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I thought the premis was interesting, so I tuned into the first show. Not sure where they got their "experts", but those guys seem to have gone to a couple of classes on wilderness survival, and failed.
Just for example, their shelters they make from a 12x12 tarp and paracord instead of a debris shelter covered with the tarp for warmth and waterproofing, is usually made at a very steep angle which only leaves about 3 feet of space actually covered. If they decreased the angle a little, they could triple the size of the covered area.
They complain they can't purify water, but they're on Vancouver Island! If they put their tarp up right they could collect rainwater easily.
I don't know how they learned to start a fire, but it sure wasn't using a ferro rod. None of them made any tinder, they all tried to work with kindling, which is fine if you have a match, but with only sparks you need some fine material to catch the sparks.
All of them are scared to death of animals, all of them had fishing kits, but nobody dropped a line in the water and only one guy found some mussels and snails to eat.
Hopefully, they get their s*** together and actually start surviving, or none of them will last more than a few days until they call for rescue.
I am starting to watch "Naked and Afraid" now, which I think is in its 4th season. Great show, but it's basically watching two naked people starve to near death for 30 days.
Same with SurvivorMan, which was a great show - but it was basically watching a guy starve.
Then you have that show with that Bear guy...he seems to do OK, during filming of course...then he goes and spends a night at the local Hilton.
Well, second episode last night.
I usually don't watch TV, but the premise of this show had me interested in what constituted an expert.
To me, it's more of a comedy of errors.
2 guys hi-tailed it because "there's animals here!!"
Only 3 of the remaining 8 actually understood you could use rainwater without sterilizing it. One guy is griping about dying of thirst while walking through a cloudburst. HEY GUY... TIP YOUR HEAD BACK!!!
One of they guys that did try to collect rainwater had his tarp bunched up under some trees. He did get some water, but would have had a lot more if he'd put his tarp in the open and raised the edges a little to collect it.
The youngest guy worked his butt off chopping the middle out of an old rotten log as a container for rainwater with a plastic liner, which would work, but he sure burned through a lot of moisture and calories to do it.
One guy got a fire going, but then lost his striker match, and apparently doesn't realize he still has a steel ax and a lot of ignious rocks around if he is dumb enough to let his fire go out.
So far, the only food these guys can find is some kelp and snails, periwinkles and a couple of mussels.
A couple have had bears close by, and some of those guys have bows and arrows, and one bear would be meat and fat for the whole time they're out there.
At least some of the guys are starting to act like they have some idea of what they're doing, but it's in bits and pieces. They do some things right and blow by the easy stuff.
All of them are located on the ocean, all of them have fishing tackle, not one has dropped a line in the water!
No traps, no snares, no deadfalls, they blow past all kinds of edible plants, one built a tipi, but it's too small for him to lie down in for shelter.
Good thing they have their sat-phones to call for extraction.
They're starving and no water in the wettest place on earth, and they've only been out for 3 days!!!!
I guess "expert" doesn't mean what it used to...
I used to like Les Stroud's show, at least he usually knew what he was doing, even though he missed some stuff I would have done, (like reflectors on his fires), but nothing that would get you killed like Bear Grillis.
Never watched naked and afraid. Didn't like the premise, and the commercials make it look like a drama series instead of actual survival.
That show that followed, Forged in Flame or something about blacksmiths, at least those guys acted like they had some idea of what they were doing, although the idiot that kept burning his steel and then smacked the blade on the anvil wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed.
That show might have some possibilities....
Well, second episode last night.
I usually don't watch TV, but the premise of this show had me interested in what constituted an expert.
To me, it's more of a comedy of errors.
2 guys hi-tailed it because "there's animals here!!"
Only 3 of the remaining 8 actually understood you could use rainwater without sterilizing it. One guy is griping about dying of thirst while walking through a cloudburst. HEY GUY... TIP YOUR HEAD BACK!!!
One of they guys that did try to collect rainwater had his tarp bunched up under some trees. He did get some water, but would have had a lot more if he'd put his tarp in the open and raised the edges a little to collect it.
The youngest guy worked his butt off chopping the middle out of an old rotten log as a container for rainwater with a plastic liner, which would work, but he sure burned through a lot of moisture and calories to do it.
One guy got a fire going, but then lost his striker match, and apparently doesn't realize he still has a steel ax and a lot of ignious rocks around if he is dumb enough to let his fire go out.
So far, the only food these guys can find is some kelp and snails, periwinkles and a couple of mussels.
A couple have had bears close by, and some of those guys have bows and arrows, and one bear would be meat and fat for the whole time they're out there.
At least some of the guys are starting to act like they have some idea of what they're doing, but it's in bits and pieces. They do some things right and blow by the easy stuff.
All of them are located on the ocean, all of them have fishing tackle, not one has dropped a line in the water!
No traps, no snares, no deadfalls, they blow past all kinds of edible plants, one built a tipi, but it's too small for him to lie down in for shelter.
Good thing they have their sat-phones to call for extraction.
They're starving and no water in the wettest place on earth, and they've only been out for 3 days!!!!
I guess "expert" doesn't mean what it used to...
I used to like Les Stroud's show, at least he usually knew what he was doing, even though he missed some stuff I would have done, (like reflectors on his fires), but nothing that would get you killed like Bear Grillis.
Never watched naked and afraid. Didn't like the premise, and the commercials make it look like a drama series instead of actual survival.
That show that followed, Forged in Flame or something about blacksmiths, at least those guys acted like they had some idea of what they were doing, although the idiot that kept burning his steel and then smacked the blade on the anvil wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed.
That show might have some possibilities....
What network is this show on? I might want to check it out. Les Strouds show was great, he stopped doing it because it was doing too much damage to his body. That naked and afraid, yeah, you have to imagine they edit 30 days into an hour show and part of it is how these two interact with each other. Still, the punishment they put there bodies into is unreal. The people they put on are supposedly survival experts but all of them end up losing 20 or 25 pounds, many get medivaced out, dehydration, about 20% or so "tap out" and don't make 30 days, one got dengue fever. Some would have literally died out there.
We've had no TV for a long time, and I don't miss it. However, I do watch YouTube videos once in awhile, and even there you will find some guys who don't know their axes from their elbows. Most of those do tend to get weeded out, whereas on TV, you get whatever the sponsors are willing to pay for (usually = crap).
That said, I think I have learned more from YouTube than I ever did from TV. Bushcraft, truck repair, how to do just about anything yourself, outdoor cooking, wilderness camping, raising pigs, getting turkeys to drink from a waterer (chickens'll teach 'em), and building crack-proof patios in Maine -- lots of useful info, and I get to choose the time, place, and subject.
Have to admit though....TV had a lot more laffs, sometimes!
I've watched Alone, pretty neat concept but, it's still a reality show. And all realities shows are manipulated. Meaning, I suspiciously question as to why any avid survivalist fan and/or expert would quit on the first episode. That guy had to be propped. IMO
I watch Les Stroud, but I'm not a big fan of the whole one camera self filming thing; same applies for this show. I would more prefer to see a tandem dropped off into a situation that way their filming could become more bearable and more interesting to watch.
Naked and Afraid is just a show of suffering (starvation, bug bites, sicknesses, sun burns etc). Sometimes I think it is just plain stupid what is done to those people. What would make that show better is to let them wear clothes, and let them have four survival items instead of two. Because it literally is just a show of suffering, and listening to them whine and bicker.
As a novice survival fan, I want to watch shows that teach me intriguing survival techniques. And Naked and Afraid does not do that. As well as many other shows; where for a majority of the show the survivalist experts are filmed just walking. I love information. I love the shelters, trapping, foraging etc, but what I don't like is just watching two guys just walk for an entire episode.
I love watching all survival shows. One of my favorites was The Colony. I also liked Out of the Wild. And one of the best youtube channels IMO is https://www.youtube.com/user/alonewolverine1984
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If I were on Alone: (I'm novice remember.)
The ten items I would chose:
1. Tarp
2. Knife
3. Axe
4. Saw
5. Pot
6. Fishing Line
7. Fire Starter
8. Bear Spray
9. Fish Netting
10. Sleeping Bag (I'd pass on cordage.)
First thing I would do, is find a place in between any evergreen trees. Smaller evergreens. Then chop them down so I could use them as a natural fence, or boma; to enclose myself within them. To keep out bears, cougars etc. Then I would build a basic lean-to with a raised bed and a fire reflector. Then, proceed to make a spear and fire hardened it. Even though I already have bear spray. Next, I would set my fishing line either out in the water or, just use the line for trapping. Or periodically both. Same with the netting. As for anything else, I would just forage and also gather and gather and gather fire wood. Because you can never have enough is what they say. But of course, I would keep any physical exertion at a minimum. Trying my best to burn as few calories as possible, to outlast the other competitors.
Location: When you take flak it means you are on target
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#5 Pot? I know it's Washington, but couldn't you just grow your own?
LOL - We used to spend months at a time sailing on a tiny 24' boat, mostly in isolated areas of the Bahamas and No. Carribbean. All our water came from rain catchment. A large portion of our food was from the land and sea. Lobster for breakfast, fresh wild fruit. Conch salad for lunch. Fish of the day for dinner!
And talk about being nekked and afraid - once we were bathing at the beach in this isolated cove, and suddenly around the point came a boatload of tourists! Boy did we scramble!
Skip the bear spray, take a shotgun and eat the bear!
I've only seen the first two episodes so far. I thought I did see one guy with a gun. I know I saw another with a bow. You just don't see guns in survival shows too much. But if they are allowed, then yes, I'd take the shotgun. But then again, if shotguns are allowed, then why did that one guy quit for being so scared of a close encountering bear? When one of his ten items could've just been a shotgun. (He only had the bear spray.)
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He did get some water, but would have had a lot more if he'd put his tarp in the open and raised the edges a little to collect it.
