Bushcraft and Survival Skills

Survival Preparedness: Survival Skills & Survival Kits

Anyone can suddenly find themselves in an emergency survival situation, or have a disaster land in their lap without any warning. How well one survives or IF one survives at all could be a matter of luck, but as it has been said:

I think it is far better to invest some time and effort in making survival preparations as well as spending time honing your survival skills, don't you agree?

Survival preparedness does not mean to be in constant fear of impending doom or disaster waiting around every corner, or to stockpile huge amounts of food, water, lead, and gold and then waiting to bug out with your supplies to some remote location.

In a more realistic point of view, survival preparation is about gathering knowledge of and practicing the most basic survival skills, obtaining survival gear, food and water together into emergency survival kits, or bug out bags. These kits can then be placed at easily accessible places such as, the home, car, office, etc., or on your person.

You should always be thinking ahead to anticipate what sort of scenario could arise and what particular survival skills, gear, or supplies would be needed to survive through to the end such a scenario. I recommend you take a look at this list of basic survival skills and make an effort to learn and practice them, your life may depend on it!

• Learn how to build and maintain a fire with or without matches in different environments (in the rain, snow etc.)
• Learn how to build a simple survival shelter using only what is available in your surroundings
• Learn how to procure food (foraging, obtaining fish and game with out a gun or fishing pole)
• Learn basic navigation skills (finding your direction, and map and compass reading)
• Learn basic survival signaling methods
• Learn basic first-aid
• Learn to use and become proficient with the survival gear you have aquired

You should build your survival kit according to the scenario they should be used for.

Some examples:

• Wilderness survival kit should you become lost in the wilderness
• Emergency vehicle kit in the event you become stranded with your vehicle
• Emergency disaster kit to recover from the aftermath of a natural or man made disaster

Items that should always be included are:

• fire starting tools and methods
• items and knowledge to build an emergency / survival shelter
• survival tools
• first-aid kit
• survival signaling device
• emergency lighting
• water containers and methods of purification
• food rations

Remember in any survival situation to remain calm. Use your mind. It is the best survival tool you have.

Do yourself a huge favor and make the effort for your survival preparations toward your own survival and that of your loved ones. Don't wait. Do it NOW. Do not be the one suffering the consequences because you did not take any action at all.

Be sure the seeds are perfectly dry so they don't mold. Store them in tightly capped small bottles, in a cool place

Most seeds need a "rest period" of one to several months before they will germinate. After that, germination can be tested by soaking 10 seeds, draining them, and spreading them between layers of moist cloth. Keep the cloth moist. Germination varies between two days and two weeks depending on the type of seed and temperature.

The percentage of germination decreases with age. Seeds of corn and onions can be stored for two years; peas and beans for three years; tomatoes, four years; cabbage and spinach, five years; and beets and squash, six years.

Save the best seeds, from parents with the qualities you desire. The earliest pea pods can be marked by tying a scrap of colored yarn or similar material on the vine, a sign that says these pods should not be picked. When the pods are completely ripe and dry, pull the vines and hang them in a garage or shed. When the pods are brittle shell and store the peas.

Mark chosen tomatoes and leave them on the vine until they are overripe, but pick them before they spoil. Cut the tomato and remove the seeds. Some pulp will inevitably come along. Soak the seeds and pulp in water for about two days or until they start to ferment, but not long enough to sprout. Separate the seeds from the pulp by rubbing, and dry them quickly (but not in direct sun) by spreading them thinly on newspaper.

Carrots, radishes, and other biennials will not produce seed until the second year of growth. These can be left in the garden over winter under a heavy mulch, or they can be dug and stored in damp sand in the root cellar for spring replanting. If they will be in the way of future tilling or succession planting, consider a separate area for seed production. When the seed head is almost ripe, tie a paper bag over it to collect those seeds that will otherwise fall to the ground.

Onions are also biannual, but producing bulbs or sets requires yet another year. Sow seed thickly - about a quarter of an ounce in four square feet - so they will not get too big. When the tops fall over pull them and store them in net bags for planting the following year.

While this site is not dedicated to wilderness survival, leaning more toward natural or man made disaster, I think it is important to take the time to at least become acquainted with the basics of outdoor survival skills. A majority of outdoor survival training could prove invaluable after tshtf.

The cattail is one of those plants that grow wild just about everywhere in the United States, and is often regarded as a weed by most people passing by. But it is indeed a very useful plant for the survivor, as an extra food source or to save money on your grocery bill.

Cattails can be found year-round in swamps and marsh areas, and along banks of streams, ponds, rivers, irrigation ditches and other wet environments, making the cattail an excellent source of survival food, or a supplement to the table.

Caution: If you are uncertain about the purity of the water in which you are collecting cattails you should not eat the cattails raw. A huge amount of water from the source is taken up by the plants and if polluted could make you sick.

Cattail Pollen Pancakes

• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup cattail pollen
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 2 eggs
• ½ cup honey
• ¼ cup oil
• 2 cups milk

1. Mix dry ingredients together in a bowl.
2. Add eggs, honey, oil and milk and mix thoroughly.
3. If the batter seems to thick to pour, add more milk until it has a good pancake batter consistency.
4. Cook on a hot griddle until golden brown.

Cattail Recipes.

What is your favorite wild food and how do you use it, let us know in the comments.

Source

When you become stranded or lost in the middle of the woods it is an encouraging thought that simply by looking around you can easily discover a vast multitude of foods. As a survivalist it is our responsibility to ourselves and to our families to be able to recognize and find these value food sources should we need them.

Granted most survival situations are not serious and are of short duration however it only takes one time to not have the proper knowledge. During these short duration emergencies the immediate demand remains shelter and potable water realizing that you have the knowledge to obtain food in the wild acts as a great comfort when lost even for a short period of time so be certain that you are up on these skills.

When in the wilderness you will encounter several basic different types of survival foods. Determining which type to use will depend upon where you are at as well as what equipment you have to work with.

Wild Berries represents the first group of foods you may encounter. This is also the simplest and easiest of the foods to obtain. Given the proper season you may possibly encounter several different berry selections to choose from. A simple rule of thumb to follow is if the berry looks or it tastes like a strawberry, blueberry or a raspberry then it must be one. For safety reasons most of the other berries that you may encounter you should be able to identify by looking at it. These berries would include June berries, wild currants, bearberries, bunchberries, wintergreen berries, wild cherries, blackberries, thimbleberries, rose hips and cranberries.

The second group of survival foods is those which originate from the water such as fish. It is safe to eat all of the freshwater fish found in North American waters. It is possible with little practice to catch a fish with your bare hands although in most cases this will not happen. Wait patiently as they swim by you and very quickly pin the fish to the bottom of the water with your hands. You may also chase the fish into a shallow pool of water and trap them there. If you happen to have an emergency fishing kit with you it is possible to use worms or grasshoppers to catch your fish.

Fish can be very evasive so in many cases it is easier to try and catch other survival foods within the stream or the lakes such as clams or mollusks which can easily be picked up. These are also easily prepared by cooking over an open fire. Crayfish can often be found crawling upon the bottom of the streams and the lakes or hiding under logs or rocks in the water. Keep in mind that the only usable parts of these craw fish are the tails.

Next we have the Insects And miscellaneous Bugs as a survival food. Be reminded that not all insects are can safely be eaten. If you do not know for sure which ones they are stay with wood grubs and grasshoppers. Grasshoppers can easily be caught by hand in any grassy field while the grubs can be found by opening up a rotting log. The survivalist on TV may eat them raw however you should cook and remove all legs and wings before eating them.

Birds represent another source of survival food in the woods. It is not likely that you will be able to kill or capture most bird unless you have a gun. The birds that nest upon the ground may possibly be obtained with the use of a well aimed rock while they are nesting. The eggs from the ground nesting birds can be a good survival food.

Once again although larger animals will be prevalent it isn’t likely that you are going to bag one without the proper weapon. It is extremely difficult to kill any of the mammals without some sort of gun. Don’t for one moment think that you could use a spear or other primitive weapon to obtain an animal for dinner. It only happens in Rambo films. I personally would not even recommend that you waste your time and energy trying.

The important point here is that you become proficient at finding food when in a survival situation.s

Source

In 1535, the french explorer Jacques Cartier and his men were in desperate condition after a particularly severe winter in Newfoundland. Already 25 lay dead and

Wild Edibles - Nutrition & Medicine Click Here To View On Scribd

Presenter: Pete McKechnie, Hosted by: Kerrith McKechnie; Wild Edibles Workshop; Food; Nuttrition; Foraging; Gathering; Alternative Medicine; Herbal Medicine; Herbs

Wild Edibles Workshop Shenandoah County, VA Presenter: Pete McKechnie Hosted by: Kerrith McKechnie 0 B URDOCK • • Characteristics – A biennial plant. Root should be used before plant flowers as the flower will deplete root of energy source – leaves are egg-shaped with wavy margins. – purple flower – burrs Uses: Burdock is one of the foremost detoxifying herbs in both Chinese and Western herbal medicine. – Roots (sometimes the seeds) are used in tinctures. Burdock is a diuretic; choleretic (stimulates bile); and diaphoretic (causes perspiration). Roots can be used fresh..