Category: Wilderness Survival

How to find water sources in virtually any outdoor environment

5/26/2015

By Dennis Diaz

In most outdoor situations water will be a priority right after shelter. Knowing how to find it is something you must learn. Here are a couple tips on where to look.

Ravines

The obvious place to look is in places where water flows in wet weather. Many times you will be able to find pockets of standing or even flowing water.

If there is no water on the surface you may be able to dig in a low spot and hit water without too much effort.

Beaches

I have never had to find fresh water on a beach, but I did read a survival manual written in the 40’s or 50’s that insisted that there was fresh water on almost every beach.

The instructions went something like this. Walk on the beach away from the water to the edge of the sand. Then dig down until you hit water. This according to the book is usually fresh water.

The theory is, rain water runs off and hits the sand and immediately sinks down to the level of the salt water. This builds up since it takes quite a while to become mixed with the salt water.

Wet Areas

If you are in an area with no obvious places to look, keep an eye out for water loving plants like cattails, or willows. Cottonwood trees usually grow near water also.

If you can find a muddy, or wet looking area just dig down until you have water in your hole.

Solar Still

We’ve all seen how to make a solar still, but if you have somehow missed it. Dig a three foot wide and up to three foot deep hole. Place a container in the bottom and cover the top with plastic. Place a small stone in the center of the plastic to create a low spot.

When the sun hits the plastic it will heat up in the hole and cause water to evaporate, which in turn condenses on the plastic and drips into the container below the spot where you placed the stone.

Transpiration bags

Clear plastic bags can be tied to tree branches, and the sun will “cook” some water out of them. Slip the end of a leafy branch into the bag and tie the neck around the branch. It is a good idea to set up several of these if you plan on using it for your water supply.

As with most wild water sources it is always a good idea to treat your found water.

PS: Here's the resource I've put together to take a lot of the guesswork of this whole water sourcing and treatment during an emergency subjects

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6 Medicinal Herbs and Plants You Need to Know About

4/15/2015

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By Anthony Urso

There is an abundance of natural remedies available to us in the wild. In addition to being a food source, many plants can be used as a source of healing and to boost overall wellness. Some common benefits of medicinal plants and herbs include soothing skin rashes and swelling, decreasing inflammation in the joints to reduce or eliminate arthritis pain, boosting immune system to fight off colds and other viruses, addressing symptoms of diarrhea, calming migraines and addressing many other ailments.

All over the globe, cultures have been relying on medicinal herbs and plants to treat a variety of ailments for centuries. Prior to the invention of conventional medication, these natural remedies were the only treatment available and they worked for many, many conditions. Medicinal herbs and plants are plentiful in many areas, and in order to be able to use them for healing purposes, you must first know where they grow and understand what properties they contain.

Althea Officinalis

Althea Officinalis, also known as marshmallow, is often found growing in the wild. It can often be found growing along the roadside, by the river banks and along hedges. Althea enjoys heavy sun and can easily be incorporated into a home garden. The roots, leaves and entire plant can be used if picked before the plant flowers. The roots are high in polysaccharides and flavonoids. The leaf and flower also contain flavonoids and caffeic acid. This plant is used for skin irritations, sore throats and ulcers.

Image by food-info.net

American Ginseng

American Ginseng is a gnarled root that is beige or light tan in color. It resembles the body of a human with stringy shoots that resemble arms and legs. In the center of the plant, greenish-yellow flowers form that yield red berries. It grows in American forests that shed their leaves each year, primarily in the Ozark and Appalachian regions. American Ginseng was used for centuries by Native Americans to help boost the immune system and to calm inflammation. Modern research points to evidence that American Ginseng may boost the immune system, reduce the risk of cancer, boost overall well being, calm inflammation and improve mental performance. Many studies demonstrate that it is an effective antioxidant.

Image by fws.gov

Barberry

Barberry, a thorny shrub that can reach heights up to 9 feet tall, bears yellow flowers that produce either red or blue blackberries. Both the fresh and dried fruits, the roots, the stem and root bark, have all been used to fight infection, treat skin conditions,ward off diseases and to keep wounds free of infections. Recent studies have shown that this herb can be effective in killing organisms that cause diarrhea, dysentery, giardiasis, wound infections, vaginal yeast infections and urinary tract infections. Barberry works by stimulating the immune system by boosting white blood cells.

Image by bio.brandeis.edu

Billberry

Billberry, a small but hardy shrub with droopy red flowers that yield small dark blue berries, is a close relative to the blueberry. Billberry contains powerful antioxidants that help to improve the condition of red blood cells, strengthen blood vessels, lower cholesterol and blood pressure, and strengthen tendons and other collagen tissues. This plant grows in acidic soil that is generally nutrient deficient. These plants are difficult to grow and the fruits mostly come from plants found already growing in the wild in various regions of the world.

Image by futureceuticals.com

Borage

Borage, also referred to as star flower, is a herbaceous plant with hairy leaves that yields bright blue flowers. This herb has an abundance of essential fatty acids, calcium and iron. Borage helps improve adrenal function, improve energy, calm the mind, treat depression, eliminate mood swings and calm eczema and dermatitis. It is very easy to grow the Borage plant forms seeds, and it will readily self-seed each year. Borage grows best in full sun and soil that is moderately moist.

Image by treefrogfarm.com

Catnip

Catnip, a member of the mint family, is used to treat cold symptoms, reduce fever, decrease swelling, soothe migraines and ease stomach upset. when applied topically it can help stop bleeding. This perennial can be found growing in many regions. Young leaves can be eaten raw, while older leaves can be used to flavor soups and other cooked foods. The flowers, both fresh and dried, can be used to make a hot tea that can help with digestive discomfort.

Image by medicalhealthguide.com

About the Author

Anthony Urso is a professional firefighter and the author of "Surviving Disaster - A Family's Guide to Emergency Preparedness". Anthony consults in the areas of emergency preparedness, homesteading and promotes self-reliance. He also writes for a number of publications including The American Preppers Network.

"As a firefighter, I see every day how an emergency can affect a family. I strive on helping people with their emergency and survival plans while continuing the course on my own preparedness journey."
You can follow Anthony on his blog HomesteadandPrepper.com

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7 Action Steps to Kick Start Your Survival Plan

4/13/2015

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Preppers and survivalists are sometimes viewed as paranoid and fearful, but in reality, being prepared means you don’t have to live in fear. As you continue to work on your survival plan and become more self-sufficient, you’ll become more confident and less worried about perception.

However one of the hardest things for new preppers and survivalists, is trying to do everything at once, getting overwhelmed, and giving up. The easiest way to overcome this is to choose a few things to work on each month. Baby steps will get you where you want to go and they may not seem like much, but anything you do is going to be better than the nothing you did before.

There are several steps you can take to dramatically reduce your exposure to disasters and major events.

1: Learn to grow your own food. When you can’t run down to the corner store to buy food, knowing how to grow your own food will be a huge asset. Start now by growing your own garden and learning how to preserve your harvest.

Even if you have more than a year’s worth of food storage, your disaster situation can outlast your pantry. Having the ability to grow more is valuable.

Image by joeforamerica.com

By Dennis Diaz

Image by artofmanliness.com

2: Build a survival library. The more resources and information that you have the better. There are many valuable videos, eBooks, and guides that can help you to learn more about what you need to do to prepare your family for any disaster.

3: Prepare based on your area. There are some survival events everyone needs to prepare for such as an economic collapse or a fire. But you should also think about natural disasters that are most likely to happen in your area such as hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, or wildfires.

If you live in an urban area you should be prepared for civil unrest and violence. If you live near a chemical plant you should be prepared for a chemical accident. Knowing your area helps you to target your survival efforts.

Image by livingreadyonline.com

4: Have regular disaster drills at home and develop an evacuation strategy. It’s important that everyone knows what to do when there’s an emergency. You’ll want to have fire drills, earthquake drills, tornado drills, evacuation drills, and any other type of survival need you have in your area.

The more you practice, the calmer you’ll be when there’s a real emergency. This will help everyone to stay safe. Make plans for how you’ll leave your home or where you’ll go in specific emergencies. Don’t forget to plan a common meeting place.

Plan ahead for situations that require evacuations. Determine several routes and possible destinations such as the homes of family members or friends. You should also map out appropriate hotels or motels along the way. Keep a paper map with these routes and locations highlighted.

Determine the fastest and most out of the way route to local hospitals. In the event of an emergency, you may need to take someone to the hospital. If the emergency is just at your home, traffic may not be an issue and you can use the shortest possible route. However, in the event of road closings, heavy traffic, bad weather, etc. you will probably want to take the most out of the way route to get where you need to go. This may seem like a bad idea, but it will take less time than sitting in heavy traffic on a main roadway.

Image by cityofyukonok.gov

5: Get to know your neighbors. During a disaster, it really helps to know the people who live around you. Those relationships will help others to be more inclined to give your assistance if you need it. In turn, you can give aid where you’re needed for neighbors who are worse off than you.

It is always a good idea to know who your neighbors are, and what their experience is. For example, if you have a neighbor who is a nurse, you might be able to call on them should someone be severely injured, until the paramedics arrive. If there is a neighbor who is home during the hours that you work, you could give them your contact information in the event that there is an emergency and offer to do the same in return.

Having a sense of community during a disaster can build synergy. You’ll get more done together than you will by completely isolating yourself. Knowing your neighbors will help you to know who to trust and who isn't reliable.

6: Keep a bugout bag in the car. You never know where you’ll be when disaster strikes. Keeping a bug out bag in your car can help you to be prepared even when you’re not home to grab your 72 hour kit. Make sure that every member of the family will have some preparations at all times.

It is a good idea to keep several gallons of fresh water in your car at all times. Water serves many purposes, drinking, cleaning, or even putting out a campfire. A case of drinking water might be a good option due to portability of the small bottles.

Keep blankets in your car. An emergency blanket or two is always an excellent idea for your trunk. Should you ever become stranded in the winter, you will need to stay warm without running the car. Additionally, should you ever experience a home fire; you might need the extra blanket to wrap up in while the fire department is working to extinguish the flames. Keep the blanket in the car year round, and you never risk not having it when you need it.

Image by tracemypreps.com

7: Learn survival & first aid skills. There are many survival skills that will help you during a disaster. Take the time to not only stock supplies, but to add to your skill set. Some examples include gardening, water purification, fire making, food procurement, auto mechanics, first aid, building, sewing, livestock care, and cooking. You may be able to use your survival skills to take care of your own needs as well as to barter for other things that you need.

One great way to master your survival skills is to go camping frequently. Camping uses a lot of the skills you’ll need during a disaster, but without the panic and pressure. Camping is a fun way to practice your survival skills and learn to enjoy a new way of living.

If you've been camping with your family, it will be easier to adjust to having to live in the great outdoors for an extended period of time. You’ll have a much more peaceful experience if it isn’t all new.

When it comes to first aid, it’s important to have a first aid or a trauma kit, in fact that’s one of the first things that beginners do. However if you don’t know how to use the supplies they don’t do much good. Take classes to learn basic first aid so you’re ready in an emergency.

Image by littleecofootprints.com

Be prepared and be at peace

There are many things in your life that need your attention, don’t let your preparedness plan fall on the backburner. Set goals every month so that it’s always a part of your routine. Make your survival preparation a line item on your monthly budget.

About the Author
Dennis Diaz is the Chief Editor of Survival Ready and host of The Prepper World Summit. He is an avid survivalist who is passionate about learning and teaching survival and preparedness skills and strategies.

He enjoys helping others prepare themselves for multiple dangerous scenarios, by coaching them on how develop their own customized survival & preparedness plans and develop their survival skills. He teaches his students and readers to make preparedness and survival knowledge part of their daily lives.

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Making Natural Cordage From The Wild

3/14/2015

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By Survival Ready Blog Team

Cordage is one of the most useful tools you can have in the wild and is all but indispensable in a survival situation. It can be used for (among other things) bowstrings, fishing lines, trap triggers, snares, and lashings. If you run out of paracord or don’t have any in the first place, natural cordage can save you a lot of headache.

Most people would likely despair if forced to make their own rope or string. However, the materials needed to do so are plentiful in most places, and the techniques required are actually quite simple to master.

Via Wildwood Survival

"Just about any strong, flexible fiber can be used to produce good cordage. The dried inner bark of most trees, for example, will supply you with workable raw material. It's best to look for trees with dead bark, and strip off long sections of the fibrous cambium layer between the wood and the outer bark. If you're in a true survival situation, you can even strip sections of the inner bark from living trees (it'll be easiest to do in the spring, when the sap is running) and dry them. Be sure, though, to take only a few thin strips from any one trunk (don't cut all the way around it … doing so can kill the tree). Should you have trouble separating the inner from the outer bark, just soak the strips in warm or boiling water until the fibers come apart easily.

The dried inner skin of the stalks of fibrous plants will also serve your purpose, as will fibrous leaves and even dried grasses (again, see the accompanying list). When working with pithy plants, such as dogbane and milkweed, you may be able to strip the material you need from the stalk in long ribbons. If the plant is dry, though, you'd be better advised to crush and open up the stalk … then break off short sections of the woody core, leaving a long ribbon of fibers in your hand, If you come across a supply of non-pithy plants, such as nettles and rushes, the best way to remove the fibers is by placing a dried stalk on a piece of wood and pounding it with a rounded rock. (Don't use a sharp instrument, as it could cut the fibers.) The material from annual plants will, of course, be shorter than that gathered from trees, but by splicing the fibers together, you can still make cordage of almost any length or thickness.

Animal sinew can be used to produce exceptionally strong rope or twine. In fact, a strand of it no thicker than carpet thread can hold the weight of an average man. Because of its strength, sinew is especially good for making bowstrings, fishing lines, snares, wrappings, and threads. Another useful property of sinew is that, when wetted with saliva before wrapping, it shrinks and dries as hard as glue. As a result, knotting the ends of a sinew wrapping is sometimes unnecessary. (Rawhide is very strong, too, and also shrinks as it dries.)

The longest sinew is found in the white cords that run along either side of an animal's backbone, but you can get, usable lengths from the tendons and ligaments attached to muscles and bones, as well. Simply cut out the sinew … remove its protective sheath … and clean and dry it. (When dry, it'll be very hard and brittle.) To separate the individual fibers, pound each strand with a rock, as you would for plant stalks … then put it in hot water."

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Keeping Yourself and Your Camp Safe in the Wilderness

3/4/2015

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By Randy A.

Your time spent in the wilderness can be a fun adventure or a nightmare depending on how things work out. You can increase your odds towards the fun side by taking certain precautions to keep yourself safer on your journey.

Location, Location, Location
Choosing the camp site is important to your safety factor. Choose a location away from overhanging cliffs with loose crumbly rock. Away from large trees with broken limbs that could fall on you. And away from exposed areas of high winds and possible lightning strikes.

If you must set up camp in timber with lots of downed trees (with the possibility of more coming down), pick a large downed tree and build your shelter alongside it. If a large tree falls on your camp this large log will take the impact lessening your chances of being hit.

Mark Your Territory
I thought I was the only person who did this until I saw Les Stroud do it on his show. When I set up a camp every time I have to urinate I will go out around the camp and pee on a prominent small landmark, like a stump or lone bush, just like a dog would do.

I have no evidence that this works, but I have camped hundreds of times in the Rockies without my camp being molested by wild animals.

Build a Separate Kitchen
Especially in bear country you will need to take extra precautions with food in your camp.

The best practice is to make a second “kitchen” camp one hundred yards or so (usually upwind) from your sleeping camp. Food can be raised by rope into a tree and any food scraps buried.

Build a Wall
If you are really worried about keeping animals away from your camp a wall may be in order.

In Africa the natives build a brush wall to keep lions out. There is no reason you couldn’t do the same, especially if it will help you sleep better at night. While a brush wall won’t stop a determined bear or mountain lion, it may make a curious one look somewhere else for entertainment.

Cammo
If you are trying to secure your camp from other humans, your best bet is camouflage. Location will be your best cammo. Place your camp away from water and trails. A debris hut that is well blended with the background brush will not draw much attention, unless you walk right by it.When you think about it staying safe in the wilderness is just a matter of common sense, and not taking risks.

About the author
Randy Augsburger lives and writes from an old farm that has been in his family since 1866. Born in northwest Ohio, Randy grew up in a small town in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. He draws on his experiences of hunting, fishing, trapping and prospecting for his writing. Randy is also an ordained Southern Baptist preacher.

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Traditional Archery: Hobby? Or Life Saving Skill?

2/26/2015

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By Randy A.

Traditional/Primitive archery is a fun hobby and it might just save your life in a survival situation. If you really get into it you can make all of your gear, and almost nothing is more satisfying than taking game with something you built yourself from scratch.

Muscle Memory
You may think that by shooting modern archery equipment, you are building muscle memory that will help you in a survival situation with primitive equipment.

This is not the case. Everything your muscles are being trained for will be different with primitive or traditional equipment. The draw is completely different on a compound bow than either a recurve or longbow. Your anchor point will be different when not using a release along with a slightly longer draw.

In short it is similar in appearance only.

Sights
Shooting by instinct is much different that using the peepsight on your compound. This takes practice or what many call "stumpjumping". Aside form target shooting woods loafing with your bow and shooting stumps and trees at varying ranges and conditions will improve your shooting tremendously.

Arrows
I have never shot a graphite arrow. I still have a few old aluminum arrows that were new in the 60’s and have antique broadheads on them.

Most of what you will be shooting in traditional circles is wood shafted arrows. With a little research you can find how to make your own shafts from scratch.

Flemish Twist Bowstring
If you learn to make your own bowstrings in the Flemish twist style, you can add a couple to your Bugout Bag (BOB) and have a ready made bowstring for any bow you build in the wild. Since they are twisted to the final length they are quite forgiving on bow length. (within reason)

If you must you can dismantle one and have several lengths of prime cord for other uses like snares or fishing line.

Doing it now
If you start hunting traditional now, if the time comes where you need archery skills in a survival situation, you will have them in place.
Traditional/Primitive archery is an excellent skill to have just in case.

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3 Things Everyone Should Know About Surviving in the Wild

2/24/2015

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By Dennis Diaz

Survival is about staying alive, not entertainment. Over the years I have seen and read about a lot of mistakes when it comes to survival situations. Here are a couple tips that may help if you ever find yourself misplaced in the wild.

1. Food is NOT your biggest problem
Most city people, if asked about the first thing they would do if they were lost in the wild, and you would probably get an answer something like this…”I would start looking for something to eat”. Food is important but there are far more dangerous and immediate threats to your life than the lack of food.

Remember the Rule of 3’s
The rule of 3’s tells us we can make it three minutes without air, three hours without shelter, three days without water and three weeks without food. As you can see food is way down on the priority list.

Rule of 3’s
In any extreme situation you cannot survive for more than:
3 minutes without air
3 hours without shelter
3 days without water
3 weeks without food.

Most people who die in the wilderness die from hypothermia or dehydration.
Get your shelter and a potable water supply in place before you even think about searching for food.

2. Fire is critical
Back to the rule of threes…Fire can be considered a form of shelter since it will keep your body warm, and it will dry you out if you are wet. Another important factor of fire is that it will help purify your water. I always try to have at least three ways to make a fire when I am out. In a true survival situation I would “cheat” and use my most sure method (road flare).

3. Your campsite is your castle
If you stay put, pick campsite near your car, or if you were hiking some landmark, such as a large dead tree or a creek. Camp up away from creeks and rivers, the sound of running water doesn't cover the sound of searcher voices calling your name and can also hide the sound potential threats. Your shelter can protect you from the sun, insects, wind, rain, snow, hot or cold temperatures, and enemy observation. It can give you a feeling of well-being. It can help you maintain your will to survive. In some areas, your need for shelter may take precedence over your need for food and possibly even your need for water. Learn How to Build a Wilderness Survival Shelter

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8 Edible Plants Everyone Should Know About

2/8/2015

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By Survival Ready Blog

Everyone must keep something very clear about surviving the wild, you should ALWAYS do research first and make sure you are familiar with the with the plants that grow in the area you intend to explore. Don't ever just go to the woods unprepared. If for some reason you get trapped out there you must stay calm, educate yourself about your surroundings.

There are many plants that are edible and many that are poisonous. You won't like what I have to tell you but the easiest source of food is not plants its actually bugs: grasshoppers, ants, almost any insect with the exception of spiders and caterpillars. Make sure to cook your bugs the carry parasites that can harm you so cook them.

Here are some edible plants that are very common in most areas

Chickweed- you'll find this herb in temperate and arctic zones. there is small white flowers on the plant they appear between may and July all parts edible .

Wild asparagus grows in Europe and north Africa west Asia and North America. Wild asparagus has much thinner stalk than the grocery store variety and its great for vitamin c b12

Burdock- this plant has big leaves and purplish thistle like flower heads. this plant is found mostly in western hemisphere. You can eat the leaves boil them twice to kill the bitterness.

Cattail- known as cattails in North America and Reedmace in England found near edges of freshwater wetlands. Most of the cattail is edible focus on washing the mud off and eat the bottom part as a meal the bottom part is white then as a snack eat the top part just like corn on the cob even tastes like corn.

Clovers- lucky for you these are found literally everywhere in grass around trees. Eat raw if boiled tastes bitter.

Chicory- found in Europe and North America and Australia has small blue lavender and white flowers whole plant can be eaten. Pluck the leaves eat em raw and the roots boil them they are tasty.

Seaweed- kelp is found everywhere is water. Its a form of seaweed eat it raw or in soup

And last but not least, plantain- found everywhere good for herbal remedy or as food found in marsh areas

One thing to keep in mind when considering plant consumption, you can tell which plants are poisonous by the milky substance they give when you squeeze there stem.

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What Everybody Ought To Know About Survival

2/3/2015

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Survival Ready Blog Team

There are countless different hazards and challenges we can run across whenever we are in a survival situation, but you can break down the necessities of life and survival in the wilderness into a few critical elements. In this post we lay out what your top priorities should be in a survival situation. We organized them by threat level, basically what can kill you first and worked our way down.

Shelter
Protect yourself from danger, weather and temperature.
Keep body core temperature. Hypothermia and heat stroke can kill you within minutes

Whether you’re in the woods or in the desert, you need protection from the elements and security from danger. A well constructed shelter can provide protection and security. It will protect you from the elements and the havoc they can wreak on one’s body. A shelter will also provide a place for you to sleep as restfully as possible, given your situation. A shelter can be a portable tent you have with you, or it can be as simple as using a plastic tarp to help you set up a lean-to. When you find a likely area, you will need to scout out the immediate vicinity. See our section on shelter building

Critical elements/gear in cold temperatures
Thermal Blankets
Fire

Critical elements/gear in hot temperatures
Shade - cover, tarp etc
Hydration. Which brings us to our next subject

Water
After keeping you body temperature, keeping yourself hydrated is your next priority. Dehydration can kill you in a matter of a coupe of days.

In ordinary conditions, we need two to three liters of water per day. If challenged, we can actually survive without water for about three days. Conserving your water doesn't just mean that you need to be careful how much you are drinking; it also means watching how much you need to physically exert yourself. The less you move about, the less water you will need. In very hot climates, it won’t take much to over exert yourself: do that and you run the risk of dehydration. See our section on water sourcing

Once you find water, you will need to make sure it is drinkable. There could be unseen pollutants or pathogens, so you do need to be careful. Even if it’s from a mountain stream, there are usually bacteria or other microorganisms present in any natural water supply; filtering the water through charcoal will remove any dirt or debris, but you need to make sure you kill those microscopic pests by boiling any water you intend on drinking.

Fire
Uses: Heat, water purification & cooking

Next to water, or perhaps equal to in importance, finding the way to make a fire is at the top of your survival “to do” list. You need a fire to help you boil water to make it safe to drink; to cook any food, especially any wild fish, animals or eggs you manage to snare; to help you stay warm, especially when the temperature drops at night; to keep dangerous animals away; to provide you with a sense of security and last but not least, to visibly signal any possible search and rescue teams as to your location.

The best and easiest way to ensure you can build a fire is to make sure you packed some matches, or better yet, a lighter, in a waterproof container. If you didn't, don’t panic; they may not be as quick or easy, but there are other ways to light a fire.

Building a fire is a gradual process that you cannot skip steps on. If you don’t have enough of a flame or ember base before you add the larger pieces of wood, the only thing you will succeed in doing is killing your fire before it even gets started. Make sure that you have enough wood stockpiled each day so you can keep your fire going all night long, and keep checking the fire to make sure it does not go out on you: you worked too hard to start it to begin with! Check out our post 101 Ways to Start a Fire

Food
Once your water sources have been secure its time to work on finding food.

Food is an important need, but not your most pressing matter in the event of a disaster. You can actually survive for several weeks without it. Long before you are in danger of dying from starvation, you will start noticing these symptoms, so you will still have time to find food:
· Weakness
· Irritability and low morale
· Confusion, disorientation and poor judgment
· Weakened immune system
· Inability or difficulty in maintaining normal body temperature

As long as you know where to look, and what to look for, it’s fairly easy to find food no matter where you are. If you make sure you have a basic knowledge of hunting, fishing and trapping animals, you should do fine. Check out our section food procurement here

You should also know what plants (lichens or fungi) you can and cannot eat. A good basic edibility test before you try to eat something that may be unfamiliar, is to make a minor fingernail scratch on your skin and then rub the plant over that area.

Once you've ascertained what you can eat, do your best to eat as balanced a diet as possible, especially if you are going to need to survive for a long period of time.

Communication
If you establish continuous shelter, water, fire and food sources, you should technically be able to survive for a while, but getting rescued can greatly improve your chances of survival,

If you are stranded in a backcountry setting and you need to be rescued, effective communication can be one of your most important resources. Know the distress and rescue communications conventions, and plan quickly to communicate your distress signal so that you can attract the attention you need before it’s too late.

Common useful communication equipment includes:
Ham Radio
Whistle
Signalling mirrors
Flashlights

See the following post 10 tips for getting rescued, Signaling and Communication in the wilderness

In a survival situation it may be very necessary to operate below the radar, and keep a very low profile to avoid detection. If your communication efforts are focused on communicating with team or family members you may want to choose a communication system that is silent or at least stealthy. Communications can be as sophisticated as a radio systems, or something as simple as a flashlight or signaling mirrors.

There has to be a level of coordination and communication setup before and disaster or survival situation arises, this is something you want learn before you need to actually use it.

We understand you may have some questions. If we were to cover anything and everything about survival it would take several hundred pages. However you can join our mailing list to receive the top notch information about survival and preparedness. To join our mailing list click here, we will also send you our “Battle Proven Bugout Bag Report” for free.

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Stealth Shelters: The Secrets of Stealth Camping

2/2/2015

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Survival Ready Blog Team

In a previous post, we talked about starting a stealth fires and as we discussed in that post, there are many reasons you may want to keep your location concealed. Whether you are behind enemy lines, you need to evade danger or remain undetected you may see the benefits of setting up a stealth shelter for your camp.

Stealth shelters are intended to blend in with the surrounding environment in order to remain undetected. Used by commandos on secret missions, it goes beyond Leave No Trace: BE NO TRACE. You become invisible to humans and wildlife.

Below there are a few videos that discuss how to setup your camp to remain undetected.

This video covers the Secrets of Stealth Camping, including:
- Transportation
- Preparation
- Blending in
- Insertion and Extraction
- How to be Invisible and Silent
- Types of Shelters
- Food and Fire
- Footprints
- Infrared Detection and Game Cameras
- Advice from Experienced Stealth Campers

Care of tactical clothing: Hand wash in Tech Wash, which has no whiteners/brighteners The use of normal detergents will make you light up like a light bulb because it has whiteners/brighteners

Secrets of Stealth Camping

Walking through water - If you are going to lose your scent in water because you are being followed, or maybe you just trying to move much more stealthily, insert your boot toe first into the water, then insert your second boot toe first into the water. Now instead of just splashing through the water, you glide- pick up your feet only enough to move forward slowly and deliberately, but never breaking the surface of the water with your boot. This allows one to move through a creek near heavy cover of the bank with complete silence.

10 Shelters for Stealth Camping

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How to Build a Wilderness Survival Shelter

1/28/2015

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By Survival Ready Blog Team

A shelter can protect you from the sun, insects, wind, rain, snow, hot or cold temperatures, and enemy observation. It can give you a feeling of well-being. It can help you maintain your will to survive. In some areas, your need for shelter may take precedence over your need for food and possibly even your need for water.

For example, prolonged exposure to cold can cause excessive fatigue and weakness (exhaustion). An exhausted person may develop a "passive" outlook, thereby losing the will to survive. The most common error in making a shelter is to make it too large. A shelter must be large enough to protect you. It must also be small enough to contain your body heat, especially in cold climates.

Shelter Site Selection

When you are in a survival situation and realize that shelter is a high priority, start looking for shelter as soon as possible. As you do so, remember what you will need at the site.

Two requisites are:

It must contain material to make the type of shelter you need.
It must be large enough and level enough for you to lie down comfortably.

When you consider these requisites, however, you cannot ignore your tactical situation or your safety. You must also consider whether the site:

Provides concealment from enemy observation.
Has camouflaged escape routes.
Is suitable for signaling, if necessary.
Provides protection against wild animals and rocks and dead trees that might fall.
Is free from insects, reptiles, and poisonous plants.

You must also remember the problems that could arise in your environment.
For instance:
• Avoid flash flood areas in foothills.
• Avoid avalanche or rock slide areas in mountainous terrain.
• Avoid sites near bodies of water that are below the high water mark.

In some areas, the season of the year has a strong bearing on the site you select. Ideal sites for a shelter differ in winter and summer. During cold winter months you will want a site that will protect you from the cold and wind, but will have a source of fuel and water. During summer months in the same area you will want a source of water, but you will want the site to be almost insect free.

When considering shelter site selection, use the word BLISS as a guide.
B - Blend in with the surroundings.
L - Low silhouette.
I - Irregular shape.
S - Small.
S - Secluded location.

Types of Shelter
When looking for a shelter site, keep in mind the type of shelter (protection) you need. However, you must also consider:

How much time and effort you need to build the shelter.
If the shelter will adequately protect you from the elements (sun, wind, rain, snow).
If you have the tools to build it. If not, can you make improvised tools?
If you have the type and amount of materials needed to build it.

To answer these questions, you need to know how to make various types of shelters and what materials you need to make them.

Poncho Lean-To
It takes only a short time and minimal equipment to build this lean-to (Figure 5-1). You need a poncho, 2 to 3 meters of rope or parachute suspension line, three stakes about 30 centimeters long, and two trees or two poles 2 to 3 meters apart. Before selecting the trees you will use or the location of your poles, check the wind direction. Ensure that the back of your lean-to will be into the wind.

To make the lean-to:

Tie off the hood of the poncho. Pull the drawstring tight, roll the hood longways, fold it into thirds, and tie it off with the drawstring.
Cut the rope in half. On one long side of the poncho, tie half of the rope to the corner grommet. Tie the other half to the other corner grommet.
Attach a drip stick (about a 10-centimeter stick) to each rope about 2.5 centimeters from the grommet. These drip sticks will keep rainwater from running down the ropes into the lean-to. Tying strings (about 10 centimeters long) to each grommet along the poncho's top edge will allow the water to run to and down the line without dripping into the shelter.
Tie the ropes about waist high on the trees (uprights). Use a round turn and two half hitches with a quick-release knot.
Spread the poncho and anchor it to the ground, putting sharpened sticks through the grommets and into the ground.

If you plan to use the lean-to for more than one night, or you expect rain, make a center support for the lean-to. Make this support with a line. Attach one end of the line to the poncho hood and the other end to an overhanging branch. Make sure there is no slack in the line.

Another method is to place a stick upright under the center of the lean-to. This method, however, will restrict your space and movements in the shelter. For additional protection from wind and rain, place some brush, your rucksack, or other equipment at the sides of the lean-to. To reduce heat loss to the ground, place some type of insulating material, such as leaves or pine needles, inside your lean-to.

Note: When at rest, you lose as much as 80 percent of your body heat to the ground.
To increase your security from enemy observation, lower the lean-to's silhouette by making two changes. First, secure the support lines to the trees at knee height (not at waist height) using two knee-high sticks in the two center grommets (sides of lean-to). Second, angle the poncho to the ground, securing it with sharpened sticks, as above.

Poncho Tent
This tent provides a low silhouette. It also protects you from the elements on two sides. It has, however, less usable space and observation area than a lean-to, decreasing your reaction time to enemy detection. To make this tent, you need a poncho, two 1.5- to 2.5-meter ropes, six sharpened sticks about 30 centimeters long, and two trees 2 to 3 meters apart.

To make this tent:

Tie off the poncho hood in the same way as the poncho lean-to.
Tie a 1.5- to 2.5-meter rope to the center grommet on each side of the poncho.
Tie the other ends of these ropes at about knee height to two trees 2 to 3 meters apart and stretch the poncho tight.
Draw one side of the poncho tight and secure it to the ground pushing sharpened sticks through the grommets.
Follow the same procedure on the other side.

If you need a center support, use the same methods as for the poncho lean-to. Another center support is an A-frame set outside but over the center of the tent. Use two 90- to 120-centimeter-long sticks, one with a forked end, to form the A-frame. Tie the hood's drawstring to the A-frame to support the center of the tent.

Three-Pole Parachute Tepee

If you have a parachute and three poles and the tactical situation allows, make a parachute tepee. It is easy and takes very little time to make this tepee. It provides protection from the elements and can act as a signaling device by enhancing a small amount of light from a fire or candle. It is large enough to hold several people and their equipment and to allow sleeping, cooking, and storing firewood.

You can make this tepee using parts of or a whole personnel main or reserve parachute canopy. If using a standard personnel parachute, you need three poles 3.5 to 4.5 meters long and about 5 centimeters in diameter.

To make this tepee

Lay the poles on the ground and lash them together at one end.
Stand the framework up and spread the poles to form a tripod.
For more support, place additional poles against the tripod. Five or six additional poles work best, but do not lash them to the tripod.
Determine the wind direction and locate the entrance 90 degrees or more from the mean wind direction.
Lay out the parachute on the "backside" of the tripod and locate the bridle loop (nylon web loop) at the top (apex) of the canopy.
Place the bridle loop over the top of a free-standing pole. Then place the pole back up against the tripod so that the canopy's apex is at the same height as the lashing on the three poles.
Wrap the canopy around one side of the tripod. The canopy should be of double thickness, as you are wrapping an entire parachute. You need only wrap half of the tripod, as the remainder of the canopy will encircle the tripod in the opposite direction.
Construct the entrance by wrapping the folded edges of the canopy around two free-standing poles. You can then place the poles side by side to close the tepee's entrance.
Place all extra canopy underneath the tepee poles and inside to create a floor for the shelter.
Leave a 30- to 50-centimeter opening at the top for ventilation if you intend to have a fire inside the tepee.

One-Pole Parachute Tepee
You need a 14-gore section (normally) of canopy, stakes, a stout center pole, and inner core and needle to construct this tepee. You cut the suspension lines except for 40- to 45 centimeter lengths at the canopy's lower lateral band.

To make this tepee
• Select a shelter site and scribe a circle about 4 meters in diameter on the ground.
• Stake the parachute material to the ground using the lines remaining at the lower lateral band.
• After deciding where to place the shelter door, place a stake and tie the first line (from the lower lateral band) securely to it.
• Stretch the parachute material taut to the next line, emplace a stake on the scribed line, and tie the line to it.
• Continue the staking process until you have tied all the lines.
• Loosely attach the top of the parachute material to the center pole with a suspension line you previously cut and, through trial and error, determine the point at which the parachute material will be pulled tight once the center pole is upright.
• Then securely attach the material to the pole.
• Using a suspension line (or inner core), sew the end gores together leaving 1 or 1.2 meters for a door.

No-Pole Parachute Tepee
You use the same materials, except for the center pole, as for the one-pole parachute tepee.

To make this tepee

Tie a line to the top of parachute material with a previously cut suspension line.
Throw the line over a tree limb, and tie it to the tree trunk.
Starting at the opposite side from the door, place a stake on the scribed 3.5- to 4.3-meter circle.
Tie the first line on the lower lateral band.
Continue placing the stakes and tying the lines to them.
After staking down the material, unfasten the line tied to the tree trunk, tighten the tepee material by pulling on this line, and tie it securely to the tree trunk.

One-Man Shelter
A one-man shelter you can easily make using a parachute requires a tree and three poles. One pole should be about 4.5 meters long and the other two about 3 meters long.

To make this shelter

Secure the 4.5-meter pole to the tree at about waist height.
Lay the two 3-meter poles on the ground on either side of and in the same direction as the 4.5-meter pole.
Lay the folded canopy over the 4.5 meter pole so that about the same amount of material hangs on both sides.
Tuck the excess material under the 3-meter poles, and spread it on the ground inside to serve as a floor.
Stake down or put a spreader between the two 3-meter poles at the shelter's entrance so they will not slide inward.
Use any excess material to cover the entrance.

The parachute cloth makes this shelter wind resistant, and the shelter is small enough that it is easily warmed. A candle, used carefully, can keep the inside temperature comfortable. This shelter is unsatisfactory, however, when snow is falling as even a light snowfall will cave it in.

Parachute Hammock
You can make a hammock using 6 to 8 gores of parachute canopy and two trees about 4.5 meters apart.

Field-Expedient Lean-To
If you are in a wooded area and have enough natural materials, you can make a field expedient lean-to (Figure 5-9) without the aid of tools or with only a knife. It takes longer to make this type of shelter than it does to make other types, but it will protect you from the elements.

You will need two trees (or upright poles) about 2 meters apart; one pole about 2 meters long and 2.5 centimeters in diameter; five to eight poles about 3 meters long and 2.5 centimeters in diameter for beams; cord or vines for securing the horizontal support to the trees; and other poles, saplings, or vines to crisscross the beams.

To make this lean-to:

Tie the 2-meter pole to the two trees at waist to chest height. This is the horizontal support. If a standing tree is not available, construct a biped using Y-shaped sticks or two tripods.
Place one end of the beams (3-meter poles) on one side of the horizontal support. As with all lean-to type shelters, be sure to place the lean-to's backside into the wind.
Crisscross saplings or vines on the beams.
Cover the framework with brush, leaves, pine needles, or grass, starting at the bottom and working your way up like shingling.
Place straw, leaves, pine needles, or grass inside the shelter for bedding.

In cold weather, add to your lean-to's comfort by building a fire reflector wall. Drive four 1.5-meter-long stakes into the ground to support the wall. Stack green logs on top of one another between the support stakes. Form two rows of stacked logs to create an inner space within the wall that you can fill with dirt. This action not only strengthens the wall but makes it more heat reflective. Bind the top of the support stakes so that the green logs and dirt will stay in place.

With just a little more effort you can have a drying rack. Cut a few 2-centimeter-diameter poles (length depends on the distance between the lean-to's horizontal support and the top of the fire reflector wall). Lay one end of the poles on the lean-to support and the other end on top of the reflector wall. Place and tie into place smaller sticks across these poles. You now have a place to dry clothes, meat, or fish.

Swamp Bed
In a marsh or swamp, or any area with standing water or continually wet ground, the swamp bed (Figure 5-10) keeps you out of the water. When selecting such a site, consider the weather, wind, tides, and available materials.

To make a swamp bed
• Look for four trees clustered in a rectangle, or cut four poles (bamboo is ideal) and drive them firmly into the ground so they form a rectangle. They should be far enough apart and strong enough to support your height and weight, to include equipment.
• Cut two poles that span the width of the rectangle. They, too, must be strong enough to support your weight.
• Secure these two poles to the trees (or poles). Be sure they are high enough above the ground or water to allow for tides and high water.
• Cut additional poles that span the rectangle's length. Lay them across the two side poles, and secure them.
• Cover the top of the bed frame with broad leaves or grass to form a soft sleeping surface.
• Build a fire pad by laying clay, silt, or mud on one comer of the swamp bed and allow it to dry.

Another shelter designed to get you above and out of the water or wet ground uses the same rectangular configuration as the swamp bed. You very simply lay sticks and branches lengthwise on the inside of the trees (or poles) until there is enough material to raise the sleeping surface above the water level.

Natural Shelters
Do not overlook natural formations that provide shelter. Examples are caves, rocky crevices, clumps of bushes, small depressions, large rocks on leeward sides of hills, large trees with low-hanging limbs, and fallen trees with thick branches.

However, when selecting a natural formation:
• Stay away from low ground such as ravines, narrow valleys, or creek beds. Low areas collect the heavy cold air at night and are therefore colder than the surrounding high ground. Thick, brushy, low ground also harbors more insects.
• Check for poisonous snakes, ticks, mites, scorpions, and stinging ants.
• Look for loose rocks, dead limbs, coconuts, or other natural growth than could fall on your shelter.

Debris Hut
For warmth and ease of construction, this shelter is one of the best. When shelter is essential to survival, build this shelter.

To make a debris hut

Build it by making a tripod with two short stakes and a long ridgepole or by placing one end of a long ridgepole on top of a sturdy base.
Secure the ridgepole (pole running the length of the shelter) using the tripod method or by anchoring it to a tree at about waist height.
Prop large sticks along both sides of the ridgepole to create a wedge-shaped ribbing effect. Ensure the ribbing is wide enough to accommodate your body and steep enough to shed moisture.
Place finer sticks and brush crosswise on the ribbing. These form a latticework that will keep the insulating material (grass, pine needles, leaves) from falling through the ribbing into the sleeping area.
Add light, dry, if possible, soft debris over the ribbing until the insulating material is at least 1 meter thick--the thicker the better.
Place a 30-centimeter layer of insulating material inside the shelter.
At the entrance, pile insulating material that you can drag to you once inside the shelter to close the entrance or build a door.
As a final step in constructing this shelter, add shingling material or branches on top of the debris layer to prevent the insulating material from blowing away in a storm.

Tree-Pit Snow Shelter
If you are in a cold, snow-covered area where evergreen trees grow and you have a digging tool, you can make a tree-pit shelter.

To make this shelter

Find a tree with bushy branches that provides overhead cover.
Dig out the snow around the tree trunk until you reach the depth and diameter you desire, or until you reach the ground.
Pack the snow around the top and the inside of the hole to provide support.
Find and cut other evergreen boughs. Place them over the top of the pit to give you additional overhead cover. Place evergreen boughs in the bottom of the pit for insulation.

Beach Shade Shelter
This shelter protects you from the sun, wind, rain, and heat. It is easy to make using natural materials.

To make this shelter:

Find and collect driftwood or other natural material to use as support beams and as a digging tool.
Select a site that is above the high water mark.
Scrape or dig out a trench running north to south so that it receives the least amount of sunlight. Make the trench long and wide enough for you to lie down comfortably.
Mound soil on three sides of the trench. The higher the mound, the more space inside the shelter.
Lay support beams (driftwood or other natural material) that span the trench on top of the mound to form the framework for a roof.
Enlarge the shelter's entrance by digging out more sand in front of it.
Use natural materials such as grass or leaves to form a bed inside the shelter.

Related Post :
7 Primitive Survival Shelters That Could Save Your Life

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Survival at Sea: The Basics of Surviving at Sea

1/21/2015

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Of all environments, the sea is possibly THE MOST difficult in a survival situation. It offers no natural resources for protection against extreme temperatures, wind, rain and sea state, provides little to aid location. Being surrounded by water that you CAN’T drink only adds to the difficulty.

If you ever find yourself in a situation where the ship or boat you are on is sinking, there are VERY important things you need to know. Whenever on a boat or ship make sure you learn the emergency procedures and location of emergency boats or rafts before heading out to sea. If you are in a life raft and the sinking of your boat was reported, chances are higher that you will be rescued quickly. If your position is unknown, you could be in danger of getting dehydrated or starve.

If you are in a life raft
Aboard larger vessels the contents of a life raft can easily be lost. Inspect the raft, ticking off everything against a checklist and replacing missing items. Some of the the most common and useful items in a life raft are:

Sea Anchor
Life Jacket
Water
First Aid Kit
Sea Sickness Pills
Repair Kit
Flares
Reverse Osmosis Pump/Solar Still
Emergency Locator Beacon
Map, Compass, GPS
Stopper
Knife
Paddles
Fishing Lines & Hooks
Bailer
Marine Radio
Bellows
Survival Leaflets
Flashlight
Poncho

Ocean Currents
Understanding ocean currents is an essential piece of research before embarking on any maritime trip. If you find yourself lost at sea, knowledge of these currents will help you make informed navigational decisions. You should always inform someone of your intended route.

By Survival Ready Blog Team

Finding Water
The golden rule to survive at sea is simple: life means water, and water means life. Your stores of fresh water should be absolutely secure and no opportunity to add to them should be spurned. This section should have a separate post by itself.

Some devices are capable of making seawater safe to drink, but if you don’t have one, you’ll have to find a way of procuring enough water to keep you alive.

Collecting Fresh Water
Snow and ice
In colder climates, water can be obtained from ice and snow. Snow can be scooped directly off the canopy of the life raft directly. Be careful not to scoop snow to close to the surface of the life raft canopy; you will risk contaminating the melted snow with salt encrusted on the canopy. Remember that snow is much less dense than water and a large amount of snow, even tightly compacted will produce a significantly smaller volume of water.

Gathering Rainwater
Most modern life rafts incorporate a built in rain water collection system, that channels rain and dew from the outer surface of the raft into collection pockets inside the raft. However if your raft is not outfitted with such a system you can construct an improvise rain collector using a tarp or any other water proof material. Watch the clouds and be ready for the possibility of rain in order to maximize your rain collection efforts.

Treating Saltwater
If you have no means of collecting rainwater or dew, there are several products capable of turning undrinkable saltwater into fresh water. Although these products are standard issue on most life rafts, you should always try to have at least one of them with you if you are venturing into a marine environment.

Solar Still
Solar stills are a simple way of distilling water using the power of the sun. Saltwater is placed a the bottom of the container, where it is evaporated by the sun through clear plastic. Pure water condenses on the top of the plastic and drips down the side where it can be collected, often via tube. Most solar stills on modern life rafts are inflatable.

Desalination Kit
These kit use a chemical reaction called “ion exchange” to remove the salt from the seawater. If available, use only when supplies are dangerously low.

Reverse Osmosis Pump
A reverse osmosis pump is a hand powered device that pump seawater at very high pressure through a membrane that filters out the salt. After your life raft, your personal flotation device and your distress beacon, the reverse osmosis pump is the most important part of your at sea survival kit. It produces fresh water from sea water on demand, given it is well maintained. While there are other ways of collecting drinking water when at sea, these can never be solely relied upon.

Food
Once you fresh water supply is established, you can turn your attention to sources of nutrition. The body needs certain nutritional requirements to function, and the ocean can provide them all. There is a chance that you will have some food supplies with you. Ration these out and begin to fish for food as soon as you have supplies of drinking water. Fish will act as your amin source of protein, which is necessary for cell and tissue repair, digestion and healthy blood. Seaweed and plankton are excellent sources of nutrition and can be found floating in the ocean.

Landing a fish
A fighting fish, particularly one still on the spear can cause devastating damage to your life raft. Once clear of the water, hold it by the gill and stun it with a blow to the head, then land it and kill it. The head contains some meat and the eyes are filled with salt free fluid. The tail can be discarded, the intestines used for bait, and the rest can be eaten. Do not forget to dispose of waste carefully. Never throw innards or blood into the water in close vicinity of your raft.

Signaling Equipment
When stranded at see, your focus should always be on attracting rescue. Knowing how to use signalling equipment can mean that your survival experience could be brief.

Improvised Signals
Large pieces of color material are ideal for attracting attention. Your life raft is likely to have a survival blanket which could be used for this task. If not, use your foul weather clothing; the brighter and less natural color the better it will attract attention.

Signaling Mirror
Mirror signalling projects bursts of vivid light over many miles and can be performed with materials ranging from polished metal to belt buckles. At the first sight of a nearby ship or aircraft, begin signalling so that the craft will spot your signal and inform the authorities of your position.

Other tools that can be used for signalling are radios, flares, flashlights & whistles.

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Survival Mind Tricks: Understanding Psychological Reactions

1/13/2015

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By Survival Ready Blog Team

Man has been able to survive many shifts in his environment throughout the centuries. His ability to adapt physically and mentally to a changing world kept him alive while other species around him gradually died off. The same survival mechanisms that kept our forefathers alive can help keep us alive as well! However, these survival mechanisms that can help us can also work against us if we don't understand and anticipate their presence.

It is not surprising that the average person will have some psychological reactions in a survival situation. We will now examine some of the major internal reactions you and anyone with you might experience with the survival stressors addressed in our post “The Psychology of Survival”. Let's begin.

Fear
Fear is our emotional response to dangerous circumstances that we believe have the potential to cause death, injury, or illness. This harm is not just limited to physical damage; the threat to one's emotional and mental well-being can generate fear as well. For the person trying to survive, fear can have a positive function if it encourages him to be cautious in situations where recklessness could result in injury. Unfortunately, fear can also immobilize a person. It can cause him to become so frightened that he fails to perform activities essential for survival. Most people will have some degree of fear when placed in unfamiliar surroundings under adverse conditions. There is no shame in this! Each survivor must train himself not to be overcome by his fears. Ideally, through realistic training, we can acquire the knowledge and skills needed to increase our confidence and thereby manage our fears.

Anxiety
Associated with fear is anxiety. Because it is natural for us to be afraid, it is also natural for us to experience anxiety. Anxiety can be an uneasy, apprehensive feeling we get when faced with dangerous situations (physical, mental, and emotional). When used in a healthy way, anxiety urges us to act to end, or at least master, the dangers that threaten our existence. If we were never anxious, there would be little motivation to make changes in our lives. The survivor in a survival setting reduces his anxiety by performing those tasks that will ensure his coming through the ordeal alive. As he reduces his anxiety, the survivor is also bringing under control the source of that anxiety--his fears. In this form, anxiety is good; however, anxiety can also have a devastating impact. Anxiety can overwhelm a survivor to the point where he becomes easily confused and has difficulty thinking. Once this happens, it becomes more and more difficult for him to make good judgments and sound decisions. To survive, the survivor must learn techniques to calm his anxieties and keep them in the range where they help, not hurt.

Anger and Frustration
Frustration arises when a person is continually thwarted in his attempts to reach a goal. The goal of survival is to stay alive until you can reach help or until help can reach you. To achieve this goal, the survivor must complete some tasks with minimal resources. It is inevitable, in trying to do these tasks, that something will go wrong; that something will happen beyond the survivor's control; and that with one's life at stake, every mistake is magnified in terms of its importance. Thus, sooner or later, survivors will have to cope with frustration when a few of their plans run into trouble. One outgrowth of this frustration is anger. There are many events in a survival situation that can frustrate or anger a survivor. Getting lost, damaged or forgotten equipment, the weather, inhospitable terrain, enemy patrols, and physical limitations are just a few sources of frustration and anger. Frustration and anger encourage impulsive reactions, irrational behavior, poorly thought-out decisions, and, in some instances, an "I quit" attitude (people sometimes avoid doing something they can't master). If the survivor can harness and properly channel the emotional intensity associated with anger and frustration, he can productively act as he answers the challenges of survival. If the survivor does not properly focus his angry feelings, he can waste much energy in activities that do little to further either his chances of survival or the chances of those around him.

Depression
It would be a rare person indeed who would not get sad, at least momentarily, when faced with the privations of survival. As this sadness deepens, we label the feeling "depression." Depression is closely linked with frustration and anger. The frustrated person becomes more and more angry as he fails to reach his goals. If the anger does not help the person to succeed, then the frustration level goes even higher. A destructive cycle between anger and frustration continues until the person becomes worn down physically, emotionally, and mentally. When a person reaches this point, he starts to give up, and his focus shifts from "What can I do" to "There is nothing I can do." Depression is an expression of this hopeless, helpless feeling.

There is nothing wrong with being sad as you temporarily think about your loved ones and remember what life is like back in "civilization" or "the world." Such thoughts, in fact, can give you the desire to try harder and live one more day. On the other hand, if you allow yourself to sink into a depressed state, then it can sap all your energy and, more important, your will to survive. It is imperative that each survivor resist succumbing to depression.

Loneliness and Boredom
Man is a social animal. This means we, as human beings, enjoy the company of others. Very few people want to be alone all the time! As you are aware, there is a distinct chance of isolation in a survival setting. This is not bad. Loneliness and boredom can bring to the surface qualities you thought only others had. The extent of your imagination and creativity may surprise you. When required to do so, you may discover some hidden talents and abilities. Most of all, you may tap into a reservoir of inner strength and fortitude you never knew you had. Conversely, loneliness and boredom can be another source of depression. As a survivor surviving alone, or with others, you must find ways to keep your mind productively occupied. Additionally, you must develop a degree of selfsufficiency. You must have faith in your capability to "go it alone."

Guilt
The circumstances leading to your being in a survival setting are sometimes dramatic and tragic. It may be the result of an accident or military mission where there was a loss of life. Perhaps you were the only, or one of a few, survivors. While naturally relieved to be alive, you simultaneously may be mourning the deaths of others who were less fortunate. It is not uncommon for survivors to feel guilty about being spared from death while others were not. This feeling, when used in a positive way, has encouraged people to try harder to survive with the belief they were allowed to live for some greater purpose in life. Sometimes, survivors tried to stay alive so that they could carry on the work of those killed. Whatever reason you give yourself, do not let guilt feelings prevent you from living. The living who abandon their chance to survive accomplish nothing. Such an act would be the greatest tragedy.

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Making a Stealth Fire

1/11/2015

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By Survival Ready Blog Team

Fire is one of the most useful resources in existence. It provides heat, allows for cooking and water purification. A regular fire will emit smoke, light and for the most part it will reveal your location from several miles away.

There are many reasons you may want to keep your location concealed. Whether you are behind enemy lines, trying to evade danger or remain undetected you may see the benefits of making a stealth fire.

Well, what if I told you that you could make a fire that only you could see? Any passers-by will be totally oblivious to the presence of you and your fire. This special type of fire will allow you to stay warm or cook food without giving away your presence.

Above ground smokeless fire

Making a stealth (smokeless) fire
In this video I show a technique to creating and maintaining a smokeless stealth fire.

Below ground stealth fire

If you want to get into stealth camping, build a fire during gale force winds, or just want to lay low then the 'Dakota Fire Hole' is just what you need.

Dakota Fire Pit

Dakota Fire Pit How To Videos Below

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Hunting and Getting Food When SHTF

1/4/2015

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By Randy A.

The first thing many think they will do to feed themselves when SHTF is grab ole Betsy and head to the woods to kill a bar’.

While this isn’t a bad idea in and of itself, but if you live near any kind of population center, you will be in direct competition with every Tom, Dick and Harry that owns a gun.

So how do we get food during SHTF?

Hunting
Yes, hunting will be viable in some cases, either where there are fewer people for competition, or when done in conjunction with other food gathering activities and taking targets of opportunity when they present themselves.

Out in the wilderness, in many cases you will spend more calories hunting than you eat from actually getting something. Best to hunt while gathering food in other manners.

Trapping
Trapping will usually put more meat on your table than any other activity, with the possible exception of fishing. You set the trap and it works for you 24/7 until it connects.

You only have to glance at it once it is set, to see if you need to pick up your food and reset it , or move along to the next one. See post Trap and Snare Construction,

Foraging
A vegetarian would have a hard time keeping themselves fed in the wild. While wild foods are not too difficult to come by, it is hard to get enough calories to maintain yourself if you are going to do anything besides gather food. A good field guide and time spent online familiarizing yourself with the local flora will help immensely. No one wants a diet of exclusively dandelion greens; because that is all you know how to identify.

If you have edible nuts in your area gather as many as you can find, since they are high in calories and fat, things you need to eat a lot of to keep going in the wild.

Fishing
If you have good fishing waters, you can feed yourself for a long time on the fish they will provide. A well stocked fishing kit (hooks and line) should be in everyone’s kit. If you are planning on only hunting for your food, you have a faulty plan.

But if you plan for diversifying our gathering capabilities, you have a much better chance of feeding yourself and your family no matter what happens.

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5 Simple but Effective Booby Traps

1/3/2015

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By Survival Ready Blog Team

Booby traps are devices intended to threaten, disable, or kill a person by using the element of surprise to your advantage. These devices are usually unknowingly triggered by the victim.

Booby traps typically operate for these purposes:
1. Delay the enemy.
2. Channelize the enemy.
3. Harass and demoralize the enemy.
4. Supplement firepower.

Here are some of our favorite creative booby traps that will almost guaranty to neutralize your enemy when things go wrong:

1. Feather Spear Trap

2. Cartridge Booby Trap

3. Punji Stake Pit

4. Punji Bear Trap

5. Paracord Snare Trap

(See full instructions at DIY Ready)

Here is a Method That is Helping Thousands to “Bullet Proof” Their Homes and Keep Their Families Safe in a SHTF Scenario Click Here

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Basic Survival Hunting Skills

12/30/2014

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By Jesse Jones

There are many reasons you should have some basic survival hunting skills learned and practiced. During the first few days of an event happening which leads to your move to the wilderness, panic can lead to very bad decisions. The lack of food and water can create even greater stressors, including bad decisions making, hallucination's, and hysteria. Knowing just a few skills can make the difference between survival, and death.

Basic Survival Hunting Skills
Part of preparing your family and your self for future survival, is learning a balance of hunting skills to cover many areas of potential resources. Being able to gather meat is vital, but along with that comes many other resources that can be useful.

Not only does an animals meat provide you with food to survive on, you can also utilize it's other resources such as skin, fur, bones, intestines, blood, and the fats and oils from the body. Although consumption is not possible with all portions of an animal, it's intestines can be used for bait, bones for tools, and pelts for warmth.

Fishing
Although not directly a form of hunting, knowing how to catch fish can be very important to the initial survival process. This is usually the first and sometimes last resource available to those hunting and gathering their own food.

Some important skills to learn about fishing include creating makeshift fishing lines and poles, hooks, stringers, nets, and the process of cleaning fish. While out in the wilderness, fishing is a potential resource for unlimited food. Knowing how to cure a fish can help preserve your caught food for longer periods of time.

Trapping
Trapping is probably the second most important skill for your family and your self to learn and practice. In most cases there will be plenty of small animals that can fall subject to your traps and provide another line of food.

One major advantage of learning how to trap, is the potential to capture food while not having to fully focus on the process. Once an animal trail has been located, you can set multiple traps throughout to increase your chances of catching an animal. Once your traps are set, you are free to leave them alone for several hours, and continue other work.

Projectile
The most commonly known type of basic survival hunting skills is projectile. This consists of many different kinds of weapons ranging from spear, to firearm. Although it's important to know how to fire a gun accurately enough to kill an animal, other skills such as shooting a bow or crossbow is even more important. The downside to using a firearm is the limited supply of ammo. Once you fire a bullet, you will never get a chance to fire it again, unlike arrows, slingshots, and spears.

One of the most useful skills a person can learn for outdoor survival, is building your own bow and arrows. Even simple bow designs can be effective in killing small to medium game. The projectile is reusable, and they make very minimal noise.

There are many more skills to learn while preparing for your survival, hopefully these will be a good starting point for you. Learn as much as you can from the list above, practice them in real life application, and your family will be able to safely survive in the wilderness.

About the author
Jesse Jones has been writing for over 8 years for many news outlets and online media sources. He is an avid survivalist and prepper who can be found writing articles on his personal survival blog www.365preppers.com go check him out!

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Cold Weather Injury Prevention and Treatment

12/28/2014

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By Survival Ready Blog Team

When you are healthy, your inner core temperature (torso temperature) remains almost constant at 37 degrees C (98.6 degrees F). Since your limbs and head have less protective body tissue than your torso, their temperatures vary and may not reach core temperature.

Your body has a control system that lets it react to temperature extremes to maintain a temperature balance. There are three main factors that affect this temperature balance-heat production, heat loss, and evaporation. The difference between the body's core temperature and the environment's temperature governs the heat production rate. Your body can get rid of heat better than it can produce it. Sweating helps to control the heat balance. Maximum sweating will get rid of heat about as fast as maximum exertion produces it.

Shivering causes the body to produce heat. It also causes fatigue that, in turn, leads to a drop in body temperature. Air movement around your body affects heat loss. It has been calculated that a naked man exposed to still air at or about 0 degrees C can maintain a heat balance if he shivers as hard as he can. However, he can't shiver forever.

It has also been calculated that a man at rest wearing the maximum arctic clothing in a cold environment can keep his internal heat balance during temperatures well below freezing. To withstand really cold conditions for any length of time, however, he will have to become active or shiver.

COLD TEMPERATURE INJURIES
The best way to deal with injuries and sicknesses is to take measures to prevent them from happening in the first place. Treat any injury or sickness that occurs as soon as possible to prevent it from worsening. The knowledge of signs and symptoms and the use of the buddy system are critical in maintaining health. Following are cold injuries that can occur.

Hypothermia
Hypothermia is the lowering of the body temperature at a rate faster than the body can produce heat. Causes of hypothermia may be general exposure or the sudden wetting of the body by falling into a lake or spraying with fuel or other liquids.

The initial symptom is shivering. This shivering may progress to the point that it is uncontrollable and interferes with an individual's ability to care for himself. This begins when the body's core (rectal) temperature falls to about 35.5 degrees C (96 degrees F). When the core temperature reaches 35 to 32 degrees C (95 to 90 degrees F), sluggish thinking, irrational reasoning, and a false feeling of warmth may occur. Core temperatures of 32 to 30 degrees C (90 to 86 degrees F) and below result in muscle rigidity, unconsciousness, and barely detectable signs of life. If the victim's core temperature falls below 25 degrees C (77 degrees F), death is almost certain.

To treat hypothermia, rewarm the entire body. If there are means available, rewarm the person by first immersing the trunk area only in warm water of 37.7 to 43.3 degrees C (100 to 110 degrees F).

CAUTION - Rewarming the total body in a warm water bath should be done only in a hospital environment because of the increased risk of cardiac arrest and rewarming shock.

One of the quickest ways to get heat to the inner core is to give warm water enemas. Such an action, however, may not be possible in a survival situation. Another method is to wrap the victim in a warmed sleeping bag with another person who is already warm; both should be naked.

CAUTION - The individual placed in the sleeping bag with victim could also become a hypothermia victim if left in the bag too long.
If the person is conscious, give him hot, sweetened fluids. One of the best sources of calories is honey or dextrose; if unavailable, use sugar, cocoa, or a similar soluble sweetener.

CAUTION - Do not force an unconscious person to drink.

There are two dangers in treating hypothermia--rewarming too rapidly and "after drop." Rewarming too rapidly can cause the victim to have circulatory problems, resulting in heart failure. After drop is the sharp body core temperature drop that occurs when taking the victim from the warm water. Its probable muse is the return of previously stagnant limb blood to the core (inner torso) area as re-circulation occurs. Concentrating on warming the core area and stimulating peripheral circulation will lessen the effects of after drop. Immersing the torso in a warm bath, if possible, is the best treatment.

Frostbite
This injury is the result of frozen tissues. Light frostbite involves only the skin that takes on a dull whitish pallor. Deep frostbite extends to a depth below the skin. The tissues become solid and immovable. Your feet, hands, and exposed facial areas are particularly vulnerable to frostbite.

The best frostbite prevention, when you are with others, is to use the buddy system. Check your buddy's face often and make sure that he checks yours. If you are alone, periodically cover your nose and lower part of your face with your mitten-ed hand.

The following pointers will aid you in keeping warm and preventing frostbite when it is extremely cold or when you have less than adequate clothing:

• Face. Maintain circulation by twitching and wrinkling the skin on your face making faces. Warm with your hands.
• Ears. Wiggle and move your ears. Warm with your hands.
• Hands. Move your hands inside your gloves. Warm by placing your hands close to your body.
• Feet. Move your feet and wiggle your toes inside your boots.

A loss of feeling in your hands and feet is a sign of frostbite. If you have lost feeling for only a short time, the frostbite is probably light. Otherwise, assume the frostbite is deep. To rewarm a light frostbite, use your hands or mittens to warm your face and ears. Place your hands under your armpits. Place your feet next to your buddy's stomach. A deep frostbite injury, if thawed and refrozen, will cause more damage than a non-medically trained person can handle. The table below lists some do's and don'ts regarding frostbite.

Trench Foot and Immersion Foot
These conditions result from many hours or days of exposure to wet or damp conditions at a temperature just above freezing. The symptoms are a sensation of pins and needles, tingling, numbness, and then pain. The skin will initially appear wet, soggy, white, and shriveled. As it progresses and damage appears, the skin will take on a red and then a bluish or black discoloration. The feet become cold, swollen, and have a waxy appearance. Walking becomes difficult and the feet feel heavy and numb. The nerves and muscles sustain the main damage, but gangrene can occur. In extreme cases, the flesh dies and it may become necessary to have the foot or leg amputated. The best prevention is to keep your feet dry. Carry extra socks with you in a waterproof packet. You can dry wet socks against your torso (back or chest). Wash your feet and put on dry socks daily.

Dehydration
When bundled up in many layers of clothing during cold weather, you may be unaware that you are losing body moisture. Your heavy clothing absorbs the moisture that evaporates in the air. You must drink water to replace this loss of fluid. Your need for water is as great in a cold environment as it is in a warm environment. One way to tell if you are becoming dehydrated is to check the color of your urine on snow. If your urine makes the snow dark yellow, you are becoming dehydrated and need to replace body fluids. If it makes the snow light yellow to no color, your body fluids have a more normal balance.

Cold Diuresis
Exposure to cold increases urine output. It also decreases body fluids that you must replace.

Sunburn
Exposed skin can become sunburned even when the air temperature is below freezing. The sun's rays reflect at all angles from snow, ice, and water, hitting sensitive areas of skin--lips, nostrils, and eyelids. Exposure to the sun results in sunburn more quickly at high altitudes than at low altitudes. Apply sunburn cream or lip salve to your face when in the sun.

Snow Blindness
The reflection of the sun's ultraviolet rays off a snow-covered area causes this condition. The symptoms of snow blindness are a sensation of grit in the eyes, pain in and over the eyes that increases with eyeball movement, red and teary eyes, and a headache that intensifies with continued exposure to light. Prolonged exposure to these rays can result in permanent eye damage. To treat snow blindness, bandage your eyes until the symptoms disappear.

You can prevent snow blindness by wearing sunglasses. If you don't have sunglasses, improvise. Cut slits in a piece of cardboard, thin wood, tree bark, or other available material. Putting soot under your eyes will help reduce shine and glare.

Constipation
It is very important to relieve yourself when needed. Do not delay because of the cold condition. Delaying relieving yourself because of the cold, eating dehydrated foods, drinking too little liquid, and irregular eating habits can cause you to become constipated. Although not disabling, constipation can cause some discomfort. Increase your fluid intake to at least 2 liters above your nor

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Cold Weather Survival Basics

12/28/2014

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By Survival Ready Blog Team

One of the most difficult survival situations is a cold weather scenario. Remember, cold weather is an adversary that can be as dangerous as an enemy soldier. Every time you venture into the cold, you are pitting yourself against the elements. With a little knowledge of the environment, proper plans, and appropriate equipment, you can overcome the elements. As you remove one or more of these factors, survival becomes increasingly difficult. Remember, winter weather is highly variable. Prepare yourself to adapt to blizzard conditions even during sunny and clear weather.

This post is meant to address a few basics when dealing with cold weather, we will go more in depth in the medical aspects and potential cold related injuries and conditions in our post Cold Weather Injury Prevention and Treatment.

Cold is a far greater threat to survival than it appears. It decreases your ability to think and weakens your will to do anything except to get warm. Cold is an insidious enemy; as it numbs the mind and body, it subdues the will to survive. Cold makes it very easy to forget your ultimate goal, to survive.

COLD REGIONS AND LOCATIONS

Cold regions include arctic and subarctic areas and areas immediately adjoining them. You can classify about 48 percent of the northern hemisphere's total landmass as a cold region due to the influence and extent of air temperatures. Ocean currents affect cold weather and cause large areas normally included in the temperate zone to fall within the cold regions during winter periods. Elevation also has a marked effect on defining cold regions.

Within the cold weather regions, you may face two types of cold weather environments-wet or dry. Knowing in which environment your area of operations falls will affect planning and execution of a cold weather operation.

Wet Cold Weather Environments

Wet cold weather conditions exist when the average temperature in a 24-hour period is 10 degrees C or above. Characteristics of this condition are freezing during the colder night hours and thawing during the day. Even though the temperatures are warmer during this condition, the terrain is usually very sloppy due to slush and mud. You must concentrate on protecting yourself from the wet ground and from freezing rain or wet snow.

Dry Cold Weather Environments

Dry cold weather conditions exist when the average temperature in a 24-hour period remains below -10 degrees C. Even though the temperatures in this condition are much lower than normal, you do not have to contend with the freezing and thawing. In these conditions, you need more layers of inner clothing to protect you from temperatures as low as -60 degrees C. Extremely hazardous conditions exist when wind and low temperature combine.

WINDCHILL

Windchill increases the hazards in cold regions. Windchill is the effect of moving air on exposed flesh. For instance, with a 27.8-kph (15-knot) wind and a temperature of -10 degrees C, the equivalent windchill temperature is -23 degrees C.The table below gives the windchill factors for various temperatures and wind speeds.

Remember, even when there is no wind, you will create the equivalent wind by skiing, running, being towed on skis behind a vehicle, working around aircraft that produce wind blasts.

BASIC PRINCIPLES OF COLD WEATHER SURVIVAL

It is more difficult for you to satisfy your basic water, food, and shelter needs in a cold environment than in a warm environment. Even if you have the basic requirements, you must also have adequate protective clothing and the will to survive. The will to survive is as important as the basic needs. There have been incidents when trained and well equipped individuals have not survived cold weather situations because they lacked the will to live. Conversely, this will has sustained individuals less well-trained and equipped.

There are many different items of cold weather equipment and clothing issued by the U.S. Army today. Specialized units may have access to newer, lightweight gear such as polypropylene underwear, GORE-TEX outerwear and boots, and other special equipment. Remember, however, the older gear will keep you warm as long as you apply a few cold weather principles. If the newer types of clothing are available, use them. If not, then your clothing should be entirely wool, with the possible exception of a windbreaker.

You must not only have enough clothing to protect you from the cold, you must also know how to maximize the warmth you get from it. For example, always keep your head covered. You can lose 40 to 45 percent of body heat from an unprotected head and even more from the unprotected neck, wrist, and ankles. These areas of the body are good radiators of heat and have very little insulating fat. The brain is very susceptible to cold and can stand the least amount of cooling. Because there is much blood circulation in the head, most of which is on the surface, you can lose heat quickly if you do not cover your head.

There are four basic principles to follow to keep warm. An easy way to remember these basic principles is to use the word COLD:
C - Keep clothing clean.
O - Avoid overheating.
L - Wear clothes loose and in layers.
D - Keep clothing dry.

C - Keep clothing clean. This principle is always important for sanitation and comfort. In winter, it is also important from the standpoint of warmth. Clothes matted with dirt and grease lose much of their insulation value. Heat can escape more easily from the body through the clothing's crushed or filled up air pockets.

O - Avoid overheating. When you get too hot, you sweat and your clothing absorbs the moisture. This affects your warmth in two ways: dampness decreases the insulation quality of clothing, and as sweat evaporates, your body cools. Adjust your clothing so that you do not sweat. Do this by partially opening your parka or jacket, by removing an inner layer of clothing, by removing heavy outer mittens, or by throwing back your parka hood or changing to lighter headgear. The head and hands act as efficient heat dissipaters when overheated.

L - Wear your clothing loose and in layers. Wearing tight clothing and footgear restricts blood circulation and invites cold injury. It also decreases the volume of air trapped between the layers, reducing its insulating value. Several layers of lightweight clothing are better than one equally thick layer of clothing, because the layers have dead-air space between them. The dead-air space provides extra insulation. Also, layers of clothing allow you to take off or add clothing layers to prevent excessive sweating or to increase warmth.

D - Keep clothing dry. In cold temperatures, your inner layers of clothing can become wet from sweat and your outer layer, if not water repellent, can become wet from snow and frost melted by body heat. Wear water repellent outer clothing, if available. It will shed most of the water collected from melting snow and frost. Before entering a heated shelter, brush off the snow and frost. Despite the precautions you take, there will be times when you cannot keep from getting wet. At such times, drying your clothing may become a major problem. On the march, hang your damp mittens and socks on your rucksack. Sometimes in freezing temperatures, the wind and sun will dry this clothing. You can also place damp socks or mittens, unfolded, near your body so that your body heat can dry them. In a campsite, hang damp clothing inside the shelter near the top, using drying lines or improvised racks. You may even be able to dry each item by holding it before an open fire. Dry leather items slowly. If no other means are available for drying your boots, put them between your sleeping bag shell and liner. Your body heat will help to dry the leather.

A heavy, down-lined sleeping bag is a valuable piece of survival gear in cold weather. Ensure the down remains dry. If wet, it loses a lot of its insulation value. If you do not have a sleeping bag, you can make one out of parachute cloth or similar material and natural dry material, such as leaves, pine needles, or moss. Place the dry material between two layers of the material.

Other important survival items are survival knives, waterproof matches in a waterproof container, preferably one with a flint attached; a durable compass; map; watch; waterproof ground cloth and cover; flashlight; binoculars; dark glasses; fatty emergency foods; food gathering gear; and signaling items. See our Battle Proven Bugout Bag Here.

Remember, a cold weather environment can be very harsh. Give a good deal of thought to selecting the right equipment for survival in the cold. If unsure of an item you have never used, test it in an "overnight backyard" environment before venturing further. Once you have selected items that are essential for your survival, do not lose them after you enter a cold weather environment.

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Survival Field Expedient Weapons

12/27/2014

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By Survival Ready Blog Team

In survival situations, you may have to fashion any number and type of field-expedient weapons and equipment to survive. Examples of tools and equipment that could make your life much easier are ropes, rucksacks, clothes, nets, and so on. We’ll touch upon other types of tool in a separate post. In this post we’ll focus specifically on weapons and tools that can be used as such.

Weapons serve a dual purpose. You use them to obtain and prepare food and to provide self-defense. A weapon can also give you a feeling of security and provide you with the ability to hunt on the move.

CLUBS
You hold clubs, you do not throw them. As a field-expedient weapon, the club does not protect you from enemy soldiers. It can, however, extend your area of defense beyond your fingertips. It also serves to increase the force of a blow without injuring yourself. There are three basic types of clubs. They are the simple, weighted, and sling club.

Simple Club
A simple club is a staff or branch. It must be short enough for you to swing easily, but long enough and strong enough for you to damage whatever you hit. Its diameter should

fit comfortably in your palm, but it should not be so thin as to allow the club to break easily upon impact. A straight-grained hardwood is best if you can find it.

Weighted Club
A weighted club is any simple club with a weight on one end. The weight may be a natural weight, such as a knot on the wood, or something added, such as a stone lashed to the club. To make a weighted club, first find a stone that has a shape that will allow you to lash it securely to the club. A stone with a slight hourglass shape works well. If you cannot find a suitably shaped stone, you must fashion a groove or channel into the stone by a technique known as pecking. By repeatedly rapping the club stone with a smaller hard stone, you can get the desired shape.

Next, find a piece of wood that is the right length for you. A straight-grained hardwood is best. The length of the wood should feel comfortable in relation to the weight of the stone. Finally, lash the stone to the handle.

There are three techniques for lashing the stone to the handle: split handle, forked branch, and wrapped handle. The technique you use will depend on the type of handle you choose.

Sling Club
A sling club is another type of weighted club. A weight hangs 8 to 10 centimeters from the handle by a strong, flexible lashing. This type of club both extends the user's reach and multiplies the force of the blow.

EDGED WEAPONS
Knives, spear blades, and arrow points fall under the category of edged weapons. The following paragraphs will discuss the making of such weapons.

Knives
A knife has three basic functions. It can puncture, slash or chop, and cut. A knife is also an invaluable tool used to construct other survival items. You may find yourself without a knife or you may need another type knife or a spear. To improvise you can use stone, bone, wood, or metal to make a knife or spear blade.

Stone
To make a stone knife, you will need a sharp-edged piece of stone, a chipping tool, and a flaking tool. A chipping tool is a light, blunt-edged tool used to break off small pieces of stone. A flaking tool is a pointed tool used to break off thin, flattened pieces of stone. You can make a chipping tool from wood, bone, or metal, and a flaking tool from bone, antler tines, or soft iron.

Start making the knife by roughing out the desired shape on your sharp piece of stone, using the chipping tool. Try to make the knife fairly thin. Then, using the flaking tool, press it against the edges. This action will cause flakes to come off the opposite side of the edge, leaving a razor sharp edge. Use the flaking tool along the entire length of the edge you need to sharpen. Eventually, you will have a very sharp cutting edge that you can use as a knife.

Lash the blade to some type of hilt.
Note: Stone will make an excellent puncturing tool and a good chopping tool but will not hold a fine edge. Some stones such as chert or flint can have very fine edges.

Bone
You can also use bone as an effective field-expedient edged weapon. First, you will need to select a suitable bone. The larger bones, such as the leg bone of a deer or another medium-sized animal, are best. Lay the bone upon another hard object. Shatter the bone by hitting it with a heavy object, such as a rock. From the pieces, select a suitable pointed splinter. You can further shape and sharpen this splinter by rubbing it on a rough- surfaced rock. If the piece is too small to handle, you can still use it by adding a handle to it. Select a suitable piece of hardwood for a handle and lash the bone splinter securely to it.

Note: Use the bone knife only to puncture. It will not hold an edge and it may flake or break if used differently.

Wood
You can make field-expedient edged weapons from wood. Use these only to puncture. Bamboo is the only wood that will hold a suitable edge. To make a knife using wood, first select a straight-grained piece of hardwood that is about 30 centimeters long and 2.5 centimeters in diameter. Fashion the blade about 15 centimeters long. Shave it down to a point. Use only the straight-grained portions of the wood. Do not use the core or pith, as it would make a weak point.

Harden the point by a process known as fire hardening. If a fire is possible, dry the blade portion over the fire slowly until lightly charred. The drier the wood, the harder the point. After lightly charring the blade portion, sharpen it on a coarse stone. If using bamboo and after fashioning the blade, remove any other wood to make the blade thinner from the inside portion of the bamboo. Removal is done this way because bamboo's hardest part is its outer layer. Keep as much of this layer as possible to ensure the hardest blade possible. When charring bamboo over a fire, char only the inside wood; do not char the outside.

Metal
Metal is the best material to make field-expedient edged weapons. Metal, when properly designed, can fulfill a knife's three uses--puncture, slice or chop, and cut. First, select a suitable piece of metal, one that most resembles the desired end product. Depending on the size and original shape, you can obtain a point and cutting edge by rubbing the metal on a rough-surfaced stone. If the metal is soft enough, you can hammer out one edge while the metal is cold. Use a suitable flat, hard surface as an anvil and a smaller, harder object of stone or metal as a hammer to hammer out the edge. Make a knife handle from wood, bone, or other material that will protect your hand.

Other Materials
You can use other materials to produce edged weapons. Glass is a good alternative to an edged weapon or tool, if no other material is available. Obtain a suitable piece in the same manner as described for bone. Glass has a natural edge but is less durable for heavy work. You can also sharpen plastic--if it is thick enough or hard enough--into a durable point for puncturing.

Spear Blades
To make spears, use the same procedures to make the blade that you used to make a knife blade. Then select a shaft (a straight sapling) 1.2 to 1.5 meters long. The length should allow you to handle the spear easily and effectively. Attach the spear blade to the shaft using lashing. The preferred method is to split the handle, insert the blade, then wrap or lash it tightly. You can use other materials without adding a blade. Select a 1.2-to 1.5- meter long straight hardwood shaft and shave one end to a point. If possible, fire harden the point. Bamboo also makes an excellent spear. Select a piece 1.2 to 1.5 meters long. Starting 8 to 10 centimeters back from the end used as the point, shave down the end at a 45-degree angle. Remember, to sharpen the edges, shave only the inner portion.

Arrow Points
To make an arrow point, use the same procedures for making a stone knife blade. Chert, flint, and shell-type stones are best for arrow points. You can fashion bone like stone--by flaking. You can make an efficient arrow point using broken glass.

OTHER EXPEDIENT WEAPONS
You can make other field-expedient weapons such as the throwing stick, archery equipment, and the bola.

Throwing Stick
The throwing stick, commonly known as the rabbit stick, is very effective against small game (squirrels, chipmunks, and rabbits). The rabbit stick itself is a blunt stick, naturally curved at about a 45-degree angle. Select a stick with the desired angle from heavy hardwood such as oak. Shave off two opposite sides so that the stick is flat like a

boomerang. You must practice the throwing technique for accuracy and speed. First, align the target by extending the non-throwing arm in line with the mid to lower section of the target. Slowly and repeatedly raise the throwing arm up and back until the throwing stick crosses the back at about a 45-degree angle or is in line with the non-throwing hip. Bring the throwing arm forward until it is just slightly above and parallel to the non-throwing arm. This will be the throwing stick's release point. Practice slowly and repeatedly to attain accuracy.

Archery Equipment
You can make a bow and arrow from materials available in your survival area.To make a bow, use the procedure described under in our post Killing Devices For Hunting.

While it may be relatively simple to make a bow and arrow, it is not easy to use one. You must practice using it a long time to be reasonably sure that you will hit your target. Also, a field-expedient bow will not last very long before you have to make a new one. For the time and effort involved, you may well decide to use another type of field-expedient weapon.

Bola
The bola is another field-expedient weapon that is easy to make (Figure 12-7). It is especially effective for capturing running game or low-flying fowl in a flock. To use the bola, hold it by the center knot and twirl it above your head. Release the knot so that the bola flies toward your target. When you release the bola, the weighted cords will separate. These cords will wrap around and immobilize the fowl or animal that you hit.

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Secrets of Stealth Camping

10 Shelters for Stealth Camping

1. Feather Spear Trap

2. Cartridge Booby Trap

3. Punji Stake Pit

4. Punji Bear Trap

5. Paracord Snare Trap

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