The ocean stretches beyond the imaginable. This is probably what the first Asians who left the continent in search of new territories must have noticed. The Austral Islands, one of the last archipelagos to be inhabited by the Polynesians, is full of traditions, history, myths and legends. From one island to another, like the very first Polynesians, we discover all the wonders they possess by approaching them by sea and exploring each of their corners just like the first time. These islands are no longer unspoiled: they have a powerful identity.
Contemporary Hondurans merge tradition and art, Christianity and animism, in each of their villages. This land of millenary heritage is home to a unique biodiversity and the secrets of one of the most enigmatic civilizations in pre-Columbian America: the Maya. Their tracks are hidden in a territory long considered dark and hostile - this forest reveals all its secrets.
The Explorers take off to the complex and magical universe of the Papuans, a galaxy of many peoples that have adapted to extreme worlds and are still standing in the 21 st century. What knowledge of the earth and nature have they handed down from generation to generation? What is their strength? What can they teach us?
It is French Polynesia's largest archipelago... a huge chain of atolls and a succession of idyllic lagoons. An enchanting portrait of passionate men and women who are eager to perpetuate their traditions. The fragility of this archipelago is not just an optical illusion. This fragility is reflected in the coral, in the uninhabited valleys and in the respect with which their inhabitants take care of their home: the Tuamotus.
For this great inventory of the planet, The Explorers sets out to discover the Canadian Arctic, an area emblematic of the climate change affecting our planet. To be closer to a changing civilization and a changing nature, to testify to the evolution of life in these icy lands, our expedition led by Olivier Chiabodo traveled the great north of Canada, from spring to early winter.
Welcome somewhere in the Mediterranean sea on a mountain, an island mountain. The Isle of Beauty, a French territory with powerful landscapes, with wild nature, has often been conquered but never subject. It cultivates its character and its difference, it is Corsica.
The Explorers head to the Marquesas Islands, known as the “land of men.” Legend has it that the Polynesian god Atea, god of light, created the archipelago to make it his home. In a fit of anger he shattered it one day, transforming the island into a scattering of 15 islets, today called Hiva Oa, Nuku Hiva, Fatu Hiva, Ua Pou, Tahuata and more…all with a strong identity—the Marquesian identity.
At the end of the tracks, there are still remarkable men and women, in harmony with their environment, one of the fortresses of terrestrial biodiversity. The path is traced to the African savanna: the cradle of life. From the Drakensberg Mountains to the Indian Ocean, one can see the traces of the Big Five and their wild parades. But far beyond the great wild animals, it is the very spirit of the savanna speaking to us: by some Zulus' melodies, the art of the N'dbele women or the colors in the sky. True cultures and wild worlds: meaningful and spectacular in this African exploration.
Its territory is surrounded by the two largest oceans on the planet: Honduras is on the border between two continents. Honduras is home to endemic species such as the whale shark and umbrella species such as the jaguar. This country is also the witness of a civilization of which we know almost nothing. The White City is an archaeological mystery. The lands occupied by this pre-Mayan civilization have gradually been recovered by this majestic nature.
In this archipelago away from any continent, people settled and developed a new language and culture. Their heritage is like their lagoons ... an infinite treasure. In Tahitian beliefs, every plant, every being is animated by a vital force. Both land and sea are populated by these spirits of nature. The Explorers team strives to increase their understanding to better protect their fragile beauty.
The Explorers stops in the Marquesas Islands, the most isolated archipelago of French Polynesia. Far-off lands that inspired R.L. Stevenson, H. Melville, P. Gauguin, J. Brel. The landscapes are breathtaking: high steep cliffs, covered with lush vegetation, plunging into the stormy waters of the Pacific. Extreme and wild nature, where Marquesans have maintained their identity and traditional culture.
The Explorers travels the vast lands of South Africa, from the Kalahari Desert to the Central Plateau, up to Kruger and Isimangaliso Parks. Herds of large animals are back in the savannah of wildlife parks, including Phinda where the rhinoceros is now protected and Timbavati where the white lion is reintroduced. The beauty of a wild world with an extraordinary variety of animal species, where the songs of the Zulus still echo.
Central America. Between the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans, often caught in the mist. Overflight Honduras's immense forests and mangroves. The Mayan pyramids are these jungles houses. They are on which the White city stands is classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The architecture of the Honduran cities is a clear testimony of the Spanish settlements some centuries ago. Crops - especially coffee - and aquaculture draw the landscape.
Heading to the enchanting islands of the Society and Tuamotus in French Polynesia, in the wake of great explorers. Atolls and lagoons with crystal clear waters, surrounded by coral reefs: Tetiaroa is a sanctuary for turtles and seabirds. Huahine welcomes humpback whales for breeding. Bora Bora, Rangiroa and Fakarava compete in beauty. The Polynesians practice a traditional fishing and a pearl culture, inherited from their Maori ancestors.
Expedition to Canada's Far North, the Inuit land, north of the Arctic Circle. Following a journey to the rhythm of the seasons and the ice-pack movements, in the polar bear's footsteps. Belugas, narwhals and bowhead whales cross paths in the Arctic Ocean. The polar bear shares its kingdom with herds of musk oxen, reindeer and caribou... But in summer, the premature melting of the ice, due to global warming, dramatically reduces its hunting territory.
In the heart of the Mediterranean sea, The Explorers overflows Corsica's mountain island, bordered with a 621 mile (1,000 km) turquoise water shoreline. Its landscape variety: the Agriates desert, the Balagne, the Calanques of Piana, high lakes and immaculate beaches. Located at the crossroads of major maritime routes, its perched villages, watchtowers and citadels testify to its resistance to invaders.
Discover two of the five French Polynesian archipelagos, in the heart of the Pacific Ocean: Austral and Gambier. Volcanic islands with lush vegetation, surrounded by white sandy beaches. Lagoons with turquoise waters full of fish. Long barrier reef. A feeling to the ends of the Earth, especially in Rapa, where the inhabitants, who have their own language, are supplied only once a month by boat.
The first Polynesians were sea-faring people, and most of their resources came from the ocean. Once settled on these islands, they planted coconut and breadfruit trees, and everything that they had brought with them when they’d migrated. There they created a new Garden of Eden on these incredibly fertile islets. The team of The Explorers sets out to meet the descendants of these navigators who are now maintaining and protecting this earthly paradise.
Aboard the Tiger Blue, The Explorers takes you to the wild islands of the Raja Ampat, the mysterious archipelagos of Papua. In the heart of the jungle, the expedition unfolds the existence of a bird of paradise and the most dangerous bird on earth. In the preserved forests, our team met with ancestral tribes of stonecutters, warriors, and hunters-gatherers. The Explorers unveils a heritage of free men living in a nature they protect and know perfectly. Due to COVID-19, this film is exceptionally in the original version with subtitles.
A strange and confusing universe has risen in the last Indonesian forests. Trees give an example of weirdness, like the strangler fig trees: these giants choke the tree which shelters them and at the same time give shelter to an incredible fauna. Thoughtful orangutans who are attentive to their young, the last forest elephants, clans of slightly rogue monkeys, the mythical babirusa which is still between the deer and the pig... The Explorers looks at all these wonders with the same intensity as the tarsier with its eyes so big enough to pierce the mysteries of the night…
New Caledonia is an archipelago in Oceania, located 1,500 km east of Australia, from which it detached millions of years ago. From the air, The Explorers flew over this exceptional French territory to highlight its exceptional natural and cultural wealth. This aerial expedition offers us another view of deep and millennia-old forests, mountains with lush vegetation, paradisiacal islands, ancestral culture, a lagoon, and coral reefs that shelter intact ecosystems populated by remarkable biodiversity.
In 1774, the English explorer James Cook discovered a land that was still unknown to him and whose people surprised him with their kindness and respect for his values. It is New Caledonia and its first inhabitants, the Melanesians. Nearly 250 years later, The Explorers, led by Olivier Chiabodo, has deployed its teams to make an inventory of the natural and cultural wonders of this French overseas territory, a jewel of the South Pacific: with the involvement of local populations and actors in the preservation of these environments, our teams have crisscrossed the gigantic sanctuary of marine life, penetrated the ancient forests and some of their secrets, discovered ancestral cultures and an authentic nature to be preserved .. by all means!
In the South of France, they say that it is wise to know where the road ends before venturing any further… An inspiring message for The Explorers, led by Olivier Chiabodo, as they raise their flag in the South East of France, to write the next chapter of the inventory of the Earth. From the blue horizon of the Mediterranean to the majestic peaks of the Alps, this region and its cultural and natural heritage can be discovered by following its waterways.
The South East region of France is a land of contrasts. Its vast range of landscapes and rich culture cannot be summed up in one word. This is the Southern Region, also known as Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur. Three names representing its three very different facets.
It's a legendary city, lost in the jungles of Honduras: the City of the Monkey God... For centuries, it has fueled the fantasies of the conquistadors, the dreams of adventurers and Indian legends. An accursed city from which no one had ever returned alive... Does it really exist?\nThe Explorers Team carefully listened to the Indians and archaeologists and started to fight its way through the densest jungles on the planet, in the heart of the Mosquitia. Slowly but surely, the team followed the path leading to the mythical White City... At the end of the journey, they didn't find gold, but much better: several sunken cities lost in the forest, the remains of an unknown civilization, different from the Maya... A society that had found an ecological balance in the heart of the rainforest.
Heading to the enchanting islands of the Society and Tuamotus in French Polynesia, in the wake of great explorers. Atolls and lagoons with crystal clear waters, surrounded by coral reefs: Tetiaroa is a sanctuary for turtles and seabirds. Huahine welcomes humpback whales for breeding. Bora Bora, Rangiroa and Fakarava compete in beauty. The Polynesians practice a traditional fishing and a pearl culture, inherited from their Maori ancestors.
he Explorers travels across the North Pacific, the largest ocean area on our planet. Stirred by powerful currents and winds, animated by very intense tides, this ocean is also one of the richest and most productive. Its coasts, irrigated by numerous rivers, attract millions of salmon that have grown up in the sea and are a bear's paradise. The black bear or American black Bear is widely distributed throughout North America. It is the most numerous of the 8 bear species in the world. But it is undoubtedly on the west coast of Canada that they are the most abundant and the most easily observed.
In the South Atlantic, The Explorers approaches rare and scattered lands, to observe the fauna of the Falkland Islands, also called Islas Malvinas by the Hispanics. It consists of 750 islands and islets, located 400 kilometers from Tierra del Fuego. \nThese islands are home to a unique fauna of seabirds and marine mammals: sea lions, penguins, seabirds ..., all have chosen this Eden to reproduce and grow older before facing the harshness of a sovereign nature.
The Explorers continues its inventory of France's marvels with a view from above of Normandy. Located in the northwest of France, the region of Normandy benefits from a wide Atlantic seaboard. For millions of years, the forces of nature sculpted the coastline and created majestic cliffs. Always with a concern for the preservation of nature, the Normans manage to shape the region even if it meant taking up incredible challenges: the Mont Saint-Michel and the Pont de Normandie are perfect examples. They learned to cultivate on fragile lands and to create a range of tasty products, in particular using the milk of their cows. Let's embark on an extraordinary journey to understand how man and nature have modeled, each in their own way, this 1000 facets' territory.
The Explorers continues its Earth inventory to discover the Occitania region. In the south of France, Occitania is a fascinating territory with multiple geographies and exceptional riches. Nestled between the Mediterranean sea and the Pyrenees, the region is home to more than half of France's species of fauna and flora. Cévennes vultures, Camargue bulls, and pink flamingos live together on the same territory. The Occitanshave forges strong ties with their natural environment. Transhumance and the exploitation of salt marshes testify to this desire to transmit traditions and know-how, key markers of their identity. Proud of their history and their Cathar heritage, the Occitans are resolutely rooted in the present day. Culminating at 2 877 meters, the Pic du Midi testifies to this modernity. The top of the Pyrenees is home to a world-renowned observation center for astronomical research. Embark on this expedition in Occitania, from the Cévennes massifs, to discover the differents
For centuries, thanks to a know-how passed down from generation to generation, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté has been shaping French heritage. An exceptional vineyard, a multitude of architectural masterpieces and an emblematic gastronomy... So many riches that reflect the extraordinary diversity of a region with a thousand facets. Who are the guardians of this region with such a prestigious heritage? As part of its exploration of France, The Explorers had the precious opportunity to meet them.
The Explorers continues its inventory of the wonders of France with a major overview of the Ile-de-France region. In the eyes of the world, Ile-de-France is above all a territory rich in built and cultural heritage. Versailles the residence of kings, the Louvre Museum, the famous Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte... All these monuments are the guardians of a precious, centuries-old history. From the prestige of its castles to the richness of its villages and its industrial heritage, the capital region possesses heritage assets that are unique in the world. How do all these buildings tell the story of the rich history of Île-de-France? To better understand and understand the region's specific heritage features is also to better protect its centuries-old history. The Explorers takes you on a fabulous journey to discover the rich heritage of the Ile-de-France region.
The Explorers offers you a marvelous journey to discover Occitania, between the Pyrenees, the countryside, and the Mediterranean sea. Our team reviewed the exceptional biodiversity of the coastal facade, from the Camargue salt marshes to the oyster culture of Leucate, and flew over towns of character including the Cathar villages, treasures of Ancient times. From the sky, Occitania offers a journey through time: the Pont du Gard, a masterpiece of ancient art, and the Viaduc de Millau, a technical feat of the 21st century, are the illustrious witnesses. From the locks of the Canal du Midi to the tops of the Pyrenean mountains, the Occitans maintain a harmonious relationship with the riches of their land.