Season 11 of the survival show Alone was a tough one. Alone: Arctic Circle took place in the Mackenzie River Delta in Inuvik, Canada, around 20 miles from the Arctic Ocean and right on the edge of the tree line. There, contestants survived starvation, psychological isolation, and predatory polar bears. Some contestants dropped out due to dangerous weight loss, injuries, mental breakdowns, and the constant need to protect themselves from polar bears. Dub Paetz was one of the longest-standing competitors in Season 11. He lasted 80 days armed with a Gomboy Outback that he depended on for survival. He used it to cut dense Arctic firewood, build a shelter, and more.

Dub showed up to Season 11 prepared. Originally from northern Idaho, he spent years filming YouTube videos and learning survival skills. Growing up, he researched and studied survival and living off the land.

“I got bullied a lot as a kid,” said Dub. “Being in the woods got me away from that. I spent my days as a teen reading My Side of the Mountain, a book about a 12-year-old New York City kid who runs away from city life to live off the land. I figured I could learn how to do that and get away from the drama I had as a kid.”

When Dub was 15, he got lost on a deer hunting trip. “I knew I was lost, and frankly, I didn’t care because I was confident I could build a fire and survive. It gave me a feeling of freedom, and it pushed me even harder to learn the intricate details of surviving off the land. It crafted me into the outdoor survival nut I am today.”

Each contestant on Alone can bring 10 tools for survival. Dub says his Silky was clutch. “My Silky allowed me to cut extremely dense firewood to the bitter end. I cut wood for 80 days to stay alive. It never failed me.” In addition to his Gomboy, Dub packed an axe, fire steel, bow, sleeping bag, fishing equipment, trapping wire, a pot to boil water, and a few other things.

By the end of Season 11, Dub was suffering through 20 hours of darkness every day in his shelter. “My shelter was pretty small, so I could heat it more easily,” said Dub. “I built it on a hill. It was dug into a small berm and had a fireplace hole in the ground that was sort of a tunnel with a mud chimney. I had a fish smoker set up there, too. It wasn’t the prettiest shelter, but it was very efficient. I am not sure how different I would make it if I could do it again. It was trashy looking, but I liked it.”

To heat his shelter, Dub cut trees into smaller logs outside, then brought those logs inside and cut them into smaller pieces. “There was a relentless, non-stop need for firewood,” said Dub. “I did a lot of cutting. I was really careful with the saw. Every piece of wood I used to build my shelter, I cut with that saw. I used it to cut spruce boughs for roofing. I trusted that saw with my life.”

Asked why the Gomboy and not its big brother, the Bigboy, Dub said, “I love this size because it fits in my pack, it’s portable.”

While the Gomboy was the best choice for Dub for Season 11, he’s a fan of the Silky family of saws. “If there is one item every doomsday prepper needs, it’s the Katanaboy 700,” said Dub. “It’s not going to make noise like a chainsaw, and you could build a damn cabin with it. When the power is out, and gas stations run out of fuel, it’s an arm-powered chainsaw. You can cut insanely huge trees with that thing. Silky saws are really good if you know how to cut with them. You cut on the pull, so if you get the right angle and pressure on the pull, sawing with a Silky can be effortless compared to other saws.”

Mental strain got Dub in his final days in the Arctic. “You spend 20+ hours a night thinking entirely too much because there is nothing else to do,” said Dub. “When I signed up, I checked a box that said don’t tell me if I have a family emergency, and I got worried about my mom. I’ve had a lot of stints in the wilderness, and I’ve always had some sort of contact with people. This time, I went 80 days without seeing a picture of a human.”

But Alone Season 11 wasn’t the end of Dub’s survival adventures. He’s returned to making YouTube videos, and he’s scheming new challenges. Next on Dub’s to-do list is a tropical island survival trip in the Philippines.

While he’s planning the Philippines trip, he’s also fundraising for an Amazon Rainforest trip. In the Amazon, Dub wants to jump out of a helicopter with only a few items, build a raft, and find his way out “navigating through black caimans and uncontacted tribes.”

He’s taking his Pocketboy to the Philippines. “I’m going very light. I’ll use it to build a shelter. My girlfriend and I will be dropped off on an island by boat. We’ll spearfish, build a shelter, smoke fish, make a desalination plant with bamboo, and make bow drill fires with beach hibiscus. We’ll do whatever it takes to survive a week there.”

Dub currently plans to take his Gomboy Outback to the Amazon. “It’s like a Swiss Army knife,” said Dub. “It’s something you just have all the time. I remember a time when I was in a huge ice storm. I used the Gomboy to cut my way out of the neighborhood in Michigan so I could make it to work.”

Dub, who is 47, says he’s not letting up on dreaming—there are still a lot of things he wants to do. “I can feel my age in my bones. It’s time to start knocking goals off my bucket list.”

We’ll be watching, Dub.
Follow along on Dub’s Philippines and other adventures on YouTube at Dub Gone Wild