The season began with an immediate reward challenge for flint and basic survival tools.
The first Immunity Challenge was a multi-stage relay involving mud-crawling and a table maze. : Coco finished first, followed by Vesi .
: Baka struggled with the table maze, sending them to the season's first Tribal Council. The Baka Scramble
At Tribal Council, Morriah’s attempt to frame the loss as a "moral victory" fell flat with the tribe. ❌ : Morriah Young (unanimous vote).
: Vesi won the first challenge thanks to Cody’s clever idea to use the hollow interior of a bamboo pole to snag the flint.
At camp, Gabler made a bizarre offer to play his instead of using his new idol to "hold himself accountable" for the challenge loss. Elie Scott eventually talked him out of it, shifting the target to Morriah Young to keep the tribe's physical strength intact.
⚓ : Morriah became the first person voted out of Survivor 43.
💡 : Gabler’s survival despite his erratic behavior set the stage for his eventual path to winning the season.