How To Survive In The Wilderness

How To Survive In The Wilderness

A Ten-Part Series

Welcome to my 10-part series on ” How to Survive in the Wilderness ” . In this series , I will explore TEN specific areas of survival in the wilderness . These will include many of the situations that can arise when you leave the civilized  world . Being Prepared , Food , Clothing , Shelter , Navigation , Dangerous Animals and Finding Water will be included , in addition to three others from reader comments and suggestions .

The Great Outdoors

There are only two places that we spend our time in – the indoors and the outdoors . When the weather is fine , the sun is shining and there are no clouds in the sky , we run outside , like ducks to water . This is why outdoor activities are so popular and will continue to be so , for a long time to come  .

For many of us , we soon become involved in one or more activities and quickly begin to equip ourselves for this new-found activity . By this time and with this level of commitment , the beautiful sunny day is a bonus . Soon , we have to plan our wilderness activities around our families and our workplace .

As we wander further and further away from our safe places , we begin to encounter more risk . Sometimes this new-found risk will lead to mishap , danger and on occasion – more serious consequences . In this series on ” How To Survive In The Wilderness ” , I will show you how I have managed to survive the many years I have spent in the great outdoors with relatively few mishaps .

Part One – Being Prepared !

In part One , I have chosen – Being prepared ! Being prepared is a simple concept that means just that . This will make you ready for situations that will arise in the environment that you will be in . I spend a lot of my wilderness days in the temperate zone , specifically , between the 49 and 60 degree Latitude North of Canada .

This is a world of mountains and valleys , forests and plains with many  deep , wide , swiftly-flowing rivers . There are basically two types of preparation ; – 1) Physical or External Preparation and 2) Mental or Internal Preparation .

External Preparation

External Preparation , in part , refers to the equipment that you will bring along to your specific activity and your ability to understand its functions and be able to use them efficiently . The idea of being prepared to many people , especially the novice , conjures up visions of the newest and most expensive gear and equipment on the market today .

While this is partially true , and that a lot of equipment is sometimes necessary for many of these activities , I also want to address the issue of Physical Preparation . This means preparing your body through exercise and training . The level of intensity of this physical exercise will depend on your age and the type of activity you have chosen

 

This can vary from simple daily walks , calisthenics and minor weight training to more intense workouts of running and weight training .

How To !

Please read through my other blogs for a list of equipment and items to bring along with you on your excursions .

As for physical fitness , if you are not very active , start by walking slowly every day or as often as possible . This will make your body stronger , increase your lung capacity and encourage you to get more involved in physical training .

Visit a community center or local fitness center and see what they have to offer . This increased level of physical fitness will enable you to better enjoy your time in the outdoors .

Mental Preparation

Mental Preparedness and the ability to adapt to any and all situations you are confronted with are what true survival is all about . Being prepared mentally is being aware of what can happen , it is being mentally fit to perform the task that will be required when an emergency situation occurs .

Mental Preparedness will bring you to a state of calmness and clear-thinking when you are confronted with danger . This is an important and useful concept in day to day living , but becomes even more important when you are away from the safety of friends and family and in the wilderness with only the resources that you have brought along .

The Technique

Mental Preparation is ” stopping ” your body from moving ,- closing your eyes and breathing , – slowly and deeply . Now , review in your mind’s ” eye ” , the task you are about to do . This is very simple – do not make it complicated . Practice this at night , when you are in bed .

This can also be done on a chair at home or at work . Firstly , close your eyes , take 3 deep breaths – and review the task or activity you are about to perform . Practice will make this easy and quick , and you will soon realize take your task or situation is much easier than it seemed in the beginning .

With practice , you will quickly be able to relax , control your breathing and assess the situation . If you ever get lost in the wilderness – STOP , sit down and breathe ! – control your breathing . Now , that YOU are in control – life is easy !

Life is simple – we make it complicated . As you can clearly see , any activity can be enjoyed by everyone . This can be achieved by rudimentary physical exercise and simple mental preparation .

The time we spend in Nature can be filled with awe and wonder , not to mention the tremendous physical and mental benefits . This is a place where you can enjoy the great creations of beauty and find the peace that so often eludes us in our noisy worlds .

As always , I welcome your comments and suggestions and look forward to the 3 new topics that you will bring to this website .

Preparation is the beginning . Do not spend all of your time preparing . Now is the time to participate – now that you have all this new equipment and the knowledge to use it . You also have the mental awareness to avoid the danger and lower your risk factor .

Get off your chair ,  get out and explore the beauty of Nature . I look forward to hearing about your adventure !