Is anyone watching Discovery Channel’s The Alaska Experiment?
I caught it during the week, and it’s just started again now.
I’m not going to spoiler this, since the first episode is about the treks to the locations. There are ‘abandoned’ cabins, and one Alaskan wall tent, that have been outfitted with wood-burning stoves and some scant provisions. One of the groups is a family of three. As they hike along the beach they come upon a carcass and identify it as a bear. (Looks like a seal to me.) Anyway the two daughters discover peanut butter in the shack while dad goes out to try to catch some salmon. Out come the spoons. And then they find the potatoes.
I’ll have to watch the rest of the episode to see how much they ate, but there’s a definite feeling of ominous foreshadowing from the producers.
Looks like it’s going to be an interesting series.
I hope they have satphones, because this has all the earmarks of a disaster waiting to happen. The abandoned cabins are relics of people who were far better prepared, and who were defeated by the country. Even those who succeed at it endure severe hardships. I may have to tune in, though, as I have a fascination with stupidity.
I caught the first episode last night. I think all of the Alaska Week programming has been pretty good, and I was especially excited for this show.
I liked it, I just wish it were a little longer-- an hour is not a lot of time to divide between the four teams. However, I am not particularly fond of that Wise daughter with glasses (the one getting married, I think) she was a real bitch to her dad and sister. Also, what were those three friends thinking when they were trying to harpoon salmon with their crudely sharpened sticks?
I assume a significant time passes in that first episode, as they will have to move on in the next one, but you don’t really get a sense of how they’re feeding themselves this whole time.
I met a Salish filmmaker a few years ago who did a little documentary on traditional Salish salmon fishing. He shows an Elder (or at least another tribe member) making a harpoon out of a cedar branch and using it to catch salmon. Then he did it himself. It’s been a while since I’ve seen his film, but it seems to me that the friends in The Alaska Experiment had the right concept. The execution was wrong though.
I recorded ep one and just finished watching it. This has the makings of one of the best comedy series on television. What a bunch of completely unprepared people! I had to laugh at the three who were walking in a circle, and made two miles in two days. Then there’s the wife who has to baby her husband through everything, expending energy she doesn’t have to make sure he feels manly.
Then we have the horror show: the two self-indulgent cows who immediately started plowing through the supplies just because they felt like it. Either of them could do without food for at least a week and show no ill effects, but there they were, eating what few supplies they have, like the spoiled assholes they apparently are. The argument over which way the boots were facing was hysterical. Even more funny is that they probably think that it’s not going to get any worse than a petty argument over space. Meanwhile, the guy who’s responsible for raising these two horrors is out trying to catch fish in a spawning ground. The miracle is that he was able to hook one.
I can see this getting much worse for many of them. The ones who will probably do best are the trio at the lake cabin and the couple on Icy Bay.
I have to say that I expected to find these people plunked down near the road system, or near a village or town. But the Chitina (pronounced chit’na) River is a wild river for the most part, and all of these people are going to have to work hard to be able to last for three months. I can imagine what went through their minds when the plane lifted off and left them in the middle of nowhere. It would appear to me that the people in the most danger are the ones camped near the glacier. Unless there is a sizeable nearby lake or navigable river, they could be in big trouble if one of them gets hurt. My sympathies go to the camera crew, who is apparently living in tents through all of this. Beats the hell out of any other “reality” show I’ve seen.
There’ll be a chopper waiting on standby to take them out, I bet. No way they would take the chance of being sued if something like that happened and medevac wasn’t available.
Works in theory. In practice, weather windows in the fall and winter (when this takes place) can be few. I’m betting they had to sign a pretty hefty waiver of rights to take this on.
I caught the first episode and can’t wait for the second one. I think it will be quite interesting to see how each group fairs through the three months.
I have to wonder what would make someone to sign up for a show like this. I say this when I watch Survivor but this is a whole new level of “crazy-ass-lazy-ass-mofo-gonna-get-him/herself-killed”.
Also, I’m no monument to fitness, yet realize I would be borderline cripple after a week of hiking/hauling/climbing/finding/etc. Anyone with half a brain and a waist size over 42 has to realize that you can’t be morbidly obese (by BMI standards) and delude yourself into thinking this is a good idea with any realistic chance of success.
For these, and many other reasons, I can’t wait for the next episode!
