The History Channel’s Alone is an insane survival show. Ten contestants are selected to be dropped in the middle of the wilderness. Each season occurs in a new location all over the world. Participants are able to select a limited amount of survival tools to bring with them. Left to their own devices and without knowing how long they must remain in the wilderness, the contestants must outlast each other. The last man standing is given $500,000.
Everyone does weird things when they are alone. Quirks are bound to come out, but when coupled with brutal temperatures and starvation, people can get weird. Some choices made on the show leave viewers dumbfounded. Here are some of the weirdest thing that have happened on Alone.
8 Desmond Tapped Out Immediately In Season 2
The idea of being completely alone for an unforeseen amount of time can be daunting, but one would think contestants of Alone prepare for the experience. Reality shows are always cast with the intention of drama, but fans think Desmond was specifically selected to fail on Alone.
After only a few short hours, Desmond had a minor freak out. He failed to make a shelter after breaking his saw cutting branches and then stumbled upon some bear scat. The sight made him rethink his decision to come on the show—seems he did not realize there were wild animals in the wilderness. Desmond chose to leave on the first day.
7 Why Did Brant Hallucinate On Alone?
Back in season 1 of Alone, Brant fell victim to the dangers of the wilderness despite his background knowledge. Brant spent many days struggling to find water. When he was finally successful, he was unable to make a fire to purify the water. Throwing caution to the wind and forgetting the risk of drinking contaminated water, Brant “purified” the water with moss and drank to his heart’s content.
He experienced intense abdominal pain and began to hallucinate ancient symbols. Brant had consumed 10 quarts of brackish water, and the sodium levels were dehydrating him further. Viewers were shocked that such an experienced survivalist could make such a simple mistake. Brant left on day 6.
6 Jim Caught A Bird With His Bare Hands
Season 4 of Alone was a little different than the show’s other seasons. Instead of contestants being completely by themselves, they were paired into teams. One team was a pair of brothers, and in episode 6 viewers were blown away by their actions.
One of the brothers, Jim, caught and killed a duck with his bare hands. The innocent bird wandered into their campsite, walking almost to their feet. The shocking part of Jim’s kill was his ability to jump out of his seat and catch the duck before it flew away. It is quite impressive to watch.
5 Tracy Got Between A Family Of Bears
As Desmond learned in the first season, Tracy of season 2 got caught up in some bear drama. During her exploration of the terrain, Tracy somehow managed to put herself in between a mamma bear and her cubs. Bears are clearly very dangerous creatures, but the expression “Mamma Bear” does not come from nowhere.
Tracy was able to scare off the bears and remove herself from the situation. Unfortunately for her attempt at the $500,000 reward, she had an emotional breakdown over traumatizing the bear family and left the show.
4 How Was Dave Removed For Starvation After Storing Food?
One medically-required tap out from Alone still causes fans to scratch their heads, and that is Dave’s removal from season 3. Viewers of History Channel’s top show are used to seeing contestants pushing themselves to the limits, but Dave’s rationing tactic of roughly 200 calories a day after stocking up on fish was a bit much.
When Dave started experiencing blurred vision and hallucination, the medical team swooped in and removed him. Dave had high blood pressure, but never reached the BMI threshold of 17. This caused fans to question if Dave had cheated the mandatory medical assessment taken before being dropped in the wilderness. Weigh ins were taken with contestants fully dressed, creating the potential for weights to be hidden in clothing. Now, weigh ins are done without clothing.
3 Jessie Ate Tree Bark
Dave was not the only contestant on the History Channel’s Alone to experience horrible abdominal pain. In season 5 of the competitive show, Jessie attempted to live on a diet of pine tree bark. Though crazy to witness, the idea is not completely insane. Most tree bark is not safe to eat, but pine’s inner bark is actually nutritious and can be a great emergency snack if someone is lost in the wilderness.
Consumed at the quantity Jessie digested, however, was not ideal. He was grinding the bark, attempting to make bread from it, and ended up having extreme abdominal pain in the fifth episode of the season.
2 Why Did Larry Pass Out On Alone?
One would think that a man eating tree bark was the most dramatic thing in the fifth episode of season 5, but it was not. Another contestant in the competition, Larry, successfully pulled cameras to him when he blacked out due to a head rush.
Larry’s black out actually caused fans to question the legitimacy of the show. The cutting of the film made fans wonder if the show is fake. Dedicated viewers ignore this possibility, but it would be quite sad if the History Channel’s top show was staged.
1 Why Did Turcotte Leave Alone?
Many contestants on Alone have tapped out for personal reasons. Being totally isolated can do weird things to a person, and missing loved ones can seriously effect a person’s ability to function in the wilderness. Though understanding this, fans still question Turcotte’s reason for leaving the competition in the most recent season of Alone.
Turcotte seemed to be a front runner of season 9. This was especially true after he found a mechanical animal trap, since contestants are able to keep any man-made objects they come across during. However, Turcotte chose to leave the show after opening up about the struggle of killing animals and how he missed his girlfriend and dog.
