101 Skills You Need to Survive in the Woods: The Most Effective Wilderness Know-How on Fire-Making, Knife Work, Navigation, Shelter, Food and More
208
101 Skills You Need to Survive in the Woods: The Most Effective Wilderness Know-How on Fire-Making, Knife Work, Navigation, Shelter, Food and More
208Paperback
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Overview
“Feeder” mind-set means being in control of a situation, proactive rather than reactive. It is an optimistic outlook that reframes any situation as a learning experience. Kevin Estela teaches survival skills from this feeder-based perspective, which is what separates his teaching style from other wilderness instructors.
Kevin has written the quintessential guide for an outdoor enthusiast’s “bucket list” of skills—how to make a fire, build a shelter, gather food, find water, use a knife correctly and make cordage. These skills will keep you safe and better prepare you to deal with emergencies in the field, when you’ll need the additional skills of signaling and communication, navigation and crisis first aid taught in this book. Each chapter concludes with more advanced techniques to build your skills in various challenging situations, with tips that even seasoned survival enthusiasts haven’t thought of.
101 Skills You Need to Survive in the Woods is not a onetime read but a lifetime reference you will turn to over and over again. It will become the first thing you pack for any adventure and just might save your— or someone else’s—life. kevin estela, a bushcraft and survival expert, is an avid world traveler and martial arts instructor.
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781624147425 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Page Street Publishing |
| Publication date: | 04/16/2019 |
| Pages: | 208 |
| Sales rank: | 121,865 |
| Product dimensions: | 7.20(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.70(d) |
About the Author
Read an Excerpt
CHAPTER 1
SKILL #1
RECOGNIZE GOOD TINDER
When they demonstrate proficiency with man-made premade tinder, my students graduate to using less optimal prepared tinder like the unraveled fibers of jute twine. Again, once they demonstrate the ability to start fires with different tinders, they graduate and continue the progression of learning to build fires with other types of tinder. At some point, I have students take a walk with me, and we look for tinder off the land. Even after the most torrential downpours of rain, my students and I are able to find something in the area we can get to take a spark. At first, the idea of finding something dry and tinder-worthy seems difficult, but when you think about what is needed for a spark to turn into a flame, the requirements are pretty simple.
As I take my students on walks through the woods for tinder, I constantly stress "light, fluffy/flaky and dry." By "light" I am referring to little to no water weight, which also means seasoned and ready. "Fluffy and flaky" relate to texture as some of the best tinders feel this way. Consider how cattail fluff resembles and feels like cotton and how yellow birch bark flakes off easily. "Dry" is very self-explanatory, but I stress it in my requirements, because even though the tinder you have could be light and fluffy/flaky, you can dry it out next to your body or in a pocket of a warm jacket. Your body can dry out tinder to some extent as can dry air flow. Ideally, you should have premade tinder on you, but when you can, learn to use the tinder from off the land and preserve the best tinder for when the stress level is high and firemaking is critical.
The king of all naturally found tinder is birch bark. Gray, yellow and white birches all have bark with a heavy oil content. With a strong and deep scrape of your ferro rod, a longer-lasting spark will catch in your birch bark tinder and ignite it. Taking birch bark from a tree will not kill it as long as you don't crown or girdle the tree. That is, don't strip birch bark around the entire circumference of a tree past the inner bark. Birch bark holds its oil content for years, and even the bark found on fallen and rotten birches will work as tinder.
As mentioned, cattail fluff also makes a good tinder. You must realize the fluff from the seed pods does not have a long-lasting fuel source like petroleum and cotton balls, and thus burns for a short while. The same is true of milkweed pods. The seed fluff found inside milkweed pods will take a spark, but it won't burn for long. You can always use the fluff with a fuel source like rendered animal fat or salvaged oil to burn longer. This same fluff can warm you two ways. You can burn it or you can stuff your clothes with it as insulation.
Another excellent tinder is found in the bark of cedar trees. Using the back of your knife or the edge of a sharp rock, you can scrape the bark with one hand and collect the dust and fibers with the other. This tinder is extremely fine and will blow away if you are not careful. When I use cedar bark as tinder, I try to place it in a flammable container or within a depression I make in a larger tinder bundle.
Thick grapevines are also good places to look for tinder. Since the grapevine grows vertically, it is found up off the ground and away from the moisture. The outermost bark of the grapevine peels off easily and can form a sizeable birds' nest with little effort. The bark can be twisted and rolled between the palms of your hands and made more fine to take a spark.
Some of the best tinder you'll find in the woods is ready to light with little to no preparation necessary. In the winter, for instance, you'll find there are leaves still attached to the trees that didn't fall during the autumn. These leaves are marcescent, and they are ready to accept a spark from your ferro rod. Depending on where you are, the type of tree you'll find with marcescent leaves will vary. Sometimes you'll find oaks, sometimes you'll find beech, sometimes the leaves will be found on a branch that snapped off and both branch and leaves were left to dry in the wind. Just make sure your leaves crunch when rolled around in your hand. Leaves don't have the same pedigree as birch bark, but they work well.
Leaves found on the ground will also serve you well in your fire starting. The leaves that have been on the ground for a year or two will work best, and these are identified by their almost gauze-like appearance. Just as you did with the leaves found on the trees, roll the leaves you find between your fingers and listen for that crunch noise. Listen for the unmistakable dry noise and use the leaves that feel and sound the driest.
Your average 3/8-inch (1-cm) ferro rod will last you thousands of strikes. Experiment with what you find in the woods to start small fires you can make quickly and extinguish thoroughly with minimal effort.
CHAPTER 2SKILL #2
FERRO ROD TECHNIQUES
In my opinion, the ferro rod is the ultimate fire starter that combines multiuse capability with durability, lifespan, convenient sizing, water resistance and ease of use. There are better fire starters available if you are willing to sacrifice one of these attributes. A road flare produces a hot flame, but it is single use, larger and requires a specialized scraper to ignite it. The combination of ferro rod, scraper and prepackaged tinder is my top recommendation for fire starting. The ferro rod helps me inspire students of all ages and types and convinces them they have the power to change their circumstances.
The first method of ferro rod fire starting you need to learn is also the most common of those using two hands. Holding the ferro rod steady and moving the scraper at a 45-degree angle from the rod, sparks are created if you push hard and swiftly. The harder you push, the more ferro rod you will scrape off and more substantial the sparks will be. The back of your knife, a dedicated scraper, a carbide sharpener or even a piece of glass can be used as a scraper to generate sparks. You can also hold the scraper steady in place and drag the ferro rod backwards. In both of these methods, you want to pin your ferro rod to the material you wish to ignite. If there is no risk of knocking over your fire set up, pushing the scraper forward makes sense. If there is a risk, or if you find yourself striking your knuckles on rocks inside the fire ring, you will likely prefer to draw your ferro rod backwards. You should recognize that effectiveness with the ferro rod can be attributed to isolating the motion in one component and moving the other.
The ferro rod is a great tool to use with two hands, but in an emergency situation, you may find yourself limited to using one of your hands. Accidents happen, many by mechanical injury, and there is a possibility you will brace your fall or arrest your movement by extending an arm, forearm or hand that can get broken in the attempt. When my students find success with two-hand ferro rod starting, I have them build multiple fires and become comfortable without any additional modifiers. Owning a skill doesn't come with a few fires built just as much as a marksman doesn't consider taking three shots at a target a thorough range session. When my students have built multiple fires, I put them on the task of building more but limited to one hand only. They are allowed good tinder and can use as many petroleum cotton balls (PCBs) as necessary since the real skill I want them to focus in on is scraping the ferro rod and generating sparks with only one hand.
As you recall, the ferro rod works best when you isolate movement with one hand and move the other. You can perform a one-hand fire by using the other parts of your body. You can step on your ferro rod handle and lanyard holding it in place. With a PCB at the end of the rod, you can scrape horizontally to create a spark and ignite the tinder. You can also position your ferro rod vertically and hold it in place with the bottom of your foot as you scrape downwards. Another option that works well is to stick your knife into a log, tap the butt of the handle with a wooden log (be careful if your handle is made from softer material and not a strong modern synthetic) to drive it in deeper. The ferro rod can be scraped on the spine of the knife and the PCB can be placed along the tang. When it is lit, the burning tinder can be picked up by pinching it between two twigs and it can be transferred into your fire setup.
With these methods, you can build a fire easily. Train each hand equally, not just your dominant hand, until you don't stress making a fire using a ferro rod. When you graduate to a level of competence and you feel comfortable, start to handicap yourself and add training modifiers by doing the exact same scraping methods with harvested tinder instead. Own this skill set and you'll be well prepared to get a fire going in the great outdoors on demand.
CHAPTER 3SKILL #3 FIRE MULTIPLE WAYS
Fire starting follows a progression. The spark or flame you light ignites tinder; tinder ignites small fuel and eventually larger fuel. It makes sense that your fire will grow from small to large, but how you organize your fire lay, that is, the way you position logs, will dictate what type of fire your end product will look like. Piling branches and logs haphazardly with no rhyme or reason doesn't take into account air flow, burn time, fuel availability and fire output. An essential skill to master is learning how to construct a fire lay to meet your needs — whether that is maximum heat and light, cooking, long burning or warmth while sleeping.
TIPI
Of all the ways you can build a fire, the tipi is perhaps the most commonly known and most widely celebrated style in and out of survival communities. The tipi fire has the same pyramid profile as the shelters used by some First Nations tribes, and it is a classic way of building a fire. The tipi fire has strengths and a handful of shortcomings to its design.
I make tipi fires when I want a tall fire for maximum light or one that will burn quickly. I've used tipi fires for boiling water, for rewarming myself after emerging from a winter shelter and when building bonfires for celebrations. When done correctly, the tipi fire should collapse on itself even if it is built tall, keeping the footprint it creates relatively small. The tipi fire can be used in conjunction with other fire lays (described later) and constructing one is simple. If you have an abundance of softwood pencil-lead-thick twigs, you can use a bouquet-sized quantity inverted to create the base of your tipi. Otherwise, you can drive a single forked stick into the ground to angle additional sticks on and around, forming your tipi structure. You may not be able to drive a stick into the ground but rather balance sticks in tipi form. That is one of the potential drawbacks to this fire lay: it can be difficult to set up.
At the center of your tipi should be your best tinder, and as you build your structure up and out, you can add additional fast-burning material intermixed with larger fuel. When you build your tipi, take into consideration where the wind is blowing from and create a "doorway" to the center of your fire facing it. That will help your fire build and burn on its own. When built correctly, the larger fuel on the outside acts like a chimney, sending the flames straight up from the center.
LOG CABIN
The basic log cabin or "criss cross" is built by placing two logs parallel to one another and then two more parallel to each other and perpendicular to the first two logs, forming a square with this pattern repeated over and over. If you're from the hashtag generation, the log cabin can be called the hashtag fire as the structure looks like the "#" sign from above. I've built and used the log-cabin fire while demonstrating smoke generators, for cooking and boiling water and for building up a large supply of coals for use in woodcraft projects. The log cabin is a great fire to build when you need steady heat, flame and a consistent burn.
You should always build your log cabin on a flat surface, and if you have logs or branches with forks at their ends, you'll find the construction becomes even more stable as the forks serve as kickstands and prevent the logs from rolling off one another. Forked sticks aren't necessary to provide stability as slight curves in wood give similar results. Since the branches and logs alternate, they create gaps for air all around. This fire can be modified for cooking by building a smaller fire, like a tipi fire first, then laying green wood around it and a platform of green branches at the very top. Green wood will prevent the structure from burning as quickly. Extremely flammable tinder and kindling are placed "inside the box" you build, and when a signal is needed, the box is lit and green vegetation is placed on top of the structure.
You can build a log cabin with whole logs, halves or quarters. You'll find it is an effective way to pile on wood for an overnight fire, and it burns consistently from end to end. It is longer lasting than a tipi fire made from the same size and amount of wood, but the flame will not be as high.
STAR FIRE
The star fire resembles the spokes on a wheel with the fire placed at the hub. The star fire can be made with long logs and it can be used with a large group with each member sleeping between the spokes. This placement makes it easy for anyone in the middle of the night to push a log near them into the center of the fire. It isn't the most practical fire for a single person to build, but in a group it makes sense. When you build a star fire, it isn't a bad idea to slightly lift the end of each log to make the hub slightly higher than the far end and keep the flame centralized. Don't lift it too much or build your fire in a way where the log or any burning bits could roll down from the center onto you. Also, if you find the spoke burning too fast, you can roll the log back and forth in the dirt and it should snuff out the flame while allowing the end in the center to burn.
LONG FIRE
The long fire extends the length of your body and is used as a "blanket" of warmth as you sleep. A shallow trench is dug with dirt piled up on each side where a fire will be built. The long fire can have one or two sides with the head and toes area kept open. Generally, you want to build your fire in a way where it will continue to burn through the night, and this usually means incorporating larger logs. If you don't have an ax or saw to cut large logs, don't worry. Many times, you'll be able to find dead and downed trees or dead standing trees that can be knocked over or broken in half between two trees.
The long fire can also be used in conjunction with a lean-to shelter made from natural materials or a space blanket. Since the smoke from the fire can enter your shelter, you might want to sleep with a long hooked staff to poke, prod and pull your fire lay, so you don't have to leave your shelter in the middle of the night. On the coldest of nights, make sure you gather enough wood before you retire for the night.
The firebed variation of the long fire with buried coals is one commonly used when the ground is cold but dry. It will turn damp dirt into mud if you're not careful, which is why the standard long fire is preferred for northern forests and wet environments.
CHAPTER 4SKILL #4 THE COVERED FIRE
We can plan for every contingency, but something we have no control over is the weather. Rain is the form of precipitation that has the most power to zap morale, and when it starts to come down, we need to adjust our plans accordingly. Even though our skin is waterproof, our clothing may not be, and when you are cold and wet, you run the risk of losing critical body heat quickly. Cold alone can be dealt with, and being wet can be addressed if you only have to worry about drying off. The combination of cold and wet is extremely dangerous and should give you concern. Luckily, a fire can be used to dry clothes and that same fire can warm your body. There's a problem though: you need to build your fire in a torrential downpour.
If you recall, all fires require heat, oxygen and fuel. If your fire is hot enough, it will dry out the wet wood and burn regardless of what is coming down overhead. In a torrential downpour, just getting your fire started is usually the toughest part of the fire process. You may find your frustration level to be at an all-time high as matches get snuffed out, lighters won't ignite and even petroleum-soaked cotton balls don't want to catch wet kindling on fire. Your frustration will continue to build as your efforts seem to have no effect on your fire situation. This is when you need to take a step back, slow your haste to build a fire and run a mental checklist of how you prepared your fire. Sometimes the culprit to building a fire in the pouring rain is not building a base to get your fire up and off of the wet ground. Other times, your culprit is not having enough tinder that will dry out your kindling. Other times, you may not have built a sufficient structure to shield your fire from the rain above. A simple "umbrella" can usually be built with peeling bark, broad-leafed plants or even if you cut a flap of soil or moss, lift it and build the fire underneath it. If you are wearing a rain jacket, you may have to kneel down, open up your jacket and make a small fire under the protection of your body and garment.
(Continues…)
Excerpted from "101 Skills You Need to Survive in the Woods"
by .
Copyright © 2019 Kevin Estela.
Excerpted by permission of Page Street Publishing Co..
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Table of Contents
Title Page,
Copyright Notice,
Dedication,
AUTHOR'S FOREWORD,
INTRODUCTION: SURVIVAL MIND-SET AND READINESS,
FIRE SKILLS,
1. Recognize Good Tinder,
2. Ferro Rod Techniques,
3. Fire Multiple Ways,
4. The Covered Fire,
5. Dakota Fire and H Fire,
6. One-Match Fire,
7. Cook with Fire,
8. Carry Fire,
9. Bank a Fire,
10. Extinguish a Fire,
11. Friction-Fire Fundamentals,
SHELTER SKILLS,
12. Insulate from the Ground,
13. Build a Hot Seat/Bed,
14. The Nammy Shelter,
15. Y's and V's in Trees,
16. Ridgelines and Ridge Poles,
17. Four Proven Tarp Shelters,
18. Insulate from the Cold,
19. Shingle with Natural Materials,
20. Be Warm Throughout the Night,
21. Cold-Water Immersion Rewarming,
KNIFE SKILLS,
22. Knife Grips,
23. Whittle with Your Knife,
24. Chop with a Short Blade,
25. Carve Feather Sticks,
26. Create Cordage with Your Knife,
27. Cut Saplings Efficiently,
28. Baton and Create Splitting Wedges,
29. Create Digging Tools,
30. Maintain Your Knife in the Field,
31. Make an Improvised Edge,
CORDAGE SKILLS,
32. Make Cordage,
33. Reverse Wrapping,
34. Braid Cordage,
35. Six Essential Knots,
36. Join Lines of Different Diameters,
37. The Friction Saw,
38. Square Lashing,
39. Assemble a Tripod,
40. Haul Gear,
41. Create a Fishing Net,
ILLUMINATION SKILLS,
42. Proper Light Discipline,
43. Ferro Rod Quick Light,
44. Create Area Lights,
45. Natural Torches,
46. Oil-Shell Lamps,
47. Poach with Your Light,
48. Catch Frogs with a Flashlight,
49. Flashlight Cordage Handle,
50. Fire with Your Flashlight,
51. "Machete Carry" Your Flashlight,
NAVIGATION SKILLS,
52. Map Recon,
53. Prep a Map,
54. Orient a Map (Without a Compass),
55. Read a Compass,
56. Follow a Bearing,
57. Offset Shoot,
58. Track Distance Traveled,
59. Plot a Course,
60. Box an Obstacle,
61. Resection,
SIGNALING AND COMMUNICATION SKILLS,
62. Create a "Float Plan",
63. Leave a "Breadcrumb" Trail,
64. Ground Signals with Natural Materials,
65. Soda-Can Whistle,
66. Signal SOS with Morse Code,
67. Improvised Reflective Devices,
68. Dedicated Signal Mirror Use,
69. Signal Fires and Smoke Generators,
70. Chemical Light Stick Signal,
71. Turnbuckle Rattler Perimeter Alarm,
FIRST-AID AND TRAUMA SKILLS,
72. Primary Survey Skills,
73. Stopgap Pressure,
74. Apply a Tourniquet,
75. Irrigate a Wound,
76. Makeshift Snow Goggles,
77. Cattail Antiseptic,
78. Self-Examine with Two Mirrors,
79. Hypothermia Blanket Wrap,
80. Splint a Broken Bone,
81. Use Medicinal Plants,
WATER SKILLS,
82. Find Water in Different Environments,
83. Gather Water from Wet Rocks,
84. Transpiration Bags,
85. Moss Water Collection,
86. Fresh Water from Salt Water,
87. Tap Trees for Sap,
88. Seepage Basin,
89. Boil Water with Hot Rocks,
90. Bark Containers,
91. Fire-Blown Bowls,
FOOD-GATHERING SKILLS,
92. Edible Plants,
93. Edible Bark,
94. Tie a Longline,
95. Hobo Fishing,
96. Create a Gaff Hook,
97. Snares and Placement,
98. Figure-Four Trap Trigger,
99. Forked Spears,
100. Elastic-Band Hunting Tools,
101. Process Fish, Fowl and Small Game,
CONTINUATION,
PRAISE FOR 101 SKILLS YOU NEED TO SURVIVE IN THE WOODS,
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS,
ABOUT THE AUTHOR,
INDEX,
Copyright,
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