logo
episode-header-image
Jan 2025
50m 50s

Clinging to a Mast: Boat Going Down

NOISER
About this episode
An Indian naval commander takes leave from the military to take part in a unique nautical contest. No GPS, no computers - the purest test of sailing skill there is. For Abhilash Tomy, it’s a dream come true… until a catastrophe in the Indian Ocean changes everything. With a broken spine, thousands of miles from the nearest landmass, he might as well be lost ... Show More
Up next
Mar 12
Lifeguard Drowning: Pulled Out to Sea
A young British lifeguard travels to Spain and finds himself in mortal danger. In 1967, 28-year-old Guy Taplin arrives on the Costa del Sol seeking a fresh start. At first the days slip by in a happy haze. But when a fellow beachgoer gets caught in a riptide, Guy jumps in to help ... Show More
42m 57s
Mar 5
Espionage in the Himalayas: No Ordinary Adventure
Pete Takeda’s is a unique story - combining extreme locations, extraordinary natural phenomena… and espionage. In September 2005, Pete is leading a small party deep into the Himalayas. His plan is not just to summit the peak of Nanda Kot, but to find proof of plutonium-powered su ... Show More
53m 52s
Feb 26
Jungle Fall in East Timor: Saved by Goats
A French former acrobat moves to the southeast Asian paradise of East Timor. One sunny day, Morgan Segui decides to trek to the top of a nearby sacred mountain. After reaching the summit, however, his thrill-seeking backfires. Caught in the baking late afternoon heat, with an emp ... Show More
59m 36s
Recommended Episodes
Apr 2024
271: Sailing the Seven Seas
Let's sail through briny trivia and salty facts about being at sea. Chris reports back from his cruise vacation/research and lets us in on the most exclusive parts of the ship, and .do you .kn ow your .is.la. nds? Hey turn around, bright eyes, Colin learns about Ted Pedas and the ... Show More
1h 6m
Oct 2025
The Custom of the Sea
In 1883, a sailing captain named Thomas Dudley accepted a job no one thought was a good idea: to sail a small ship called the Mignonette halfway across the world. Say hello on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. Sign up for our occasional newsletter. Follow the show and review us on ... Show More
45m 26s
Sep 2025
The Law of the Sea (Encore)
The world as we know it is made up of 193 countries, Antarctica, and a host of territories.However, between all of those places are the high seas or international waters, which are not controlled by anyone. But where do international waters begin? What can you do in international ... Show More
13m 42s
Jul 2025
Captain Cook
Captain James Cook was a British explorer, navigator, cartographer, and captain in the Royal Navy whose three major voyages of exploration between 1768 and 1779 greatly expanded European knowledge of the Pacific region. His detailed maps, scientific observations, and interactions ... Show More
14m 25s
Dec 2024
933: Vijay Singh Deep Dive
In this NLU Special Project, we relive Vijay Singh's dominant 2004 season, which might be the most underappreciated in modern golf history. We also look back at Singh's unlikely ascension from the island of Fiji. Through various tours in far-flung locations around the globe, he u ... Show More
56m 45s
Jun 2025
Oceanos: Rescue off the Wild Coast | “Just A Precaution” | 1
<p>On the night of August 3, 1991, the cruise ship <em>Oceanos</em> sets sail from South Africa’s eastern cape with 571 people aboard—despite a massive storm barreling up the coast. Soon, a breach in the hull knocks out power, and the ship begins taking on water. As senior office ... Show More
40m 31s
Nov 2025
Tsunami in Thailand | Overtaken | 2
<p>As the wave barreled ashore on Thailand’s west coast, people were sucked under a powerful wall of water that was so strong it ripped the clothes off their backs.&nbsp;It separated husbands from wives, and parents from their children. Six miles out to sea, fisherman Wimon Thong ... Show More
30m 14s
Apr 2024
In Search of America on the Biggest Cruise Ship Ever
Writer Gary Shteyngart set sail on the inaugural voyage of the biggest cruise ship ever built—the Icon of the Seas—in search of the "real" America. (And maybe to throw a great suite party along the way.) What he found instead, like many a great novelist before him, was a far more ... Show More
24m 4s
Mar 2025
What you can learn crossing the ocean in a canoe | Lehua Kamalu
“Being on a voyage forces you to unplug,” says TED Fellow and third-generation captain Lehua Kamalu. Sharing ancient knowledge from traditional Hawaiian ocean voyaging, she reflects on the transformational power of seafaring journeys — and what it means to travel mindfully, no ma ... Show More
19m 18s
Oct 2025
CLASSIC: Gustaf Broman Tried to Cross the Atlantic in a Canoe . . . Or Did He?
Ben here: Noel and I are sailing the seas this week -- wish us luck! Luckily, our Super Producer Max is holding it down with some of our favorite Classic episodes. Here's one I especially enjoyed from 2019, all about strange ocean travels: "In 1895, Gustaf Broman announced he wou ... Show More
38m 59s