It may just be me, but the “Man vs. Wild” show on Discovery Channel is more humorous than helpful. It isn’t that the host Bear Grylls doesn’t offer information that could be life-saving. It’s that I probably won’t end up in a frozen wasteland in Siberia and I laugh at his expense because he does. The situations Bear puts himself into usually aren’t the situations he comes out of, and sometimes things aren’t what they seem.
For those who don’t know, the concept of the show is this: Bear strands himself in remote locations around the world to show you how to get out alive. He’s been in deserts, dense forests, icy wastelands, jungles, rain forests, and every other dangerous corner of the globe you can think of.
Bear usually endures hardship when he’s in these precarious environments, but the locations that tend to stay with you are the ones in which Bear struggles for fresh water. Mostly these are his desert and hot plains expeditions, and yes that’s plural for a reason.
The Kimberly Australia episode is a prime example of these searches for drinkable water. Presumably pushed to the brink and no visible options, Bear was forced to drink his own urine. It’s times like these that make you wonder about the authenticity of Bear’s position.
Certainly, if he wasn’t in any real danger, no one would let this poor Englishman drink his own pee. That wasn’t the only time that Bear utilized his urine either; in the Moab Desert episode he peed on a head-dress to keep cool in the heat of the afternoon.
Bear has been stranded on remote tropical islands in Hawaii and Indonesia as well. It may seem like a week in paradise, but the host had his fair share of trouble here also. Again without freshwater, Bear looks for alternative methods of avoiding dehydration.
One expedition that might help many was Bear parachuting into northern Kenya. Some places Bear goes are not exactly what comes to mind when you think of vacation spots, but Kenya makes all the sense in the world. African Safaris are quite common, and it‘s conceivable that someone could become stranded if their vehicle breaks down.
Not to be overlooked on Bear’s itinerary is the ice lands. One of the coldest places Bear visited was Siberia, where he stripped down naked and waded through an icy river. Why? To get to the other side of course. This was supposed to be the proper way to cross the river because your soaking wet clothes would, “freeze around you within minutes, and you’ll die.” A bit melodramatic for my taste, but we’ll trust the survival expert.
Another specialty of Bear’s is insect lunches. While making his way through the vegetation of Zambia, Bear came across a dead Acacia tree with larvae inside. This is where Bear came across a gigantic beetle larvae. The question was not if Bear ate it, but how bad was the diarrhea he said he got afterward.
Mexico is a popular destination of Bear’s (he’s has two episodes there), and his Baja Desert stint was another entertaining piece of work. While on the hunt for honey from a bee hive, Bear suffered a sting and had a member of his camera crew pull out the stinger. He thought nothing of it at the time, but two hours later his eyes and nose had swollen up.
To make matters worse, Bear came across a diamondback rattlesnake and had to do battle with it. Half-blinded, he hit it with a rock and cut off its head. What did he do with it after his victory? He buried the head, cooked it, and ate the meat. Well done Bear, well done.
Really, the entire show is entertaining. We may not get caught up in the predicaments Bear does, but it helps to know we have a safety net of information. Bear shows us how to survive in places most of us wouldn’t last a day, and for that we have to give him credit…by watching his show Monday nights at 10pm.
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