As a result of high permit fees paid by the Warren Expedition in 1986 ($750,000) for the right to run the first descent of the Yangzte, the ten drownings of Chinese rafters that resulted from their race to beat Warren to the first descent, and the 1989 Tiananmen Square Event, exploration of the Mekong in China was delayed until 1994.

To minimize permit fees, first descents of the Mekong River were completed in segments by American teams led by Pete Winn (western and southwestern Yunnan, 1994 - 1997), Japananese teams led by Masauki Kitamura (Qinghai and northwestern Yunnan, 1999 & 2002) and an Australian, Mick O'Shea, who in 2004 completed a solo first descent of the unrun segment of the river in Tibet plus short un-run sections in northwest Yunnan and in far southwest Yunnan with a partner, Brian Eustis.

Click the links below for details on the various Mekong River first descent expeditions: