11x01 - Enter The Circle

[bunniefuu]

[tense music]

♪ ♪

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- I'm not tapping out.

I'd rather die.

♪ ♪

- [exhales] Here goes nothing.

- Whoa!

- Yes!

- Holy [bleep].

♪ ♪

- This is the harshest
location possible.

- We're 125 miles in
the Arctic Circle.

- [shouts]

- Never had an environment

make me feel like a
complete amateur before.

- Everything is
against us out here.

- Mother Nature went
and b*tch-slapped me.

- Looks like I got grizzlies
and wolves as my neighbors.

- Holy crap.

They're just hunting
the shoreline.

- Mother Nature is about
to dim the lights on us.

We're heading into
total darkness.

[animal huffs, branch snaps]
- Hey, bear.

- The cold and the dark is
gonna sap people's souls.

- Really makes you
wonder if it's worth it.

[splurting]

- There is no camera crew.

There's no support system.

I'm completely alone.

- Yes!

- People go in one way...

- Stop bleeding.

- And they come out
entirely different.

- [yells]

- This is the most difficult

survival challenge in the world.

- [hooting]

- $500,000.

That's completely
life-changing money.

- It's beautiful.

- Whoever can
thrive the longest.

- They out here ought
to be afraid of me.

- Whoever can push through...
- [groans]

- Wins.

- I hope I made the right
choice coming out here.

♪ ♪

[wind whooshing]

♪ ♪

[helicopter whirring]

♪ ♪

- I think this is gonna
be the most miserable

and greatest
experience of my life.

I'm about to push
and punish my body

further than I ever have.

Toughen up, b*tch.

- I've been in remote
places in my life,

and this is far beyond.

We're in the Arctic Circle.

This place is a son of a b*tch.

You're talking negative 40.

It's gonna feel like Santa Claus

just slapped you in the
face with a canoe paddle.

Holy [bleep], man.

♪ ♪

- Where I'm from, it's 104, 108.

You know, it's pretty
warm right now.

So it's a big change to me.

Oh, man, this is wild.

- I want that prize money.

I want to win so badly

that I'm willing to leave a
bloody trail of footprints

in the snow behind me.

- There's so much
going on in a delta.

But it's also the land of
the grizzly bears and wolves.

I'm not afraid of it,
because I'm the first ever

Cree-Métis woman to do "Alone,"

and I feel a whole
nation behind me.

- I did grow up where there
was a lot of polar bears.

You see them off
in the distance.

But here, the
landscape is different.

There's thick growth.

A grizzly could jump
at you at any moment.

So you've got to be alert.

I'm not dreaming! It's real!

- There is a bit of
luck that goes along

with something like this.

Illness can happen.

Injuries can happen.

It is gonna take
mental toughness.

Oh, there's a bear. [laughs]

Your brain 100% determines

whether or not you're
the last one out there.

- Never been alone this long.

Surviving out here
is hard enough.

Surviving out here while
filming it is a challenge.

So I'm absolutely curious to see

what kind of person
I am when it's over.

- I've got ten items
that are gonna help me

get through this and
the clothes on my back.

Man, this landscape is insane.

It's not gonna be
a walk in the park.

I expect the worst.

It's amazing.

- This is reliving
a childhood memory

of your parents allowing you

to play in the
woods by yourself,

this feeling of true freedom.

Yeah!

[laughs]

Oh, yes.

I love it.

♪ ♪

Where'd he go?

There he is. [laughs]

Look at my hair. [laughs]

Oh, man.

That's crazy.

[helicopter whirring]

There they go.

Oh, man, I'm in, like... I'm
in like a swamp right now.

Let's get out of this
bog, do some scouting,

and we'll get started.

I'm so excited.

Was thinking last
night how cool it'd be

to win this thing,

bring back a W
for West Virginia.

[soft flute music]

[whip cracks]

[laughs]

I'm a game warden.

My job is to protect
the natural resources

that we enjoy from poachers.

And I'm also a captain in
the Air National Guard.

My main job with them is
fatality search and recovery.

If there's any kind of events
that are mass casualty,

we pick up bodies.

It's a pretty solid rope.

But what makes me
who I am is family.

My wife and I tried for a
long time to have a kid.

We didn't think it
was gonna happen.

She starts telling me
about the IVF process.

I said yeah, definitely.

That was tough.

We had a couple miscarriages.

Failure, failure, failure.

And then the one stuck.

Baby girl Caroline is a miracle.

Let's go for a hike.

And so taking care of my family

is always priority number one.

That looks like
lunch to me. [laughs]

IVF was a few years of salary.

So if I could pull in $500,000,

that would change my life.

I think I could take
on this challenge

because I've got a lot
of military training.

I've got the mental, and
I want to be the hero.

- Bye-bye.

- First thing I want to do,

see what I got here
in front of me.

Let's go for a walk.

♪ ♪

In the first three days,
you want to know your land

while you have the food
that you carried in

in your gut to see,

you know, where am I gonna
set up a permanent shelter?

Where's the best fishing spots?

Where's the easiest way in?

This stuff is thick.

Pretty heavy
coverage right there.

There might be more water.

Let's go this way.

So finding access routes,
game trails... that's key.

Keeping my eyes open

while I'm walking.

I just got a feeling
I don't like.

♪ ♪

We're here with a
population of moose,

which will trample
you into the ground.


bears. 10,000 wolves.

There's black bears.

And if you let your
guard down, you're done.

I'll just keep going.

♪ ♪

Wolves.

It's pretty nerve-racking.

I'm definitely gonna have to
build a really good shelter.

Ooh, look at this.

Something got a
fish. See the scales?

♪ ♪

Now that, that's a grizzly.

Pad,

toes, claws.

Not just a pack of wolves,
but we got a grizzly bear.

And those aren't old at all.

What the hell is that?

♪ ♪

I don't think that's
what we want to see.

♪ ♪

A small bear walking along

that other set means...

♪ ♪

The worst possible
thing it could mean.

I got a mama grizzly

and a baby.

Guess who's not
sleeping tonight.

[laughs]

[suspenseful music]

♪ ♪

- Gotta get everything
straightened away here.

Now...

slow in and pace yourself.

[sniffling]

I was gonna stop
for five minutes

up on top of that hill, but,

I think it'd be a good idea
now just to get that net out.

Passive fishing is real
good, because, you know,

you could potentially
catch a meal

while you're getting
other things done.

So who knows, man?

We could be eating
fish for supper.

♪ ♪

When I picked my ten
items, I took a net

because I don't want to
waste time making the net.

I want to get my
net in the water,

get something fishing for you,
get something working for you

so you could be working
away at something else.

That could be a good
spot for my net there.

Doo, doo, doo, doo, doo.

Yeah.

I'm not hunting for big game.

So I didn't want to take a bow.

I never bow hunted
before, so I didn't want

to come into this with
skills I didn't have.

I'm gonna focus hard and
put a lot of innovation

into the fish.

And then when
fishing season slows,

then I'm gonna move and switch.

I plan on harvesting
squirrels, rabbits,

grouse, and partridges.

I know how to harvest
them without a g*n or bow.

I got tricks up my sleeve
that would work quite well

to catch them little critters.

OK.

I just put the
net out like that.

It's kind of slack here, so
we'll see how that works out.

It don't look too bad
back there right now,

but we're pretty much in the
middle of a winter storm here.

I grew up in a little
isolated community

in the south coast of Labrador.

There's no running
water, no electricity,

or nothing like that.

It's not a real big igloo.

This is a perfect little
hunting sized one.

Growing up in a tough
place like that,

it was always a struggle.

Look at that. Successful
porcupine hunt.

And so I built up a lot
of knowledge and skills

just trying to survive.

Well, I think that
looks pretty good.

I'm also a commercial fisherman,


for crab and shrimp.

Look at that.

I'm doing this for my family.

Whoo!

That's my whole
world right there.

If I was fortunate enough
to win the $500,000,

I'm just gonna buy
the building materials

and build a house
and move the family

to a small coastal
community in Labrador.

Where I live too
now is a good town.

Makes sense for
work, fishing trips.

But it's a little bit
too much on the go there

that I don't like.

And I want to get my
kids to be reared up

in a smaller community.

That's really important to me.

And I'm gonna put
everything into it.

[laughs]

I think I've found a real
good spot for a shelter.

♪ ♪

I'll survive the night
and get something

really good done tomorrow.

I want a quick shelter,
not too much energy.

I'm thinking of
a simple lean-to.

But then I want, like, some
kind of poles around me

just to feel protected.

You don't want to wake
up, a bear dragging you

out your sleeping
bag and dragging you

across the ground.

You just can't go and
make yourself vulnerable

on the land.

You've got to protect yourself.

[sighs]

Burning off a lot of
calories starting off, but...

Maybe we'll take a break and
go out and check the net.

♪ ♪

I see movement.

That's maybe just the wind
and a lot of wishful thinking.

Oh, it's a fish out
there. It is. Look.

Didn't take long.

♪ ♪

[indistinct]

[laughs]

Sharp teeth, eh? [chuckles]

[splashing]

[yells]

No way.

No way.

I can't believe it.

[scoffs]

What can I say? I'm in shock.

♪ ♪

[scoffs] I can't
believe that happened.

Oh, oh, oh, oh.

That was a big...
that was a big pike.



A survival situation, man.

You gotta be more careful.

[soft dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- I got belly button lint.

For some ungodly reason, I'm
sitting here picking that

like I don't have enough to do.

Holy [bleep].

♪ ♪

[bleep].

That's a caribou.

I can't sh**t that.

[yells]

[laughs softly]

Here we go.

Boom.

There's your broadside
shot on a caribou.

Why can't you be a moose, bro?

It doesn't really care.

Doesn't care that
I'm here. [chuckles]

This is wild, man.

♪ ♪

Hey, Mom.

I'm in the Arctic.

Check out my pet
caribou right here.

Spooked now. He smelled me.

[laughs]

♪ And we are gonna
set a beaver snare ♪

Whoo!

My name's Waldemar
Paetz. I go by Dub.

Possum down.

The only thing I
ever cared about

since the day I was old
enough to walk was nature.

[grunts]

It's really not bad.

My one real job that I had
was being a fly fishing guide

and I was damn good at it.

We just caught this big cutty

on our homemade rod.

I'm not ever really
gonna settle for a 9 to 5

where somebody's
breathing down my neck.

I'd rather live very poorly
and keep my outdoor lifestyle.

[smooches]

"Alone" is the
survival Olympics.

There's no bigger, better,
more kick-a*s challenge.

And I strongly believe
I have everything

it's gonna take to do this,

because I don't have
close relationships.

I can be by myself.

I got the best shot I could
ever hope to get out of.

But my top skill,
brute bullheadedness.

I have a mile and a
half hike out of here.

Gonna try to make
a deer backpack.

No matter what goes
wrong, I do not quit.

Hell yes.

That works good.

$500,000 would allow
me to pay off my house,

pay off my mom's house,

and just finally not have
to stress about money.

My entire life,
that's all I've done.

So the freedom
that would give me

is something I just
can't even imagine.

All right, love you guys.

I got to dig, dude.

We're gonna whittle
this Earth away.

Turn it into something...

[grunting]

That's worth $500,000.

♪ ♪

I really love this spot for
a few different reasons.

What beautiful dirt, dude.

I'm gonna build an
empire out here.

It's got this beautiful berm.

It's very protected
from the wind.

Sure got a lot of
firewood laying around.

And as far as I can tell,

it's the best spot
I'm gonna get.

I did not come out here
with a set shelter plan.

I just came out saying
I'm gonna Dub it.

And when Dub does
something, he just...

♪ ♪

Starts doing it.

If I'm gonna last a
winter in this thing,

it's got to be insulated
like nobody's business.

That should be a
pretty solid joint.

I really don't
like those clouds.

It's gonna be such a pain
in the a*s if it rains.

The more I melt this
shelter into this hill,

the better off I'll
be in terms of warmth.

Willow lashing...

[grunts] Should work...

quite well.

Next thing, ridgepole...

it's heavy.

♪ ♪

Damn, is this gonna be cozy.

Cozy is code word for really
freaking tight and small.

The bigger the shelter is,

the more wood you got
to cut to heat it,

the bigger the problems
associated with this.

And I don't know how comfortable

it's gonna be this tight
between these logs,

but I can do anything
for $500,000.

I started training for this

when I was very, very young kid

and I didn't even know it.

I'm gonna try to tarping it.

I was bullied all the
way through school

because of my name, Waldemar.

Not perfect.

I'm gonna start moving it in.

And it gets to the
point where you just,

man, I want to get
away from everybody.

So I started gonna the
library during lunch hour

so I could at least, like,

have a little bit of protection.

This thing came a long way.

And I remember reading a lot

of hunting and fishing
and survival books,

and then I'd get
home and I'd cry.

Oh, I'm so ready to lay down.

But I don't think I
would change a thing.

That is what made me what I am,

made me love nature,
and it made me stronger.

I guarantee you that.

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- [exhales]

Man, look at that.

My wife told me when
I first get here,

just take a moment for myself

and sit and take it all in.

So...

[exhales]

[laughs softly]

Wow.

If someone asks me why
bows are so expensive...

[chuckles] This is why.

Every bow I've made is
carried out like this.

I'm a bowyer. I make
bows for a living.

I'm a homesteader.
We fish for our food,

hunt for our food,
grow our own food.

And so I've spent a lot of years

honing in these
skills, fire making,

bow drill, hand drill.

Fire.

And then the hunting,
fishing, trapping,

snaring, and shelter building.

That type of lifestyle has
given me the mentality to do

what it takes to overcome
and adapt to really thrive.

And I'm excited to see what
that's gonna do out here.

[pig snorting]

There you go. Good girl.

The reason I'm doing this is
to change my family's life.

My wife and I have been
together for 12 years,

and we want to have kids,

but she's been sick
a lot of that time,

and makes it really complicated

for her to get pregnant.

$500,000 means everything.

It's gonna give my wife and I

the opportunity
to get her healthy

where she can live a full life.

- [laughs]
- And hopefully after this,

we'll be lucky to
start our own family.

So that's why this
is so important.

That's what I mean
by life-changing.

All right. Here we go.

So first things first, I
definitely want to find

where I'm gonna be
sleeping tonight.

The biggest thing I'm
gonna have to contend with

is the cold.


Arctic Circle is pretty crazy.

It's gonna be freezing.

Having a good shelter
that's gonna keep you warm,

keep you dry, but also
keep you safe from bears

is gonna be life
or death out here.

[whispering] There's
a squirrel there.

So I'm gonna see
if I can get it.

♪ ♪

Not afraid of me at all.

No fear. I almost
feel bad k*lling him.

♪ ♪

[dramatic music]

[bow thwacks]

- [sighs]

Dang it.

I broke an arrow.

Risky shot. I
shouldn't have done it.

I was trying to be prideful.

I didn't need that right now.

[sighs]

Oh, well.

I can't believe
I missed him too.

♪ ♪

All right, I'm gonna
go collect firewood,

start a little
fire, boil my water,

and have a good drink
because I'm thirsty.

And then I'll throw up
a temporary shelter.

It's all really good kindling.

I spent a lot of time in my
adult life chasing money.

I was working two to three jobs,


and I didn't see my family.

It was just my wife and work.

All right. Got some firewood.

Time to go make a fire.

But I had a good friend,
Cameron, pass away last year.

And the day before he died,

I asked him what the most
important thing in life was.

And he said family and friends.

That hit me really hard

because all he'd wanted in life

was to get married, be a dad.

And he got married.
They had twins.

A year later, he died.

Really made me think
about my family

and the time I have with them.

Good fire starter.

And so I took his advice.

My wife and I sold
everything we had,

moved into this little
camper, took it to Missouri

on this little property
with my parents,

and we started homesteading

and building bows and
selling bows full time.

And that's allowed me
more time with my family.

All right. Temporary
shelter time.

There's not a day that goes by

that I don't think
about Cameron.

He'll never be forgotten, and
he's a huge reason I'm here.

So this experience, I'm
gonna chase it to my fullest.

I'm gonna do whatever it takes.

I'm gonna stay
however long it takes

because this time on
Earth is so precious.

It can, at any
moment, just be gone.

OK.

Just kind of wanted to talk
about my shelter a little bit.

I picked this location because
it has a vantage point.

There's a couple game trails
that run up through here.

Saw some bear sign
and I wanted to be up

so I could hear,
see anything coming.

I'm leaving it open so
I can see around me.

And have a fire out
here in front of me

to just kind of deter anything.

It's a little dangerous,
but it's a simple shelter.

[fire crackling]

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- Yeah, the first
night, no fire.

Just under the tarp here.

Not much room here, but
a lot of branches down

to kind of soften it.

And man, oh, man, it
was a real up and down

kind of day starting off.

Had a nice big pike,
but what's done is done.

No going back.

So now the pressure is on.

Mother Nature is about
to dim the lights on us.

We're heading into winter here.

There's dangers all around.

The landscape is
totally different

than what I'm used to.

But I'm trying to incorporate
the skills that I learned

from my area and try to
adjust them for this area,

and it's not easy.

♪ ♪

- Starting now, an hour a
week of daylight is gone.

Once we get closer
to that 100 day mark,

we're gonna be going


It's gonna be wild.

I probably look
terrifying in infrared.

♪ ♪

Uh, so... yeah.

Pretty productive day.

Just kind of getting established

and getting an eye
for the location.

♪ ♪

Right now, I'm just gonna
try to get some sleep.

♪ ♪

It is pretty nerve-racking.

You know, there's wolves
and mama bears and cubs.

That's pretty bad news.

But, you know, you just push.

Today was day one.

♪ ♪

- I just heard something move.

[animal huffing]
[branch snaps]

Hey, bear.

[leaves rustling]

♪ ♪

Hey, bear.

♪ ♪

I hope it's gone.

♪ ♪

Can't wait for daylight.

♪ ♪

All right, man.

♪ ♪

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- Yeah, that was a long night.

Those damn grizzly bears.

There's mega modifications that
need to happen in this thing.

I'm gonna move everything out.

[rustling]

We got to do it.

Restructuring,

because this shelter sucks!

Right now.

But soon, it might not.

There is significant amounts
of some very big bears.

Their presence is obvious,

and they're something I'm
gonna have to live with.

Try this again.

The more I can put between
me and the grizzly,

the more time I have to get
some bear spray in its face.

If the grizzlies are
gonna come through,

the only thing I can
do is make a shelter

that's thick enough,
strong enough

to fortify and make myself
at least feel comfortable.

♪ ♪

If I were watching this on
TV, I'd be saying to myself...

dude, it's not even
that many grizzlies.

It's not that big of a deal.

But the reality is...

when you're the one sitting
in the tent behind a tarp,

and you're hearing...
literally hearing bears walk,

it's scary, dude.

And I'm not particularly
scared of bears,

but I've never been in a place

with this high of
a density of bears.

I wonder if all the
competitors here realize

just what those
bears are capable of,

because I've seen it firsthand.

I had a neighbor that
got his face ripped off

by a grizzly bear.

When you see the aftermath
of a grizzly attack,

it'll scare the
[bleep] out of you.

They are brutal,
gruesome predators

that deserve every
bit of respect.

♪ ♪

Just... daunting.

♪ ♪

- All right.

So in an effort to
attract more ducks to me,

because I've been seeing
ducks swimming on this river,

I'm attempting to
make some duck decoys.

So I've got a bunch of grass,

and I just start making
the shape of duck.

♪ ♪

So first you make the beak.

♪ ♪

And then you fold it over

to make the first...

of the head shape.

Back home, duck hunting
is really popular.

It's part of the culture.

And I remember duck
hunting when I was a kid.

Duck decoys can be
a very effective way

of attracting ducks
closer to where you are.

Birds in general are really good

at seeing shapes and
movement and color,

so you just have
to remain hidden.

You have to be super stealthy.

Look at that.

It's a little bit
of a duck shape.

♪ ♪

[quacks]

And then for the final
thing, you take a stick.

♪ ♪

Then you stick it in the water.

♪ ♪

Now I have two duck decoys

waiting to entice some
ducks right to the shore.

And then hopefully
I can sh**t them.

[quacks]

[laughs]

I just heard the ice crack
underneath me, and that's...

[sighs]

I'm doing this because
I want to follow

in the footsteps
of my ancestors.

I have a Cree-Métis background.

In Cree culture,
it's called a wapos.

And I've always looked
up to those people

that came before me.

In this area, we
have a lot of wolves.

And in my language,
we call them mahikan.

I'm a wolf trapper myself.

I grew up in the wilderness,

very isolated out
in the trapline,

being homeschooled,
no running water.

Part of a Cree-Métis lifestyle
is to live off the land,

so that's hunting, trapping,
fishing, and staying out there

for long periods of time and
providing for your family

through hard work.

My business is
adventure guiding,

taking people out canoeing,
snowshoeing, hunting, fishing,

and showing them
how to set traps

or how to navigate rivers.

I love sharing my
knowledge with people.

We have fire.

Me and my husband
just got married.

And as soon as I get home,
we want to have babies.

I really want to be able to
provide for my future family.

So $500,000 is gonna be
part of my motivation.

I'm excited to utilize
all those skills

that I've grown up
using my whole life.

♪ ♪

I got my fishnet
strung up, ready to go.

So let's go deploy my fishnet.

♪ ♪

So one of the things
about this location

is it is really, really shallow.

My net is not fully
stretched out.

But I'm gonna leave
it there for now,

see if I get anything.

♪ ♪

Check it out.

A wolf track.

And that is a running wolf.

♪ ♪

And just over here...

That is definitely wolves.

Oh, damn it.

♪ ♪

I never really trusted
wolves that much.

They are K*llers.

When they have a good
opportunity, they will.

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- These little
berries right here,

they're little cranberries.

It's not much, but
calories are calories, huh?

I'm hungry.

Finally starting to get hungry.

My belly's going... [grumbles]

"Feed me."

But I want to get
my shelter done

and then I'll start fishing.

Just a little shot of vitamins
and calories to get me going.

OK. It's time to get to work.

♪ ♪

I've done a lot of searching,
a lot of walking around,

trying to find the
right shelter spot.

And I know it doesn't
look like much right now,

but there's three trees that
I want to build in between

right back there.

I'm gonna put up
my ridgepole first.

And I'll use a little bit
of snare wire to do that.

But I've got to cut a
notch on the back side

to hold my snare wire.

Food is important, but
it's not as important

as keeping myself safe.

There's grizzly sign.
There's moose sign.

There's wolf tracks in the mud.

This is a dangerous location.

So getting that shelter done,
that's my focus right now.

That's the start of it.

Next, I'm gonna work on my bed.

It'll go right here.

I'm aiming to build
an A-frame shelter.

I want to be able to
stand up in my shelter.

But I want an A-frame because

I want a high pitched
roof for the snow.

I don't want it to just
sit on top of my structure

and cave in.

I want to build something
that's gonna be able

to hold a lot of weight

and stand strong in
extreme wind and snow.

[sniffles]

Now I just need a lot of sticks.

[rolls tongue]

♪ ♪

I keep on getting this feeling

that I have to go,
go, go, go, go.

Still got a lot of work to do.

But hell, I'm gonna
be here for months.

Slow and steady.

Just got to keep on
reminding myself,

slow and steady.

There's already enough
dangers out here.

I don't need to be
one of them to myself.

All right, so that is...

all the work for today.

I am whooped.

Tomorrow, we'll get back at it
and hopefully finish her up.

So... [clicks tongue]

All around good day.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

- [grunts]

I don't know what's
going through my head.

This has been a dream
of mine forever.

All I can think about is
how much I miss my family.

My whole thought
process was that

I was doing this to prove
something to my daughter.

♪ ♪

That I could push
through anything.

But what am I proving
by leaving her?

It's starting to hit me just
how alone I actually am.

And that's cool.
That's what I wanted.

But I have these emotions
that I wasn't anticipating.

I hear about "drop shock"
over and over again.

Season after season, they
talk about drop shock.

But I thought that meant
that their plans changed.

I didn't think that that meant

they would be
rethinking their lives.

♪ ♪

Is this really worth it?

♪ ♪

I don't know.

We'll see.

[stomach gurgling]

Hey, my stomach's growling.

Be kind of nice
to eat something.

Let's take a look.

♪ ♪

Nice.

♪ ♪

How strange.

I think my nose is bleeding.

[foreboding music]

♪ ♪

Yeah.

It's pretty humid out.

It's not dry at all.

♪ ♪

Interesting.

Feel like I just did it again.

♪ ♪

Why am I bleeding so much?

Oh, now it's on my clothes.

Are you kidding me?

Stop bleeding.

♪ ♪

I wonder if has something
to do with my berry diet.

♪ ♪

Mm.

♪ ♪

Maybe some of this stuff
thins out your blood.

[sniffles]

I don't know.

♪ ♪

Everything I ate
looked pretty familiar.

I am 97.6% sure
that I'll be fine.

It's finally stopped.

But right now,

I'm not gonna waste my
time on smaller stuff.

I got to focus more on protein.

Just keep pushing.

That's all I got to
do. Just keep pushing.

I'm gonna go ahead
and set something

I can just throw out
there and let it just sit.

Just some passive fishing.

I'll probably set
a line from here,

dig it into the ground kind of.

See if I can't catch a pike or
something off of it tonight.

♪ ♪

In basic training on
the military side,

they called me
Machine g*n Preacher.

I used to be a preacher.

Just gonna sharpen it enough

to where it'll dig into
the ground a little better.

But I go hard.

There's a switch that
flicks when public face

gets turned off, when
people's in danger

and you have to act

and you've got to take
control of the situation.

There's a different gear.

♪ ♪

I need that other side of me.

I have to be tough,

but there's a
spiritual part of it.

It's not that God
speaks to you more

when you're in the wilderness.

It's just easier to hear him.

[splashing]

Did you see that fish jump?

Interesting.

Maybe we will catch a fish.

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- Here's the Cree
word of the day.

Okistatowân.

That means grizzly bear.

If you look in the water...

♪ ♪

You can see bear tracks

preserved under the water.

This is the real deal, people.

It is cold and there's bears

and there's a lot of work to do.

♪ ♪

I have a Cree name, and it is...

[speaks Cree]

Which means Beaver Hands Woman.

Here we go.

Checking my fishnet.

Come on, fishy.

Looks pretty empty,

but it hasn't really
moved around that much.

♪ ♪

Oh, it's twisted
up. That's why.

OK.

♪ ♪

So somehow,

my fish net got all twisted up.

I've got to fix that up.

The beaver, that is something

I'm gonna be
thinking about a lot,

because the beaver
is a hard worker.

That beaver is always
building their shelter

and gathering food all the time.

So I'm gonna be
embodying the beaver.

So I'm gonna think like a
beaver, work like a beaver,

because that is my name and
that's part of my spirit.

So I fixed and I
untangled my net.

Now I must deploy it again.

[grunts]

♪ ♪

I just hope that
I can get a fish

in my net...

one of these days.

Wow.

So my site was blessed
with this big giant rock.

And in Cree culture,

when there is a giant rock in
the middle of the landscape,

it is considered sacred.

Just gonna clear the area

around the sacred rock.

And I'm gonna leave my
offerings here so that

the land provides for me
and I take care of the land.

Mutual respect.

OK, back to work.

♪ ♪

- Oh, my.

Man, my energy is drained.

♪ ♪

Yeah. My energy
level is really low.

When I lost that pike,
that was a bummer.

But onward and upward.

But I need every little
calorie I can get.

The seeds, if you eat them,
got little hairs on them.

Make your bum itch.

You don't want that.

[spits]

Spit the seeds out.

♪ ♪

Not a lot of berries though.

Uh, whew. I was
expecting more berries.

♪ ♪

Feeling a little
better already, yeah.

Sugars, I guess.

Look at that.
Bunny trail there.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

I'm gonna have to put a
couple rabbit snares out.

You know, was hoping to save
that kind of stuff for later,

but I need it now.

♪ ♪

Some rabbit poo right there.

Now I know they're
coming through here.

This is my pole.

I'll make a rabbit snare.

[sighs]

♪ ♪

Oh, suck the brains
out of the rabbit head.

Looking forward to it.

♪ ♪

Since I lost that
fish, I lost my focus.

There's just too many thoughts
coming at me at one time.

I got to be doing this.
I got to be doing that.

And I want to slow down
and try to get my focus,

but it's hard to do.

I need some food.

That should do it.

Whew.

I'm just gonna scout
around a little bit here.

It's no good to have land
if you're not gonna see

what's on it, I guess.

Being from Labrador,
I've been hunting

and fishing and trapping ever
since I was a little kid.

And this land is full
of fish and animals.

And so I just got to carry
those skills that I acquired

through my lifetime
to get through

whatever I got to get through
to be successful here.

It's a little swampy area.

Wow.

♪ ♪

What a beautiful spot, eh?

Look at this.

We have... what's that?

It's like smelt or
something. Look at that.

Find a stick. [grunts]

♪ ♪

[grunts]

♪ ♪

Look at that. [chuckles]

Whew. [grunts]

Look at this.
Another one there.

Come on. [grunts]

Yeah, so we've got these
two with the shock waves,

you know, just a stick
and you hit the water.

Yeah. So...

I wonder, should I get
another two or three?

I grew up and survived
in a tough environment.

But when it was tough,
everyone pulled together

and built strong communities

so we all could
survive together.

♪ ♪

Oh, I see some.

♪ ♪

[splashing]

[grunts]

Whoo-hoo! Another one.

Yes.

Down here's one.

[grunts] [splashing]

There you go.

Look at that. Five.

That's all I want.

Reminds me of when
I was a little kid

catching trout in Beaver Pond.

Sometimes they'd be a bit small

and I'd bring them home.

And if I only had a
couple, Grandma would

clean them and freeze them.

And when I'd get enough, she'd
take them and fry them for me.

Isn't that awesome?

That's fantastic.

I'm gonna just take those fish,

light a little fire,
and roast them.

That's a good meal.

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- Let's do my morning smudge.

Cleanse my hair.

[distant howls]

[laughs softly]

Cleanse my hair so that I
live close to the spirit.

Bless this land so that
it provides for me.

All of these prayers,

may the smoke carry
them to the Creator.

Sounds like I can
hear wolves howling.

Yeah, I'm pretty sure
there's wolves howling

in the distance over there.

[distant howling]

Look at that nice day.

♪ ♪

OK. Day four.

I'm walking to
check my fish net.

Got everything I need with me.

Maybe I'll have
something in my net.

That'll be the best.

♪ ♪

No new ducks.

Darn it.

Please, please,
please, please, please.

[grunts]

That's not good.

Maybe I just move
it over a few feet.

Honestly, it looks a bit deeper.

Let's try it out.

I'm not used to fishing
on small rivers.

Usually I'm fishing
on my big river

and there's like an eddy
and a fast-flowing water.

And you find that eddy,

and that's a really good
place to set a fish net.

OK, moving the fish net

is physically demanding.

But I just got to keep observing

and keep moving it around
until I find a good spot.

♪ ♪

OK. Slightly deeper.

Needs to be on
shore a little bit.

We'll see.

♪ ♪

Fresh tracks.

Wolf.

What the heck?

Something was k*lled here?

♪ ♪

Look at this, guys.

It's a squirrel.

♪ ♪

Somebody left me a kidney.

It smells fresh.

This was not here yesterday.

♪ ♪

Hm, well, I feel like
I should eat that.

♪ ♪

I've been dreaming
about protein.

Let's make a fire.

And it's something that
I really need right now.

[distant howling]

I hear the wolves howling again.

Can you hear that?

And it's so perfect
and clean and fresh.

I've never had
roasted kidney before,

but I'm willing to
try it right now.

It feels like it's a gift.

Thank you to the wolves.

Like I'm meant to be here.

♪ ♪

Oh, wow.

[laughs] It's so tasty.

[distant howling]

♪ ♪

- All right, today I'm
gonna go exploring.

Get some food...

Instead of spending...

a week trying to
get my shelter done.

Draw it out a little bit.

Move down there slowly.

♪ ♪

Coming in this, my game
plan was throw up a tarp,

do an easy shelter for
the first week or so,

and then get to
fishing and hunting,

just worry about food.

But it's a little
terrifying being out here

just exposed,
especially whenever

there's grizzlies
walking around.

All that's been on my mind
for the last three days

is safe shelter, safe
shelter, safe shelter.

But hell, now I'm hungry.

I have to get some food.

♪ ♪

[grunts]

It's just so dadgum thick.

Hopefully it opens
up. [grunting]

♪ ♪

I'm literally, like, scooting
around on my butt, my knees,

pushing my way through here.

♪ ♪

[branches thwacking]

There is no walking through
this stuff stealthily.

There's moose poop.

♪ ♪

My wife hates this part.

She's like, why do they
always touch the poop?

It's because you need
to see how fresh it is.

That's pretty dry.

♪ ♪

I'm trying to just
figure out my prey.

I'm trying to figure
out what I'm hunting.

And there's squirrels
around, rabbits as well.

But I'm looking
for big game here.

I'm looking for the moose.

♪ ♪

Also bear track.

Holy crap.

That's a bear.

Grizzly.

♪ ♪

Bear sign all through here.

Big bear.

♪ ♪

Every step is difficult,

and you can't see five
feet into the thicket.

There's so many
bushes and trees.

And you wouldn't
know if a grizzly

was 10 feet away from you.

It's just so thick.

Do I push on, or do
I just turn back?

I don't know. My stubbornness
says keep on going.

♪ ♪

I really want to see
the rest of my land,

but this way is just
god awful. [grunts]

♪ ♪

[yells]

♪ ♪

[grunts]

Arrow in the leg. [exhales]

♪ ♪

[groans]

It slipped out of my quiver

and I just stepped right into it

and went right at
the bend of my leg.

[sighs]

Man.

♪ ♪

OK.

Think.

♪ ♪

[groans]

♪ ♪

Can't believe this.

Can't freaking believe it.

♪ ♪

This is bad.

[exhaling]

♪ ♪

[groans]

♪ ♪

[groans]

♪ ♪

I'm just so pissed,
so dadgum pissed.

[sighs]

And in a lot of freaking pain.

♪ ♪

All this work.

All this work to get here,

and this happens.

♪ ♪

[grunts]

[panting]

[soft sob]

[shaky exhale]

[exhales]

It's just pain.

I don't want to go home.

[grunts]

I'm gonna get back to my camp.

♪ ♪

[grunts]

♪ ♪

How am I gonna do this?

[panting]

♪ ♪

Getting a little lightheaded.

♪ ♪

I'm gonna turn you off
for now so I can walk.

♪ ♪

I keep on trying to talk
myself in my head to stay in.

♪ ♪

[groans]

It's still bleeding.

It went a good, oh, 4 inches in.

Oh, [bleep].

I can't... I can't deal
with this out here.

Gonna need stitches.

♪ ♪

Oh, man, that hurts.

♪ ♪

Really?

♪ ♪

There's no way I can stay.

♪ ♪

Four days.

That's it.

[sighs]

[beeping]

[sighs]

Hey, it's Cubby.

I got an arrow in
my leg, and so,

I guess I'm officially
tapping out.

♪ ♪

That's the culprit.

♪ ♪

- Just gonna take
a quick look at it,

see what we're dealing with.

Feeling any other
secondary symptoms?

- Dizziness.
- OK.

It looks like at
least a couple inches.

We're taking you
into the hospital.

♪ ♪

- The realization that my
chance of winning this is over

is absolutely devastating.

There's so much more
that I wanted to do.

There's so much I
wanted to learn.

And I had a lot riding on this.

This was the chance to
provide me and my family

with peace and
stability financially.

And it's gone in a moment.

My chances for that are over.

But bad things happen in life.

Accidents happen.

That's a heaviness
that you should feel,

because it teaches you
how important life is.

I'm just gonna pick myself
up and get back to work.

That's all I can do.

♪ ♪

- To walk out of
here with 500 grand,

it's gonna be bar none the
hardest thing I've ever done.

- Life is exciting when
you live like this.

[ululating]
- Ah, [bleep]!

- Lot of fear of where the next
real meal is gonna come from.

- Oh, this is the biggest
pike I've ever seen.

- There's a beaver in the
snare, but he's still moving.

- How's that?

No, no, no, no. [bleep].

- You have every possible
land mammal around you

wanting to eat your face off.

- Sassy! My white fish.

- Bear spray handy.

Give him the old...
[imitates squirting]

[laughs]

- That wolf is directly
downwind of me.

I think I am food right now.

- Still running
high on adrenaline,

and just so you know,

I cry with adrenaline. Whew!

- [throaty growl] You feel it.

- [imitating call]
- You feel the wilderness.

[throaty growl] And
it gets inside you.

- Everything will be a bigger
struggle with the cold,

with the snow, with the
wind, with the dark.

- Temperatures of
minus 50 degrees.

- Pain is very real, and
life is very painful.

- [yelling]

- The hunger and the silence

makes you think all
kinds of things.

- Something goes wrong
in this cold of weather,

you just die.

- No one around to hear me...

except God and the wilderness.

♪ ♪

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- [screams]

♪ ♪

Arrow in the leg.

[breathing heavily]

[groans]

I'm in trouble.

[exhales heavily]

I have a lot of
arteries in my leg,

and all I'm thinking about is

saving my life.

[groans]

[exhales sharply]

♪ ♪

[groans]

[boat motor humming]

♪ ♪

- Just gonna take
a quick look at it.

Little pressure.

We're gonna be looking at
taking you back out to camp.

They're gonna give
you a good flush-out,

given the fact it's
right on the joint.

- Yeah.

- And then taking you
into the hospital.

How's that feel?
Nice and tight?

- Nice and tight.

- OK.

- Nice and slow, buddy.
- Not in a race.

- You can put more
weight on me if you want.

- As much as you want.

- We got you. Good
job. Doing great.

- Thanks, guys.

I feel like a failure.

- Good, man?
- That's good.

- I feel like I messed up
and like I ruined my chances.

- How you feeling?

- A little lightheaded but good.

- OK.
- I'm pissed.

I'm very pissed.

I'm also thinking to myself,

did I do the right thing?

♪ ♪

It's difficult that I
failed, and it's frustrating.

There's so much I
wanted to learn.

♪ ♪

There's this sadness

that settles in my
bones at this moment

because I know that
my time here is gone.

♪ ♪

And there's so much
that I wanted to do.

And there's an entire experience

that I'm not gonna be
able to live out here

because I've just taken
myself out of the game.

♪ ♪

- Then we're gonna be
getting a quick checkout

by one of the physicians there

and then letting them determine

if you need anything further.

♪ ♪

- This is one of
the hardest things

I've ever done in my life,

to call it in.

My entire life can potentially
change if I win this,

and now I know that that's gone.

But I'm proud of myself.

Really am proud of
the way I handled it.

I own it.

It was my mistake.

And I'm just gonna get back
to work when I get home.

- OK, if you don't mind,
what I'll get you to do

is pop an arm out for me.

Let's just do a baseline
set of vitals on you.

I'll give you a quick
rundown on the process

that we'll be going through,

what your next days
will look like.

♪ ♪

- Swing your legs
out and around.

Get you tucked in.

- Too short.

I had so much more to do.

It is what it is.

Pick up, carry on.

Keep on going.

Lost my wedding ring.

♪ ♪

- I know it's a lot, buddy.

I know this is not the way
that you wanted to come out,

but I can tell you for
sure that there's no way

that you could stay
in the competition

with a wound like this.

Any questions that
I can help you with?

Want a hug?

- I'll take a hug.

I'll take a hug, man.

- Oh, you don't have
to stand up, man.

- Thanks, brother.

This experience was terrifying,

but I'd do this
again in a heartbeat.

♪ ♪