Naked and Afraid 2024 s11e04 Alone Blazed and Confused

I can hear bones [Music] breaking they survived in pairs and in groups and now the best of the best are taking on their greatest challenge yet to survive 21 days oh with no support oh my God no one to watch their back this is my shot completely exposed I'm terrified Naked and Afraid alone it looks like it's going to be rough I mean I know it's going to be rough going to take it's like a giant puzzle out here I just got to figure it all out put it all together I can't get complacent out here being alone just can't let my guard down I'm going to have to be extremely alert extremely aware I'm not really sure if I'm 98% excited 2% scared or 98% scared 2% excited it's good to have a healthy amount of fear it'll keep you alive this terrain is a lot different than my last challenge in South Africa last time I was completely surrounded by mountains something that I'm very used to there's no mountains around this is flat you know lots of Tall Grass Predators love to hunt and stalk their prey in The Tall Grass damn my name is Ryan Holt I'm from Roxbury Maine and I run a hostile and Wilderness guiding service I've done three previous challenges in the Everglades South Africa and the Bahamas and I'm back now for number four Ryan Solo Survival rating or SSR was established based on how he fared on his past challenges in three categories self-reliance mental toughness and skills on his 21-day challenge in the Everglades Ryan's partner left on day 16 he snared an alligator with a handmade broomstick noose which helped him survive the remaining 5 days alone on his 14-day challenge in the Bahamas Ryan was rattled when he came within a few feet of a hammerhead shark But ultimately he survived to the end on Ryan's 40-day challenge in South Africa I feel like if I don't just go have that solo part of the journey that I'm going to regret it he left his group to go It Alone on day 28 wow look at that he had success finding food on his own but then ate contaminated fruit oh my God and had to be evacuated that same night hurt so bad Ryan begins his alone challenge with a Solo Survival rating of 8.3 I would say that this challenge here is the most important one by far this is a personal Redemption because of my last challenge I came out here with a mindset that I'm not going to eat anything besides meat this time around I plan on hunting big game with a primitive Longbow I'm going to be stronger by the time I leave here mark my words all right now it's starting to feel a little more like home I think I see some of my items waiting for me for this challenge Ryan was allowed to choose just three essential items to keep him alive brand new Custom Knife a pot here at boil water and last but definitely not least I've got my my Longbow oh look at this inside the Satchel got my map if I can get myself on a game Trail around here and find where it starts to fork and you follow it like an arrow It'll point me to water so that's what I'm going to be looking for okay then the solo journey be begins let's go find water Ryan will be venturing out into the semiarid limpo region of South Africa also known as the great North where temperatures can reach a stifling 104° F in this extreme heat he could sweat after one quart of water an hour and quickly suffer from dehydration being alone Ryan will also be an easy target for the most lethal and opportunistic predators in the world spotted hyenas who will Ambush any animal that Strays from the pack and can chase their prey at speeds of up to 37 mph leopards who see seven times better in the dark than humans and can pounce undetected from the trees to make a [Music] kill I'm not out here to survive I'm not out here to crawl to the end on day 21 I'm out here to arrive this is thick I don't like this at all lots of animal tracks already here's some big prints before I go any further I'm going to put one in the chamber [Music] is hot all right I've been walking for quite some time now love to find a water source soon this is hot sun is just beating down on me it really just drains me I probably lose all the water I have in my body right now so that could be a real problem we got two game paths here merging together kind of creating an arrow an arrow that points to water the further I make it down this washed out dried up River as far as I can see through these trees I see a little bit of a reflection oh yeah this is water looks like a swamp I've been walking for a couple hours now and I just came up on this huge body of water it's pretty swampy so far don't see anything besides water Birds but food is the last thing I need right now as you can see I'm sweating a little bit the minute I stop sweating that becomes a real issue that means I have no water left to sweat out so I think I need Fire Water Shelter then food it's a good Thorn Tree right there I think I found a winner I think this is going to be a good place to call home changed my mindset I thought I was going to start with fire first only got a couple hours left before Sunset and I must have protection from predators before nightfall I'm by myself so I don't have to build a big [Music] Bulma Thorns you hate them but you need them the fire and all these thorn trees are the only protection I'm going to have at night time out here alone against the big cats just leave that right there I'm already starting to feel all the early onset stages of dehydration along with excessive thirst fatigue and dry mouth are some of the early symptoms of dehydration dehydration's put me in check there's not a single water source out here that you can drink confidently without boiling it you're going to get sick after getting sick on my last challenge in South Africa that's the last thing I want to happen got a here you think they're going to have to take you to the hospital no I don't want to leave I better get my fire going fast I'm still uh good hour away from having fresh water take this apart and that's if I get fire on the first try my spindle fireboard and coold catcher I'm ready to go man I am thirsty dehydration is My Kryptonite how only I've ever felt this week in the beginning of a challenge from lack of water got an Amber fire is everything including morale I'm already feeling more hydrated just knowing that I'm about to drink water within the hour [Music] water's on I good thing I got it when I did cuz I don't know how much more I had in me being solo out here means I only have to provide for one but expending the energy of one really drains drains it out of you I wouldn't be this exhausted right now if I had a partner oh yeah that boils [Music] [Music] quick yeah I think this empty stomach and just pound in this hot brown water it's not sitting well in here oh this is not good starting to feel like shaky oh this is not good mouth salivating oh that going to be sick [Music] damn it it's not good I know after boiling the water it's definitely safe to drink but whatever is in there is not sitting well with me dehydrated so much faster now the threw up that shelter is not going to build itself I still got to finish it got to Rally I am beat that's good enough for [Music] now I just woke up figured i' let you know that I'm not dead but that dehydration sucked unbelievable how lack of water can uh be a game Cher I think I was on the verge of needing a saline bag hopefully I'll still be here in the [Music] [Applause] morning there's something right outside my BMA I've been making some noise in here it's not scared I can still hear it off get out of here I'm not going to lie day one kicked my ass I am beat I have no idea what time it is never felt this low and energy I've never spent this much time in the Bulma and I'm just frustrated with my physical state what I'm feeling right now was surely not what I felt when I ate that damn fruit but it definitely makes me question uh you know things [Music] and the only thing I'm scared about is not making it to day 21 and that's hard for me to admit [Music] good morning day three and I'm not miserable anymore don't feel terrible first few days have been kind of rough due to the dehydration but my body and my stomach's getting used to all that poo poo water and I'm starting to settle in and I'm still looking forward to kicking ass out here and kick off day three with new energy taking off on my morning walk nice and early before uh gets too hot and look for a spot to build a blind for the big game so that's the game plan today you know if I don't eat something today it'll be day three without any food and that will be the longest I've ever gone on a challenge without putting some sort of subsistance in my [Music] stomach I think this tree right here is looks like a beautiful spot for blind there was just everywhere Impala wilderbeast they all hang out yeah let's get to [Music] work look good right to my right two female kudu came [Music] in directly in front of me maybe 40 m [Music] I probably should have taken a shot my adrenaline was [Music] skyrocketing day four back in the blind I'm just hoping for one to come a little bit closer and give me that perfect opportunity oh yeah that's a big buck [Music] something spooked it must have got a whiff there's really no sense in having a ground blind here all the animals sense something harmful is in the area something's out of place they don't stick around very long to find out what it is hungry nothing today no game you know day four without food the longest I've ever gone on any challenge without putting a bite of food in my mouth my body is starting to change a little bit starting to lose a bunch of fat if you ever want to get ready for summer I suggest trying the Naked and Afraid diet [Music] super late at night I'm not sure what hour it is get out of here you get a leopard 6 7 ft away from you sniffing around no one's going to hear me scream dream I'm all alone okay made it through night four I am feeling tired an average human loses one PB for every 3,500 calories burned 4 days without food and a bound of dehydration have left Ryan 7 lb lighter and weaker now I don't have any calories to burn I do notice my energy levels dropped quickly was just nothing left in the tank nothing there I wish there was a tree that I could get up in around here ground blindes just don't work here and if I can get up off the ground above the wind above the scent I think that's my best bet to get some big game and this this end of the Lake's got some big [Music] trees oh this is going to take some effort luckily I'm good at climbing [Music] trees oh hell yeah big game wants to come here to drink and and this huge giraffe just came out of nowhere I'm 15 ft up in my tree blind and that giraffe stands over 15 ft tall face looking eye level with me oh my [Music] god wow that was experience of a lifetime the Beast please don't God are be kidding me I just missed I mean it went right into the group and it didn't didn't make contact so this exhausting being in a tree I'm done I'm done that's going to leave mark one of the branches broke and my back slammed right in to one of the trees that had a broken branch on it uh like a spiked piece of wood and it really messed me up oh hell day five no food yet coming home empty-handed can discourage you oh man I'm hungry in my past challenges I've always figured out how to get protein I spear a monitor lizard my last time in South Africa wo I also NAB some catfish when I was in the Everglades you know I've got to add something to my body got to start small sometimes I'm going into night 8 got big plans for tomorrow in the morning I'm going to head down to the north side of the lake where the other giant Thorn Tree is and that's where the geese are I mean geese aren't Predators I am they're out there after 8 Days alone adapting to his environment Ryan senses are sharper but no food means he's losing an average of a pound a day compromising his motor skills including his balance and coordination there's the goose this the tough part son of a [ __ ] hell damn it his keys are too smart got to get something wow these arrows skip when they hit the water as long as my alignment is good I can hit the goose just by skipping the arrow miss that one about like an inch I'm getting [Music] closer yes yes [Applause] woo I'm so grateful the universe is so good just never give up keep pushing forward and you will be rewarded did I say it was going to be a beautiful day or what now let's go eat this guy Sacred Heart Right there I'll take a bite of that heart first in honor of this duck look at that that is beautiful tastes even better when you just make all the noise you can with it ooh what's that that's my final B I'm really going to enjoy this I don't know if I can sleep after that but I'm just going to lay here with a big ass smile on my [Music] face today I'm just letting my body heal a little bit after hunting geese collecting firewood climbing trees I think I got a dozen new cuts that were actively bleeding start to take a toll that's not good my feet are my wheels without those I can't do anything and there's no way I'm going to make it day 21 laying dormant on the ground I just need to take a day to let my body heal maybe I'll make a necklace out of these stuck feathers from all the roasted duck that I had my first project here feather necklace it's day 14 it's my lucky day I can feel it the wind is blowing in my favor everything smells right in the air something comes in and take a drink today I'm taking a shot oh there it Isa hly re po just came in this is my shot we just came [Music] in this is my shot like too high right over their back I need to aim like 10 in lower than normal that guy should have been dinner super frustrating that one that was just such a beautiful Impala and it should have been the climax to my challenge it's still weighing down on me sometimes I feel like a worker ant without my colony and just by myself so you know one ant can still get a lot done but they can be really overwhelming and it could put me down is the end of day 14 today today really got me down I'm more frustrated with myself for letting myself get frustrated about the situation because I did learn something from it all but I should know better to let things weigh on me like that but I guess that's what 14 days of being out here does to you alone if something comes into that water source in front of me mark my words I will be having breakfast lunch and dinner for the next 6 days here comes something come on baby believe that big time oh my gosh they're not running off I'm going to get another shot [Music] good hit yeah like shaking from that yeah that's fresh hair some Impala hair blood all right here just came right through here I think that's it there she is it was a kill shot that makes me so much happier this is amazing day 15 I've been waiting for this since day one that was a bull eyye I can't believe this man I don't even know what to do right now it really do honor this animal my intentions for for getting this girl right here was to sustain my own life and to pass that threshold of surviving into the highest level of what it means to thrive this the liver say it's a little bit bigger than the duck liver huh who needs Fraga last but very not least it's inala heart and in honor of this animal and in South Africa This Heart ghost to the hunter absolutely thankful for this animal I've lived a LIF time in one day today I'm a speechless man [Music] you know this meat is more than enough to get me to extraction day and Beyond I've got to keep in mind that this is still a very wild and dangerous environment I've got a ton of meat and blood in the area uh which is going to bring in uh bigger Predators whatever meat I don't consume tonight I have to put it up in a tree as high as possible hell yeah M you hear that that's a beautiful heart it's about to replenish my heart and Chef's going to enjoy fruits of his labor commitment persistence the first cooked heart Stakes right here this is going to take me a while to eat this [Music] geese are going insane something or a pack of something it's down at the tree right now everything's gone look quiet almost like I can hear the carcass getting pulled out of the tree I can hear bones breaking I hope it's not a leopard that cat is my biggest fear [Music] it's day 16 feeling good I sworn I heard something down here last night you can see the the main carcass is still up there but two of the legs are gone the hind quarter leg and one front leg are gone no flies but the ants definitely found their way oh it's all fresh though still this is amazing So the plan worked wrapping it in the hide so I'm going to be eating steaks for the next 3 days and probably buil on for the last day and uh bong snacks all the way to extraction best preservation you can do for your meat out here just let the sun dry it out and make my jerky for me also known as belong no put all the meat on sticks all the way down this I mean this meat looks so good raw looks like sushi there we go that's a good strip to make buong or jerky Ryan will have to dry the meat for around 8 hours in the sun until all the moisture is removed so it can't spoil I'm going to have to keep the rest of it away from any Predators might bury it got nice soft cold mud to work with here decent elephant footprint here that is cold down there that mud is cold and if it's protected by the animal skin then I could bury it put some more Clay on top of it it'll stay cold it'll stay absolutely preserved wouldn't even know that's there pretty humble guy but this is brilliant this is my reward let me show you this is all buong that's about 5 lbs of dried meat I know it's a risky move but I'm chancing keeping the meat inside my shelter I'm going to keep that fire roaring but man I am full and tired I got to lay down [Music] oh h no no no oh my God I am pumped up uh literally pumped up I just met the last hour doing my workout routine Bushcraft bodybuilding my body could use a little conditioning before extraction been doing 100 push-ups and 100 sit-ups every day since I got that inala hold that last one 15 buong strong right here all the way oh my God my beard oh morning uh day 18 last night it was kind of scary my bed here just went up in flames right in between my head and the fire this grass is real flamable and I keep my fire close so I got to be more Vigilant about that if I had had a partner we could have taken turns watching this fire really I mean it woke me up but all that matters is that this is still intact extractions coming it's right around the corner let's go see what I can come up with for some Footwear there's one new chws I'm going to use the rest of some poahy to make me a hat keep the sun off of my head my shoulders anything that's going to help with my dehydration issue now I need to shape the brim I need to build a mold sort of lift up each side it has to dry in place like this and then the brim of the Hat will have a nice little twist in it it's going to be styling all the way to extraction huh [Music] morning day 21 I love you still going to make it to extraction uh it's going to be a long haul day 21 let's do this taking a look at the map here here's my water source where I've been living looks like there's a dried out riverbed here I see some bones on the way to extraction some of this area is a lot more dense than I'm used to lions leopards packs of hyenas I got to be ready for any of these Predators out there Ryan will be embarking on his longest journey yet 5 miles across Thorn strewn grasslands camouflaging deadly predators there are just Thorns everywhere every step I'm taking is very slow and I'm really happy right now that I made a pair of shoes he'll also be exposed to the suffocating heat and will be in danger of experiencing ing dehydration once again I hydrated last night I hope it's enough to carry me through on this long track out here this is the tallest grass I've seen since I've been out here and it uh has not sit well not only do Predators stalk and prey in this area but also the venomous snakes that are out here spitting cobras and black mambas they hang out in the grass too lethal and highly aggressive black mambas can grow up to 14 ft long and they can move at a speed of 12 12 mph I am like eye level with this grass and I don't see it opening up anytime soon this [Music] grass starting to get hot sun's coming up I can already feel it as I walk out here and it's going to be a lot hotter won't last long not in this Heat last place I want to be in here it's quite thick huh hopefully it opens up here [Music] soon taller than me the adrenaline rushing through my veins because of how tall this grass is around me I'm still not out of it yet a man going through all that tall grass I really feel like I can't breathe this Bow's getting heavy seem like I'm doing a whole lot of work but when you're sort of like walking that slowly through tall grass and your heart rate's going that fast for that long you get a second to breathe you're tired you just feel tired feels like a finally I think it opens up I'm alone I mean I'm clearly alone man this is a Trek yeah it feels like I should have been there by [Music] now wow that is gnarly seeing more and more bones in this dried out River bed oh damn that's a leg that's a fresh kill close by I'm getting the hell out of here nothing is going to stop me from finishing this walk mother just scared the out of me still alive there's a paradise of a water source straight ahead it looks like right at the end of it is my ex from here extraction is real close by so I can feel the end really nearby and I'm like hesitant kind of want it but I kind of don't uh leaving it feels like you're leaving a little piece of you behind but that's all right life is good back home lots to look forward to and I'm bringing a whole new energy back with me [Music] oh boy looks like that's my ride I had a really amazing challenge out here it was the most powerful one I've been through one of the most powerful experiences I've ever had I don't want to get on that I know I have to but a transformation was so huge out here you know that climactic battle between just mere surviving and thriving and I thrived this was an epic Redemption to be able to come out here back to South Africa and kick it off alone finish alone and do everything in between by myself really open my eyes to what I'm capable of Ryan lost a total of 17 lbs during the challenge he fought his way back from debilitating dehydration and thrived on big game his Solo Survival rating Rises to 9.8 I push my limits much further than I ever thought none of those victories all of the the harvest the Impala none of it would have been as sweet without the trials and errors the struggles in the first two [Applause] weeks 21 days alone I lived out here more than most people live in a lifetime