Anyone check out Discovery channel's new show Man vs. Wild? http://www.discovery.com/manvswild

I thought it was pretty much garbage. At least Les Stroud from Survivorman films his own trip. Some of the highlights or lows were:
- jumping off cliffs the first 5 minutes into the show. Somehow I don't think this is the best strategy for being lost in the desert. It was kinda amusing that every other shot had him jumping from something. I would think a sprain ankle, broken leg is the first thing you want to avoid.
- peeing on his head towel to keep cool
- Climbing straight up a chasm

I guess they're looking for ratings rather than realism.

I would agree that there was some very questionable stuff. Climbing up cliffs to find raven's eggs when he had zip for water resources seemed strange too- seems to me you'd need to stay focusd on water.

But I did learn some things- such as the compass cactus and making a straw. Diving under the brush jam in the slot- that was pretty wild too.
Knowing slots, I wonder if staying up above would have been smarter.

But I'm excited to see it again- MUCH better than Friends!

This isnt the first steaming pile from "Bear".

He had a show on a while back. I seem to have blocked most of it from memory, but I remember him *thinking* a grizzly was after him, *running* away from the phantom grizz, then *jumping* off a cliff into a white water river. While bobbing up and down in the water, you could clearly see he was wearing some sort of low-pro life preserver under his sweater. All the while, his camera crew managed to keep their cool and record everything from the dry bank.

Id call it a yawner if it wasn't so *BEEP* ridiculous.

I saw that same episode - pretty lame to see the outline of a floatation device under his sweater as he's proclaiming to do this in a 'survival' setting. The first clue was watching him bob up and down the river with both head AND shoulders well above the surface - impossible without a floatation device.

The *BEEP* on a bandana to keep cool was not only questionable merit-wise, but gross and undoubtably for shock value.

Back at the turn of the century, more than one young lad died from drinking through a hollow "straw" they picked that turned out to be a poison Hemlock plant.

How many shaded spots did he pass up before he even reached the slot canyon? Not to mention the shades he was standing in front of when he peed on his shirt. I also can't figure out the shirt thing; why he'd tear up a perfectly good shirt when he could have made the turban from the shirt with out doing that is quite beyond me. He also seems to have kept the sweatshirt on when the should have worn the lighter shirt instead.
Also: NEVER dive into standing water with dead animals in it; NEVER dive under a log jam larger than one sapling; NEVER travel in the heat of the afternoon unless you have no other options; your priorities in the desert situation are (1) Shelter, (2)Water, (3)Fire - the first two can switch depending on time of year, time of day, weather and location.

Edited by bctaitano on 11/20/2006 00:13:21 MST.

So this time Bear [that's his name] is stranded in the Costa Rican jungle. He decides to follow a river down to civilization, which makes sense to me, but he actually hikes *in* the river it self. Of course, he has to repel down a waterfall and then he realized he needs the help of a milk tree, so he reples *UP* the waterfall LOL

I have to admit that climbing a tree to the top of the forest's canopy was pretty scary. I'm not sure how he got down, cause it didn't look like it was going to be that easy. Of course, the camera guy was up there too so something didn't seem right.

There is another new show on about a group's jouney up MT Everest. That's actually pretty good [so far] and isn't as sensational as Man vs Wild.

I agree that this show is pretty hokey. In a later portion of the show, he claims to climb through the mangroves looking for solid ground for 3 hours...before turning around to get back on his balsa raft. There is no way he was doing that for 6 hours total.

I also agree that the reality show about the group going up Everest is worth watching. Maybe the most real of any of the reality shows...and pretty appealing to the adventure minded.

The only really useful bit of information that was on this Costa Rican episode was showing how to properly use a knife to cut down a tree. With a baton! Of course, He did use a rock to beat against the serrated edge of his knife, so thats a point against him.

More points against him? He chugged JUNGLE water! I dont care how "careful" you are, jungle water is NEVER EVER EVER EVER safe to drink raw. Especially not if your a white boy from England. Dont do it! If you do do it, dont be surprised when your emptying your intestines from both end all night long.

He wasnt just hiking down the river. He was bounding in great leaps from one pool to another, not having a clue what the ground was like under that brown water. But what is amazing is that he had the ENERGY to do all that jumping around after having such an intestinally challenging night. And this is AFTER he decided to climb UP a waterfall, Go find that milk tree, Lick it till he got splinters in his tounge (it wasn't exactly a gusher of a tree), THEN go back for his leaping from pool to pool trick... and oh yeah, he hadnt had a meal he could keep down in two days at this point.

Then there is the whole mangrove thing. Your right, he absolutly did NOT go climbing around the mangroves for 6 hours when he had a perfectly good raft just sitting there - NOT tied to anything but amazingly still there after his half a day journey.

This show is a joke. I wont be watching it anymore. It gives me hives.

Edited by RavenUL on 11/20/2006 16:11:35 MST.

LOL, I totally forgot to mention the mangrove part. I also like how one minute he is paddling down a stream and the next he's in the middle of the ocean. When they showed him on shore again, you would think a river inlet would be visible. Well, that's assuming 5% of the show is legit.

Incidentally, I went to Les' website [aka Survivorman] and they're working on renewing for another season.

The show is definitly stunt-driven, seeing as how two episodes started with skydiving, but I have learned a thing or two.
In the alps the drag rope technique was cool, as were his ice-fishing techniques and his Gollem impression.

So he parachutes out onto the French alps to simulate the 100's of hikers/skiers that get lost in the alps. However, he uses his parachute as part of the gear to survive on. I never realized how many people parachute into the alps!

The scene where he simulates hanging over a ledge with his knotted rope has to be totally fake. That and the scene where he catches a trout.

I'm not sure why I watch the stupid show. I must be a gluten for torture.

Did you catch the Sierra Nevada show???

Wow ... making fire with sticks and no knife, wonder how that nice notch got cut in the fireboard?

Or ... how did he gut the Rabbit?

My wife and I love the show .... we love to sit and yell "IDIOT" at the TV. Should be entitled ... how to Die in the Great Outdoors.

It's funnier than Saturday Night Live.

Well, you don't NEED a knife to gut a rabbit. The "squeeze and fling" technique does work... though its not at all for the squeamish.

I'd love to have some snarky thing t say about the episode, but I didnt watch it (note, I didnt say I missed the show. I miss nothing about it)

To his credit, he does say at the start of every episode that he always has a knife, flint and his water canteen.

What I don't like about the show is that he parachutes into an area, but then he uses the parachute to survive. I don't know too many hikers that parachute into their hiking spots.

I almost puked when he ripped the head off the snake and it's wriggly body.

Its a grand ol' time to log in to the MvW forum on the Discovery Channel website.

It looks like the people who cant stand the show are all fairly knowledgeable outdoors people, who level some serious critique about technique and obvious faux pas. The ones who love the show tend to post things like "Bears a Hottie" and "I love his watch".

Discovery channel seems to have really stepped on its credibility crank on this one.

Time to rename the show: MAN vs. REALITY!

Truly the biggest waste of time for anyone interested in the subject of survival.

Discovery channel began its descent into just being "popular" TV sometime in the mid-to-late 90's, IIRC. How the mighty have fallen. Discovery Channel is sort of like "Casey at the bat" and just like Casey, DC has struck out - again. I rarely watch anything on it anymore.

Edited by pj on 12/12/2006 15:07:03 MST.

I have watched both Survivorman and Man vs. Wild. Bear can go break his neck for all I care. Les (Survivorman) has more credibility in his little finger. What really makes me sick about Man vs. Wild is when Bear stops to rest and talks to the camera (as the music swells) about how much he misses his wife and kid and how lonely he is. He has an entire camera crew right there! Like the sound guy is going to sit munching on a Snickers while Bear starves or eats insects... RIGHT.

Discovery Channel is going the way of TLC (The Learning Channel). TLC used to be packed with awesome documentaries and host-guided nature shows. What do you see on TLC now? Nothing but design shows. Fix your house and let's trade houses and let's build this. No more documentaries, no more nature shows. Discovery Channel used to be my favorite network, but with the addition of shows like Monster Garage, It Takes a Thief, and American Chopper- I just don't watch it anymore. I have reverted back to watching PBS for shows like Wide Angle and Nature.

Edited by SRPhotographic on 12/30/2006 16:50:58 MST.

Obviously there are some flaws in his show, and obviously some of the things he does are more hollywood than reality. You may not agree with his techniques, and some of the things he does may be considered "dangerous", but give the guy some credit where it is deserved. He definitely knows his stuff, and he has done some pretty extreme and physically demanding things. He is NOT just some actor who is pretending.

Anyways, I would rather watch Man Vs Wild than pretty much anything else on TV these days.

Here is what I don't get: how is it he always jumps out of the plane seemingly randomly, but always lands 10 feet from a cameraman? Seems like his route is 100% planned from the beginning.

I can tell that most of you people have not been in the military. All you know how to do is freakin' wine and cry about a guy who is showing people how to survive. Look, how many of you climbed Mt Everest? yeah, i bet none of your sorry butts! I bet this guy could survive longer then any of you. The military teaches you skills that regular ordinary people like youselves would have no clue of even thinking of. This guy goes into every type of environment and shows people vital skills they need to survive. I know buy reading this forum that many of you have learned new things that you didn't know of from him. Most of you have not even a single clue of how hard it is in these conditions to survive.The reason you don't know...you have no experience in the military like Bear has nor do you posess the skills. The camera crew has to be with him. How else is he going to film the damm show people!? Yes, i'm sure the camera crew has their own food that they brought with them but this show isn't about the camera crew surviving its about one man surviving. I really don't think he would bite into a raw fish the way he did if he wasn't really hungry or squeeze elephant dung to get water out of it. The show is "Man vs. Wild" not "Man and camera crew vs Wild." I don't care if the camera crew are eating a freakin' baked ham! It doesn't matter because it's Bear that is surviving. I hope all of you read this and PLEASE post replys back so i can laugh my butt off! I bet you guys don't even know how to make a fire! BWAHAHAHAHA!!

My kids love the show and it's fun to watch with them.

Partner, I spent 10 years in the Marine Corps and worked in arctic, mountain, desert, jungle, and temperate environments with formal training in most of them, and experience in all of them, especially arctic and mountain environments. I've augmented this since with a tremendous mount of experience in the civilian guiding sector. I feel perfectly qualified to say Bear is a show-off who is going to get a novice killed by showing some cool, entertaining TV without the novice having any real knowledge to see themselves through some of the obviously staged settings Bear shows up in. I'm not saying Bear doesn't have the background, but the format of his show is pretty dangerously limited in terms of passing on comprehensive knowledge. Don't besmirch the Corps by defending this sellout who is cashing in on a bunch of sensationalism.

People like the above "you suck" pop up on forums like this from time to time, generally pre-pubescet boys with nothing to do but troll the internet. Guys like this got the goats of a lot of posters on outdoorreview.com a while ago, so its best to ignore them.

"Bear is a show-off who is going to get a novice killed by showing some cool, entertaining TV without the novice having any real knowledge to see themselves through some of the obviously staged settings Bear shows up in. I'm not saying Bear doesn't have the background, but the format of his show is pretty dangerously limited in terms of passing on comprehensive knowledge." -Shawn Basil

I agree especially based on watching his Alps episode and his Moab desert canyon episode.

I much prefer watching Survivorman both because I find it more realistic and because I appreciate the fact that not only is the guy surviving, he is doing all of his own camera work (and hauling his own multiple cameras, tripods, tapes, and batteries) and still produces outstanding videography.

I don't object to Bear having a TV crew with him.

However, I especially admire Les "survivorman" Stroud's ability to get creative and oustanding shots when he is cold, exhausted, and hungry. When I am cold, exhausted, and hungry is when I'm least likely to even pull out my SLR.

ps I am watching Man v Wild right now (watching the moronic Moab canyon/desert episode where he hippity hops up slick canyon walls and umps off of rock faces).

Edited by Summit on 01/05/2007 23:09:32 MST.

Could it be that Vlad Putin has found a way back into the Forums??? Or, is it the "Son of Vlad"??? [Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the Forums!]

Greyson, you hit the nail on the head, and to quote some advice my mother gave me when i was a wee laddie: "Leave that alone! Don't pick a scab it will get infected." Might be appropriate advice here. [Bearpaw, this comment isn't targeting your Post. IMO, your unique background and experience qualifies you to Post the words that you did. It's difficult to argue with someone who truly knows, from personal, first-hand experience like yours. Thanks for taking the risk of "drawing fire". "Corpsman Up!". They also would draw fire. You're in good company. Semper Fi.]

Edited by pj on 01/06/2007 06:44:32 MST.

In the rockies episode, he ate that snake right by where he slept. An animal comes into camp because of that mistake and he got scared and bolted in the middle of the night. He admitted not having much bear expirience...lol.

Bear seems to always follow a gully to a stream, to a river, and to civilization.

What's everyone's opinion .... is this a good plan?

"Bear seems to always follow a gully to a stream, to a river, and to civilization.

What's everyone's opinion .... is this a good plan?"

A thought on this. In the massive majority of cases, it's very difficult to walk far in most civilized countries without hitting a road. Also in most cases, if you get lost, you still have some clue, maybe even a map, to give you an idea of where a trail or road might be, if you can only follow a somewhat straight line for a while.

I would gladly follow a trail or road before I would follow streams for one simple reason: blowdowns. Streams are arbitrarily (due to gravity) in the lowest portions of an area, and typically are choked with downed trees and brush, especially in areas with significant rains and floodplain issues. Also, a stream may wind back and forth on itself for 3 miles and over cover a half-mile straight-line distance. And I suspect the likelihood of reaching civilization, or at least reorienting yourself, is likely to be quicker via roads than by following rivers.

Lastly, it's often better to sit in one spot and conserve energy and tend to immediate survival needs, assuming folks are going to miss you reasonably soon versus tromping through an unknown area. However, this doesn't make for good television.

But if I were blindfolded and dropped in unknown territory with no clue where I was, I suppose following a river until I hit a road would make reasonable sense.

Following a river was something that was done a long, long time ago. Villages were often built near rivers (generally beyond reasonable flood level). The chances of running into civilization was more likely by following a river (but would they be friendly???). Not sure of its applicability today.

"Corpsman Up!". They also would draw fire. You're in good company. Semper Fi."

PJ, should I take it you were a greenside doc? Corpsmen were some of the most loyal, brave, and resourceful folks I've ever been priviledged to know.

Edited by Bearpaw on 01/06/2007 16:39:04 MST.

Resourceful? Dang straight! I was taught one of the first emergency tracheotomies was performed by a Navy Corpsman using a fountain pen bladder (though I can't verify this). Brave? Most decorated rating in the US Armed Forces (according to Wikipedia article on Corpsmen). And frankly, they're all wonderful, intelligent, and incredibly good looking!

Tom
Former HM3/USN
(blueside only unfortunately)

Edited by Tomcat1066 on 01/06/2007 16:58:14 MST.

>What's everyone's opinion .... is this a good plan?


I think if you sat down and had a cup of tea you could come up with a better plan. Where I hike streambeds are the roughest terrain, and are often impassible or worse. I'd rather head for a ridgeline where I might get a view.

Edited by Otter on 01/06/2007 20:10:13 MST.

>What's everyone's opinion .... is this a good plan?

""Always" is pretty broad for a criterion", the lawyer told me. (bd?)

If you need water or food, following the stream or stream bed is likely a better approach than wander on the top or side of a hill.

If you want to attract attention, be it via shouting, waving, signal mirror, smoke, cell, sat phone or most any other method, the high ground offers distinct advantages.

MikeB

I'm sorry but the person with the screen name "you suck" has a point. Hey buddy, the guy who spent 10 years in the Marines. I have spent longer with forest recon and Bear is doing nothing wrong. He is not a show off and his things are not staged. Have any of you backpackers actually have gone to Discovery.com and read anything about him? Have you actually read anything about the man? Also, Greyson Howard why don't you be professional or act like a man when debating with someone? There are always two sides to a story. Stop throwing personal insults at somebody you don't even know man. You sound like a liberal. Especially with your real name posted in the forum. You might want to watch what you type. The same goes for the guy with the dwarf from lord of the rings. Were all men here. Let people voice their opinions. Msgt R.

Edited by meangean on 01/06/2007 23:54:45 MST.

You spent 10 years with Forest Recon? That's funny, because I always heard it as Force Recon. I knew a couple Force Recon Docs, so I figure I got it right. However, our Marine friend here will know for certain. Yet somehow, I think our "you suck" friend posted again. I might be wrong though.

The guy from Man vs. Wild might know a thing or two, sure. However, he also does stupid stuff that could get the rank and file person killed.

Tom

Forest Recon? No such thing. You would know that if spent even a day in the Marines. For that matter, you would know that if you typed in "Forest Recon" in a google search. First rule to being a liar - make sure your lies have at least the air of believability. Who are you trying to kid, kid? Go troll elsewhere.

Hey, give the guy(s) a break. Who said it was in the Marines? Besides, you ***can*** make $9.50 an hour in "Forest Recon", in Wisconsin, October - March.
See: http://www.nelson.wisc.edu/grad/careers/ejo/september/ejo912.htm

"Effort includes: Updating the Forest Recon records, reinventory all stands with data older than 15 years or planned for harvest in the next ten years, process recon changes. " You might need a parka or 2.
Sounds like a great job for YS.

I wonder, are the IP posting addresses of YS and John Rather possibly the same? ;)

MikeB

I wonder if that $9.50 comes with the Master Sergeant rank?

Naw... the rank probably came out of a cracker jack box.

I know it's fun to poke holes in a troller's post, but you are just adding fuel to the flame. Ignoring this type of poster is the only way to get them to go away.

I didn't choose the path of serving this great country with military service, but I have had the distinct pleasure of being able to lead former servicemen in the civilian sector.

One thing that I've found is that former servicemen have no problem telling you their opinion, but it's always from a very respectful, fact centered, well thought out position and never from an emotional viewpoint.

The thought that "you suck" would have actually served our country is an insult to all of those who sacrificed their time, their energy, and possibly even their lives for the freedom that he abuses by trolling here in this forum. To pretend to have held the honorable title of US serviceman is an insult to the entire US and all of it's citizens.

My compliments to those of you that served to help protect my family and my freedom .... some of us more than appreciate what you've done for us.

Hartford, WI is just North of Milwaukee. It's a nice place but it certainly ain't the Northwoods of Wisconsin. it's right off of 60... I drive through there on a regular basis.

Here Here Mr. Henley! You said it very well! I'd even go so far to say the vast majority of us appreciate their efforts.

Yep... I was a Space Shuttle Door Gunner... so there! ;-)

Seriously, I got hooked on the show, watched 6 episodes in 2 days, and I can't stop thinking about it. It's one of those "suspend your disbelief" things.

edited; no point in feeding the trolls

Edited by Brett1234 on 12/16/2007 18:26:53 MST.

Backtracking to the question of stream vs. ridgline, I think it is often possible to do both simultaneously. Usually streams and rivers carve a valley down the hill, with a ridge on each side. By walking on top of one of the ridges, you avoid ankle-stessing sidehilling, you avoid all the growth and fallen trees and rocky waterfalls at the bottom of the canyon, yet you stay close to the water of the stream. And, the stream may meander, but you won't end up walking in circles.

In Maine they sometimes say "Ya cann't get the'ere from he're".

So, it is with a ridge to a stream. Make sure one examines the countour lines of the topo map, or is a skiled climber with all the necessary equipment. Five hundred feet down over 50' or so, for example, makes for quite a descent.

Just one other facet to the puzzle.

I don't consider the dense forests of New England part of what I call "the civilized wilderness." You barbarians can bash around in your Devil-cursed woods, ski on ice instead of snow, etc.,etc., but a truly civilized and enlightened Homo sapien sapien does most of his woodsy activities in the Sierra Navada, as did John Muir. The Sierras range is the "Range of Light," New England is the home of witches. We are grown adults out here, and I don't hear anything you say, Na, Na, Na, Na, Na.

Theres a lot of people on here comparing man vs wild to survivorman, and questioning whether he's really "man" enough to have done all this w/o a night in a hotel or whatever it is you're implying. Bear has illustrated step by step a number of different techniques I was taught while enlisted in the Marine Corps. While enlisted, I went through the jungle warfare training center, mountain warfare training center, a cold warfare training package, and a desert warfare training package. Now if bear shows you how to do something youre too weak, fat, or tired to do w/o hurting yourself, then dont do it, but thats a decision youll have to make when in that position. He also probably wears a floatation device during certain manuevers because theres about a 50/50 chance of drowning while doing it, but if you have no other choice he wants you to know how to do it as correctly as possible. We practiced the same precautions while practicing the techniques that could save our lives. Survivor man kills a rabbit, but holds back the "unpleaseantry" of seeing a poor innocent creature cleaned correctly before eaten. Well then how the hell is the viewer suppossed to know how to do it? If you want excitement people, rent Die Hard 2. Quit whining and listen and you might learn something. P.S. Why does this have to be explained to you?

Steve, the issue is that Bear never stated that some of the stunts he were pulling we're staged. For instance, I don't remember him saying that they trucked in a horse to tame, do you?

I see that, this year, the show puts up a disclaimer that some of the events are done with help and even Bear will state this during the show. I appreciate the honesty, but this wasn't done until he was caught with his pants down.

Anyway, I still watch the show every week, but I treat MVW as more of an entertainment type show while I watch Survivor Man as if it's a self documentary. It's not like there are ten other shows like these to watch, so I'll still watch both shows.

I'll give Bear one thing though, he can sure climb like a monkey!

As long as we're debating the relative merits of various media men vs the wild, I think, in the interest of fairness, ol' Sly Stallone deserves at least passing mention.
On a more serious note, both of these guys can probably take care of themselves in the backcountry. I mean, one of them(Survivorman??) is ex-SAS from what I have read. The problem arises when they try to can it for TV, IMO. TV can FUBAR darn near anything. Just look at all the ruffled feathers sticking out of the posts in this thread.

I think I finally found a real use for BPL rank, good for spotting trolls. This guy has a serious love for man vs. wild. Poor thing, he gets so angry.

Did you see the Sierra episode- Rubbish!! Eating a Garder Snake? Where was the park ranger to write him a ticket. He said that snow melt needed to be filtered-thats got to be some of the cleanest H2O on the earth.

It was a Garter Snake.

Sorry- GARTER Snake! I need spell check.

yes, there's something even MORE ridiculous about the show when it's all about "survival" in a place that you know, rather than iceland or costa rica. i was just shaking my head throughout the whole sierra nevada episode.

but i think i still laugh the most just about the running and tucking/rolling down steep hillsides. there's something just really really funny about that. i mean, isn't the first thing you want to do is avoid a sprained or broken ankle? it's just so dumb.

It is an easy mistake to make! That whole Sierra "tale" is so full of %^*$*. I

Is it really a big deal that some of Man vs. Wild is staged or that he takes safety precautions?
Its just a television show. I don't recall hearing 'this is the true life survival story of Bear' or anything of that nature. I'm not really sure where the expectation that it was completely realistic came into being. They'd spend years out there trying to get some of that footage - wasn't that obvious?

Neither show really demonstrates how to survive for a long period of time (some might argue its not necessary to). BUT, because Bear takes safety precautions and creates circumstances we get to see all sorts of 'cool survival shi' that we don't see from Survivorman or anywhere else on network TV. I end up learning alot more - your experience may vary.

Man vs. Wild is an exciting (educational?) show. He shows us what COULD be done given the right circumstances and how to do it. Can you blame him for wearing a life vest or climbing with ropes? Why would anyone want to risk their life like that just for a show when they aren't truly in a survival situation - he's not Steve-O and its not Jackass. Isn't not like he couldn't climb without ropes, but why risk it?

When I watch Survivorman it just feels like i'm watching a man starve for a few days until rescued. Its boring (maybe too realistic, eh?). Survival isn't some big party like Bear makes it out to be, but I didn't think we needed to be told that, this is television for god sakes!

OK, I don't know why, but I enjoy watching this show when I have nothing else to do. I don't like the idea that he presents wilderness lore as factual information; but I am very impressed with his credentials. I get the feeling that his producers insist on some taboo techniques for ratings.

I just watched the most recent show this weekend, and he actually urinated in rattle snake skin (he ate the insides, of course) to use as a canteen for his urine. If drinking your own urine isn't bad enough, he also stated that he had an empty water bottle with him; yet he used the rattlesnake skin as a canteen instead....

But really, haven't we all urinated in rattlesnake skin at one time or another in our lives? (Or am I confusing that again for an Alice Cooper concert I once saw?!)

Actually, in a prior episode on urine recycling (the Kimberly outback I think), we were reminded to only drink the urine fresh, lest bacteria quickly sour the flavor. And then, only when we're good and hydrated and thus peeing clear. (Don't eat the yellow snow, to quote another halcyon memory.)

Many of Bear's demonstrated techniques do have merit, albeit merit without practical application for 99.99% of the viewership. I'm even willing to take the leap and accept the presented survival scenarios and responses for what they are: grossly disproportionate (even obtuse) to the problem at hand, but necessary in order to teach the really cool stuff I tuned in to watch.

But let's remember that Mr Grylls is merely the vessel here. He, himself, is no survival expert, but more of a celebrity stuntman with an especially likable persona. Bear, the employed, can be forgiven his inconsistencies from episode to episode. His employers less so, perhaps.

All was always taught that drinking urine in a survival situation is very hard on the kidneys - similar but clearly safer than drinking sea water. I was under the impression that you were better off not drinking your urine... Maybe this is a new development>

I'm certainly no expert on the matter (haven't purposely drank any urine... yet), but it is my understanding that drinking urine is to aid in preventing heat exhaustion (not dehydration). From what I understand, it has much more to do with the fluid intake (for cooling maybe?) as opposed to the hydration properties of urine. As a side not, if you are ever in a situation where you NEED to drink urine, it is said that 3 passes is the absolute max for the usefulness (whatever that may be) of urine consumption.

On the other hand, I've heard a story of a group of Cuban revolutionaries, during the Bay of Pigs, that survived for nearly 5 weeks drinking seawater, and cannibalistic food consumption, after they ran out of freshwater three days in to their survival. That goes against all common logic regarding hydration.

Also, keep in mind that the hiker that had to cut off his arm in Utah partially chalked up his survival to urine consumption.

I haven't heard of any medical revelations on the matter, but I get the idea that urine and seawater may be more resourceful than we are led to believe -- in a dire situation only, of course.

Edited by MissingUtah on 08/12/2008 19:30:38 MDT.

Or did Aron Ralston survive that (real life) ordeal *because* of severe dehydration? The thickening of blood and slowing of the circulatory system may have saved his life between the time he cut off his arm and when he finally received medical attention. (Doesn't the book theorize as much, anyway?)

bear grylls can fake anything he wants, i'll always continue to watch man vs wild.

...i think it might just be his accent.

Edited by panxzz on 08/27/2009 12:36:11 MDT.

Just watched a new episode where he is in the Pacific ocean and it was great. He tried to catch a shark for food. What a crazy idea but he almost does it haha. Check out the video someone posted here under the Western Pacific episode:
http://www.outdoorsurvivalclothes.com/forum/showthread.php?5-Man-Vs.-Wild-amp-Bear-Grylls-News-Video-Clips-of-Season-5-Man-Vs.-Wild-Episodes-2010

pretty crazy right?

Anyways Go Bear Grylls! You the man keep it up!

Edited by Go-Bear-Grylls on 08/12/2010 14:55:49 MDT.