Unbelievable Commutes

Reporter: If you were handing out the prize for weirdest and wettest commute, zach schwitzky would have to get serious consideration. It's probably the most relaxing part of my day. Reporter: This is... See More

Reporter: If you were handing out the prize for weirdest and wettest commute, zach schwitzky would have to get serious consideration. It's probably the most relaxing part of my day. Reporter: This is the most relaxing part of your day? The rest of your day must suck. Zach commutes by kayak, paddling from hobobken, new jersey, across the hudson river to manhattan. This is about 75,000 times harder than my commute. I went along with him one morning. Would you see yourself doing it? Reporter: Let me put this diplomatically. No. Which, as you will see in a moment, turned into a rather humbling experience. Do you ever get halfway across and think, I'd much rather be in a cab? Some days. Reporter: Before I show you my waterbornee waterloo, consider this visual evidence that zach is not alone in the holy crap, that's a bizarre commute category. We found video of an alaska gold miner who gets to work by dog sled. A woman in florida who has to survive this dirt road in order to get a "t" across a river. Even a zip line across a deep jungle valley in colombia, as seen in the documentary, "education in far away places." The producs had hoped the film would convince the government to install a cable car. Which didn't happen. And then in san francisco, there's james walbridge, an architect and an extreme example of a new breed known as the super commuter. Walbridge flies to work. Commuting on a plane doesn't make any sense. It's not efficient. It's not cost effective. But it's what I do. Reporter: His commute begins in beautiful, bucolic nebraska. His wife, sara, and her son, matthew, live in lincoln. For family and medical reasons, they can't go to california, and james can't move to nebraska full time. Thus, a 1,600-mile plane trip in one direction or another pretty much every week. You could say it's a commute from hell. That's what happens when you meet a good midwest girl and you fall in love and get married. Reporter: Back on the river with zach schwitzky, and things are not going well for me. There's zach paddling along, and that tiny little dot back there in the distance -- that's me. Ultimately, they had to tow me in. All right. This is how a real kayaker does it. In my defense, I want to say that even zach admitted there was a current that was particularly fierce. While I actually enjoyed my little maritime meltdown, for most of us -- what the is that guy doing. Reporter: -- The daily forced march of a commute can take a genuine toll. Going two miles per hour on the highway! Reporter: You can see it all over the internet. ♪ Same old ♪ Reporter: Like this guy blowing off steam with a virtual drive-by. This cut me off? Reporter: While the average commute is only 25 minutes, tv producer walter drives roughly 175 miles from massachusetts to new york three to five times a week, that's roughly 3 1/2 hours each way, all to support his two children. I find driving stressful. Do you find it stressful? Of course it's stressful, and I can feel stress. Reporter: And that stress can be truly toxic. Researchers have found commuting can lead to everything from high blood pressure to heart problems, from getting fat to getting divorced. he is feeling the pain. Do you worry that this is impacting your health? I know it is. It has to be. I always say that I would die for my kids. Sorry, I get emotional. It's like I am dying for my kids, and I would do it again. Reporter: You love your kids a lot. Like nothing else. Reporter: Experts say if your commute is killing you, your options are to move closer to the office, try to convince your boss to let you work flexible hours, or find a new mode of transportation. Obviously, kayaking is not going to work for everyone, especially once you learn that even when you get to the other side, you still have to drag the thing all the way to the office. It's funny to see people's reactions when you are dragging a 15-foot boat through the streets of manhattan. Reporter: Zach freely acknowledges his way is not for everybody, but he is a role model of sorts. Given that commuting is such a major part of our daily lives, your health and your sanity may depend on finding something that really does work for you. Are we here? We made it. Nice. Reporter: That said, I for one do not recommend kayaking. That completes the most ridiculous commute of my life!