Bear Grylls reckons there’s an action hero in all of us. So, heat decided to test his theory by joining him in the Costa Rican jungle while he was there filming his new Netflix series Bear Hunt. The show, hosted by Holly Willoughby, will see a host of famous faces swapping their lives of luxury to be taught survival skills by the TV adventurer.
The brave/crazy souls include Spice Girl Mel B, Strictly’s Shirley Ballas, Only Fans model (and sister of Kate) Lottie Moss, and rugby hunk Danny Cipriani. But as it’s Netflix and there can’t be a public vote, Bear’s come up with a devious plot to whittle down the numbers – by throwing them in the scary sounding ‘Bear Pit’. Couldn’t be too bad, could it? I was about to find out!
The day began when I was dumped on a crab-infested mud flat where I had to take on the ‘Give Me Shelter’ challenge the celebs had attempted the day before. Along with my fellow journalists, I had to race against a bunch of influencers to deconstruct a shelter made from logs, tarpaulin and rope, haul it across what can only be described as a bog, and then rebuild it.
After dragging several logs across the mud, which was riddled with critters following a heavy rain storm the night before, I helped rebuild the shelter by propping everything up and hoping for the best. My attempt was pathetic and just like the losers in the celebrity camp, I won a ticket to the Bear Pit.
This meant arriving on the edge of an area of the jungle that wasn’t only remote, but also pulsing with the sound of wildlife. In fact, on the drive over, a safety expert warned me that a 10ft crocodile calls the area its home. Gulp. The area is also full of scorpions, howler monkeys, pythons, spiders and the death apple tree, the world’s most dangerous plant.
By the time I met Bear at the entrance to his pit, I was sweating profusely, and not just because it was 40 degrees. I was genuinely nervous. In the pit are multiple exits, and I had to either locate them using clues hidden in the jungle, or go to ground and evade Bear long enough that he called time on his hunt.
Determined to give me a fighting chance, Bear slathered a mud mixture on my face, so I’d be harder to spot amongst the bushes. I then watched as he disappeared into the jungle. A few minutes later, I was led into the Bear Pit, given the thumbs up, and then everyone dispersed into the bushes, instantly disappearing from sight. I was alone, totally helpless with no survival skills whatsoever.
I was too scared to go into the bushes, convinced a snake would bite me, and I can’t climb trees to hide above ground, so my only option was to look for clues left in the pit with directions to the exits. For 20 minutes, I crept around, convinced everyone had left me. Every noise of the jungle made my heart rate spike, but eventually I found what looked like a giant mouse trap. I realised that I needed to climb inside and untie several knots in order to reveal a map with directions to the nearest exit.
I went in, determined to get my hands on the information, but within minutes, I heard the word, ‘Gotcha’ and saw Bear smugly crouched outside his rusty trap. Turns out my time in the Bear Pit had been a walk in the park for the man himself – he’d been stalking my every step and I hadn’t noticed him once. But I’m not a celebrity, so my ego wasn’t on the line, and I actually breathed a sigh of relief at being caught in less than 30 minutes. I don’t think my heart could have taken more stress.
As I returned to the hotel, I couldn’t help but pity the famous faces who might have to take on the Bear Pit more than once. They’re clearly made of tougher stuff than I am.
