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Home / World

Real-life 'Indiana Jane' adventurer surfs Paris catacombs

Daily Mail
30 Oct, 2016 11:43 PM3 mins to read

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A plucky daredevil surfer is thought to have become the first person to surf in the Catacombs of Paris

These nail-biting images show an intrepid surfer in the forbidden parts of the world's largest grave.

Real-life Indiana Jane, Alison Teal, 30, from Hawaii, USA, took her bright pink board 150 metres underground to surf with around six million skeletons in the catacombs of Paris.

It is believed Alison became the first person to complete the surfing expedition when she went underground on October 13.

Alison, who is also film-maker, said: "I grew up listening to my father telling me stories about the catacombs on Halloween.

"We were taken down this secret passage way. It was very James Bond style.

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"We were in the caves for ages, it was day light when we came back up."

Alison Teal climbed down a drain and crawled through piles of human bones in the middle of the night. Photo / Caters News Agency
Alison Teal climbed down a drain and crawled through piles of human bones in the middle of the night. Photo / Caters News Agency

She added: "The caves got narrower and narrower until we were crawling on all fours to get through. It was so suffocating, there was minimal oxygen and you couldn't see far."

After snapping the stunning shots, Alison and her team were shocked to realise the water level had risen.

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She said: "After we took the paddling shots we couldn't go back the way we came.
"We had to go through the water to the other side to get out.

"In the end we all had to swim through it and there was just a little gap at the top of the chamber to breathe.

Alison Teal climbed down a drain and crawled through piles of human bones in the middle of the night. Photo / Caters News Agency
Alison Teal climbed down a drain and crawled through piles of human bones in the middle of the night. Photo / Caters News Agency

"It was terrifying. I had to stop filming, it just became about survival.

"By the end we were just shaking."

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Alison went with expert cavers as guides and warned others not to attempt this adventure, even if you're a survival expert. She also said that a lot preparation went into this mission.

This is not the first crazy stunt the traveler has pulled off. The daughter of a wildlife photographer and naturalist has traveled to over 40 different countries across the world and was home schooled-not seeing the inside of a classroom until she was seven years old.

Alison Teal climbed down a drain and crawled through piles of human bones in the middle of the night. Photo / Caters News Agency
Alison Teal climbed down a drain and crawled through piles of human bones in the middle of the night. Photo / Caters News Agency

The adrenaline junkie revealed that one of her most memorable moments was her discovery of an ancient burial in Peru.

She said: "In 2008 I teamed up with wild Peruvian pro surfer 'Octopus' for a surf adventure down the desolate coastline.

"While searching for a secret surf break we discovered an ancient burial in the sand dunes as the pre Incans buried their elite at the top of the dunes near the ocean.

"The mummy inside was laden with his possessions for the afterlife including a solid gold nose piece in the form of a surfer and a carved wooden paddle inlaid with precious stones."

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