Narly Dude

One thing we've used around here (The Pacific Northwest) is pitch wood from old tree trunks. Some of these felled giants from the last century look badly decayed from a distance due to our plentiful rainfall and their age. However, a little research may lend you to discover that those old and decrepit stumps have a solid heart drenched in pitch.

A "hobo-style" stove my partner and I use when camping -- ingredients are: an empty tuna can, a strip of corrugated cardboard (1-1/2 x 6 inches) and a box of paraffin wax; roll the cardboard lengthwise and dip into melted wax; let soak; melt some wax in the can and set the cardboard coil in it; fill the can with more wax and let it melt till about 1/4-inch of cardboard remain sticking out. Makes for an excellent cooking stove for two. All you need is 3 rocks around it to set your pot on! Make sure you put in more chopped wax every 20 min. or so, keeping it semi- full, or the wick will burn away; otherwise the same wick will serve you for a long time. the downside of this contraption is the soot buildup on your pan.

Jake Leslie

When constructing a desert shelter, erect a "second roof" one or two feet above the first. This will reflect much of the heat your first roof would normally pass on to you and it can be removed and used as an extra blanket at night.

Take just one mitten off when in the arctic if you got too hot that way it will eventually cool the whole body down.

Roy Sherman, California:

Pine snap, which is easily gathered from tree wounds, makes a wilderness glue and sealant that is hard to beat. To give it some body, heat and mix with a little powdered black charcoal from your campfire. (Then ball it to the end of a stick, let it cool, and it will be easily transportable and ready to melt off as you need it. —Tamarack)

Don Mortenson:

Before throwing your fish bait in the water, douse it with cod liver oil. The smell will make your bait more attractive and attract fish from quite a distance. It is very effective.

Drew Lanier, Georgia:

Wash a fur in the same way that the animal would-dip in water and shake vigorously. Repeat several times if necessary, then let dry. (Try not to get the skin itself wet, and comb or brush only after the fur is dry. —Tamarack)

Use sawdust or pulverized punky wood to degrease a pelt in preparation for tanning. Work it in with your hands, let it sit for 15 minutes or so, scrape it off, and reapply if necessary.

Tamarack Song:

When using an absorbent material such as sawdust to degrease a pelt, warm the pelt first. The warmer the grease, the better it absorbs. When scraping to degrease, chill the pelt to as close to freezing as possible. Cold grease firms up, which make it easier to scrape off.

For faster action on a counterweight snare, grease the pole your cord slides over. This is particularly effective in cold weather when things are slow and stiff.

Make trap triggers out of hardwood rather than softwood. Hardwood compresses and sags less, so the trigger will respond more quickly and better maintain its original set. Also, because of the relative strength of hardwood over softwood, trigger components can be made thinner. This will increase the speed of the trap.

When you do not have a steel or stone knife to slice meat thinly for drying, mash it out with a stone or wooden pounder. Some soft flesh can be rolled flat, as one would flatten dough to make cookies or pie crust. The occasional piece of meat can be torn apart by hand.

To keep deer flies and mosquitoes away while in the woods, pick a sassafras leaf' roll it between your hands; and put it behind your ear. The smell will keep them away, and is pleasing to humans.

Rob Johnson:

When making the spindle for your bow drill fire making kit, follow this rule of thumb-keep the spindle your thumb diameter or smaller. Fire starting will then be easier and faster.

Nicole Finan:

Fire starting is also easier when the grain of your fireboard runs vertical.

Tim Nelson:

To keep your joints and bones strong, consume the soft bone and connective tissue along with the meat you are eating.

Kimberly Wilson:

No matter what the climate is or time of year, keep a supply of dry firewood handy. You will never know when you may need it.

To avoid internal parasites, gather them away from areas where they might be contaminated by body wastes or waterborne parasites, and wash all questionable wild edibles.

David Jonas:

Balsam fir resin makes an excellent wilderness antiseptic for treating cuts and abrasions. To obtain it quickly, simply pierce the resin bubbles that appear on the bark surface.

Rob Johnson:

Because of folding, a blade knife has a joint that could fail. A straight blade knife can prove more reliable in a wilderness situation where there is no ready backup.

Matt Nelson:

I prefer a tomahawk to a hatchet, because I can easily slip off the tomahawk handle and use the head as a separate tool. In the woods, I can easily make a tomahawk handle replacement.

Jill Thompson:

Wear the lightest footwear possible. It is cooler and less fatiguing on long hikes, dries faster, and interferes the least with feeling the trail, especially at night.

Andre Therrien:

Watch the weather closely. Being able to foretell a weather change can help to avoid a potential survival situation.

Neil:

For backcountry wear, I choose wool clothing, because it maintains its loft and insulates even when wet.

Tamarack Song:

Something akin to sandpaper can be a hard item to come up with in the wilderness. The original sandpaper was wet sand on a piece of leather. A rounded sandstone can work well for sanding hides; a squarish stone might work better for wood.

A quickie clamp made of a split stick works well for pulling needles through materials like tough buckskin.

David Jonas:

Balsam fir resin makes an excellent wilderness antiseptic for treating cuts and abrasions. To obtain it quickly, simply pierce the resin bubbles that appear on the bark surface.

Rob Johnson:

Because of folding, a blade knife has a joint which could fail. A straight blade knife can prove more reliable in a wilderness situation where there is no ready backup.

Matt Nelson:

I prefer a tomahawk to a hatchet, because I can easily slip off the tomahawk handle and use the head as a separate tool. In the woods, I can make a tomahawk handle replacement.

Jill Thompson:

Wear the lightest footwear possible. It is cooler and less fatiguing on long hikes, dries faster, and interferes the least with feeling the trail, especially at night.

Andre Therrien:

Watch the weather closely. Being able to foretell a weather change can help to avoid a potential survival situation.

Neil:

For back country wear, I choose wool clothing, because it maintains its loft and insulates even when wet.

Ed Cotton:

In the west and other dry areas, cedar or sage brush bark and other fibers are used to carry fire from site to site while on the move. In the wooded areas of the world, especially the northern hemisphere, the grape vine is available. The piece of fiber or vine that is available in your area has to be dry. Simply light one end, and carry the other end in your mouth. Give the vine a puff or air once in a while. The vine glows red and burns slowly, maintaining an ember for hours and can even burn for days.

Tamarack Song:

Something akin to sandpaper can be a hard item to come up with in the wilderness. The original sandpaper was wet sand on a piece of leather. A rounded sandstone can work well for sanding hides; a squarish stone might work better for wood.

A quickie clamp made of a split stick works well for pulling needles through materials like tough buckskin.

Kimberly Wilson:

Drink before you are thirsty, especially before going on a hike. Once you feel thirsty, you are already dehydrated. This is important in the winter, too, because we do not overheat and sweat as easily as in the summer. It is not as obvious that we are dehydrating.

Winters can be long, and the days short. To help avoid depression, take advantage of all the sun you possibly can by getting outside. Regularly expose your skin to the sun in order to as much Vitamin D that your body needs.

Chris Bean:

Breaking trail in deep snow takes a lot of energy. When you are traveling in a group, switch off the lead person periodically. North country wolf packs move this way in order that none of the wolves will get over tired. This works great for humans, also.

Warm rocks by the fire, and wrap them in a towel to take to bed with you to keep your feet warm and help soothe tight, sore muscles.

Tim Nelson:

Always be aware of rodents;  they will eat things we do not normally consider edible (such as rawhide). They can cause considerable damage in the process. I keep a year-round trap line going around my lodge.

Do not neglect your teeth when you are out in the wilds. In fact, I would suggest taking extra special care of them. This is one area "where an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."

Have two or more plans or projects going at all times. That way, regardless of weather, materials shortage, or whatever other variables may come up, you will be able to keep yourself occupied. This also helps to prevent disappointment and keeps your spirits up. This is very important in the wilderness.

Susan Smith:

A good way to get (or keep) warm is to stay active. Just be careful not to overheat and sweat, as that can cause chilling and lead to hypothermia.

Gary Odum:

The next time you are fishing in a creek, try finding mussels or freshwater snails in the shallows of the creek. If the creek is fast running try looking around the downstream side of a sunken log or stone. The snails prefer these areas of calmer water. Mussels can be found in shallow sandy flats of the creek. Their shells are black usually and they can be seen fairly easily against light colored sand. Once you obtain a few snails or mussels crack them open and use them for fish bait. Both the mussel and the freshwater snail have hard bodies and you can often use the same snail or mussel to catch several fish. Bream love them.

As a kid my father taught me how to rob wasp nests to get the pupae. Use your cane pole (the longer the better) and slip the tip of it between the nest and whatever it is attached to.
If you go slow and easy, the wasps will not be disturbed. Quickly scrape the nest off and run. The wasps will swarm around a while but will settle down in a few minutes and you can pick the nest up off the ground. The pupae make excellent fish bait. It is hard to bait hooks with these pupae so take a piece of nylon stocking and make a small pouch and put the pupa in the pouch and run your hook through it and the pupa.
You will have more fish than you know what to do with if you are not careful.

Shawi Hickman:

Wild duck or large bird? Find where they nest! Then, you get the eggs.Put out some corn (dry) just to say thanks to them. Good to start the day!

Edward Reck:

I once read a book where it said that some Indian tribes would melt down empty whiskey and beer bottles into huge lumps which they broke up, and chipped into arrow heads and other useful items, the same as they did with obsidian and chert. I do not remember the name of the book, since so much time has gone by since I read it. Also, I never experimented with the concept, although, I have knapped flakes off of broken pieces of glass with a blunt nail so I am pretty confident that it works.

Ken Lee:

Take a couple of compact discs next time you go into the wilderness - not for music, but because they make a great light-weight signaling mirror, double sided, complete with center aiming hole. They can be easily cut with a Stanley knife into fit any pocket, or a hole can be drilled through them to hang from a cord.

Larry Snyder:

Whenever I am out hunting or hiking, I always carry some blue-tipped matches dipped in wax, and a wad of "000" steel wool. If you get into trouble and need to start a fire, you have waterproof matches and the steel wool as one of the best tinder that will start even wet twigs. All you have to do is put some of the steel wool under some small twigs and sticks, and touch your match to the wool. It won't look like it is lit until you blow on it. It will be glowing red and hotter than hell The nice thing about the steel wool is that it does not matter if it gets wet. It will still work.

John Thomas:

For a good firestarter you can use a Duraflame fireplace log. I broke one into small pieces and it lasted all summer into the fall starting many fires. Just touch a small flame to it and you've got flames-a-plenty.

Consuelo Quisumbing:

We can always buy lighters and kitchen matches at stores. But what if modern civilization falls apart, and factories and manufacturers stop producing these products? What do we do? Brown or waste paper twine is used in my country for wrapping goods. But paper twine can be an alternative "match." Snip off 2-inch pieces from a length of twine and dip these in melted paraffin or beeswax. Take care not to coat twine "matches" with too much or too thin a coating, or they will not work. Dry, and keep in a small Ziploc pouch. The next time you need to light your fireplace or campfire, light this "match" with your lighter and use it to set fire to the tinder. The twine "match" produces a strong bright flame for a full minute. You save on kitchen matches and lighter fluid.

James Wells:

About "not eating if there is no water around..." You  had better find water SOMEWHERE, and quickly. The old movie stuff about a troop of men hiking across a desert by conserving one canteen of water is pure fiction. If you do not get enough fluid for your kidneys to produce about 30cc of urine per hour, you will soon notice severe weakness due to impending renal (kidney) failure. Death will soon follow. If you have water and are at all thirsty, DRINK IT. It will help you stay clear-headed, hopefully long enough to find more water.

E. Musik:

ALTERNATE FIRE STARTER (an alternative to Steve Dexter's fire starters): I cut up a paper egg carton, dip the small cups in paraffin and allow them to dry. Then, I pack them with saw dust and wood shavings onto which I pour liquid paraffin to top off. They burn for a long while without a large consumption of paraffin.

Jim Mainwaring:
 
FIRE CRAFT: While in the woods, collect the moss (lican) hanging from the branches of fir and pine trees. This moss is found through out the Pacific Northwest. Place it in your pocket to dry. Once dried, you can light it with a simple spark from a flint bar.

Another one is using cotton balls with Vaseline worked into them. It also can be ignited with a spark and burns hot. All though this second method really does not represent true wilderness skills, it is excellent for a survival situation.

T. (Clarence) Porter:

To help disguise your natural human scent just before the hunt, try this method taught to me by a true (old-time) woods-man. When your warming up next to the fire on that chilly morning Just before daylight; Before putting out your fire and it has burnt down, lay a large portion of fresh cut GREEN pine needles on your coals. When they start up a good cloud of smoke, start jumping through the smoke several times while in your hunting clothes for the day. Be sure to close your eyes when doing this, as the sap smoke may burn your eyes a little. The pine sap and odor will coat you and your clothes with a layer of pine scented residue. The odor is pleasing, and if you have a very light sticky feeling (which shouldn't last long before drying) the sap smoke has done it's job. Be sure to coat your boots real well by holding your feet in the smoke about twice as long, as it will ware off quicker while walking to your hide. 

Mike Powers:

A sure way to keep warm is to carry a candle with a candle holder and an extra large poncho. Pile a layer of insulation on the ground. Sit down on that insulation pile and have your extra large poncho totally enclose your body, including your head, and light the candle. In this small space the air will quickly heat up. It is best to have a candle holder with a protective top so you don't end up burning your poncho should it fall on the candle flame. This set up can keep you warm in an emergency situation. You will need an extra large poncho to totally enclose your body when you sit on the ground. Don't forget to put that layer of insulation under you.

Tim Roy:

If you are in the woods and it rains, get wood and whittle away the outside. This will leave dry wood on the inside (provided it is not rotten, or too soft), and you can use the shavings for tinder.

Michael Castleton:

Clean and Filtered Water Made Easy: Filters are just too big for survival kits, and sometimes even during a light hike. Easily solved. Using a bandana (a high priority item in any survival kit) and some type of container (hopefully your canteen survived the crash;), cover the top of the container with the bandana securing it with either your hand/sting/ rubberband whatever... Dip this into the best source of water you can find and allow the cloth to filter out all large items If the water is sandy and/or you ca not see through it, fold the bandana over a few times. The more folds you have, the longer it will take usually. Using a small eye-dropper bottle (can be found at pharmacies and the like) drop in 1-2 drops of bleach per liter of water, (yes, bleach, Clorox) Allow the stuff to work for 5 minutes, shaking it every minute. This process will filter out and/or kill everything that you will need to worry about, and the taste is much like home.

Ed Reck:

If your area does not have a lot of flint or obsidian laying around on the ground, try glass. I remember years ago reading about Native Americans melting down whiskey bottles, then chipping and napping the mass into arrow heads. If it worked then, it should work now.

Roger Inman:

One of the best set of books to learn almost all of the survival skills is the BOY SCOUT HAND BOOK and the BOY SCOUT FIELD GUIDE. Every thing from making shelters, collecting food, water, to building materials. How to choose a camping site. Which plants and critters to eat, etc. These books can be found at scouting outlets (i.e. J C Penneys in some areas and other stores) as well as as well as district or council service centers. Look in the yellow pages.

Two other books are the US ARMY SURVIVAL MANUAL and THE SAS SURVIVAL HANDBOOK by John Wiseman, Collins Harvill, publisher. Both may be purchased from army surplus stores and some book stores. But remember, you can read for 20 years, but if you don't practice the skills that you read about, you will not be ready when the time comes.
I have been teaching and practicing skills for 35 years and hope I NEVER, NEVER, EVER HAVE TO USE WHAT I KNOW! Have had a lot of fun along the way!

Fred Melvin:

MAKING FIRE WITH ICE: Shape a piece of ice like a magnifying lens, and then polish it by melting the outside with body heat. It does not work as good as a magnifying lens, but it can be done.

Steve Dexter:

If you want a guaranteed fire-starter here is what to do:
Take a small wax covered paper cup and melt paraffin or wax into it. Let it dry. It lights even if it is wet. Use a match or lighter or whatever.

Consuelo Quisumbing:

USING FISH TO CATCH OTHER FISH: My grandparents had fishponds on their farm, surrounded by fruit orchards and coconut trees. One particular pond contained as ugly a bunch of freshwater carp as could be found; the kind only other carp could love. They were good eating, but my cousins and I weren't allowed to catch them, although they were so stupid you could catch them quick. These fish were gluttons, and their gluttony on some occasions helped me catch several fat and tasty catfish. There was a small bridge at the end of the pond, and there were large cats that were living under it. The trouble was, it was difficult to cast bait under the bridge; the hook always caught on snags. One day I fed the carp leftover rice next to the bridge, and a gang of them trudged along the bottom, dredging mud and debris. To my surprise, catfish started to surface, and they joined the feeding. It seemed that either the dredging disturbed them out of their holes, or it was a signal to come out and eat.


SURVIVAL NEEDLES: Many survival kits fail to include a compact sewing kit. This is unfortunate, because having a needle at the right time, when stuck in the wrong place, can be a lifesaver. Known as tailors' or leathercraft needles, these items are found at crafts stores and special hobby fairs. They are usually contained in a package of seven to eight assorted needles, each with its own purpose: flat-bladed needles are used for sacks, tents, canvas, and carpets. Spear-like needles are used for leather goods, chairs and sofas. Curved needles are for beds, mattresses and seats. A single type cannot suffice for most sewing duties. Just imagine yourself in a leaky tent in a rainstorm, and you wish that you had brought a sewing kit! Among the Inuit, it was said, there are (3) three important things a man must have to survive the Arctic: a good knife, firestarters, and a sewing kit.

SPACE BLANKET VS. SURVIVAL BAG: The space blanket and the survival bag are two items which are products of the new age in survival gear. Before these were created, men made do with bulky clothing and heavy woolen blankets. It was hard to get warm if your clothes and wool blankets got soaked with sweat or water. Both the space blanket and survival bag have become camping and/or search and rescue essentials, and both have their merits, as well as faults. For instance, the space blanket is cheap for purchase, compact, light for carry, a good reflector of body heat and sunlight for rescue, and can withstand low temperatures. The survival bag, on the other hand, is very strong, durable, wind-proof, light for carry, keeps in body heat, makes a good mattress, can be a duffel bag in a pinch, can be used as a signal device, and is good in temperatures down to freezing. The space blanket is not flameproof, wind-proof, and tear-proof. It is also noisy. The survival bag is not cheap, compact, flameproof, noiseless.

THE SURVIVAL WHISTLE: The little orange "survival" whistle has been around for some time, and I believe that most people take this item for granted, since there are better survival items available to the public. However, for its compactness and it being one of the smallest survival kits around, it is also one kit that would most probably not attract attention from nosy official folks, since it resembles a toy. It is an item that can contain matches, line and fishhooks, iodine tabs and other medication, money, etc. Its value is doubled with the addition of a small mirror, compass, and whistle. This is a "toy" that I would give to a child, in case they got lost. Also, hikers could benefit by putting it along with larger survival kits. Kayakers could hang it around their necks by its cord, along with a neck knife and compass, in case the kayak turns over. The only flaw is that it is constructed of a not-too-durable plastic.

J. Keller:

If in the woods and it is raining and/or snowing and you need to start a fire look for the belly wood on downed trees. The pitchier, the better. Belly wood is the wood on the bottom part of the tree that will still be dry even though everything else may be soaked. A small hatchet is very helpful for removing strips of it.

A second pointer is to practice your survival skills on weekend survival hikes with friends. Then, when you need to really use the skills, you will have already perfected them.

Jason Coombs:

Whenever using rocks in coal beds, reflectors or as boiling rocks, be sure that the rocks are collected from a high and dry area. It may take a little more time to secure good rocks, but the effort is certainly worth it and could save you from a painful accident. Rocks that are collected from a creek bed or in a damp place can hold moisture in them that forces itself out when the rocks are heated. This creates an explosion of incredible force. Not only is it dangerous, (i.e., loss of eye, puncture wound, etc.), but the loud pop sounds like a gunshot and may scare away any wild game you hope to harvest. Nine out of ten accidents in the woods are self-inflicted, so be careful and use your head.

FOOD IN THE WOODS: Cattails are one of the most abundant and best tasting plants out there. Sometime you should plan on getting "lost" near a patch of them, and take along a good guide. They have six edible parts and numerous other utilitarian uses (i.e. insulation from the down, mats and baskets from the leaves, toothbrush, medicine etc.

This is not really a primitive idea, but it would work well in an outdoor situation. Always take along a couple large sized plastic garbage bags with the pull-string ties on them. They have hundreds of uses, but one of the really good ones is to use them as an emergency poncho if you get caught without a real one. Just cut, rip or tear a hole in the bottom and one on each side. Your head goes through the bottom one and your arms through the side ones. It wears out fast, but would certainly get you out of a pinch.

Consuelo Quisumbing:

I grew up in the suburbs, and when I was twelve or thirteen years old I came across one of the first editions of SURVIVE magazine in a second-hand bookstore. I remember being so fascinated by the articles in that long-forgotten magazine. They were so unlike the familiar scouting manuals being used by my scoutmaster uncles and cousins. When I began saving money to buy any old survival magazine I could get my hands on, my Daddy would just shake his head and tell me to pursue more "ladylike" interests. I am in my thirties now, and I can survive by myself out in the wilderness, and have more confidence to rely more on the skills I have learned from survival magazines, than on the machines of modern technology that we have come to rely on to run our lives. Since I live in a tropical Asian country, some things are worth knowing: exposure to the elements, bugs, and bad food are three things that can do you in faster than reckless car driving or poor health habits.

Ralph Slater:

Very rotted black birch sometimes referred to as "punky" makes an excellent coal extender, as well as tinder. I discovered this a while back when blowing on some that I was using to smoke a brain tanned deerskin. While blowing on some new chunks that I had added to my already smoking ones, I found that with just a small amount of effort I could get a glowing coal to burst into flame. Since then, I have tried other rotted wood, and found some others will do the same, but maybe not quite as easily.

A.G. Drew:

If you are in a survival situation and have a seriously injured or ill member in your party, feed them the stomach contents of any large game you are lucky enough to catch. The body requires water and protein to both heal itself and to digest food. Feeding this particular food source to the injured or ill person, allows their body to absorb the nutrients in it while not having to divert protein from healing to digestion. The healthy survivalist may take advantage of this highly efficient food source as well (waste not, need not). It is said to have a sweet taste.

Scott Wiggins:

You can use Horse Chestnut leaves as a soap replacement. The leaves contain saponin.

Don Brink:

A tip for hand-drill fires that turned 5-6 passes down the spindle to 3-4. I do the sitting position holding the hearth or foreboard with my foot. The notch faces me, so I can see the coal when it comes. Spit on your hands to give them more grab on the spindle. Do one pass with no effort to warm things up a bit. On the first "real" pass, tilt the top of the spindle back toward you about 20 degrees (watch it or it will pop out of the hole!). About half-way down, tilt the top of the spindle about 20 degrees away from you. When you reach the bottom, get your hands back to the top and go again. As I said, this cut my number of passes in half, therefore, doubling my efficiency at the hand-drill. Another tip, start looking in the woods for any long straight and dry "weeds," and try them for spindles. I have discovered many new materials this way.

CJ Flores:

I have suggested to people to bring a fresnel lens with them when traveling. If you are lost in the wilderness, it can be an easy fire starter. Keeping a fire going is one way to be spotted. For food, learn how to eat insects if you can. Find out which weeds can be eaten, and how to prepare them. If it is possible, dig out an underground home. Perhaps there is a cave somewhere. Watch out for hibernating bears!

Jeff Fields:

If you are stuck in the woods, and you are close to a lot of acorns, take the insides of the acorn out, and let them sit in water for a day. Then grind them up, and let them dry out. You can use them as flour, or make pancakes from them.

James Ninilchik:

SNOW SHELTER: The best and quickest and easiest snow shelter I have ever seen and used, that requires no skill or tools to build is this: Stomp out a trench or box or round shaped room in the snow, packing the snow and piling it up around the perimeter using your feet and hands. Next take branches, debris, leaves, or bark (whatever is available), and place over the top for a roof. To further insulate your shelter, you can place snow over this for a thick ceiling. BUT: Make sure you have adequate ventilation and remember that any snow overhead can melt and drip. You do not want to get wet, if your heat sources warm the inside up. For a door you can use any number of things to seal it off: branches, a backpack, clothing, etc. You can line the sleeping area with a browse bed composed of evergreen boughs about 2" - 8" thick.

A SMALL LIGHTER: In northern climates, especially in winter, a small lighter (either butane or Zippo) can be extremely handy. In a cold land with little light, you then have a method to make a fire quickly, and a light for short duration visibility. It is also great for melting synthetic ropes after cutting. A lighter can be seen for a long ways off at night. It is great for signaling over barren ground (i.e. arctic, desert or above timberline).

James Ninilchik:

BANDANA MADNESS: Here is a piece of cloth with a thousand uses. Catch the morning dew off the grass and shrubs and wring it into your mouth for water. Get it wet on a hot day to sponge yourself off and wear around your forehead for cooling. Wear as a cap over your head by tying a knot in each corner and then rolling them in towards center till you get a tight fit. Other uses include: hotpads, sunscreen, tourniquets, cleaning cloth, washing cloth, and carrying food and other articles by folding and tying it. Use it on a stick for a lure, or a signaling flag. A bandana is only limited by your lack of resourcefulness.

FIRE STARTER FOR COLD, WET CONDITIONS: Bicycle inner tubes cut into 1" - 2" squares make great fire starters in cold, wet conditions, like sea kayaking along the Pacific Northwest coast. Any bike shop will give you tubes that are no good, and you can keep them in a small container. If they are wet, they work just as well. They are easy to light, and burn hot and bright for several minutes, allowing wet tinder to dry out and start burning.

Thomas Bickel (age 13):

If you are ever lost in the woods, remember that the Pileated Woodpecker digs his home facing east, a Flying Squirrel's hole is usually facing east, a spiders web is usually facing south, the rings on a cut down tree most often show a greater growth on north and northeast sides, and the tops of evergreen trees usually bend to the east.

Hans Wolfgang:

FIRE AT YOUR FINGER TIPS: I have found that the Boy Scouts sell a handy little processed flint and steel kit that makes a great zipper pull tab for your parka. Granted, I could probably find all of the fire building tools I might need in the wild, but sometimes it is nice to have a little man-made help right at your finger tips. I usually remove the included piece of steel, and just use the processed flint stick in order to avoid any undesired noise, due to the two pieces clanking together. Any piece of scrap steel will work (i.e. metal watch bands, belt buckles, etc.). Do not neglect the back side of your ever present pocket knife blade. It will serve admirably as a scraping bar. I have found that when it comes making fire, an extra back-up can never hurt.

Josh B.:

Having trouble making those beautiful bow staves? Why not attach another bow opposite to the front of your weaker bow staves to make what I call a "double bow." It should look like a backwards letter "C" attached at the center. Remember to frap cordage to the extremities of the stave.

Jeff Gresser:

Do not throw away that dryer lint! It is a great fire starter. Save it in Zip-lock bags and flatten them, or pack it into a small plastic vitamin jar for your survival kit. Dampen the lint with lighter fluid, and you have got a "sure fire tinder."