Josh Gates interview on Expedition Unknown in Petra on Discovery Channel & Indiana Jones reference

Josh Gates returns as host, executive producer, and explorer on Expedition Unknown on Discovery Channel.

Josh: “Thank you so much for your time today.”
Host: “Of course. Thrilled to be here!”

Host: “We’re getting the two-part season premiere, and this time, you’re going to Petra. Where are we going with this?”
Josh: “We’re going to be taking our viewers to the ancient city of Petra in the country of Jordan. And whether you think you know Petra or not, you definitely do because its most famous building, known as the Treasury, was featured as the fictional final resting place of the Holy Grail in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. So, everybody kind of knows this building, and we’re going to be working with archaeologists there to excavate underneath it. This is one of the new Seven Wonders of the World, one of the most iconic buildings in the world. And we’re going to be on hand for a dig underneath this building to try to understand when this building was built and what it was used for. It’s still a real mystery to historians. We’re going to be working alongside these folks, digging, and taking our viewers into mysterious places that nobody has seen in thousands of years.”

Host: “Talk about the role of technology in aiding to help uncover some of these big mysteries.”
Josh: “For sure. Technology has really transformed archaeology in the last few years in a lot of ways. Technology like LiDAR, which is a laser mapping and scanning technology, photogrammetry—being able to create these extremely detailed 3D photographic models of sites. We use a lot of that in this show to help understand and virtually map and record the places that we’re visiting. But at the end of the day, no matter how many gizmos are out there, it all comes down to the hard work of these archaeologists who have to toil in the dirt and dig down to these places. So, it’s also really exciting to be there for the good old-fashioned work of digging a hole and seeing what could be down there.”

Host: “I want to know a little bit about getting the permission to film in these areas. Obviously, sometimes these things can take weeks, months, or even years to do before you can start going in there and digging and filming. Talk to me a little bit about that process.”
Josh: “Yeah, I mean, that’s the part of the show that a lot of folks don’t see. There’s an enormous amount of prep that goes into these episodes, especially when you’re going to a place like Petra. This is one of the new Seven Wonders. This is an incredibly important site, it’s an incredibly famous site, and a historic site. So, we are really fortunate to have the cooperation of the folks that are excavating there. Dr. Pierce Paul Cman, who works at ACOR (the American Center of Research in Jordan), is leading the excavation, and we’re really there to document and be a part of the important work that they’re doing. That process can take months. We’ve had episodes where that process takes years. You can’t just waltz into Petra and start digging in the dirt. A million people a year visit Petra. It’s an incredibly famous site. So to be there and to be able to excavate beneath it is a huge thrill and a really rare once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”

Host: “You know, whether it’s this season or previous seasons of the series, or anything that you’ve done in your work where you’ve done some exploration in these magnificent places, tell me a little bit about those moments when you get back home and you just take a moment, you sit down and you’re like, ‘I cannot believe I was just there.'”
Josh: “Yeah, I mean, you know, sometimes you have to kind of pinch yourself. There were days when we were out at Petra working, where I would suddenly look up and just go, ‘Wow, I’m really in front of this building, I’m really at this place.’ And it does stay with you because look, many of these civilizations that we’re excavating in their ruins, these were incredibly powerful, successful, dynamic societies. And they are gone. When you excavate sites in ancient Egypt, ancient Rome, Greece—these are civilizations that helped build the world that we live in today, and they’re gone. They’re echoes and shadows of the past. And so, to connect with those civilizations, to touch a piece of pottery or a coin or something that nobody has touched in thousands of years, you feel this electric connection to the past. And that really does stay with me.”

Host: “Getting to Petra is not very easy. I mean, you can’t take a car, you can’t get an Uber. There’s a mile-long pathway where you either have to walk or take a camel down this incredible road. I mean, talk a little bit about that.”
Josh: “Funny, in Indiana Jones, you know, it’s presented as this kind of secret city that lies at the end of a long winding canyon, and that’s exactly what it is. Petra is one of those places that does not disappoint. It really was a kind of hidden city, and it does lie at the end of this very narrow slot canyon. It’s a mile of twisting, winding road that leads down to this iconic building, the Treasury. And to be able to go to the site before it opens to the public, early in the morning, to ride a camel—even though I have a very mixed relationship with camels, they can be very uncooperative animals, this one was not—but to be able to ride down in the sort of silence, the ancient silence of this site, and to see this building come into view, you know, what could be more exciting than that?”

Host: “Do you feel like Indiana Jones? I mean, is this like what your life has become? Do you feel like every moment you get to be Indiana Jones?”
Josh: “Yeah, well, look, I mean, from your lips to God’s ears. I, you know, Indiana Jones, obviously, as a kid, a huge inspiration of mine. One of my favorite film franchises of all time. And why do we love Indy? We love Indy because his adventures are exciting, they’re swashbuckling, right? And so, that’s what we try to bring to Expedition Unknown. We want our viewers to come with us and have a real adventure. And I’m thrilled that these stories and these adventures do have real discovery in them. What we find at Petra beneath the Treasury building is a historic discovery. So I really hope that folks tune in. We’re on Wednesday, October 9th—next Wednesday, at 9:00 p.m. on Discovery. It is an awesome adventure, and it is, I think, Indy would be proud in the sense that we are making real discoveries and we’re on hand with these really incredible explorers who are doing awesome work.”

Host: “Josh, thank you so much for your time today. October 9th, Expedition Unknown returns with a two-part season premiere on Discovery Channel, and of course, catch you the next day on Discovery Plus and on Max. Thank you so much. All the best.”
Josh: “Thank you so much!”