Ever wonder if you have the stuff to pitch modern life and pack into the wilderness?
If you love the outdoors, you probably have.
And each of us who's had that vision likely has grossly underestimated just what it would take to make a go of living off the land in a remote setting.
A reality TV show on Discovery Channel, The Alaska Experiment, puts all your suppositions to the test.
Four groups of volunteers packed into various regions of Alaska in 2007 to subsist for months in basic shelters and on whatever food sources they could find. Almost every well-laid plan goes to waste as city-dwellers figure out the rules have changed.
The volunteers were accompanied by TV crews, and by safety experts, so the true risk was minimal. But in the same way Discovery's popular Deadliest Catch series puts the viewer on the deck of Alaskan crab boats, The Alaska Experiment drops the viewer into the wilds of Alaska, and the camera is soon forgotten. It's great adventure-escapist fare.
Watch for new episodes Tuesdays at 10 p.m., catch re-runs throughout the week or visit the Web site before July 9 to watch full episodes online.