Deadliest Roads | Panama | Free Documentary

so [Music] foreign [Music] foreign come on guys wake up hey don't break my canoe go ahead throw her in the water darion is a region where there are no roads everything is handmade everything depends on the river get moving truliancito go pablo go ahead come on come on cool we follow these everyday heroes for whom every trip every movement is a struggle against nature careful okay anything broken everything in darien is wild savage danger lurks at every moment look it's a jaguar's den that's where they hide this is a land for adventure and fantasy as well as greed for gold people will kill it's also the gateway to the united states for illegal refugees who dream of a new life 800 nobody told us this we'd agreed in bogota they're at the mercy of the smugglers whose only creed is the dollar in this green hell an impenetrable jungle where nobody knows the way to the border humans and destiny intersect in their own way everyone struggles to survive in the darien it's the region of the impossible the twira river is the gateway to this region at the end of the world where time glides past as slowly as the water here the river is the tarmac the canoes are the cars and trucks nothing is mechanized it takes brute strength to travel loading and unloading can take hours a truck full of goods has just arrived from panama city it belongs to a woman they called the queen of the river tuira the queen is gina a 55 year old store owner it's hard to believe but gina assures us that her pigs and two and a half tons of merchandise will travel on this little boat everything there is mine it's for my supermarket rice sugar gas beverages oil what's the value of these goods two and a half thousand dollars come on sweetheart every 10 days the queen transports her merchandise to a little village a full day's river journey away food and also fuel it's the region's most precious commodity so the most expensive there's 1500 liters on board are you going to sell this to now to the people in the community in my village because they need fuel in addition to a shop gina also acts as a freight manager on behalf of others it's a set for the lounge and the dining room a lounge and a dining room sure they were very well packaged and we'll [Music] the loading will take almost an entire day [Music] and the loading must be done quickly the chicken went survive in the heat and in this region the weather is unpredictable the table and and the living room loading the cans of fuel is the most dangerous operation there are seven 200 kilo cans with no machines to help they do as best they can so hello gina has spent over half her life on the river building up her business she has four children and is now grandmother to young chuki he's only four but the queen has made him her heir she takes him everywhere she says to teach him the job chewie if you eat everything i'll give you a soda [Music] it's the end of the day at the harbour time for a break for the family to watch a spectacle on the river tweera that occurs only twice a year chuhi loves it it's also the end of the road for the cows the truck cannot go further foreign to get the cattle into the fields there's a chance for some rodeo it's physically taxing and dangerous the cows seem to know they won't be traveling first class [Applause] hello these latest passengers are not treated with kit gloves [Applause] [Applause] level [Applause] [Music] these calls will take 30 minutes to reach their new pastures [Music] the cows don't suffer no they don't they're used to it they like the water it's cool but isn't it dangerous for them no it's dangerous for us not for them they can swim we can't well many of them have drowned no no oh yeah the last time one did drown oh yeah she died and we ate her how much do you earn doing this job well a good worker and six dollars a day plus food and alcohol and what do you drink rum [Music] the gauchos are hot this afternoon they've started early to celebrate the weekend a way of building up courage another hundred animals have to be [Music] transported when they arrive the heavily built cows are exhausted we'll put them in their pens tonight so they can recover and tomorrow we'll let them out into the fields to get them out the cowboys sometimes take extreme measures not forgetting a little local touch [Music] it's 5 30 in the morning in the port of yavisa and gina is stirring to ensure a good night's sleep she keeps her merchandise as close by as possible before the boss gets up everything must be loaded the meat included [Music] i need to get on with for me it's natural i've never fallen in the water bye misa see you soon gina small village is a three-day journey from panama city a day by truck to yavisa then no more roads and things start to get complicated in winter it takes seven hours to reach boca de coupe close to the border with colombia in summer when the water levels are much lower the trip becomes a more than 12-hour long nightmare gina's canoe is 35 years old it's 12 meter long hull weighed down by the two and a half ton load and powered along by a small 40 horsepower engine at full throttle the old canoe is so low in the water that the wake of any boated crosses causes a flood on board [Applause] now many canoes have already been sunk that way by being flooded by passing boats some don't care and just travel too fast and too close [Music] to make sure they stay afloat the owner has instructed one of her clerks to bail water all day long so that she can relax [Music] the first stages of the trip along the tuira are worthy of a tourist river cruise a trip through primeval jungle and a chance to glimpse wild animals many might pay good money for [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] after two hours the relaxing break comes to an end gino gets back down to business insuring her merchandise gets to customers on the waterfront this brand new living room and dining room will soon be in their new home is this a good deal whenever i have the space in my canoe i do it we come past here anyway so it costs us nothing and it's an extra forty dollars now which is better than nothing [Music] a few kilometers away on the other side of the border lies the small village of alto baudo wedged between mountains it's one of the most remote parts of colombia tomorrow the school is due to open but the teacher hasn't arrived yet she has a good excuse the path to school is long and steep delfina muscara has arrived from the city where she spent the summer holidays the first leg is a few hours journey by canoe here too there is no road to the village where she teaches on the other side of the mountain [Music] the mayor himself has turned out to greet her hello belino how are you good thank you so what tree do you have in store for me today oh my affection as always the mayor has a surprise for his special guest the second part of the journey she will travel courtesy of a unique transportation company the company employs the most resourceful and strongest men from the village come on the chairs are nearly finished okay let's go the school teacher all her school supplies and her two assistants will all travel on the backs of these professional porters called paseros where's my rifle okay let's go these are scenes from another century the colonial era when the spanish used the natives as human mules when slavery was abolished the paseros disappeared except here men continue to carry other humans to earn a penny by and large their fares are women the infirm or the weak the first hours are a long climb in 35 degree heat through thick forest and on trails only these men can take dario put me down please i want to light some candles for the virgin at the top of the mountain a pause in front of the madonna provides reassurance to some and a welcome break to others [Music] the hardest part of the journey the descent is still to come this is the first time i'm going this way in a chair it's very scary it's horrible i was dizzy you get the feeling you're going to fall off the chair any minute but still it's better than walking the skill of an acrobat along slippery steps the pazeros have dug into the rock over the centuries we're going down horses and mules couldn't go this way this path isn't made for horses and mules i mean there's no room for a horse everything okay nothing broken carrying more than 100 kilos on one's back is a miraculous balancing act it's very dangerous people have fallen into the ravine because of the weight or simply because they lost their balance after a half day of effort the little village of alto baudo and the school are finally in sight delivered on time the teacher will be there for the new term [Music] to celebrate the arrival of the teacher the village has hosted a race a strange race only to be found in these parts these physically powerful men are respected and looked up to in the village carrying a child the racers complete a circuit [Applause] [Applause] the man of the day he's one with a two minute lead over the others and the result of its superhuman effort a man carrier a trait from another era it's a job that allows the village of alto baldo to survive and delfino the teacher to educate children in the depths of the jungle the scene is surprising for this remote area [Music] queen gina has received a call from the village hello daughter yes we've just left yevisa [Music] last business meeting with her secretary and in a few minutes the phone will no longer work going deeper into the mountains the danger rises as the water levels drop at this junction of rivers the skill of her boatman makes all the difference he must weave between the tree trunks carried downstream as a result of violent storms when the river is clear you can see the tree trunks but even if we see them the canoe might still hit the wreckage you have confidence in your helmsman oh absolutely 100 he's worked for me for 16 years and naturally no one on board has a life jacket at midday it will be time to sit down to lunch and in order not to fall behind schedule i'm making salad gina has thought of everything in case of the unexpected with no more gas what's wrong with him i need six gallons of gas to get to the village okay calm down we'll get you something the engine uses a lot of gasoline so i'll give them a hand it's a blessing from god if you hadn't been here what would have become of us would have never made it to boca de cupe before nightfall gina queen of the river tuira is also its guardian angel rice and chicken and sauce accompanied by a small green salad gina the boss is also a chef lunch break for the whole crew the village of pinogana marks the midpoint of the journey everyone must stop here it's a typical quiet town with a military garrison all along the river the panamanian border police search each boat a short distance away is colombia it's a country that's been of war for 30 years and the world's largest producer of cocaine the military are looking for drugs and guns and food for the colombian gorillas even the queen must show her papers the search lasts an hour as her canoe is thoroughly inspected the police say it's a routine check of the goods that i'm carrying but since the border with colombia is close by the police suspect [Music] on this stretch of the river the police have imposed a curfew at 6pm all traffic is banned in fact the military also trying to stop the flow of illegal immigrants heading north for the united states [Music] so for some life seems to be a bed of roses but not for these men and women who've come from far away these illegal immigrants from africa have entrusted their lives into the hands of three smugglers and their canoe now in the jungle comes the riskiest part of their passage to the united states they need to cross one of the most tense and hostile areas in the world at any time they might be seized by the army and sent back to their own country it all started 48 hours earlier in turbo northern colombia it's the point of departure for the well-organized human traffic after several days of bargaining the head of the smugglers confirms the illegal immigrants will leave the same evening at 11 pm on board one of these fishing canoes at the appointed hour we quietly leave the city with the smugglers ostensibly to go fishing at sea our presence makes the crew nervous fearing it might alert the police lower your light and your camera careful and watch out for the branches they're there the somalis they're hiding over there waiting in the marshy area are 16 illegal immigrants twelve men and four women they've been here for two weeks hiding inside a house come over here come over here get it get in the front once away from the city the boatman steps on the gas we must travel the greatest possible distance at night to foil the army patrols it's a three-hour crossing on a rough sea then through the night along the rio sutyo the saltwater river [Music] the helmsman navigates blindly [Music] suddenly we hit a tree trunk and there's panic on board mussi one of the eritreans is about to explode no problem be quiet it's okay oh oh damn look the second tree trunk nearly impaled the boat we avoid being sunk though why why is there all this water in the boat oh it's always wet look see comes in here it's fine it's normal there's water tonight the illegals have once again escaped death they've brushed with death several times since starting their ordeal they come from sudan eritrea somalia even bangladesh first they flew or sailed across the atlantic for ecuador a country for which they don't need a visa from ecuador they head for colombia on foot by boat or by truck their final goal is the united states and the hope of a new life the immigrants have left the city of turbo in colombia to reach panama without getting caught by the military they have to cross the near impenetrable jungle the darien in the morning fatigue adds to the tension after the rio suzio there's a swamp infested with crocodiles the vegetation is so dense that it wraps around the propeller the engine heats up and threatens to break down thirteen thousand kilometers from home and completely lost these men and women nevertheless keep going they can only trust their own faith and the smugglers these new unknown masters of their the sun destiny been beating down since dawn the water levels continue to fall and progress is slow in this little corner of the world we have no idea where we are but roberto the leader of the smuggler seems to be enjoying himself he's planning to hike the prices who speaks the best spanish you uh yeah the guide needs half the money half uh half of the money half of the money how much is saved there's a discussion but it will be brief resigned all talk of revolt is quashed everyone takes out their dollars 800 for 16 people they're reluctant but have no choice leaves happy the group starts off it will be a long day the border with panama is close further north in the forest another group of men is on the move towards another paradise these are not immigrants but prospectors returning to a mine [Music] in this jungle full of surprises it's best to be armed to defend themselves and to hunt for food he's go ahead shoot then he's on the branch okay [Applause] oh yeah to make soup it's very tasty their weapons are not only for hunting but also to repel predators and many pumas in this jungle there's a jaguars den over there we kill them in those holes there we shoot them we'll get them out of their holes and then we kill them have come from their small village where they parted for three days but since they have no more money they return to work on this river the rio sabado the natives know this river well and for centuries have been looking for the most precious of minerals gold using this homemade machine which is essentially a vacuum cleaner they plunge underwater to scour the riverbed suck up the sand which then settles into a sieve after two days of work the moment of truth will there be gold and how much i think i see some specs this traditional method of panning may reveal some golden flakes but didn't you lose lots of gold doing it that way no if you do it gently the gold won't wash away the heavier gold remains at the bottom of the bowl that's more than one so i guess you're happy the gold will fetch barely fifty dollars but it's enough to celebrate with before returning here and beginning work again at any moment we could find a lot of gold if we do then i don't know what we'd do we go straight back to the village go a bit crazy and spend drink dance if we find 50 or 100 grams we'll go crazy it's like gold fever yeah gold fever go crazy but too much gold is evil you don't know what to do you go mad people would kill it's the fifth hour of the track and the immigrants had no idea such a living hell was possible america is still far away in this forest where even hardened adventurers have given up they only have their city clothes their light shoes and their entire belongings carried on their backs whatever they have or don't have they must press on [Music] they walk without knowing exactly where [Music] suddenly the black tarpaulin indicates signs of life it's a base camp the group will have to wait here for several hours for a new smuggler to guide them [Music] where are you where are we okay where are we right next to the border the location is unclear but what is certain is that the camp regularly accommodates illegal immigrants for now neither the army nor the guerrillas have discovered its existence our biggest problem is the army to prevent the military arresting them the illegals are taken here and then we get them across the border in the late morning it's almost 40 degrees 40 degrees of humidity mosquito weather the sleepless night and difficult walk have left their mark bruises on both body and soul one of the illegals agrees to tell us his story on condition of anonymity because i'm from eritrea the government put me in jail for almost six months then from that i escaped it from the jail and i will not come back to my country how was the price of this trip much more money about fifteen thousand dollars or sixteen thousand dollars to finish line to finish the line yeah and um how do you get this money some of them by working and some of them my family helped helping me how old are you i'm i'm 26 and what is your dream just live peacefully in america just live peacefully to work to collect money and to help my family that's my view the hours tick away and there's still no sign of the new smuggler the other major concern is the quantity of food and drinking water both of which are now dangerously low roberto the chief smuggler shows us that water can be found all around us no problem this water is safe to drink no problem it's like fruit juice you can drink this no problem in the afternoon the second smuggler finally shows up at the camp in his canoe but once again there's confusion and another crisis meeting why you leave us here you have to pay the new boat will give the rest money they're telling okay okay for once and this is the first time the migrants are successful it's a small victory the smugglers forbid us to film any further or to continue with them to keep the border crossing secret [Music] it will be four months before we have any more news these somalis eritreans sudanese and bangladeshis did finally achieve their dream their american dream the hardest thing to take on the river is the sun burning stultifying almost 40 degrees for gina it's time for a siesta the rest is all too short the engine cannot do it alone the river is very dry now we'll have to get in the water and raise the canoe against the current it's always like that in the summer in winter it's not like that at all but now in the summer it's very hard very difficult the entire crew apart from little chewie is forced to get into the water they have to use brute force to push three tons against the current in the village they know gina is on her way a boatload of children is on its way to lend a hand we're trying to head up fortunately there are people in the village who'll pick us up [Applause] start to pull it [Music] the canoe is too light and can't make it and now the engine stalls and the canoe begins to drift gina sees that the canoe is heading straight for her own vessel they narrowly avoid a collision you need to put it down in this canoe come on this side and grab the cane come on is [Music] is 12 hours to cover just 30 kilometers it's now three days since they left panama city hey we've arrived at boca de cupe hooray as usual the village children jump for joy when they see gina and her team boca de cupe is a typical easy-going darian village with a population of some two thousand in this little paradise in the middle of nowhere afro and native panamanians live peacefully together in a village where there's neither running water nor telephones people live here from agriculture primarily bananas these these bananas are plantains they're very nice they're the best the plantations are located a few hours walk from the village [Music] the work is tedious in furnace-like conditions and the pay's paltry just five dollars a day per person [Music] gina escaped this life of slavery due to her business she's become the richest and most important woman in the village this is my grocery store this is your life's work right gina oh yes this is my pride and joy because i work for diaries and for the people of darien together we've made all of this possible [Music] but success comes at a cost while her husband minds the grocery store gina the nomad lives on the road in two days to refurnish her stock she will leave once again for panama city another challenging journey fraught with pitfalls all the sacrifices i've made in my life are on behalf of my children because tomorrow or the day after when i finally close my eyes they will inherit everything i didn't have that opportunity so at least when i die i'll die happy because i've left something for my children that way they will have something to raise their children with because god has given me that possibility [Music] you must never tell gina that she's a great woman her answer will be that for the people of darien nothing is impossible [Music] you

Channel: Free Documentary

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Keywords: Free Documentary, Documentaries, Full documentary, HD documentary, most dangerous roads, most dangerous journeys, worlds most dangerous roads, worlds most dangerous journeys, deadliest roads, deadliest roads in the world, dicing with death, deadliest journeys, dicing with death panama, most dangerous roads panama, deadliest roads panama, dangerous panama, deadliest journeys panama, darien gap, darien gap dangerous

Id: CTYNGzKIh1s

Length: 49min 37sec (2977 seconds)

Published: Sun Apr 11 2021