All you need to know about the survival courses at the Bear Grylls Explorers Camp

You’ll probably have seen Bear Grylls on the Discovery Channel as the face of the Emmy-award nominated Man Vs Wild TV series. The film became one of the all-time most-watched on the planet. He’s since hosted a range of edge-of-your-seat extreme adventure programmes and worked with the likes of ex-US President Barrack Obama, Julia Roberts, Roger Federer, Will Ferrell, Channing Tatum, and Kate Winslet.

He was born Edward Michael Grylls in the UK in 1974. His sister nicknamed him ‘Bear’ when he was just one week old. From an early age, his father taught him to climb and sail, and he learned to skydive and practised Shotokan Karate to black belt level throughout his teens. During his education at Eton College, he helped set up its first mountaineering club.

Upon leaving school, Grylls hiked the Sikkim and West Bengal peaks of the Himalayan mountains and later served as a trooper in the Territorial Army with the Special Air Service, SAS. The SAS is the world’s most respected special forces unit. This highly classified regiment specialises in many roles, including hostage rescue, covert surveillance, direct action and counter-terrorism. Grylls trained in the most brutal combat skills, including unarmed combat, desert and winter warfare, survival, climbing, parachuting, and explosives. He became a survival instructor, but his career ended when he had an almost fatal free-fall parachute accident in Kenya.

If you are visiting Ras Al Khaimah and are an inspiring adventurer, enjoy pushing yourself and want to learn demanding survival techniques from Bear’s hand-picked instructors, his eponymously named survival camp has some exclusive challenges that will put you and your family to the test. The camp’s goal is to equip you with various survival techniques across the challenging terrains in the desert and mountainscapes of the United Arab Emirates. The instructors also design exclusive challenges for private groups. It’s rarely easy, but nothing worth doing in life ever is.

Survival is about attitude. The Ras Al Khaimah camp is dynamic, high-intensity, and offers an experience you will never forget. It brings together the best primal and modern wilderness survival skills handed down through generations of highly regarded British Forces. You’ll learn some essential self-rescue techniques, and Bear’s instructors will encourage you to embrace new experiences and push your boundaries. They’ve created a collection of experiences using Bear’s tried and tested dynamic survival methods and techniques that have been televised worldwide, watched by billions and practised by few.

Bear’s instructors will help you acquire practical life-saving skills as you learn to survive barren desert lands and mountain wildernesses. They will be your mentors and help you form positive attitudes such as resourcefulness and practising calmness under pressure. You will push yourself further than you ever thought possible. With various courses available, you can choose the appropriate programme that suits your family. The essential survival course is a fast-paced four-hour course, an ideal introduction to basic survival skills in the wild. The wild survival course focuses on your keen instincts and being prepared. He uses the ‘Please Remember What’s First’ PRWF acronym that allows you to determine your priorities. The instructors will take you through P for protection, R for rescue, W for water and F for fire and food, four fundamental survival techniques to keep you safe. Longer courses include the primal survival course and the family primal survival course. During the 24-hour outdoor adventure programmes, you’ll learn to be calm under pressure and push your and your family’s boundaries to exciting new levels.

Learn to survive and navigate the harsh and unforgiving mountain environments for which Ras Al Khaimah is famed. The Jebel Jais mountains are steeped in 70 million years of history and untold stories of survival. The Bear Grylls Explorers Camp strives to protect the inimitable nature and environment around you so that you can make the most of this extraordinary experience. During the various course offerings, you’ll learn from Bear’s trusted instructors how to survive in the wilds. Your newfound skills will be tested to the max, leaving you with inner confidence to survive in any situation as you participate in thrilling adventure activities.

Each course is restricted to 16 participants, including children and adults. You’ll be provided with the essential survival kit when you arrive. Ensure you bring the appropriate clothing for the soaring desert temperatures in the summer and the sometimes cold nighttime chills in the winter. Bring light layers for any colder evenings and comfortable closed-toe shoes; the terrain is mountainous with lots of shale, making the ground slippery. Upon completing the course, you’ll receive a Bear Grylls Explorers Camp badge, neck tube and certificate.

The camp has a range of well-kept, simple accommodation for you to rest your weary head after a long day in the desert. The cabins are designed with the novice in mind, so you don’t even have to put up a tent; just enjoy the unique experience! Each cabin has the essential tools you need for the night, including a barbeque set, crockery, and cutlery.