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PHOTOS: Nik Wallenda Trains for Niagara Falls High Wire Walk

  • For Wallenda, these final moments of rehearsal were the last chance to practice walking that narrow steel wire.
    1/20

    Nik Wallenda

    For Wallenda, these final moments of rehearsal were the last chance to practice walking that narrow steel wire.
    ABC/Donna Svennevik
  • Wallenda, 33, says his biggest challenge during his training sessions has been staying focused.
    2/20

    Nik Wallenda

    Wallenda, 33, says his biggest challenge during his training sessions has been staying focused.
    ABC/Donna Svennevik
  • Production crews have worked around the clock, preparing the Falls for what may be the largest media spectacle the likes of which the world has never seen.
    3/20

    Nik Wallenda

    Production crews have worked around the clock, preparing the Falls for what may be the largest media spectacle the likes of which the world has never seen.
    ABC/Donna Svennevik
  • Preparations are underway for Wallenda's history-making high wire walk.
    4/20

    Nik Wallenda

    Preparations are underway for Wallenda's history-making high wire walk.
    ABC/Donna Svennevik
  • Production crews have pulled out all the stops to make sure viewers can see it from every single angle.
    5/20

    Nik Wallenda

    Production crews have pulled out all the stops to make sure viewers can see it from every single angle.
    ABC/Donna Svennevik
  • A rainbow appears over Niagara Falls the morning of Nik Wallenda’s big stunt on Friday, June 15, 2012.
    6/20

    Nik Wallenda

    A rainbow appears over Niagara Falls the morning of Nik Wallenda’s big stunt on Friday, June 15, 2012.
    ABC/Ida Mae Astute
  • “Training’s going good,” Wallenda said. “It’s just mind games now that I have to overcome.”
    7/20

    Nik Wallenda

    “Training’s going good,” Wallenda said. “It’s just mind games now that I have to overcome.”
    Ida Mae Astute/ABC
  • Wallenda stretches before attempting a practice wire walk at the Seneca Niagara Casino in N. Falls, N.Y. The walk will be the ultimate test of his physical and mental endurance.
    8/20

    Nik Wallenda

    Wallenda stretches before attempting a practice wire walk at the Seneca Niagara Casino in N. Falls, N.Y. The walk will be the ultimate test of his physical and mental endurance.
    Ida Mae Astute/ABC
  • Wallenda will carry this 40-pound balancing pole on his walk.
    9/20

    Nik Wallenda

    Wallenda will carry this 40-pound balancing pole on his walk.
    Ida Mae Astute/ABC
  • The training wire at the Seneca Falls Casino was some 1,200 feet long and 60 feet high at its high end. He often would walk up, walk down, turn around and walk back up for a total walk of 2,400 feet.
    10/20

    Nik Wallenda

    The training wire at the Seneca Falls Casino was some 1,200 feet long and 60 feet high at its high end. He often would walk up, walk down, turn around and walk back up for a total walk of 2,400 feet.
    Ida Mae Astute/ABC
  • “Every time I go rehearse, I’m risking my life,” Wallenda said.
    11/20

    Nik Wallenda

    “Every time I go rehearse, I’m risking my life,” Wallenda said.
    Ida Mae Astute/ABC
  • Wallenda trains in conditions meant to simulate those of Niagara Falls. “I’m placing myself over the Falls as I do this stuff,” he said. “I’m picturing the sound, I’m picturing the mist, I’m picturing looking down 200 feet into the water.”
    12/20

    Nik Wallenda

    Wallenda trains in conditions meant to simulate those of Niagara Falls. “I’m placing myself over the Falls as I do this stuff,” he said. “I’m picturing the sound, I’m picturing the mist, I’m picturing looking down 200 feet into the water.”
    Ida Mae Astute/ABC
  • A fire hose at the practice venue sprays water into the air to create heavy mist to simulate that of the falls’ raging waters. Wallenda was also put up against a wind machine, generating gusts up to 44 miles per hour to train.
    13/20

    Nik Wallenda

    A fire hose at the practice venue sprays water into the air to create heavy mist to simulate that of the falls’ raging waters. Wallenda was also put up against a wind machine, generating gusts up to 44 miles per hour to train.
    Ida Mae Astute/ABC
  • Wallenda’s feet take careful steps on the wire.
    14/20

    Nik Wallenda

    Wallenda’s feet take careful steps on the wire.
    Ida Mae Astute/ABC
  • The cable was rigged to mimic the incline of the walk. “I spent 10 days walking on a cable that would duplicate the incline that I would walk up during the second half of the walk, as well as the decline I would walk down during the first half of the walk,” he said.
    15/20

    Nik Wallenda

    The cable was rigged to mimic the incline of the walk. “I spent 10 days walking on a cable that would duplicate the incline that I would walk up during the second half of the walk, as well as the decline I would walk down during the first half of the walk,” he said.
    Ida Mae Astute/ABC
  • Wallenda’s training sessions at the Seneca Falls Casino drew a crowd. Friday’s walk is expected to draw thousands of spectators on the U.S. and Canadian sides of the Falls.
    16/20

    Nik Wallenda

    Wallenda’s training sessions at the Seneca Falls Casino drew a crowd. Friday’s walk is expected to draw thousands of spectators on the U.S. and Canadian sides of the Falls.
    Ida Mae Astute/ABC
  • Wallenda is as seasoned a wire walker as they come, but the Niagara stunt will put his body to the test like never before.
    17/20

    Nik Wallenda

    Wallenda is as seasoned a wire walker as they come, but the Niagara stunt will put his body to the test like never before.
    Ida Mae Astute/ABC
  • See Nik Wallenda's unbelievable attempt on "Megastunts" Fri., June 15, 8/7c.
    18/20

    Nik Wallenda

    See Nik Wallenda's unbelievable attempt on "Megastunts" Fri., June 15, 8/7c.
    Ida Mae Astute/ABC
  • The wire from the American side of the Falls.
    19/20

    Nik Wallenda

    The wire from the American side of the Falls.
    ABC/Donna Svennevik
  • Approximately 13 million people visit Niagara Falls each year.
    20/20

    Nik Wallenda

    Approximately 13 million people visit Niagara Falls each year.
    ABC/Donna Svennevik
For Wallenda, these final moments of rehearsal were the last chance to practice walking that narrow steel wire.
Wallenda, 33, says his biggest challenge during his training sessions has been staying focused.
Production crews have worked around the clock, preparing the Falls for what may be the largest media spectacle the likes of which the world has never seen.
Preparations are underway for Wallenda's history-making high wire walk.
Production crews have pulled out all the stops to make sure viewers can see it from every single angle.
A rainbow appears over Niagara Falls the morning of Nik Wallenda’s big stunt on Friday, June 15, 2012.
“Training’s going good,” Wallenda said. “It’s just mind games now that I have to overcome.”
Wallenda stretches before attempting a practice wire walk at the Seneca Niagara Casino in N. Falls, N.Y. The walk will be the ultimate test of his physical and mental endurance.
Wallenda will carry this 40-pound balancing pole on his walk.
The training wire at the Seneca Falls Casino was some 1,200 feet long and 60 feet high at its high end. He often would walk up, walk down, turn around and walk back up for a total walk of 2,400 feet.
“Every time I go rehearse, I’m risking my life,” Wallenda said.
Wallenda trains in conditions meant to simulate those of Niagara Falls. “I’m placing myself over the Falls as I do this stuff,” he said. “I’m picturing the sound, I’m picturing the mist, I’m picturing looking down 200 feet into the water.”
A fire hose at the practice venue sprays water into the air to create heavy mist to simulate that of the falls’ raging waters. Wallenda was also put up against a wind machine, generating gusts up to 44 miles per hour to train.
Wallenda’s feet take careful steps on the wire.
The cable was rigged to mimic the incline of the walk. “I spent 10 days walking on a cable that would duplicate the incline that I would walk up during the second half of the walk, as well as the decline I would walk down during the first half of the walk,” he said.
Wallenda’s training sessions at the Seneca Falls Casino drew a crowd. Friday’s walk is expected to draw thousands of spectators on the U.S. and Canadian sides of the Falls.
Wallenda is as seasoned a wire walker as they come, but the Niagara stunt will put his body to the test like never before.
See Nik Wallenda's unbelievable attempt on "Megastunts" Fri., June 15, 8/7c.
The wire from the American side of the Falls.
Approximately 13 million people visit Niagara Falls each year.

Nik Wallenda is preparing for his unprecedented high wire walk across Niagara Falls this Friday. The seventh-generation daredevil will walk approximately 1,500 feet on a tightrope wire, just 2 inches in diameter, that’s suspended nearly 200 feet above the raging waters. See what goes into the training process as he attempts his greatest stunt yet and watch Nik Wallenda's unbelievable attempt on "Megastunts" Fri., June 15, 8/7c on ABC.