Knowing how to keep yourself alive is a fundamental human skill! In our increasingly convenient modern world some of these fundamentals can seem less important. When we can easily turn on the faucet and get water whenever we want it’s not hard to forget that one day you might be in a situation that doesn’t provide you with such a luxury.
In a moment your focus can shift from “ugh, my phone battery is at 7%” to “what do I need to stay alive through the night.” It’s best to have a store of age old human knowledge for just such an occasion.
The fundamentals of human survival can be simplified into 4 priorities:
Shelter Water Fire Food
In that specific order. If you spend your time working on finding food before you have a shelter established you might just end up freezing to death with a full belly. Make sure you approach them in the right order!
When I started Colter Co. it was for the purpose of providing outdoor information in a format that was in itself multifunctional (enter the bandana…) I don’t really like packing books on camping trips, especially when weight and space is an issue. I’m super happy to add a TRUE wilderness survival bandana to our collection!
Yes, there are other survival bandanas on the market, so what makes this one better? It focuses not just on helpful outdoor skills, but on the PRIORITIES for your efforts. One of the biggest challenges of being in a survival situation is not panicking! Many other survival bandanas are a shotgun blast of facts and tactics that don’t help an already frantic mind know WHEN to take on your next task.
It’s also printed with high visibility reflective ink on a bright hunter orange bandana. Being visible is key to being found. When you build a shelter out of natural materials it can become very easy to blend in. The worst case scenario would be having a rescue team walk right past you while you sleep in your shelter. This bandana makes an awesome shelter marker and with the reflective ink it will light up super bright when hit by the beam of a flashlight.
As always, our bandanas are printed on American made cotton for superior durability and softness.
This is a great way to add a higher lever of preparedness to your survival kit! It also makes a great gift of knowledge and preparedness to a young adventurer.
If you can’t decide on which of our designs you love the most you can always make it a part of a 3 pack or a 6 pack :)
I started a new tradition this year. I took each of my sons on overnight campouts, individually. Before planning each trip I asked them what they wanted to learn on the outing. My oldest son said he wanted to build a shelter. Challenge accepted. So I picked a nice, thickly forested little lake and we hiked in. I didn't realize until we got to the area, but camp fires are never allowed in this area. That was fine for us, since it's August and I was planning on there being at least a temporary fire ban. This permanent fire ban ended up being a huge advantage. The forest floor in that area is covered in dead branches and small trees that in most other places would have been gathered for firewood as soon as it fell. So we had more than enough material to work with! We started out by finding the perfect spot. We found a nice flatish area at the center of a ridge near the middle of the slope. I feel confident there will be minimal water run off that pools up there during a downpour. It's also just a stones throw away from a bubbling spring pouring ice cold water down the slope. It was heaven.
The first step was to decide design. We found a newly dead standing tree that served as our vertical support. We decided on a two sided lean-to. We lashed a main support beam about 14 feet long to the standing tree and started leaning 3" diameter longs against that for the structure. Another reason we were building in that spot is because it was about 30 feet away from a giant windfall cedar. I cut the bark off in long, wide strips and laid that over the structure. We worked for about 2 hours on the thing and we're quite happy with it as a fair weather shelter. We plan on returning and adding several more layers of material to make it a stronger option during rain. We learned a lot from this exercise. First of all, how great it is to be able to just throw a tarp over a rope to make a lean-to. If you've got one...
As a Boy Scout, I had the ten essentials drilled into my head from a young age. To this day I don't even go to work without a more urban friendly version of the 10 essentials with me. And it's come in handy. A co-worker recently had a wardrobe malfunction and I was able to save the day with the basic sewing kit thats in my first aid kit. He said "of course you have a sewing kit..." Be prepared, baby.
As I've grown up and see other people on the trail, I've realized that not everyone has had that same training. I see people pretty far into the wilderness with just a water bottle and a pair of sunglasses. I feel a bit nervous for them and that nervousness has in part been the reason I decided to write about this subject.
The 10 essentials was originally created by a mountaineering group from Seattle in the 1930's. It is one of those things that is pretty timeless, and I don't see it needing much updating. There is of course some flexibility in how to choose to fulfill each need. Navigation, for instance, has come a long way since the 30's, but the principle remains.
The 10 Essentials:
1. MAP & COMPASS
Although there are many ways to navigate, I prefer the old fashioned way. GPS is nice, but batteries die and technology sometimes fails. A good map is a great tool. Especially the new ones with water proof, tear proof paper. It does require learning the skills to use a map well, but they are skills that will make your use of a GPS unit that much better. It's always good to have the old paper back up, just in case.
2. EXTRA FOOD
I generally bring enough food for the trip I'm planning on, and then an extra meal. Just in case. You never know when you might need (or want) to stay longer. What if you sprain your ankle and a 4 mile day hike suddenly takes an extra 6 hours to hobble back to the car? Make it high energy, high protein food like jerky, or trail mix.
3. HYDRATION
You can go three weeks without food, but only 3 days without water. Worst case scenarios aside, staying hydrated can help prevent other first aid emergencies like heat stroke, heat exhaustion, altitude sickness, and many more. Not to mention you'll just generally feel better and enjoy your trip more. Just don't go hiking without water.
4. EXTRA CLOTHES
Weather conditions can change pretty quickly. Especially if you are hiking for 4,000' to 10,000'. Or if you live in the Pacific Northwest. It's always only an hour away from raining around here. Best to carry a jacket or a poncho.
5. SUN PROTECTION
There are a lot of good ways to take care of this one. Sun screen, a hat, lip balm, long sleeves. To each their own. One of my favorite is a bandana. You can wrap it around your neck, or wear it pirate style if you forgot a hat. When it's a hot you can soak it in an ice cold creek first. Very refreshing.
6. MULTITOOL & KNIFE
I would never go hiking without a knife. I don't really go anywhere without a pocket knife, though. Make sure it's a good, sharp one. I have a favorite knife, personally. The Mora Companion. It's inexpensive, and probably the best quality I knife I have owned. It's not often those go together. It is very utilitarian. It's not fancy or the sort of thing that knife collectors are going to drool over. But it will get the job done. And no, I'm not being paid to say that.
7. FIRE
Again, there are many ways to go about this one. Stick with what you are the most comfortable. Remember, if you are going to need it, it's probably going to be an emergency. I love starting fires the primitive way. Flint and steel is my favorite. But in a 10 essentials kit, I usually have a lighter.
8. FLASHLIGHT
Lighting conditions change as quickly as weather conditions. An unexpected injury can add lots of time to a day hike. Make sure you don't get caught in the dark.
9. SHELTER
If you end up needing to stay the night unexpectedly, a shelter can be the difference between life and death. I'm not saying you should carry a 4 man tent with you where ever you go. But a space blanket can go a long way in an emergency. And they don't take up much more space than a deck of cards. A simple tarp and a length of paracord can make a lot of different shelters, as illustrated above. One might work better for you than another, depending on if you're working to stay warm, dry, or cool.
10. FIRST AID KIT
A first aid kit is another customizable thing depending on your personal needs. I suggest looking through yours every now and then to make sure you aren't of bandages and that the medications in it aren't 6 years expired.
Do you have a 10 essentials kit you take on day hikes, hunting trips, or general adventures? I'd love to hear if you have any specific items you won't leave home without.
