Passive Cooking It’s about Efficiency

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On our recent Spring Rendezvous, one of the things we featured was what we refer to as “Pit Cooking,” like most things in survival or living for that matter, it’s not a new concept. What we wanted to show is

  1. How to do it
  2. Why you should consider doing it

In our training program soon to be released, to simplify things, we break knowledge, skills and gear into three levels; Core, Efficiency, and Comfort. Passive cooking falls into the Efficiency Level. Let’s get an overview of what passive cooking is and why it is efficient.

Normally when we cook, we are actively tending to the fire, and the food. We make sure to maintain the fire itself or the coals we are using for heat in our cooking, we want steady even heat. We turn the food to keep it from burning. This is the normal way of cooking we have observed all our lives. Passive cooking is simply any method that allows the cooking process to go on without the need of our attention to it.

Why should we utilize passive cooking methods in a survival situation?

Typically when we find ourselves in difficult times, one of the first things we notice is that our time is pressed, that is there is far too much we need to do in the amount of time we have. For example we may need to take care of food, shelter, water, etc. before darkness sets in and limits us. Wise use of our time will allow us to do far more in the amount of daylight we have.

An Example

In our recent Rendezvous the method we chose for passive cooking is “pit cooking,” which we modified to trench cooking. The process is fairly simple and consists of three steps.

  1. Prepare the Pit
  2. Heat the Pit
  3. Cook the food

Prepare

Preparing the pit is simple, just dig down about 18 inches, and about the same width, we made a trench of these dimensions and about 6 feet long, since we were cooking a number of birds. The pit is then lined with stones of at least 2″ thick, we need some mass to store the heat generated by the fire. Flat stones 2″ thick or 2 layers adding up to that thickness or more are ideal.

Heat

The next step is to heat the rocks lining the pit. Start a fire in the pit and stoke it up with wood of substantial enough size to burn for an hour or so. Depending on your surroundings and setting for your fire, you may also be able to do a few things close around camp while the fire is burning. An hour is generally enough time to heat the rocks sufficiently. What we are doing is not unlike charging a battery, we are charging the rocks with heat energy, and since they are cooler than the fire, heat flows into them. When we put our food on the rocks, it is cooler than they are and heat flows from the rocks to the food. Once the hour has passed remove the fire from the pit to a fire ring for your campfire. Depending on what vegetation is available, line the pit with leaves, boughs, bark, etc. I sometimes put a thin layer of dirt on the stones before adding vegetation. The green vegetation layer should be about an inch thick. Place your food next then cover with more vegetation, then cover the whole thing with several inches of dirt. It should go without saying that the vegetation should not be poisonous or irritating, no poison ivy for example.

Cook

Let your food cook for several hours. Three and a half hours will cook a chicken sized portion. If your food is in smaller chunks it may cook somewhat faster. When doing an animal such as a larger sized bird, put a rock inside the cavity, this helps to also cook from the inside out. The cool thing about this method is that your food is unlikely to ever burn, since the rocks start out hot and cool over time as the cooking  proceeds. So it’s not too critical if you leave it cooking for a longer time. The food being in the pit, sealed with dirt, it will generally stay moist and juicy. Carefully dig into the pit to remove your food, when you are ready to eat.

TIP– If it is cold weather you may even opt to use the hot rocks under your bedding to keep you warm, just cover with a bit of dirt to insulate so you don’t get burned. You can even make your bed right on top of the pit after you get the food out.  Just fill it back in and you are ready to go.

While your food is cooking you have several hours to do necessary things, you can gather firewood, find water, make shelter, etc. If you are practicing this in a area that is sensitive to damage, you can carefully remove the surface grass (sod) and set it aside in the shade, then when done allow pit to cool, fill in with dirt and place sod back on.

If you haven’t seen our video on this check it out here

Until next time this is Perry Peacock for Wilderness Innovation, “Simplifying Survival”

 

2011 Spring Rendezvous – Five Mile area

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Location is Five Mile area West of Fairfield. Head West on Hwy 73 in Lehi, after passing Fairfield nearing the point of the ridge on North, we will flag turnoff with florescent flagging. Manning Canyon Road (N40 15′ 02.7” W112 07′ 13.4”), follow to BLM sign, bear to right, look for flagging to turn off (N40 15′ 50.2” W112 08′ 45.9”)to left to camp area (N40 15′ 53.6” W112 08′ 51.6”)Note: the main area at Five Mile is on the West side of the ridge, we are on the East

Date is Friday May 5th starting around 3pm, ending Saturday afternoon around 2pm

Scenario: No specific theme this time other than utilizing resources in a Juniper Forest

What you should bring: Sleeping gear, cooking and personal gear per your preference. Personal Food for dinner beyond what we supply, breakfast items, lunch if desired. Clothing appropriate for weather. Water.This time around we are loosely structured and hope everyone has a great time sharing tips and knowledge and skills. We will be doing some fun things with cooking, shelter, and fire starting.

Schedule Friday

We will be setting up camp midday, you can show up when you want, by 6pm if possible

Pit Cooking is on the agenda so we will prepare pits and start cooking so food is done by around 6pm. We’ll furnish some chicken, bring whatever else you would like.

Bedding will be reviewed utilizing native materials in the area.
If time permits we will do a little bit with shelter.
Gather firewood and relax around the fire for the evening.

Schedule Saturday

Breakfast – Theme is cooking with rocksBring eggs for frying on rocks, flour for pancakes or biscuits on the rocks, sausage, etc.

Juniper Sheltering

We will be working on a couple shelter ideas that work well in a Juniper Forest

  • Bedding
  • Braiding
  • Weaving Bark
  • birds nest

Fire Starting using our FSK, 3 methods of fire.
Enhancing Shelter using our PST’s ( Personal Survival Tarp)
Knife Gear: We will be bringing a Gerber LMF and a Kershaw Outcast that you can try out
Lunch

Break Camp

Clean up and pack up. Leave area better than we found it.
For Meeting times/carpool at Walmart in Saratoga Springs:email, info@wildernessinnovation.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How to deal with Natural Gas in an Emergency

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Here are some important notes from CERT team training and from the Local Gas Utility, about Natural Gas and emergencies.

Do Not turn off your gas just because there is some emergency, natural or otherwise. Typically gas lines are pretty tough, they don’t just break easily. Most Localities have laws stating that if a gas meter is turned off, it cannot be turned back on except by qualified personnel. It was reported that during the 1989 San Francisco earthquake, 150,000 gas meters were turned off, only 2% of those actually needed to be turned off. This created a huge backlog of work for service personnel to them turned back on. Imagine if this were in winter, and you had to wait days or weeks to get your gas service on again. The following is a list recommending when you should turn off your meter.

  • Your house has been severely damaged structurally
  • You are near a fire
  • The gas company or city officials request it
  • You smell natural gas
  • If you hear hissing from a gas line or device

As a preventative measure you should make sure to strap your gas water heater so it won’t tip over in an earthquake.

You don’t really need some special tool to turn off the gas valve. It’s just a rectangular shaped knob so anything that will fit it will work. I know there are special tools made, and some are billed as non-sparking as well. If I’m worrying about a spark setting off a fire while turning off my gas valve, I’m not going near it. One other thing, how to tell if the valve is on or off. If the valve is parallel with the piping it is on, if perpendicular it is off. Just a quarter turn either way does it.

Natural Gas is not as dangerous as many people believe, and it is quite a good fuel. Here are a few interesting facts.

  • It is non-toxic, it has no substances that are toxic when inhaled
  • It is lighter than air. Unlike other gases, it quickly rises and dissipates, lessening any danger.
  • It is only combustive within a narrow range of 5-15% mixture in air
  • It is odorless, a pungent odor is added so that even the smallest amount of leakage is detected
  • Your gas company may have an odor card, (like perfume card) so you know the smell. Ask them.
  • It is clean burning, almost no pollutants result from burning it

Now you know a little more about Natural Gas and how to deal with it in a disaster. It’s a great fuel, useful, safe, clean and abundant.

Information obtained from CERT Training Manual, and Questar Gas

Until next time, this is Perry Peacock, “Simplifying Survival”

 

Field Repairs It’s about Tools, Skills, and Patience

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I’ve got a pair of cross trainer shoes that I love to wear when I’m not packing a lot of weight and just want to move quickly, problem is they are wearing out, but I can’t let them go just yet. They are like an old pair of slippers, getting more cozy with the passage of time. So I hit on an idea to save them for a while, I’ll repair them and see what happens. I’ll do the repair in style, a repair in the field, not in my living room on the couch while watching TV. A bit tougher, since I won’t have access to all the helpful things available at home to make the project easier.

So here’s my plan. I decided to go out do an extended hike, carry some new gear on a new rig I’ve been working on, and get way up somewhere, do the repair, finish the hike up, then all the way back down, in the shoes. I like to accomplish several things at the same time when I go out, so this is a great fit.

Here’s how it went

“I just hiked up for about an hour and a half to a ridge line, then scouted out a dense stand of Juniper where I could get out of the wind, the sprinkles of rain, and snow pellets. I’m not dressed too well for sitting and doing a shoe repair, I’m better suited for energetic hiking, but that’s all part of the scenario. I want to simulate a real life kind of experience. My right shoe’s sole is tore loose from the toe about 1/3rd of the way back and needs to be repaired before I don’t have a shoe to wear, but the weather is turning, a storm trying to blow in. I’m just dressed in regular pants,  and a North Face long sleeve poly T shirt, not so good for sitting and sewing.

I’m pretty experienced with a Speedy Stitcher and don’t think this will be too hard to do. So I find a little patch of grass to sit on, take off my shoe and go to work. Since the repair is in the toe, I need to take out the laces. I get out the Speedy Stitcher, shove the needle through the rubber sole and the shoe leather, not too hard to do, so far so good. Now I discover a problem I had not anticipated, the toe area is so small and tight, I can’t work in it. For every stitch I make I have to push a thread through a small loop at the end of the needle, inside the crowded dark toe. It’s a nightmare, I’m thinking what did I get myself into here, this is not going to be easy, it’s going to take a while. It takes me half an hour to do just 3 stitches, and I’ve got to do about 10. I feel myself getting a little chill.

In frustration I try several different things to get the stitching done, finally I hit on an idea, I’ll pull out several inches of loop thread out of the needle, then I can see what I’m doing. I try it, thats the ticket, still not easy to do, but much faster. It’s been another half hour now and I’m just finishing up, it’s looking good, I’m happy about it. So what I figured would be 20 to 30 minutes turned into over an hours work, sore fingers, and a new vocabulary. I’ve got it done though and it’s solid, that’s what counts. I put on the shoes run around in them, they feel great, success!!”

So why am I blogging to you about my shoe repair experience? Because it’s part of reality, it’s something that actually happens, something that needs a solution. For me personally, the reason is to test myself, to see if I could do it, under less than ideal conditions. I admit I underestimated the difficulty and the frustration I would feel, with my fingers cold and getting numb, but having to pull with all my effort with just my finger tips to work the thread in the toe of my shoes. I had to show myself I had the patience to keep at it till done. I purposely hiked back in a good distance before doing the repair so it would not be easy to just go back. Thats how I test myself.

Here are some points to consider

  • Do you test yourself?
  • Can you start a fire in most conditions with your survival gear only?
  • How do you know, if you don’t test yourself?
  • Can you do a repair like I just talked about?
  • I didn’t know for sure till I did it
  • Have you slept in the cold, shivering all night?
  • Have you made yourself uncomfortable?
  • Have you been hungry?

There are some things in life, in survival training that you cannot learn without doing. You cannot watch someone else do it and say you’ve learned it. Do you need to go to the jungles of Brazil to practice? No, not unless you live there or plan to spend a lot of time there. Practice where you are, doing what you normally do, that’s where a problem will come up, if it ever does. There is a certain confidence with every step along the way, each experience you go through adds to it. Your catalog of experiences can only be filled by you doing things, no one can do it for you, you can’t imagine it, you can’t read it, only by literally being there can you add another experience.

Upcoming:

  • Spring Rendezvous, first weekend in May. Friday afternoon into Saturday, if you haven’t already reserved a spot email us.
  • The Speedy Stitcher Shoe Repair Video will be online at our YouTube channel in a few days, a link will be added here when done.
  • Introduction of our CEC Levels training system

Until next time, this is Perry Peacock, “Simplifying Survival”

Woman’s Hike to a Sunrise Ends in 4 Day Survival Experience

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It all happened last week at Black Mountain, near Asheville, North Carolina.

Kristy Thornbrew had an idea, she wanted to see the sunrise from atop the nearby mountain. Who hasn’t had that desire at least a few times in their lives. Kristy had talked with friends who told her it was a quick easy hike on a simple trail.  It was apparently nice weather that Monday morning, since she headed off in the early morning hours, in a short skirt, tank top, tennis shoes and hoodie. The hike went along fine to the top, once there she looked around to find a place to sit, have a snack and enjoy the view, it was about 7am. Kristy saw a nice rock to sit on and started working her way over to it. She found the area steep and tried to crawl over to the rock. Then something happened and she found herself tumbling down the rocky slope. Rescuers said she fell several hundred feet.

Kristy lay unconscious for about 12 hours. Upon awaking she was disoriented, totally lost, not knowing where she was or how she got there. During the next few days she chewed on twigs, ate leaves, and some roots, she drank water from a small creek. She sheltered the best she could at night, but Tuesday night and into Wednesday it snowed. On Wednesday night she found an area that had some loose dirt and debris, so she burrowed in the best she could, it was a good thing, cold and fatigue were starting to get to her, she needed good rest. She was beginning to hallucinate, at times she imagined she was seeing friends off in the distance, but upon arrival there she found no one. Kristy finally realized she had to get somewhere out of the trees where she could be seen, so on Thursday she saw a place she felt she could get to, a rock out cropping. It was a little dangerous to get to, but she figured it was do or die time and she managed to get there, telling herself, it had to be done.

Apparently the skirt she had on was shiny or sparkled, she put her hoodie around her waist and took off the skirt and fastened it to the end of a pole. She waved it around when helicopters flew by, they soon found her. By late in the afternoon she was rescued and on her way to the hospital in Asheville. She suffered scrapes, bruises, a couple fractures, and a little frostbite, but other than that she was OK, she survived, she made it.

So let’s look at this and see what we can learn. Before we do however, I do salute Kristy as a survivor, she did a number of critical things right that saved her life. Unfortunately there were a couple errors that cost her dearly. First lets look at what she started out with.

  • A shiny mini skirt
  • A bright red tank top
  • A hoodie
  • A pair of tennis shoes
  • A diet Coke
  • A pack of raspberries

After the fall she only had her clothing, which was not much to get through the nights on. Now lets look at what she did to get through and to get rescued.

  • As she hiked around trying to figure her way out, searchers say she left items behind to hopefully alert them to her presence
  • She stayed hydrated, drinking from a creek here and there
  • She ate roots, leaves, and chewed on twigs. We are not sure she knew what they were
  • At night she tried to shelter, not doing so good until Wednesday night when she burrowed into some dirt and debris
  • She told others where she was going and when she would be back, that was a critical thing she did, that saved her life
  • For signaling she used her shiny skirt and red tank top, very resourceful

It’s easy for us to look back now and see what Kristy should have done or not done, what she should have taken. I think what is important is that we look at ourselves and check out how many times we do things in the same way as she did, a nice day, a casual hike or walk, very carefree. We should use this story of her survival experience to improve our own safety and preparedness. How many times do we leave behind things we really ought to take, thinking we just don’t foresee needing them?

Think what a difference a Fire Starter Kit could have made, how about a survival kit, perhaps she could have been rescued after the first day.

Here’s a link to her story, I”m sure more details will come out soon, but for now here’s what we know about Kristy Thornbrew, and her life threatening experience.

Until next time, this is Perry Peacock, “Simplifying Survival”

Note: Story and photo credits WSPA News 7 Asheville, NC

Spring Camp on the West Desert

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I’m sitting near my sleeping shelter, on a mat of Juniper bark to insulate me from the cool damp ground. I’m encamped in the West desert. It’s a pleasant evening, no sounds but the crackling of the Juniper wood on the fire. It’s nice it burns slow and steady, a few 3 inch pieces burn for a long time. My hot chocolate is near the fire to stay warm while I write this. Oh such a pleasant evening, the stars are everywhere up through the trees.

I had planned all week to make a run up here on this Friday afternoon, do some exploring a bit then set up camp. Our Spring Rendezvous is next month up here, and I want to get ready. As fate would have it, today was an extremely busy day. In fact I thought of canceling the trip, so I could get a few more things done, but in the end common sense won out, and here I am.

 

For the last little while we have been scouting out locations, and had settled on this area, so today is for dialing it in exactly. By the time I got to the camp location today, the sun had already set some time before, so I knew there was not much time to get set up before total darkness set in. Of course I could always use a flashlight, but I prefer not to.

 

I found a nice sleeping spot, there were several Junipers in kind of a triangle, leaving a spot in the middle just big enough for me to stretch out in. An interesting thing about the Juniper forests around here. Not much in the way of plant life can compete with these trees, not even grass. Over the years various plant matter falls from the trees, eventually building up a layer almost like peat. Soon some varieties of mosses start to grow, then a few very small low ground cover plants. This makes for the most comfortable bed to lay on, it seems amazing to find something like this in the midst of the mostly bare rocky ground that Junipers thrive in.

I got out my PST (Personal Survival Tarp) and set it up like a lean to with a floor, then I unpacked my PSB (Personal Survival Blanket, a product in development) and laid it out inside. Lastly I made my pillow, yes that’s right I made my pillow. If you are familiar with Junipers, you know how the bark is loose and straggly, I just took a bunch of that bark and worked it a bit to soften it, then I put it inside the bag my PSB came in, and viola, a very nice pillow. It’s also great material for a tinder nest to start a fire.

 

Oh, speaking of fire, it’s almost dark now, I quickly gather some twigs, sticks and branches, use a flat stone to scrape out a small fire pit. I take some of the bark I left out of my pillow and tease it a bit more then form it into a nest. I take my FSK (Fire Starting Kit), get out the Concentrator Paper, tear off a small square. It’s practically dark now, I can barely see the Paper. I take my Doan and place it on the corner of the paper, I do my 5 scrapes of Magnesium like usual, then 5 more, cause I can’t even see if there is any in there. Since it’s white I can see the paper square just barely. I take it and set it in the middle of the tinder nest. Because I can’t see well enough, rather than having the Spark Rod on the Doan bar stationary and moving the scraper to form sparks, I opted to reverse the situation. By putting the scraper over the Magnesium scrapings and pulling the the spark rod toward me, I’m not going to send everything flying if I miss, uh, learned that from experience years ago. A couple of scrapes and a white flash, then flame. I get my tinder going then the rest of the fire.

 

A note of interest here, since I have started a fire with the FSK thousands of times, I can practically do it in the dark, that would be good to be able to do in a survival situation. You don’t want that to be the first time you try to use a magnesium bar to start a fire.

I get a cup of chocolate warming by the fire. Sipping every now and then as I write this piece. Life is wonderful. Join us here in a month for our Spring Rendezvous, its a great way to relax and unwind, plus we’re going to do some fun stuff.

 

Until next time, this is Perry Peacock, for Wilderness Innovation, “Simplifying Survival”

 

Survival in a Plastic World

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Several weeks ago I was talking to my daughter who lives in North Carolina, we were catching up on a few things, one of which was my move out of our small city to a farming area. We got talking and I said you know a lot of people would not want to live here. There are horses all over, a lot of cows, and many would not appreciate the aroma. There are fields on two sides of us and some would not like the dust or perhaps the organic nature of those smells. We talked back and forth for a bit more and it occurred to me, we live in a “plastic” world. There is a big business in selling appropriate scents, we have eliminated all the natural smells and our noses are bored with the nothingness that’s left, so we create our own.

What is a plastic world? As Jen and talked I could see it, everything sold is tested to appeal to masses of people and to offend none, there is no willingness to risk that. Things are sterile, clean, ultra-pure, most scents are mild and unobtrusive. The other day I saw in a car next to me, filled with guys from an office probably on the way to lunch, we were side by side for miles. I never saw them talk to each other, everyone’s head was down, they were texting, they were socializing on their phones. People go home to their houses with pure water that is further purified with special systems. The air is specially conditioned with micron and electrostatic filters, and is conditioned to the proper humidity level. Doors, windows and walls are sealed. People go crazy for buying all “organic” groceries, then say to me, you’re not really gonna put that pile of manure on your garden are you? The are probably organisms in that stuff.” My reply, “I’m counting on that.”

The masses watch other people experience the harshness of the natural world on TV. A society that is highly educated and little experienced in the rigors of the earth. People become skilled at navigating virtual worlds, building virtual cities, fighting virtual crime, virtual wars, and running virtual farms.

Now before anyone gets too upset, I’m not so much crashing on all this modern society stuff, most of us live there to a great extent. What I’m saying is too many, spend too little time, experiencing the real organic genuine earth we live on. It is a shock to the system to be uncomfortable.

Shauna and I headed out on Saturday to go for an exploratory hike. When we left home the wind was gusting, it was raining lightly, the skies had darkened. Shauna asked me, all the while knowing my answer, “do you still want to go?” I answered in my predictable way, “of course, it will be great to be out in this.” So we went, we hiked in the rain, through the grey chalky mud, slipping and sliding, and then into the jagged rock ridges, the rain was now snow, big flakes of spring snow, absolutely beautiful. We had a wonderful time, the wilderness was all our own, the roads had been full of people rushing to get home, away from the very weather we enjoyed.

Don’t dream of being out there, do it, be there. I am constantly urging people to go out and to learn to be in the outdoors no matter the weather. Become part of the real world. It’s part of our ability to survive, and there is no way to do it virtually, you simply have to be there.

Upcoming:

  • I decided to get chickens again like I used to have some years ago, so when I mentioned that to the Wilderness team, Beau had a friend who had built a coop and run for free, we decided to do the same, so we are just finishing up a large coop with run that was essentially free. We’ve been filming it all so others can get some ideas, it should be out in  a few weeks.
  • The Spring Rendezvous is also coming, it will be a blast. It is the first weekend in May and will be held on the West Desert. We will train in the Juniper forest, taking advantage of the elements there. More details coming next week.
  • Don’t miss our Gardening Blog Series that is being hosted by our friends over at Survival Cache.

Until next time, this is Perry Peacock, Simplifying Survival at Wilderness Innovation

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Survival-Free to Choose

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This picture and others similar are some my favorites. You know, this is home, our home, our home planet. It is our place in the universe, and to me it is beautiful, the sight of Earth from space is truly breathtaking.

One of the great blessings of the space race, and mankind’s eventual landing on the moon, is to finally break the bonds of Earth and to see it from a new perspective, in a whole new way, to see it as it really is. Earth defies all imagination.

When I see these pictures, always one the the first words to come to my mind is “LIFE,” signifying to me that through the expanse of space, our Earth is about life, a special kind of life, not just organisms, but living, breathing, thinking life. We have an amazing diverse experience on this planet we call home. It is a water planet with a friendly, protective atmosphere, and just the right temperatures to sustain our life systems.

To me an interesting thing to contemplate is that all life; fish, birds, horses, deer, corn, potatoes, wheat, trees, seems to be programmed in some way to survive. They all follow particular predictable life cycles that assure not only their general survival, but their ongoing futures as well. All life, all life except mankind. You see mankind seems to have some sort of freedom granted, some right or agency, a choice if you will in all things. Now with this choice comes two opposites, success and failure, happiness and sadness, indeed also life and death.

As I stated in a previous blog, ” a man sitting on a couch with everything he needs to live, can die just as easily as a man in the wilderness with nothing.” The man on the couch with everything can choose at any time to die, by not eating, or by more drastic means to cut his life short, while the man in the wilderness with nothing, may cleverly come to utilize whatever resources there may be around him and survive, that is retain or extend his life. Many times it is just that, a choice.

We enhance our ability to live and survive, by what we learn, by the skills we master, and by developing the courage beat all that is against us. At Wilderness Innovation we teach the Six Elements of Survival: Shelter, Fire, Water, Medical, Food and Social. Since man began these have always been the essentials. At the Core level our needs are basic and somewhat crude, but as we move up to the Efficiency and Comfort levels, things are more refined, easier going.

As part of mankind’s peculiar existence, unlike all the other creatures and life forms, we are truly able to alter our world, to build and to improve, like no other. We are seemingly unlimited in our abilities. However, no matter how far we progress, the Six Elements are still there and cannot be lost without us cutting our own lives short. When man went into space he did not evolve into some space creature that no longer needed water or food, but had to take that with him. A man stranded in the wilderness, must somehow provide these things too, if he is to live. We teach how to do it, in a simple, systematic way. Watch for our new training launch, coming soon.

This is Perry Peacock for Wilderness Innovation, where we “Simplify Survival,” until next time, have a great day!!

 

GET READY for SPRING it’s a GREAT TIME

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As much as I love winter, I always seem to enjoy the changing of the seasons. Thinking about spring I am reminded about last year and all that happened. One thing about spring is, that it is a transitional time, winter doesn’t want to give up without a fight and summer tries to come on, but is beaten back frequently.

Last spring Shauna and I went on a hike early one morning with the intention of hiking up a canyon a few miles, and then kicking back and making breakfast by the creek. As we drove up the canyon to the trailhead, we got into the snow, huge flakes just comin’ down like crazy. We parked, got our packs on and headed up the trail. We set up our Personal Survival Tarp and used the Twig Stove to cook on. It was really a nice time, you know how the snow makes everything so quiet? About the time breakfast was over the sun came out, melted everything and it warmed right up, all the clouds went away and it was nothin’ but blue sky. Such a beautiful day. The extremes of spring can really heighten the excitement of it all. Video of that little trip here.

One of the other truly great things about spring is all the wild plants putting out shoots, and blossoms. When you are learning about fresh edibles in the wild, there is no time like spring to identify new plants. So get out your books and start looking at what is interesting in your area, then when you go out, find them and try eating some. You can take Elderberry blossoms, they are bunched up like an umbrella, dip ’em in some pancake batter and deep fry, they are great. You can do the same thing with Dandylions as well.

Springtime is a wonderful time of year everything fresh and new, all the green and the blossoms. Here are some ideas to make the most of your spring outings.

  • Get a Plant Edibles book for your area and when you go out, look up some of the plants you see so you can ID them.
  • Try using some new plants in a meal
  • Lay out all your camping gear and go through it, get rid of stuff you don’t use
  • It’s easy to accumulate gear, so to lighten the load, decide what the important things are, pull out the rest
  • Check your footwear, sometimes we forget that new shoelaces are needed or a repair done
  • Stock up your first aid kit again, you probably used some pain meds, moleskin, and antibiotics.
  • I like to keep some emergency food rations in my pack, make sure you’ve restocked
  • Use a few light easy spring outings to prep for a big one in the summer or fall.
  • A cruise we were on a few years ago had a theme, “Just Get Out There” not a bad idea

Like I always say, have fun, try some new things, test your skills. Take care and have the best of spring times.

This is Perry Peacock, for Wilderness Innovation, “Simplifying Survival”

 

OK Time to Get Geared UP

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Now is a great time to be thinking about what you want to do this next spring, summer and fall. A good place to start is to think about what you didn’t get to do last year that you would like to do, then move on to new knowledge, skills and gear you would like to gain this year. Next make a plan and tear into it. Since we are really into survival and preparedness, here are some hints on how to make the most of it.

Make all your adventures more fun and productive, by incorporating some kind of survival practice into it. You can pre-plan getting gear as needed.

Camping

  • Instead of just a camp out, plan a scenario and have everyone participate, it’s a fun way to learn.
  • Challenge yourself by planning an activity in a new area, or new types of surroundings different than normal.
  • If you have a skill you know pretty well, plan a fun way to teach it to friends, family or children who may be with you, you may be surprised by how much you will learn in the process.
  • For fun you might do some cooking with unusual methods. See a book like “Roughing it Easy” by Dian Thomas for ideas

Preparedness

  • If you don’t already do it, plant some kind of small garden with things you love to eat…uh not pizza…stuff you can grow in the soil, haha.
  • If you already do a garden, I always like to try to grow something I haven’t done in the past, try it, it’s fun.
  • Plan on canning/freezing some things like say green beans, corn, peas, tomato based items, etc. that you can really get a nice yield on.
  • Turn a small room or closet in your house into a little “Store.” Get extra of items you really like and arrange them on shelves, so you have your own store. If things get tight or a storm comes up, you have your own store, right in your house.

The best way to survive is to prepare, that being the case, survival and preparedness go hand in hand, they work together for your good. Try your best to make this a fun experience for your family, it really makes things more enjoyable and let’s them know they don’t have to go around dreading everything all the time, just be prepared and then don’t worry.

Be sure to sign up for our newsletters, we will be starting our fun new training series soon, lots of good material, classes, and fieldwork.

This is Perry Peacock for Wilderness Innovation, “Simplifying Survival”

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