Footage reveals ‘hidden island in the clouds’ as explorers hunt for new species

A NATIONAL Geographic documentary crew ventured into the Amazonian jungle with an expert climber and famed biologist searching for new species on top of unexplored natural structures.

“Tepuis” are mountains with flat tops that are ripe with rare ecologies.

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Alex Honnold made headlines as the star of the Oscar-winning documentary Free Solo.

In the film, he ascended a 3,000-foot rock face with no harness or ropes.

National Geographic tapped him as one of the key contributors on a mission to scale a tepui – a tabletop mountain – in the Amazon jungle.

“First ascents are basically modern exploration. When you’re climbing a piece of rock that no human has ever touched you literally step into the unknown,” Honnold said in a trailer for the documentary.

But Honnold and the team would have an interesting payload to bring to the summit – 80-year-old biologist Bruce Means.

Means is a published author and man of many sciences – his 49-page resume has links to the hundreds of studies he’s participated in as a researcher.

Means has been on 33 expeditions to this region of the Amazon but never to the top of a tepui, according to ArsTechnica.

“You could tell Bruce was really having some emotional moments, recognizing the depth and the breadth of his work in this region and how much he cares about it, yet also having to reconcile his own mortality,” The Last Tepui director Taylor Rees said of Means.

The team would identify six new species using DNA analysis.

“The high point was getting to learn from the [indigenous] men and women who were our porters, cooks, navigators, and fixers,” Rees said.

“The way that they survive in the jungle completely blew my mind.”

A short distance from the base of the tepui, the land started to hit back – the documentary team would have to make decisions that alter the stakes of the expedition and the film’s story.

“I think that’s a hallmark of every expedition: having a plan, but loosely held because it always has to change to adapt to the circumstances,” Honnold said.

Explorer: The Last Tepui is available for streaming on Disney+.

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