Survival myths can destroy your chance to survive.
If I had a dime for every survival tactic I’ve heard, I’d be rich. And the fact is, most of the survival strategies I’ve heard are either useless or just plain wrong. Some survival myths are so wrong, in fact, that if you follow their advice, they could actually make you sick or even kill you.
If you’re ever lost in the wilderness and need to depend on your wits to survive, you need some sound advice to pick up where your wits end. You’ll probably also need some water and shelter before too long. What you don’t need are survival myths that pop into your head and seem convincing. And remember that the first priority for the producers of survival reality TV shows is to entertain so that they can get good ratings, not to inform.
So, it’s best to learn what those survival myths are now so that you’ll know to avoid them when the time comes. Here are three of them:
• The top priority is finding food. Nope. Your top two priorities should be finding water and finding shelter. You can go several weeks without food if you absolutely have to, but dehydration and hypothermia can kill you pretty quickly.
• Field guides will tell you what’s OK to eat. The problem here is that when people get hungry, they tend to make the field guide description fit what they see in front of them, and then eat it. Again, food isn’t as necessary as it may seem, so don’t take the risk.
• A roof over your head is enough. A shelter with a roof is important to protect you from the elements, but you also need something to protect yourself from the cold ground. Find materials to construct bedding first, then worry about a roof. Otherwise, you could freeze to death.
What other survival myths have you heard that have little connection with reality? Have you ever been lost in the wilderness? If so, what have you focused on in order to survive? I’d love to hear from you about this important subject.
Something I do not see mentioned is fire. Being able to build a fire is important for several reasons. One, and perhaps the most obvious is warmth. Another is the ability to purify water and/or melt snow. A third would be the ability to cook food. One thing I rarely see mentioned is just important and sometimes more important that being the comfort factor of having a fire.
Frank:
This is all good information. The only thing I don’t see is a tip my grandfather gave me 65 years ago: if you find yourself lost in the woods, start walking downhill and keep turning downhill every chance you get. If you don’t find a road, you will come to a stream eventually. Follow that water downstream, and sooner or later you will find civilization or the ocean.
Remember “The Rules of Three”.
In a harsh environment you can’t survive 3 minutes without oxygen, 3 hours without shelter, 3 days without water and 3 weeks without food. use these as a guideline & plan accordingly. Hope this helps.
2
Water, shelter, food – in that order is pretty straight forward for a healthy survivor to be. Missing, however, from all the commentary is any advice or tips regarding what my experience says is the greatest threat of all: injury. Most of us can bulldog our way out of anywhere if healthy; injured, however, is a completely different and much more dangerous conundrum.
You can go a while without food or water but in some bad weather conditions, shelter is your FIRST priority. Unprepared, a single night can kill you.
Pick up a Wilderness Survival merit badge manual from the local Scout office. The Scouts use that to learn about wilderness survival and are known to save lives. While you are there pick up a First Aid merit badge manual. Also, the Red Cross has similar material available for first aid.
These comments are full of great reminders and suggestions. Thanks, everyone!
A rope is handy.
My brother two sisters and I went mountain climbing when we were kids all the time. The last time we went, my brother decided we had better take a rope. We went up a lot higher than usual that day, and came back a different way, we came across a smallish cliff with a ledge underneath it. We took the chance and jumped onto the cliff, we didn’t realise it was higher than we thought, we couldn’t get back up. We couldn’t get down either, it was a very large drop. There was a tall, straight gum tree to the left of the cliff, my brother tied the rope to it so we could climb down, Me and more so, my younger sister were terrified, my little sister cried heaps, It took nearly an hour to get her down. The only supply we had was a rope. No water, no food and no compass.
Don’t forget the sun, moon and stars are your friends, if you can see them. The only time not to move is noontime plus/minus an hour or so; that’s when the sun is directly above you, leaving you without direction. In daylight, sun is in the east in the AM; in the PM it’s in the west until sundown. It may take some evening strolls in your neighborhood to learn some constellations, and where they usually are in the night sky. Those constellations and the moon also rise in the east, move toward the west through the night. Heading east, the south is on your right hand, north on your left hand. (Opposite heading west). People can walk across the Sahara desert without getting lost, using this simple knowledge. Take a compass, but don’t panic if you lack instruments.
And remember to pray and thank The Lord for the resources and wisdom with which He’s graced you!
Marie, I love this your tip.
You should always have a KNIFE, COMPASS, AND FLASHLIGHT. My wife and I were out hunting when it got dark, she wanted to stay put until someone came to rescue, I said when did you tell anyone when we would be back, and so we are going to sit here for three weeks before we are missing. Know where the road you came in on and use your compass and flashlight to get back. Go out on the weekend with a compass and map and pick a spot on the map and learn how to find your way there. Done depend on someone to find you.
Hi everyone
If you like being in the wilderness chances are you are both educated and prepared. Most people who die, do so because they are accidentally lost, or in an unusual or extreme situation they are not prepared for……The one most important thing above all, is to remain calm and relaxed…..tell yourself a nice story about being in an adventure or whatever you have to do. If you panic, just sit down and relax for a while, until you calm down….The point is, that you will not even be able to remember simple things, let alone make good decisions, if you are in a state of fear and panic!
The garbage bag is a great idea the whistle too
however
where I hunt and fish
if you aren’t prepared each time you go out can mean your life or someone else in your party
You’d also be wasting A LOT of energy blowing a whistle where Ive been
I’m not saying don’t bring one you should always have something a mirror whistle and fire making capability
I hunt in remote Alaska at a cabin out the normal flight paths on lakes only accessible by float planes or snowmobile in winter
a 5 hour trip one way or an hour flight about 130 miles by air away groom any type of town or civilization
been out there for more than 45 days at a time and never seen another human soul or even heard an airplane
jet or other fly over while there for that time
remote
yes Remote as remote gets… and bears and large packs of wolves can and will hunt YOU there
The rabbits are a good idea…my sister and I won two in the local fair one year…brought them home to our 6 acres in Alaska…and those two quickly became 80 within one year…released onto the property they hung around and we feed them food as well as let them graze…need meat? Walk around 5 min…and kaboom…rabbit stew…thus assumes you can stay put in your out of town rural land. We had a hutch and food for them they pottery much hung around the house and with dogs and cats …pretty much kept all the wild predators at bay.
La cosa più importante è conoscere anticipatamente la causa e il tempo della crisi, e avere un’assoluta fiducia in Dio e ubbidire alla Sua autorità. Le profezie Bibliche ci spiegano in modo preciso ciò che sta per accadere sulla terra e chi sono i responsabili: L’Anticristo Giudeo-Israelita.
Carry an orange plastic garbage or leaf bag in your day pack. If it rains, cut a small hole large enough to open for your face to be clear and use it as a poncho, find an opening in the tree cover and sit by or under a tree on the edge of that opening. it’s good idea to have a whistle with you as well. The orange bag will show up clearly for any search rescue aircraft to spot you and if there’s a ground search and rescue team out looking for you blowing 3 short blasts on the whistle ever few minutes will alert them to where you are. If you hear them whistle, respond with a whistle of your own and keep blowing it on a regular 10 basis every 10 seconds so they can home in on where you are. Also, before getting lost and while you’re still moving stop every once in a while and make sure that you leave some very clear foot prints in a small patch of cleared ground. Most search and rescue teams have qualified trackers and you will make it so much easier for them to fast track you if you leave some clear tracks every so often.
Most importantly, once lost, stay put. The average person when lost and moving travels about 3.4 km in an hour and that means that the more you keep wandering the harder you make it for the team to find you.
A compass is the most important item to carry on you . You can walk circles forever and never find your way. when you panic walking up and down hills and hollers it’s easy to get off track and walk circles.
A compass is only useful if you know how to use it. Learn that – then carry it. The other thing you have to know is where civilization or other target is before a compass will help you reach it.
Comment to Earls
I carry surveyors tape with me & a black sharply. When I go into an area I don’t know I take compass reading where I start at. The tape I use sparingly & mark a design on the tape before hanging it. That way I can locate it for a fast safe evac route
Frank,
I have my bug out bag with me at all times, my other surviaval equipment & food is at a different, safe location. One of the many things that people tend to overlook is how easy it is to build a reuse able shelter. I have 4 reinforced space blankets with grommets in them. I also have para cord. Can tie two of the blankets together to make a lean-to, the other two I tie together for my sleeping bag to go between, one it keeps me directly off the ground & it keeps the weather from soaking my sleeping bag. I spent about $20 for the 4 blankets & para cord. Thx for helping the people who want to survive when the SHTF Norm
Richard, you are so right get the shelter built first, been there.
Survival Mindset is critical. Everyday wear/carry for me – in the house or outside anywhere – includes a Suunto wrist compass on the watch band, one or two multitools (you can use one to repair/sharpen the other) Bic lighter (non-smoker), 50-yard spool of waxed dental floss and magnesium block. I try to dress for the SEASON when going out, not for that particular day’s weather, just in case my trip to work turns into an emergency. My car always carries basic hand tools and a small bag with other supplies The car’s fuel tank does get below half.
Duh! I meant to write that the fuel tank does NOT get get below half full.
During the ice storm that hit SC in February people learned you are on your own for the first 24 to 72 hours.
It can be days before electric service is restored, and grocery stores quickly run out of food, plus a lot of what they have spoils quickly and becomes uneatible. Fires that break out can burn out of control because the firetrucks cannot get there. In a big emergency you’d better be ready because things can get out of hand very quickly.
Dear Frank,
One of the grearest urban myths about solo survival is the assuption that, “It will never happen to me!” Another is, “It is hard to get lost”.
DUH!!! Over 150,000 Americans a year are lost or stranded in the wilds long enough for Search and Rescue to be called out. Most suffer terribly and unfortunately many die.
We respect all the hardcore primitive skills experts out there. They are smart, experienced and great instructors. However, they have a very specific following of people who are really interested in stone age living.
John Q. Citizen (the majority of urbanites who get lost or stranded) are not among the faithful.
Sure wish more people would read the book you and I produces: SURVIVAL 101, HOW TO BUG OUT AND SURVIVE THE FIRST 72 HOURS.
We kept it simple and addressed all the critical issues in plain, and even humorous language with no “Apocolypes” nonsense. Sure, we threw in some basic primitive skills just is case, but only as a fall back option. We strongly recommend that people never go afiled day hikining, fishing, hunting, mountain biking ATV’ing, etc. without a properly stocked BOB or at the very least a Mini-Bob as ew describe in the book … ever!
God Bless,
Orrin
Hey Frank,
Lost in the wilderness, no… When I used to go hunting in an unknown area, I always studdied topagraphical maps and forestry service maps of the area before I left, and took them with me for future refference. Not only told my wife where I would be located but left a note under my car’s windshild wipper as to my plans and approx. location with my expected return date. I grew up playing in the woods and hunting the woods and corn fields of the mid west as a kid. I always took my mountain hunting very seriously. If I was planning on being gone for 3 days, I packed for a week. There was only one time I was in a blizzard that I couldn’t see more than 10 feet in front of me. This trip I was in the Uintas, east of Salt Lake up around 10k And believe it or not, I had that fabbled stand of 3 close pine trees making a near peerfect trianglure shelter. With the drifts already hip deep, I just burrowed in hollowed out a small space and got comfortable. The weather kept me pinned down for the next day and a half and I continued to enlarge my shelter so that I could be more comfortable. I can’t say I loved it, however; I was comfortable. I had food, water and extra clothes, the only thing missing was a deer. Never did get one that season but it was a great time to practice some survival techniques. I learned as a kid, if you are going to go, go prepared. If you’re out and get caught, shame-on-you. Not being aware of your surroundings and/or the weather is your falt. And being out without any knowledge of survival is stupidity….
I watch survivor man on tv quite a bit and compare the program to some of my experiences in the field. Other than some of the things that he eats, I find him for the most part to be right on. I suppose if I were hungery enough I could force down grass hoppers, worms and scorpions also. I watched him shoot a squirrel on one program and trap a rabbit on another one and started thinking, I had already planned to use squirrels as an addition to my food storage if things go sour. What’s to stop me from raising rabbits now and keep 3 breeding pair, and add rabbits and squirels to my menu now. That would sure cut into my monthly food costs. Who said that I had to eat beef and lamb all of the time?…
Good for you, Earl. I’ve got friends who’ve even got a herd of Emus. Talk about eggs!
Hi Frank,
I think one myth I have heard that I believe to be true is that most people lost in the wilderness die because of panic. Panic sets in and they stop thinking. Yes, you need shelter first, then water. Most people could easily build an emergency shelter in the wild if they weren’t under any stress. When they panic, they stop thinking. Ditto that with how to get water or food or how to rescue themselves. Survival is a mindset, not an action. Also, most people don’t prepare up front. If you are going into the wilderness even for a few hours, pack an emergency pack for yourself. I doesn’t have to be huge, but should have some of the basics that would help you survive including some way to start a fire and some sort of tool (a knife is very useful) to help you out.
Hi Frank
You have the roof and and bedding in the wrong order is you have bad weather. If you or your bedding gets wet you are in serious trouble. To survive you have to stay dry, first and foremost. This includes not sweating. This glazes your skin causing it to loose insulating ability. Being calm is essential. nmHunter
Richard –
The bedding vs shelter conundrum is a tough call.
If no severe weather is expected, just some bedding (under you and over you) to keep you off the ground will prevent the major loss of body heat to the ground.
If weather threatens, then having shelter is, as you say, a must to prevent getting wet and risking hypothermia.
Obviusly, having both is best – but, if time and/or material is limited, one would have to make their best judgement as to which is more critical at the moment. You also have to factor in site conditions – cold, wet ground?. . . warm, dry ground?. . . shelter from wind, vermin, predators?. . . etc. One is going to have to make that call based on the totality of circumstances.
You folks are right re: shelter, water, then food.
Thanks to whoever suggested obtaining the Scout guide books – hadn’t thought of those for printed reference material. Too much of what we see/hear/read these days is on-line and of no value to anyone without access to our not-always-fatihful electronic gadgets. Printed military guides are available also.