Running Wild with Bear Grylls "Kate Winslet" Review

Episode three of Running Wild with Bear Grylls takes place at Snowdonia National Park. It is the most casual of the three episodes. I wonder if the adventure peaked with Hudson and Ferguson. I wonder whether the final episode of the series involves Bear taking WWE superstar Stardust to Grand Canyon National Park, sit at Mather Point, while Stardust cuts heel promos about Arrow’s Stephen Amell and Bear finally cuts heel promos about Les Stroud. I don’t know. The Kate Winslet episode essentially follows her and Bear as they enjoy a mostly relaxing brief camping trip with scattered challenges.

-Bear and Kate Winslet hiked Snowdonia mountains. For Winslet’s first challenge, she repelled down a steep rockface to more walkable ground. Bear will take her from the top of the mountain to the bottom, which is really the opposite of what people do. Folk walk up the mountain and then folk walk down. Winslet got into a ‘situatiion’ during the first challenge. She lost her balance. Bear helped her through and coached her to a point where she clung to the side of Snowdonia until Bear came to rescue her. Suddenly it became a low-stakes Welsh fairytale.

-Bear rewarded Kate with a cup of tea. His mountainside relaxation tea time seems reserved exclusively for those that grew up on the island. Hudson and Ferguson didn’t drink tea. Ferguson enjoyed a cup of hot chocolate. Did Hudson drink anything? I don’t remember. Bear engaged her in conversation about acting, specifically about earning the role of Kate in James Cameron’s 1997 romantic classic, Titantic. I adored and loved 1997 Kate Winslet when I was eleven years old. They repelled more, because descending a mountain involved getting down from one rocky surface to another rocky surface in different ways. They barely walk anywhere before Bear takes the rope out for another adventure rope repel.

-So, they climbed up a narrow mountainous pathway to walkable terrain. Down the mountain they traveled. At a lower altitude they found camp and dinner. Bear fished. By fish, one must have the image of Bear making a line using a thin branch with a jagged piece of metal as the hook. I do, and I watched Bear fish. Bear fished by aggressively slapping the water towards Winslet. It worked. I could slap the water for centuries and not fly a fish from the water during that time. Bear, in TV time (which definitely reflects real-time), takes 10 seconds to catch a trout.

-I liked their camp. Bear built a small rock wall to protect them against the wind. For bedding he gathered moss and heather. Kate Winslet constructed a washing line for the purpose of washing her bra. Earlier Bear threw the caught fish down her shirt.

-Bear and Kate discussed positive body image for females. Kate never heard positive things about the female body growing up. As a mother to a daughter she celebrates the female shape, the female form, which then leads to a warm sentiment from her about the importance of people treating each other kindly.

-The episode condensed day two into twelve minutes. Winslet beat Bear up. He compared taking Winslet camping to taking a steroid-infused Mary Poppins. Winslet wanted her tea and other customary English pleasantries at breakfast time.

-The coastline of Snowdonia fills one with awe and a weird ache i.e. longing to be there. The coast of Wales has more in common with American Atlantic coastlines than the western Pacific cliffy coastlines. The helicopter shot of the coastline reminded me of Northern California, but I’ve yet to see the rocky shores of Maine and Massachusetts. Bear repelled down the steep descent to the coastline in 12 seconds. The descent looked gnarly. Bear and Kate need to walk as if gravity let up for them. The descent for someone looks similar to freely falling down—that’s the extreme degree at which one must descend. Bear urged her to lean forward. The further forward she leant the easier the descent would be for her.

-The last 12 minutes of the episode occupy day two because they need only reach the extraction point. I’ll repeat it every week: celebrity episodes sure lack the insane adventure and excitement of solo Bear. I mean, the scary descent down to the coastline looked scarier because of the editing. Winslet ran down the last part of it after Bear (and the NBC production team, presumably) coaxed her into re-creating the “I feel like I’m flying, Jack” scene from Titantic.

-At the end of their journey, Bear expressed admiration for Winslet’s modesty. Winslet liked getting away for two days and being taken care of instead of taking care of everyone. Bear takes care of people well. He believes in the best of people; he looks after them in the wild; he protects them; and he returns those that travel with him safely to their families. Like any unforgettable Welsh fairy tale ending, Bear whisked Kate away by speed boat to the mythical Isle of Man.