Survival might require a shelter
If you suddenly found yourself out in the wilderness with nothing to help you but your wits, would you be able to survive? In other words, would you be able to find or build shelter and find water and food? Most people probably wouldn’t last long.
While water is the single most important thing to keep you alive, it’s very possible that a shelter might be something that’s needed first, depending on the weather. In extreme conditions, people can survive for only about three hours without shelter.
Last winter, a senior instructor at the Willow Haven Outdoor School for Survival, Preparedness and Bushcraft filmed some episodes for a TV show he was putting together. The point of the show was to prove to people that if they could survive for three days in the woods, they could then go back to their normal lives and do anything they set their minds to.
One of the keys to survival in the show was to build suitable shelters to protect them from the snow, rain, sleet, wind and bitter cold temperatures in what was one of the coldest winters on record in many parts of the country.
The two main shelters they built were a wigwam-style shelter with a fire out front, and a wiki-up-style shelter with an internal fire ring. Now, group shelters are fine for staying alive, but if you want a little more comfort and warmth built into your shelter, you might want to go the individual route.
For the show, they chose a design called the “Super Shelter” that had been popularized by survival instructor Mors Kochanski. After building a log cabin-style frame of sturdy logs that lifts the “bed” at least 12 inches off the cold, damp ground, they secured the corners with a jam knot lashing. Then they added two or three cross-support beams.
Their instruction was to create a “bed” made of small saplings laid lengthwise on the cross beams. Then design a springy mattress, ideally with fresh, spring pine boughs arranged in a herringbone pattern, or with live branch tips from saplings.
Next, make a dome framework covering one side of the bed and both ends. This half-wigwam structure is made from long, thin and flexible saplings that should be equally spaced. To make them stay in place, either wedge them into the framework of the bed or stick them in the ground at the edge of the framework.
Once those saplings are in place, backside saplings are woven over and under the arches formed by the longer saplings. Use reflective emergency blankets to line the back and top of the dome frame, and then cover the whole structure in clear plastic with “wilderness clips.” Finally, place a limb over the plastic in front to trap the heat inside.
Have you ever been forced to build a shelter in the wilderness? If so, please let me know about your experience.
Survival seems to come in 3s:
3 seconds to make a life or death decision.
3 minutes without oxygen.
3 hours without shelter.
3 days without water.
3 weeks without food.
Mr. Knudson is right all the way. Yeah !!!!!!!!
If all you have is your wits, where did you get the materials to cut wood, clear plastic and emergency blankets?
I had to build one many years ago. I built a lean-to against a log by putting branches aganist the log. As this was Alaska in the summer, I used Devil’s Club leave which are very large and shingled them up the branches. I then put some more branches to hold the leaves in place. As it was raining as usual in SE Alaska, I stayed dry. I didn’t make a fire and I had to bedding but a few leafy branches and no blankets or anything. I was cold but I stayed dry and survived. It was almost dark when I found I had not place to stay so I had no time and nothing to work with.. But I’m still here over 40 years later…
Thanks for the great info. and in particular the ideas for building emergency shelters. “The other debbies” comment about finding natural features to start with makes a lot of sense. I love the wilderness and have had chances to put some of these ideas to the test personally over the years. You epitomize the Boy Scout motto “Be Prepared” Keep up the good work and God bless ya.
I have not built a shelter, although I keep saying I am going to try. Maybe next summer will be the time. The shelters on that website look like they would provide protection from the elements, and do not look too difficult to build. The author makes a good point about being sure to stay off the cold, damp ground.
In the wilderness, I would look first for some sort of natural wall, such as a large rock formation or stand of close growing trees to build a shelter against, rather than putting it out in the open, as they have done. Also, I would be a little concerned about surrounding myself in plastic so close to an open fire. Maybe some other available material would be better, such as snow, green boughs, or dirt. For the front opening, perhaps a piece of fire-retardant fabric would work.
Dear Frank,
As you know I’ve lived it many times. I’ve built and used many different emergency shelters, fair weather and foul in many different environments for over 60 years.
I would humbly suggest that those readers unfamiliar and inexperienced with these basics of survival you are sharing here, invest in our book published by you and Power4Patriots just last year !!!
As you know SURVIVAL 101 – HOW TO BUG OUT AND SURVIVE THE FIRST 72 HOURS is an easy read for beginners and is only available through your site P4P.
As for the above article it is right on the money. for going Neanderthal and making debris hut shelters from scratch. However, building your first emergency hut while caught in blizzard is NOT likely to go well.
In this day and age, we strongly recommend always having a Bug-Out-Bag (BOB) on your back when adventuring anywhere and any time of the year, but especially in severe weather!
Stocked with a tarp, a plastic painters drop cloth or even two matching ponchos that can be snapped together and plenty of cordage makes emergency shelter building more efficient:
1, Requiring less scrounging, searching and gathering of materials, BEFORE you can get out of the wind and cold.
2. Makes a shelter skeleton wind resistant instantly.
3. These items just makes shelter building FASTER and much SAFER from the risk of rain, snow, frostbite and hypothermia.
The biggest cause of injuries and death to lost or stranded persons is “hypothermia” cause by exposure. What most “Greenhorns” don’t understand is … temp’s between 40 and 60 degrees cause more deaths than temp’s below freezing. (32 degrees). Why? People generally dress in advance for extremely cold conditions.
Those who suffer most are summer day-hikers who somehow don’t make it back to their fancy RV and family before dark hits. They wander away from safety carrying no survival gear other than a snazzy water bottle while wearing only shorts, t-shirt, sneakers and a smile. Then, Murphy’s Law strikes and they somehow find themselves, in the dark, trapped by Mother Nature and she is beautiful, but she shows no mercy for the foolish.
Your Friend,
Orrin
www.bugoutbag4patriots.com
you have a good article and I like Orrin’s comment. I’ve been doing a lot of reading on this subject and have seen this doom type setup before and like it. Haven’t done any actual make them but this year I’m planning on doing a lot of bug out weekends and making different types of shelters. I fill that something bad is coming are way and have had for a long time but now its getting real strong. Good article. God bless.