Episode 3 kicks off with a depiction of life in Long Sa’an before the Dayak people left in 1967 and is narrated by Lain Ngau in his native tongue, which is one of 170 or so languages and dialects spoken in Borneo, many of which are endemic (which means they are spoken nowhere else).
Next our intrepid explorers face the risks posed by the Kayan Bahau River with its many rapids and unpredictable behaviour. We see some archive footage of the Dayaks battling with the current to try and launch their boat, which starts to bring home the realities of navigating their way to Long Sa’an.
As our group continues making its way upriver we see the results of the deforestation taking place in the forests of Borneo. Gede Robi talks about the hundreds year old nomadic farming practices of the Dayak People compared to what the large corporations have done to the land by clearing the peat forests for palm oil crop production, amongst other things. The burning of felled trees sets fire to the carbon under the ground which continues burning and can start further fires throughout the dry season.
The episode concludes with our team traversing some incredibly intense rapid before setting off on land and making their way through the jungle as they continue their journey to Long Sa’an.