This outdoor YouTuber had a horrible accident. His therapy is returning to the woods
Canadian YouTube star Joe Robinet returns to the wild after devastating accident in new documentary
For more than a decade, Canadian outdoorsman Joe Robinet has been a familiar face on YouTube, known for his raw and unfiltered bushcraft expeditions that have earned him more than 1.5 million subscribers. But in 2024, his life nearly ended in a dirt biking accident that left him in a coma for three weeks and caused permanent nerve damage in his hand.
In Nerves, a CBC Short Doc, Toronto filmmaker Adam Pedersen captures Joe’s dramatic return to the wilderness — and the physical and emotional battles that come with it.
The film follows Robinet as he ventures deep into the remote Ontario backcountry, more than 300 kilometres from civilization, for a seven-day solo expedition with his dog, Wolfie. What begins as a test of survival quickly transforms into a story of resilience, grief and identity.
“This isn’t just about camping,” said Pedersen. “It’s about confronting pain and loss, and seeing if the wild can still give Joe the strength it always has.”
The film was shot by a crew of just two — Pedersen and a camera assistant — who camped alongside Robinet and carried their own gear and equipment through the same rugged terrain for the duration of the trip.
For Pedersen, this wasn’t just another documentary project. He first discovered Robinet’s videos in 2016, during a low point in his own life. “Joe’s camping videos gave me comfort, but they also inspired me to get outside,” he said. “Everything I know about surviving in the woods, I learned from watching him. To be out there, filming and camping alongside Joe in the Canadian wilderness, was a dream come true.”
That bond, Pedersen said, became essential in telling Robinet’s deeply personal story. “We grew close during this process, and that trust is what makes this documentary so special. Joe opened up in a way that I think audiences will feel deeply.”
For Robinet, the stakes were intensely personal. Every small task in the bush becomes a reminder of the accident and of all the challenges of working through his recovery that continue to weigh heavily on him.
“I thought everything was taken from me, and I thought I couldn’t do what I loved anymore,” Robinet says in the film after building a shelter.
“Being able to be out here and do everything on my own and being independent again. Even as far as taking care of Wolfie — I feel back to the old Joe.”
The result is a portrait not only of survival, but of recovery, grit and the healing power of the wilderness.
“I think that other people can find the same exact enjoyment, fulfilment in other things. And finding your wilderness should be a main part of your life.”
Watch Nerves on CBC Gem and the Nature of Things YouTube channel.
