Outdoor Survival Info

Archive for August, 2007

There I was, getting ready to practice with my bow when the unthinkable happened. I pulled back, released my arrow, and heard a loud and very strange twang. I looked at my used Browning Ballistic Mirage compound bow and noticed one of the cables dangling. This may be a repairable issue, but I just don’t trust it any more.

I guess I’m going to just have to buy something different. The trick will be to get it either A) without my wife knowing until it’s all said and done, or B) something my wife agrees to. My wife worries about money, and so do I. But this is just about a necessity. I’ll figure out a way to make it work, but if I could avoid a woman’s scorn, I will.

I might try to get something used, just to get through this season, but I’ll just have to see what’s out there. I’m going to try to make some extra money, but I need to get whatever I’m getting really soon. Archery of any kind takes practice! And if I get a longbow or recurve, I’ll need a lot of practice.

While camping this weekend, I learned a valuable lesson. It’s good to have a padded sleeping mat when camping. I learned this the hard way, quite literally, by sleeping on the hard, rocky ground. Not only will one of these pads make sleeping all nice and comfy, but it can be a vital part of your bug out gear, too.

When you are bugging out, there’s an emergency going on somewhere in your region. During times like this, rest is critical. With yourself better rested, you’ll have more energy and be able to make more sound decisions. Both of which are vital to survival during a disaster. Not only are they good for you, but if you have to care for an injured person, putting them on your padded mat can help facilitate a quicker recovery. No, it won’t actually help heal a broken leg or take a fever down to safe levels. What it will do is make your charge more comfortable. And comfort aids in healing.

The pads are light, and they don’t take up much space on a pack. If you don’t have one, I suggest you get one. I’m going to.

I’ve survived the weekend camping trip, with only a large area of my body sunburned. The only survival skill that I practiced over the weekend was sleeping on a hard, rocky surface while in a tent that was about 20 degrees too hot for sleeping.

Naturally, this made my sunburn even more uncomfortable.

Even though we were situated on a public camping ground with a large lake 120 yards from us, I still brought some basic survival gear along. I also taught my two year old daughter some basic swimming techniques, which will aid in her survival while she is in the water.

There’s a new forum out there focused on the outdoors. Hunting, fishing, camping, and basically anything else. Now, I know a lot of you guys already have a favorite forum, but that doesn’t mean you can’t give another one a try.

This outdoor forum is called Hardwood Hollow. It’s new, and there aren’t many members yet, so get over there and help shape the tone of the board. The forum is definitely outdoor-based, but there’s always room for survival topics to be discussed.

If you like what you see, join in the discusssions. You might learn something, or you might teach someone. It’s Win-Win!

Go click that link and check it out.

I’m going camping this weekend at a lake. Greers Ferry Lake in Central/Northern-ish Arkansas. It’s a fun place with plenty of camping and water adventures.

This is a family camping trip, complete with in-laws and little kids. So it’s really more like moteling, or RVing, than camping. But I guess that will have to do.

The survival skills I will be practicing are tent-work and fishing. I’ll be catching food, preparing it, and cooking it right there in camp. I’ll also experiment with some fire-building techniques. Nothing too primitive. I’ve yet to play with my magnesium firestarter, and this should be the perfect time to try it out.

It will be good to get away from civilization for a while, even if it’s only for two days.

A little trick I learned from my Marine OSO Captain was to pack plenty of zipper-locked sandwich and freezer bags with your gear. Books, maps, and electronics don’t like water very much. No matter how water-resistant your pack is, the rain will penetrate eventually. Not to mention streams and lakes you might fall into while hiking.

Keep zipper bags and baggies in your gear and put your water-sensitive items in them. You will be thankful that you did. This also protect against sweat. If you are keeping a little navigation notebook, journal, or paper map in your pocket while hiking, there’s a pretty good chance that it will get soaked with your sweat. Keep in the the plastic bag and it will be fine.

Don’t forget about any ammo you’re carrying, either. Put that in a bag so it stays as dry as possible.

While browsing various AR parts dealers online, I see that I have a lot to choose from. Not only are there several configuration variations for the AR platform (A2, M4, A3, etc.), but there are a wide variety of calibers available.

The first thing I have to do is decide on what kind of rifle I want to build. Do I want a general defensive rifle, that will take the very easy to find 5.56mm/.223 cartridge, or do I want a heavier-hitting .308? Likewise, I could opt for a 9mm carbine or the slow but heavy .450 Hornady.

Money doesn’t grow on trees in my yard, so it would probably make sense to get something that could be considered all-purpose. The .223 AR is a leading candidate for that. The problem with that round is that I hunt deer. While a .223 can kill a 150 – 200 pound animal, there’s little room for error. A more powerful cartridge would be better.

If I go up to a .308 or larger, the ammo starts to get more expensive. So practice with the rifle would be pricey. However, the .308 is a great all-around cartridge, suitable for a wide array of uses.

If I move up to the 6.8 SPC, I’ll get plenty of deer-hunting power, and have a rifle chambered in a round that is picking up popularity fast. So what do I do? 5.56mm, 6.8 SPC, .308, or one of the other chamberings? I could always buy a complete rifle and then buy different uppers and magazines, each one suitable to a particular purpose. But I don’t know if that’s what I really want to do.

The question is whether I want a rifle I can use for anything, or if I want to purchase rifles that were designed for a particular task. Should I build a 5.56/.223 AR for a defensive weapon and buy a rifle designed for hunting, or should I get one weapon for all seasons?

I need to decide that before I decide exactly what I want to build. I do plan on buying hunting-specific rifles, but having something all-purpose really appeals to me.

When you need to get out of town to avoid getting caught up in some disaster, you’ll need supplies. Bug Out Bags are not really meant to be a replacement to your life, but rather to get you through the first tough couple of days of a disaster. Once the initial shock is done, emergency services and supplies may start to trickle in.

Whether you are bugging in (staying put and waiting out the storm) or you you are bugging out, you’ll need some basic supplies. I found a good online resource for getting some bug out kits ready made. These 72-Hour kits are meant to get you through the initial stage of the disaster. You may have to travel to another state, or walk 100 miles. Or maybe you’re just snowed in for a couple of days. Take a look at this site:

Not only do they have ready-made 72-Hour kits to get you through a hurricane, earthquake, or some other disaster (massive riots, for example), but they also have supplies you can use to create your own. The kits range in price from $20 to $180, and they seem to cover the basic areas of food, water, and emergency gear.

Take a look at them and see what they have to offer. Having an emergency kit is like wearing your seatbelt. Sure, you don’t need it every day, but if you get in a car accident, you’ll be glad you were wearing it. Likewise, if there’s a disaster in your area, you’ll be glad you have some emergency supplies in a grab-and-go bag. Click on the banner, see what they have to offer, and buy your emergency supplies today.