Kamchatka Whitewater Expedition: Source-to-Sea Kayaking in Wildest Russia (Photos)

Bryan Smith is leading a team of whitewater kayakers on a month long expedition to Russia’s remote Kamchatka Peninsula. Funded by the National Geographic Society’s Expedition Council, the team will be attempting several source-to-sea first descents of previously un-run rivers, as well as working with a diverse team of scientists, NGOs, and locals to help show how important Kamchatka’s river ecosystems are in the long term survival of wild salmon.

Phrases and slogans define places as much as entire novels, but they need context or experience to truly understand them. In the months of preparation prior to this expedition we were constantly warned of “Kamchatka Delays.” A slogan loosely used to explain helicopters that would be on continuous standby, 45-minute waits turning into daylong sagas and endless battles with a crumbling post-Soviet infrastructure in one of the wildest places on Earth.

Kamchatka Expedition: Kayakers Attempt Source-to-Sea First Descents in Wildest Russia

Bryan Smith is leading a team of whitewater kayakers on a month long expedition to Russia’s remote Kamchatka Peninsula. Funded by the National Geographic Society’s Expedition Council, the team will be attempting several source-to-sea first descents of previously un-run rivers, as well as working with a diverse team of scientists, NGOs, and locals to help show how important Kamchatka’s river ecosystems are in the long term survival of wild salmon.

On the eve of departing for an expedition to Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula, one of the wildest places on Earth, the scene could easily be depicted as chaos. Boxes upon boxes of freeze-dried food, dry bags, outerwear, kayaks, paddles, and camera gear littered as far as the eyes can see. Things get packed and re-packed, team members debate items of importance, appropriate quantities of gear, and look for reassurance in each other that preparedness is being achieved. It is an energy that is almost impossible to capture. A buzz, a focus, a mindset that team members can barely express themselves. It is a combination of excitement, adrenaline, anxiety and focus. For me it is the moment I live for. That sense of being on the cusp of something big. Something unknown. Adventure in its wildest sense.