Alone

OogieBoogie

OogieBoogie

Joined
Mar 29, 2014
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My wife and I were surfing through the cable channels and found a show called Alone. The premise is that 10 folks are put miles apart and have to survive off of the land. Being a guy who likes knives I was trying to see what knives/saws/axes/hatchet they had chosen to bring with them. That got me to thinking, if I were going to be one of the contestants (the winner is the one who last the longest in the wilderness) what cutting instruments would I like to have with me. The season we were watching was in Vancouver. I know that high on my list would be a fire starter kit. I would also want a knife that could be lashed to a stick and used as a spear. I would also want a machete and a saw. I would want my knives made of a steel that is easy to sharpen and holds an edge (I'm a fan of 1095). I say these things, but I don't know much. What say some of you guys?
 
My family enjoys the show, definitely keep watching as there are some fun characters. They are only allowed to bring 10 items not included in the standard list, which limits how many pointy things one can bring.

I think a Kephart style blade, small hatchet and a saw would probably be near the top of my list.
 
There was a youtuber I used to watch about wilderness survival and he ended up on that show! He got really far.

Me, for cutting tool, silky saw, big chopping knife and a bushcraft knife.
 
I have not seen the rules on what is allowed in those 10 things yet (we just discovered the show a few days ago.
 
The show has been on for a number of seasons now. This thread should probably be over in Wilderness forum.

I frankly got bored with the show after the first year. I only watched the last few episodes in last year's show. But enjoy. It is mostly a race to how quickly each participant starves to the point it is dangerous to their life and they are yanked. Some get lucky like killing a moose or a regular catch of fish (often salmon).
 
22-rimfire said:
The show has been on for a number of seasons now. This thread should probably be over in Wilderness forum.

I frankly got bored with the show after the first year. I only watched the last few episodes in last year's show. But enjoy. It is mostly a race to how quickly each participant starves to the point it is dangerous to their life and they are yanked. Some get lucky like killing a moose or a regular catch of fish (often salmon).
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Wife and I found that out when we went looking for more episodes. Despite being on for a number of seasons, it is one of the more interesting shows of it's type.
 
OogieBoogie said:
I would also want a knife that could be lashed to a stick and used as a spear.
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o_O Why?

And, yes, the type and number of stuff you can bring is limited.

And I am with 22-rimfire 22-rimfire . Its a neat concept, but what the show is is not about bushcraft skill and who is best at outdoor survival, but who can tolerate starvation the longest. It's kinda messed up.
 
Like I stated, I'm spit balling since I know nothing about outdoor survival. Just seems like a spear would be useful (perhaps spear fishing). I do agree (now that you mention it) that the show is who can suffer the longest.
 
OogieBoogie said:
Like I stated, I'm spit balling since I know nothing about outdoor survival. Just seems like a spear would be useful (perhaps spear fishing). I do agree (now that you mention it) that the show is who can suffer the longest.
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A spear is. A spear with a knife on it is just a good way to lose your knife.

Outdoor survival tip: Use your knife to sharpen a stick. Harden the point in fire. Spear.
 
All that said, Googling "Alone knives" is kinda fun. What the contestants used is well documented.
 
I'd want a blade in INFI. Proprietary steel for Busse Combat. In satin finish. Basically stainless, and indestructible. Edge retention is not as high as most "super Steel" but just as easy to sharpen as plain carbon steel.

I have knives in CPM3v, CPM154, and a bunch of others.... but I'd probably choose INFI for that application.

I've swum, canoed for days with it wet, taken it into pools and not wiped it down for a day or more and still no rust.

CPM3V for me, does better with diamond sharpeners, and reprofiling or fixing it takes me longer than INFI.
 
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Thanks, Marcinek. This is really interesting reading. Seems like the contestants put some real thought into their knives. For a city boy like me, this is pretty interesting.
 
OogieBoogie said:
Like I stated, I'm spit balling since I know nothing about outdoor survival. Just seems like a spear would be useful (perhaps spear fishing). I do agree (now that you mention it) that the show is who can suffer the longest.
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But unlike the Naked series, there is a prize if you last the longest. The concept is great, but it really isn't very interesting show after show.

I think the contestants put a lot of thought into their choice of "tools" and much depends on where the show is being held.
 
I'd be taking a big net and a bunch of fish hooks.
One of the guys that made 84 days and won lived predominantly on fish. He made a little paddle wheel boat using sling shot rubbers to get his bait out to the deep water where the big fish were. Pretty resourceful guy. I think he was from Maine.--KV
 
I've watched most seasons. Winner of season 7 (or was it 6?), Jordan Jonas is arguably the most successful among all the winners from each season in terms of maintaining both physical and mental health. He was also the most successful hunter/gatherer among all the seasons. He snared several rabbits, caught many fish including a 24lb pike, killed a wolverine with a stick then finished it off with an axe, and killed a 900lb moose with a bow and arrow. I recall he also shot a bird but don't remember if he was able to recover it.

Surprisingly he did not include a fixed blade in his kit. He processed his entire moose (as well as everything else he killed) with just a Leatherman. He stated he didn't need a knife though admitted it took more time and effort to process the moose with the little Leatherman blade.

Jordan's personal gear list (in addition to standard issue for all contestants):
1. Paracord
2. Saw
3. Ax
4. Sleeping bag
5. Frying pan
6. Ferro rod
7. Fishing line and hooks
8. Bow and arrows
9. Trapping wire
10. Multitool

I wish Alone would highlight gear choices of the contestants just a bit more. Each show I would struggle to identify what tool(s) they were using. Couple of things stick out in memory: (1) several contestants used blade steels that looked to have low corrosion resistance as they got very rusty (2) from season to season the Leatherman looks like one of the most popular tools.
 
I keep expecting someone on the show to start a homestead. Not just survive but thrive.

“ok shows over you won”

“do I have to go home? Can I wait for my crops to come in? I just finished my barn. What about my livestock?”

lol.
 
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I have watched every season with my family. My wife, 3 kids (6, 9 and 14) and we love it. I agree with a lot of what has been said about it above but it has been a great intro into DIY and “bushcraft” for my family. We live in an urban environment but because of my family’s interest in the show we have done several “Alone challenges” as I call them, as a family at our local creek. The kids have started a fire with fire steel, built a shelter that honestly would not do much and made a snare trap that probably would not work real well. But all said They get outside off of the electronics and do stuff. So I’m a fan of the show.
 
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