As of late, I have become extremely addicted to the television shows Man vs. Wild on the Discovery Channel – and Survivorman on the Discovery Science Channel. Both shows basically have the same premise, two men, survival experts Bear Grylls and Les Stroud, are sent to remote parts of the globe with only a multitool and the clothes on their backs – and forced to find their own food and water, build their own shelter – and find their way back to civilization. From the Canadian Rockies to the Atlanta swamps to the jungles of Costa Rica to an island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean – their peril is the same – and their outcome is always survival.

After watching this show religiously for the past month, I found myself dying to see if I was able to incorporate some of the skills I learned from these shows in a real survival situation. Would I have what it takes to survive like Bear and Les if placed in that situation? Could I manage to acquire food, water and shelter if I had no choice? And, most importantly, would I be able to find my way back to civilization if I was lost in the middle of nowhere?

The only way I thought I would get the chance to find out was by entering the Discovery Channel’s “You vs. Wild Sweepstakes,” which entitles the winner to go to either Costa Rica, the African Safari, or Auckland, New Zealand with Bear Grylls himself. But since I didn’t win – I thought my opportunity was never going to come – until my sister told me that she was going up to Monte’s last Wednesday.

Monte’s, as it has come to be known, is my family’s 30-acre estate in upstate New York. Bordering the State’s Wildlife Preserve, it houses Monte – my sister’s father-in-law who has been living there for the last forty years. While the house is fully equipped with heat, hot water, plumbing and even a washer and dryer – the grounds offer the perfect opportunity to do what Bear and Les do each week – “survive.” So hearing this, I packed my knapsack, my multitool and my cigars – and headed to Monte’s for one night of survivorman vs. wild.

Right out of the gate, I will say that it was brutally cold at the top of our mountain. So while I planned to build my own fire and shelter – I immediately opted for the warmth of my bedroom. And while I did go out with my nephew Joey and his .22 caliber rifle hoping to find my own food – I again opted for the frog’s legs and Black Angus Ribeye at the Catskill Seasons Inn. Truth be told, the only “survivor-ish” thing I did was take out a Diet Pepsi can at approximately fifty yards with the aforementioned rifle – and hike to the stream that cuts through our property and both wash my face with it and take a drink from it. Other than that – I completely wussed out and chose the comforts of home rather than the call of the wild.

I have to say that now that I at least tried to do what Bear and Les do – that I have a tremendous amount of respect for them and what they are able to accomplish. I have seen them spend nights in weather that was over one hundred degrees – and well below freezing. I have seen them eat everything from bugs to snakes to turtles to maggots. I have even seen them use leaves to brush their teeth and clean their bottoms – and the fact that they can do this is astounding to me. Although I chose to put myself in this “survival situation” and opted out – I hope that I at least have the gumption to do it for real if I ever find myself in a real “life-or-death” situation…

…but for now – I’ll leave it to the experts.