The Art of Nothing Wilderness Survival Video Series on DVD with Thomas J. Elpel and special guests. The Art of NothingWilderness Survival Video SeriesDVD companions to the bookParticipating in Nature: Wilderness Survival and Primitive Living SkillsAlso based on the article The Art of Nothing By Thomas J. Elpel. Have you ever dreamed of walking out into the woods to survive with nothing but the clothes you have on? You are not alone. You might think you would need to take a lot of classes and learn a gazillion skills to survive, but the real secret is in knowing how not to need very many skills at all. You won't get a laboratory-style skills demonstration in these videos. Each video takes place in a different setting in different seasons, with Thomas J. See what the press is saying about the Art of Nothing! 2013 Special Holiday Discount! Dear Tom, I recently purchased two videos that you produced (3 Days at the River and Mountain Meadows). Take Care. Hi. Sincerely, Andrea & Auric Gold Order Direct from Thomas J. Shopping for birthdays, holidays, resale, or use in the classroom? Tom, Fuzzy
Survival Smokers The following information comes from the US Army Survival Manual If the situation and time allow, you should preserve the extra meat for later use. If the air is cold enough, you can freeze the meat. In warmer climates, however, you will need to use a drying or smoking process to preserve it. To smoke meat, you will need an enclosed area-for instance, a teepee or a pit. Teepee smoker Rack smoker To use the pit method of smoking meat, dig a hole about 3 feet (1 meter) deep and 1 1/2 feet (1/2 meter) in diameter. Properly smoked meat will look like a dark, brittle, curled stick. Hobo Stove | Practical Survivor Urban survival is a tricky subject to discuss. There are advantages to urban survival. Anywhere you look there are items in trash cans and dumpsters that can be used to improve a survival situation. Cardboard boxes can be used for shelter, newspapers can be used for insulation and to the practical survivor another persons trash can be a treasure. In this case we will use a coffee can to build a stove. Keep an open mind during any survival situation. Whether backpacking, camping, or surviving, having a way to cook can make a huge difference. A coffee can or large vegetable/ravioli can will allow you to build a stove and cook. Items used to build this stove: * Coffee can * Can opener * Tin snips * Drill and drill bits * Metal coat hanger There are many methods that could be used to build this stove. We use a metal coat hanger to build rods which will help hold up the cooking pot. The top side of a coffee can is already opened. We then used the tin snips to cut a small door. Materials:
Do-it-yourself Survival Kit The Do-it-yourself Coffee Can Survival Kit This is a compact kit that can be carried in the car, on the boat, or in a pack for hunting, hiking, exploring, etc. Most of the contents will fit in a one-pound coffee can which doubles as a pot for melting snow and device with which to dig an emergency snow shelter. (However, if you can carry it, include a small shovel. It is far, far better than trying to use a coffee can.) Keep three points in mind when putting together a survival kit. Thirdly, bring enough to enable you to spend at least one night out. Thanks to Allan Priddy who helps teach the Wilderness Survival class for putting this list together. General Items Repair Kit Sewing kit Dental floss (It's strong and useful as thread for sewing, or a fishing line or for lashing branches for improvised shelters.) First Aid Kit (Also see Lightweight First Aid Kit) Moleskin Sterile pads (2 x 2 and 4 x 4) Sterile Gauze Neosporin Bandaids Aspirin First Aid Tape Nourishment Optional
Basic Backpacking Menu Planning What’s on Chef Glenn's backpacking menu? I rustle up familiar comfort foods like Mashed Potatoes with Meat & Vegetables or Mexican Beef and Rice with Peppers. By combining one meat, one vegetable, and one starch, I get a tasty meal with lots of color and texture; and the balanced nutrition I need to tackle the next leg of the trail. My basic backpacking menu plan accomplishes three objectives: Reduce meal weight to three ounces or less with a dehydrator.Vary meals with interchangeable ingredients that I like to eat.Cook and eat in a small pot using ½ ounce of fuel or less. Removing water from food (but not the flavor and nutrition) with a dehydrator can cut the food weight in your pack by two-thirds. Meat & Beans (¼ Cup Dried) such as: Ground Beef or TurkeySliced Ham, Turkey, or Roast BeefShrimp, Tuna, Crab LegsBeans (Pre-cooked Black, Red, White, Pinto, etc…) Vegetables (¼ Cup Dried) such as: Starch Base (½ Cup Dried) such as: ¼ Cup Meat or Beans¼ Cup Vegetables½ Cup Starch Base1 Cup Water
Homemade MREs For quite a while now, I've wanted to make up my own "MREs" for my Get Home Bag (GHB). I was recently out scouting some properties, and realized that my GHB only had some packs of tuna and some candy in them. I had broken my own Cardinal Rule - If you use it, replace it immediately. So, I went about making up some MRE packages. I assembled my "ingredients" based on "Best By" date, calories and protein content. The idea was to put long-life food together and vacuum seal it in a FoodSaver bag. For my first MRE, here's what I included - It includes: One individual serving of Beef-a-roni, 2 ounces (by weight - about 1/2 cup) of dry roasted peanuts, one pack of Land-o-Lakes French Vanilla cappuccio, one Promax energy bar, 4 pieces of Jolly Rancher hard candy, and utensiles (plastic spoon, knife and 2 napkins). Since the peanuts were loose, I wanted to separate them in the pouch. I then filled that with the peanuts and sealed it. Here are the stats - Here's the result - Times have changed!
5 Ideas for Fire Tinder A while ago I asked readers Do You Have 5 Ways to Make Fire? The article concentrated on fire starters; steel and flight, lighters, and a few less common systems. However, most of those will be useless for building a fire if you don’t have some tinder to put the flame to. Here are 5 great ideas for fire tinder, both natural and homemade. 1. Everybody can collect it for free, and even get it from the bottom of your pockets in a pinch. 2. Collect the stringy shavings from the bark of a cedar tree for the best (in my opinion) natural fire tinder. 3. This might be the oldest survivalist trick in the book. 4. Obviously these won’t be available in all areas, but when you can find them the light feathery material inside cattails is like burning paper or cotton. 5. Like cedar, just shave some bark off of a birch tree. Two great products to keep in your Bug Out Bag are “WetFire” and “Fire Paste“. What do you use? I know these are just the tip of the iceberg for survival fire tender.
How to eat wild stuff and not get poisoned (how-to) Let's play pretend for a moment. Are you with me? Let's pretend you can't go down to the supermarket for food to eat. In fact, let's pretend that there is not a supermarket for one hundred miles in any direction, and you don't have any food with you. Does this seem unlikely? What this guide is:This is a guide to wild things that are 100% safe to eat. What this guide is not:This is NOT a guide to figuring out if something may or may not be safe to eat. BerriesThis is very easy to make 100% foolproof. Unless you are completely sure, do not eat non-aggregate berries - berries that are shaped like blueberries or gooseberries. Green StuffMost "green stuff" is not outright toxic, but can definitely cause you some distress. Note: You should use caution when eating any plant, particularly plants found in the water - they can harbor any creepy crawly that may have been living in the water, including giardia cryptosporidium among others. CrittersNever eat wild critters raw!
BASIC LIST OF SUGGESTED ITEMS FOR LONG TERM SURVIVAL Some people are saying we should prepare for at least 7 days, but the way things go after a hurricane, tornado, floods, loss of electricity and the fact that these disasters will continue and perhaps even get worse in coming years according to trends, one week is not enough. Some have said 7 years, but that seems too long so do what you can. Be sure to use the older stocked goods first and replace them with new. Otherwise you will end up with all old food you might not even want to eat. Always check canned tomatoes for spoilage, as even in the can they can spoil. 1. Homeland Security recommends 7 days for survival, but in recent years, some people don't have electricity or heat for up to 3 weeks, so to be really safe - plan for at least 3 weeks. 2. Note: I have received arguments that boiling for longer than 5 minutes will just waste good water, but 15 minutes is safer to kill Cryptospiridium. 3. Wheat - 300 lbs. Rice - 100 lbs. Beans, Peas, Lentils, 50 lbs. each Honey or Sugar - 60 lbs.
100 Items to Disappear First 100 Items to Disappear First 1. Generators (Good ones cost dearly. Gas storage, risky. From a Sarajevo War Survivor: Experiencing horrible things that can happen in a war - death of parents and friends, hunger and malnutrition, endless freezing cold, fear, sniper attacks. 1. Survive Nature - Techniques for Surviving in every Natural Environment When you find yourself lost in the forest, you should be alert to the fact that there are predators and they are dangerous. Try to fashion a spear or knife out of branches to use as protection. Among the many predators to watch out for, bears are the most dangerous (especially Grizzlies): Black Bears: If you see a black bear 50 yards away or more, then keep your distance and continue hiking always making sure to not get closer. Grizzly Bears: If you come into direct contact with a Grizzly bear, avoid eye contact. Never run from any bear. The most dangerous scenario is to be between a mother bear and her cubs. What to do if a bear attacks: Black Bears: Fight back. Insects/Spiders: Depending on which forest you are located, there are insects and spiders that are poisonous.
Survival Gear Review Top Ten Survivalist Books for 2012 Most of us want to survive the uncertainty ahead, and without a doubt, survival books can teach methods to prepare, to deal with harsh conditions, and to emerge victorious over whatever life throws our way. This begs the question - what is there to survive? Worst scenario - the Yellowstone caldera eruption! Still bad but not quite so awful - economic depression, fire, floods, earthquakes, you name it. About the image above: Camp Fire Canoe, by Ervin Molnar - You can buy this art print at Allposters.com This page was made by Linda Jo Martin, novelist and content writer. Almost every year people lose everything to tornadoes and hurricanes. The fact is, terrible things happen and we want to be prepared. At the end of the top ten list you'll find two bonus books that didn't make the top ten, and one of those is free!