Ultimate Survival Alaska

The survivalists are in Dallas' territory: dog mushing. Dallas and the rest of the Endurance athletes are the first to arrive and harness their team of dogs. Not familiar with dog mushing and not wanting to waste any time, the Military team skips the dogs altogether and walks. The mission? Race across a 30-mile stretch of treacherous glacier, plunge down a 2,000-foot gully and battle 15 miles of whitewater rapids to the extraction point in Berners Bay.

The men pick their route: some take the higher land, some follow the river. Expert climber Willi Prittie leads Brent Sass and Tyler Johnson into the mountains. The bearing they're traveling reaches elevations over 4,000 feet. Veteran mountain man Marty Raney is leading his son Matt and survival expert Austin Manelick through the river valley. Brothers Dallas and Tyrell Seavey navigate along the ridgeline, crossing land with little cover. These born racers are resolute to be the first to arrive.

Mission: Bushwhack through 45 miles of dense forest at Tongass National Forest, plunge down steep, 70-foot waterfalls and battle the violent open ocean waters at Steven's Passage. With the Woodsmen and Military teams forging forward, the Endurance athletes are eager to build an early lead. After finding a quick route through the Tongass National Forest, they must rappel down the waterfall and Dallas nearly slips off his rope.

The teams trek 30 miles up and over the snow-covered Tordrillo Mountains to reach the landing zone on the banks of Frustration Lake. The Military team sticks to lower elevations, but ends up staring a huge canyon straight in the face. The Endurance team's strategy of hiking up and over backfires when they run into a wall of ice. The Mountaineers are also climbing straight up, counting on their rock-climbing experience to get to the extraction point.

The teams will navigate 50 miles of turbulent rivers, battle through a deadly stretch of whitewater rapids known as Hell's Gate and bushwhack through thick brush to reach the extraction point. Armed with their pack rafts, the Endurance athletes hit a mass of fallen trees in water so dangerous that one team member goes under, and the Military Team unknowingly takes a break in an area filled with bear. Across the valley, the Mountaineers have a different strategy.

The teams will traverse the treacherous Hayes Glacier, then bushwhack through dense forest on their way to the extraction zone 30 miles away. The Mountaineers charge through a glacial canyon and hit what might be a dead end, but expert ice climber Tyler isn't daunted by the 80-foot ice wall. The Endurance team gets a shock when their strategy leads them right to a dangerous 200-­foot rappel. Military is making great time until a wrong step drops Grady into the depths of a deadly crevasse.

The teams cross a steep ridge to the crumbling Strandline Canyon, then trek 40 miles to the landing zone. The Military Team's strategy is to charge straight down the glacial drainage basin. Before they know it, they're up to their knees in quicksand. The Mountaineers follow the same flatland strategy, and Marty and Tyler are soon stuck in the quicksand. Endurance Team heads straight for the canyon and hopes to follow the winding valley to the landing zone, but a furious river blocks their path.

With seven legs of the competition under their belts, take a look back at the extreme challenges the survivalists have endured and take a peek at the brutal adventures still to come. Get to know the teams again and witness their ups and downs throughout the battle to become Alaska's ultimate survivor.

On the eighth leg of the expedition, the teams will battle through a gauntlet of dense alder thickets, cross the roaring waters of Coal Creek and scale a 600-foot rock fall to reach the extraction zone. To get an early lead and escape the torturous bushwhack, the Mountaineer team's strategy is to immediately cross Coal Creek, despite the risky rushing waters. When they reach the creek, Tyler attempts to walk across, but the powerful rapids sweep him downstream and out of sight.

The teams head out on Afognak Island, which is ruled by Kodiak bears, one of the largest bears on Earth. The teams will cross 31 miles of treacherous, bear-packed wilderness to reach the extraction point at the northernmost tip of the island. All three teams are running into bears at every turn. As the Endurance team stops to fish, Sean is left staring into the jaws of a charging brown bear. Between lost maps and wrong turns, the survivalists are just trying to get out of bear country alive.

After nine grueling legs, the teams enter this leg battered, bruised and worn down. But they're in luck — leg 10 takes the three remaining teams to Kodiak Island, a lush temperate rainforest full of hunting opportunities. The Military and Mountaineer teams use this opportunity to stock up on protein. The Endurance athletes aim to prove they're not out of the competition yet. But when attempting a treacherous lake crossing, Dallas slips into freezing cold water.

On the final leg, the teams face their toughest challenge yet — a race across an icy glacier, down a whitewater river and across the open ocean to the Mount Augustine volcano. The trek begins high atop the Aleutian Mountains, where the competitors harness up and charge across a crevasse-laden glacier. With all three teams facing daunting obstacles, it's anyone's game going into next week's exciting conclusion.

With the final hours of the competition running off the clock, the three remaining teams risk it all for the glory of being crowned champion. It's a cutthroat battle to the top of Mount Augustine — a 4,000-foot active volcano in the middle of the open ocean. To reach it, the teams race across 35 miles of punishing white water rapids and unforgiving seas. In the end, the first team to reach the summit of the volcano is crowned Ultimate Alaskan Survivors.