MAN: The South Island of New Zealand, it's an epic place.
It's wet...
..it's cold,
it's snowy.
If you don't respect the environment here, it will slap you hard.
WOMAN: I just need to bring some food in.
MAN: Look at that Stoker.
(LAUGHS)
Last night, there was deer all around me.
That's freaking delicious.
WOMAN: I know how tough it's going to be.
(CRIES)
Oh, my God, I miss them.
You've got to feel safe,
otherwise you'd just die out here.
It doesn't feel as bad as it looks. Feels worse.
This shit just got real.
Jesus!
I'm scared enough to have an emergency tap-out in my hand.
The last person standing, they take home $250,000.
(PHONE RINGS)
Somebody help me!
Man, it just goes bang, hits me right here in the chest.
Yep, really, really sore.
You can't help but think that it could be something drastic.
Food's going to be a priority in the first couple of days
because I don't think I can go any longer.
My motivation has gone up. I can hear something in front of me.
Being away from my family, that's not normal for mob.
(BUZZER) I'm officially tapping out.
What have you got for me? Oh! We've got a fish on here.
Yoo!
Beautiful colours, right?
I'm going to survive and stay out here for as long as it takes.
Well...
..last night was pretty intense.
There was deer all around me.
At one stage,
there was a stag...
..just about there.
I could see him in the shadows of the night.
What it looks like they're doing is coming down here
and night-raiding this front bank here.
So, I'm going to try head up the hill
and catch them on their way down this afternoon.
It's hard yakka, but let's go give it a shot.
They were right here.
We'll just see if things come in our favour or not, eh?
I like fishing and all, but I'm a hunter.
I love hunting deer.
I do it all the bloody time.
Well, I literally have been outdoors since before I can remember
and I just feel like a part of it.
I didn't watch Bob The Builder, or something.
I wanted to watch Troy Dann, and then Bear Grills came along,
and Steve Irwin was my man, you know?
And then, growing up in a place like the Whitsundays, it was freedom.
There's forests and mountains and rivers and...
..and just all the good stuff.
We were just bush kids.
Shit.
I'm not sure if you can see this,
but I'm reaching the top of all the smallest bloody hills
at the moment.
I don't know how many metres above sea level I am, or whatever,
but I'm fucking high up.
Yeah.
Just showing you a bunch of trees, aren't I?
That's funny.
(CHUCKLES)
You can see, this way,
there's some trees.
You see out there? There's some more trees.
And then, over there, you wouldn't believe it -
more trees.
Oh, at least I think I'm funny,
don't know about anyone else.
I'm buggered. Let's keep going, though.
It's been hard going up this mountain today.
I've probably burnt way too many calories doing it,
but so what?
This is the go, coming up here, hunting.
I plan on staying here till I bloody get something.
I know I'm an excellent hunter.
I've proven myself, time and time and again.
But this is the ultimate test.
This is the Olympics, really,
you know, so just another way to test myself.
(SIGHS)
Back over my shoulder, there's this cliff face.
Too steep now.
(SIGHS)
And everything's wet under foot,
so you're just five steps up...
..10 paces backwards when you fall over.
I'm just taking Ls here, left, right and centre.
(SIGHS)
Not real good for a bow hunter.
(CHUCKLES)
Yeah, if I was to set up there with a bow,
I'd just be shooting shit in the wind and just guessing, really?
I gave it a red-hot crack.
It's called hunting for a reason
'cause you don't always get what you're after.
It is funny how something like that just gets to you.
Every time I'm having a bit of a rough time...
..my thoughts just go straight back to home.
I miss Mum, I miss Dad, I miss my grandparents,
I miss my horses, I miss my dogs,
and I miss Annie, like, fucking more than ever.
That's alright.
Got to stay here for a little while longer.
It's not so long in the grand scheme of things, is it?
What's the rest of your life for a couple months?
Just keep rolling them in. Here for the long run.
Now that's 17 metres.
Just to the right of the camera.
Yes.
Got it.
Happy with that.
MAN: Are you ready? Stand-by. (BEEP, GUNSHOTS)
My name is Jack.
I'm a waterproofer and tiler from Hillside, in Victoria.
One of the things that I like about my job is problem solving.
Day after day, I don't do the same thing.
Thanks, everyone, for coming. (LAUGHTER)
Enjoy. Enjoy. That's it.
I was born in Santiago, in Chile, and for me,
family is very important.
Johnno was asking me briefly if I thought you were going to win.
Oh, yeah?
I said that you definitely have the will for it.
Yes. And the stubbornness.
(LAUGHS)
You've got to have stubbornness. Yeah.
I want to do this as an ultimate challenge.
I've been hunting and fishing over 40 years.
The way I would describe hunting to a non-hunter,
it would be being out in the elements,
playing chess with nature.
It takes more than just being a good hunter to survive in the bush.
It takes thinking out of the box.
Take care. OK.
Innovation is my secret weapon.
I've got no intention of sitting there, doing nothing
and waiting for things to come to me.
See you, Jack.
I go and hunt.
Well, I did picture myself in a postcard, and this is it.
An amazing spot.
It's the only thing that would make it better, is some game.
You know, a little pig or a young deer on the fire with a bit of salt?
But before that, I've got to do an activity
that's the least amount of energy to get food, which is fishing.
That's what I'm trying to work out -
how to get the fish out of this lake.
The water's probably at a more constant temperature.
I got to get the lures further out.
Let's start carving out a little lure.
What would be nice, if it would sink.
I might tie up a little stone
to the front of it, so it's got a little bit of weight.
If it doesn't have much weight,
it will just float on the top like a stick.
So, this is the lure I made.
I'm going to shoot it off with the bow.
Ah, all these grand plans.
You've got to have a plan, right?
We'll see if it does anything.
That's ready.
Hook on.
Keep pointing it upwards.
OK.
Alright.
Let's give it a go.
I think it worked.
Here's the arrow.
And retrieve the lure,
with the hook intact and everything.
So...
Ah.
I got the bow working.
The lure was OK.
The rock was too heavy.
I've got to adjust that.
It's all about experimenting and having fun,
and hopefully not starving.
I don't want to starve. I want to catch a fish.
The $250,000 prize, to me, is the icing on the cake.
But I want to win the prize as confirmation of my abilities
to be able to survive in the wildness.
It's not going to be just a few days or a couple of weeks.
I'd love to do 100 days.
SUZAN: £ Namu, namu, go away
£ Let me have a restful day
£ Please find somewhere else to play
£ Namu, namu, go away. £
(WHISTLES TUNE)
Oh, I reckon I just got bitten by one,
on my ankle.
My song didn't work.
Oh, well, maybe they'll just take a while to learn my language,
and maybe they won't listen anyway.
(CHUCKLES)
Ah. (CHUCKLES)
I'm going to go for a little explore.
There's this urgency in me to get some decent food in me
before my body really starts to slow down,
and I don't have the energy to do those things.
And yet, I know I can't rush the process.
I still haven't explored my land very far yet.
I'm Suzan.
I'm 54 years old, and I'm from Western Victoria.
I'm a nature guide and grower of organic food.
This colour is pretty amazing.
In my home life,
I'm not connected to the main's electricity or water.
We live off the grid. MAN: Bit of sun this morning.
Yeah, it's a nice change.
We might have enough power to do a load of washing.
Yeah.
I live with my best friend, John, who also happens to be my husband,
and my two dogs,
our two dogs, Charlie and Toby.
He's a bit of a wild man, which is wonderful 'cause it just suits
my personality perfectly.
You'll have mornings like this out there.
Yeah. Yeah.
Without the dogs, or me, or breakfast.
(BOTH LAUGH)
I think the way I have lived for the last 30 years
does give me an advantage, going into an experience, like, alone.
I have a really broad skillset.
I'm a generalist.
I've, you know, covered hunting and gathering,
and the problem-solving and the practicality of living
a nature-based life translates to the alone experience.
See you in three months, eh?
Maybe four. Maybe four.
Yeah.
I want to win it with all of myself, with all of my being.
With climate change, the biggest threat
to the land where John and I live
is drought and fire.
And so if I was to win the $250,000,
I would invest in a sustainable water-catchment system to ensure
the wellbeing of ourselves and the other animals around us.
Four, five, six.
Welcome to berry land.
Miro.
Fantastic.
Lots and lots of miro berries...
(CHUCKLES)
..which is very exciting.
I love the flavour of them.
They're sweet. Make me feel like I've really eaten something.
So, I'll be here for a while, I think,
and then I'll head back down to camp.
£ Do-do-do-do-do, do-do-do-do
£ Do-do. £
I've had a relationship with plants for the last 40 years.
I started studying herbal medicine when I was 14,
and it's just been a passion for me ever since.
What can I eat? What can I use for medicine?
It's critical to know the plant resources available
because they're...they're the basis of your diet.
The meats are, you know, an added bonus.
But if you can stay at that base sustainable level with plants,
you are in a pretty healthy position
to then access the animal resources that are there.
That one's a funny looking one.
I think to be a human alone in the landscape,
providing for your own food needs and shelter, is the ultimate test.
And I would definitely have pride in being able
to demonstrate that survival.
That's breakfast for tomorrow.
I've had enough for today.
They're very strong in their flavour, and I just get
this faint sort of 'oof' feeling from them if I eat too many.
So, yeah, I'll have some of them tomorrow.
Find a spot to dig some worms.
Attempt to find some worms.
If I find some bait, I'm going to get some fishing lines in.
I intentionally not wanted to eat for the first week.
I wanted my body to know that you are without food,
and you are to start eating up the fat, you know, ketosis.
But, uh, me talking about the idea
of catching a fish and the idea of getting something to eat
makes you think a bit more about food.
You start feeling a bit more hungry.
Oh, you're shitting me -
how tiny is that?
It's a worm.
It's about 1cm long.
Jeez, it'd have to be a hungry fish, wouldn't it?
Well, where there's little worms
there has to be big worms.
Ooh, ooh. We're back.
These are intermediate size.
Oh, no, look at my boot.
My boot's coming apart.
Felt a little earlier, like it just felt slightly different
to walk on.
I didn't give it much attention.
I just had these boots professionally re-soled
about six months ago.
I've got to really make sure I come up
with a solution for that.
That takes priority.
My budget didn't really allow for elaborate gear.
I've got a pair of gum boots as a backup,
but they're a reasonably firm fit.
I'm going to be doing a stack of walking over the next week or so.
And of course, the ripple effect of this,
sand gets inside and it gets in, under where my feet are.
It's going to cause friction.
Both can lead to blisters.
Blisters can get infected,
and dealing with infections out here would be an issue.
Oh, man, there's disintegrating.
These things are sent to test us.
Sandfly soup.
There's eight or 10 of them in there this morning,
so not complaining.
Literally the only protein I've had.
So, they're going down the hatch.
They've been boiled, so it can't be that bad.
I am doing this because...
I don't know, maybe I'm a bit crazy.
I just think I can do it.
My name is Jason.
I'm 37 years old, and I am a proud Yanyuwa, Wani, Garawa man.
My country's up in the Gulf country in the Northern Territory.
So, Borroloola is right here.
I'm a jungai of that area.
'Jungai' is the term given to young men in the Yanyuwa region.
It means 'a protector of the land'.
Yeah!
I would say I've got a very unique hunting skillset.
We're having yabby for dinner. What a catch!
What I learned in the Territory
was the traditional style of hunting, using hand spears and harpoons
and how to track different animals in certain settings.
I would say that it strengthens my survival skills,
for someone like me, that has hunted a variety of different ways.
I wonder how you'll go with that aspect of it,
of just being by yourself, 24/7.
It's one of those things - you think you'll be fine,
but I'm sure when you're out there, in the thick of it,
it'll be different.
Yeah.
I'm under no illusion that it'll be easy,
but I would do whatever I could to win.
Love you. Love you.
Bye, dogs. (BARKING)
Good luck.
I've been here five days.
Feeling OK, but not...not great.
I need to source some sort of protein.
I'm going on this little explore this morning,
just because, a few days ago, saw a deer.
Oh, look at that. He's right there. Like, just behind that bush there.
(BARKS)
That's the one.
So, I set about making a permanent structure
because without a decent shelter and a decent base,
any food that you get,
particularly if you get a surplus of food,
you've got to be able to then preserve it and keep it.
Just following this trail.
There's a lot of traffic on this one.
This is good.
Oh.
Beer bottle.
I think it's beer.
Put that in the bag, might come in handy for something.
Just sort of scraping together
to try to get some kind of a shelter built.
It was a real effort.
So, fingers crossed.
I've always been a big eater.
So, for me to go almost a week without any food,
I honestly don't know how I'm still functioning.
Ooh, head spin.
Well, I've just climbed an elevation of about 10m,
and I'm absolutely...
..fucked.
Catch my breath.
Don't pass out.
I've noticed it happen a few times
where I've sort of gotten a bit light-headed.
And I'm...I'm sweating, which isn't good.
So, I'm going to go back down and see if I can find another way.
Yep.
A bit of a bust, but anyway.
I know that there's animals up, you know, in the snow line,
but that's a...that's a hell of a climb
with no calories in the body.
Got to start thinking outside the box a little bit.
See wet conditions is just making the glue come apart.
I'll find a solution.
Not your day-to-day jobs on your list back home,
but funny how your priorities change
one environment to another.
But we're going to have to do a bit of makeshift today.
Paracord these up.
These simple decisions can make a big difference.
I go through these, so then I can still do my laces through there.
That's just going to fray out and create a nightmare.
Do I need to light a fire just for this purpose?
Almost a yes.
Testing me.
Can't get it much more tapered than that.
The main thing I need to do is hold the sole
to stop moisture getting into the bottom of my boot.
So, when your feet get wet, they get cold and they become numb.
And once they're numb, you can't feel
the potential damage that's happening.
Hopefully, by putting the paracord through the grooves...
..I won't end up cutting it through when I'm walking on the rocks.
OK, we'll see how that goes.
Should keep me out of trouble.
The sun sets on day six.
I often think about the motivation...
..to do this particular challenge and where it came from.
I suppose a lot would say I've had a pretty...
..pretty troubled childhood.
When I was about six,
Dad took off and Mum...
..Mum found it very difficult.
Alcohol was her comfort...
..to such an extent that it was...
..she was unable to quite manage us kids...
..try as she may.
So, then the welfare stepped in, and so we all got fostered out
to different homes.
Some good times.
There were certainly some times that...were difficult.
Yeah, plants and botany and nature has been my saviour.
It was my go-to, to be able to nurture something
and care for something
Love my plants, love my bush.
Going through a childhood that I found very difficult,
it...it has created and formed who I am today,
and I like the person I am.
So, the challenge ahead of me now
will be bringing all of these elements of resilience
and perseverance and patience.
It'll bring it to the forefront,
and I look forward to seeing how it...how it unfolds.
(RAIN PATTERS)
As you can hear it's raining... raining pretty hard for the moment.
So, to do something with the time...
..I'm just going to shave some curl off a dry piece of timber.
Dryish as usual.
It's not 'dry' as we know it.
It's seems like the weather here is really, really transient.
Like, it just comes and goes.
There was blue sky this morning.
And now, it's just fog
and rain and shit.
Uh, I'm going to bite the bullet and go out,
and see if I can cast my way up towards the river
and go for a fish.
It looks like it stopped raining.
It's just drizzling from the trees.
So, when I first got here, I sort of had a plan not to get wet.
Um, I have rain gear so I'm dry.
But the combination of moving
and a totally still, high humidity,
you are going to sweat some.
It's just a bit of a... I guess a risk.
Now, it's started raining again.
'Cause you rely on your clothing,
and you rely on being able to be warm,
any risk of getting any clothing damp is a question
you have to take quite seriously.
Oh!
But starting to get a bit of a problem now.
Like, it's just going to continue all day.
I'm going to have another day where I most likely don't get
to finish my stuff and fish.
It might rain for a week, you know?
And if that's the case, what do I do then?
Try not to worry about things I can't change.
For me, the failure would be if I just get fed up and give up.
Not a big fan of giving up.
Got to get the calories in, sooner or later.
ANNOUNCER: Alone Australia,
powered by Kia.
It's the ultimate human endurance challenge.
The battle is on to survive alone,
in the rugged New Zealand wilderness,
with the winner taking home a prize worth £250,000.
JACK: Ooh.
Not have a good night last night.
There was a new problem.
Oh.
My calves...
..are just...
Ow.
..aching, itching, all night long.
On my other leg, as well.
I think I've got a couple of hundred bites on me now.
Oh.
Got them on my hands, as well.
Other hand.
Nasty.
Of course, it's because I'm wearing shorts,
but I just wear shorts all the time.
I get hot, and that's one way of regulating my heat.
This time, I can't wear shorts if I'm getting attacked like this.
Every wilderness area has its own challenges.
I didn't come here to spend a week and then see you later.
My goal is to out-survive.
That's what I'm trying to do.
Not giving up. Not giving up yet.
SUZAN: Oh, sorry, moss, I'll go behind you. Sorry.
OK, so do my shoelace up.
So, I'm heading to the fishing spot today
'cause I need to bring some food in.
I'm getting plenty of berries,
but I just didn't really want to eat the miro berries this morning.
I just felt this sort of, "Ugh," reaction to them.
I know I can't be fussy about food here, but it felt more
like a...body doesn't want them.
I am going to have to get some protein
to make it home for three months.
Wow. That's an incredible rock.
Oh, wow, that's John.
It's a mountain like Johnny
and his passion for the vertical.
Yeah, and it's as beautiful as him, too.
That one's going to go on my earth altar.
John and I have the same passion for nature as each other.
The beauty of nature fills us in the same way,
and that is probably our most unifying common ground.
I spent a lot of time adventuring with John.
Out there, like, he is an incredible support.
It's nutting out problems together.
It's saying, "Yeah, you've made the right choice there."
His support is confirmation that, yep, you're on the right track.
Without him, I'm really going to have to lean into my own sense
of self knowing about what's right.
So, this is Fish Rock.
Lots of bird poo.
I wonder if the birds like it
because this is a good fishing spot for them.
Quite shallow here.
Deep there.
Good habitat there for...for trout.
I just can't go up there right now.
Just feel physically a bit off.
OK, this is our turnaround point.
The last phone call I had with John, he just said, "Go slow, go slow."
So, that's what I'm doing.
OK, water, and then back to the shelter.
Tummy's got some stuff going on.
Oh.
JASON: Day seven.
I had an explore, and that was...I'm glad I did,
but I was busted, like, physically and sort of mentally
after that exploration.
And so, probably need a day just chilling out at camp.
I've got the water, like, literally right in front of me.
I think I'm going to try that today.
It came to me last night
what I can use my beer bottle for.
As long as it's not going to sink,
it could be a float for my fishing line.
Let's go and see.
That'll float in the water,
and then my line will sit,...
..under it a little way so it's not bottom-bashing, and so I'm not going
to catch a dirty big eel.
Hopefully, a nice big trout.
Dirty, dirty, dirty, big trout.
That's the plan.
One metre.
Let's just have a look here.
Pull it tight.
Don't lose the worm.
Let's see how that goes.
Moment of truth.
Beautiful.
Just wants to keep coming back to shore.
It's coming too close.
It's a funny day.
I sort of made a plan for myself
to just have a bit of an easier day.
But I feel like I'm not doing enough.
I feel like I need to be busy doing something.
Just this tug of war with me at the moment of, like,
"Go and do something, but then, no, conserve your energy."
But then, I just...I feel trapped.
I feel trapped in this little spot and...
..it's driving me nuts.
Too much time inside your own head.
I don't know.
Don't know, man.
Time to go and find some firewood.
Just...just keep going, just another day.
Just get through tonight.
Just got to be persistent and keep trying it.
Hopefully something works.
(RUMBLING)
(CLEARS THROAT)
(YAPPING)
ANDREAS: I thought I heard something.
You get pretty in tune to which...
..which sounds you hear around here.
As soon as there's, like, a different one, you go, "Hmm."
(CHUCKLES) Funny, your brain goes, "I wonder if I can eat that."
(YAPPING)
(TWIG SNAPS)
Let's see if I can get it.
(TWIGS SNAP UNDERFOOT)
(WHISPERS) I can't hear it.
I thought I heard something.
(PANTS)
(CRACKING) (GRUNTS)
(CRACKING)
(GRUNTS)
Oh, shit.
Now what?
ANNOUNCER: Alone Australia, powered by Kia.
It's the ultimate human endurance challenge.
The battle is on to survive alone,
in the rugged New Zealand wilderness,
with the winner taking home a prize worth $250,000.
(ANDREAS GRUNTS)
Oh, shit.
I got it with my shovel.
Oh.
Hi food.
It is a male.
Might as well just keep the fire going and skin him out.
And once I've skinned him out,
I'll figure out what to do, put some meat on and stuff.
That's my first possum.
I never thought I would take my first possum with a shovel.
Just tie him up.
Such a sense of relief
knowing I have food for a couple of days.
Possum tail stew.
Truly grateful.
I'm going to make sure to eat every single bit of this possum
that can be consumed.
Let's see if I can get this done.
The hunting is controversial.
Not a big fan of the whole
uber-masculine TV-celebrity-hunter thing.
I don't think it's a good look.
It's not who I am. That's not what I do.
That's not why I hunt.
The reason I started hunting was for ethical reasons.
If buy my meat in the store,
you just paid someone else to do it.
You don't see it.
It still happens, and most likely in worse forms...
That's the liver.
..because they'll be in a... you know, a slaughterhouse,
or if you buy cheap stuff, it's going to be a battery.
I think there's something, for me anyway,
honourable to be able to provide for yourself sustainably
from traditional means.
That is my first protein cooking, right there.
Should be...celebrated rather than...
..picked on.
Mmm.
The crispy skin on the outside is divine.
So freaking good.
That was an appetiser.
I should have dinner for a week.
I feel like this will make me stay in the game a little bit longer...
(SIGHS)
..get a little bit better motivation and focus...
..rather than just feeling myself getting weaker and weaker each day.
(BURPS)
It's delicious.
Let's do this tomorrow and go to bed.
Good night, team.
JASON: It's about seven in the morning.
I'm in this sort of internal wrestle with myself...
..saying, like, you know, "Stick it out, stick it out."
But then, also, um...
..I just...I don't...I don't see how I can get food.
Everything's sore, everything's aching.
It's past the point of being hungry.
It's more...
..just feeling weak.
Just really weak and run-down.
I don't trust my judgement.
I don't trust my physicality.
And I sort of don't trust my own psychology either.
I really think I'm struggling
in terms of just having a grip on things.
That's not like me, and I don't like that feeling.
SUZAN: I've slept all day, apart from going to get some water.
(COUGHS)
(BURPS)
I've just had diarrhoea all night... and... (SIGHS) have no energy.
I probably shouldn't have eaten those miro berries
directly off the forest floor.
And then, just all those berries in general.
I think my heart rate's going quite fast, I think.
I'm certainly feeling... feeling my age today.
You know, at 54, almost 55, maybe...
..maybe it just can't cope with the...all the different angles
that I put it through.
I'm wondering if that might take me out.
I am not young enough for this game, really.
Ah!
I've started bleeding again.
You just start to worry, you start to stress.
(WHISPERS) I got barked at.
It's hopefully a red deer.
I've got a bit of a confession.
Far out.
Come on, buddy. Come on, come on, come on,
You think, "Yeah, I'll have a go," thinking it would be easy.
I beg to differ.
Captions by Red Bee Media (c) SBS Australia 2024