Man vs. Wild

I'm bear grylls. Whoo!

I've survived in some of the most dangerous places on earth.

Whoo!

From jungles to deserts,

Everest to antarctica...

The sort of places where you wouldn't last a day

Without the right survival skills.

But this time, things are gonna be a bit different.

I mean, talk about a nightmare conditions.

I've got to make it through two days in the wilderness

With hollywood movie star jake gyllenhaal.

I joined up for this, right?

Grylls: Pretty damn crazy!

We're heading into the remote wilds of iceland

For the survival experience he'll never forget.

Don't look down.

Jake will have to go wherever I go...

I have a fear of heights.

...Eat whatever I eat...

...And lead me through a swirling blizzard.

I feel like I'd follow bear anywhere,

But right now, he's following me.

If he's gonna cope

With some of the worst conditions known to man...

I got to calm down. I got to focus.

He can do it on a studio set...

...But can he do it for real?

Does it look quite high?

Ugh, yeah.

It's pretty high.

Together, we're gonna be men vs. Wild.

Focus on the rope.

On the edge of the arctic circle,

Iceland is dominated by mountains, huge glaciers,

And some of europe's most active volcanoes.

Grylls: We're heading for a glacier,

And underneath it is the volcano e15.

And about a year ago it erupted, spewing molten lava

Almost 1,000 feet into the air

And covering most of europe in this huge volcanic ash cloud.

We're heading pretty well bang for it.

But before we get there,

We're gonna pick up hollywood actor jake gyllenhaal,

Star of movies like "jarhead," and "brokeback mountain."

He keeps in shape by hitting the gym,

Running, cycling,

And is acclaimed as the fittest guy in hollywood.

Now he wants to see how he stacks up in the wild.

Before "jarhead,"

He did a grueling u.S. Marine-style boot camp.

So, what's he done for this?

Uh, I've done nothing to prepare for this situation,

So I feel like that's somewhat appropriate.

Every time I've seen the show, I've just thought,

"oh, what would it be like to be there with him?"

That's why I'm here.

I'm looking forward to everything.

I'm up for it. I'm up for anything.

That's just as well.

Jake's never been to iceland before,

And he's no idea what's in store for him.

To me, it's all about discovery.

I want to just experience things and discover new things.

You know, I have a fear of heights --

A regular fear of heights, I think.

Wading through frozen water...

So, a little bit of fear, a little bit of excitement,

And I can't wait.

The waiting's almost over.

Our iceland adventure is about to begin.

This must be bear now.

Storms are forecast,

But thanks to iceland's air-sea rescue services,

We should be able to get

At least some of the way into the mountains.

Come on. Keep low.

Welcome to "man vs. Wild," jake.

Get this thing in the air.

Okay, we're gonna have an adventure.

All right.

Whoo!

[ indistinct talking over radio ]

How are you feeling? I'm feeling good.

Not too nervous? Not too nervous.

How did you sleep last night?

In and out.

A couple hours.

So, that's where we're heading --

Right over there into the far mountains.

All right.

Try to see how far the heli can get us up there.

Very low clouds today.

Cloud cover is not the half of it.

We've just the smallest of windows

Before the big weather front hits us.

The helicopter can't land because the ground is so soft.

Instead, we're gonna be winched down.

But the wind's already picking up,

And the pilot's struggling to hold his position.

Okay, just remember,

You've got to keep your hands on your nuts.

Keep your arms down.

As a hollywood star, I'm sure jake is used to helicopters.

But an exit like this will be a first.

As we get clear of the helicopter,

Gusts of wind immediately set us swinging.

Well, that's the heli out of here.

Those guys do a lot of winching people out of trouble.

They don't often winch people into it.

Have you ever done anything like that before?

Never before. Nope. First time.

Pretty cool way to get in somewhere, though, isn't it?

So cool.

We're gonna get picked up in two days' time

Down by the coast, so we've got a bit of traveling to do.

All right.

Okay, knife, canteen, and water bowl,

Packet of two biscuits.

Those are the emergency rations.

Don't do what will ferrell did when I took him out.

What he do? Gave him his twinkie,

And he basically devoured it in minute two when my back was turned.

You know, golden rule of cold --

Don't let yourself get cold.

If you start to feel the edge going, just shout,

And we'll stop and put some more layers on,

Warm up a little bit. Okay.

And we're good to go. All right.

Okay. We're heading that way.

We're heading towards the ridge between e15

And its neighboring volcano, katla.

We'll go up above the snow line

Before descending southwards towards the sea.

Okay, you can really feel that wind here, you see?

And that's just the prevailing southerly

Coming off the ocean.

But, you know, there's no sun to be able to navigate from.

We've got no compass here, so we're gonna use that.

Keep that prevailing wind in our face,

We know we're heading south.

Wind is good.

It might be helpful for navigation,

But the wind chill drops the temperature below freezing,

So it's a good job we're well-equipped.

Where'd you get your hat?

I was given it as a present.

Mine doesn't have tassels. I wish I had that.

Well, the tassels are great,

But they're really annoying when it's windy

'cause they keep blowing in my mouth as I'm talking.

A good mental attitude is key to survival in wilds...

What if we just start sinking into the snow?

Just slowly sinking into...

...So jake's relaxed and chatty manner

Is a promising sign.

Did you ever kind of go camping and stuff

When you were a kid?

Yeah, all the time.

I grew up in california, so we would go up north.

And where do you live now?

I live in los angeles, mostly.

You get the chance to kind of do any of this nowadays?

Yeah, all the time.

The time for chitchat is over.

Ahead of us is a major obstacle

That taps straight into one of jake's deepest dreads.

It's a steep, high, icy slope.

I kind of have a fear of heights.

Huh?

I've got a little bit of fear of that.

Yeah?

It's quite high.

Yeah.

Fortunately for jake,

The snow on this face can be used to help us climb.

Take your time.

Good, positive steps, kicking in your toes.

All the way up, yeah?

This snow has repeatedly thawed and refrozen,

Leaving a crust over a slushy sublayer.

If you can kick a deep enough hole,

It will provide a good foothold.

This is real icy here.

Bang your points of your boots in like this.

You just trust them.

This is a tough technique to master.

The slope is turning to sheet ice,

And jake's footholds look a bit shaky.

Time for a change of plan.

Okay, let's come -- let's traverse along left.

It's getting pretty solid.

The usual thing -- hands in, toes in.

It's pretty steep.

Yep.

Don't look down.

Encouraging jake to focus on individual steps

Is a good way to stop him thinking about the drop below.

Really kick in well here.

We don't want you sliding back here.

Just step in my footprints. That's it.