No Boundaries, Episode 5: Favorites Favored

If you have not been keeping up with the No Boundaries series, currently showing on Outdoor Life Network after being canceled by WB last spring, you can get recaps from the previous four episodes here.

This week showed the first airing of episode five in the United States, although the series did air completely in Canada and a winner has already been declared. If you are the type of person who opens their Christmas presents early, you can find out who won the quest on the net, but that might take away all the fun of watching the shows unfold. Even if you do know who won, however, this is still an incredible series to follow. The premise, for all of you who have never seen the show, goes like this. Take about 16 physically fit people into the great north and have them compete for things like matches and boots, all the while hiking and boating further into the arctic. It's like Survivor in a winter land. Alliances form and are broken, and people even get voted off for "strategic" reasons. There are some unlovable personalities and some heroes.

As we open episode five, day 10 of a thirty-day journey, Eli has just been voted leader. Eli is a devoutly religious man, a twenty-something, strong, handsome gentleman. As leader, Eli will have to organize the team to complete two challenges. One challenge is a group challenge one is an individual challenge. Eli will also choose the one person who goes home this leg of the race and he will only be leader for this week's episode.

The Challenge facing the group this week is to go fishing. Simple enough, eh? Except what do they fish for in the pacific northwest? Salmon. And they fish on a fishing rig. To win the group challenge reward, which is getting waterproof covers for their back packs, the team must catch five hundred salmon in two hours. To describe the actual process of big game salmon fishing would be too complicated for this article. Captain Elvis is in charge of this particular fishing boat, which is called the East Isle. Captain Elvis has been fishing his whole life, he comes from a long line of fisherman, generations and generations. If you would like to get an idea of what his life must be like I can recommend two books, one is The Perfect Storm (much better than the movie), which wickedly describes a swordfisherman's work and lifestyle. The other, more similar is scope to the kind of atmosphere Captain Elvis probably lives in is The Shipping News. The team is divided up and Eli delegates who does what. He sends Ina to the shiff, and Kelley to the plunger (making sure all the fish get into the cargo hold below) Allen and Matt are packing (which involves doing something with holding rings) Stephanie doesn't like fishing, she thinks it's tres boring. Rosie is in charge of spotting the fish. Salmon jump in groups out of the water, so they are fairly easy to spot. If you have ever played Age of Empires, you know exactly what I am talking about.

The group was hoping to get a dry run, however the fish were spotted so fast that things just happened really quickly. Eli nearly got knocked off by the net being lowered, but managed to survive with all limbs intact. Before you can say Croquettes and mousse, the nets are pulled up with a massive load of the silvery orange fish. They are fairly good size and the counting begins. Some of our team members are having a blast, Kelly thinks it's the most fun thing she has done in ages, Dustin does not like fishing, Rosie is complaining, something she does often, that the fish are living creatures and she is not an animal activist by any means, "but dang do they have to have so much fun killing them? If this were Kittens dying right in front of them would people be all happy about it?"

After the count the fish caught in the net, as they fall into a holding tank below, they realize they already have 225 fish and are very excited. There is only time for one more net dropping and if they don't catch a similar size load, they do not get their waterproof back packs. Rosie spots another school of salmon and the boat runs for it, they lower the net with no problems and when they pull the net on deck it holds three fish. Yes, that is right, three. There is no more time to set net again, and so the team does not win the waterproof backpack covers.

As the team members say they are praying it doesn't rain, it begins raining. All there stuff will be wet. They leave the Salmon boat behind and head to Quadra Island all smelling of salmon and worried about the bears that populate the area.

They set up camp on the island and Eli tells the camera man that certain people have chores every day that they fulfill faithfully. Some set up tents, some cook - and then there are those who pretend to help but really don't. Rosie, in a confessional, says that she hates camping and has had no experience doing so. She tries not to complain but she is not happy.

That night for dinner, Captain Elvis and his family bring fresh-caught salmon to the camp and they have an old fashioned salmon bake. The fish are cut in half and splayed on cedar contraptions in the native style of cooking. This is a good night for our campers. There is no rain, the fire is warm, and they get to take a step back and relax. Jill, who is 48, remarks how she has been befriended by Kristin, who is 19. Jill says that this is such an experience for someone so young to go through. Kristin says it is remarkable that Jill at 48 gets to go through it too. They all agree it is a once in a lifetime experience no matter what your age. Jill wonders if the television cameras can possibly pick up on the bond they have all created.