Daredevils: Kirk Jones

Kirk Raymond Jones (b. 1953) became the latest survivor of a Horseshoe Falls plunge when, on October 20, 2003, he made the trip with no life-saving aids and emerged, with only a bruised rib, virtually unscathed.

Claiming that his journey was not a stunt, rather a failed attempt at suicide, Jones, though described by an eyewitness as "kind of jumping around", entered the Niagara River on the Canadian side approximately 20 feet from the lip of the Falls.

His descent down the 170 ft. cataract was swift, and he was able to climb up the shoreline, where a helicopter brought him to safety. After a brief stay at a local hospital, Jones was fined $3,000 (U.S.) for performing an illegal stunt on Niagara Parks property.

In an interview with ABC News, Jones claimed the stunt reversed his thoughts of suicide. "I can tell you now after hitting the Falls, I feel that life is worth living."

At the time, Jones suffered from depression and felt that a plunge over the Falls was the "most peaceful way to go."

"(I thought) that there would be no doubt that when I went over those falls, I would not be coming back. History shows for itself (that) that's the case."

Jones became just the second person to ride over the Horseshoe Falls without protection; the first, Roger Woodward in 1960, survived an accidental plunge, wearing only a life jacket. Asked to comment on Jones' plunge, Woodward replied: "If it's a stunt, I think it's silly foolishness."