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This week on National Geographic Weekend, join host Boyd Matson as we row solo and unsupported from Miami to New York, make peace between lions and rural Africans, walk alongside bears and panthers on Florida's proposed animal highway, bask in the sun's flares, escape from prison in Mexico, meet man's cousins who are no longer around, pack for camping with summer's hot new gear, and help create forests in major cities.

Please reference National Geographic's local listings to find out the best way for you to listen to the show. National Geographic Weekend is also available on SiriusXM satellite radio, as well as iTunes podcast.

HOUR 1

• Without planned land support, crew, cover, or any prior boating experience or practice, Lewis Colam has ventured to the United States to row from Miami to New York City in an effort to raise money for Alzheimer’s research. Boyd chats with Lewis to find out what exactly could motivate him to attempt such a feat.

• It might be surprising to learn that local kids in Kenya don’t have the opportunity to see lions and other famous African wildlife often—if at all. In response, Shivani Bhalla created the Ewaso Lions Project, which teams up with wildlife ambassadors to put cameras in children’s hands and send them on safaris with tourists to learn about the equipment and animals. Shivani tells Boyd about the successes and challenges such a project regularly faces.

• Even with a growing population of 19 million, the state of Florida plans to protect its wildlife and environment. Carlton Ward walked the length of the state, seeing how highways interact with bear and panther throughways that allow the animals to navigate the wilderness undisturbed, in the hopes of establishing a wildlife corridor.

• The sun, that great big star in the sky that keeps us bright and warm, can also knock us out—as well as our technological comforts. Timothy Ferris tells Boyd about solar super storms and his article on them in the June 2012 issue of National Geographic magazine.

• David Braun, editor of National Geographic Daily News, tells us about killer mice, a Spanish panda, and how to harness enough energy from people to power half of Europe’s largest mall.

HOUR 2

• When a cocaine user gets caught trafficking drugs in Mexico in the 1970s, he finds himself in one of Mexico’s most notorious prisons. Now, decades after his life-threatening escape and leading a clean lifestyle, Dwight Worker tells Boyd his story and the terror he endured. His tale can also be found in "Black Palace of Horrors," an episode of National Geographic’s television series Locked Up Abroad.

• Paleontologists have been searching for “the missing link” that connects Homo sapiens to our earliest ancestors for decades. But now some studies suggest that a direct connection may not exist at all. Boyd talks with paleontologist Dr. Chris Stringer, whose new book Lone Survivors: How We Came to be the Only Humans on Earth explores the possibility of a much more crowded family tree.

• Boyd welcomes back gear guru Steve Casimiro, who introduces some new gear available this year including a magnetic carabiner, a UV water bottle that can purify water without the use of a filter or iodine, a multi-tool that includes a miniature tripod, and a lantern that automatically adjusts the size of its beam for a variety of different situations.

• Finding an abundance of trees in an urban area can sometimes be challenging, but it’s important to keep a look out for them if you plan on living in a city. David Nowak of the USDA Forest Service tells us how we can benefit our health, environment, and finances by making use of urban forests. He also directs Boyd to the Forest Service's iTree site as a way to plan what trees work best in which environments.

• In this week's Wild Chronicles segment, Boyd prepares for a 20-day backpacking trip in Peru. He compares the comforts of “car-camping” with those of backpacking, and gives advice on how to train your body to sleep on the ground—much to his wife's chagrin.