I bet he left little to chance. Probably started off low power, idle power, then deadstick. Those rocks may be hard to hit due to an increase in the slope. As far as where he landed, I think he ended up right where he intended.
Almost definitively so. Right before touchdown you can see the tracks of an earlier landing to the left, so he was there at least once not too long before.
Overall, not what I would call a risk free pursuit, but he most likely approached this with a bit of caution.