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  1. #1
    Tel
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    Anyone watch Survivorman?

    I'm seriously in love with this show. Its on The Science Channel on Wednesday at 9 I think. And it occasionally airs on The Discovery Channel. Anyways, The basic thing is, A guy (Les Stroud) is Dropped off in the middle of nowhere. He usually has Clothes, A knife of some sort, And random household objects. (IE, Credit Card, Handful of Cashews, Etc) He has no food, And has only came with water in One episode (Sonoran Desert), But it was only enough for 3 days, And he stays for a full week. Yep. A Full week without food or water. He has to find it by himself.

    Anyways, he goes to some awesome locations that are really gorgeous, I mean wow. But yeah, Heres a list and description of the episodes.

    Episode 1 - Canadian Boreal Forest

    The Boreal forest of Northern Canada is a vast tract of wilderness stretching from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific. It is home to moose and beaver, crisscrossed by rivers and lakes and frost-free for only about three months of the year. Les intentionally tips his canoe in mid-stream and crawls from the icy waters onto shore where he does a quick inventory of his supplies. A handful of cashews and beef jerky, a solitary match, a multi-tool and 50 lbs of camera equipment to document the next seven days in the bush.

    Episode 2 - Arizona Desert

    The Sonora Desert in the South-Western United States covers an area of approximately 120,000 square miles. It is an arid, seemingly barren environment with scorching daytime highs and freezing overnight lows. Riding a dirt bike out into the official middle of nowhere, Les simulates a break-down scenario. He empties out the contents of his pack - half a gallon of water, a snack bar and his multi-tool-7 more days!

    Episode 3 - Costa Rica

    A Costa Rican getaway - as far removed from everyday living as you can imagine: lush rainforests and deserted tropical beaches. Marooned on Costa Rica's Osa Peninsula, Les "Survivorman" Stroud has only a few items to aid him for the next 7 days: swimming goggles, 3 ballpoint pens, a multi-tool and the clothing on his back. On top of the keeping hydrated in the intense humidity and relentless heat, Les must cope with deadly snakes, enormous spiders, land-crabs and scorpions.

    Episode 4 - Georgian Swamp

    The swamplands of Georgia's Altamaha River Basin are all that one would expect of a Primordial bog: dank, menacing, swimming with slithering creepy-crawlies and, of course, alligator-infested. This is the welcoming environment Les Stroud will be immersed in for seven sweaty days and bone-chilling nights

    Episode 5 - Canadian Arctic

    Pond Inlet, on the Northern reaches of Baffin Island, provides one of the most challenging landscapes our planet has to offer. Over 700km north of the Arctic Circle, it sits amidst grinding, ever-shifting flows of sea-ice where polar-bears roam in search of meat. In this severe climate, Les has been equipped with a bare minimum of raw materials to aid him for the next 7 days - a hunk of uncooked seal-liver, some oil-rich blubber for heat, a seal-hook, three matches, and a knife.

    Episode 6 - Mountain

    Survivorman -Mountain sees Les airdropped onto a snow-covered peak in the Canadian Rockies courtesy of the Canadian Mountain Air Rescue Service. They?ll come looking for him in seven days. Until then Les is entirely on his own, save for the grizzlies, cougars and wolves that also call this place home. To emulate a real-life survival scenario - in this case a heli-hiking expedition come to grief - Les has been provided with a few readily salvageable items, among them a broken camcorder and tripod. One man?s trash is another man?s treasure!

    Episode 7 - Canyonlands

    The spectacular red landscapes of Utah's canyonlands are as beautiful as they are inhospitable. Like outlaws of old who were known to eat their own horses out of desperation in this forlorn place, Stroud will cannibalize the mountain-bike he has ridden into the middle of nowhere. As well as these scavenged bike parts to aid him, he also has a multi-tool, a magnesium flint-stick and an old energy-bar - that he has a use for other than eating.

    Episode 8 - Plane Crash

    In the remote winter-bound forests of Northern Ontario, a crashed plane lies in the snow beside a frozen lake. There is no one alive on board. But this plane didn't crash here - the decrepit old wreck has been airdropped from a helicopter to provide a temporary home for Survivorman. For a week Les will have to survive in this harsh snowy wilderness with only an axe, a multi-tool and a single blanket to aid him.

    Episode 9 - Lost at Sea

    Living "off the land" takes on a new meaning as Les Stroud casts off for a week at sea. With no food and only a bare minimum of equipment, Stroud will be set adrift in an inflatable life raft off the coast of Belize. Battling hunger, thirst and the Caribbean heat, he must also keep his cameras dry to film the ordeal. To top it off - the life raft has a few bad leaks and needs constant bailing. It also leaks air and requires frequent re-inflation with a hand pump - Survivorman is in for a busy few days!

    But yeah, If you see it on, you really should watch it.

    Canon Digital Rebel with Quantray 19-35 F3.5-4.5 basically Glued on. :P

  2. #2
    Learning more with every "click" mjs1973's Avatar
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    Re: Anyone watch Survivorman?

    I have never seen, or heard of this show, but I have been hooked on one that's very similar. It's called Man vs Wild, and it airs on The Discovery Channel. This show features Bear Grylls. Bear served in the British Special Forces, and has climbed Everest. He does basically the same thing as you're describing. He puts himself in the middle of nowhere, and then has to find his way out. The only thing he takes with him is a a knife, a flint, a water bottle, and whatever else he has on him. What he has on him, depends on how he gets to his location. Sometimes he will parachute into his location, so he may keep his parachute to help him survive. I have also seen him leave the parachute behind, because who's going to get stuck in the middle of a desert with a parachute? I have also seen him being dropped off on top of a mountain, and he has to ski his way down. He skied as far as he could, then he kept the poles.

    He doesn't carry any camera gear with him, but he does have a camera crew that follows him. The shoe discriptions that you have listed almost sound like we're talking about the same show. Mountains, deserts, forests, deserted island...
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  3. #3
    Viewfinder and Off-Topic Co-Mod walterick's Avatar
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    Re: Anyone watch Survivorman?

    I've seen Bear as well. It may very well be the same show marketed to different audiences. The episode I saw he was in Africa and had to find civilization. He ended up eating a zebra that a pack of lions had recently killed. Gross. Anyway, it was good entertainment.

    I wondered, does his camera crew have food and water for themselves?
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  4. #4
    Tel
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    Re: Anyone watch Survivorman?

    Okay, I've seen Man Vs. Wild, Lemme point out a couple things.

    Les: No Camera Crew, He does all the camera work himself (Which takes up alot of time)
    Bear: Camera Crew. If he really needed it, He could get food or water from his crew.

    Les: Real Situations that could happen to any traveler.
    Bear: Things that aren't likely to happen, But are still possible...

    In all honesty, Man Vs Wild isn't survival. Its Entertainment. Survivorman actually does what the title tells you. Teaches you How to survive on very little.. MVW Just tells you how to do risky stuff thats usually not needed.

    Oh and Also, Les has to carry 55 Pounds of Camera Gear with him when leaving wherever. Like in the mountain Episode, He hiked down a normal sized mountain, With 55 Pounds of Camera Gear on his back. So basically he's trying to survive harder than you normally would, As he is burning a lot more calories.

    Canon Digital Rebel with Quantray 19-35 F3.5-4.5 basically Glued on. :P

  5. #5
    Poster Formerly Known as Michael Fanelli mwfanelli's Avatar
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    Re: Anyone watch Survivorman?

    The only thing about Survivorman that bothers me a bit is the way he wantonly destroys everything around him to survive. Yep, in a real survival situation that would be OK. But how many people watching the show would assume that this is the correct way to handle the "wilds"? I'd prefer to see Tom Brown or some LNT survivalists. But hey, it is entertaining and the guy is really tough.

    I've seen Man vs Wild which is OK but, IMHO, not as good. Just the idea of being completely alone without even a camera crew makes Survivorman much more exciting. I don't think there have been new Survivorman episodes in quite a long time (years?).
    "Sometimes I wonder whether the world is being run by smart people who are putting us on, or by imbeciles who really mean it." --Mark Twain

  6. #6
    Tel
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    Re: Anyone watch Survivorman?

    Quote Originally Posted by mwfanelli
    The only thing about Survivorman that bothers me a bit is the way he wantonly destroys everything around him to survive. Yep, in a real survival situation that would be OK. But how many people watching the show would assume that this is the correct way to handle the "wilds"? I'd prefer to see Tom Brown or some LNT survivalists. But hey, it is entertaining and the guy is really tough.

    I've seen Man vs Wild which is OK but, IMHO, not as good. Just the idea of being completely alone without even a camera crew makes Survivorman much more exciting. I don't think there have been new Survivorman episodes in quite a long time (years?).
    Well its not like he's screwing everything up, they have a crew come to clean everything up.

    But yeah, New Survivorman Episode is coming in Late February, And he's currently in Africa shooting another episode.

    Canon Digital Rebel with Quantray 19-35 F3.5-4.5 basically Glued on. :P

  7. #7
    Princess of the OT adina's Avatar
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    Re: Anyone watch Survivorman?

    I've seen it. We watched it with the girls. They love to watch shows like that, then we all offer our running commentary thru the whole thing. Mostly sarcastic obnoxious commentary. Good quality family time.
    I sleep, but I don't rest.

  8. #8
    Viewfinder and Off-Topic Co-Mod walterick's Avatar
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    Re: Anyone watch Survivorman?

    You guys would be fun to watch Super Bowl commercials with.
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  9. #9
    Learning more with every "click" mjs1973's Avatar
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    Re: Anyone watch Survivorman?

    I saw a couple episodes of Surmivorman on the Discovery Channel last night. Very similar to Man vs Wild, but enough differences to make it interesting.

    I saw the last 15 minutes of the Costa Rica show, all of Lost at Sea, and all of Canadian Artic.

    One thing I thought was interesting is how much effort he has to put into filming the show. There were lots shots from a long ways away. So he would have to hike to a spot to set up the shot, hike back and walk through the scene, then go back and pick up his equipment.
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  10. #10
    Tel
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    Re: Anyone watch Survivorman?

    Quote Originally Posted by mjs1973
    I saw a couple episodes of Surmivorman on the Discovery Channel last night. Very similar to Man vs Wild, but enough differences to make it interesting.

    I saw the last 15 minutes of the Costa Rica show, all of Lost at Sea, and all of Canadian Artic.

    One thing I thought was interesting is how much effort he has to put into filming the show. There were lots shots from a long ways away. So he would have to hike to a spot to set up the shot, hike back and walk through the scene, then go back and pick up his equipment.
    Yeah, Those are some of my least favorite episodes. XD.

    Honestly, you cant beat Canadian Boreal Forest, or Mountain.

    But yeah, he spends like half his time working the cameras and stuff, so as I said, it makes surviving quite a bit harder.

    Canon Digital Rebel with Quantray 19-35 F3.5-4.5 basically Glued on. :P

  11. #11
    has-been... another view's Avatar
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    Re: Anyone watch Survivorman?

    Quote Originally Posted by mwfanelli
    The only thing about Survivorman that bothers me a bit is the way he wantonly destroys everything around him to survive. Yep, in a real survival situation that would be OK. But how many people watching the show would assume that this is the correct way to handle the "wilds"? I'd prefer to see Tom Brown or some LNT survivalists. But hey, it is entertaining and the guy is really tough.
    That's my main concern with these shows - "monkey see - monkey do" sort of thing. In a real survival situation, you do what you have to do to stay alive. A lot of the things that are done on these shows aren't considered good practices by LNT (Leave No Trace) and other conservation groups, and hopefully people won't do a lot of these things like cutting down a bunch of small trees to make a shelter just because the guy on TV did it. Real survival situations are pretty rare.

    Quote Originally Posted by Tel
    Well its not like he's screwing everything up, they have a crew come to clean everything up.
    Like I said above, I'm not so concerned that they are teaching us how to do it but more concerned about the potentially much bigger group of people who might try this stuff on their own - and don't have a crew to "clean everything up" or understand why what they're doing is a bad thing unless necessary for their own survival.

    There's another show that drives me nuts - "I shouldn't be alive". I saw part of the one on sea kayaking, and as a sea kayaker who is very cautious about his own trips I was really disappointed by what they had to say. Take two inexperienced guys who overlooked very basic trip preparations, made one bad decision after another, and then got themselves into trouble. This isn't sea kayaking any more than Survivorman is a typical trip into the back country. With "I shouldn't be alive", they had an opportunity to recap saying what they should have done and how they could have avoided their situation, but apparently that's not entertaining enough to survive the final edit...

  12. #12
    Learning more with every "click" mjs1973's Avatar
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    Re: Anyone watch Survivorman?

    Quote Originally Posted by another view
    There's another show that drives me nuts - "I shouldn't be alive". I saw part of the one on sea kayaking, and as a sea kayaker who is very cautious about his own trips I was really disappointed by what they had to say. Take two inexperienced guys who overlooked very basic trip preparations, made one bad decision after another, and then got themselves into trouble. This isn't sea kayaking any more than Survivorman is a typical trip into the back country. With "I shouldn't be alive", they had an opportunity to recap saying what they should have done and how they could have avoided their situation, but apparently that's not entertaining enough to survive the final edit...
    I've watched this show a few times myself. I just sat and shook my head through the entire show. I couldn't beleive how stupid some of these people are. My favorite episode was of a couple who got lost in the Amazon. The trail they were on came to a dead end, so what did they do? They kept going forward and breaking a new trail, because the guy was trying to remember the way back based on the map that he had looked at the day before, and forgotten to take with him. Common sence would tell me to turn around, and follow the trail you were on, untill you find your way back to the marked tail...
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  13. #13
    has-been... another view's Avatar
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    Re: Anyone watch Survivorman?

    Common sense ain't so common... #1 rule - keep your wits about you. If you go back and analyze a lot of accidents in the back country (or out on the water in my case), a lot of situations continued to get worse because of one bad decision after another.

    I was in a situation that could have gotten really bad about two years ago. I was glad to be with some other experienced strong paddlers, and we recognized that the situtation was deteriorating. From that moment, you have to turn on the survival mode and go to work... Tough day but we all made it out OK. It's not a question of "if" but "when", and being able to recognize what's going on around you. If I lived thru the story line of at least the show I mentioned, it would be a failed trip.

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