Sunday, October 10, 2021

The Top Ten Wilderness Survival Skills...Number One ©

 

 


This is the first in a series of eleven articles on the top ten wilderness survival skills, things  you should know before you go into the wilderness – Author’s Note

 

Every survival expert has a different list of the top ten wilderness
survival skills and makes different choices as to which ones are more important than others, which ones should be number one, two, three, et cetera.  I used two criteria to help me build my list and to decide which skills were the most important.

 

Criteria number one is it must be something that you can improve with practice.  Things that can be improved with practice are habits, attitudes, and skills; and all of these could be put on the list!  I decided that gear and equipment, since the actual equipment can’t be improved with practice, should not go on the list.  However, a habit of always having a map a compass, and a survival kit, having a good survival attitude or being able to start a fire or build a shelter, since these all can be improved with practice, would most definitely be on the list.

 

The “Rule of Threes”, graphic by the Author.


The second criteria, the “Rule of Threes”, is what ranks the various wilderness survival skills by importance and makes the list into a listing of priorities.

 

The Number One, Top Ten Wilderness Survival Skill: Good Habits

 

The number one, top ten wilderness survival skill on my list is, actually, a collection of good habits.  If you are careful and cultivate these habits so that every time you head out into the wilderness you have followed them, then if the worst happens and you become “misplaced”, you are much more likely to be found, and found alive!  There are three good habits that you should always practice of before you journey into the wilderness, make a trip-plan, always carry the “10 Essentials”, or at least a survival kit, and always dress for the worst weather you might encounter, in layers.

 

Make and Communicate a Trip-Plan or Itinerary

 

A trip itinerary, from the Washington Trails Association, HERE.


Just like a pilot always completes and files a flight plan before taking off, you should always make a trip-plan or itinerary and give it to someone, a responsible someone, at your home base, before heading out into the wilderness.  The reason for this is the “72-hour rule”.  Most “misplaced” people, in the United States, are found within 72 hours of being reported missing.  In fact, experts note that 85% of “misplaced” persons are found alive within 12 hours and 97% are found alive within the first 24 hours of being reported missing.  The key statement is “of being reported missing”; that is why it is so very important to have a trip plan and to always tell someone, a responsible someone at your home base, when you are leaving, the route you are taking, where you are going, where you plan on camping and when you will be back.  And never, never, never, ever change your plans without first telling this someone.  The more that others know about your planned path and your departure and arrival times, the less time that you will spend waiting for rescue in the case of an emergency. 

 

As well as leaving a copy of your trip plan with a responsible someone at your home base, leave another copy in your car in the parking lot at the trailhead.  Another thing that is good to leave in your car, is a copy of the footprints of each member of your party, labeled with a magic mark, and made by stepping on a piece of aluminum foil.  If you are misplaced and search and rescue must track you, this will help them to find you.

 

Aluminum foil footprints, photograph by the Author.


It is a good habit to always carry a way to call for help if you need it, and when in doubt call for help!  Carry either a cell phone, a SPOT device, or a Personal Locator Beacon (PLB), and know how to use them.

 

Always have the 10 Essentials...

 

A photograph of the BSA “If You Become Lost” card, by the Author.


Always carry the “10 Essentials”, or at the very least, carry a survival kit with you every time you enter the wilderness. 

 

An excellent beginning survival kit is the “Minimum Item Survival Kit”, which consist of a quart sized Ziploc® style freezer bag, to be used to carry an emergency, high-energy, individually wrapped snack of your choice, a pea-less whistle, a brightly colored, orange or yellow, bandana, and a signal mirror (or even an old CD or some aluminum foil wrapped around a 3 inch by 5 inch, 7.5 by 12.5 cm, piece of cardboard).  You should also carry with it, but not in the quart bag, a knit cap, a 16.9 oz. (500 ml) bottle of water and one or two1, orange or clear, 42-gallon, 3.0 mil contractor bags to use for an emergency shelter.

 

A water bottle, photograph by the Author.


The items in the “Minimum Item Survival Kit” are designed to be used by children, who might lack the strength, coordination, or skills, to safely use things like matches, a lighter or a knife.  This kit can also be used by the elderly and anyone else with a minimum of skills, practice, and physical ability.

 

Every member of your group should, at the very least, carry a “Minimum Item Survival Kit” and know how to use the items in it.  If you are an adult, you should also always have on you, a knife, and the means to start a fire (some tinder, a tea-candle, and a lighter or matches).  For more on survival kits read “A Survival Kit, Your Ace in the Hole ©”, HERE.

 

On top of the back-up water bottle in your minimum item survival kit, which is for emergencies, you should also always carry a Nalgene bottle, or a canteen whenever you head out into the wilderness, even if only for a day trip.  For longer or more intense trips, you need to carefully plan out your water supply and how you intend to resupply your water, when you run low.  Personally, I prefer metal water bottles, which I can use to boil water in if I am stuck out and need to purify drinking water.  For more on purifying your drinking water read “Water Disinfection: When is boiled, boiled enough…? ©”, HERE.

 

Some examples of metal water bottles, photograph by the Author.


Always Dress for the Worst Weather, in Layers

 

Before you head out into the wilderness, plan what layers and clothes you will wear and need, because your clothes are your first line of defense for temperature regulation and shelter against the wind, the wet, and the cold.  Maintaining your body temperature in the normal range of 98.6oF (37oC) is your first priority.  Your clothes will also protect you from bugs, the Sun and other physical hazards.  Always dress for the worst weather that you might encounter and plan accordingly for the expected daytime and night-time temperatures and weather.

 

An excerpt from Naval Arctic Operations Manual: Part 1 General Information, pages 159.


Dress in layers, when you adventure in the wilderness, so that you can easily add or remove clothing, as you or the outdoors becomes warmer or colder.  Since you want to avoid sweat soaking your clothes2.  Layers wick away sweat, adjust insulation, and protect against wind, rain, and snow.  There are three layers, and each layer has its own function.  The base layer is the most important as it is against your skin and keeps you dry, and this layer should be of wool, synthetics, or silk, since these fabrics transport perspiration away from your skin and dry fast.  The middle layer, or insulating layer, helps you retain heat by trapping warmed air close to your body and it should be made of wool, fleece, or goose down.  The outer layer is sometimes also called the shell layer, and should be a wind and water-resistant or, better yet, a waterproof layer, to protect you from the rain, the snow, and the wind.  This layer is your rain gear and is vital in severe weather because wind and water can quickly chill you and KILL YOU! 

 

According to Yana Radenska, a search and rescue volunteer with the Washington Trails Association, you should also “test” your layers to see if you have packed or are wearing enough layers and clothes.  To test your layers, put on all the clothes that you planned on taking, from your base layer to your hat and gloves.  Now, sit down and wait, because if you were injured or misplaced overnight, this is what you would do while waiting for rescue.  She noted “Most people are surprised by how cold they get from simply not moving.  Even on a nice summer day you can get chilled within 10 minutes.  Now think about if it were dark or rainy” 3.  If your layers don’t hold up to the test, and you get chilled, pack some extra clothes and a waterproof jacket or poncho. 

 

The extra clothes that the “10 Essentials” refers to, are the additional layers that you will need to make the long hours of an “unexpected overnighter” survivable.  It is always better to pack more layers and to be prepared, because in the case of an unexpected overnighter, those extra clothes will be worth their weight in gold.  And don’t worry if you don’t end up wearing that poncho or sweater, Ms. Radenska continued by saying, “On a normal hike, you should never put on everything that you’ve packed.  If you do, you are not prepared for the worst”.  Also, bring a pack to put the clothes you have removed into, because clothes tied around your waist, or tied on the outside of your pack, will snag, get lost or get wet.

 

And remember no matter what season it is, it is important that you stay dry!  During the spring or fall, and even during the summer, while wet clothes might not freeze, they can still overcool you and cause hypothermia.  And this is why you should not wear cotton clothes, because cotton clothing, when soaked in dew, sweat, rain, etc., loses 70% of its insulating value due to conduction and evaporation.  Wet cotton clothing has often been the cause of frostbite injury, hypothermia, and death and for that reason it has been called the “Death Cloth”.  Instead of cotton, wear wool or synthetics like polypropylene, polyester, fleece or Gortex, because wool and polypropylene will still insulate when wet.  For more on clothes, layering and the outdoors read, “Comfortably Cold, What’s That?©”, HERE.

 

Don’t forget to come back next week and read “The Top Ten Wilderness Survival Skills...Number Two ©”, where we will talk about being aware in the wilderness and exactly what that means for your chances of survival.

 

I hope that you continue to enjoy The Woodsman’s Journal Online and look for me on YouTube at Bandanaman Productions for other related videos, HERE.  Don’t forget to follow me on both The Woodsman’s Journal Online, HERE, and subscribe to BandanaMan Productions on YouTube.  If you have questions, as always, feel free to leave a comment on either site.  I announce new articles on Facebook at Eric Reynolds, on Instagram at bandanamanaproductions, and on VK at Eric Reynolds, so watch for me.

 

That is all for now, and as always, until next time, Happy Trails!

 

 

Notes

 

1 One 42-gallon, 3.0 mil contractor bag, which is 32 inches (81 cm) wide by 50 inches (127 cm) high is needed for a small child and two are needed for a large child or an adult.

 

If you are beginning to overheat, remove your hat or if you are becoming too cold put on your hat, since heat loss from your bare head can be up to 33% at 60oF (15oC), up to 50% at 40oF (4oC) and up to 75% at 5oF (-15oC).  Also, besides removing layers, if you are becoming too warm you can open your zippers and vents or loosen your clothes by loosening the waist belt of your outer-most layer.  If you are becoming cold you can close your vents and zippers and tighten your waist belt.  Don’t remove your outer most weather-proof layer, instead remove your middle, insulating layers and then put your weather-proof layer back on.  Whenever, you stop to rest, put an insulating layer back on, under your weather-proof layer, and whenever you begin to increase activity, remove one of your insulating layers. 

 

The Naval Arctic Operations Manual also has some helpful tips, which are below.

 


A hat is essential and, in the winter, spring or fall, or in cold climates, take a wool or synthetic knit cap or fleece hood or hat, because of heat loss from your bare head.  In the summer, or in hot climates, take a wide brimmed, waterproof hat to keep the Sun off your head and face.  Also, in cold climates or during the winter, spring or fall, protect your hands, because cold, numb hands are useless.  If your hands get cold and you don’t have gloves or mittens, put a spare pair of socks on them or put them inside your coat or in your pockets. 

 

From Polar Manual, by Captain Earland E. Hedblom.

 

3 Washington Trails Association

 

 

Sources

 

Hedblom, Captain Earland E. MC, USN; Polar Manual, Fourth Edition, [National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, MD, 1965], p. 37, https://ia800305.us.archive.org/33/items/PolarManual4thEd1965/Polar%20Manual%204th%20ed%20%281965%29.pdf, accessed 12/07/2019

 

Navy, Department of the, Naval Arctic Operations Manual: Part 1 General Information, [Department of the Navy, 1949, Revised in 1950], p. 157-175,

https://ia600301.us.archive.org/27/items/navalarcticopera00unit/navalarcticopera00unit.pdf, accessed August 28, 2018

 

Washington Trails Association, “Help Search and Rescue Help You”, [© 2021 Washington Trails Association], originally from the Washington Trails magazine, https://www.wta.org/go-outside/trail-smarts/search-and-rescue/help-search-and-rescue-help-you, accessed October 5, 2021

 

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