Show on Ethiopian river trip features Carson City adventurer

     Associated Press
      CARSON CITY -- Jim Slade dove into white water just at the right time.
      "A lot of it was just good timing," he said, referring to when he first became a river guide in 1973. "The industry was in its infancy stage. River rafting was not as well-known then. The idea of traveling down a river overseas was a novelty at the time.
      "People are everywhere now."
      The Carson City 49-year-old is credited with being among first-time expedition groups to travel down many of the world's rivers. His adventure down the Tekeze River in Ethiopia -- a river believed to have never been navigated before -- will be featured July 27 on TBS.
      The group of friends first set out to conquer the Tekeze River in 1973 but because of political changes the area was sealed off to outsiders. With the war over, 30 years later, the five men decided they had some unfinished business and planned a 22-day, more than 200-mile trip.
      "We had all gone our separate ways," Slade said about the men with whom he rafted down such rivers as the Amazon, Euphrates and Blue Nile. "I'm the only one that stayed in the business."
      Slade said the Wild!Life Adventures special, the Last Wild River Ride, offers viewers a peek into Ethiopia culture and history, a view of beautiful scenery and a look at five regular guys getting back together.
      Throughout the trip, the men battle with crocodiles, local bandits, illness, gelada baboons and strong storms. They also sight a rock hyrax -- an elusive mammal and close relative to the elephant that's feared because it is a carrier of several tropical diseases.
      The only disappointment, Slade said, during the September 1996 descent "was there was not more white water."
      "We weren't looking for death-defying rapids," he said. "But we wanted a challenge for the sake of the movie. But the movie does a great job of capturing the rapids we did face."
      The group also was allowed to watch a coffee ceremony, a tradition for Ethiopians, and a funeral procession in one of the villages.
      Slade was able to make the comparison because of his adventures as a river-running expert and mountaineer, which took him to about 60 different countries and down 50 rivers.
      As a mountaineer, Slade has climbed Mount McKinley, Aconcagua, Kilimanjaro and to the 25,000 foot level of Mount Everest.
      And even through all of these adventures, Slade can't remember too many serious injuries, with the exception of a dislocated shoulder.
      He said he has often been called an adrenaline junkie, but he sees it all as calculated risks.
      "I consider myself a cautious person," he said.
      However, he has had his dose of tropical diseases including malaria a couple of times.
      It is a pretty good record for someone who started in the business 24 years ago. He first got hooked when a friend asked him to go on a trip in Mexico. Months later, he finished his training and moved onto rivers in California and Oregon.
      "I didn't go home for three and a half months," he said.
      He hooked up with Sobek Expeditions, which later merged with Mountain Travel to form Mountain Travel Sobek.
      "My forte over the years has been development of new programs, and dealing with the consequent planning, preparation and logistics," he said. "I also work independently, especially in the film industry, mainly in production."