Season One Talk: Wolves And Cougars And Bears, Oh My!

[ClareWalks]

1. I'd like a better explanation on the drastic drop in predator sightings, or even sounds...after the first one or two episodes presented us with a situation, in more than one camp, which implied an ongoing problem, even danger, on a daily basis.  I'm sure a lot of it was hyped by the producers, but then either they equally under-hyped the big animal sightings after those initial episodes, or they actually did drop off.  I'd just be curious, if that was the case, was because the local population just became more accustomed to the strange human creatures presence, and had decided they weren't worth risking attacking? or had enough other food anyways etc... and those first encounters were just a matter of "lets check out this new weird creature camping out in our back yard."?

 

Mitch mentioned after the cold hit that everything was "hunkered down" trying to stay warm. I'm not sure if cougars hibernate, or at least calm down their hunting, when winter hits, but I know bears do and the wolves seemed few and far between. Also those four (and Yinzer Dustin, as I called him) seemed way less afraid of the predators, so they probably just didn't obsess about it ;)

 

(Edited to add: cooksdelight already answered this one! Oops!)

 

I agree though that there are a lot of unanswered questions! I hope they do a reunion show and/or Alan is able to answer our Q's :)

Edited August 22, 2015 by ClareWalks

[allthatglitters]

To answer your first question, most of the big animals would have gone into hibernation for the winter. I think someone posted above that Alan was airlifted out on Dec. 17, and they were all dropped off on Oct. 22.

 

 

Mitch mentioned after the cold hit that everything was "hunkered down" trying to stay warm. I'm not sure if cougars hibernate, or at least calm down their hunting, when winter hits, but I know bears do and the wolves seemed few and far between. Also those four (and Yinzer Dustin, as I called him) seemed way less afraid of the predators, so they probably just didn't obsess about it ;)

 

(Edited to add: cooksdelight already answered this one! Oops!)

 

I agree though that there are a lot of unanswered questions! I hope they do a reunion show and/or Alan is able to answer our Q's :)

 

That's a good point both of you raised. But it did seem to be quite a drop-off. I thought the infrared lens cameras they had on the outside of their tents was also fascinating/scarey to watch. Did they just never get any more animal footage or simply that no one set this up again? Because I'm sure that animals must have sniffed around their shelters at night.

 

And I just confirmed by a google search that "Cougars hunt at any time of day and night through all seasons".   https://wildsafebc.com/cougar/

And I'd think as the winter came on, they would be even less picky about what kind of protein they were filling their bellies with. And this is the most populous per km. area for cougars in North America. 

 

Also bears wanting to "stock up" for their long nap you would think would be even more hazardous, especially after all the berries had finished their growing seasons.

 

It was just odd that not only was there a complete absence of predator sightings, but even stories about encounters even if they didn't get a shot of it. And if it were myself out there, I would be hollering every 10 minutes or banging a stick just to make sure they knew I was there, even if I were sitting back enjoying a beautiful sunset/sunrise. I guess the predators just decided collectively these intruders were not worth their time anymore.

[rainsmom]

The way I processed the lack of focus on animals...

 

If you check the stats, you see there have been almost no attacks on humans by bears, cougars, or wolves ever on Vancouver Island. I bet they have ample food sources AND recognize man as a predator. Wild animals are smart -- they have to balance risk and reward. It doesn't matter if they WIN a fight if they are injured during it. Cougars are the most likely to attack humans, but they tend to do so only when natural resources are scarce or the humans are near their dens/cubs.

 

I would bet there were animal sightings that weren't featured, because the remaining people weren't freaked about them. I vaguely remember one of the talking heads -- Alan? -- commenting in a very matter-of-fact way that he would hear bears walking around his camp at night. (He's braver than I!) I guess he figured between his bear spray and the lack of food at his camp, the bears just weren't a threat to him.

 

Oh, I found this great link. It says that in North America black bears begin hiberbating in late November, but in the fall transition period they become lethargic and eat less. So the bears would have been less of a threat than they would have been in summer.

[ClareWalks]

I am glad our boys weren't in too much danger, I really liked everyone in the top 4 (and Yinzer Dustin, haha) so I didn't want to see them eaten. The first two tappers...that mighta been funny ;)

 

Also, as raw as this show is, they are still a reality show so maybe they were editing their various "storylines," and got the "eeek, predators" storyline out of the way early to make room for the "aaah, we are isolated and going nuts" storylines! 

 

I don't remember Lucas really mentioning anything about wild animals. Maybe there was a big difference between the different locations, where some guys really didn't see much or anything at all.

[Liberty]

...I don't remember Lucas really mentioning anything about wild animals. Maybe there was a big difference between the different locations, where some guys really didn't see much or anything at all....

 

Lucas had eyes on his stocking cap so if a cougar approached from behind, the big cat would think it was being watched.  His sense of urgency seemed to drop as he became less aware of putting the fake eyes on the back of his head.

 

The eyes must have worked, since I do not recall him saying he had seen a cougar or a bear.

[walnutqueen]

If you check the stats, you see there have been almost no attacks on humans by bears, cougars, or wolves ever on Vancouver Island.

 

The stats I checked say Vancouver Island surpasses the rest of NORTH AMERICA for cougar attacks; nevermind B.C.  Even Sam mentioned that there was a cougar attack on a local beach 3 weeks before they arrived.

[rainsmom]

The stats I checked say Vancouver Island surpasses the rest of NORTH AMERICA for cougar attacks; nevermind B.C.  Even Sam mentioned that there was a cougar attack on a local beach 3 weeks before they arrived.

This is true, BUT you still have to look at overall numbers. Remember 1 in the US and 2 on Vancouver Island would mean VC has twice the rate of attacks as the US. So I did some more googling.

 

4 fatalities due to cougar attacks on Vancouver Island since 1970 -- last one in 1996. It looks like there were 18 non-fatal couger attacks on Vancouver Island in the same time period. So 22 total attacks in approaching 45 years.*

 

Note: These numbers might not include the attack this year. I don't know. I also don't know if that attack was fatal.

 

So, yes, Vancouver Island had over 1/3 of all non-fatal cougar attacks in the US and Canada, but the actual numbers are not that scary when you consider population density.

 

Apparently cougars attack male children under 12 and unaccompanied women over 40 with more frequency than anyone else. And the cougars that do the attacking are not healthy cats -- they're old, sick, injured, very young or otherwise desperate for food.

 

None of this means that our guys couldn't be attacked. They could. But I would bet that, statistically AND realistically, they were in WAY more danger of being killed or injured by a tree or branch falling in those winds than they were of being attacked by wild animals. That's why Alan straight out dismissed concerns over wild animals in one of the talking heads.

 

Edit to add: Dollars to donuts, the "beach to the south" was around Tofino which is where the greatest popluation of cats is AND where the majority of the attacks have been.

Edited August 22, 2015 by rainsmom

[walnutqueen]

22+ attacks is a hell of a lot more than "almost no attacks ever", and still comes out the leader overall.  The risk, although minimal, is still higher than anywhere else.  Especially for unarmed weak starving humans who routinely bring their meager food back to their "shelter" to cook and eat.

 

Young boys get attacked because they tend to explore far afield; middle aged women tend to turn and run.  Yes, I've kept up with the topic, too!  :-)

 

Besides, who needs predators when precipitation, starvation, isolation or brackish water can bring a good man down?! 

[GreyBunny]

Up here (Pacific Northwest) we have "be cougar smart" ads on TV and the radio about how to deal with cougars while out in the woods.  It's enough of a problem here that we need to have PSAs about it.

 

I sent Alan a FB message and he answered!  Here is what he said:
 

Q: Hi Alan!  I LOVED the show and you were a big part of that.  I rooted for you and Sam from the first episode.  Did you bring anything physical home with you?  It looked like you gave your wife a carved spoon, but did you keep the calendar stick with the 56 notches?  Thanks!

 

Alan: I was extracted so quickly, I left the calendar stick behind.  It is the one physical possession I had that I wished to bring home.  We did bring the spoon; it sits in my home office now.  Sam earned my highest respect as well.  Thank you!

[Quilt Fairy]

Besides, who needs predators when precipitation, starvation, isolation or brackish water can bring a good man down?!

I still wonder how Josh passed the psychological interview I'm assuming they all had. I've rewatched Episode 1 in anticipation of the finale, and that man had tears in his eyes the moment the helicopter flew away. The bears exploring his tent was definitely scary, but if it wasn't them he would have found some other reason to tap out ASAP.

Edited August 23, 2015 by Quilt Fairy

[rainsmom]

Yep. 22+ attacks in 45 years is definitely more than "almost no attacks ever." In fairness, I did say cougar, bear, and wolf together. I'll take those odds, particularly since the men weren't based in the area with this highest concentration of cougars. Now, I'd be a lot more wary in the area south of Tofino. Both bear and cougar attacks are more frequent there.

 

I'm okay with having predators, as long as resources are plentiful overall. I want it to be tough but doable. These aren't the superstar elite -- they're normal joes who have accumulated survival experience in a number of ways. Pushing them is one thing. Killing them is another. Naked and Afraid has gotten boring, because all they seem to do is build and shelter and fire and then whine about being hungry for 21 days. I liked that these guys had some tools and a decent, but not easy, foodsource. Maybe next time that foodsource will require some hunting rather than fishing, but I still hope the food is plentiful for people who know how to get it (and they cast people who will reasonably know how to do so).

[riverheightsnancy]

I still wonder how Josh passed the psychological interview I'm assuming they all had. I've rewatched Episode 1 in anticipation of the finale, and that man had tears in his eyes the moment the helicopter flew away. The bears exploring his tent was definitely scary, but if it wasn't them he would have found some other reason to tap out ASAP.

Yeah, and as a cop most entrance evals include the MMPI-II.  He got scared immediately. It really was kind of pathetic. I truly think that I could outlast the first 2 and I know jack about camping. 

[Quilt Fairy]

As a hypothetical, what would people have done if they got Josh's spot near the bear den and seen the mother and cubs?

Edited August 23, 2015 by Quilt Fairy

[allthatglitters]

As a hypothetical, what would people have done if they got Josh's spot near the bear den and seen the mother and cubs?

 

Its true that luck is a big part as well.  Where they get dropped off. I'm sure the scouting team doesn't know exactly where all the bear dens are.  Just Josh's luck he was plonked right next to a big bear family. But he could have moved on his own.  Also luck in if they are close to fresh water. I thought it was unfair that Mitch had to actually make a raft just to be able to find a stream. He would have tapped out even earlier if he had never found fresh water.  I still cannot believe Brant just mulled around exactly where they put him, never got a fire going, and was afraid to explore, even to the point of not following the creek back up until it was fresh and running.

[walnutqueen]

As a hypothetical, what would people have done if they got Josh's spot near the bear den and seen the mother and cubs?

 

Enjoy the scene and then quietly back away ...  AND FIND ANOTHER PLACE TO CAMP, you fucking moron!

 

I was "hiking" a few minutes away from my North Vancouver condo in the early 70s (Lynn Canyon) when I came upon a mother bear and her cub.  I squatted and watched in rapture, coiled for retreat, which was not necessary.  It was magical, and I felt no panic or fear.  They were just being bears.

[riverheightsnancy]

Yeah, I would back away, say "Hey Bear" in a quivering "Wayne" voice and find a better place to camp, as challenging as that may be. These guys had a 3-5 mile (or more) radius to camp, there must be other alternative places. I am from Northern Maine. I have seen bear and moose pretty close up, but you don't try to "pet" them. Josh (cop-1st tap) saw the remains of dead fish, that was a warning sign, I think that he should have considered moving at that point. I do think that they selected people with vastly different skill sets. Some of these guys do/teach bushcraft for a living. I am not sure what Josh's background is, but his level of "comfort" in the woods was not the same as Alan, Lucas, Sam, Mitch and Joe. Not sure about Dustin, and Wayne and Brant was in a different world altogether. Of course, all of this is so easy to say sitting in my office at home. Maybe I would actually tap out in 30 seconds due to fear. I don't know. But I have slept in a lean-to in high school in Maine, so I think that I could make it at least a couple of nights. I would focus on fire. I believe most animals are afraid of fire and getting that, protects one if you have a shelter like Alan's where you can protect the opening with a fire. I know that I would feel more safe with a fire keeping animals away. 

[rainsmom]

As a hypothetical, what would people have done if they got Josh's spot near the bear den and seen the mother and cubs?

Personally, I would move. They had *just* arrived so it's not like he had some great amount of work invested in finding the perfect spot. Several of the guys moved after the first night anyway. Clearly they weren't required to stay where they were.

 

He wouldn't have needed to move miles away -- just get out of the immediate vicinity of mama bear. If you're between mama bear and her fishing grounds, you're probably in a bad place.

 

Hey! Unrelated, I figured something out last night. (You guys may have already grokked this, but I'm slow.) There was a point in episode 8 or 9 where Alan estimated that he had three days or so before he could check his net again. I couldn't figure out WHY -- it's not like he knew the weather was going to be bad. It was because he was smart enough not to check the net in the dark, and for a multi-day period, both of the low tides would occur when it was dark.

 

Based off the amount of light we get outside of Seattle in late November, I'm going to bet they had light only 8.5 hours a day. By the solstice, it would have been down to 8. Low tide occurs every 12 hours, 25 minutes. So you would have a cycle of ~10 daytime instances of low tide, and then 5.5 days of both low tides in the dark.

 

Harsh.

 

I would chart it, and then make a plan to move the net and fish traps during the dark times. Maybe mark high tide locations, and find the place that is revealed three hours later -- halfway to low tide? I didn't chart it, but maybe that would buy you a couple more days out of those 5?

[ClareWalks]

Enjoy the scene and then quietly back away ...  AND FIND ANOTHER PLACE TO CAMP, you fucking moron!

 

LOL! No kidding right?? If Mitch could make a goddamn boat and cross a waterway to get to a better area, this dingus could have too.

[walnutqueen]

rainsmom - you are THINKING.  A big part of survival is paying close attention to your surroundings and the rhythms of nature, especially, in this case, the tides.  Mitch seemed to be totally flummoxed by the tides (perhaps due to his other mental distractions), while Alan seemed to have a decent grasp of the cycles.  With nothing but time on your hands, you could track this shit and devise a rudimentary "tide chart" of your own - similar to Alan's stick calendar.

[Curious5]

Maybe I missed this but why did we not see the last four interviewed? Not a word from Sam. I truly was quite disappointed by the after show. It looked like they basically replayed sections of the show we already saw. Where was Sam? No update on the Mom with cancer. Would love to have heard more from Lucas also.

We saw no squirrels, rabbits, etc so what were the cats and bears eating?

Alan certainly deserved the win. He was thriving as they would say. Sam was on the last days due to lack of hunting, fishing, etc. He probably would not have made it one more week.

Edited August 23, 2015 by Curious5

[rainsmom]

The After Show was the same kind of commentary show they had done the past two weeks -- definitely not a "post finale wrap up." Little new information shared.

 

There are some video clips on History.com that show Sam and Mitch after they got home to give you an update.

 

Sam has a blog too. I just read through it -- some nice articles. Here's one about wild animals: http://www.woodsongwilderness.com/blog/dangerousanimalspart1

 

I'm curious about the wildlife up there too! Bears were eating salmon. Possible the cats were too. I don't know, though. Would love some insight from our competitors (or anyone else who knows).

 

I wonder if they would have found more rabbits (and possibly other game) if they're hiked inland to a place that had been cleared. Rabbits prefer meadows to woods, I believe.

[ClareWalks]

Thanks for the reminder about Sam's blog! He has a recent post explaining why he had his shelter the way he had it. Great stuff. I like that kid!

[rainsmom]

I was curious about the wildlife issue and did some googling. I found some interesting things.

 

I found this list. I don't have access to the maps where the areas are defined, but using comments in another article that the area didn't have the usual small animals, I'm guessing that the area the men were in was "Central Western Hemlock Hypermaritime." The mammals start on pg. 7. Those with a capital Y were common and available year-round. Many species I think of as ubiquitous are missing completely.

 

(I tried to find the article that said that the area up there was devoid of many small and medium-sized animals, but I can't find it again. Sorry.)

[muffkins]

It took me a few days to post because I'm sad.  I'm more bummed than I thought I would be about not seeing this on a weekly basis for the next while.  Alan was the one I was hoping would win, so I'm glad for that, but that one shot when it had stopped raining and everything was so green made me incredibly homesick.  I did love the extra stuff from the beginning though, especially the " I cannot work in zees conditions!  I am an artiste!" or some such.

[riverheightsnancy]

  I did love the extra stuff from the beginning though, especially the " I cannot work in zees conditions!  I am an artiste!" or some such.

Being 1/2 French, I loved this Alan comedy bit. It was one of my favorites. 

[ghoulina]

I'm sad too. This show effected me in ways I was not expecting. I just thought it would be interesting to see people trying to survive - what would they build, what would they eat, etc. But I found this show to be so incredibly touching. I literally bawled through almost the entirety of the final episode. Alan is a rare man - talented, funny, humble, thoughtful. He was so simple, yet so profound. And Sam - what an impressive lad, at only 22! Most 22-year-olds are shiftless wimps. (Sorry to any 22-year-olds on here, I didn't mean you!) At the end, I didn't even care who won, because I was just enjoying all of their journeys so much. I really will miss this show and I can't wait for season 2. 

[rainsmom]

Hey, have y'all read this?

 

http://woodtrekker.blogspot.com/2015/08/alone-most-realistic-survival-show-or.html

[rainsmom]

Also, Les Stroud posted a recent update on his FB page, and in the middle of it, he listed the various survival shows -- including Alone -- and said they were all fake. Someone asked about Alone specifically in the comments, and he said it was producer staged.

 

Dustin replied to Les on Twitter and said he was at his limit of being called a liar -- that Alone was NOT staged.

[cooksdelight]

Sam's location really surprised me, of how close he was to a town. If he'd walked in some, he might have found it. Instead of camping out near the water in the open.

[rainsmom]

Maybe, maybe not. Depends on whether those were road-roads or logging roads. I believe they were logging roads. So, yeah, he could have followed one if he wanted, but I expect that would have gotten back to the production company. Also, what's the terrain? An awful lot of logging is done on very inhospitable mountain sides.

 

It was pretty clear that the guys lost a LOT of weight. Walks to town or very far down those trails would have eaten a LOT of calories they didn't have to spend.

 

I think the guy who wrote the post had some valid points, but I think he missed some critical issues:

 

• The weather
• The lack of game in that area (which made venturing out pretty useless)
• The mental impact of not knowing how long they would be out there
• HINDSIGHT -- We know now what additional stuff they took with them. Did they know when they were picking their items? THey didn't know what the toughest challenges would be.

[ProfCrash]

There was some level of producer intervention. There were weekly medical checks so there was some form of human interaction. It appears that they brought more then clothes and 10 items. But I don't think it was Bear Gryll level of stuff.

Les's shows were great but he knew he would be outfor 7 days and then he would be picked up. He brought less stuff with him but he wasn't going to be out there for 50 or so days. He didn't have regular medical checks but they were not necessary because of the shorter duration.

The producers of Alone appear to have a darn good job of isolating folks as much as they ethically could. They had to swap batteries and had to make the contestants were medically safe. Unless Les can point to some unkown rigging, like stuff planted to wash up or people staying in hotels then I have no problem with the show.

[Quilt Fairy]

Plus, as many of us have said on this thread, the thing that drew us in was the realization that the show was not about survival skills so much as the psychological effect of isolation.

 

We've had a couple of posters who are familiar with North Vancouver Island, and I can't claim that knowledge, but remember when Wayne (I think) needed to be rescued in the middle of the night because he was (supposedly) attacked by a bear? It took the producers more than 4 hours driving on dirt logging roads and hiking through the woods to reach him. Not that that implies that there weren't local residents closer, but that seemed like a huge, dangerous effort if they could have avoided it by simply having a local contact, or giving Wayne a GPS location and telling him to walk out on his own.

 

ETA: I'm not Les Stroud's biggest fan in the first place (I find his shows boring), but he lost a lot of my respect when he jumped on the Bigfoot bandwagon. I don't think he's in a position to throw stones about what's fake and what isn't.

Edited September 7, 2015 by Quilt Fairy

[rainsmom]

Les lost my respect with this. The reason he commented was that people had been contacting him and suggesting that he participate in one of these shows. I have NO PROBLEM with him saying, "No, I'm a professional. I have my own shows, and I just don't have the interest in participating in one of those." That's a polite public response *no matter what his true opinion is*.

 

Now, though, he had to weigh in and diss the others when his hands aren't completely clean either. It makes HIM look bad -- and, in my case, lost him a viewer. I'm not bailing on him because I don't think he's legit or because I think Alone can do no wrong. I'm bailing on him because he just showed himself to be an ass.

[Neurochick]

Hey, have y'all read this?

 

http://woodtrekker.blogspot.com/2015/08/alone-most-realistic-survival-show-or.html

 

Interesting but silly to me.  The last sentence is this:  I think it was less of a survival challenge, and more of a psychological endurance test.  True, but isn't that what it comes down to in survival?  A person can have all the survival skills in the world, but if they're not right mentally, that could kill them.   The writer if this piece seems to feel psychological endurance means nothing in survival.  

 

I think Les is protecting his brand.  As there are so many survival shows out today, he wants to say, "my show is different because it's real, and the others aren't."    I think Les Stroud's show was different because he was only out for seven days, so he was only prepared for seven days, whereas on Alone, these men didn't know how long they would be out there.  Also, I'm sure that Les Stroud had a satellite phone on hand, just in case.

 

I'm also confused when these shows are labeled "fake."  What does that mean?  Are people saying Alone is fake because the producers didn't just dump the men in an area and say, "just call when you want to tap out?"  I don't think that doing weekly well checks is interference.  If I ran a network, I wouldn't want to have a survival show on said network, if there weren't safety protocols in place.  

Edited September 7, 2015 by Neurochick

[mlp]

That was an interesting and well-written commentary and I think the writer is probably correct about equipment and food choices but I don't see why an hour's walk to "civilization" is a negative.  No producers are going to dump participants in a competition into an inaccessible area and then be responsible for their lives if they can't get to them in an emergency.  As it was, it took them several hours to get to the guy who was terrified of bears.  After reading the blog entry, I understand that some of the guys could have made better choices of items to take along but nothing the writer said really changed my positive opinion of the show.

[cooksdelight]

I read all the comments too. Interesting to hear other's prospectives.

[ProfCrash]

That was very well written and the points were valid. I think Mitch and Lucas understood most of what was written there and tapped when they did because the money wasn't worth the continued risk. Sam had to be close to being pulled, that lost look was scary.

I can't believe that they didn't take all the food that was offered. If it is true that they were limited in their hunting then taking bow and arrow was really stupid.

[Snarklepuss]

Thanks to Cooksdelight and one of my BFF's who strongly recommended this show, I binge-watched it last weekend  on "on demand" and the one big life lesson I had driven home for me (once again) is that attitude is at least equally as important (or more important) as physical preparedness and skill in any kind of test of survival, even in everyday life.  So this guy's attempt to "minimize" that aspect is ridiculous and it sounds to me like someone is a little threatened.  I don't expect these people to be dropped off hundreds of miles from all known civilization - He goes on about how the audience wasn't made aware of the fact that they weren't far from roads and campsites, etc., but whenever rescue teams were sent out we did see them driving on roads that presumably were nearby or a short walk from the contestant.  And we knew that they were sent routine medical checks.  I think this guy forgets that even with all that, and long lists of gear the average person (myself included) is still wow-ed by their achievements.  He's obviously lost all sense of perspective on how this looks to the rest of the non-survivalist world.  Besides, what difference would it make if they had an audience watching them onsite if they weren't allowed to have any assistance from them?  I agree that it felt more realistic knowing that they filmed this themselves and were for the most part all alone with minimal interaction, but to expect them to be totally un-supervised is extremely unrealistic to expect from amateurs given the dangers involved and the liability the network would suffer should something have gone horribly wrong and no one could get there in time.

 

That said, I also enjoyed reading this board from start to almost finish (I made it to page 11 before seeing yesterday's post), vicariously watching everyone come to the same or similar conclusions as I did about each contestant as the weeks unfolded.  The only things I differed on were that I was not as enamored of Mitch as some here were but was firmly on the Alan train from day one.  Wow, what a Renaissance guy - He really impressed me.  Also, I picked him and Sam for the final 2 in week 2 based on attitude alone, which actually taught me something I already knew but needed to have driven home for me once again, which is that attitude is everything.   Last weekend I was in a pretty bad mood after finding out that my company is moving my department to another building (note that I have sat in 3 different seats already and I'm not even at that company 4 years yet) plus my boss has been away all summer filling in for someone in one of our Midwest offices, and I don't even know if she's going to be my boss anymore, plus a lot of people have been leaving the company lately, so I was feeling pretty angry and low.  Well, after watching this show I had a complete turnaround!  Talk about making you realize what's important in life when you most need to hear it!

[rainsmom]

I can't believe that they didn't take all the food that was offered. If it is true that they were limited in their hunting then taking bow and arrow was really stupid.

I disagree.

 

They were on FIrst Nations land and allowed to hunt anything they wanted. What they didn't know was that the particular area they are in doesn't have the game that is generally hunted -- rabbit, deer, etc. They had NO way to know that. That isn't true all over Vancouver Island, just in that particular type of forest, and they didn't know exactly where they were going. (I'd be willing to bet the producers didn't know about the lack of game either.) If I were an experienced bow hunter, which Sam is, then I would assume that dropping me in a forest means I can hunt deer.

 

Hindsight is 20/20.

 

This was billed as a survival show. These people were chosen because they had survival skills, not because they were savvy reality-show game players. If the winner had done as that blogger suggested NO ONE would have respected him. It would always be, "Sure. Anyone can survive with 60lbs of food." It would be seen as gaming the system.

[rainsmom]

Glad you joined us, Snarklepuss. I agree with your observations. Hope your work situation improves!

[ProfCrash]

In a survival sitation you take what you need to survive and screw if anyone respects you. Hell, this was a survival situation for $500,000. Take the food and the fishing equipment. Use the food while you look for water, build an amazing shelter, and figure out the food situation.

They were well equipped for long term survival. They could have been better prepared.

[ghoulina]

Honestly, I don't really care how close they were to roads or towns. They were pretty "close" to each other as well, but never interacted. I'm assuming they had restrictions on how far they could go. I'm sure it's not easy for the show to find a location that works for their purposes. But the point was to be on their own, so it's not like they were going to try and walk into town and hang out with people. 

[Snarklepuss]

Glad you joined us, Snarklepuss. I agree with your observations. Hope your work situation improves!

 

Thanks, I'm trying not to sweat the relatively small stuff.  When life is reduced to basic survival it makes everything else look a lot more trivial.  I think I'll need to re-watch this series every time I forget how relatively unimportant most of the stuff is we deal with in modern society.  I wish  more shows could send valuable messages like this.

[muffkins]

From what I remember of the area, there are a few town up there, off the top of my head, Winter Harbour, Holberg, Quatsino, Port Alice, Mahatta River, and one or two others.  Yes there are a lot of clearings, or what look like clearings from a satellite.  You have to remember that there has been logging going on for most of the last century there.  Large portions of the island are on their second or third growth in some places.  There are places near where I grew up that have 40 year old trees that have already been clear cut twice.  They may have been an hour or so from a logging road or campsite, but what is considered a campsite on the North Island is pretty basic.  There aren't many of what most people would consider a campsite.  If you have a cleared flat space near the water, you have a campsite.  Also being near a logging road is no guarantee that you are near people.  They spiderweb through the area, and some of them are very old and don't really go anywhere.  Just because it shows up on a satellite image doesn't mean it's used.   Back to the towns as well, if they have 1000 people I'd be very surprised.  I was in Mahatta River once, and it was slightly larger than my logging camp.  Port McNeill is one of the larger towns, and it has about 2500 people, ( I had to look it up, there was about 1500 when I live there in '85)  I don't have a problem with production stepping for certain stuff, as I was more interested in the "Alone" aspect of it.

[ProfCrash]

I don't care that they were near towns or logging roads. I am sure that they would have been removed from the competition if they had gone into town and had a beer or accepted any help from a logger who passed them. They were close to each other and could have run into each other if they wandered enough but that didn't happen.

 

They were alone. Except for the weekly visits from medical. We only saw one of those visits, when they picked up Alan and told him he had won, but in that there was conversation between the medics and Alan. I would hope that in earlier visits that there was no conversation. Ideally, each of them men would have been told to get their batteries when they saw the medics arrive. They would know what tests the medics were going to do so that they could be done with as much silence as possible. Alan didn't seem to be off put by the conversation that he was having so I doubt that was the case. that weekly visit did break the isolation that the men were in and kind of moves the show away from its premise.

 

That said, I have no problem with it. The Producers have an obligation to check in on the men and make sure that they are physically and mentally fine. The weekly checks made sure that people were capable of continuing on and decreased the likelihood that someone, like Sam at the end, would be allowed to continue even when their body was not able to.

 

I do find it ridiculous that none of the men took all of the food rations. Maybe Alan can clear that up. Perhaps there was a rule that you could only take one of the food items. Maybe the list was broken into segments, some take one only, take two only, and take as many as you want. Because that would be the only good reason for not taking all of the food. $500,000 is on the line and you choose not to take food that could easily help you get through the start of the adventure, when you are building and scoping out the area, and through the most difficult days.

 

Hell, the Survivor Alums thought that Will's decision to share his food after the auction was flat out stupid. Having food that he could eat and weakening the rest of his tribe could have helped him. OK, probably not because Will sucked at challenges and the extra energy from the food was not going to help him not suck at challenges. But someone like Mike or Rodney or Jenn with extra food would have had a huge advantage.

 

Take the damn food.

 

Honetly, I would have been fine if they dropped all of the guys or gals off in a cabin in the woods with the same clothes and tools and see what happened. The test really wasn't survival skills but dealing with the isolation and fear of the enviroment around you. The folks who didn't last the first week were not able to deal with the enviroment and their fears. It had nothing to do with skill. They were flat out terrified of being alone and in really dense woods with predators near by. The last four had clear survival skills and then it was about dealing with the isolation. Lucas and Mitch still appear to me to have the best set of survival skills and could have stayed longer if they didn't decide that they simply wanted to get back to their lives. Sam and Alan had good survival skills and decided that the money was worth more personal misery. Sam was smart enough to know that his body was shutting down and tap out. But I could not seem Sam and Alan surviving into the winter while I could have seen Mitch and Lucas doing so.

 

Which is why the show is called Alone and not Survival.

 

I get Les's comments. Yes, he has a satellite phone on him, probably because the Production company requires him to carry one for liability purposes. He knows it will be seven days. But in those seven days he is on his own and shows how versatile his skills are. He always emphasizes food, water and shelter. Hell, he flat out says stay were you are unless you know where you are going or there is nothing to eat or drink and that his moving about is stupid. But when you look at the list of gear that they could have taken and what they were allowed to take before selecting the 10 extra items you can see Producer manipulation. The men were kitted out so that they would last and probably a good long time. I bet that the show was pissed that so many people tapped out early.

[Quilt Fairy]

I can't figure out where that guy got such a detailed list of items, including what was provided and what counted and didn't count towards the '10 items'.  They certainly were not on the History website - I know because I was looking for them. (History does have a more complete list up now, but it doesn't go into the detail the article's author does.)

 

I guess he's trying to argue that they weren't 'alone' because they weren't very far from a town or a road. That just doesn't compute. There are ramifications to filming a competitive reality show. The producers have an obligation to maintain the safety of the participants. Nothing that has come to light since the finale has led me to believe that the show was fake.

 

I will say one thing I don't understand is why no one except Lucas tried to build a more permanent shelter. It seems like once they realized there were no significant hunting opportunities they focused completely on calorie expenditure and they couldn't justify wasting the energy to build something. But what if it had gone longer into the winter?

[rainsmom]

I think actually the list did go into that detail. I'm pretty sure it listed all of the equipment they took with them (that didn't count against the 10), plus the list of 40 items they could choose 10 from.

 

I stick to my guns though. We don't know how much the participants knew about what they would be taking with them outside of the 10. If they're told generalities -- "You're going to Vancouver Island, and you'll get bear deterent, first aid kit, and a sat phone -- oh, and the camera equipment, of course. You're responsible for everything else" -- then they likely made different choices than they would have made if they'd known the game situation, the weather in that specific part of the island, and the FULL list of exra equipment. We don't even know if they were told they would be on the water.

 

I think it's really easy to quarterback after the game. Damn hard when you're going into the game close to blind.

 

I think season 2 will be a lot different. I'm kind of bummed they're going to the same place. I wish they would, at least, get dropped in a completely different part of the island with different game, different weather, and, oh, no ocean!

[cooksdelight]

Stick 'em in the middle of the Mohave Desert. :)

[Quilt Fairy]

Right, then they won't just be starving, they'll be dying of thirst! I don't want to see anyone drinking their own pee.  ;-)

[cooksdelight]

Survivor once had people in Africa in the desert. There were water sources, but what scared them away from ever doing that again (I was told) was the lions that would come around at night. Sitting within striking distance. The crew was really freaked out.