In a recent blog post I reviewed a new book by celebrity adventurer Bear Grylls. Some of the feedback to the post was quite scathing of bushcraft’s new poster boy. Some people suggested that he was a fake and that cuddly Ray Mears is the real deal. So let’s take a look at both of their biogs.

I know that Bear Grylls served with the British SAS which is about as tough as it gets. He was trained in unarmed combat, combat survival and Winter and Desert warfare as well as a whole host of other specialist training that got him to where he is today as a tough nut. He broke his back in three places in a parachuting accident. Undaunted, he fought his way back to become the youngest person to climb Everest at 23 years of age. He has done countless TV programmes about survival in extremes.

Ray Mears, on the hand, is the Godfather of bushcraft on TV. He’s like the modern day equivalent of the Bushtucker Man as he instructs us how to survive in extreme wilderness conditions. He seems to revel in the environment and, unlike Grylls, you can imagine him preferring the meagre conditions of a woodland floor rather than a hotel room. He’s so knowledgeable and at ease with bushcraft that I’d always assumed he had an army background. In fact, it was his love of nature as a boy growing up in the North Downs that set him on the path to where he is today. He couldn’t afford camping equipment as a young lad, so would improvise with what he could find in the woods. As he grew older, he had a few mentors in his life who taught him what they knew. Since then, he’s learnt bushcraft techniques from indigenous tribes around the world and his gentle approach and huge respect for nature has earned him many friends in the bushcraft world.

By my reckoning, I actually think that Bear Grylls is more hardcore than Ray Mears. By no means could he be called a fake. If I did drop out of a plane into an emergency situation, I’d choose Grylls to help rescue me. Ray is a gentle giant who is happy to let nature envelop him. He could find food and keep you amused indefinitely but could he get you out of the wilderness? Whichever way you look at it, they are both inspirational characters and genuine experts no matter what practices they employ in their TV programmes.

Adventurer, explorer and TV celebrity Bear Grylls has a new book out. Entitled Great Outdoor Adventures, the book offers a guide to the thrills of outdoor pursuits. This book is essentially a write-up on his own experiences and he covers activities such as skydiving, rock climbing, skiing, caving and surfing. But Bear, who was once the youngest person to summit Everest, has a handy section on hiking that will be of interest to experienced hikers and novices alike.

Bear calls hiking “the oldest form of therapy known to man” for its ability to put life’s troubles into perspective. He describes how the rhythmic process of walking heals the mind, gives you time to sift through any problems or bond with family and friends. He also calls hiking the “cornerstone of all great outdoor pursuits” because it gets you to places inaccessible by other means.

He has sections on the history of walking, essential kit, Himalayan trekking, Nordic walking, Munro bagging, long distance walking, the right to roam and famous walking writers. It is all a personal and introspective account of this most natural and the original outdoor activity. But the book is an interesting read with some useful information and, above all, oodles of inspiration from one of the UK’s most charismatic adventurers.

Check this Bear Grylls post for more opinions on him.