Survival? It Is All About The Basics

OK

Attitude.

I have read on here all about your Zombies, Sit X, Sit Y and Z, Economic Collapse and Nuclear Armageddon. I will not spend time debating the merits of each and every scenario. What I will do, is talk for a bit about what it takes to really survive.

One of the first basic rules of all Special Ops, is this: “If you complain, you are OUT.” Period. Why? State of mind is why; attitude is everything in a survival situation. While it is often used, it is none the less true, “if you THINK you can survive, you can.”

A good solid, positive attitude will carry you through most difficult things in life. A survival situation, while extreme, is not really any different.

A positive attitude will enable you to get through the long cold nights when you can't build a fire. A positive attitude will give you amazing amounts of energy when you are hungry, thirsty and more tired than you can ever imagine. A positive attitude will get that shelter up when you have no idea how to build one. A positive attitude will let you live.

If you ever think about giving up, you will. Then you will die.

Camping.

I have read any number of times on here, people disrespecting camping as being a good preparation for survival. Well, coming from someone that has been in a survival situation more than once, I can tell you this. I will take a good camper by my side before I would someone that has read everything but never used it. Field work, woodsmanship and general outdoor skills are impressive. Knowing what caliber you need to kill a bear, less so. Having read how to build a shelter, not at all. Someone who can cook over a fire, keep a site clean and sanitary and walk through the woods without stumbling all over the place, is a valuable asset to me.

Hunting.

I consider a good hunter to be exactly on the same level as a good camper. Why don't I consider them higher? Because shooting another person is nothing like shooting an animal. Hunters usually posses the same general skills as a good camper, so they are very valuable, but not any more so than a good camper.

Physical.

If you are not in good physical condition, you are a liability. Period. And I am not talking about “Gym” shape. Go hiking regularly, do some climbing; you will use muscles that you will never train in the gym. I promise you that.

Make sure you are physically capable of carrying everything you need all day long. If you are not, get out and get in shape.

Weapons.

If you own a weapon that you plan on using in the case of a survival situation, use it. Often. Reading about how to shoot will never teach you to shoot. Shooting once a year will never keep you in practice enough to do you any good. You must train at least 4 times a year according to the FBI, to remain adequately proficient with a firearm. I would say 6 times a year myself. I shoot at least 12.

How long will it take you, using your field knife, to cut the limbs and small trees enough to build a shelter? You don't know do you? I do. While you may have read how to build a trap, have you ever trapped anything? Have you ever really built the trap yourself? Can you really sharpen your knife in the field? Can you field dress an animal? Not asking if you have ever read how, asking if you can really do it. Can you field dress and save the nutritious blood for your soup?

Fire.

Can you build fire with just a knife? Have you only read how, or watched a video? Can you do it in the rain, with wet wood? Have you used the fire starter you plan on carrying? Do you know how to “trench” your fire in the case of rain? What wood burns best green? What are “Fat Sticks” and where do you find them? What can you use instead of wood to build your fire?

Food and Water.

What wild grains can you find and eat? Roots? Plants? Insects? Animals are wonderful sources of food, but the things I just listed are far more readily available and easier to find. How do you prepare them? Which are food and which are poison?

How do you find water in a dry environment? Can you safely drink from a stream? Should you use the energy to dig for water? What plants contain a good source of water? How should you conserve water in the heat? Can you just eat snow?

Location.

I will not spend much time on this, as I consider a place “set up” with what you need, while convenient, completely unnecessary. Your skills should be such that you can survive anywhere and you should be able to find a place to “go under” until such time as you can make your way to a safer location.


All of these things and many more, too many to list, are necessary for you to survive on your own without the help and assistance of society. I would suggest that you learn them, practice them and become expert in them if you expect to survive.

Semper

As far as I know the most important attributes of all are the will to survive and ability to fight despair . If you don't have either of those in survival scenario then you are a goner and all the practical training in the world won't help . All the while survivalists are planning for there various would Situation X they over look the case of Poon Lim . Poon Lim survived one hundred and thirty three days at sea without any formal survival training .

Cheers xpert11 .

Excellent and all true...

I think you have three types of "survivalists"

The Seasoned survivalist = someone who has learnt and used skills in the field due to necessity, profession or interest.

The theory Survivalist = someone who has read books on survival but never put it into practice. Has a kit bag the size of Madonna’s holiday luggage and is too worried about polishing his Kevlar Swiss army infrared multi tool thingy to ever consider getting it dirty. Thinks a Rambo knife made in China is the best knife ever.

The enthusiast= Like the theory survivalist but has had the balls to try it out. Maybe camping/hunting trips. Probably wasted some money on useless kit but still learning and getting better every trip.


But, as stated... positive mental attitude is the greatest asset in any survival situation!!

[edit on 27-11-2009 by Muckster]

One of the things that gets to me are the scores from some of the zombie survival quizzes online. I know they are just a form of amazement but I have seen people score a 80 plus percent that I know wouldn't survive four hours alone in a Supermarket let alone any serious situation. Attitude is a huge issue in any stressful situation and attitude can be conditioned by exposure. that's why military training exposes people to stress. no one will ever know 100% how they will react in any given situation, except Chuck Norris, but preparing yourself mentally and physically as well as keeping properly supplied is the only way to assist in ones own survival.

[edit on 27-11-2009 by badmoviefan]

Good to hear from you again Semper, wise thoughts you've laid out. I would add the ability to find and purify water to also be a true priority.

Reading the weather is also a very important aspect of outdoor activity, particularly in a survival situation. Attitude is THE most important aspect to survival, all the gear and skills in the world won't save you if you don't have the will to carry through. All of us who have gone hunting and/or camping have spent hundreds of dollars on gear that was well, basically junk. Knowing what gear to take and what to leave behind is another piece of the puzzle that we must figure out and fast. Anyone can benefit from loading up all their gear and walking through the woods to see just how practical your load is. It's great to be able to carry gallons of water but it is heavy, what gear can you sacrifice to carry more?
Of all the things you have mentioned there is one thing I've failed miserably at and have never accomplished - how to sharpen a knife in the field without a stone. I have tried slate to no avail and would be very interested to know any tips on how it can be accomplished.
I would take a good hunter over good camper any day for one reason - the hunter will be more aware and able to move quietly. A final note for those who will not be traveling alone - KEEP TALKING TO A BARE MINIMUM! Even the dialogue in your head must be shut down to truly be able to sense what is around you. Awareness is worth several threads all by itself but does not lend itself well to verbal explanation.
S & F my friend, I hope you had a great thanksgiving.

I never cease to wonder how all these "experts" on Survival are utterly clueless.

In ANY major crisis where something like a deadly virus has broken out of control, an invasion by commies/aliens etc etc,, the biggest threat would not be the virus, it would be the Government. After 5 to 6 days, a US President would almost certainly have been convinced by his own scientists to go nuclear.

Once nuclear bombs begin to fall, all your survival stuff is a big bag of garbage.

The human body has 5 senses, to survive a nuclear war and its fallout, you need another sense that humans do not possess.

RADIATION CONTAMINATION IS INVISIBLE AND DEADLY. No amount of determination will save you.

Furthermore, most geigercounters will be useless in a crisis. The civil defence ones need recharging from a mains electricity supply that won't be there any more.

The solution I found was to buy a medical geiger counter. These can be purchased from MEDCOM at www.medcom.com for a very reasonable rate. There are small and portable and run on rechargeable batteries that are standard ones that can be bought at almost any corner store.

You have not covered the basics either.

Simple question: WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO SURVIVE A NUCLEAR ATTACK?

Simple answer: Not be there when it happens.

Seems obvious, but no-one ever thinks about this.

So another really basic idea is to buy somewhere which is:-

- Well away from Government
- Well away from any potental primary targets.
- Well away from a large population that could walk to where you are.
- Is still connected by road albeit a long way so you can get there.
- Has a tiny population and a store within walking distance.

According to the CIA, one of the 5 safest places in North America in the event of a nuclear war is Carmacks in the Yukon. Why? SImple, what is Carmacks famous for? ANswer NOTHING!

Furthermore, the hils around Carmacks and river make it a natural fortress and the whole place is buiolt on coal, so if all the power goes off, you could still keep warm in the winter by just diggin up coal from under your garden.

Furthermore, until recently Carmacks was subject to a special land development policy by the provincial government and even until 2007 one could buy a large plot of woodland there for as little as $4200, and actually only put a meagre $1000 or so down and pay the rest over 5 years.

reply to post by aristocrat2


For my part, if the world is decimated by nukes I see no point in surviving. Radiation will follow the winds and will inevitably reach everywhere on the planet.
I also believe in the 2nd amendment for more than the reason of self-defense, it's also for the right to self-determination should the world become a place not worth living in. If my body were eaten up by radiation or some horrible slowly-killing virus I would hope someone would have the intestinal fortitude to help put me out of my misery.

reply to post by aristocrat2

According to the CIA,

I would be interested to see where that information came from.

Link or reference please?

I have personally never seen a CIA report on this subject and had no idea this was in their area of expertise.

Semper

reply to post by semperfortis


S&F for you Semperfortis.

I feel many people on this forum have a romantic idea of having to survival but if / when the time comes will run into some sticky situations.

I don't profess to be a survival expert but I am learning.

Like Semper says, you have the equipment get out there and use it.
I practiced my shelter building by making it with some of the kids in my family. It made a great play den for them but you also get the practice in shelter making.

Practice makes perfect. so get out there and do it.

reply to post by colec156


Try building fires with your kids... My girls loved it and they were able to show up their boyfriends at BBQs...

Originally posted by semperfortis
OK

Attitude.

Can i just say that despite being a very positive person, when i was out on my own for 2 months (as a test) at the very start i mubled to myself when things went wrong lol. Actually i mumble to myself a lot, whether doing bushcraft stuff or some difficult maths, i find it helps to talk my ideas through, god knows why.

It may be seen as negative but it's a real bonus to keep me going. I would say each to his own and if you ever hear someone mumbling to themselves don't always take it as a complaint Don't take it as a sign of madness either lol.

Originally posted by semperfortis
Camping.


Hunting.

Agreed on both of these nothing to add really.

Originally posted by semperfortis
Physical.

If you are not in good physical condition, you are a liability. Period. And I am not talking about “Gym” shape. Go hiking regularly, do some climbing; you will use muscles that you will never train in the gym. I promise you that.

Make sure you are physically capable of carrying everything you need all day long. If you are not, get out and get in shape.

This one absolutely needs to be stressed. When i was hitting the gym heavy i used to laugh at some guys. They were toned and big but when i challenged them to some real functional feats of strength they were rubbish. Take the simple press up vs the bench press. It looks like the same movement but in the press up so many more muscles are involved in the back and chest it's unreal. Guys benching 300 lbs couldn't crank out more than 30 push ups sometimes and i could do over a hundred without breaking any real sweat.

They also used to laugh at my warmup exercises, which included a full gymnastic planche. I can tell you now that movement requires sheer core strength but they never quite understood I think that's the difference between the training. I was training for functional, martial arts strength, they were training to look good and feel big by shifting iron. I could shift iron as well but i was half the size

Originally posted by semperfortis
Weapons.

If you own a weapon that you plan on using in the case of a survival situation, use it. Often. Reading about how to shoot will never teach you to shoot. Shooting once a year will never keep you in practice enough to do you any good. You must train at least 4 times a year according to the FBI, to remain adequately proficient with a firearm. I would say 6 times a year myself. I shoot at least 12.

All i can say is that i'm envious of your freedoms. Here in the UK i occasionally get to shoot .22, very rarely .308 and reasonably often shotguns. Air rifles i don't shoot much anymore as i sold mine after i saw the oncoming laws to ban them, give it 5 years and even those will be gone in the UK.

Originally posted by semperfortis
How long will it take you, using your field knife, to cut the limbs and small trees enough to build a shelter? You don't know do you? I do. While you may have read how to build a trap, have you ever trapped anything? Have you ever really built the trap yourself? Can you really sharpen your knife in the field? Can you field dress an animal? Not asking if you have ever read how, asking if you can really do it. Can you field dress and save the nutritious blood for your soup?

Yep, i can even make a birch bark container to hold the blood in if ya like Seriously though i see lots of videos forgetting the blood, even books forget it. As you say it's highly nutritious, it contains pretty much everything you need (depending on the animal). Blood soup was a common dish or in the UK black pudding, which if you can get/make some i highly recommend.

Originally posted by semperfortis
Fire.

Just utterly agree.

Originally posted by semperfortis
Food and Water.

What wild grains can you find and eat? Roots? Plants? Insects? Animals are wonderful sources of food, but the things I just listed are far more readily available and easier to find. How do you prepare them? Which are food and which are poison?

How do you find water in a dry environment? Can you safely drink from a stream? Should you use the energy to dig for water? What plants contain a good source of water? How should you conserve water in the heat? Can you just eat snow?

I hope you don't mind if i again point people to this old thread of mine

Make a Local Food Map

That thread was about making a local map however making that map teaches you the wild foods within your region and i think that's important. Over the years of making my map i've really learnt a great deal and can happily walk through any woods picking out species to eat. They are added to my map of course but it's nice just being able to pick things out of a wild forest and know exactly what they are and what they do. My medicine map is also coming along


Really great post semper

With the very kind permission of semperfortis i wanted to add these good threads and other information. These are not in order of importance, just randomly smushed together.

How to Make Sausage

Survivor Guide - Beginner Kit Divided

Tips On Survival Fishing

Finding Water In The Wilderness


www.youtube.com...

Some really quality videos from these guys. They go out and practice regularly. Some of the videos are a little dull but they contain plenty of information. Others seems a little lost but they are amateur filmakers so it can be forgiven. Most of the videos contain solid gold info so check it out.

www.youtube.com...

For once a guy based in the UK. Other than Ray Mears we often struggle lol. He provides some quality bushcraft stuff but his information can easily be expanded to most environments and the odd little tip and trick is really handy. I especially like his videos on the alterations he made to his hammock or the very simple blanket into poncho he wears.

Lol had to type this twice as i somehow hit the back button half way through!

Originally posted by semperfortis
reply to post by colec156

 

Try building fires with your kids... My girls loved it and they were able to show up their boyfriends at BBQs...

Kudos for you Semperfortis.
Don't get me wrong here friend, there is nothing I like more than a good old garden fire with a few bottles of beer.
I always start the fire with a fire steel and test many different tinders, eg cotton wool balls, cotton wool balls soaked in vaseline, bark shavings. One of the best tinders I found was dried conifer tree bark.

A friend of mine watched me build the fire up and the next time was eager to give the fire steel a go.

Great Thread!... I will absolutely agree without PMA you will die. That's a huge thing that goes overlooked time and time again. Thanks semperfortis because it needed to be said =)

Hi all.

Thanks for the thread, Semper.

I thought people might like this guy's blog. He's an ex-pat living in Argentina, which as you likely know, suffered an economic collapse in the early 90's, and thrust the population from a high standard of living, into, well a survival mode.

When people discuss survival, the topic often focuses on extreme scenarios that involve a man with a pack and a gun. For the vast majority of us, that' not only unfeasible, but unlikely. More likely, and also dangerous, is just getting by where you live, when TSHTF.

This blog is comprehensive, and constantly updated.

I hope you like it as much as I do, and find something useful in it.

ferfal.blogspot.com...

"Surviving in Argentina" -

[edit on 28-11-2009 by TrueTruth]

Originally posted by Muckster
Excellent and all true...

I think you have three types of "survivalists"

The Seasoned survivalist = someone who has learnt and used skills in the field due to necessity, profession or interest.

The theory Survivalist = someone who has read books on survival but never put it into practice. Has a kit bag the size of Madonna’s holiday luggage and is too worried about polishing his Kevlar Swiss army infrared multi tool thingy to ever consider getting it dirty. Thinks a Rambo knife made in China is the best knife ever.

The enthusiast= Like the theory survivalist but has had the balls to try it out. Maybe camping/hunting trips. Probably wasted some money on useless kit but still learning and getting better every trip.


But, as stated... positive mental attitude is the greatest asset in any survival situation!!

[edit on 27-11-2009 by Muckster]

have to agree with this.... also the greatest tool you have is your mind...and it is also the greatest weapon you have

Let's suppose you live in a place like, rural Virginia. Lots of deer in those woods.

Suppose everyone with a gun and some camping savvy took for the hills and turned to hunting for survival. That's a lot of desperate people, and a lot of guns. Very rapidly, supplies will diminish, and the danger, should be obvious.

I think it's better to focus on community solutions. Sure, in the accute crisis, relocation may be necessary. But in all likelihood, what we are to encounter is not some kind of giant and sudden catastrophic event, but rather, something like continuous economic degredation.

We can't all be out for ourselves. It's not feasible. We have to find a way to restructure communities so that we can be less dependent from central authorities.

I admire the rugged individualist - and confess a touch on envy too - but I'm not going to flee with my arthritic knees and degenerating spine, and leave behind my ailing parents, or my little niece and nephews.

Localization is the answer to globalism, and our surest bet of the best possible future in hard times.

Get to know your neighbors. Bake them a pie, and say hello. Reach out. Start the process now before your first encounter with the stranger next door involves a scramble for limited resources.



Be safe!