Around this time of year in Canada, as we thaw out of winter’s sadistic ice-freeze and cabin fever plagues us, the idea adventure travel starts to look more and more appealing.
You might contemplate hiking the Algonquin Trail, opening the cottage shutters, or white-water rafting by the Pacific Ocean. But Scott Wilson and Justin Lukach (accompanied by friend and cameraman Andre Dupuis) have a more severe case of wanderlust.
The guys of OLN’s Gemini-winning series Departures are like modern-day Jack Kerouac characters, seeking spontaneous adventures in the world’s most remote and dangerous places.
In the first new episode of Season 3, they experience winter in Russia and visit the last man still living in the radioactive zone in Chernobyl in Ukraine – they even trek to St. Petersburg for a native’s home-made vodka
The crew talks to TVGuide.ca about their most memorable journeys, inspiring others and the places they’re still dying to visit.
TVGuide.ca: Going into Season 2, and now Season 3, did you change anything or feel like you could tackle something you didn’t get to in the last?
Andre Dupuis: We got more locations we wanted to go. In the first season, some of the locations Scott and I had been to before. In the second season, we just kind of spun the globe and hashed out which countries we wanted to go to. I think that carried into the third season too.
Scott Wilson: We’re our own worst enemies in trying to better the last place we went to. It’s a challenge for us, and we’re putting it out for everyone to see.
TVG: Was there anywhere that surprised you, or defied your expectations?
SW: I think they all do! For me, speaking of the second season, the ones that stood out for me were Libya, which I was expecting to be blown away in a certain sense, and I was. The other was Antarctica. Looking ahead to the third season, we’ve tried to push the boundaries again – Siberia really was a mind-blower. But I don’t want to sell the other countries short.
TVG: A lot of the places have a reputation for being dangerous or rough to navigate. What stood out in that way for you?
SW: It was definitely a challenge to get into Libya and Antarctica, and a few this season as well. But it’s tough – you dig this hole for yourself by going to these places and eventually the globe keeps getting smaller and smaller. So to get a richer experience than the last one, you need to pull out all the stops.
For us not being the average tourists and having to bring a TV camera, that’s a challenge – not just bringing the camera in, but for Andre, being able to shoot the way he wants to shoot. And for the show to look and feel the way it does, and for us to have a unique and real experience. As opposed to having a script and agenda approved by the tourism board.
TVG: Does the show live up to the romanticized image of traveling the world for you?
Justin Lukach: We’re just three regular guys; that’s the cool part about it. We took a chance to do this, and I think people see that and are like ‘Wow – Scott’s just like my friend, and I’m just like Justin. I can do that.’ And we’ve been motivating a lot of people to travel. People who are doctors or are in the fire department. They’re saying, ‘Screw it, I’m going to travel.’ Or some kid in high school who doesn’t know what he wants to do with life.
TVG: How much of your trips do you plan ahead of time?
SW: It varies a lot, depending on where it is or what the situation brings. We knew a year in advance that we wanted to go to Chile last year. It’s a big country and there’s a lot to bite off and choose what goes in the show.
There’s a significant amount of planning in that, whereas you could never plan to get to the bottom of Chile and run into a guy from the airport and get a contact to find a way to get to Antarctica. That was completely spontaneous. And for a place like Antarctica, which would take a year of planning and logistics, that one fell into our laps and took a lot of last-minute planning and quick fixes.
TVG: What are some of the logistical concerns?
SW: There’s a lot to worry about, like Visas and film permits, so there’s planning there in which countries we visit. And then there’s weather. We’ve gone to the Cook Islands and it’s hurricane season. You make those mistakes a couple times, and then you plan ahead a bit.
TVG: What’s it been like meeting people in these countries?
SW: That’s travel – meeting people. They’re the richest resource of what experiencing the country. That’s what makes the show.
AD: We may have planned to go to the Galapagos Islands, but it can be a happy accident running into people that make it good television.
TVG: Is there anywhere you still want to go but haven’t been able to visit yet?
SW: Every place we haven’t been. [Laughs.] It’s a big, big world and there are so many places to see.
Season 3 of Departures debuts Saturday, March 6, at 10 p.m. ET on OLN.
Thoughts? melisssa@tvguide.ca or sound off below
