So, Can You Eat Caterpillars to Survive?

a caterpillar

One of the most pressing survival considerations, no matter the setting or the situation, is food. Yeah, everyone knows that you can go for weeks without food before you starve, but you must consider that you’ll be mentally and physically debilitated from a lack of energy long before then! Accordingly, smart preppers plan on sourcing … Read more

How Long Do Firestarters Typically Last?

fire starting kit pouch with ferro rod and waterproof matches

One of the single most important resources you can have in a survival situation is fire, and when it comes to creating one, modern fire starters are indispensable. Extremely easy to carry, brutally simple, and capable of igniting in virtually all conditions, this is something that every prepared person should have with them or as … Read more

How to Use a Compass from A to Z

When you’ve been lost in an unfamiliar part of town, I’ll bet you turned the sound down on the radio so you could “see better”. Joking aside, being lost is not funny. It unbalances our center, sending us into heightened awareness. Walking around a corner and seeing a familiar building across the way lifts that … Read more

The Megalist of Bushcraft Tools and Weapons

bushcraft tools and weapons collage

Many a prepper has grand ambitions of running away into the wilderness to live in comparatively peaceful anarchy whenever trouble strikes. You have to admit, the notion is definitely romantic. Heading into the deep country with only your knife and your wits, and carving out your own home and existence from the bounty of the … Read more

Surviving Cold Weather with Snow Caves

snow cave

Among all the many bad outcomes you can encounter in a survival situation, one that is most likely to kill you and other members of your group is simple exposure. Exposure to the elements, particularly cold weather, is one of the single deadliest threats in any outdoor survival situation, far more than any exploratory mishap, … Read more

Step-by-Step How to Survive in the Woods

the woods somewhere in Ohio

Probably the most popular, and the most common, theoretical survival situation that preppers game out is that of a woodland survival scenario. Forests all over the world, dark, deep and enticing, all have a nearly mythic proportion in our minds. We are drawn to the woods while we are simultaneously afraid of them, and whether … Read more

Can You Make a Fire Inside a Shelter?

bushcraft survival shelter

One of the single most important and most fundamental survival skills is building a fire. Knowing how to build a fire will help you get dry and keep warm, as well as signaling for help and cooking food. But, in really harsh conditions you’ll need to stay inside your shelter for safety, and this begs … Read more

Can Mud Repel Mosquitoes and Other Bugs?

person walking in mud

I don’t think there is anyone alive who has spent any amount of time outdoors who hasn’t been plagued by mosquitoes and other biting critters. Whether they are trying to suck your blood for dinner or are just biting you out of some misguided instinct of self-defense, it is always aggravating, sometimes painful, and potentially … Read more

10 Ways to Stay Warm in the Wilderness

fire started with a Fresnel lens

Exposure is a constant threat anytime you are outdoors. Or at least it is if you don’t live very near the equator! But in seriousness, no matter where you live and no matter how seasonally warm it is you should not discount the threat you could be facing should the weather turn against you. When … Read more

Can You Really Eat Snow in Survival Situations

hand holding frozen snow

Cold weather survival offers many challenges compared to other environments, but one of the perks, if you want to call it that, is the abundance of fresh water to be had in the form of snow. Since snow is just frozen water, it stands to reason that you could simply eat it to help rehydrate … Read more

So, Will a Campfire Keep Wild Animals Away?

fire started with a Fresnel lens

When camping in any remote area of wilderness, preppers are often advised to build a campfire not only to stay warm, but also to keep wild animals away. good advice, considering that many wild animals can be a nuisance at your campsite and some can be quite dangerous. but some reports abound of animals in … Read more

How to Read a Map to Navigate

map compass protractor pencil, and string

Map work and navigation is the basis of understanding one’s environment and how to move within it. Navigation has been a part of everyday life since the dawn of time and will continue to be so, even as we enter the space age. Finding our way has always been the forerunner of exploration, the discovery … Read more

Can You Drink the Water from a Waterfall?

Iceland's Godafoss waterfall

In any outdoor survival situation, acquiring water for drinking is one of your top priorities. Dehydration is seriously debilitating and can take your life in just a couple of days if you don’t have any fluids to drink. Accordingly, many preppers’ resource plans focus on locating and gathering suitable freshwater sources for drinking. One notion … Read more

Snow Caves: Are they Warm or Cold Inside?

snow caves

If you ever find yourself in desperate need of shelter while stuck in a wintry, snow-filled environment you could hardly do better when it comes to protecting yourself than excavating a snow cave. Snow caves are reasonably simple shelters that are dug out of deep snow, usually at the base of a hill but sometimes … Read more

How Should You Layer Clothing in Cold Weather?

group of hikers

One of the most significant environmental threats that any of us will face when it comes to exposure is that posed by deep cold. Temperatures that are near or even below zero combined with brisk winds can quite literally freeze you solid in a terrifyingly short period of time. Staying warm is vital, but even … Read more

Firewood for Survival – What You Should Know

Out of all of the tools that a prepper is likely to use in a survival situation one of the most important, and most primordial, is fire. Fire has long been mankind’s servant, even though it is one that is never truly mastered. Fire serves us by providing light, warmth, a way to cook our … Read more

Juniper Berries: Are They Poisonous?

juniper berries on branch

The juniper plant is one of the most widespread and hardiest that grows across the world. Ranging in shape from a tall tree to a low shrub, this versatile and adaptable species can be found anywhere from the frozen poles of the Arctic reaches all the way down through the blazing heat of Africa and … Read more

Hiking 101: How to Prepare and Execute

man going on a hike

Hiking is an enjoyable pastime that millions and millions of people partake of every year, all across the globe. There is just something about setting out down the trail in the middle of an otherwise pristine natural environment that recharges your mind and soul. It is good to get away from it all sometimes! For … Read more