Nik Wallenda becomes the first person to walk over an active volcano

March 4 (UPI) -- Nik Wallenda became the first person to walk a high wire directly over an active volcano on Wednesday night.

The 41-year-old known as the "King of the Wire" successfully completed the 1,800-foot-long walk over the Masaya Volcano in Nicaragua in a two-hour ABC special titled "Volcano Live! with Nik Wallenda."

"It was amazing," said Wallenda. "The first half of the walk, just being able to see that volcanic lava down there ... absolutely mesmerizing."

Wallenda added that the wind conditions were unpredictable and the gasses from the volcano burned his eyes, which were protected by a gas mask.

"I just put myself in my back yard training," he said. "I just put myself back there and just mentally went 'OK, you're fine, you've walked in stronger winds than this.'"

Wallenda previously broke a Guinness World Record over the summer when he walked 1,808 feet across a tightrope in a Canadian city 30 feet over the ground in about 30 minutes.

He has also walked 25 stories above Time Square, faced what he described as the "intimidating roar of falls" and "blinding mist" as he made a 1,800-foot-long trek 170 feet above Niagara Falls, and walked a wire 1,500 feet above an Arizona gorge near the Grand Canyon without a harness.