Alone again.

[Eric Krewson]

I think the huge shelter was a mistake as well.

[GlisGlis]

I also dont buy the shelter with the logs floor
Cannot imagine it was the only option to place his home
too much work in my opinion and he will still end up with humidity if not plain water and ice

[Mesophilic]

Clay Hayes did an arrow buiild vid.  If you stick with it or fast forward to the end, he does a funny Alone parody 

https://youtu.be/cAU5lwzaQEw

[GlisGlis]

Unlike previous years I cannot pick a candidate for the title but I like the attitude of Karie Lee
She has that mix of expertise, essentiality and lightness
I hope she can do well even if her shelter looks too minimal at present

[bjrogg]

I like several of the contestants.

It can change for them in a flash though. One day they seem to be doing a fantastic job and things are going well. Next thing they have health issues and they are heading home.

I kinda like Adam. I think he has a pretty decent shelter. I like his fireplace and chimney. I was a little worried about his shooting at first but it seems like he settled down and is hitting his mark now.

Should be a interesting season.

Bjrogg

[White Falcon]

They better be gathering some fire wood, it is going to be a cold winter.

[Gimlis Ghost]

I've seen only a few episodes of this show. In one I noticed they were surviving on fish and rabbits with no larger game. From what I've read a party traveling down a river took only fishing rods and .22 rf rifles intending to live off the land.
When they finally got back to civilization they were almost dead from malnutrition.
They had dined only on trout and rabbit. According to the article these creatures lack vital elements and have little or no fat. Though I suppose rabbits in colder climes may have more fat.
The article went on to state that this was why American indians developed Pemican. The ground nuts and bear fat mixture acted as a suppliment to complete the nutritional requirements for active people.
The US military also ran a study on troops stationed in cold climes. They saw that local Indians were much  better at performing ardurous tasks. They added pemican to the soldier's diet and their performance immediately improved.
During frontier times several townships were established by Indians who's sole occupation was mass production of pemican for sale to white pioneers and wagon trains.

I've also noticed that the participants in these programs aren't nearly as active as you'd expect, at least once a sturdy shelter is built.

[Buckskinner]

Fat is a problem, that is why you must utilize the organs, brain, egg sack and whatever fatty tissue you can muster out of those critters.  A bear would be a game changer for sure.

[Pappy]

Ya the one guy rendered a lot of beaver fat and I thought, this guy knows what he is doing but for some reason he got sick , not sure why, They said maybe beaver fever, seems sometimes they don't cook their meat as well as I would if I was eating it, especially something questionable. 
 Pappy

[Buckskinner]

If that's what he had, beaver fever looks miserable.  Might be undercooked meat and could have been just not washing up after processing the beaver, a little beaver skat transferred to from fingers to mouth could do it.  His drinking water could have done it as well, I guess.

[GlisGlis]

He may also have had too much fat in a single meal
Apparently some northern people were used to eat alot of fat but usually modern people cannot handle too much and end up with  indigestion

[Mesophilic]

Maybe they edit it out in production, but it doesn't seem like the contestants do a whole lot of active hunting.

From viewer perspective it seems like they do a mid day stroll and that's it.  I'd expect to see the experienced hunters up and at it before sunrise.

[BowEd]

It's probably been said prior here but the person who lives a lifetime with the tried and true skills of being a hunter/fisherman/gatherer and dealing with uncomfortable conditions physically and mentally their whole lifetime while being physically fit will have the best chance of winning such a contest.
Understanding that there are predators and prey in this world and have no quams about it.Being around and encountering animals and predators knowing their tendencies and nature.
Not just picking up the life style up at mid life and training a few months or a year thinking that should be enough to win.
They will be behind the 8 ball right from the beginning.
There's a degree of constitution that develops in a person over a lifetime that is second nature to get by trying times and a lot of that is mental not just physical.
Without knowing what your limits are hands on before getting into such a contest and relying on something that somebody wrote about the human body could lead to detremental consequences as their system will not be ready to handle it.

[Pappy]

Agreed Ed, not something you can learn to handle in a few months or even years, if you haven't been cold tired and really hungry in life you probably aren't going to make it for months. It is wearing on them now and they are dropping like flies, you have to have shelter but seems most are spent to much of the early time on that and not food and water, by the time they have a good shelter they are to worn down to hunt and fish
the way they need to to get by. I guess it is easy to set back and say what I would have done unless you are really out there, interesting to watch though. I like the older woman, I think she will hang in for the long haul, she just seems to be one that has lived it. 
 Pappy

[BowEd]

You got that right Pappy.This constitution in a person I speak of will be useful for them not only in a contest such as this but also into other aspects of life in the modern world,and that is a mental thing then.
You get to know exactly who you are and who you are'nt which might be more important.A thing many many people go through a whole lifetime and never find out.