I braved snakes, 10ft crocs & ‘death apples’ for Holly Willoughby’s Bear Hunt…it makes I’m A Celeb look like Butlin’s

WHEN faced with a carnivore you person 2 options - basal perfectly inactive and commune it ignores you oregon marque capable sound you scare it off.

Or successful my case, you tally similar hellhole and anticipation for the best. 

But I didn’t person to look down your regular sharp-clawed grisly, this 1 has travelled the globe hunting his prey and isn’t easy distracted erstwhile he’s locked connected to his target.

That’s due to the fact that I flew to Costa Rica to spell toed to toed with TV pugnacious feline Bear Grylls aft being challenged by the antheral himself to spot if I person what it takes to bushed him.

I’ve joined the 49-year-old connected the acceptable of his caller Netflix bid Celebrity Bear Hunt.

Presented by Holly Willoughby, the amusement sees a big of celebrated faces including Spice Girl Mel B, Strictly justice Shirley Ballas and arguable tennis prima Boris Becker, ditch their glamorous lives successful the UK to conflict it retired successful the forests of Costa Rica. 

Living unneurotic successful a beachside camp, they person to instrumentality connected challenges based astir endurance skills. Win and they spell backmost to camp, suffer and they extremity up being thrown successful the Bear Pit, a ample conception of jungle that is truthful distant it looks similar the dumping crushed for a serial killer.

Inside the Bear Pit, the sanction of the crippled is to find ‘exits’ from the jungle earlier helium catches you, oregon evade him agelong capable helium calls disconnected his hunt.

If you bushed him, you unrecorded to combat different day. But if you lose, it’s up to Bear whether helium hands you a level summons location and boots you retired of the competition.

Naturally, helium hasn’t made it casual for anyone. Inside the jungle he’s acceptable up elaborate traps to snare his prey erstwhile they slightest expect it. 

And arsenic fans astir the state hole to bask watching their favourite stars sweat successful the Central American sunshine, I got to observe precisely what it’s similar for them wrong Bear’s hunting ground. 

Spoiler alert, it’s genuinely terrifying!

Before flying retired determination I couldn’t assistance but wonderment whether it was going to beryllium conscionable different TV sham, faked for the cameras with the celebs knowing precisely what to bash to bring the drama. 

But arsenic soon arsenic I acceptable ft wrong the Celebrity Bear Hunt compound immoderate thoughts I was going to breeze done this acquisition went consecutive retired the window. 

Men successful subject camouflage are everyplace and erstwhile unit find retired what I’m doing there’s a look of pity successful their eyes.

I should person known this travel wasn’t going to beryllium a locomotion successful the park. 

Before I adjacent got connected the level I, similar each the celebs connected the show, had to spell done a afloat carnal with a specializer London doc who took my bloods, tested my lungs, checked my bosom and rated however rapidly I started sweating during an impromptu enactment out.

I conjecture they wanted to marque definite I wasn’t going to keel implicit and dice connected their watch.

Thankfully I was fixed a cleanable measure of wellness and the aesculapian greenish airy to battalion my bags.

But earlier that I had to sojourn a vaccination centre to person shots to support maine from a big of diseases including rabies. 

I was warned to debar touching the section wildlife, peculiarly bats that bent from the trees similar creepy small vampires. Safe to accidental I’d beryllium staying good wide of those. 

'Everything wants to termination you'

Arriving astatine the compound I was whisked to the commencement constituent of the Bear Pit to conscionable Bear earlier the biggest crippled of feline and rodent would start. 

While the celebrities volition beryllium seen walking done Jurassic Park benignant gates for their stint successful the pit, the world is that’s conscionable a sexy changeable for TV, the existent commencement constituent is down a rugged way disconnected the broadside of a roadworthy little than a mile away. 

Determined to marque definite I looked the portion - and stood immoderate benignant of accidental against him - Bear covered maine successful makeshift camouflage.

Only the bully worldly for me. He poured his h2o into the mud connected the floor, mixed it astir and past slathered it connected my face, bugs and all.

“You look similar a ninja”, helium told me. Obviously much assured of my capabilities than I was.

After an unnerving pep speech by Scotty, Bear’s military-trained sidekick of 20 years, the crippled is on.

Bear disappears into the wood with a outpouring successful his measurement and I’m near to my ain devices, utterly terrified. Not conscionable of making a fool of myself successful beforehand of the TV star, but of each the things that could termination maine wrong the Bear Pit.

Ahead of going connected the run, the information squad had warned maine the country is location to snakes, spiders and thing ominously called a decease pome histrion - each portion of it is toxic and tin pain your tegument if you hap to interaction it.

Basically, everything wants to termination you and proceeding determination are ambulances adjacent on with radical equipped with anti-venom injections, fills maine with horror.

To marque maine consciousness adjacent much frightened the Bear Pit is besides wherever a 10 ft crocodile, who Bear has named “Juvenile Julie”, calls home.

Apparently she’s young and this makes her much territorial and aggressive. And this is not similar I’m A Celebrity wherever the crocs person their jaws taped shut. 

This is existent beingness wherever I could beryllium Julie’s meal due to the fact that I’ve entered her home. She’s that unpredictable that 1 of the show’s information squad ever has eyes connected her successful lawsuit she decides she wants a quality for her supper.

Adrenaline spiking I ran into the forest, nary hint which absorption I was heading in.

I’m usually bully with directions but the colourful representation I’d been shown up of going connected the run, which marked the exits I was aiming for, had gone from my mind.

It’s not arsenic if the jungle has signposts helpfully telling you which mode to go, nor could I trust connected my telephone due to the fact that the spot is truthful distant there’s nary signal.

And there’s a existent uneasy feeling that washes implicit you erstwhile you cognize idiosyncratic is aft you and you can’t spot them.

The crew, including the show’s photographer, had melted into the inheritance of the jungle and I couldn’t spot oregon perceive immoderate motion of them.

Before we started Bear warned maine astir being “track happy” and pursuing earthy looking paths that chopped done the forest.

But with a consciousness of panic pumping done me, that’s easier said than done. The way of slightest absorption seemed overmuch much inviting.

After immoderate clip I recovered myself charging on a dried up stream bed, hopping from chromatic to chromatic due to the fact that I was excessively frightened to enactment my ft connected the leaves surrounding them, successful lawsuit I stood connected a snake. 

The wood was intense, the somesthesia was nearing 40 degrees astatine the main campy but felt treble that acknowledgment to the trees and undergrowth. 

In a substance of minutes I was covered successful sweat and the mud Bear had enactment connected my look had tally into my eyes.

Anyone watching this bid who thinks the celebs are primed astir wherever to spell are genuinely mistaken.

You truly are near to your ain devices. The camera unit are successful peculiar hiding spots you can’t prime retired unless you are a commando for real, and the jungle is savage, it’s not been created conscionable for TV.

There was a changeless pulsing sound which I rapidly realised was the hum of bugs, and howler monkeys that unrecorded successful the country marque this weird roar which truly does enactment you connected edge.

The full clip I was determination I felt similar everything astir maine wanted to termination maine and being wholly honest, I began hoping Bear would travel and prevention me.

As I walked down a way made by immoderate benignant of carnal excessively large and scary to deliberation about, I started to deliberation I’d really been abandoned, determination was nary motion of a quality anywhere.

A existent consciousness of panic began to acceptable successful - and I jumped retired of my tegument arsenic a manus grabbed my shoulder.

Bear had travel up down maine truthful softly I didn’t consciousness his beingness until helium had grabbed me.

“I knew you’d beryllium way happy”, helium told maine gleefully arsenic helium bound my hands similar I was a captive of war.

In 1 past humiliating act, helium tied maine to a histrion and walked disconnected backmost into the jungle to commencement hunting his adjacent prey.

I couldn’t assistance but laugh, a consciousness of alleviation that this ordeal was implicit for me, but I was besides near wondering if the celebs would fare immoderate amended than I did.

Bear said helium wants this bid to amusement there’s an enactment leader successful each of us.

If I did thing connected this trip, I proved him wrong.