It’s a new day in the High Sierras. JD meets the remaining 10 contestants at the treehouses, to find out who will get the Yellow team’s two pyramid pieces. Not wasting any time, JD asks Kelsey to read the note that Yellow left for the entire group. In their letter, Arik and Lilly advise those still playing the game to really think about whom they send to Temple in the future. They believe the team that demonstrates the most endurance should be the one that wins the most missions and earns the most pieces — the game shouldn’t be all about popularity With that, Yellow leaves their pieces to Connor and Taylor, on the Blue team. Blue now has five pieces total, and more importantly, a two-piece lead over Purple (Dakota and Kelsey)!

Just as the remaining contestants come to grips with Yellow’s decision to leave Blue their pieces, JD informs the group of the latest twist: a surprise Temple mission will be played today, and one more team will be going home by nightfall. The five remaining teams are in utter shock!

An air of panic surrounds the treehouses, and Connor wonders whether Blue team’s five pieces are more of a hindrance than a blessing. With so many pieces, Connor worries that he and Taylor will still be a target for Temple. Meanwhile, Purple begins to question their alliance with the Green team. Dakota mentions to Kelsey that he’s tired of carrying Green. He feels that they’ve been protecting Cealey and Alex so much that they’ve been basically getting a free ride for the whole game! But the Green players also realize this and do everything they can to pump themselves up for the Temple mission. Cealey and Alex know they must win to solidify their status in the game.

Finally, at the clearing, JD tells the kids about the mission they are about to compete in. In this game, called “It’s a Drag,rdquo; the contestants are challenged to drag a container filled with over 280 pounds of water across the clearing to the finish line. This mission is all about teamwork, because the teams can only use their collective strength and three wooden logs to maneuver the container across! On JD’s mark, the players go to work. From the start, the Orange (Max and Kristine) and Green teams are in close competition, with Blue trailing not far behind. But from almost out of nowhere, Green summons their strength and displays a sense of teamwork that no other team seems to have. They eventually take a commanding lead. In the end, Green — the team that hasn’t won anything the entire game — leaves everyone in the dust and wins easily! Taylor and Connor are devastated; they know that Blue will automatically be one of the two teams sent to the Temple of Fate, as theirs is the odd team out of the Purple-Green-Red-Orange alliance.

But which team from the alliance will go to Temple tonight? Without much debate, Alex and Cealey decide Orange will be joining Blue at Temple. Despite the bad news, Max and Kristine refuse to go down without a fight — they almost immediately begin plotting a way to make sure they’ll beat Blue at Temple. Max asks Dakota if he will falsely tell the Blue team what Orange’s “strategy at Temple” will be, similar to the ploy Yellow used to beat Gray in the first Temple in the High Sierras. Dakota agrees to help Orange and proceeds to tell Taylor the elements Orange will be picking at Temple that night. But Taylor is a bit skeptical of Dakota’s information, so she asks Kelsey if Dakota is telling the truth. Kelsey neither confirms nor denies what Dakota has said, leaving Taylor in limbo.

Evening arrives, and the Blue and Orange teams finally arrive to meet JD at the Temple of Fate. Taylor and Connor appear extremely focused, which causes the Orange team to wonder whether their strategy of tricking Blue will work or not. JD begins the first round: Orange picks fire and Blue picks water! After the first-round win, Taylor coldly glances over at Orange and says, “That’s what you get for lying,” calling their bluff. In the second round, Blue picks fire and Orange picks water, bringing things to a tie. Then, in the third and final round, Blue picks water and Orange picks fire — eliminating them from the game! Connor and Taylor are ecstatic about their win, and they can’t wait to see everyone’s shocked faces when they return. But even though one of the teams from the game’s dominant alliance is now gone, can the Blue team outlast the remaining Purple, Green and Red teams? Can Connor and Taylor find a way to get payback on the teams that have plotted against them from the start and manage to win it all? Find out next time on Endurance: High Sierras!

Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5, Episode 6,
Episode 7, Episode 8, Episode 10, Episode 11, Episode 12, Episode 13, Episode 14, Episode 15