Sanctum: Making the 3-D Cave Diving Adventure (Yes, a Gigantic Fish Tank Was Involved)

Photograph courtesy Universal Pictures

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Alister Grierson, director of the new adventure film Sanctum, had never donned flippers and an oxygen tank before he signed on to join 3-D pioneers James Cameron and Andrew Wight's underwater thriller about a cave diving expedition gone wrong. The premise (which Wight describes in this interview): The world’s largest cave system is being mapped by divers when a tropical storm dislodges rocks that block the entrance. The team, which includes two tagalongs who are not experienced cave divers, is forced to find another way out, if they can survive. This study of human behavior under pressure is something that fascinates Greierson, who made his first film Kokoda about a WWII invasion in Australia, to great box office success. Here Grierson gives a fresh take on the submersive, high stakes world of cave diving and how they replicated it for the film (yes, a 130-foot fish tank was involved).—Mary Anne Potts

ADVENTURE: What did you know about cave diving before this movie came along?
Alister Grierson: Very little. It’s one of those sports you hear about, but usually you only when someone dies in a cave. Then you say to yourself, why the hell were they down there?

Tell us about going diving for the first time?
It was before pre-production had begun. We all agreed I needed to get into a cave to have the experience and translate that for the film. But I wasn’t a diver at all, so I had to learn to scuba dive. I did a two-day intense course with John Galvin, who wrote the screenplay. He’s a master diver and he taught all the actors to drive. On day three they put me in the cave in a place called Mount Gambier in South Australia.

It must have been shocking to go from learning to dive one day to dropping into a cave the next?
I have always been adventurous and keen to try new things. So I was willing. I was very confident that it would be safe, that they wouldn’t push me to do anything too risky. I mean cave diving is inherently risky, but I knew I had a good team to look after me. I picked up on the diving pretty quickly.

Video: Kayak Over a Waterfall, Ulitmate Adventure Bucket List

Video by Aurora Photos

Attempting a new waterfall record in a kayak requires a lot of scouting, an acceptance that you'll probably get at least a little hurt, and, perhaps most important, an unquestionable belief in one's own immortality. And yet, in recent years, waterfalls have proven an irresistible, if dangerous, frontier for young-gun pro kayakers seeking eternal bragging rights. "The motivating factor for all of this was just that I thought it was possible," says Tyler Bradt, who clinched the record in 2009 with a 3.7-second freefall over 186-foot (57-meter) Palouse Falls in eastern Washington. "I wanted to do it, I guess, because I can."

So maybe you need something a little less insane? We agree! How about kayaking the roiling rapids of the Zambezi? Read about that trip and 19 other paired trips in our Ultimate Adventure Bucket List, which matches one of the world's most extreme (read: craziest!) adventures with a great, doable alternative. See the trips >>

Pangaea Himalayan Expedition: Mayo Clinic Research (Video)

Today we take a closer look at one of the primary objectives of the Pangaea Himalayan Expedition—real-time physiological monitoring and research conducted by experts from the Mayo Clinic's Extreme Environmental Human Performance Program. Mayo researcher Andy Miller and Dr. Bryan Taylor as they discuss the monitoring methods being used on the expedition and the rationale behind the research.

The goal of the Mayo Clinic's research is to conduct live physiological monitoring of the expedition team throughout the trip using cutting-edge field monitoring technologies. By tracking the physiology of team members as they acclimatize and ascend a 6,000-meter (20,000-foot) peak, the Clinic seeks to better understand how the human body responds to such an extreme environment in the hopes of ultimately improving human performance in similar situations.

Pangaea Himalayan Expedition: Payu to Concordia (Video)

The Pangaea Expedition team treks from Payu onto the Baltoro Glacier and beyond—to basecamp at Concordia, where they are rewarded with amazing views of the mighty K2.

June 7, 2010
Rest Day at Payu

Today is a rest day, so we begin with a late breakfast at 8 a.m. After breakfast, the Mayo clinic team conducts some tests with the young explorers and the team. The main goal of these tests is to check the oxygen saturation in the blood as well as the heart rate of subjects while exercising at the current altitude—3,600 meters (11,800 feet) above sea level. The physical exercise is a 9-minute stepping routine. As expected, all of us have decreased oxygen saturation levels due to the high altitude.

Pangaea Himalayan Expedition: Week 1 (Video)

On the first leg of the trip, Mike Horn and his expedition team travel from Islamabad to Skardu, then navigate Pakistan's treacherous, narrow mountain roads to Askole. From Askole onward, the remainder of the journey will be traveled by foot.

June 1, 2010
Arrival in Islamabad, Pakistan

Everyone arrived safely in Islamabad. Mike and the team check the equipment and food sent via cargo. A thorough control of all equipment is essential to expedition success.

The evening brings a press conference held with Nazir Sabir Expeditions. Local press attend and meet our international group of young explorers, who explain the environmental mission of the Pangaea Expedition and their motivations for exploring this beautiful region.

Early tomorrow, the expedition will begin with a short flight to Skardu, which promises to be a spectacular one for the team as they will get their first glimpses of the 8,000-meter (26,000-foot) peaks, namely the Nanga Parbat at 8,125 meters (26,660 feet).

Pangaea Himalayan Expedition: Exploring the Heights With Mike Horn (Video)

Follow South African explorer Mike Horn and his expedition team as they trek through Pakistan's Karakoram Valley high in the Himalayas.

The Pangaea Project (PAN Global Adventure for Environmental Action) is a four-year exploration spanning the globe initiated by South African explorer Mike Horn in 2008. The project was devised by Horn as a way to engage international youth in exploring the world around them, learning about human impacts on the environment, and actively participating in clean-up and community projects.

Having engaged in beach and island clean-up projects in Borneo and India earlier this year, Horn and his expedition team now find themselves in the majestic heights of the Himalayas, guiding a group of eight young explorers on a month-long trek over Pakistan's Karakoram Valley to witness firsthand the amazing views of Nanga Parbat, Broad Peak, the Gasherbrum peaks, the Baltoro Massif, and the mighty K2.

3-Minute Video Break: Best American Adventures - #22 Fighting Wild Fires - Are You In?

Do you have what it takes to help quell one of nature's fiercest forces, an adventure rated #22 on our Best American Adventures list? In this video, National Geographic photographer Mark Thiessen provides incredible imagery of what it's like to be inside a wild fire. It's a dangerous, dirty, deadly job. If that's a little too hot for you, cool off with our fly-fishing the Pecos River video.

This video was just nominated for a Webby Award. If you liked it, vote for it here. (You have to register to vote, but it's really painless.)

3-Minute Video Break: Climber Chris Sharma on the World's Weirdest Rock Formations

Geology regularly blows us away—just check out the crazy rock formations Chris Sharma ascends in this video. Addicted to bouldering, deep-water soloing, and sport climbing, the Santa Cruz native spends 11 months a year in exotic locales, dangling off incredible hunks of rock sculpted by centuries of erosion. "Climbing is about finding beautiful things in nature interacting with them," notes Sharma. Nice work, if you can get it. (Yes, this is longer than three minutes, but we were pretty sure you wouldn't mind.)—Mary Anne Potts

3-Minute Video Break: Banff Mountain Film Festival's Radical Reels

Even if you never attend the Banff Mountain Film Festival, you can still enjoy the winning films in their tour, which is in global mode right now. Our personal favorite is the Radical Reels, a special tour that complements the festival's more cultural films with dynamic, high-adrenaline films featuring skiing, climbing, kayaking, BASE jumping, mountain biking, and more.

In April, Radical Reels will have shows in Colorado, Minnesota, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Get the full schedule here >>

Radical Reels Shows in April

TEXAS

Austin
April 10, 2010
Whole Earth Provision Company 

COLORADO

Fort Collins
April 17, 2010
Larimer County Search and Rescue

Golden
April 16, 2010
Colorado Mountain Club

Grand Junction
April 20, 2010
Mesa State College

MICHIGAN

Houghton
April 27, 2010
Michigan Technological University

MINNESOTA

Minneapolis
April 24, 2010 Midwest Mountaineering

WISCONSIN

Menomonie
April, 30, 2010
University of Wisconsin - Stout

Adventure Filmmaking: Climber-Artist Renan Ozturk (Part I)

It used to be, if you wanted to see the most extreme places on Earth, you'd have to wait for folks like Jacques Cousteau to head out with film crews, big cameras, reels of tape, and limited power. Then they'd hit the editing room and emerge, months later, with a final product. Then, you'd have to wait for it to air on TV. Those days, like the Calypso, are a thing of the past.

Now, with compact hi-def cameras, powerful laptops, satellite modems, and alternative power sources, expeditions of any size can cut together films from the field, in near real time. This flexibility hinges on access to affordable, professional editing software, such as Apple's new Final Cut Studio, an upgrade to the preferred Final Cut Pro that's just $1,000. This fall we joined the Eddie Bauer First Ascent Everest team, led by mountaineers Ed Viesturs and Peter Whittaker, send in daily video dispatches on a climb of the world's tallest mountain. The remotest corners of the planet are opening up for the rest of us to see, sans down jacket.

We decided to survey our own National Geographic explorers to see how they are using improved technology to bring the world their stories like never before. First up, a climber-artist Renan Ozturk. At just 29, this North Face athlete-artist has made his unique films that combine video with illustrations from the Czech Republic's sandstone towers, the Himalaya's Tapovan Base Camp (14,000 feet), and Borneo's Mount Kinabalu (13,000 feet), as well as Argentine Patagonia and Yosemite National Park. Here, he tells us how he does it.—Mary Anne Potts