208 --> 00:31:35,858
This chain of over 300 islands
off the coast of India

650
00:31:36,042 --> 00:31:39,333
is a true tropical paradise,

651
00:31:39,500 --> 00:31:43,042
attracting hundreds of thousands
of visitors every year.

652
00:31:44,833 --> 00:31:47,250
But, in stark contrast,

653
00:31:47,458 --> 00:31:50,228
at the remote southwestern
edge of this archipelago,

654
00:31:50,292 --> 00:31:54,000
lies one of the most dangerous
places on Earth-

655
00:31:54,208 --> 00:31:57,208
North Sentinel Island.

656
00:31:58,625 --> 00:32:00,375
North Sentinel Island is really

657
00:32:00,542 --> 00:32:02,833
a little speck of land,
relatively.

658
00:32:03,042 --> 00:32:04,833
It's just about
ten miles across,

659
00:32:04,834 --> 00:32:07,082
about the size of
the island of Manhattan.

660
00:32:07,083 --> 00:32:09,625
It's almost impossible to,

661
00:32:09,792 --> 00:32:11,208
even from the air, see much

662
00:32:11,333 --> 00:32:13,917
of what's going on
on this island.

663
00:32:14,083 --> 00:32:16,792
It really looks the part
of a mysterious,

664
00:32:16,958 --> 00:32:19,375
impenetrable place.

665
00:32:19,583 --> 00:32:21,792
[Everett] The North
Sentinel Island is

666
00:32:21,793 --> 00:32:23,457
one of the most isolated places

667
00:32:23,458 --> 00:32:26,833
in terms of difficulty
of access in the world.

668
00:32:26,958 --> 00:32:29,728
It's surrounded by coral,
there's no natural harbor,

669
00:32:29,833 --> 00:32:31,000
so ships can't really

670
00:32:31,001 --> 00:32:33,041
dock there,
and it's very dangerous

671
00:32:33,042 --> 00:32:35,167
to get too close to the island.

672
00:32:35,168 --> 00:32:37,874
[Shatner] While the waters
surrounding

673
00:32:37,875 --> 00:32:39,791
North Sentinel Island
are treacherous,

674
00:32:39,792 --> 00:32:44,333
the real danger lies
with its mysterious inhabitants,

675
00:32:44,500 --> 00:32:48,000
the most isolated
Indigenous people in the world,

676
00:32:48,167 --> 00:32:51,750
known as the Sentinelese.

677
00:32:51,917 --> 00:32:55,250
[Everett] The Sentinelese people
of North Sentinel Island,

678
00:32:55,251 --> 00:32:56,999
they're unique
because no one has ever

679
00:32:57,000 --> 00:32:58,500
successfully contacted them.

680
00:32:58,501 --> 00:33:01,041
They've probably been there
for 50,000 years

681
00:33:01,042 --> 00:33:02,662
or something along those lines,

682
00:33:02,750 --> 00:33:06,000
but we know next to nothing
about the people.

683
00:33:07,000 --> 00:33:08,750
We know that they're hostile.

684
00:33:08,875 --> 00:33:12,417
They've tried to kill
most people who've landed there.

685
00:33:13,375 --> 00:33:15,125
[Thompson] This is,
in some ways,

686
00:33:15,126 --> 00:33:16,791
the most dangerous place
to be an explorer.

687
00:33:16,792 --> 00:33:19,667
Number one, uh,
as an outsider coming there,

688
00:33:19,792 --> 00:33:21,375
you'd probably be killed.

689
00:33:21,376 --> 00:33:23,541
Right? They-they very often
kill, uh, intruders.

690
00:33:23,542 --> 00:33:26,432
They shoot arrows at people
who come too close regularly.

691
00:33:26,542 --> 00:33:29,333
The North Sentinelese
have adamantly

692
00:33:29,334 --> 00:33:31,582
distanced themselves
from the outside world.

693
00:33:31,583 --> 00:33:34,593
It's something that you're
never gonna be allowed to study.

694
00:33:34,708 --> 00:33:37,417
[Shatner] In 1956,
the Indian government,

695
00:33:37,418 --> 00:33:39,374
which maintains
territorial control

696
00:33:39,375 --> 00:33:41,417
of North Sentinel Island,

697
00:33:41,583 --> 00:33:45,042
made it illegal
for non-Sentinelese people

698
00:33:45,208 --> 00:33:47,167
to even set foot on the island.

699
00:33:48,167 --> 00:33:50,208
But when did the outside world

700
00:33:50,417 --> 00:33:55,000
first become aware
of this deadly tribe?

701
00:33:55,001 --> 00:33:57,374
The first time
that anyone from the outside

702
00:33:57,375 --> 00:34:00,375
is recorded as having landed
on North Sentinel

703
00:34:00,542 --> 00:34:04,208
and interacted with
the local people was in 1867,

704
00:34:04,375 --> 00:34:07,500
when a merchant ship
was actually shipwrecked

705
00:34:07,667 --> 00:34:09,458
just off the coast
of the island,

706
00:34:09,583 --> 00:34:14,250
and about 80-some passengers
and 20 crewmen

707
00:34:14,375 --> 00:34:16,583
got safely to the beach

708
00:34:16,792 --> 00:34:19,958
and promptly,
some native people came out

709
00:34:20,125 --> 00:34:22,235
with bows and arrows,
and as they told it,

710
00:34:22,375 --> 00:34:26,875
began to attack these survivors
of the shipwreck.

711
00:34:26,876 --> 00:34:28,791
They put up with attacks,
regular attacks

712
00:34:28,792 --> 00:34:30,833
from the Sentinelese,

713
00:34:30,834 --> 00:34:32,957
until they were rescued
by a larger boat.

714
00:34:32,958 --> 00:34:34,333
So, they wrote up reports,

715
00:34:34,542 --> 00:34:37,417
and we learned that this
is a very hostile island.

716
00:34:37,583 --> 00:34:40,792
It has probably been
hostile to outsiders

717
00:34:40,917 --> 00:34:43,875
for probably thousands of years.

718
00:34:43,876 --> 00:34:46,707
[Shatner] Experts estimate
that there are around

719
00:34:46,708 --> 00:34:49,833
50 to 100 Sentinelese

720
00:34:50,042 --> 00:34:52,625
currently living on the island,

721
00:34:52,792 --> 00:34:55,917
but for the most part,
this isolated culture

722
00:34:56,083 --> 00:34:58,375
remains a complete mystery.

723
00:34:59,375 --> 00:35:02,375
It's both extremely dangerous
and illegal

724
00:35:02,542 --> 00:35:06,208
to visit North Sentinel Island.

725
00:35:06,333 --> 00:35:10,458
So, why have people
continued to risk their lives

726
00:35:10,625 --> 00:35:14,833
to visit these deadly shores?

727
00:35:14,834 --> 00:35:16,832
[Goodheart] A lot of people
in the rest of the world

728
00:35:16,833 --> 00:35:19,125
first became aware
of North Sentinel Island

729
00:35:19,292 --> 00:35:22,917
in 2018,
when the news broke globally

730
00:35:23,083 --> 00:35:26,417
that a young American had
been killed on the beach there.

731
00:35:26,542 --> 00:35:29,167
The man's name
was John Allen Chau,

732
00:35:29,375 --> 00:35:32,208
and he had gone there
with the intention

733
00:35:32,375 --> 00:35:36,000
of bringing Christianity
to the native inhabitants.

734
00:35:36,208 --> 00:35:39,042
He befriended some
of the local fishermen,

735
00:35:39,208 --> 00:35:41,500
and then he went
in a small fishing boat.

736
00:35:41,667 --> 00:35:44,583
He launched
a little portable kayak

737
00:35:44,792 --> 00:35:49,583
and paddled onto the beach
holding a waterproof Bible.

738
00:35:49,792 --> 00:35:52,000
He got out of his boat,

739
00:35:52,125 --> 00:35:54,355
waited for some native people
to approach,

740
00:35:54,375 --> 00:35:56,000
and then opened the Bible

741
00:35:56,125 --> 00:35:59,250
and began reading
to the Sentinelese.

742
00:35:59,458 --> 00:36:01,417
Then a young boy came up

743
00:36:01,583 --> 00:36:04,583
and, at point-blank range,

744
00:36:04,750 --> 00:36:07,333
drew his bow

745
00:36:07,334 --> 00:36:09,749
and shot the arrow
into this waterproof Bible

746
00:36:09,750 --> 00:36:12,458
that Chau was standing there
reading from.

747
00:36:14,542 --> 00:36:18,333
And so, he backed off,
he got back into his kayak,

748
00:36:18,500 --> 00:36:22,208
and he then returned
the next day.

749
00:36:23,208 --> 00:36:25,417
What happened to him next
is a mystery.

750
00:36:25,583 --> 00:36:28,833
Because the fishermen who had
brought him to the island

751
00:36:29,000 --> 00:36:31,958
circled back around
to that beach a few hours later

752
00:36:32,125 --> 00:36:33,833
and saw the Sentinelese

753
00:36:33,958 --> 00:36:37,167
dragging his lifeless body
across the beach

754
00:36:37,333 --> 00:36:39,833
and burying it in the sand.

755
00:36:40,042 --> 00:36:44,375
So, that concern
for possible outsiders coming

756
00:36:44,542 --> 00:36:47,708
continues to worry me
to this day.

757
00:36:47,875 --> 00:36:50,500
[Everett] I was interested
at one time in going

758
00:36:50,501 --> 00:36:52,916
to North Sentinel Island
and studying the Sentinelese.

759
00:36:52,917 --> 00:36:55,917
It's exactly what I do:
study hunter-gatherers.

760
00:36:56,125 --> 00:36:59,458
But, uh, knowing now what I know
about the North Sentinelese,

761
00:36:59,542 --> 00:37:01,772
no, I don't have any desire
to go there at all.

762
00:37:01,875 --> 00:37:05,292
North Sentinel Island
is a dangerous place

763
00:37:05,458 --> 00:37:07,375
if you're not Sentinelese.

764
00:37:08,417 --> 00:37:10,750
We see this group of people
on this island

765
00:37:10,917 --> 00:37:12,667
that we don't know
anything about.

766
00:37:12,875 --> 00:37:14,333
It's a mystery, sure,

767
00:37:14,334 --> 00:37:16,541
but there are a lot
of mysteries in the world,

768
00:37:16,542 --> 00:37:19,372
and some of them we have no
business trying to figure out.

769
00:37:24,042 --> 00:37:26,333
[Shatner reads on-screen text]

770
00:37:26,542 --> 00:37:28,875
Along the country's
Atlantic coast

771
00:37:29,042 --> 00:37:31,333
is a 300-mile stretch
of deadly coastline

772
00:37:31,500 --> 00:37:34,458
that has conjured unbridled fear

773
00:37:34,625 --> 00:37:37,833
in the hearts of sailors
and seafarers for centuries.

774
00:37:38,042 --> 00:37:40,917
It's one of the largest
graveyards for ships

775
00:37:41,125 --> 00:37:42,625
in all the world,

776
00:37:42,792 --> 00:37:46,375
known as the Skeleton Coast.

777
00:37:46,376 --> 00:37:49,374
[Rebecca Simon] Today,
the Skeleton Coast has become

778
00:37:49,375 --> 00:37:52,833
a huge tourist destination
for the elite

779
00:37:53,000 --> 00:37:56,333
who might want to have some
sort of dangerous expedition.

780
00:37:56,500 --> 00:37:59,125
No one is even allowed
to attempt to go

781
00:37:59,250 --> 00:38:01,250
to the Skeleton Coast
on your own.

782
00:38:01,417 --> 00:38:03,667
You literally have
to cross these gates

783
00:38:03,833 --> 00:38:06,333
that have a huge
skull and crossbones

784
00:38:06,542 --> 00:38:09,192
because it's probably
the most inhospitable place

785
00:38:09,250 --> 00:38:10,667
in all of Africa.

786
00:38:10,750 --> 00:38:13,000
And it's known
as the Skeleton Coast

787
00:38:13,001 --> 00:38:15,791
because it's always been
littered with the skeletons,

788
00:38:15,792 --> 00:38:18,500
literally,
of things like whales...

789
00:38:19,417 --> 00:38:20,875
...other animals...

790
00:38:22,083 --> 00:38:23,708
...and of shipwrecks.

791
00:38:23,875 --> 00:38:27,333
Thousands of ships have crashed
along the Skeleton Coast

792
00:38:27,500 --> 00:38:29,542
for centuries.

793
00:38:29,708 --> 00:38:33,625
The coastline
is extremely dangerous.

794
00:38:33,833 --> 00:38:36,723
It gets very, very windy,
which means if you're sailing,

795
00:38:36,724 --> 00:38:39,166
the wind is blowing
these really choppy waves

796
00:38:39,167 --> 00:38:40,833
against the ship.

797
00:38:41,000 --> 00:38:45,000
And also, really,
really dense fog builds up

798
00:38:45,167 --> 00:38:47,000
very frequently along the coast,

799
00:38:47,167 --> 00:38:49,000
creating zero visibility.

800
00:38:49,167 --> 00:38:50,375
[ship horn blows]

801
00:38:50,542 --> 00:38:52,750
It's a perfect recipe

802
00:38:52,917 --> 00:38:54,792
for all kinds of disasters
to happen.

803
00:38:54,958 --> 00:38:57,583
[Geiger] It's not a good place
to get shipwrecked,

804
00:38:57,750 --> 00:38:59,792
because essentially,
it is a very hot,

805
00:38:59,917 --> 00:39:02,667
very dry desert
right up into the ocean.

806
00:39:02,833 --> 00:39:05,833
And so, if you happen
to swim off your boat,

807
00:39:06,000 --> 00:39:07,458
when you get to shore,

808
00:39:07,459 --> 00:39:09,374
there's a very good chance
that you're going to die

809
00:39:09,375 --> 00:39:12,385
of thirst or starvation before
anyone can come and help you.

810
00:39:12,386 --> 00:39:14,999
[Shatner] While
the Skeleton Coast

811
00:39:15,000 --> 00:39:16,374
is undoubtedly
an extremely dangerous

812
00:39:16,375 --> 00:39:17,708
natural environment,

813
00:39:17,875 --> 00:39:20,958
based on local folklore,
some have wondered,

814
00:39:21,042 --> 00:39:23,042
might the true peril
of this place

815
00:39:23,208 --> 00:39:26,917
be of a supernatural nature?

816
00:39:28,542 --> 00:39:29,862
The two Indigenous groups

817
00:39:29,958 --> 00:39:31,948
who live closest
to the Skeleton Coast

818
00:39:31,958 --> 00:39:33,888
are known as the Himba
and the Khoisan.

819
00:39:34,042 --> 00:39:35,708
According to the Himba,

820
00:39:35,875 --> 00:39:40,208
the Skeleton Coast
is a place for angry spirits,

821
00:39:40,375 --> 00:39:42,042
evil spirits,

822
00:39:42,250 --> 00:39:44,208
and other kind of

823
00:39:44,375 --> 00:39:46,958
deadly supernatural
phenomena to occur.

824
00:39:47,083 --> 00:39:50,667
The Khoisan,
the Bushmen of the region,

825
00:39:50,833 --> 00:39:54,208
they believe that the gods
deliberately created the area

826
00:39:54,375 --> 00:39:57,500
as a forbidden zone.

827
00:39:57,501 --> 00:39:59,416
The Skeleton Coast
has been referred to

828
00:39:59,417 --> 00:40:01,875
as "the land God made in anger."

829
00:40:03,167 --> 00:40:05,637
[Shatner] Whether or not
this savage shoreline

830
00:40:05,750 --> 00:40:08,340
is inhabited by hostile spirits
may be debatable,

831
00:40:08,542 --> 00:40:10,792
but there's no denying
the Skeleton Coast

832
00:40:10,917 --> 00:40:15,167
is an extremely
deadly environment.

833
00:40:15,168 --> 00:40:18,041
And like with
so many dangerous places

834
00:40:18,042 --> 00:40:19,852
around the world,
people continue

835
00:40:19,875 --> 00:40:22,625
to risk their lives
to experience them

836
00:40:22,792 --> 00:40:26,500
because maybe facing death

837
00:40:26,667 --> 00:40:29,167
is the most profound reminder

838
00:40:29,292 --> 00:40:31,708
that we are alive.

839
00:40:32,708 --> 00:40:36,500
The world is full of danger
and-and new things to explore.

840
00:40:36,708 --> 00:40:39,250
Things like volcanoes,

841
00:40:39,375 --> 00:40:41,667
places like Mount Everest.

842
00:40:41,875 --> 00:40:45,083
I think that visiting
these dangerous places

843
00:40:45,250 --> 00:40:48,167
is an exploration of ourselves.

844
00:40:48,333 --> 00:40:50,917
It's an exploration
of our fears.

845
00:40:51,792 --> 00:40:53,792
[McGee] I think, nowadays,

846
00:40:53,875 --> 00:40:56,583
so much of our world
has gone virtual,

847
00:40:56,750 --> 00:40:59,417
the idea that you could
get out into the world

848
00:40:59,583 --> 00:41:01,583
and actually risk something-

849
00:41:01,708 --> 00:41:04,125
get close to heat,

850
00:41:04,292 --> 00:41:06,792
ice,

851
00:41:06,917 --> 00:41:08,583
space-

852
00:41:08,584 --> 00:41:10,874
I think this is gonna have
a deeper and deeper draw

853
00:41:10,875 --> 00:41:14,208
the more that
our day-to-day experience

854
00:41:14,375 --> 00:41:19,792
lacks the kind of fundamental
thrill of being human.

855
00:41:21,875 --> 00:41:26,583
Why are humans attracted
to dangerous places?

856
00:41:26,750 --> 00:41:29,083
Is it an unquenchable thirst
for knowledge

857
00:41:29,250 --> 00:41:32,917
or to simply go
where few have dared to tread?

858
00:41:33,083 --> 00:41:35,542
Maybe it's the physical
and mental challenges

859
00:41:35,708 --> 00:41:38,667
these locations provide?

860
00:41:38,792 --> 00:41:41,792
Some may claim
it's to escape boredom,

861
00:41:41,958 --> 00:41:44,167
get that adrenaline rush
and be the first

862
00:41:44,375 --> 00:41:45,958
to make a great discovery.

863
00:41:46,083 --> 00:41:47,333
Whatever the reason,

864
00:41:47,542 --> 00:41:49,542
how each of us measures

865
00:41:49,708 --> 00:41:52,625
the risk versus
the reward of entering

866
00:41:52,792 --> 00:41:57,000
hazardous, threatening
and perhaps deadly terrain

867
00:41:57,125 --> 00:42:00,333
remains unexplained.

868
00:42:00,334 --> 00:42:02,299
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869
00:42:02,300 --> 00:42:06,850
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