Winter Survival Tips - Part Four

1/3/2014

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In spite of the best of intentions, during the winter months old Murphy can show up at anytime and throw you into a winter survival situation. Even though properly dressed for the outdoors, in order to survive a cold night you will need to start a fire.  

When forced into winter survival mode you might ask yourself, "How would a twenty-first century woodsman start a fire in these conditions?" 

Unfortunately, old man winter won’t come running to answer that question. And like thousands of people have found out over the centuries, when it comes to a winter survival situation, you're on your own when starting a fire. 

Only planning, practice and advance preparation can get you through the cold and darkness.


This brings us to our next principle of winter survival:  Fire is hardest to start when you need it the most.  

Almost anyone can start a fire when its ninety degrees outside, the sun is shining and it hasn't rained for a couple of weeks. But, when you're cold, wet, hungry and thirsty, when everything around you is cold and wet, when your fingers are so numb you can barely feel your fingertips and the temperature is headed down; it’s then you discover if your fire making skills are up to the challenge. 

Who can forget in the Jack London classic, To Build A Fire, where the main character struggles in vain to get a fire going at seventy-five below zero?  Even though the story is considered fiction, it's a worthwhile read to get the proper mindset before you head into the wilderness.

Probably more than any other season of the year, winter survival requires that you develop the necessary self-reliance skills before an emergency arises. 

There are many methods of fire starting available to the twenty-first century woodsman. Here is a list of twenty-five fire starting methods any outdoorsman can use. 

These should be carried in your winter survival kit and be in your vehicle should you need them. These methods should also be practiced in all kinds of conditions before you need them.  

Spark Based Fire  

1.  Flint and steel
2.  Ferrocerrium rod
3.  Butane lighter
4.  Butane torch
5.  Propane torch

Friction Based Fire 

1.  Bow drill
2.  Hand drill
3.  Pump drill
4.  Rope drill
5.  Crutch drill
6.  Mouth drill
7.  Fire thong hand drill
8.  Polynesian fire plow
9.  Aboriginal fire saw
10. Four person fire log

Heat Based Fire 

1.  Fire Piston
2.  Magnifying lens (Glass lens, Fresnel lens, balloon, ice)
3.  Concave lens or reflector (headlight or flashlight reflector, chocolate bar and soda can)
4.  Nine-volt battery and fine steel wool
5.  Car/atv/motorcyle/snowmoble etc. battery, wire and tinder

Chemical Based Fire 

1.  Matches/fire starters (Yes, this is a chemical fire. Most matches depend on a two part chemical reaction with one half of the chemical on the match head and the other half on the box or book of matches. It is not just a strip of sandpaper! Make sure you pack the striker turned away from the match heads so that it won't accidentally ignite or rub off.  

Strike anywhere matches have both chemicals on the tip and when it is struck against a rough surface the two combine to ignite. By the way, a match is the perfect fire starter. It has the ignition source and a small piece of tinder attached. Unfortunately, it is a one-time use and you can only carry so many at a time. Plus, they must be kept absolutely moisture free unless they are dipped in wax or paraffin or are already waterproofed from the factory. Still, keep them dry if at all possible!

2. Potassium Permanganate and glycerin ( Hint:  Use a couple of drops of water to accelerate the exothermic reaction) Also note that in very cold temperatures this may not work even if you warm up the elements beforehand. Keep them widely separated if at all possible. 

(Potassium Permanganate can be found in the water treatment area of hardware stores and pool stores and glycerin can be found in medical supply stores and pharmacies and has many uses for the outdoorsman as a treatment for insect bites, burn or chafing ointment, treatment for poison ivy, sumac or oak rashes, mild bug repellant, lubricant for a bow drill socket and can be mixed with wood ash to make a simple but effective soap! Truly a multi-purpose item!)

3.  Emergency Flare (Even sold in half sizes for carrying convenience)
Whenever you go into the great outdoors, you should always carry at least three kinds of methods of starting fire. Usually, these are a butane lighter, a ferrocerrium rod and matches of some kind. But whatever you choose, make sure that you practice in all types of weather and conditions. Go ahead, challenge yourself, start a fire in the woods in the pouring rain with just one match! It can be done, but requires proper preparation and skill. 

Proper Planning  When the hunter/gatherer's of yesteryear walked through the wilderness, they did not wait until they arrived at their campsite to gather what is probably the most important material for starting a fire, tinder. As they traveled they were on the lookout for cedar bark, dry grasses, cattail fluff, Canadian thistle down and any other small dry materials that might be needed for fire starting. 

You should do the same and carry a spare Ziploc bag for these items in your winter survival kit. The woodsmen of yesterday would protect their hearth, cord and spindle from the elements as carefully as we would our matches today. When Otzi the ice man was discovered in the Otztal Alps in the fall of 1991, he had in his hand a cylinder of birch bark with freshly picked maple leaves and grass, insulating what was a live coal from the elements.  He also carried in a clever belt pouch, flint and four pieces of true tinder fungus (Fomes fomentarius) with traces of iron pyrites in their fibers. No iron pyrites were found on or around the site of the discovery, so he must have considered his fire carrying skills equal to the task of the mountain wilderness and the 10,400-foot altitude where he died. Note that he died from a shoulder injury caused by an arrow, not because he was unprepared.

Proper Preparation  When preparing to build a fire in a winter survival situation, you must gather your materials first. Gather all the tinder and wood that you need before you start to build the fire.

Tinder may be char cloth, SRO's Mini Inferno, cotton balls, dryer lint, cedar bark fluff, jute twine, sock threads (if they are cotton), small sticks of various sizes etc. Note that larger branches and logs do not need to be cut or split, they may easily be burned in half when the fire is going. Remember winter survival is always a calorie game so don't waste time and energy cutting wood to size. 

For ideal winter survival one should probably have a small axe or hatchet to split wet wood and get at the dry inner core, a small saw for cutting large pieces down to size in order to be able to drag them to the fire area and a sharp knife with which to make fuzz sticks. (This is accomplished by shaving small curls of wood left attached to the stick.) 

The author has found that it is best to gather a small bundle of sticks from pencil size up to thumb size, dry them out and keep them in a Ziploc bag. Do this when it is not raining, lay them up for a week or so and then pack them with your winter survival kit. 

Spark Fire With Cotton Balls and Petroleum Jelly

Also for spark-based fire starting it's hard to beat a cotton ball (make sure it is 100 per cent cotton and not a synthetic) mixed with petroleum jelly and stored in a plastic 35mm film canister. Film canisters can still be had for free at many in-store photo labs. (The petroleum jelly on the cotton balls has many multiple uses including lip balm, soothing galled inner thighs, coating for wind-chapped skin, etc.) 

Along with these items, by including a few small sticks of fatwood or greasewood, split small and broken in half, a fire may be started in almost any condition. 

Start with the cotton ball (just a piece is needed) drawn out and stretched, then lay two small pieces of fatwood on top, crisscrossed, then lay some pencil thick twigs from your Ziploc bag on top in a tepee fashion and using ferrocerium rod or match etc., apply the spark/fire to the cotton ball.  Within short order you will have a small blazing fire. 

Of course, in a winter survival situation, you must be careful that the ground on which you build your fire is not too wet. If so, then build a platform of sticks (as dry as possible) upon which to place your fire. If you don't do this, the water and steam from the ground will make it nearly impossible to keep your fire going. 

When the fire has reached sufficient strength, then even wet wood may be burned. A fire is like a baby, it must be nursed, nurtured and fed from small to large sticks until it can burn on it's own.

Proper Practice  As has already been noted, you must plan and prepare for a proper fire.  But, you must also practice, practice, practice!  Make sure that you truly own the skill before your life and the lives of those you care about depend on it. This is especially true for all the primitive fire starting methods like the widely touted bow drill. 

When you try to start a fire with these methods you will soon learn to appreciate modern fire starters a whole lot more. Along with the practice of making fire, you should practice maintaining fire (of the proper size, a big fire takes a lot of wood, you can get closer to a smaller fire and it is more environmentally friendly, always cook on coals not flame etc.) and practice carrying fire. 

Carrying fire could be a lifesaver and was practiced to an art in ancient times. Carrying fire was done by Otzi the ice man and is mentioned in the Biblical Book of Genesis where Abraham carried fire from the base of the mountain to the area of sacrifice. This story dates to somewhere around 2000 to 1500 BC!  

The last three areas of winter survival and fire starting are these:

1.  The Sure Fire  No matter where you find yourself, always carry the ability to start a for sure fire.  For some this may be a ferrocerrium rod, for others this may be a lighter, a match, a torch or an emergency flare. Just make sure that if conditions are the worst (Cold, wet, hypothermic etc.) that you can get that fire started.

2.  The Next Fire  Always think or plan ahead.  It is easier to keep a fire going in a winter survival situation than it is to start it again. If you use flint and a steel striker, make sure that you prepare your char cloth in this fire for the next fire. Save some tinder, char cloth, jute twine as well. Dry tinder should be used sparingly as it is one of the hardest items to find in winter. 

3.  The Last Fire  No matter how long you are in a winter survival situation, you should try and keep fire-starting materials for that last ditch fire. Keep at least one match, don't use all the butane in your lighter (They are good on average for about fifty fires or so), save some good tinder and so on. Keep your fire going and practice primitive fire starting methods and save your commercial and irreplaceable fire starters. You never know when you might slip into a creek, get caught in a storm or get overheated and sweaty and need to dry out. The last ditch fire may just save your life!

Put together a winter survival kit

Fire starting in a winter survival situation can be difficult at best. So if you find yourself needing the skills, make sure you own the skills. Plan, prepare and practice. Put together a winter survival kit and pay special attention to your fire starting materials. Go out in your back yard and practice making fire, maintaining fire and carrying fire. 

And when you're in that winter survival situation, start that sure fire, keep in mind the next fire and keep something back for the last fire. And with a little help from Above, you'll be back with your loved ones, safe and sound and with a great winter survival story to tell! - by James Bender
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Winter Survival Tips - Part Three

1/3/2014

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This is part 3 of a 4 part Winter Survival series. If you haven't had a chance, check out Winter Survival - Part 1 and Winter Survival - Part 2.

When in a winter survival situation, you might soon realize that you’re not going to get out of the situation you’re in before nightfall. This means you will have to spend the night outside and will need a warm and dry place to sleep.

Whether or not you are an experienced outdoorsman, there is one need that everyone has and that is the need to be sheltered from the weather. Which brings us to another core principle of winter survival. 

3. If you are to maintain your core temperature and stay dry, you must know how to protect yourself from the elements. 

As you can see, next to oxygen, shelter is the second highest on the list of priorities. Regardless of why you find yourself in a winter survival situation, you must find a way to provide adequate shelter for yourself and for those who may be with you.

Obviously, the best winter survival shelter is one you don’t have to exert unnecessary energy to build. Such as a cave, a rock shelter, a cabin or trail shelter, even an outhouse built by the forest service are all options that should be considered before expending precious calories to make something in which to shelter. 

An ideal winter survival shelter should provide three basic needs: 

A. It must shelter you from the wind.  
B. It should shelter you from precipitation.
C. It must provide some insulation from the cold.   


So, with these in mind, the next main principle of winter survival is this: 
4. It's easier to take shelter than to make shelter, or it's easier to take some form of a shelter than to make a whole shelter. If you cannot find a natural or man-made shelter in which to spend the night in or wait out a coming storm, you must make one. If you are new to self-reliance you may think that a tent is an ideal way to take shelter with you, but very few people are going to bring a tent along with them everywhere they go. And even if you have a tent, it only provides two of the three basic needs. It will shelter you from wind and precipitation but provides little if any insulation from the cold and you cannot have a fire close enough to feel the heat without endangering the fabric of the tent.  

Normally, a tent is used in conjunction with a sleeping bag of the proper temperature rating for the environment it is to be used in. The sleeping bag is what provides insulation from the cold. But, if you have a tent and a winter rated sleeping bag, it's not winter survival -- you're just camping! The real question is what do you do when you find yourself needing warmth and shelter that is not readily available?

The best shelter to take and make is the composite lean-to shelter. It consists of very small, lightweight, and portable components carried in a small winter survival kit that can be placed in a pocket or pack when needed.

When in a winter survival situation, you can build the composite shelter one of two ways, either in a lean-to or an A-frame style shelter. The typical lean-to shelter is not an adequate winter survival shelter because it is open to the elements of wind and rain on three sides and is not insulated. The typical A-frame/tent style shelter does a better job at shedding water and shielding from the wind but is still open on the two ends and doesn't allow as much exposure to your fire and is not well insulated. The composite lean-to shelter uses the same configuration as a standard lean-to with an insulated top and sides and partially blocked front. To build an insulated lean-to shelter you will need the following items. 


If using a mylar survival blanket it can be unfolded and used as is. When using a drum liner/garbage bags they must be slit with a knife along the two long sides and duck taped together lengthwise. The advantage of mylar for winter survival is that it reflects heat back to your body from your body and from the fire. 

The advantage of the garbage bag is that it can be used as a poncho, to gather debris for insulation, a makeshift hobo pack sack or stuffed with leaves as a ground mat. A heavy-duty garbage bag is truly a multi-purpose survival item. The best idea is to have two garbage bags and one mylar survival blanket as well, but this is winter survival and you have to choose what to bring, as you can't carry everything.
Insulating Your Shelter 


To insulate your shelter, pile leaves and debris on top of the sheeting (being sure not to puncture it) to a depth of six to eight inches. To keep the debris from blowing away, pile several branches on top of the debris. Next, cut small poles of the proper length to match the grade on the sides of the lean-to. Sharpen the bottom of the poles and drive them into the ground on the sides of your shelter approximately six to eight inches apart. 

Then, do the same to the front of the shelter from one end to approximately two thirds of the way across. Weave small flexible limbs in and out of the poles on both the sides and the front of the shelter making a loose mat. If you can find them, pine branches work best for weaving. Pile debris against the sides and lay sticks on it to keep the debris from blowing away. 

The front should not have debris piled against it as this is toward your fire and you don't want to create a dangerous situation for yourself by piling a giant tinder bundle in front of your shelter. Try to make the front weave as tight as you can, using green pine branches if possible. On the inside of your shelter, pile leaves and debris or small pine branches several inches thick to lie on. Now after your fire is built you can crawl in and enjoy!

Constructing An A-Frame Shelter 


The A-frame composite shelter is built much the same way except that it doesn't need two trees to start with. To build an A-frame shelter you will need two heavy sticks approximately four feet tall lashed together at the top and spread apart to form an "X" and one long ridgepole approximately eight to ten feet long set in the top of the "X" and placed at an angle to the ground and lashed to the two front poles. Then, more poles are laid along the ridge vertically from top to bottom on both sides. 

Lay the mylar/plastic sheeting across the top of the ridge, wrap a smooth stone (Or a bobber) in each corner, tie around it with cord and stretch it to the ground and tie it to a wooden peg. The bobbers are uniform and smooth keep the plastic/mylar corners from ripping. (You can use smooth pebbles or stones instead of bobbers but they never seem to be around when you need them.) 

Then begin to pile debris to a depth of six or eight inches starting at the bottom and going the top again taking care not to puncture the sheeting. Lay branches on the top to keep the debris from shifting or blowing away. Pile debris on the floor to the proper thickness for a sleeping mat and slide in feet first and get comfortable. 

Important Shelter Tips 


Note: In either shelter you should add to the debris on the floor every day or replace it as it will definitely crush down from laying on it and will begin to lose some of its insulating properties. Make sure that your shelter is not in an area that could flood (look for flood litter height in the bushes and trees around you), make sure it's not underneath any large, dead branches that could fall on you; called “widowmakers,” and ideally it should be about halfway up a slope as the top of a ridge is windy and the bottom of a gully is where cold air condenses and settles. Dig a shallow trench around your shelter to divert water and place your fire a safe but "feelable" distance from the front of it. Make sure to stop and make camp at least two hours before dusk, as you should be able to make the composite shelter in this amount of time.

You may never find yourself in a winter survival situation, but if you do, it's good to take the basic materials to make a proper shelter. Sure, many people can make shelter without a knife, cord or sheeting, but the author believes that a little preparation goes a long way!  After all, when you get a shelter built and a warm mat to sleep on with a blazing fire out front, it's not winter survival any more. Now, you're camping! - by James Bender
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Winter Survival Tips - Part Two

1/3/2014

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In the last article about winter survival, we conveyed the necessity of being properly dressed for a survival emergency. Read Winter Survival - Part One. In Part Two of this series we want to address another universal principle of winter survival.

Principals of Winter Survival 1. It's easier to stay warm and dry than it is to get warm and dry.

Picture the scenario: It's December and you're heading out to be with family for the Christmas holiday season. The car is loaded with gifts. Also, you are loaded down with clothes, shoes and accessories for Christmas parties, church services, etc. Your car has just slid off the road into the ditch. It’s raining/sleeting/snowing and the weather report indicates it's going to get worse, much worse, over the next several days. There's no other traffic as most people are staying home. There's little to no cell phone signal, so calling a tow truck is not an option. 

Like so many of us, who travel from point A to point B during the winter, the beginning and end of the journey is filled with warmth, light, friends and family. But, what we often fail to consider are the many miles of relatively empty, wooded, mountainous or just open terrain in between. 

When faced with a winter survival situation, staying in your car is not necessarily the best option. Your car is a big metal object with poor insulation qualities, and there is only so much fuel in the gas tank. Staying near your car is a better option if there is enough wood for a fire and a place where you can shelter from the storm.

Emergencies require us to make choices. Do you stay in the car, running the engine for about ten minutes every hour to run the heater until the gas runs out or do you find a place close to your vehicle where you can (hopefully) start a fire and build a shelter? Or, do you do both, staying in your car until the storm is over and then seek better shelter? 

Let’s continue the scenario: You know that your car is the first thing that rescuers will find after you are missed and a search is initiated. So, making a decision, you wait until a lull in the storm, you get out of your car, (You did remember to dress to survive, didn't you?) open the trunk, dig past the presents to get your winter survival kit out, then leaving a note for your rescuers, you head to the nearest wooded area to find a windbreak and begin to prepare your shelter and get a fire started. (Note: If this scenario seems implausible the author would encourage you to read the tragic winter survival story of James Kim and his family traveling from Seattle, Washington to their home in San Francisco, California after the Thanksgiving holiday in 2006.)

Avoid hypothermia

The number one killer of people in the outdoors is hypothermia. This is where your body's core temperature drops below 95 degrees Fahrenheit or 35 degrees Celsius. There are four stages of hypothermia and they are listed as mild, moderate, severe and profound. Needless to say, in a winter survival scenario, you want to avoid all four. Any stage of hypothermia is potentially dangerous and may bring great discomfort and suffering or even death. 

Although hypothermia can be caused by several factors, being wet in a winter survival situation truly complicates the problems that the survivor faces. The key is to avoid getting wet if at all possible. If you can stay dry, it is much easier to stay warm, as your body will naturally generate heat from body fat and calories consumed. Stay sheltered in your car, under a ledge or overhang or under a large coniferous tree. Use whatever you have at hand to keep dry.

Outside of precipitation, one of your biggest enemies in winter survival is perspiration. Wet clothing will remove heat from your body approximately 25 times faster than dry clothing. Whatever you do, whether shelter building, fire starting or just walking/hiking, don't allow yourself to begin to sweat. Sweating lowers your core temperature (as its designed to do), causes you to lose precious water from your body and makes your inner layer(s) of clothing wet. (Remember, it's easier to stay warm and dry than it is to get warm and dry.)  

Sometimes people will argue about what you need to do first in a winter survival situation. Do you start a fire or do you build a shelter? The answer is that it depends on your situation. If it is cold but dry, then a fire is what you would build first, but if there is any chance of precipitation, then the choice would be to build a shelter. 

From experience, the author can affirm that it takes a long time to dry clothes by an outside fire during the winter. Also, having experienced mild to moderate hypothermia, he can also affirm that it is much easier to stay dry than to try to get dry. Fortunately, in our situation we had a backpack with dry clothes, a propane backpacking stove, water in a canteen and hot chocolate in a pouch, which took very little time to prepare. (Note: Hot chocolate is a better drink in winter survival than hot tea or coffee. Tea and coffee are diuretics and will make you lose water faster. Water is just as important in the winter as it is in the summer because it is a catalyst in metabolizing fat and digesting food to keep you warm. Also, hot chocolate is better because the fat content will help you stay warm.) Even with the dry clothes and hot chocolate, it took the better part of an hour before the symptoms of hypothermia went away.

So, if you find yourself in a winter survival situation, don't allow yourself to get wet. Take steps to guard against the weather outside and also to ensure that you don't heat up too much from the inside. And remember, a little preparation and planning go a long way. If at all possible, it's best to avoid being in a winter survival situation in the first place! - by James Bender
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Winter Survival Tips - Part One

1/3/2014

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Winter Survival! The very words conjure up images of snow-laden trees, frozen streams and smoke curling gently upward from a warm fire. The fresh, crisp air coupled with the bare, black branches of leafless trees evoke memories of days long gone, an era long past, when longhunters in their buckskins roamed the vast tracks of wilderness in search of deer, bear and whatever other game was about. It was a time of freedom, of danger and seemingly endless opportunity when a young man with his rifle could make a lasting mark on his world using just his wits and his skills. It was also a time when at any moment the day's hunt could turn into unexpected winter survival.

We too, in the modern era, with all the gear and tools that we have at our disposal can easily find ourselves suddenly thrust into a winter survival situation. It may be a car sliding off the road in the snow or ice, a hunting trip gone awry or simply a day hike that takes a wrong turn. Whatever the cause, we can easily find ourselves needing to drop into winter survival mode.

How to Prepare for Winter Survival As in any area of life, preparation is the key to success. Never is this more true than in the area of winter survival. While the exact circumstances that lead to the need for winter survival may vary greatly, there are some universal concepts that apply to every situation.

1.  Dress to survive, don't just dress to arrive.

During cold weather months, many of us leave our warm houses, get into a warm car from a warm garage and drive to a warm destination. This has become so normal for many people that they never entertain the possibility of failing to arrive at that destination because they got stuck somewhere in the middle, unable to continue, forward or backward. 

At a bare minimum, one should always plan for the need to walk somewhere in the snow, ice or cold. Good, broken-in, waterproof boots at least six inches high with a fully gusseted tongue, hat and gloves and a windproof, waterproof coat should always either be on you or in the car, not necessarily in the trunk. 

It can be a real problem to have to get out and trudge through snow in dress shoes or high heels to get to your gear. By the time you access what you need your feet may be wet and the wind and cold will have gotten you deeply chilled. It may seem inconvenient and unnecessary to keep these items with you all winter and it is true that most of the time you will never need to use them for an emergency, however, remember there's always that one time and that's all it takes to put you into an extreme situation where the proper clothing can save your life or the lives of those you love.

Even when hunting or hiking in the winter, when most people are usually geared up for the outdoors, there are a few things that we must pay attention to when getting dressed. First, never wear cotton, especially close to the skin. There's a reason it has gained the nickname "Death Cloth". (Note: There are some cotton polyester blends that wick moisture away and dry more quickly, but as a general rule avoid cotton!) Cotton holds moisture, dries slowly, will chill you below a safe core temperature and could ultimately freeze on you if it's cold enough. Wear synthetics if at all possible, even if it’s a little more expensive than the traditional long johns. A good suggestion is to wear the military grade polypropylene ECWS (Extreme Cold Weather System) or similar products. You can usually find them online, at a surplus store or even at your local retailer. Just be aware that not all clothes are made equal and some can make winter survival difficult or even impossible.

2. Layer your clothing

One thick layer of clothing is never as efficient as several lighter layers. The amount of air trapped between multiple layers of clothing makes for excellent insulation against the cold and also allows you the option of shedding one or more layers as you get hot from walking, climbing or other physical exertion. You should also make sure that the last, outer layer is windproof and waterproof. While there are many manufacturers out there, it's hard to beat Gore-Tex. (Note: a long strip of quality duct tape taped to the inside of a sleeve or pant leg is a great temporary repair item for waterproof outerwear. Just put a small piece on the inside and outside of the tear or rip and keep on going! You'll never know it's there and it will be handy when you need it.) 

Speaking of layers, the author knows one person who went on a winter survival camping trip wearing a total of seven layers of clothing without a sleeping bag or a tent -- he survived and had a great time as well! 

3. Avoid perspiring

As mentioned in the previous paragraph, it is very important to avoid sweating. In a winter survival situation, moisture is the enemy. Slow your activity down. It is easy when things go wrong to start to panic and begin to rush and hurriedly do tasks that can just as easily be accomplished at a slower pace. When you feel yourself beginning to perspire, take a break, shed a layer or two and calm your spirit. It is good when you find yourself at the beginning of the situation to remember STOP. Stop, Think, Observe, and Plan. Plan your work and then work your plan and go at a sustainable pace that will keep you warm and dry.  

Winter Survival Means STOP. Stop, Think, Observe, and Plan

You may not be a longhunter and this may be the 21st century but we can still dress to survive and arrive alive. So, enjoy the winter, knowing that if you need to survive, you can. - by James Bender
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What is a Bug-Out-Bag, and Why You Need One!

12/18/2013

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First let me explain what a Bug-Out-Bag (B.O.B.) is. There are many different takes on what this bag is for, but the idea is having a backpack that is pre packed with everything that you would need to survive for at least 3 days in a situation of displacement.

Without getting into some of the more extreme ideas about what kind of situation could provoke "bugging out", let me cover some of the more common.

In my own family life, living in the mountains meant living with the threat of forest fires. We faced several "recommended evacuations" and stayed home, however, we did face a "mandatory evaluation" and my entire family, wife and 5 children, were completely displaced for several days.

At the time, I didn't have any idea of a "bugging out" concept, but that was a real eye opener for me. Of course, any natural disaster could provoke a serious displacement of people, are you ready for that, or will you just be another victim, waiting for the government to come help you?

Some people have several bags, stashed in their garage or somewhere, ready to grab and go. That is the idea. READY TO GRAB AND GO -or- BUG OUT! Don't forget to build one for your pet if you plan on taking them with you...

What should be in a B.O.B.? Here are some thoughts:

- Clean change of warm clothing for everyone.

- Calorie dense foods, with long shelf life.

- Portable stove and fuel.

- Water filtration system, and water storage.

- Prescribed Medications.

- A tarp for shelter, and some emergency blankets.

- A survival knife and survival tool (both, so you always have a backup knife)

- Ammunition (assuming you have a gun, and will grab it on the way out)

- Fire starters (have several different kinds)

- Flashlights

- Binoculars, or a Monocular

- Paracord (great for a bunch of things)

- First Aid Kit

- Hygiene Kit (don't forget the ladies)

- Cash (preferably small bills)

There are many other thoughts on what to carry in your bag, or bags, but ultimately it is up to you to determine what you will need. But for goodness sake, don't wait until you need one to build one, it will be too late then.

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What is the difference between a Survivalist and a Prepper?

11/26/2013

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No, this isn’t a trick question and I do think there are very big differences between someone who calls themselves a survivalist and someone who prefers to use the term Prepper. Regardless of what I think though these two terms are interchangeably used to describe a wide swath of people. These people all have different motivations and philosophies on what they are doing and why. Survivalists and Prepper are just labels. Labels like this though can pigeon-hole people into thinking they need to act a certain way or it can cause assumptions from others based upon their own perceptions of what these words mean.

How are Survivalists and Preppers alike? Let’s start with the easy stuff first. What do people who call themselves Survivalists have in common with a Prepper? I think at their core, Survivalists and Preppers both have a deep desire to live. This is not a fear of dying but rather a strong yearning to live life on their own terms. You will find tenacity in both Preppers and Survivalists to try to see the options they have before them. If you give up easily or become defeated too quickly you probably don’t deserve to call yourself a member of either team just yet.

Both Survivalists and Preppers like to prepare for unforeseen events, but I do believe Survivalists have a slightly more cavalier attitude about their chances for survival. Survivalists may give more weight to learning how to forage in the woods and eat grubs while their Prepper cousins might be more comfortable storing food to last as long as possible or creating a garden with heirloom seeds. The grub worms and fiddle-head fern salads can wait as long as possible, thank you.

Along with the desire to live I think Preppers and Survivalists both have a positive mental attitude towards overcoming obstacles when it comes to survival. They both hold a belief that with the right training, mental outlook and circumstances, no situation is ever more than they can bear. I have spoken to a lot of people who seem to want to shut down in the face of adversity or impending doom. Their response to my questions about prepping are usually something like “well we are all gonna die anyway, so what’s the point?” and this is 180 degrees from how I think we as humans should be.

What if the early settlers of our country just said, “I quit.”? They faced starvation, disease, death on a daily basis and still managed to carve a country out of the wilderness with zero government assistance, WIC vouchers, National Healthcare, MRE’s, GPS, Bug Out vehicles or smart phones. Do you think they had a desire to live and a positive mental attitude? We come from those same people who braved the elements, sailed across seas for months and landed in a foreign land with not much more than the clothes on their backs. They were the original Survivalists and Preppers and their blood runs through our veins.

How are they different? As I said above, I think these terms get used interchangeably all of the time and in certain context the meaning may be blurred. For instance, there are a lot of websites that have Survival in the name that I look up to and respect greatly. They offer a ton of useful information on Survival, and I have linked to several of them on our resources page. I am not referring to the word Survival here because I think we all want to survive something.

When I speak of “Survivalists” with a capital S I am referring to people who will label themselves as such. I think Survivalists lean more toward the ideal that Bear Grylls and Les Stroud have promoted with their respective TV shows showing how they both can survive in the wilderness on all manner of strange tricks and skills that the normal person would never be in a place to use. I think some Survivalists see themselves as being deserted in a jungle somewhere with only a rusty coke can and a bandana to survive. Now, if this happens to you, would all of those Bear Grylls skills come in handy? Absolutely, but to base your entire understanding of the possibilities of what this life can throw at you on a couple of reality shows seems to miss the point to me.

To quote our current President, “Now, let me be clear” I love watching Bear Grylls and Les Stroud and other shows I can’t remember. Those shows do pass along knowledge that you can use and this applies just as much to the suburban prepper as it does to the Survivalist. I just prefer to take that knowledge and try to apply it to a different potential reality.

Preppers on the other hand do not seem to have most of the same scenarios in mind when they are preparing for an uncertain future. Preppers typically have one or more situations they view as inevitable and they make plans to mitigate the bad effects you could be faced with in that situation. For example, if a Prepper lived in Tornado alley, they would rightfully be concerned and their preps would almost certainly start with safety should a Tornado strike. They could go one past that and plan for survival after the tornado with food, water and shelter options that could help them and their neighbors in the days and weeks after any type of natural disaster like that.

Preppers also do not seem to make plans with only themselves involved. Preppers like to form groups and communities and try to get others involved, engaged and on-board when it is prudent to do so. I know there are survivalist groups as well, but they still seem to be more likely to want to be away from people before there is any actual need to.

Survivalists that I have run across definitely have a different way they present themselves when the subject of hypothetical grid-down scenarios are presented. I do get the sense that in some cases, they seem to have a “let them go to hell” mentality and I don’t think that is what Preppers would agree with on the surface. Now, I will freely admit that I haven’t met everyone, don’t know what is in anyone’s heart but mine and I could be very guilt of gross stereotyping here. If that is the case I apologize and I would love to hear your side in the comments below. I am not trying to pick a fight, just comparing and contrasting some people/themes based upon my observations.

Lastly, Preppers seem to be looking for a lifestyle change on top of their preparations. Eating more Organic food, living healthier lives, becoming more self-sufficient are common themes and this transcends any natural disaster. It shows a desire to have a better life and that is something I think we could all use.

Which one is best? I don’t think it is as black and white as I have made it out to be in the paragraphs above. I certainly think that if the SHTF we would all be in for a huge reality check and there is no telling how we each might act. Who knows what type of situations we may be faced with and what will be necessary in order to live and keep our families safe. We might all end up being in the same boat, bashing each other over the head with the last broken oar. I hope not.

I like to identify with Preppers, but I do know that if faced with certain triggers, I might fall squarely into the Survivalist camp that I was painting with a broad brush a little earlier. I guess we are just two sides of the same coin, but we are both made of the same mettle. I don’t think there is anything wrong with that at all.
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Survive or Thrive?

11/26/2013

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We don't like to think about the possibilities, and that is why so many people fail to prepare. But failing to prepare, is preparing to fail.

Zig Zigler said "Expect the best. Prepare for the worst. Capitalize on what comes."


We don't want to think about the possible dangers, for fear of being "Johnny Raincloud", but if we don't consider the obvious dangers, we won't be survival minded.

There are many threats at the doorstep of America these days. Threats from radical terrorists bent on our destruction, serious government mismanagement, natural disasters, disease, drought, etc, etc....

Consider Katrina, Fukashima, 9/11, and the U.S. financial market crash in 2008.

Sometimes it seems like the perfect storm is brewing. So are we to ignore those things, and not prepare, when people are relying on us for their care?

Some don't want to be one of those "doomsday preppers", some think it is a lack of faith and trust in the Lord, and some are just too busy to think about it.

Those are convenient concerns when everything is going well. But around the world, people have experienced major catastrophes on may levels, are we to think that America is exempt from the reach of crisis?

That is the kind of thinking that will sort out those who thrive, those who survive, those who become victims, and those who die, when disaster comes.

If it comes your way, will you just survive, or thrive?



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