02x06 - Meltdown in Bolivia

[bunniefuu]

Sabrina: vince,
do you need to call the medic?

Hank: we've just evacuated
from the survival area.

Right now I'm in an ambulance.

We're heading
to the hospital here in bolivia.

We're heading as fast as we can.

Narrator:
two strangers...

One man and one woman,
both experienced survivalists,

Have chosen to put their skills
to the ultimate test.

Just one victory!
Please!

They have no water, no food,
and no clothes.

Their challenge
is to survive for 21 days...

Aah!
I want to go home.

Narrator:
...knowing that the human body

Can only live three days
without water

And begins to shut down
after three weeks without food.

Get out of there!

Narrator: this is the everest
of survival challenges.

Can a man and woman

Survive alone in the wilderness
naked and afraid?

Woman: this place
is not gonna conquer me.

Narrator:
in the heart of south america,

Plunging from the peaks
of the andes

To the impenetrable jungles
of the amazon,

Its geography
is as extreme as its climate.

Suffocating humidity
and intolerable heat

Reach triple digits by day,

And the temperatures can plummet

Down to unbearable
frigid nights.

The wild winds
produced by el niño

Cause sudden tropical storms,

And flash flooding
is a constant threat.

This is home to some
of the most venomous snakes

On the continent.

The fearsome fer-de-lance
strikes with lightning speed,

Pumas stalk their prey,

Stinging scorpions that attack
with paralyzing venom,

And giant poisonous spiders
make this an extreme challenge

For any human to survive.

Sun scorched, a harsh
and hostile environment.

This is bolivia.

Sabrina:
I'm really amazed by what I see.

I've certainly never been
out of the united states,

So this is all very new to me.

My name is sabrina mergenthaler.

I'm from snellville, georgia.

I'm a stay-at-home mom.

I have three children
who I home school.

I consider myself
an american witch.

One of the things
that we feel close to is nature.

Over the course of five years,

I've been teaching myself
primitive survival skills.

I've basically learned
how to take things from nature

And turn them into usable items.

It's gonna be tough out here.

Not gonna be much food or water
or any amenities, obviously.

I'm vincent pinto from arizona.

Been married
for seven years now.

I'm a naturalist and
full-time survival instructor.

I'm a teacher.

I'm paid to talk
and teach about survival.

I'm probably
one of the best in the world.

When I've been
in a survival situation,

It isn't
because I made a stupid move.

It's because
I put myself out there.

As far as I'm concerned,
the further we go, the better.

I just want to fall
off the face of the earth.

Sabrina:
I've been married for 10 years,

And that's the only man
I've seen naked,

So that's gonna be
pretty strange for me.

All right.

Being naked in front of
my partner is no big deal to me.

If you have your mind
in the sexual gutter

And you're in the wilderness,
you're in for a world of hurt.

Yeah, this is definitely not
like the terrain in georgia.

Just like back at home,

Men are responsible
for taking out the trash

And the women are responsible
for doing the dishes.

I do hold that to be the case
here in the jungle.

However, I'm also capable
of doing the strong things,

And he needs
to trust that I can do that.

I thought
I was the only one

That enjoyed long walks in
the jungle completely naked. Hi.

Good to see someone else
naked here, that's for sure.

I know.

What's your name?
Sabrina.

Sabrina. Vincent.
Good to meet you.

You can save a syllable
and call me vince.

I like it.
Cool.

I have a name
for our team.

What's our team?

Well, we don't want
to be a negative team.

We don't want "can't."

We want "can," so "two can,"
'cause a lot of toucans.

What do you think?

I love it.

Narrator: sabrina and vince
have each brought

One essential survival item.

This is simply a container
to contain my hand-drill kit.

Rubbing two sticks together
and making fire,

So knock on wood
I'm very successful with it.

I brought a hatchet.

Awesome. We'll be
all davy crocket out here.

This is great.

In addition, sabrina and vince
have been given handheld cameras

To document
their own experiences.

A small crew
will capture the 21-day journey

With clear instruction
not to intervene

Unless there is
a medical emergency.

Oh,
this must be our map.

Sabrina and vince
have been dropped off

Near the bend of a river
snaking its way

Through the dangerous,
lush jungle.

If they head northwest
down the muddy river,

They'll reach a box canyon
about eight miles downstream.

The canyon
will offer ample resources

So they can establish a base
camp for their 21-day challenge.

If they make it to day 21,

They'll need
to trek a further five miles,

Scaling steep and rocky terrain
to their extraction point,

Where they'll be rescued
by a helicopter.

So, what do you say we head
downstream and check it out?

As part
of their selection process,

Sabrina and vince have undergone
rigorous physical

And psychological testing.

Their overall
survival assessment

Has been evaluated by experts
according to three categories --

Skill, experience,
and mental approach.

Vince's experience
as a wilderness instructor

Scores very high,

But his inexperience working
with a partner in the wild

Counts against him.

Sabrina's serene
and spiritual attitude

Earns her a high mental rating,

But her survival skills
have not been tested

In this type of environment.

Vince and sabrina
have been given

Overall primitive
survival ratings, or psr.

Vince scores a psr of 8.2
and sabrina gets 6.7.

Our experts
will reevaluate their psrs

At the end of the 21-day
challenge if they make it.

Try to stick to the shade,
huh.

There'll be plenty of sun
out here, I think.

Take a look at this.

This looks like a plant back
in arizona called coralbean.

Some really bright-red berries
back in here.

Like,
some plants will k*ll you,

So you really
can't mess with that.

Oh,
that's a good stick.

I'm thinking
he talks quite a bit.

This is
an intense sun.

It might be a good idea
to mud up, to clay up.

Right.

If he doesn't stop explaining to
me about things I already know,

That is definitely gonna put
a wedge in our relationship.

This is where we have to think
like a heron...

...and really feel
with our feet.

Man, is that sun hot
or is it me?

Yeah,
it's definitely hot.

Keep an eye out for holes
in this trail.

There could be anything
in them.

I agree.
Better be careful.

I don't think she has
the survival skills I have,

But she's very observant,

Which to me is the basis
of all survival skills.

I just don't want
to find out

That I'm walking through
an underground wasp's nest.

Narrator: four hours into the
trek, they're losing daylight.

They decide
to make a temporary camp

And continue the rest of the
journey in the cooler morning.

See if we can find
a good shelter site.

So,
I noticed this.

Yeah.
This might be a good spot.

Vince:
for now we're just trying

To get the shelter situation
under control.

We're planning
on putting a lean-to.

It's very efficient,
especially with the hatchet.

Sabrina: I am really hoping
we get this shelter built.

We're pushing
the time boundaries for today.

Look at that.

That's like a 10-person shelter
in there.

How you feeling health-wise
right now?

Obviously thirsty like me,
but otherwise?

Yeah.
Pretty parched.

I am extremely thirsty
right now.

Phew.

We'll be okay
at least through tomorrow.

Yeah.

Phew, okay.

So, day 1
really kind of kicked my a*s

Just a bit more
than I expected it would.

We're gonna get this done.

21 Days.

All right, day 1 out.

We are in a super hot location.

I cannot describe the heat.

I would really love
to get some water in me.

Narrator:
tracking along the river

Keeps vince and sabrina
within reach of fresh water,

But the stream is sluggish, full
of insect larvae and parasites.

The risk of diseases
like giardia

Is too great
for them to take on.

Vince: right now
we're on the thirst quest.

That's really preoccupying us.

We may have to scavenge
for water for a little bit.

Yeah.

Think the sun
is at its high point right now.

Vince,
we need to take a minute.

Feeling very nauseous.

My stomach
is super clenched right now.

Sabrina is not
feeling very well,

And I have no doubt
it had to do with both the heat

But especially
the lack of water.

I'm gonna keep my eyes open
for any bitter plant

I feel
very safe giving you,

'Cause sometimes bitters
for the stomach

Will calm it down
a little bit.

Narrator: vince gathers
some eucalyptus leaves.

The oil in the leaves
will help ease sabrina's cramps.

Vince:
you're most important

To the team right now
getting your health back.

Yeah.

Sabrina:
whatever it was, it passed,

And I'm equating it
to the dehydration.

You hear that?

Oh, my god! Oh, my god!

Look at this!

Whoo!
This is awesome!

Look at it!

Holy cow.

Do you believe this?

Wow!

Wow.

Coming to that waterfall
is massively amazing.

It's the most phenomenal scene

I've ever experienced
in my entire life.

This water is great.

Pretty damn incredible.
Wow.

Look at this.
Wow!

Vince: I've seen some
beautiful places in the world.

This immediately
jumps to my top-five list,

And I've been
around the world a lot.

Whoo!

I really feel at my most
spiritual when I'm in nature.

How about yourself?

I'm a witch.

We derive our energy
from the earth.

She's a witch.

She could believe
in flying saucers and whatever.

I don't care
what angle you're coming from.

As long as she gives it
her god's honest best effort,

Who am I to judge?

We got water here.

You hear
what I'm saying?

So, you think
we'll be all right with that?

Well, let's get under it,
see where it's coming off.

I mean, it's coming way away
from the main stream.

That might be safe.

Narrator: the water
on this side of the cliff

Is being filtered
through the porous sandstone.

Many harmful pathogens
will be removed.

But the risk remains that
the water could be contaminated.

You're not worried
about this?

You know what?
Survival's about risk, too.

Yeah.

Just sitting there
and purifying water,

How much we get and how much
energy does it take to do that?

It's not
a lot of water.

So, if I get under there
and hold my mouth open,

You think
I'd be all right?

It's a risk,
but I'll do that right now.

Let's do it.

Vince: you got to roll the dice
and say, "you know what?

"I'm gonna cast my lot over here

And I'm okay with that,
no matter what happens."

Oh, that is so delicious.

Let's check out this side
over here.

Okay.

I see a little shade,
and it is high up.

Narrator: sabrina and vince
take a calculated risk

And begin building
a permanent shelter

Near the base of the waterfall.

Steep rock walls
surrounding them on three sides

Form a box canyon.

But with only one access point,

It can be prone
to flash flooding,

Especially in the rainy season,

Making their location
potentially very dangerous.

Vince:
this is a monsoonal-type pattern

Setting up with this heat,

And it could deluge
at any moment,

So I want
to get that fire going,

Protect it and ourselves,
and then I'll be good to go.

Saliva to help me grip.

When it comes to making fire
by rubbing two sticks together,

I would say I'm probably
one of the best in the world.

Oh, my god.

There you have it.
You are the man.

Sabrina: right now, the weather
is pretty clearly saying

It wants to thunderstorm on us.

I think the birds are agreeing.

They're getting into their nests
and they're hunkering down.

It's pretty cold.

The wind
has picked up tremendously,

So we're hustling and bustling
to get this shelter completed.

Big concern is the waterfall

Possibly becoming
very overbearing

And just throwing down
massive amounts of water

And maybe flooding us out.

Yeah.

Exactly.

Vince: I know this canyon gets
rip-roaring floods at times,

So it's not just getting wet.

That could be dying.

Vince, do you need
to call the medic?

I'm just debilitated.

Yeah.

Narrator: after trekking
nearly eight miles

Through the bolivian jungle,

Vince and sabrina
arrive at a waterfall on day 2

And immediately drink water
from the source.

With thunderstorms in the area,

They frantically
set about making fire

And building shelter
in a dangerous box canyon.

Now after a cold night in
a hastily constructed shelter,

They begin the process
of fortifying their camp.

Sabrina:

Spent all night last night
being cold.

Vince:
you hydrated?

Did you pee much today?

Yeah.
I did drink quite a bit.

The pee was what --
clear, yellow, bright yellow?

I haven't peed
since this morning, but --

That's not good.
I'll get to it.

No,
but I drank more.

So did i.
Okay, good, good, good.

I think that will bode well,
but we're not done yet.

We got I'd say two hard hours
of work left.

Yeah,
so, let's go.

So we're not like,
"ooh, it's getting dark."

Yeah.
That'll be dumb.

If I ever talk too much,
just tell me to shut up.

I'd actually like
to add them butt-end first.

Okay.

Because it's gonna weigh down
the stuff up top more.

You know,
this is gonna want to stick up,

And maybe I can do this
and break it a bit.

There you go.

So, do you mind holding that
for a second?

I'm just taking the lead on this
'cause I've done it a lot.

I can get
kind of verbose.

In fact,
my wife kids me at times.

One thing that is annoying-ish
is the stop.

The pausing of everything but
whatever you're talking about.

All work stops when men
start running their mouths.

Yeah. Right.

I've built easily
over 50 shelters in my life,

Maybe more like 100.

Vince: I have a small threshold
for getting annoyed.

Sabrina: I'm kind of getting
to my wits end with vince.

It's like, "you know what?

"I don't like when you sit here
and act like a boss, you know,

Or a know it all," but I put up
with that *bleep* so yeah.

Just like, "whatever."

Narrator:
early morning on day 5,

Vince has left the base camp

Without informing sabrina
as to where he's going.

I'm about
to camouflage myself up

For a bit of a hunting
and foraging expedition.

Like the king
of the jungle here, the jaguar.

Oh, wow. Cicada's loud.

This may be a good time to walk
so nothing hears you.

I've been out here on my own,

And the reason is I don't want
to talk to anybody.

Sabrina --
she just started whining

And complaining
about every little fly,

And it's too cold, it's too hot,

It's too this,
it's too that ad nauseam.

I think my mood

Almost purposeful
of being kind of pissed overtly

Really sent a message to her
like,

"Hey, you got to pull your end."

There are no princesses
out here.

It makes me want *bleep*
to wring her neck.

It sometimes happens
that when you're hunting,

You get very, very lucky.

This is what I just found.

Beautiful falcon baby,
a fledgling,

Not able to fly yet.

I just -- ah, what do you do?

What do you do
when you're hungry?

You got to eat,
and in typical fashion,

I looked
into its beautiful little eyes

And saw my own reflection,

And to see
your own mortality there...

Just a very spectacular,
beautiful, beautiful bird,

And I feel very sorry.

Very grateful.

And it just died in my hand.

So, it is dead now.

Vince:
pretty productive morning.

I got a falcon.

Sabrina:
I was concerned about you.

I'm fine.

Sabrina: I think
it's absolutely unacceptable

That vince decided to leave.

However,
he did capture a falcon,

Which was a huge blessing.

You eat what you get, and this
is what was gifted to us today.

I couldn't be more thrilled
and more grateful.

Mmm.

I can't believe
that you caught this.

Narrator: nearly 72 hours
after eating the falcon,

Vince and sabrina
have not eaten anything

Beyond a few nuts and berries.

With fatigue setting in,
vince sets out on another hunt.

Vince:
there's food out here.

It's just very elusive,
so what that means,

I need to get even more in tune
with my environment

And hone my hunting skills

And try to bring home
the impossible.

Sabrina: my intention
is to make a pentacle wreath.

When I hang it up,
I cast spells of protection.

A few days ago,
vince caught a falcon.

Seeing this lifeless bird
in his hand,

There's an overwhelming
sense of sadness.

It's deep.
It's kind of hard to explain.

This bird --
it was like a bad omen.

Vince:
I'm a little concerned about

Our long-term viability here.

Calorically speaking, we're
up against it as it looks now.

I need to keep experimenting,
I need to keep on the ball

And keep searching
because there's food out here.

Think it's wise
putting that huge one on?

Well,
I was tripping over it.

Yeah,
let's move it.

I don't want it there
'cause it's way too big.

I saw her playing around
with some witch stuff.

I thought, "you got
to be *bleep* kidding me."

You know,
I don't mind sharing calories,

But you got to pull your end.

It's not gonna catch,

And it's dangerous
for the shelter.

Well,
what if we just lay it down?

It seems like too much wood
to me.

Sabrina:
vince is kind of getting

On my nerves a little bit.

We're exhausting all this energy
going back and forth

To get this *bleep* wood,
and it's really pissing me off.

I'm a georgia girl.
We light bonfires all the time.

You get enough thick wood
up on there,

That *bleep* will burn
for three days straight, okay?

I'm so sorry to sound that way.

I know it's bitchy,
but you know what?

Two can play that game.

I'm just saying.

Peace out.

Narrator: since k*lling
and eating a baby falcon

On day 5
of their survival challenge,

Sabrina and vince
have had little to no food

And are now
feeling the effects of fatigue

And serious malnourishment.

Good morning.

It is the morning of day 10.

Obviously, we're both starving.

We have barely any energy.

You can see it reflecting in our
attitudes towards each other.

We need
all the protein we can get.

As a man, vince needs to step
it up, and here's to day 10.

In georgia,
we have bears and pigs,

But we know
how to hunt for animals.

You know, I'm just saying
if my husband was the hunter,

He'd be getting
up in these bushes

And stalking something out,

Not just
playing in the river waiting.

Whoa. Look at that.

Can't let your guard down
for a second out here.

Narrator:
this scorpion is part

Of the striped bark
scorpion family.

Neurotoxins in its venom
can cause muscle spasms,

Shortness of breath, paralysis,

And in sever cases,
anaphylactic shock.

Vince:
look at that.

Lines, too. Very beautiful.

Potentially dangerous.

And it could be deadly,
so I'm gonna k*ll it now.

Sabrina: things are getting
a little concerning right now.

I don't know
if you can see that very well,

But those are some dark clouds.

Vince:
those look very, very overcast.

There's a lot of thunder around,

And while
the thunder's not close,

That could change
in a blink of an eye.

We're getting kind of concerned
that it might be a wet night,

And even worse,

Might potentially be
in a major flood zone.

Vince: there are cliffs
on every side pretty much,

Other than a steep hike out.

I'm concerned that here we are,
we're boxed into this canyon.

In the even that it does rain,
you know,

There's only so much preparation
we can do.

If it floods, there's basically
nowhere for us to go,

So we don't have a plan "b."

Rain is getting harder,
not going away.

I don't know what else do do
but hunker down,

Keep a fire going,
get soaked now and then,

Hydrate, and not eating.

Too messy to eat,
so one moment at a time.

Sabrina: you may have seen
our waterfall before,

But you have never seen it
like this.

The major concerning part
is this right here.

That is a tremendous amount
of water.

I mean,
that thing is rip roaring.

You can see another one
has come in beside it.

Our pathway out
is getting minimized

Every second
by this huge waterfall.

Vince:
it's increased immensely.

So, at what point do these reeds

Or giant grasses we're in
become water?

And I know this canyon gets
rip-roaring floods at times,

So that's serious.

That's not just getting wet.

That could be dying.

Hopefully, cross your fingers,

We don't see
very much more rain.

Narrator: after three days
of torrential rains,

The storms have passed, leaving
vince in a very poor state.

Sabrina: vince has been sleeping
in the lean-to for,

I don't know, awhile now.

Sabrina: okay.

Do you want to tell me what's
going on right now, vince?

Do you need
to call the medic?

Is he okay?
He's in bad shape.

Sabrina: do you need
to call the medic?

Narrator: after days
of torrential rain and no food,

Vince is struggling to stay
conscious and is in severe pain.

Sabrina calls in the medical
team to assess his condition.

Upon reviewing vince's vitals,

The medical team
finds signs of dehydration,

Malnutrition, and fatigue,

But clear him
to continue the challenge.

Vince:
I'm at my body's end.

I'm just debilitated
is the word.

So, um...

Vince?

Are you in pain?

Vince?

Yeah.

Narrator: after 16 days,
vince admits defeat,

Leaving sabrina
to survive on her own.

Sabrina:
vince has tapped out.

My biggest fear is being alone.

So...

That's a good fire right there,
huh?

Yeah, that'll keep us warm
for awhile.

And those big logs,
believe it or not,

They're a little bit easier
to get here

Than the freaking small ones.

Well, it's just 'cause they fit
in my arms a little better.

You know, these small ones, they
fall all over the place, so...

Let's heat up some palm nuts,
okay?

So, with vince gone,
it gets kind of lonely.

It's nice to have somebody
to talk to,

Even if that somebody
happens to be a rock

That looks like a mushroom.

I'm not at all upset

About mushroom man's
happy attitude every morning,

And I don't want to sound cruel
or anything, but, you know,

If I was waking up to vince
and it was this weather,

He'd be grumpy.

Really wouldn't motivate me
to get all this wood right away.

I'm glad he's here
with a smiling face every day.

Hopefully, the sun will come up.

I'm hungry.

Narrator: sabrina has had no
meaningful protein for 11 days.

In her weakened state,

Hunger is what drives her
on a quest to find food.

Goddess, I do ask for further
assistance in capturing food.

Gonna give fishing a try here.

I'm looking
for any disturbance in the sand

That suggests
the fish have moved around here.

These fish are absolutely genius
in their cover.

Most -- oh!
There we go. There we go.

Okay, we stirred one up.

Where'd you go?

I don't think we're gonna have
any luck with this right now.

They just don't seem
to be popping up.

Yeah, I'm starving here.

Wow.

This is a parrot head.

Or as vince would probably
tell me, it's a parakeet.

The parrots live up there
in that crevice.

There's really no telling
what could've done this.

My guess would be a bigger,
larger bird.

Falcon of some sort.

Could've bean eaten up there
and maybe just the head fell.

I don't know that there's
very much brains left in there,

But if there are, could be
my food source for today.

Mushroom man, you won't believe
what I've come across.

We'll give it a try.

My body needs meat.

Got two more days left
until extraction.

I want to make sure
I can get through this hike

On the 21st day.

I can't pass up anything.

Could I ever imagine myself

Picking up a bird skull
and just eating it?

Never I my life
could I have imagined this.

I'm, uh...

Narrator: after 16 days
of vince and sabrina's

Three-week survival challenge,
only sabrina remains.

Before they began,

They were both given a primitive
survival rating, or psr,

That will be reevaluated
at the end of the challenge.

Since vince
reached his breaking point

And decided to leave bolivia,

His final psr
will drop considerably.

Sabrina's psr
has remained unchanged.

This is a parrot head.

I don't know that there's
very much brains left in there,

But if there are, could be
my food source for today.

Narrator: without a partner,
she faces the intimidating task

Of completing
the 21-day challenge on her own.

I'm, uh...

Narrator:
on the 20th day,

Sabrina has been stricken
by massive abdominal pain.

The field medic
has been called in

To diagnose
the source of sabrina's agony.

Here.

Here.

Sabrina,
the pain is worse...

The medic is concerned
sabrina has a severe infection

Or possibly appendicitis.

The crew
must evacuate her immediately.

Woman: yeah, but we're
loading her in the ambulance.

Hank:
it's night on day 20

And we've just evacuated sabrina
from the survival area.

She has a severe stomach pain.

We're heading to the hospital
here in bolivia.

Rushing it as soon as possible

To make sure
that she's gonna be okay.

Narrator:
uncertain as to what is causing

Her acute abdominal pain,

Local doctors rush to
admit sabrina and begin testing.

After almost three weeks
in the wild,

Sabrina is
in a severely weakened state,

And her body's ability
to fight off infection

Has been greatly diminished.

While tests rule out

A life-threatening
ruptured appendix,

The medical team recommends
that she remain hospitalized

For further observation,

Ending her survival challenge
one day short.

Sabrina: very disappointed
in myself for cutting out

The day before extraction.

At the same time,

I am quite proud of myself
for making it as far as I did.

You know, I really feel like
if this hadn't happened today,

I'd be flying out
in a helicopter tomorrow.

Narrator:
over the course of the 21 days,

Sabrina and vince went through
significant transformations.

Even though his challenge
was over on day 16,

Vince lost 20 pounds.

Sabrina lost a total
of 10 pounds.

After struggling with ill health

For a month
after he left bolivia,

Vince was diagnosed

With three very serious
tropical diseases,

Including falciparum malaria,
the most deadly type.

His recovery is ongoing.

Sabrina showed incredible
courage after vince left

And came up only 1 day short of
completing 21 days in the wild.

This raises her survival rating
from 6.7 to 7.5,

While vince's psr drops
to a 7.1,

Proving once again the magnitude
of the challenge

Trying to survive
naked and afraid.

The falcon was good,
but this is better.