I did a search and I didn't find a thread that dealt with this subject specifically. So..
Let's see if we can provide a thread that lists things you've learned about staying safe in the "wilderness". I think it would be ideal if the tips are ones you'd personally proven.
Tip: Keep that fanny or day pack on that contains your compass and emergency gear! I took mine off in 1985 (Kremmling, CO) and 2006 (north of Ft. Collins, CO). BOTH times I ended up "turned around" for an hour or so each time.
Always try and get a map or areal photo of the area you are planning to hunt. And always leave a copy of your hunting plan(detailed with times and dates of the hunting area you plan to hunt) with someone who is not hunting with you(family) and one in your truck(just in case rescue finds the truck it will help them).
Always have a small survival kit(foil blanket, string, waterproof matches,and extra medication) and keep it on your body(small change purse works). Do your homework!
I always have fire starting gear and a compass on my person. You never know when you might get separated from your pack. I never want to spend the night in the woods unless I can start a fire.
My compass goes around my neck and does not come off until I am home. Carry a space blanket and a couple cliff bars that are for emergency use only. others have mentioned fire starters already, but when the woods are wet try and find a dead pine tree where the needles have turned brown. In my opinion that is the best kindling in existence if you hunt the pine forests.
All of my extreme experiences in the mountains have been the result of rapidly changing weather. Always have fire starter, Always have a rain shell that covers all of you. In my mind a poncho lets your legs get wet and doesn't make a good wind breaker. Deciding when to take/make shelter and start a fire is probaly the most important descision when it gets bad.
MAP
QuoteOriginally posted by Bowwild:
Tip: Keep that fanny or day pack on that contains your compass and emergency gear! I took mine off in 1985 (Kremmling, CO) and 2006 (north of Ft. Collins, CO). BOTH times I ended up "turned around" for an hour or so each time.
Any time i drop my pack for any reason, my gps, knife and fire starter goes with me. The gps has gotten me back to my pack many times.
A big heavy duty (4mil) plastic trash bag can be a life saver.
It doesn't take up much room in your pack and it can be used for many things from protecting meat to an emergency solo shelter.
If you are in the mountains, it also wouldn't hurt to carry a signal device (mirror, whistle) in case someone has to come look for you.
+1 on the hunt plan
Ditto on map, compass, cell phone, and the usual essentials, including the trash bag/space blanket, AND telling folks where you are. And there are three things I carry in pockets on me in addition to what's in my packs: a Kershaw Onion, 20' or so of parachute cord and a Bic lighter. (I can build a Taj Mahal with those.)
Here in the northern Cascades, it's helpful to think in terms of creek drainages. You are either in one or you're on a ridge. I memorize the creeks and pay attention and check the map when I cross the ridges. That way I am less distressed when I don't know where I am.
Also, if I walk very slowly, I've found I get less lost than when I walk fast.
But mainly, it's most important to practice getting lost so that when it happens you aren't freaked out by it. (That is serious. Panic is what kills people. Not knowing where you are just makes your hunting trips longer than you originally planned.)
And.. two more... creeks know how to find roads and it's also a good idea to hunt in an area where you are "trapped" by roads.
Read a book and talk to people who have area specific experience and knowledge. Once your educated your less likely to doubt yourself when the ugly gets uglier.
Books by Tom brown and the les stroud are great. Personally I stay away from the antics of bear grylls
Don't like "space blankets". Carried one for I don't know how long till I decided to open it up. Was like potato chip bag, you couldn't tear it but a stick would poke right through. Then once it's ripped, forget it. I like a military poncho or heavy trash bag.
All good suggestions. I also try to carry the ability to utilize the "survival gear" and that means that you have practiced under good conditions how to make a fire with your emergency fire starters. Made an emergency shelter and tried it out. For example a small candle a poncho and a long boot lace can keep you toasty warm in very cold weather if you know how to utilize them. If you don't then you can freeze with your legs hanging out the bottom of the poncho with an unlit candle in your hand.
Carry a SPOT. Push the button and rescue comes. Not all creeks lead to roads, or at least not to ones any where near you. I use space blankets as waterproofing for shelters. They are useless for body heat retention. They also work great as a reflector at the back of you shelter. Used properly you can achieve 70 degrees with a fire and the reflector on a very cold night. Always have a knife, cord, two methods for starting a fire and water on your person. Know the cardinal direction you need to travel to get out and always have a compass.
Most important stop and sit down! Eat a bit and just calm down! Think through your steps to the last place where you knew where you were. You can normally retrace your steps. If not get out your map and compass and resect into prominent land marks. Get your cardinal directions set and you should already know which way to go to get out.
A good hunter is never lost, he always knows where north is and which continent he is on. The rest is just foot work.
Matt, come to think of it, I don't think I've ever opened my space blanket.
Clay, our creeks are smarter than yours. :biglaugh: But you're right.
AlwaysAlwaysAlwaysAlwaysAlwaysAlwaysAlwaysAlways carry the ten essentials.
Never deviate.
Ever.
Use your head.
Don't panic.
Excellent tips! I'm guessing a "Kershaw Onion" isn't for making bad breath to keep back the bear?
I've never included a big trash bag, I will next time.
Funny, both those "turned around" times I laid down the pack with all my stuff, I thought I'd be right back. Once I was headed down from camp to intercept some early elk. The other time I laid the pack down to carry an elk quarter to the parked truck which wasn't 200 yards away!
Both times were very embarrassing.
TP - DON'T LEAVE HOME WITHOUT IT
always tell someone exactly where your planning to go (this should get them in the ball park). space blanket, fire starter (striker), garbage bag, rhino grip, rope, paper and pencil, some fishing line, knife, 1 small hook and split shot. (this all takes up no room and weighs nothing and some you use for nornal bow hunting activities.
Consider orange or other bright handles for knives and other important gear so if it drops or you lay it down, you can find it. You don't need a camo knife that is hidden in a sheath or your pack anyway.
If you lay your pack down, consider tying some long orange ribbon above so you can actually find it again. As above, develope a bare minimum kit of a few things, compass, knife, fire starter, some cord that stays on your person, even if you drop your pack.
Lastly, learn to admit you have a possible problem, sit and think about it. Accept you might just be spending the night. Tomorrow will be better.
Where I hunt in Colorado, MOST times, if I were able to curl up into a ball and roll down hill,. from almost anywhere, I would end up in the main creek, which runs past both the camp and the truck.
ChuckC
Everything already posted!
The one thing i would add is....pretend you are in that situation and try your survival plan out in your back yard.......first in good weather and then when it is raining and or cold.
Kind of makes me wonder how those Mountain men survived with only a knife, possibly a hatchet, and that old smoke pole...
No GPS, good maps or satellite to depend on,,and their only match was a flint and blanket was a hide of some sort..
Boy have we become technology dependent :rolleyes:
I guess I really do need that Badlands 2400 pack stuffed if I want to get more than a mile from the truck. :scared: BTW, whats a Rhino Grip? Guess I should not leave home without one of those too ;) ...
I'm surprised "Charmin" has not been mentioned. I do believe the bears now depend on it...
Seriously, I take a lighter and compass.. If going in a mile or so, a space blanket and along with that a small "back pocket size" first aid kit.
In the event I do grab my day pack? It may have some hard candy and trail mix, may find its way into the day pack. Not to mention that "Charmin" I mentioned above.
I have for years, always had a small signal mirror and a few feet of cord in there with [ more recently]one of Clay Walkers very light wt "Hawks" strapped to the outside of the Diablo Day Pack along with a bit of water in the hydro pack. Total weight not over 5-6 lbs.
Gene
use a gps and look behind you when you're walking - create a reference from that. I used a mountain to navigate out of colorado solo last fall
I also always have a role of orange flagging tape. To mark things. I learned on a forestry job back in 1977 in Colorado if tying flagging to tie it high. Elk will bite off the flagging at the knot sometimes.
Okay, it looks like todays "survival kit" more resembles a kit to make it through the night or some essential gear till you find your way.
Other than all the mandatory items listed here...I'll add one for duration survival. Bring some snare wire, know how to use it before going into the wilderness. Use snares to get food. No energy expended unless going to the snare and back. No endless roaming around hopefully making a shot.
If you are stuck for over a week and eating rabbit/squirrel and NOTHING else....you have to munch down a couple of bones. The meat is too lean, and you can get protein poisoning if you dont get some fat/marrow in your system.
Get a good book on survival and READ it. Try techniques as some said here in your yard.
My buddy and I stayed in a spike camp in northern Alberta in tents in early spring. We were on the opposite side of the Peace river than the few people and our guide living in the area. No situation happened, but we were ready. We made soup out of cattail roots and dandelion leaves, made deadfall traps for fox size game, luckily did it all for fun and experience rather than HAVING too. But learned a lot!
Here is one of the smaller deadfalls on a game trail. Didn't get any game, a bear destroyed it!
(http://i868.photobucket.com/albums/ab246/yornoc/misc2012104.jpg)
Never thought to use a space blanket as a reflector, excellent idea. Gonna have to try that.
This is a rhino grip
(http://i1085.photobucket.com/albums/j435/Tloran/etc/rhinogrip.jpg)
I use it for grasping the hide when cleaning an animal, hanging a tarp or piece of plastic, as a tree hanger for my gear, etc, etc, etc.
I like to go minimal, but it only takes you once to get caught out when and were you don't want to be and you start carrying stuff that would make thing easier and safer. I carry more, the further I go afield (2-10 miles from the truck or camp).
The trash bag is a great idea.
For me, the key is not getting lost! Maps, gps, multiple compasses, whatever it takes. I usually carry a gps of some type, an orienteering compass and a pin on spirit compass on my lapel for quick reference.
Also, folks seems to want to haul food along if they are afraid of getting caught out in the wild. Folks, food is about 1/10th as important as water. A camelback is a whole lot more important to your survival than a candy bar.
QuoteKind of makes me wonder how those Mountain men survived with only a knife, possibly a hatchet, and that old smoke pole...
No GPS, good maps or satellite to depend on,,and their only match was a flint and blanket was a hide of some sort..
Boy have we become technology dependent.
That mountain man was content if he reached his destination in a month. Heck, most of em didn't realy have a destination in mind, for that matter.
The tended to die young, too. Not one of my personal goals...
An interesting aside that mirrors some of the thoughts on this thread. The Hudson Bay Company which has been sending people into the wilderness for around four hundred years had a survival kit which looked like a tobacco tin. When opened the first thing you found was a tea bag with the instructions to make hot tea. If you followed the instructions you would now:
1. have a fire in a protected spot (seldom do we make fires easily on top of a windswept treeles shelf of rock.
2. Have water and drinking it.
3. Have time to determine what you should be doing.
4. Probably now anchored for a bit so searchers can find you.
To me survival is a state of mind. A good base of knowledge and field experience is a good place to start. My pack includes a knife, cordage, fire kit( matches and dryer lent), plastic sheeting, a waterproof cigar tube holds fishing tackle and has a half roll of electical tape wrapped around it for misc. use. I've got a couple of sharp glue on broadheads in leather sheaths, light wire for snares or any other job that comes about, a small flash light, salt pepper and sugar packets, as well as some beef and chicken cubes. It all fits in a wide mouth plastic jug and takes up very little space in my pack. Better to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it.
GPS units are nice but don't rely solely on one. Take a good compass and know how to use it. John Nail and I were hunting the Big South Fork area and the canyons (Hoosiers would say hollers) were so steep that the GPS could not acquisition the necessary 3 satelites . Were it not for having an old Ranger school graduate (Nail) and a good compass and topo map, we'd had to backtrack our trail and would have got in long after dark, NOT GOOD.And fire. Make your firemaking redundant. Back up the backup.Bic lighter or two, matches, dry tinder. If you have fire you'll make it. Even in warm weather a fire will boost your morale immeasurebly..Carry one of those little drinking tube water treatment devices. Lite weight and will get you thru.
I hunt alone a lot. I have spent several nights sleeping next to a kill or just away from camp due to hunting till last light. Mt men were tough guys for sure. I prefer smart to tough. I may not be totally comfortable but I sure won't be miserable either. I used to carry an M-60 machine gun, ammo, etc... and an explosives pack on my back for a living. I am endlessly amused by the threads about light weight clothing and wool being to bulky and heavy. Having survived 3 days stuck on a glacier and some of the most hostile environments in the world I will take weight, a bit of discomfort and survival over light weight and easy to carry every time. Survival comes first everything else is a distant second.
QuoteOriginally posted by Ragnarok Forge:
I hunt alone a lot. I have spent several nights sleeping next to a kill or just away from camp due to hunting till last light. Mt men were tough guys for sure. I prefer smart to tough. I may not be totally comfortable but I sure won't be miserable either. I used to carry an M-60 machine gun, ammo, etc... and an explosives pack on my back for a living. I am endlessly amused by the threads about light weight clothing and wool being to bulky and heavy. Having survived 3 days stuck on a glacier and some of the most hostile environments in the world I will take weight, a bit of discomfort and survival over light weight and comfortable every time. Survival first everything else is a distant second.
:thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: YES! It is a relative term for sure.
Bowwild, a Kershaw Onion is a little one-hand clip knife... redundancy.
a gps has to be a good Idea how ever I cant comitt to using one I cant put that much trust in the unit..I hunt the swamp of the eastern shore of md.it will gobble you up it is flat an very labor intense to get throw the muck an water.my mind set when hunting in areas that can be of danger.is to be calm you are hunting relax an think about your mission when setting up remember what do I have to do to be safe double check everything never 2nd guess your self or assume anything.I hope this helped I hunt alot by my self an you gotta know everything is alright.in the wrong area an the wrong set of circumstances YOU WILL DIE.
More important than all the survival tools, kits and gadgets is KEEP YOUR HEAD!! When faced with the certainty that you are lost, alone, and staying at least the night not panicking is exponentially more important than what you have with you.
We are all suceptible to panick so practicing the skills in a controlled enviroment will help provide confidence in yourself.
In survival school we were told a story about a Canadian bush pilot that was military trained in survival who went down in the bush. His radio would not receive so he has no idea help was on the way to his exact location. Upon arival the rescue team found a man with a complete survival kit, a relatively sound plain for a shelter a rifle, pistol and ammunition. They arrived within 24hrs. The evidence in the snow showed he had walked around the plane twice before he stuck the pistol in his mouth and you know the rest.
Anyone can panick - test yourself in progressively tougher "controlled" enviroments. Most will be located within 48hrs of being lost.
Be safe
If you are in a life and death type of hunting a SPOT is great insurance. Push the button and help is on the way. I carry them in certain hunting environments.
I teach survival to scouts and provide them an altoid tin. Birthday candle, matches, fish hook, singlengle razor blade safety pin, screws, string, dental floss, needle, 2 by2 mirror glued to the top, foil. Tape it shut for water proofness with a list taped on the lid. Wrap it with paracord.
I tell them never open except in an emergency. Last year a young man stopped me to say he still had his unopened kit from 5 years ago
Just join the Marines its free!! Best survival training I ever had,desert,jungle, mountain and cold weather. The basics are the same for all environments. The key is to use your head.
Took myself off of the space blanket fan club many years ago after an overnight out. I carry a chunk of silnylon now. And I no longer use a mini mag [reason for the nights out!]I prefer the LED headlamps
Carry my knife, lighter,compass [and in the afternoon a headlamp] in my pocket now after a bit of a scavenger hunt looking for my boots and pack after dark on an Arizona elk hunt.
Agree with USMC. Jungle survival school in the Philippines was great. Mountain Warfare Training Center teaches the basics with severity. It is tough
Don't forget that along with the first aid kit, you need the KNOWLEDGE to use it effectively. My large camp kit also has a first aid manual in it.
I like a lot of the suggestions in this thread. So I'm not the only clown whose camp has gotten misplaced?