Basics of Wilderness Survival Shelter Building
In-depth read on building a practical shelter in the bush to keep the elements at bay.
Highly recommend you guys bookmark this site for reference purposes.
Lots of good info here.
Tag Archives: Primitive Skill-Set’s
Fieldcraft: Estimating Height and Width in the Field
From the Archives, 2016
How to Estimate the Heights and Widths of Objects in the Field
A FOUNDATIONAL “Analog” skill-set men need to have and not depend on technology for.
Stay Alert, Armed and Dangerous!
Developing the “Ice-Cube Tray” Mentality
Technology can be likened to a fantastic drug.
When you have it and are USING it, you feel awesome and alive. It helps you through your day. It entertains you. It helps you organize and be more efficient. It connects you to the things you care about. In short, it helps you cope with the world around you. But like any drug, if you take it often enough and long enough, you become addicted, and it is no longer a WANT, it is a NEED. For most people, being addicted to technology is not something they really think about. Like most addicts, each day blurs into the rest so long as technology is there to help them through it.
Where trouble comes into paradise is when these same people transfer this “tech addict” mentality into the prepping world. I think you know what I am talking about, but let me expound a bit further. I once saw this article in some hipster magazine while waiting on a haircut. It talked about “Prepping” and What things you should have in your “SHTF” Bag. Now I quickly realized that most of the people who read these rags would not know a “SHTF” Bag or “Bug-Out” Bag if it slapped them in the face and winked at them, but being the consummate pessimist that I am, I continued on with the article, mostly to amuse myself, if the truth be told.
This one guy from the Northwest had a fairly respectable laundry list of items; waterproof matches, water filtration straws, small trauma kit, protein bars, etc… The other cat was from some crime ridden Eastern Seaboard metropolis. His kit contained two items: a Lantern that ran on (4) D Batteries that could “recharge his cell phone” and a windproof lighter. That was it. When asked why so few things in his kit the guy responded “If I can recharge my cell phone I have apps on there like a flashlight and GPS, plus I can just Google some DIY website to find out how to do the rest….” The guy was friggin’ serious. I actually flipped to the end of the article to see if this was some kind of joke, but NO, it was no joke! It was a real article! I let out a hearty laugh right there in the barber shop; this was just too much!
There are so many things wrong with this guy’s thinking I honestly would not know where to start, and I am not going to waste your time listing them anyway. The essence of it is this: People that are addicted to technology think the solution when confronted with a problem (any problem) is to simply get the technology “working again.” Re-charge the cell phone but never mind the cell towers and internet are DOWN. What good is a GPS without access to the GPS Satellites? What good is Googling “How to build a Spindle Rod” without DSL or a cell signal? What good is calling 911 when the cell towers are down and the Cops are too overloaded to answer anyway? Yeah I could open up the whole EMP can of worms, but I won’t for sake of brevity.
The Long and short of it is this: WE ALL, regardless of our Geographic location or State of Prepper Readiness need to find ways in our everyday lives to lessen our dependence on technology one step at a time.
One of the ways I have found is what I call the “Ice Cube Tray Mentality”. Why do I call it that? The first time it came to me was when I was filling up ice trays. Yes, Ice Trays. Those things you can buy 4 for a Dollar at the you guessed it, the “Dollar Store” (Just be sure and wash them before use). Why Ice Trays? Because some time ago me and the better half decided to simplify our lives and we started with the basics. Why buy a $3,000 “Smart” refrigerator that may be able to tell you when you are low on eggs but can also act of both a locator beacon and audio bug for whoever wants to take the time to hack it?
Add to this that when the thing breaks down (typically 1 month after the warranty goes out) you basically have to have a computer tech that works for $300 bucks an hour come fix it because the thing runs off a CPU. Why not just go with a simple bare bones $300 Refrigerator? No it has no “Smart” Chip and the color scheme is limited to Black, White or Stainless if you are lucky. The one we got does not even have an ice maker. But the beauty of it is this: The Less Moving Parts means Less Chance of the thing breaking down! We bought this one over 10 years ago and it is still humming today. We did have to buy a few more ice trays though. That set me back all of $2.00. I have found 6 ice trays are the perfect number for my house, if you fill them up each time you use them you will always have a nice, cold big bucket of ice waiting on you! Simple. Easy. Practical.
So there it is, The Ice Cube Tray Mentality.
Apply it to Every area of your Life and take it in steps. Go at a pace that you find comfortable and you will start confronting NOW one of the biggest hurdles 21st Century man will ever have to face once the lights go out in Georgia For Good.
Stay Alert, Armed and Dangerous!
From a Student: Paradigm Shift
Good Stuff from my friend NC Scout.
Keep Your training Practical and Relevant to your Mission.
Don’t get caught up in the ‘Tacti-Cool” BS, it’s a waste of your time and money and will ultimately get you killed.
Its always very rewarding hearing from students about what they learned in class- especially when it changes their thought process or point of view. I got this from a very capable student in the last Scout course: Then a note; the last Scout course catalyzed a revision in outlook and training – I train all […]
Documentaries Worth A Damn: Trapper Jake
With the pitiful state of media currently, well made Docs are getting harder and harder to find, but occasionally you find one worth a damn.
I recently found one on Amazon Prime from 2013 titled “Trapper Jake”
Here is a snippet from the description:
“Trapper Jake tells the true life story about Jake Korell a German born Russian immigrant American trapper. A cinematographic work of art, Trapper Jake depicts a way of life that may be gone forever but which holds many life lessons in the struggle for survival that are still relevant today.”
Jacob “Trapper Jake” Korrel passed away March 6, 2013 in Riverton, Wyoming. He was one month shy of his 99th Birthday.
Keep in mind this Doc was filmed in 2012 when Jake was a young and spry 98 years old!
The reason I wanted to share this documentary is twofold:
- Anytime we can be exposed to the older generation, specifically folks that grew up in or around the depression-era, is a good thing. (Trapper Jake was born in 1914!) The wisdom these people often have is something the younger generation, and even people like me in our 40’s can greatly BENEFIT from.
- It shows a way of life that has almost died out in so called “Modern America” thanks in no small part to animal activist/terrorist groups like PETA and anti-hunting organizations like The Humane Society.
With the future of American society circling around the toilet as we speak, learning and promoting a prepper/ subsistence lifestyle, specifically the hunting and fishing skill-set, is integral to our survival in my humble opinion.
We cannot forget that for hundreds of years in America fur trapping was an integral part of not only every day survival for a lot of people, but also modern commerce in America.
I have always had a love for Old West history, particularly that of the Mountain Men of the early 19th century.
I highly recommend the book Fur, Fortune and Empire: The Epic History of Fur Trade in America by Eric Jay Dolin for historical context.
Growing up in Central Texas, I trapped fur with my dad most all of my childhood.
Of course back then (late 70’s, early 80’s) fur prices were excellent and it was worth a man’s time to do it. In fact, my dad financed several family ski trips to Colorado with fur trapping money!
Where we lived, we mostly trapped coon and ringtail. While calling up Fox, Bobcat and Yotes (Coyotes).
Fast forward to today, fur prices are mediocre at best. (Click HERE for 2017-2018 Market Prices).
Give this Doc a look and if you can, bring along a few youngsters so you can influence the next generation.
Stay Alert Stay Armed and Stay Dangerous!
The Tactical Hermit 
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