S03.E09: The Point of No Return

[Drogo]

The remaining survivalists push themselves to their physical limits as fish becomes scarce; one participant takes things too far, reaching the breaking point and risking organ failure.

[jvr]

When Fowler stated "It taste like carrots" when eating the roots and then burst into tears, that made me laugh out loud. I'm sorry Fowler.

Even as a non medical professional, I would have taken one look at Dave's back and pulled him, that was some anorexic looking shit. Obviously unhealthy and not just underweight.

Hope Super Canadian Megan doesn't have to leave because of a damn tooth ache from eating some hard berries.

Stay strong Carleigh, you got this.

It would be interesting if the winner is crowned because medical has to pull the last starving and injured people out.

Edited February 3, 2017 by jvr

[riverheightsnancy]

So, Dave going medical was telegraphed for a while. Not surprised. I am pleading with the TV. Fowler, don't give up. PLEASE-don't give up!!!   Fowler might be in better position right now if he had brought rations. When they said that Megan blood pressure was normal, uh, not from my experience. Her 120/80 for a person not eating much and low body weight is not really low, even though it may be construed as "normal". The 80 is a concern, it is right on the cusp of pre-high blood pressure. My doc screams when my diastolic is 80. I would expect the diastolic to be lower, but that number can be driven up by anxiety or nervousness too. 

[holly4755]

120 over 80 is my normal. When I was younger it used to be 100 over 70. 

I think Dave was mentally gone earlier, if they had any idea the week before he was storing food while losing so much weight, they would have pulled him for not thinking straight. 

I am having problems with all the greens around still. They should be in snow by now, not just getting cold. if they started in the middle of April, it would be around July = our January.  It looks cold but the pictures are so green where the women are.

I wonder if the lack of sun makes things grow less on Fowler's land so foraging is harder.

[riverheightsnancy]

Sometime in 2013/2014 blood pressure recommendations changed to 140/90 as "normal" (if over 60, even a little higher 150/90) but that is very much contested and is considered to put many more people at risk for stroke (@70% higher incidence). Prior to those changes there was movement by many docs who were advocating 110/70 as a number to shoot for.  Obviously, some of these numbers are specific to an individual and their genetics and no matter what one does, they may not be able to reach those guidelines, even medicated. 

[cooksdelight]

Dave scared me. Literally, he looked like the walking dead.

My boyfriend and I were both yelling at him "Eat your damn fish!!" It was foolish of him to eat so sparingly when he had plenty. He'd have kept up enough strength to go fishing for more, or who knows what else.

1 hour ago, jvr said:

It would be interesting if the winner is crowned because medical has to pull the last starving and injured people out.

I was thinking the same thing. What would happen, last person pulled out wins? I don't think it will come to that since they love to fake us out.

[jwc]

Fowler's site is a hill.  He has maybe 45 feet of shoreline.  I am not sure if he has more of a problem with waves because he is in a narrow corner which concentrates the action of the waves or what.   No fish is no good though.  Plus his lack of plant/mushroom knowledge is hampering him.

It looks like Megan and Carleigh have much flatter sites.  Better for foraging (along with more knowledge). 

Megan with the good health report and three fishes, which apparently she scarfed down.  Maybe she thinks    The footage with her saying "I need to be careful with these rosehips" then her tooth is broken.  I wonder if a person could have bashed them with a stick before trying to eat them.  I have had a few root canals, and they are the most painful thing ever.  Much worse than smashing your thumb with a hammer.

Carleigh seems like she is in good shape mentally.  I get the need to keep yourself busy with the drum and all, but maybe she should have focused on foraging and fishing for survival a bit more.

 Dave got taken out for medical.  No surprise there.  I think that fall put the scare into him.  He should have been eating a filet a day once he went into starvation mode a week before he got pulled.  33 filets don't help you if you get pulled.  Whatever. Dave looked like hell.

I think Megan will go on the tooth soon.  I hope Fowler can get a fish or something so he can pull through.  Carleigh I am ambivalent about.  Not that I want to see her lose, she is a solid competitor to have made it this long.  I am on team Fowler for some reason though.  I just like the guy.  Not that I hate the other competitors.  At this point, they all great, and it is anyone's game.

[Quilt Fairy]

Dave is like the guy on Amazing Race who wouldn't use his Express Pass or the people who get voted off Survivor with a HII in their pocket.  At least now I understand what he was saying last week.  He said he had 30 fish halves (i.e., fillets) which I heard as 30 fish heads.  The scene where he was sitting in his hut and then he faded out was probably the creepiest thing the editors on this show have ever done. And a little fore-shadowing.

10 minutes ago, jwc said:

I have had a few root canals, and they are the most painful thing ever.  Much worse than smashing your thumb with a hammer.

If it hurts that much, stop your dentist and tell him you need more pain medication.  Seriously.

[LittleIggy]

I think we can all agree that a BP of 80/60 is bad! Yikes! Dave was in the worst shape I have seen on Alone. Like everyone else, I can't believe he was hoarding that food instead of eating it.

[jwc]

Just now, Quilt Fairy said:

 

If it hurts that much, stop your dentist and tell him you need more pain medication.  Seriously.

 

The pain is not from the root canal operation.  That is relatively painless. The pain comes from sympathetic pain in the rest of your teeth and what you feel before the surgery.  Although low back pain is tough as well, the root canal (let me clarify and say the pain you feel from the abscess before you have the root canal to fix it) is central and it makes it hard to concentrate.  the actual operation is a breeze.  And this is coming from a person whom the dentist drill puts to sleep.

[holly4755]

I used to have an excellent specialist who only did root canals and he did my wisdom tooth in less than 20 minutes, I ha\d to come back a few days later to have it check, then he cemented in a post and sent me back to my dentist. Get one of them, it will cost a lot but that  lack of pain and the expertise is worth it. never had a problem with the teeth he did 30years later. Had a dentist do one eye tooth, it took him almost and hour and it hurt and turns out he did it wrong and it had to be done again by another dentist.  Specialists are not cheap but were cheaper in the long run.  My neighbor mocked me when I was having that done, he went to a dental college where he paid by the hour,. his root canal took 5 trips each tooth and eventually it added up to more that what I paid. 

 

I have a blood pressure story, but enough with the off topic. 

I hope they go into more details on the reunion show of who had food and who didn't.  I really was impressed with Megan baiting her hooks with the roe, I think that does make a big difference in catching fish.  I am still waiting for someone to finish hunting, they did show an animal going down I think with a bow - could that be the savior of Fowler or did Carleigh carve a bow and arrow shooting with rawhide cord instead of string? 

[Quilt Fairy]

I just realized we haven't heard about pumas or feral hogs for several episodes now.  You think these wild, idyllic, remote places would have so much wildlife - and then there's nothing to be seen.  Or eaten.

[cooksdelight]

I wonder why Megan didn't break down the rose hips before eating them, or boil them or something. I guess I might make the same mistake if I was starving and eating anything I could get my hands on. I've had 2 root canals, fell asleep during each one. No pain anywhere, so I guess my endodontist was a magician. :)

Carleigh is starting to remind me of the young guy (Sam?) that Alan outlasted. She seems to be worrying less about eating and more about her mental state. 

[Scaeva]

I'm hoping there is an episode after the finale where they have the former contestants talk about their time in Patagonia. I'd love to hear a healthy Dave talk about why he was hoarding food, while he was beginning to suffer from starvation. 

The little blurb at the bottom said that starving people will sometimes have a compulsion to hoard food rather than eat it, but I wonder if that is his take at what was going on, or if he just underestimated how bad off he was.

[TaraS1]

I am so glad they pulled Dave from the game.  It was painful and uncomfortable even watching him, it seemed like he could literally drop dead at any moment.  The way his face looked and the way he walked reminded me of Chris McCandless/Into The Wild.  It was just disturbing.

I still cannot believe Caleigh (sp?) quit last week.  She had it in the bag over these folks!

[Whyyouneedaname]

10 hours ago, Quilt Fairy said:

Dave is like the guy on Amazing Race who wouldn't use his Express Pass or the people who get voted off Survivor with a HII in their pocket.  At least now I understand what he was saying last week.  He said he had 30 fish halves (i.e., fillets) which I heard as 30 fish heads.  The scene where he was sitting in his hut and then he faded out was probably the creepiest thing the editors on this show have ever done. And a little fore-shadowing.

If it hurts that much, stop your dentist and tell him you need more pain medication.  Seriously.

I don't understand starvation mode but apparently you hoard food while I'm screaming at the tv "eat some fish for crying out loud" 

as far as the root canal, I agree with you, I've had three one being a wisdom tooth with zero pain, uncomfortable but no pain. Root canals don't have to be painful.

[qtpye]

34 minutes ago, TaraS1 said:

I still cannot believe Caleigh (sp?) quit last week.  She had it in the bag over these folks!

As much as I love Callie ( I think she is who you are referring to), I think she must be kicking herself right now.  She had all the skills and the right attitude to win the money for her land.  She also had an advantage of not being a parent, which can pull on the ole heartstrings.

However, I never want to see someone put themselves through what Dave is going through.  I said from the beginning there is something not quite right about Dave (I am not a mental expert).  I almost felt like I was watching an episode of Intervention, instead of Alone, when the focus is an anorexic.  That man was dying before our eyes and it was horrible to watch.  I would have pulled him weeks ago.  Actually, I would not have let him on the show in the first place.  I really hope they do extensive psych evaluations on these contestants.

I hope Fowler can hang on, though I would not mind having our first female winner.

I wonder if Carleigh (the one who built the drum) is of native Alaskan or Inuit heritage?  I have always wondered how someone from that background would fare on this show.  Those cultures have amazing survival skills.  The only thing is they tend to be very social/community oriented, so the "Alone" part of Alone might be difficult.

[Ocean Chick]

So glad they pulled Dave - he looked really far gone.  It was painful to watch him.  I'm surprised he didn't break his leg, that time he slipped on the rocks.  Or fall into his fire, that time he passed out in his tent.  So silly, hoarding food when he was literally starving to death.

I'm still good with either Fowler or Carleigh winning this - they both have mad skills.  Megan also has mad skills, but I'm not connecting to her quite as much as the other two.  Don't know why.  Though I won't be upset if she wins it either.  I love Fowler's house - I could happily vacation there.  And those were some nice chess pieces that Dave carved.  Loved Carleigh's drum.

[ClareWalks]

You can't really diagnose "low blood pressure" by numbers alone. You have low numbers AND symptoms, and then it is called "low blood pressure." I have had readings of 80/60 at the doc and they have no problem with it because I'm not symptomatic. Obviously Dave's BP was accompanied by...other Daveness at the time. Yikes. He looked terrifying. I'm glad they pulled him because I don't think he had the acuity at that point to realize how much and what types of food he needed to eat to save himself (if they even have access to those types of food in the bush, which probably not. Not enough starches out there).

Meanwhile, Megan's 120/80 BP was apparently normal for her, so that is good. It might be a bit high for other people, but she seems to be doing very well food-wise.

[cooksdelight]

I think they take all their vitals at the beginning, and monitor them weekly.... so Dave's must have really dropped off from what he was normally at. My blood pressure is abnormally normal (my doctor's words) and if it spikes I know I'm probably getting ready to get sick or something.

[Whyyouneedaname]

I've wondered since this group has gone much further than the last 2 has the check-ups came more frequently than once a week. Can someone go downhill that fast or did they not question the week before if Dave had sufficient food to sustain him. I've been noticing the last couple of weeks that he wasn't acting "normal" 

[HurricaneVal]

Dave, Dave, Dave...  You had the opposite mental problem than Dan and Callie.  Your will to stay was so, so, strong that you were trying to maximize your end game by caching food for the long haul while completely ignoring the way that philosophy was affecting your current condition.  It was very, very difficult to hear you begging to stay, and promising that you'll eat some fish right now if you could stay.  You looked like one of those soccer players who survived above the treeline in the Andes after their plane crashed by resorting to cannibalism.  Your BP and general physical condition alone were enough to get the medical personnel to decide to pull you, but when you told them you had food, and were hoarding food, and then started that pitiful begging...yeah.  Those were some raised eyebrows and awkward looks on that medical team when that started.  You sealed your fate right then when they realized how deteriorated your mental state was.

 

Megan has never been my favorite, she's just been kind of boring, but in comparison with who is left, she's going pretty strong.  Her physical condition looks good, she is continuing to find food, and while she's not setting up her own Gilligan's Island village a la Fowler, she's still doing projects like the hammock so she's staying engaged.  She just must be one of those types that can disappear into their head without getting lost in there.  Alan and Lucas were a bit like that in the first season.  We think of Alan as this entertaining garrulous man, but he also spent a lot of time hunkered down in his tree cave re-running the plots of great books and plays in his head.   So Megan is boring, but she's like one of those slow and steady folks that just powers through.  I've been amused all along by her "find it, eat it" grazing methods.  She finds her greens or her mushroom, peers at it to make sure of what it is, and then pops it right into her mouth.

 

Carleigh is starting to look a bit skinny to me too, and I think she's starting to disappear into her own head as well.  Her obsession over the construction of the drum was starting to worry me, as was her fixed gaze into the middle distance as she was tapping the stick on it.  Does the completion of the drum mean that now she's accomplished her goal, so it is OK if she quits, because she's fulfilled her action items?  But on the other hand, when she was pretending to Skype her mom and gave a tour of her camp, it was light hearted and a way to connect emotionally to home without falling into an obsession over it like both Dan and Callie did.  But...since she's been meaning to make a drum out of the cowhide she found since she found it very early on, and has held off for all this time, and now has finally made the drum...  Yeah.  I hope she sticks it out, but unless she starts drilling out drumlines on the new drum to get herself motivated for the day, that drum represents an ending rather than a continuation.  I hope I'm wrong.

 

Fowler!  Oh dear.  You're really struggling right now, aren't you.  But you're angry about it, so that says you've still got energy.  But you're wasting that energy by being angry, and on some level you recognize that but you can't help it.  I'm also a wee bit disappointed in you.  You didn't really pay attention--even though you knew it meant your survival--during the indigenous edible plants, roots, and fungi training.  You thought you could be the mighty hunter with your slingshot and your duck-hunting paddle boat and your sophisticated traps, so you didn't need to pay attention to those girly soft things.  Well, buddy, those girly soft things like greens and roots that taste like carrots look to be your only food source for a while.  Megan is thriving on that diet and knowledge.  You screwed that up.  It is hunting AND gathering, dude.  To be fair, you really didn't win the lottery with your location did you?  Too steep to do much foraging for greens, but the shade should be great for mushrooms.  The lake level looks like it's come up at some of the other sites, but I never saw the chop and the waves you experienced at any of the other sites.  You really got the Fucking Larry memorial campsite, didn't you?

[Canada]

I'm going to guess that it took a long time to actually get Dave on to the boat and away from his site.  He had that belligerent look and way of acting that I see frequently in people at work with dementia and mental health issues who are very difficult to direct.  And I had a moment when they first showed him sitting in front of the camera, not moving, where I thought, "oh my god, Dave's dead!!"  Glad that they pulled him, because he looked scary.

I think all 3 of the people who are left are worthy winners.  I'm surprised at Megan and Carleigh still being there, as I really thought they would be early tap outs.

The title of this thread says episode 10.  Isn't this episode 9, since last week was episode 8?  Unless I blanked out and missed a week somewhere.

[Drogo]

Just now, Canada said:

The title of this thread says episode 10.  Isn't this episode 9, since last week was episode 8?  Unless I blanked out and missed a week somewhere.

Nope, fixed!

[Canada]

Just now, Drogo said:

Nope, fixed!

Thanks.  I always like confirmation that it's not just me going crazy!

[Joan Z]

On 2/1/2017 at 0:03 AM, Drogo said:

The remaining survivalists push themselves to their physical limits as fish becomes scarce; one participant takes things too far, reaching the breaking point and risking organ failure.

Drogo, wrong episode number in the title. It should be 9, not 10.

When the medical team came to check on Megan,  I knew this will be the episode where they pulled Dave out. I was scared for a moment when Dave passed out. Did I heard him saying he wanted to take 10 fishes home for Christmas?! Dude, you need to stuff 10 fish into your mouth! I felt bad for him but he pushed it too far with the food hoarding. And when he packed up his stuffs, I can see he also have 1 whole fish which he haven't fileted yet. Well, he will be remembered in Alone show history as the first person to be out with plenty of fish left and the first person to be pulled out.

I don't know if I want to laugh or feel sad when fowler said the roots taste like carrots then burst into tears. Lol

After they pulled Dave out, the fangirl in me wished Callie is still in the competition. It would be awesome if the top 4 consists of 3 women and 1 man. I wonder if Callie regretted her decision. Her tap out was so abrupt that I kinda feel like being left hanging, no closure whatsoever.  

This episode ended on day 76. I'm guessing next week is the final episode? Looking at how they're doing, I don't think they will stay too long. My guess is a little over 80 days. 

Spoiler

In the early episodes, I remember someone posted in a forum that someone tapped on day 77 but they don't know how many left at that point. 

Megan is growing on me so I'm fine with any of them win. it would be cool to have first female winner although I've been rooting for fowler since early on but I don't wanna get my hopes up. 

[Quilt Fairy]

It was nice to see a bit more of what the medical checkups consist of, and that yes, they do notice when there are boats on the lake.  I was pleased that they actually talk to the contestants because I had this odd notion in my head that to keep it more "alone" they would only make gestures and not speak.

[HurricaneVal]

The medical team wasn't chatty, exactly, which I think is within the parameters of the rules.   But they got more talkative with Dave when it became obvious they were going to pull him.  I wonder if on prior visits they noted his deteriorating condition, but were not allowed to tell him to eat more or he'll be pulled.  I'll bet that when the team was en route to his camp, they'd already half made the decision to pull him, barring any miraculous changes of heart on his part. 

 

I forgot all about his mummified catatonic state at the top of the show.  Man, that was seriously creepy.  At first I thought he was faking us out--like so many of the other castaways have done on the prior seasons--but the more he stayed motionless, the more I looked at his physical condition, the blank look on his face, and though his eyes were open, it was completely apparent that there was nobody in there running the show.  Then when he kind of came out of it, he didn't do any sort of "Ha, ha, got you!" jazz dance, but just sort of shook his head and was all "whoa, kind of passed out a little there" still with those blank, dead, eyes.  <shudder>

[OoogleEyes]

11 hours ago, cooksdelight said:

I wonder why Megan didn't break down the rose hips before eating them, or boil them or something. I guess I might make the same mistake if I was starving and eating anything I could

Yeah, like make rose hip tea! 

But, you're right. It's easy to second guess while sitting on my couch in my warm house. I truly admire each one of them. I'm rooting for them all!

[raven]

4 hours ago, HurricaneVal said:

  I wonder if on prior visits they noted his deteriorating condition, but were not allowed to tell him to eat more or he'll be pulled. 

I wondered about this too.   His state didn't happen overnight.  I felt badly for him; he so obviously needed medical help and I think was deteriorating mentally and unable to make good decisions because of the lack of food.   The show put up a blurb that I remembered reading somewhere else that some people may hoard food when starving, which is what Dave looked to be doing.   When he was telling the med staff he had so much food, I was thinking "yeah because you're not eating it!".  He seemed to have the physical skills and preserving the fish was smart but only if he was eating enough to keep going, plus he was already thin to begin with.  Oddly enough, except for not realizing how he was starving, he seemed to be pretty mellow about being there, unless the lack of nutrition was influencing that also.  Hopefully he's not suffering any long term effects. 

I found myself liking Megan more.  The editing does seem wonky; we are seeing more of her and she was doing well until the tooth.   I have no knowledge about plants so always enjoy hearing about them; which ones to eat, etc.

I also liked Carleigh's story about her mom letting her cure the hides at home - go, Carleigh's mom LOL.  Making the drum was pretty cool too.

Cheer up, Fowler!  Your adorable family will be there when you get home.

Is there only one more ep left?  Or two?

[GreyBunny]

Looks like only one episode left.  Fowler is losing it.  I'm rooting for Megan because girl power and yay Canada.

[seasick]

6 hours ago, Joan Z said:

This episode ended on day 76. I'm guessing next week is the final episode? Looking at how they're doing, I don't think they will stay too long. My guess is a little over 80 days. 

well, I took a stab at it earlier and said 80.  I thought for a bit I was going to be way off.  But with one episode left it's a good possibility. 

I think the reunion special is next week right after the final.  I'm trying to keep my expectations in check with that, recalling they usually ask a question-- spend time showing the recap of the issue- then a short answer from the participant.   But I think this season is less controversial than the other two and fewer surprises.  

These guys were good--and I do think they had some major advantages there over VI which made it easier.  But even with that I wonder if 80+/- days is going to be the outer limit for any season.    

[lianau]

2 hours ago, seasick said:

 

These guys were good--and I do think they had some major advantages there over VI which made it easier.  But even with that I wonder if 80+/- days is going to be the outer limit for any season.    

I think that depends on food . As long as you're fishing for immediate consumption you're in trouble the moment you can't get a fish for a few days . And I'd like to know what would happen if somebody really managed to catch a boar or deer .

[Snarklepuss]

Well, this is turning into an interesting psychological study on the effects of isolation and starvation on the human psyche.  Dave almost reminded me of José in the end, only more delusional because he didn't even know how far gone he was, and now I realize that José was probably also suffering from a similar mental condition brought on by his physically depleted state, although to his credit he didn't let it go that far and knew enough to call it quits.  I never thought Dave had all that much going for him mentally to begin with and found him to be a little strange even at best.  All through this episode I kept wondering when the doctors were going to pull Dave from the show.  He was so far gone it didn't take medical tests to see that he needed to go.

Even before this show I've often wondered how I would survive in a similar situation given that it takes so few calories to sustain me at all of 5'2" and I lose weight very slowly.  I definitely think the guys have a disadvantage in that regard given that they often need more calories to survive.  Fowler is definitely starting to lose it and Carleigh too, in her own way.  I just hope none of these people is causing permanent damage to their bodies by doing this show.  I can't imagine enduring starvation is something you can fully recover from if you've gone as far as Dave, especially at his age.

Speaking of blood pressure, I was 110/70 most of my life and was told that was "low normal" and that 120/80 was considered "ideal".  Now my normal BP is more like 120/80 which doctors still regard as fine for me at my age.  Recently though, all "normals" have been changed around a lot and there are always differing opinions too.  I agree that acceptable BP depends on a lot of factors, including age.  It can also vary a lot depending on what a person is doing in a given day.   I once had my BP tested 3 times in one day and got widely different readings.  One test was after vigorous exercise, which raised my BP and one test was done after a nap, which of course was at its lowest.  Readings can depend on the equipment and the skill of the person using it too.

[Quilt Fairy]

5 hours ago, seasick said:

I wonder if 80+/- days is going to be the outer limit for any season.    

I think you could be right, especially when their methods of obtaining food are limited to foraging, fishing and some primitive snares or traps.  We've seen nothing come from the people who took a bow and arrows or a slingshot. Has it ever been explained why they set the competition in the late fall?  I'm glad we're not seeing them being eaten alive by mosquitoes/ticks/black flies and such, but is the time of year why we're seeing so little wildlife? I don't think we've even seen a squirrel in all 3 seasons and what forest doesn't have squirrels?

[Snarklepuss]

7 minutes ago, Quilt Fairy said:

I think you could be right, especially when their methods of obtaining food are limited to foraging, fishing and some primitive snares or traps.  We've seen nothing come from the people who took a bow and arrows or a slingshot. Has it ever been explained why they set the competition in the late fall?  I'm glad we're not seeing them being eaten alive by mosquitoes/ticks/black flies and such, but is the time of year why we're seeing so little wildlife? I don't think we've even seen a squirrel in all 3 seasons and what forest doesn't have squirrels?

I agree, where are the rodents other than mice?  I see more wildlife outside my bedroom window than on this show deep in the woods!  I'm no expert but I wonder how ideal both locations shown so far are for hunting with bows or slingshots.  We haven't exactly seen an abundance of wildlife in either location that would yield enough protein other than fish, and snagging a boar or deer would probably be pretty difficult unless one were doing that since they were old enough to walk every day of their lives.  It's also becoming clear to me that the secret to Homo Sapiens success is hunting in groups because on our own we are probably not as good without a gun, LOL.  I also think it's no coincidence that all of the participants this season were placed close to water.

Regarding 80 days being the 'outer limits', I think that could be for the particular set of limitations placed upon them in this particular set of circumstances.  If there were more sources of food that were more easily obtained they could potentially last longer, also if they were allowed to bring a rifle.

[seasick]

7 hours ago, Snarklepuss said:

I agree, where are the rodents other than mice?  I see more wildlife outside my bedroom window than on this show deep in the woods!

Actually, I'm beginning to think that birds and squirrels are more social than I would have ever thought.  

I now live in the middle of the pinelands which is miles of mostly protected land, and have miles of wood behind my house.  When we walk the trails through there I rarely see an animal of any kind--especially a bird or a squirrel!   Rarely--a deer will cross ahead.

 But in our little community that was plunked down in the middle of these woods years ago, we have herds of deer coming through--hanging out in a  woodsy gully dead center in the area, and running through the fields--(and eating our flowers)  Birds at the bird feeders and in the trees-yes (but not always--they seem to disappear for periods of time.)  I saw a much greater collection of birds at a friends backyard in a huge development with lawns and decks. We have a whipporwill who comes every spring --you would think he'd like the woods better.  But no, he seems to make the rounds in different areas of the community --when it's my turn I have to turn up the tv.   I hear the coyotes howl at night but have never seen one in the woods or otherwise.  I had an old chubby cat but  the coyotes never bothered her. 

I'm often fascinated by the birds who hang out in parking lots in some newly transplanted tree. There seems much better places to go. I think they like the human activity.     But I think "in the wilds' the animals eventually find new ground away from humans.

Edited February 4, 2017 by seasick

[Canada]

I noticed again in this episode, probably during the intro, they were playing that clip of a fox jumping up and getting caught in a snare.  Has that moment been shown during the regular show yet?  I don't remember it.  And I feel like, in a season where traps aren't working out too well, I would have remembered one that worked and managed to catch prey that big.

[Joan Z]

Pretty interesting interview of Callie. http://www.monstersandcritics.com/smallscreen/exclusive-interview-callie-north-on-why-she-tapped-out-on-alone/

Interesting, she said fishing and foraging isn't enough to sustain her. I think that explains why most of the contestants still talk about hunger even though they've been catching fish (someone said Jose caught A LOT of fish but I remember him saying so many times how hungry he is). If the fish and foraging can't sustain Callie, it must be worse for guys since they need more calorie. 

Callie also said she knows she's wasting away and having irreversible health damage isn't worth the risk and that's one of the reasons why she decided to tap out. Seeing how skinny she is after the tap out, i'd say, good call, Callie! I wonder if other contestants especially the top 3 from all seasons have thought about the health risk of starving themselves. I imagine the risk is higher for older contestants like Jose, David or Alan. We've seen many contestants tapped out due to hunger so I thought we would never see starvation to the point of irreversible health damage or fatal on this show.  Well, Dave proved me wrong, he was getting really close. 

So many people have posted on previous seasons if they get the chance of winning 500k, the crew would have to drag em out of the woods for them to quit. Basically that's Dave mindset going into this show. 

[derriere]

This show really does put the reality back into reality television. Watching a man starve while carefully hoarding a relative mountain of food is one of the most fascinating things I've ever seen.

[Quilt Fairy]

10 hours ago, Canada said:

they were playing that clip of a fox jumping up and getting caught in a snare.  Has that moment been shown during the regular show yet?  I don't remember it. 

I thought that came up in episode 4 "Outfoxed", although the specific clip you're referring to was never edited in to regular show footage, IIRC.  That was about Greg setting snares with paracord and whatever got caught managed to chew it's way out.  They had a lot of his trap cam footage in that episode, and the fox was shown to be very wily, so I wouldn't worry about it.

ETA: Just read the Callie interview and I thought this should be noted:

Quote

I am also so grateful to the producers and editors who did an amazing job at accurately capturing my journey. It is not an easy task with so little time but I feel they did a fantastic job at portraying me and my experience authentically.

This gives me confidence that the editors are giving us an honest show and not skewing things to get a more interesting one.

[lidarose9]

I'm pretty sure some of Megan's segments in this episode were from weeks earlier, dropped in out of sequence. She was working outside (I forget what, building bird trap?) -- she was in shirt sleeves. It looked like a nice warm autumn day. No snow. 

[TVbitch]

Dave seemed to be already crossing over. He had the starvation delerium "high" going, what with feeling he was truly at one with nature and seeing the vibrations of the trees and everything. Dude, that's your brain fritzing out! (see also: high altitude delerium and serene drowning people) I wonder if maybe he was to the point where he was not even that hungry anymore and that's why he felt he could conserve those fish. Really would like to know what the medical crew saw the week prior, cuz you can't tell me he wasn't a hella skeletal batshit mess then, too. You'd think they would be monitoring him daily at some point, lest they come back a week later to find him unconscious. 

Meanwhile, Fowler needs a hug and a single-story island home. Megan needs to not chew her rosehips 25 times before swallowing. And Carleigh needs to NOT sing a sad song about all the loved ones she's missing with the drum she spent days building for purpose of keeping her sane.  

Edited February 5, 2017 by TVbitch

[zamberlan]

Greetings.  I'm an Alone fan from IMDB (which is closing its message boards).  I hope you nice people are ok with internet refugees?

[Vicky8675309]

4 minutes ago, zamberlan said:

Greetings.  I'm an Alone fan from IMDB (which is closing its message boards).  I hope you nice people are ok with internet refugees?

Welcome! I love this site and I'm sure you will as well :)

[AZChristian]

17 minutes ago, zamberlan said:

Greetings.  I'm an Alone fan from IMDB (which is closing its message boards).  I hope you nice people are ok with internet refugees?

We're nicer than a lot of folks I've read there. Welcome.

[zamberlan]

Thanks guys, it'll take me some time to learn the ropes here. Some others from there might be coming along too. 

Are people here placing bets on who will be last standing on Thursday? My money is on Fowler.  

[Vicky8675309]

5 minutes ago, zamberlan said:

Thanks guys, it'll take me some time to learn the ropes here. Some others from there might be coming along too. 

Are people here placing bets on who will be last standing on Thursday? My money is on Fowler.  

I also think Fowler is going to win this season.

[ClareWalks]

32 minutes ago, zamberlan said:

Greetings.  I'm an Alone fan from IMDB (which is closing its message boards).  I hope you nice people are ok with internet refugees?

No refugee ban here, don't worry! I hope Fowler wins. He is my brain and heart pick. My gut says it could be Carleigh, though.

[riverheightsnancy]

I had Fowler from episode #1, based on editing and I made a post or two about that a ways back.