Nature buffs and extreme action and adventure junkies have a great show to watch on Discovery network, MAN VS. WILD.
Snake Manu, 29, inserting two tree snakes through his nose and mouth, in Chennai, India smells what Bear Grylls is cooking.... December 2006. EPA/STR
A seasoned adventurer and former British Special Air Service soldier, Bear Grylls demonstrates the basic survival methods for specific locations -- including navigation, making fire and finding water and food -- and goes one step further. As he explains, the people who stand the best chance for survival are those who are prepared to push the limits, and he certainly does so himself.
Bear Grylls
World Premiere Friday, June 15, 9 PM ET/PT
EVERGLADES: This premiere episode finds host Bear Grylls stranded in the swamps of the Florida Everglades, where each year at least 60 tourists need to be rescued. With more than a million alligators , thousands of snakes and even black bears roaming these waterlogged lands, the area has more than its share of hazards. Bear demonstrates how to keep alligators at bay , deal with vicious razor-sharp grass and find stomach-churning food that will keep you alive if you find yourself stranded in this beautiful but dangerous destination.
REAL LIFE STORIES
After becoming stranded, a young man died of exposure after leaving his uncle in their boat to go in search of help. After slogging through swamps and 12-foot-high sawgrass, the man was found dead just 24 hours later and two miles away from his boat. Disorientation and heat exhaustion is a real problem in the swamps, even for people who live there and know the area intimately.
A 62-year-old jogger survived for four days, stranded in waist-deep mud after getting lost and falling into a swamp during his daily run. Searchers found him stuck in a bog, covered in insect bites and drinking the fetid water surrounding him.
SURVIVAL TIPS FROM MAN VS. WILD’s BEAR GRYLLS
Bear Grylls offers the following potentially life-saving survival tips:
• How to find out how much daylight is left:
• How to eat a scorpion, and other spiders and insects: Spiders and insects are a particularly good source of protein, which the body needs to help rebuild itself. You need to be aware before you go out, however, which have large amounts of venom and which don’t. While they’re certainly not tasty, tiger scorpions of Mexico are nutritious -- as long as you cut off the stinger, which has a ball of venom inside. To eat it, catch one (being careful not to be stung), then pin it down and take off the stinger with a stick. Then he’s ready to be eaten. Says Bear, “Tastes kinda like cheese that’s been sitting around for about three weeks…but worse.” In the forests, look to dead wood to find your insects -- you will often find larvae in the wood, which are four times higher in protein than beef. While they taste sour and are slightly gritty, they can be a life saver. Another food tip from Bear: stay away from mushrooms unless you’re an expert. And while bats might be tasty, it’s probably not worth it to try to catch one, because of the risk of rabies.
• Beating the heat … by drinking your own urine:
• Estimating how deep a pool of water is under a waterfall:
• How to properly eat meat in the wild, including sheep eyeballs: Sometimes you will be lucky enough to find or catch meat in the wild. Whenever you can, cook your catch; raw meat is harder to digest and could zap energy from the body. In Iceland, for example, Bear tied his shoelace through bits of meat and dunked them into boiling geothermal pools to cook them. Search for unusual but nutritious sources -- such as sheep eyeballs, which are high in protein and rich in vitamins A and D. While eyeballs are OK to eat raw, it’s a good idea to heat them as well (boiling water is best) to clean away any bacteria. (From the Iceland episode)
• How to travel through alligator-infested swamps: In the swamps, always brandish a stick. While not much of a weapon, it will give you several extra feet of reach to ward off angry alligators. Get yourself high up a tree if possible, to scout out the area. Watch for bubbles in the water; while they might just be the gases of the swamp, they also might mean that an alligator lurks underneath. At night, you want to slumber above and away from the water, as alligators are more active after dark. Set up camp in the trees; pop ash trees have bendable limbs that can be manipulated into a bed platform, and they also have vines that can be used as natural cordage to tie it together. Make sure the wood is thick enough to take your weight and tie it all together with a simple overhand knot. Ideally, pick straight timbers and remove the off shoots, which will dig in and make sleeping even harder. Don’t make the mistake of using materials such as Spanish moss to pad your bed. While it might look nice and soft, the moss is filled with tiny insects that will bite you while you sleep and make you itch for days. (From the Everglades episode)
• How to recognize and get out of a flash flood: Even if it’s clear where you are, miles away rain could be pouring down. A wall of water full of boulders and trees can thunder downstream at 60 miles an hour, hitting with little warning. If you’re following a river or stream, check the bushes in the area -- the ones that have been underwater will be bent over from the force of past floods and will give you an idea of how high the waters could possibly get. Keep your ears alert at all times, and if you hear a distant rumble (like a jet engine) or feel the earth start to tremble, head for high ground as soon as possible -- up the side of a cliff, up a tree -- wherever you can get highest in the shortest amount of time. (From the Mexico episode)
• How to escape a mud bog:
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