There’s a subculture of kayaking known by few and understood by fewer. The paddlers don diving goggles and neoprene and slide into thin uncomfortable boats designed to sink. In contrast to the show boating sports we see daily on the internet, the point is not to be seen, but to disappear. This is squirt boating.

After its heyday in the early 1990s, the scene has all but disappeared. THE MYSTERY offers a rare glimpse into the obscure sport of squirt boating and the dedicated few who continue to keep the tradition alive.

Tommy Penick and Forest Woodward's paths crossed in happenstance, thousands of miles from their beloved rivers and shared home in the southeast. After exploring, reveling, and working together around the country, the boys finally found a story that summarized the humility and the heritage of the river scene in the southeast that they both dearly loved, and began working on The Mystery--trying to capture the essence of those who quite literally disappear.