July 1, 2009 | Category: Outdoor Tips
Make a survival plan for your next wilderness adventure
Every year, people find themselves inadvertently stranded, alone or in groups, in wilderness areas.
If you are mentally and physically prepared, have a personal survival kit and the ability to improvise, you have a better chance of surviving a wilderness situation.
Being in the wilderness can expose you to a variety of conditions: hot or cold, wet or dry, shaded or barren. So a good outdoor enthusiast must prepare for each situation they may encounter.
In any wilderness survival situation, some of the major issues you need to consider include:
- Physical safety (for yourself and those who are with you)
- Finding a source of water
- Finding food
- Signaling for help
- Finding shelter
- Building a fire
Dealing with these issues requires you to use your most important survival tool - your brain - to prioritize your objectives and remain safe. For example, unforeseen climate or location conditions might make your first priority to find shelter before signaling for help. Other circumstances might dictate that it would be wisest to gather water before finding shelter.
The most important thing to remember in a survival situation is control your urge to panic. You will need all of your wits to concentrate on staying alive.
Some survival points to remember:
- You can last about two and half days without water in 120 degrees F as long as you spend the entire time resting in the shade. If the temperature remains below 70 degrees you could last as long as 10 days. It might be uncomfortable, but you can survive that long without water.
- You should build your emergency shelter at dusk to conserve your energy and fluids.
- Any movement you need to do for finding water, food or wood is best done at dawn or dusk to reduce your exposure to the sun. However, avoid moving around when it's dark.
- If lost in the desert, do not abandon clothing because it's too heavy or hot. Temperatures do drop drastically at night, so you'll need it later.
- In the heat, try not to lie directly on the ground -- instead make a raised bed of pine boughs or branches, so that air can circulate beneath you.
- If stranded with little water, it's better to drink water slowly and at room temperature. Drinking cold water too fast can give a dehydrated person severe stomach cramps.
- Watch area wildlife. They could lead you to sources of water and food.
Your survival to do list should include always doing these things:
- Leave an itinerary with someone on where you are going and when you will return.
- Never go out alone. Take someone with you.
- Stick to your plan, stay where you said you would be once you realize you have become lost or stranded.
- Carry a personal survival kit and know how to use everything in it.
- Dress for the weather but be prepared for changes.
- Carry rain gear to protect yourself from the elements.
If you left an itinerary with someone trustworthy, a search party will soon be looking for you. The best advice is to stay in one place, make a temporary shelter and build a fire. A fire is beneficial for personal protection and can keep your mind focused and build your self confidence. Next, rest, think and plan how and what you'll do to help people find you.
The combination of having the right gear and the right attitude can help ensure you'll live to see another day. Remember there is no shame in getting lost. But it would be a shame if you didn't have a survival plan or you didn't carry it out.
If you are mentally and physically prepared, have a personal survival kit and the ability to improvise, you have a better chance of surviving a wilderness situation.
Being in the wilderness can expose you to a variety of conditions: hot or cold, wet or dry, shaded or barren. So a good outdoor enthusiast must prepare for each situation they may encounter.
In any wilderness survival situation, some of the major issues you need to consider include:
- Physical safety (for yourself and those who are with you)
- Finding a source of water
- Finding food
- Signaling for help
- Finding shelter
- Building a fire
Dealing with these issues requires you to use your most important survival tool - your brain - to prioritize your objectives and remain safe. For example, unforeseen climate or location conditions might make your first priority to find shelter before signaling for help. Other circumstances might dictate that it would be wisest to gather water before finding shelter.
The most important thing to remember in a survival situation is control your urge to panic. You will need all of your wits to concentrate on staying alive.
Some survival points to remember:
- You can last about two and half days without water in 120 degrees F as long as you spend the entire time resting in the shade. If the temperature remains below 70 degrees you could last as long as 10 days. It might be uncomfortable, but you can survive that long without water.
- You should build your emergency shelter at dusk to conserve your energy and fluids.
- Any movement you need to do for finding water, food or wood is best done at dawn or dusk to reduce your exposure to the sun. However, avoid moving around when it's dark.
- If lost in the desert, do not abandon clothing because it's too heavy or hot. Temperatures do drop drastically at night, so you'll need it later.
- In the heat, try not to lie directly on the ground -- instead make a raised bed of pine boughs or branches, so that air can circulate beneath you.
- If stranded with little water, it's better to drink water slowly and at room temperature. Drinking cold water too fast can give a dehydrated person severe stomach cramps.
- Watch area wildlife. They could lead you to sources of water and food.
Your survival to do list should include always doing these things:
- Leave an itinerary with someone on where you are going and when you will return.
- Never go out alone. Take someone with you.
- Stick to your plan, stay where you said you would be once you realize you have become lost or stranded.
- Carry a personal survival kit and know how to use everything in it.
- Dress for the weather but be prepared for changes.
- Carry rain gear to protect yourself from the elements.
If you left an itinerary with someone trustworthy, a search party will soon be looking for you. The best advice is to stay in one place, make a temporary shelter and build a fire. A fire is beneficial for personal protection and can keep your mind focused and build your self confidence. Next, rest, think and plan how and what you'll do to help people find you.
The combination of having the right gear and the right attitude can help ensure you'll live to see another day. Remember there is no shame in getting lost. But it would be a shame if you didn't have a survival plan or you didn't carry it out.
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