Meet the ten members of the brigade and get to know their personalities at the starting point of the race, on the Columbia River's Canadian shores. Paddle out onto this legendary waterway and watch them face their first competitive challenges.
Face off with the Columbia River's swift current, which tests the brigade's strength and skill. Then negotiate an ominous logjam on Wood River that forces the team to choose a leader. Later, a hasty move seriously injures one of the paddlers.
Slog through a gruelling upstream paddle with the competitors, who then have to tackle a back-breaking uphill trek through the Rocky Mountains. An injured teammate slows the brigade down further, and factions struggle to find a way forward.
Catch a break from climbing as the team descends the Athabasca Pass—all while bears and new injuries threaten to throw them off course. Then jump onto a raft and see how turbulent whitewater tests the unity and safety of the brigade.
Take an icy plunge into the Athabasca River as the brigade's canoes capsize in rough waters. Then track the team's progress through the unforgiving wilderness of northeastern Manitoba, including a brutal portage that nearly causes a breakdown.
Sit in on tense debates as the brigade faces food shortages and low energy reserves. Watch as intense downstream rapids threaten to smash their 29-foot, 2,500-pound voyageur canoe, Wanda, to smithereens.
