SHIFTS AND EXPEDIENTS OF CAMP LIFE TRAVEL & EXPLORATION

This is a Gutenberg file that some of you may find of some interest.
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/46446/46446-h/46446-h.htm#Page_535

Survival Equipment for Beginners.

Survival Equipment for Beginners.

Advice based on experience.

1)      When packing a back pack for the trail, there must be a compromise between two principles; Minimum weight, & Maximum self reliance.

2)    Don’t waste money on modern gadgets that are NOT sustainable. Most of these gadgets are designed & sold for one purpose only, to make money for the designer & the seller.

3)    When purchasing survival gear, think practically, what are the items you actually NEED.

4)   Blades: Bowie knives & stilettos are all very nice, but think about what you blades will be actually mostly used for. Second hand blades in good order are just as good as modern blades if not better. 19^th century & early 20^th century butcher knives can often be found in second hand & junk shops. A tomahawk with a round or oval tapered eye is more versatile than a hatchet or a machete, but if you can’t find or afford a tomahawk, then pick up a light hatchet to get you by. I carry three knives & a tomahawk.

5)    A bird in the hand is worth more than two in the bush. You will need a hunting, defence tool(s).  You are better off with a flintlock pistol in your hand than a 9mm Glock still in the gun shop! Personally I carry a flintlock longarm & pistol from choice, but get what you can afford for now, even if it is only a single shot .22 rifle.

6)   When planning your equipment always think long term. We can’t possibly know what is going to happen in the future.

7)    Your survival kit should be your back pack/knapsack; all of your gear should be your survival kit, no fancy extras, just the basic needs that will keep you alive & in reasonable comfort.

8)    Learn primitive living skills. The more skills you have, the better chance you have of surviving.

9)   Practice makes perfect: Or at least as perfect as an individual can get. Use your gear, trek & camp & get used to using your equipment out bush.

10)Fire: Being able to make fire under all conditions is very important, so learn all you can about kindling, plant & fungi tinders & making fire. Learn how to char tinders directly in the fire & use the tinderbox to smother the glowing embers. I suggest you purchase or make yourself a flint & steel kit; fire steel/striker, tinderbox, & a piece of siliceous rock to strike the sparks from the steel. A good back up skill is being able to make fire with a fire-bow which you can make in the bush.

11)   Don’t rely on finding natural shelters, & don’t waste money on a modern tent. Get yourself a piece of canvas or oil cloth, it is more versatile than a tent, easier to erect, & you can take advantage of a fire for warmth & cooking without having to go out in the rain or snow.

12) A good pure wool blanket(s) is better than a sleeping bag. Sleeping bags in general will not keep you warm if they get wet, & they are difficult to get out of in an emergency. A good new blanket will always be better than a good old blanket, but two second hand wool blankets work just fine. You can also cut a blanket to make a “half-blanket” to use as a cape around your shoulders in winter, just as any blanket can also be used as a Matchcoat or a Great coat without any cutting or sewing.

13) Footwear: Hiking boots are good, but they can be noisy in the woods, difficult to repair & impossible to replace in the bush. If you make yourself a couple of pairs of center seam Woodland Indian moccasins (one pair to wear & the other pair to carry spare), then you will have the pattern to make new ones on your feet. They are light, leave less sign than a modern boot, easy to make a makeshift sole repair on the trail, easy to repair & replace. If you want to use your hiking boots, do so, but I suggest you make at least one pair of moccasins & carry them with you tied to your pack.

14) A good way to carry extra warmth with you is to roll up some spare warm clothing in your blanket roll. I carry a spare wool shirt & wool waistcoat which I put on over my other clothing on cold nights.

15) Make sure you carry a good modern medical/first aid kit. This is the only piece of modern equipment that I carry with me. Learn how to use it, learn first aid. There are first aid courses available in all cities.

16)Running a trap line. This is the most efficient way to make meat, carry your hunting tool with you & check the line every morning. Don’t carry any traps with you except small game snares & perhaps a rope for a large game snare. Learn how to make cordage from plant fibers’ & make your own traps.

17) Water is probably the heaviest thing you will be carrying, but always carry a water bottle/flask or canteen. I try to follow a water course when I can to make sure I always have water, but you never know when you may not be able to find any water.

18) Trail foods: Dry foods are lighter than canned foods. Always carry some foods that do not require cooking just in case it is not safe to make a fire.

19)Carry a light trade kettle or billy kettle. These are easy to make from a tin can & a piece of wire for a bail. These are good for cooking in, boiling water for sterilizing or making a hot drink, & for collecting rain water to top up your water bottle.

20)                       Carry some form of water filter. I carry linen & cotton water filter bags for straining dirty river water into my kettle for boiling.

21) Fishing Tackle: Carry a couple of lines & some spare hooks. You never know when you might get a chance to do some fishing.

22)                        A sewing kit is a must & it is pretty inexpensive to put together. This will be needed for repairs to your clothing, footwear & perhaps your shelter & back pack.

23)                        Whetstone for sharpening your blades. You can often find these second hand, but you can also find suitable stones in a creek or river bed.

24)                       Eating utensils.  You already have a knife, so all you need is a light wooden spoon.

Keith.

Equipment: Comfort & Ease of Living.

Equipment: Comfort & Ease of Living.

Choosing the right equipment for wilderness living is important, especially if you are carrying that equipment on your back. It is important to choose equipment that is sustainable, which many modern survival gadgets are not. So you really do need to give it some thought before you start collecting gear.

The ease & comfort that you achieve in your wilderness survival depends solely on the equipment you choose. Your survival per se depends mostly on your wilderness living skills. If you have the right skills, you can survive in the wilderness without any bought equipment, BUT, it will be a hard life & a lot of work. Choose the wrong equipment, equipment that is not necessary & not sustainable, & you will finish up living a Stone Age lifestyle!

Here are some questions you need to ask yourself before purchasing or choosing items of equipment:

Is it sustainable? If it breaks can I repair it easily? Do I really need this or am I choosing it because it looks cool? What purpose will this serve? Can I use it for more than just one task? Is this suitable for the environment I am expecting to live in; example, jungle or forest/machete or tomahawk? (a tomahawk is more versatile than a machete). How versatile is this shelter option? If I choose a sleeping bag over wool blankets will the bag keep me warm when wet? In an emergency how easily can I escape from a sleeping bag? Do I need a firearm primarily for defence or hunting? How long will the ammunition last if I use a modern firearm for defence & hunting? Am I likely to get into a firefight? Will I be travelling alone? If I am travelling with a partner, how can I divide some of the equipment to our best advantage?

The Great Forgetting

http://www.davidsheen.com/b/b1.htm

Basic Game Meat Field Care

http://www.sportingshooter.com.au/hunting-skills/basic-game-meat-field-care

Survival Movies. Surviving An Outbreak. Isolation.

I have not finished watching this video to date, but it has been very good so far. I have a dislike for Zombie movies, & this one is based on a similar scenario, but it is done very well. Well worth watching.

The Hunters' Stand: A TOXIC GREEN BACKFLIP

The Hunters' Stand: A TOXIC GREEN BACKFLIP: When I asked my local Greens candidate her party’s position on the use of 1080 poison baits for the control of wild deer in her electorate,...

It seems to me that The Greens have a conflict of interest here. Traps and trapping have been banned, and the Greens are strictly anti-gun, so they leave themselves no choice but to go pro 1080 poison !!! But 1080 poison use is definitely NOT green !!! 

You will not find me voting for the Greens.

Keith. 

Traps and Trapping. Figure 4 Trigger and the Cage Trap Part 2.

Traps and Trapping. Figure 4 Trap Trigger and The Cage Trap Part 1.

Bug out areas to look for.

Bug out areas to look for.

Whether you scout out an area to survive in first or whether you have to find somewhere on the run, you need to know what to look for. Anywhere with cover will do for a temporary camp, but if you are looking for a permanent camp site, then there are specific things to look for.

Water is life, where you find water you will find food. A permanent water source attracts game, and with any luck you may find edible plants there as well. Ideally what you are looking for is water where cattail/Cumbungi is growing. This will give you a food supply as well as tinder and shelter material.

Trees are essential for constructing decent shelters, but a cave would make an even better dwelling. So keep these two areas in mind.

Cattail Pond on the author's property. This is the sort of area you should be looking for.

My latest video. The Raft Duck Trap.

Primitive V Modern. Primitive is an attitude.

Primitive V Modern. Primitive is an attitude.

Primitive survival is a matter of attitude. Instead of thinking what else can I add to my pack, we think “what is there in my pack that I don’t need”. Instead of thinking what is the best gun for long range & maximum damage, we think “what is the best firearm for long term wilderness survival”. We do not rely on bows or firearms for getting meat, we rely more on a trap line. But we don’t think what traps can I purchase, we make our own animal traps out of natural materials found in the bush.

We don’t say what tanning materials can I carry with me, because again, we have no need to carry anything for tanning animal skins. We use natural methods. Instead of asking what is the best hiking boot for survival in the bush, we make our own. Because further down the track when those expensive hiking boots wear out, they are going to need to know how to make their own moccasins.

Cooking is not about carrying a camping stove, cooking is about making a natural fire and using its heat to keep you warm in winter and dry your clothes when they are wet. Fire is about knowing how to make fire in all weather conditions and being prepared. It is not about carrying a Ferrocerium rod that will not work when all the tinder and kindling is wet. Fire is not about carrying Vaseline cotton balls, it is about having the knowledge to find and prepare your own natural tinder found in the bush, and where to find dry kindling in the pouring rain.

Primitive survival is not about preventing wet feet and purchasing the best sleeping bag. It is about knowing what to do when you get wet moccasins and learning how to stay warm with only one wool blanket. It is about learning how to think differently about comfort and being resigned to the fact that you will not be as comfortable as you would be in a modern house.

Wilderness living is about having the right tools for the tasks in hand, it is not about carrying a Rambo knife. Modern so called survival knives are for those that only carry one knife and nothing else. A woodsman on the other hand carries more than one knife, and he/she carries an axe. Extra weight? Yes of course it is, but having the right tools is something that should not be compromised. You don’t carry a jungle machete into an eastern forest. Wilderness survival is about choosing the right tool for its versatility and worth, it is not about purchasing a tool because it looks formidable and might be good for fighting.

Primitive long term wilderness survival is about thinking out of the box, it is about thinking beyond the main purpose of a particular piece of equipment. By all means if there are enough of you in your group then carry a modern firearm, but DO NOT totally rely on modern equipment. Sooner or later it will wear out or break down, and then you will find yourself back in the stone age. Better to use methods that are natural and sustainable, and equipment that is practical and serviceable.

Think about it.