For examples, I’ll refer to just one program, the one in which he parachutes into the Montana wilderness. He starts by dropping into a lake because there are supposedly no other open areas to land, other than the grassy stretches the camera can’t quite exclude. Obviously this is done for show, and choosing to get wet in a survival situation in the mountains of Montana would almost always be a bad idea.

To get to lower ground where it will be warmer, he then runs down a slope of loose  rock. Scree-running may be fun, but if you are truly lost in the wilderness, the last thing you want to do is risk injury. This is just plain foolish.

The Waterfall

Grylls then follows a stream, which isn’t a bad idea. But when it becomes a seventy-foot waterfall, he assures us that the best way to proceed is to climb down the slippery dead tree leaning against the cliff between the two parts of the falling water. The tree doesn’t quite reach the bottom, so a ladder of sticks and para-cord is made, which still doesn’t quite get him to the bottom.

I missed the last part (right after a commercial), but it is safe to assume that Bear Grylls did his trademark jump into unknown water to finish his descent. All you have to do is imagine a sharp point of a stump or rock just under the surface, right between where your legs will go into the water, to understand why this is a bad idea. Don’t jump into water when you can’t see what’s there.

Of course, soaked again, Grylls must start a fire to dry his clothing. Now you have to ask it the time spent building a ladder, descending a slippery dead tree, swimming out and drying off for hours really saved time versus finding a safe way around the waterfall. In fact, I can tell you from experience that it is very rare to find a waterfall that doesn’t have a relatively quick and safer route around it versus climbing down it.

The Rest of The Story

Bear finds a lake that is several miles across, and decides, without really explaining why, that it’s important to cross it rather than follow the shore. As in many episodes of Man Vs Wild, he runs into the water fully clothed, ignoring the common sense rule to keep clothing dry when in a wilderness with cold nights. He finds a broken canoe in the muck and cleans it out, patching the holes poorly.

Almost across the lake using a kite made from the remains of his parachute, the canoe is full of water and capsizes, soaking him for the fourth time that day.

Later in the program things get really ridiculous when Bear decided that rather than finding a safe way into a deep gulley (which he thinks he must enter), he’ll create a “zip line” and slide over to a tall tree. I won’t get into all the details, but he uses a grappling hook made with a deer antler, and a cable he found by an old homestead. Hooking onto a tree with an uncertain attachment and climbing out over a deep gulley on a thin cable is clearly reckless and unnecessary, to say the least. Anyone with modest abilities could have found a safe route down and been waiting for him at the bottom long before he completed this asinine maneuver.

Along with other reckless actions I probably forgot, he eats uncooked grasshoppers, risking parasites while standing next to a perfectly usable fire. He later climbs at least 100 feet up a train bridge over a meadow, in order to follow the train tracks, rather than simply walk along them below. He even throws a chain over the lip at the top and swings out into space to climb up, with no idea what he hooked the chain on. Of course he probably knew, had safety crews up there, etc, but that wouldn’t be the case in a real survival situation.

Did I mention the death-run out of the narrow train tunnel by the whole film crew, ending in them jumping to safety just as the train came through? Man Vs Wild is entertaining.  Bear Grylls is fun to watch. But it seems likely that people will be hurt if anyone in a true wilderness survival situation follows his advice or example.

For most people, a trip into the wilderness is not a solitary experience. Safety experts recommend that you travel in groups with a minimum size of two to four. The individual wilderness education of the travelers can be different, there should always be an expert or experienced person to serve as a leader. If you travel alone, you increase the risk of injury or death in the wilderness.

Even though you may start a trip into the wilderness in a group, there are always possibilities that lead to separation and/or injury. Injured members of a group may have to stay in a safe camp while some, or all, of the others return to civilization to bring help. It is important to plan for the worst on any wilderness excursion.

Trip Planning for Safety

When preparing for a trip into the wilderness each member of the party should be familiar with the group’s general plan for the excursion. This will include the locations and designs of shelters located throughout your scheduled trip. Research ahead to have knowledge of the availability of fire rings, sites, and combustible piles of wood. Each proposed stopping point should include locations for safe drinking water as well as fire protection water. There should be a plan for signaling the outside world if you are in trouble. This may include such high tech concepts as mobile or satellite communications, or GPS guidance, and mapping data to find the nearest help.

Make yourself familiar with the route you will be taking through the wilderness. Whenever possible, take trails rather than planning adventures across country. Carry a marked map with you which includes your itinerary. Be sure to make notations of the points where you can get assistance should it be necessary.

Validate your Navigation Methods

There are several ways to navigate through a wilderness. Some are only feasible if weather and visibility conditions prevail. Try to have two methods of navigation available for any trip into the wilderness. One of the newest and best methods uses the Global Positioning Satellites (GPS) to find your exact position relative to other desired destinations. There are handheld units that you can pre-load with the maps of your chosen area so the GPS system can point out visually where you are on the screen’s map. It is a good idea to have a light and hardened laptop. This would provide precise directions and choices should weather, or unexpected events cause you to vary from your arranged trail.

GPS systems not only need a sensor that can capture three satellites’ signals in the sky and triangulate your position, but they require enough memory to hold a detailed topographic map. The latest handheld GPS trail systems have the ability to add memory cards. These memory cards will allow you to store a wider geographic map of the wilderness area you are visiting.

Back-up Navigation Systems

If you don’t have GPS navigation, you can use topographic maps, the stars, and a compass. If you know how to use one, a sexton can also be used to locate your position relative to your surroundings. The sexton will tell you the direction that you are facing in degrees of the compass. Using the map along with a good map compass, you should be able to find the latitude and longitude of your position on the topographic map.

Wilderness Survival: Techniques and Know-How for Surviving in the Wild

Product Description
Artist Miles from Alaska share his experiences of more than 30 years of living in the Alaskan Wilderness, the inspiration of his art, and the values he has adopted to survive his lifestyle…. More >>

Going Wild: Alaska Wilderness Survival Diary