SH&G Issue 1 Edition 2

2

SH&G MAGAZINE

PUBLISHERS

G ea r U p O utdoors LLC M ykel H awke LLC EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

WE LCO M E

J o hn D owd

PUBL I SHER ’S

C R E AT I V E D I R E C TO R WEBMASTER

I gna cio Guer rero SALES MANAGER

HK H olland

LIMITED COPYRIGHT Materials, written, graphic, or otherwise that are contained within the SH&G magazine are protected by copyright law. No part of written text or graphics in this magazine may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means including electronic or mechanical or otherwise, including by photocopying, recording, fax transmission, or using any storage and retrieval systems without the permission of SH&G. No content in this magazine may be distributed for any commercial purpose whatsoever.

TRADEMARKS Any and all trademarks carried within the Survival Homes and Gardens magazine are the property of their respective owners. © Copyright 2022 Survival Homes and Gardens.

All Rights Reserved. Magazine and Website Disclaimer located in Website Disclaimer.

M O R E I N F O R M AT I O N 9318 N. 95th Way Suite A109 Scottsdale, AZ 85258 Phone: (480) 707-7107 survivalhomesandgardens.com info@survivalhomesandgardens.com

N OTE

“It’s the bad days that make the good days good”. This has been a popular sentiment over the last couple of years both in our homes and our businesses. The creation of Survival Homes and Gardens and its ecosystem was no different.

Truth be told, it was short of a miracle from the beginning!

Despite Covid-19, the recent hurricane, and everything in between, our team banned together and implemented what we have taught and practiced over the years to overcome one crisis after another. Our team gritted it out and continued to march forward creating an expansive ecosystem that we relentlessly worked on, to serve you, and our community.

Eight months ago, when we started this endeavor, we didn’t fully realize this magazine was being created for the precise times we are living in. Times of uncertainty, turmoil, and disaster. It seems lately, catastrophic events are a reality of our everyday lives! And so, we carry on. We hope that within these pages, you can empower yourselves, your families, and your communities with the tools, knowledge, lessons, and experiences our acclaimed experts share.

I would like to take a moment to thank our expert authors, talented chief editor, creative art and web director, dedicated staff, and visionary web developers for their contributions, hard work, and grit to launch this magazine. A special thank you to Mykel Hawke; it is because of his fearless and visionary leadership and foresight, that Survival Homes and Gardens exists today. As you open your first inaugural issue of Survival Homes and Garden magazine, it is our sincere hope that you are inspired and empowered by what was created for you and yours.

M a rie R a l s to n | M y ke l Haw ke 3

Publishers

EDI TOR ’S

N OTE

To the reader, The holidays highlight the reason survival is so core to mankind; to make it home safe and to provide for our families. Along with our commitment to bringing honest, relevant and life-saving survival material to our audience, Survival Homes and Gardens is proud to present special material tailored to the holiday season. Geared towards material relative to winter, family, food and safety, these special release articles should not be missed.

On behalf of everyone at SH&G, we wish everyone a safe and happy holiday season. Thank you for your continued support, from our family to yours.

Best Wishes, Jo hn D owd

Editor-in- Chief

E X P E RT

CON TRI BUTORS

HAKIM ISLER

R AYMOND MHOR

(aka The Black MacGyver) is the nation’s premier, professional African-American survival expert. He is most notably recognized for his appearances on Discovery Channel’s Naked & Afraid, Naked & AfraId XL and FOX’s Kicking & Screaming. A man of many skills, Hakim is a decorated combat war veteran, Ninja fifth degree black belt, certified close-protection specialist and professional self-defense & combat weapons instructor. A business owner, published author, motivational speaker, TV host/ personality and inventor – holding several patents and trademarks – Hakim is constantly pushing the limits 4 of achievement.

Raymond Mhor is The Kilted Prepper. He is an author blogger, and internet influencer who has been in the survival arena for over 20 years. Ray has eight books multiple television appearances, and many radio/ podcast interviews to his credit.

Ray’s motto is ...“Real Prepping for Real People – None of the Hollywood Stuff.”

He currently lives in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia with his wife Cynthia, their daughter and their three dogs. The Mhor family enjoys the homesteading and preparedness lifestyle.

r, e s,

E X P E RT

CON TRI BUTORS

MYKEL HAWKE

TRISH BULINSKY

A U.S. Army Special Forces veteran, Mykel Hawke is an internationally renowned survival expert and popular television and film personality known for many hit shows, including Man Woman Wild and Lost Survivors; he is also an instructor, media advisor, and bestselling author.

Trish Bulinsky is a survivalist and TV personality, known for appearances on TV the series, Naked and Afraid, Out of the Wild, and The Alaska Experience.

RUTH ENGL AND HAWKE

BRIAN M. MORRIS

Ruth England is a British television presenter and actress who, with her husband, Mykel, starred in the Discovery Channel show Man, Woman, Wild. A graduate from the University of Westminster, she has worked for the BBC, CNBC, ITV, and Fox TV.

Brian Morris is a retired U.S. Army Special Forces Master Sergeant, currently working as a SERE and personal security senior analyst for the army as a contract civilian. He is the author of The Green Beret Survival Guide and The Green Beret Bushcrafting Guide.

DOUGL AS BOUDREAU

E J SNYDER

A self-taught foraging instructor, Douglas Boudreau is the co-author, with Mykel Hawke, of Foraging for Survival and teaches free Edibles-4-Survival classes on local edible wild plants where he lives in Zephyrhills, Florida.

EJ Snyder is a U.S. army veteran, actor, and survivalist. He has appeared on the show Naked and Afraid and was a host on the TV show Dual Survival during its 9th season. He is known as an extreme survivalist and adventurer who has been teaching survival skills to soldiers and civilians for over 20 years.

SAM COFFMAN

BE THANY BOWATER

A former army special forces medic, Sam Coffman is the founder and director of The Human Path, where he teaches botanical medicine, western pathophysiology, physiology, integrative medicine, austere, and post-disaster medicine. He has taught herbalism for over 25 years and been a clinical herbalist for over 15 years.

Bethany Bowater, a U.S. Air Force veteran with a military background as a training squadron survival instructor, is a registered mental health counseling intern with a master’s degree from Northwestern University. She has taught students from all walks of life the skills to survive in any environment.

JOHN ROSE

JOHN DOWD

John Rose is a wilderness and urban survival specialist with additional background in bushcraft, survival psychology, nature observation, edible and medicinal plants, preparedness skills, and search and rescue. John teaches classes and is the owner of Kentucky Bushcraft.

A passionate outdoorsman, John has spent his life learning and teaching numerous outdoor skills including wilderness survival, hunting, flyfishing, backpacking, climbing, diving, wildlife photography and more. John has also worked as a journalist for newspapers and magazines much of his adult life, both freelance as a writer/ photographer and as a staff writer.

YANA DeMYER

Marianna “Yana” DeMyer was born and raised overseas, traveling extensively as the daughter of a Foreign Service officer with the State Department. She spent 13 years as a writer and producer for news, marketing, and production companies before becoming an entrepreneur. In 2012 she started Roving Blue, making advanced lightweight portable water purification systems.

5

SURVI VA L

08

12

17

21

O ld S c ho ol Da m ascus

The Wi l l to Sur vi ve

Ap o c a l y p s e S m o rg a s b o rd

O rie nte e r i n g B a s ics

By John Dowd

By Bethany Bowater

By Douglas Boudreau and John Dowd

By John Dowd

27

32

35

A Western Hunt

D uck Co m m unic at io n

A Fe rro ce rium Ro d

By John Dowd

By Kyle Green

By Patrick Norton

H O M E S

39

44

49

R a i n Catchment System

Ac t ive Sho o te r De fe ns e

Bug g ing In

By Yana Demyer

By Brian M. Morris

By Ej Snyder

56

62

Prepp ers Check list

The Eig ht Pil l a rs

By Brian M. Morris

By Mykel Hawke

6

GA R DE N S

65 Eat Those Weeds

By Douglas Boudreau

69 HugelKultur

By Sam Coffman

7

Ol d Scho o l Dam a scu s Ste e l Some of the best carbon steel in the world takes the form of damascus steel. This is a look into what goes into the process and warrants a look from anyone interested in collecting some of the best gear for any situation.

B y J oh n D owd

S

urvival often comes down to having some of the best gear available. This can mean the most durable vehicles, the longest ranged radios or even the best knife steel. Though these guys only make blanks for many other companies and private knife makers, their steel is legendary, and they are not alone. Good damascus steel is an art, and when made by hand it has incredible properties. This is a look into what real damascus is all about.

For over 20 years Alabama Damascus has crafted some of the world’s finest and toughest knife and steel blanks in the world. Today, Alabama Damascus remains the top commercial producer of damascus layered steel in the United States, and competes globally with other such producers as Pakistan, China and India. However, those who know true knives, know Alabama Damascus steel to be some of the best in the world.

Alex Worsham has been making knives since he was 14 years old and worked for Alabama Damascus for six years. Now, with his own knife making business called M.A. Worsham Handmade Knives, Worsham spoke on the realities of good cutlery, especially when it is relied upon. “Knowing the difference between a quality knife and a cheap knife; 8

Photo by Alex Worsham: A damascus folder made by Alex Worsham. It possesses a split stage handle and was made using a classic knife pattern.

it might be antithetical for me as a knife maker to say, but you can buy a mora knife for $15 and it’s a perfect knife for an outdoorsman. On the other hand, you could spend $70 on some other brand that could fail when you need it.” Worsham explained that the type of steel and the way it is processed is key.

Even Adolf Hitler, in WWII, fell in love with the beauty and potential of damascus steel, and had five blacksmiths that could only make enough for his top generals. One of the first records of folded steel comes from 200 AD, where laminated metal combined the properties of multiple metals, into a pattern that resembled a cloth, for which the city was eventually named. The name still remains inseparable from this patterned and layered steel: Damascus. Fast forward a few thousand years, opened in the 1970s, in an old cotton mill, Edwards Steel became the first and only commercial level producer of damascus steel in the world. Edwards Steel became famous for its durability, quality, and flexibility. In fact, one of the properties that draws so many people to damascus steel, even today, is that quality of flexibility. Damascus carbon steel’s molecular makeup allows it much more bend before fracturing than most alloys and steels, especially over the qualities of stainless.

Photo by John Dowd: A forgeman’s axe positioned in the center of the billet before the power hammer smashes it into the steel.

Photo by Alex Worsham: Made by Alex Worsham, this is a fixed blade knife that employs synthetic ivory and nickel silver in the handle.

According to Worsham, “ Damascus isn’t just about looks,” and “not all damascus is created equal.” He urges buyers to “make sure you’re buying quality damascus and not something with mystery metal in it.”

Commenting on the traits of good damascus, Worsham said, “It tends to be very flexible compared to many homogenous alloys. Typically, a dull damascus knife will outperform a dull homogenous alloy knife.” That homogeneous alloy Worsham spoke of refers to a material the same throughout, contrasting the layered nature of damascus.

The steel Edwards was making used power hammers, giant pneumatic machines some of which weigh over 50 tons, that have a striking force of more than 3000 lbs. Some of these colossal machines are nearing 100 years old and are still being used today. Of the machine dates in the shop, a few are estimated having been made between 1918 with the oldest, to the more recent ones being dated back to 1920. Edwards Steel closed for many years, then in 1985 it reopened as Alabama Damascus, and has since remained the top commercial producer title of damascus steel in the country.

They are located in Jacksonville, Alabama.

So, what does it take to make some of the world’s greatest steel blades? Put simply by an old knife-smith employed at Alabama Damascus, Virgil Jones, “It’s plywood. No. Basically what it is, you have two different types (or more) of steel, and you forge weld them together.” However, there is much more to the process than that. First, they start with several similar sized pieces of steel, of various types, welded together at the ends and then to a large carbon steel beam that has been chemically softened overnight in lime.

9 Photo by J. MT Photography

This beam will become the handle that the smiths will later use to maneuver and turn the steel and with which they will utilize, in conjunction with the power hammer, to shape and fold the steel. These layered pieces are the first of what will become a billet. These billets are then slowly preheated, in a propane forge, to around 1700 degrees, hot enough for the steel to act like a very hard putty.

Photo by John Dowd: A knife smith establishes the grind angle into the already heat treated and tempered knife.

At this point, the steel is carried over to the power hammer, where a team of two smiths toil like clockwork. Clockwork, if the parts of that clock were just narrowly missing each other by only a few inches and were carrying molten pieces of steel over 1500 degrees.

The smiths put the heated billets onto the hammer and press down on a foot pad, causing the tremendous machine to tick, or rather smash, at about 15 times the force of a sledgehammer.

This force, and the combined heat, is so great that it causes the layers of steel to instantly fuse together, in a process called forge-welding.

Photo by John Dowd: A power hammer crushes steel at over 15 times the force of a single sledge hammer.

The shop uses 12 layers of metal including several types of carbon steel, and nickel. While one forgeman works with the billet, the other waits patiently at his side. Once the billet has been sufficiently flattened, the other smith places what is called a forgeman’s axe in the center of the billet, and the hammer is made to take a few more blows to cut partially into the billet. This forms a gouge where the billet will be folded in half.

Photo by John Dowd: This grinder waits lonely for a smith getting ready to start work for the day.

At this point, before the billet is folded, the smith working the billet places it on a table where the other smith grinds excess grit off the billet, and coats it in a cleaning chemical called borax. This helps keep the hot metal from oxidizing before it is folded, ensuring a good weld, free of impurities. The billet is then placed back into the hammer where it is manipulated to bend in half like closing a clamshell. There it is forge-welded again, and the process starts over as that smith places the billet back into the forge to 10

begin reheating. The smiths then move onto the next one, trade positions and pick up the next billet pre-heated and ready to go.

This process in repeated up to another four times per billet, to produce a finished product with over 416 layers. They work about 12 billets every morning.

Once finished, the billets are treated in various ways; bending, pressing, Blanchard ground and more to bring out the desired designs and finally flattened.

They are sent off to be laser cut to the desired designs for knife blanks.

These are then shipped back to the shop to be ground, edged, heat treated and tempered. Then the blanks go through a process of acid treatment. This is where the blanks are dipped into a strong acid, which eats away at the different layers of metal at differing rates, causing the knife’s layers to become exposed. The shop mostly sells these blanks alone to people or companies who put the handles on themselves and then sell them as finished knives. On rare occasions will the shop do the handling process themselves and create finished knives. Alabama Damascus puts immense pride into their work and is quite possibly

Photo by John Dowd: Billets on display at Alabama Damascus, showcasing the various patterns they can create.

Photo by John Dowd: Once folded in half, a billet can be sandwiched and forge welded, creating the layers in the steel.

one of the last vestiges of true commercial American knife craftsmanship left in the United States. As put by Jones, “Our idea here, is that Joe-Blow, the average working guy, can afford a really nice handmade knife.”

Handcrafted knives can command steep prices when compared to their mass-made counterparts. However, Worsham believes there is good reason and reward for purchasing this way. “A good knife is a sentimental object.

It’s a tool one can carry for a lifetime, and it’s one of the most universal tools man has ever devised.” Worsham described what you get when you decide to purchase a knife from a local blacksmith or knifemaker. From a local maker, the customer can often work with him or her to create something that is personal and of great quality. Often the resulting knife will be exactly what the buyer is looking for, versus something cranked out of a pre-determined template.

That puts the control completely into the customer’s hands, while giving the maker the ability to shine in his or her craftsmanship. This not only creates art, but a thing worth testing one’s life on.

So, when looking for the best knife, try a local craftsman who knows what he is doing and takes the same pride in his work. The resulting knife will be far better than anything bought anywhere else. In survival when life is on the line, that could mean the difference.

Photo by John Dowd: A propane forge heating billets to be worked and folded with a power hammer.

For more information on Alabama Damascus blanks, one can visit https://www.alabamadamascussteel.com. To contact M.A. Worsham Handmade Knives, interested parties can call 706-802-7253.

11

The will to survive Hope, understanding the mind body connection and strengthening the survival mindset.

B y B e t hany B owate r

T

hree weeks without food, three days without water, three seconds without hope. Under extreme conditions this is how long humans can survive without these essential components. Hope is a mindset and arguably one of the most precious survival resources available. It can be defined as a combination of optimism and realism and may best be understood by way of the “Stockdale Paradox.”

The name refers to Admiral Jim Stockdale, who was the highest-ranking United States military officer in the “Hanoi Hilton” during the Vietnam War. During his eight-year imprisonment from 1965 to 1973, Stockdale was tortured, starved, stripped of his rights, had no set release date, and no certainty as to whether he would survive to see his family again.

When asked in an interview, “who were the ones who didn’t make it?” His response was, “The optimists.”

Hope doesn’t replace preparation and hard work.

Relying on false hope and the utilization of denial as a coping strategy is dangerous. Through his experience, Stockdale determined that a survivor “must maintain unwavering faith that you can and will prevail in the end, regardless of the difficulties, and at the same time, have the discipline to confront the most brutal facts of your current reality, whatever they might be” as written in Jim Collins’ bestselling book, Good to Great.

A survivor is adaptable and resilient. They possess a keen ability to see the big picture while focusing on small and obtainable goals towards progress; refusing to be discouraged by setbacks. A survivor will do whatever necessary to overcome any challenge; they don’t know quit. Simultaneously, a survivor is acutely aware of the reality they face, if they are lost, they recognize and accept that they 12

are lost. If they are injured, they accept that they are injured. Acceptance of reality prompts action necessary for survival.

Maintaining hope in a survival situation can quite literally be the difference between life and death.

“Give-up-itis” is a term that was coined by medical officers during the Korean War. They described it as a condition where a person develops extreme apathy, gives up hope, relinquishes the will to live and dies, despite the lack of an obvious physical cause. This concept is described in more detail in the article Give-up-itis: when people just give up and die by John Leach, a Visiting Senior Research Fellow at the University of Portsmouth. The medical officers witnessed some of the prisoners within just a few weeks, begin to refuse food and become mute and unresponsive before they “turned their faces to the wall” and died. The result of losing hope or surrendering to give-upitis is psychogenic death or, in other words, literally thinking oneself to death. Our minds have profound capabilities to control our bodies, understanding the mind-body connection and our instinctual stress responses is one of the best ways to prepare for and increase chances of survival.

When humans experience stress or encounter danger, our sympathetic nervous system, or what I call our primitive brain, takes control. The amygdala is considered the center of the brains defense system. As advanced as us humans feel we are, when it comes down to it, we are just animals. When we sense danger, our response is primal. In a survival situation the amygdala signals our body to prepare for fight, flight, or freeze. In doing so, physiological

and hormonal changes happen involuntarily. Our blood pressure and heart rate increase to supply more oxygen to our major muscle groups, pain perception lowers, hearing sharpens and vision narrows by almost 70%, according to Psychology of Survival by Robert B. Kauffman.

The parasympathetic nervous system is the opposite of the sympathetic nervous system. It is designed to calm the body down after a stressful situation or remain calm when faced with danger.

The Vagus Nerve is the longest cranial nerve found only in mammals. It connects the brain stem to the rest of the body. A healthy Vagus Nerve means calmer responses to stress and increased resilience.

As stated above, a survivor’s ability to pull through trauma and bounce back from failure or disappointment is critical. It doesn’t take the biggest, strongest, or most skilled survivor to overcome the most extreme and dire circumstances, it takes true grit and the mastery of psychological strength.

Cortisol released from the adrenal gland interferes with the capacity for complex reasoning and problem solving. These changes make us intensely aware of danger while inhibiting the mind from taking the time to access long term memory. This makes it possible to react in an instant. This is one reason why practicing a skill until it becomes muscle memory can be hugely beneficial in stressful situations. This primal response to stress is key to survival, however, after a traumatic incident or under situations of consistent stress, the bodies nervous system can get stuck in panic mode or in a chronic state of fight or flight. If stuck in this state, the survivor will have a more difficult time with problem solving and the use of logic and reasoning, making it difficult to maintain a positive mental attitude, plan, prepare and take action. One way to combat this is to strengthen the parasympathetic nervous system.

Outlined here are some suggestions to help strengthen the survival mindset and increase resilience and mental fortitude. These are tools that will not only help you in your everyday life, but, in the case of an extreme emergency or survival situation, could determine the outcome for better or worse.

Preparation- Knowledge of the environments, terrain, natural resources, threats, shelter building, fire craft,

13 Photo by Tntk

Photo by Bethany Bowater

food and water procurement, etc. are all extremely beneficial skills for a survivor’s toolkit. Practicing the skills to muscle memory will assist the survivor in responding appropriately when the fight/flight response is engaged. Remember, knowledge is beneficial, but application is best. Continuously find ways to challenge your skills and mindset. Pursue activities in your daily life that push you outside of your comfort zone and present the risk of failure. The goal is to experience failure, disappointment and stress as often as possible in a safe and controlled environment. Exposure training in therapy is a leading intervention in overcoming anxiety and phobias, guiding individuals on how to better control their stress response. In military SERE (Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape) programs, students are exposed to the discomforts of wilderness survival, simulated capture and resistance, simulated downed aircrafts and under water egress. These scenarios are designed to test their knowledge, apply their skills and train their brains to respond appropriately to intense and dangerous situations. Virtual exposure therapy is being utilized by the Navy Seals to train for combat in studies for prevention of post-traumatic stress disorder. All of this training is designed to prepare and strengthen the survival mindset and increase one’s ability to bounce back quickly. There are other opportunities to help manage and strengthen the 14

stress response is through meditation, yoga and martial arts. All of these activities help one practice mindfulness of the mind-body connection, strengthen the Vagus Nerve and develop the skills to regulate the nervous system and increase resilience from trauma/stress.

Planning- Develop courses of action and determine what you need in order to execute them.

Supplies, currency, logistics, medical, communication etc. Be constantly conscious of what could go wrong and whether you are prepared to handle it appropriately. Have a plan as well as a contingency plan. When the situation changes, have a well thought out strategy of where to go, how to meet needs, mentally cope and more. Remember, it is better to have a plan and not need it, then need a plan and not have it. Keep your head on a swivel, pay attention to detail and continue to assess danger and plan accordingly. The benefits of planning are that it provides the survivor with direction, confidence, stability and reinforces the positive mental attitude and the will to survive.

Execution- When you experience conflict or disappointment in everyday life, how high does your stress meter get? If you find yourself losing your cool often, staying upset, or ruminating on the negative, you may not do as well in a survival situation as you

might think. When failures, setbacks, or disappointing events happen, I encourage you to notice what is happening with regard to that mindbody connection. First, do a body scan. Start from the top of your head and notice everything that is happening within your body. Is your face hot/ flushed? Is your jaw tight? Is your heart beating faster? Is your stomach in a knot? What is happening to your body temperature, knees, fingers and toes?

Pausing and practicing this mindfulness technique will begin to calm the nervous system down. Another way to strengthen your Vagus Nerve is through diaphragmatic breathing exercises.

Here is an example of how to engage in a diaphragmatic breathing, from an article by Theodora Blanchfield, AMFT, a marriage and family therapist trainee as well as a mental health writer.

How to do diaphragmatic breathing (deep breathing) 1. Begin with one hand over the heart and one hand over the belly.

2. Breathe in through your nose and let the air fill your belly. Keep your hands on your heart and belly and observe how the one on your belly moves while the one on your heart should stay the same.

3. Draw your navel in towards your spine as you exhale as if you were blowing out birthday candles.

4. Feel as the hand on your belly slides down to its original position.

5. Repeat this three to five times to start, noting how you feel after each time.

Next do a mind scan. What is your self-talk like?

Do you speak to yourself with compassion, understanding and encouragement or do you call yourself names and have self-defeating thoughts?

Many people struggle with cognitive distortions, or thoughts that are extremely unhelpful and selfdeprecating. Here is a list of just a few: Polarized thinking: “All or nothing” or black and white thinking patterns, inability to acknowledge that two things can be true at once.

Overgeneralization: Focusing on a negative event and making conclusions based on that single piece of negative evidence.

Catastrophizing: When a thought is over-exaggerated or diminished. Instantly believing the worst-case scenario will happen with little evidence to support the thought. Or minimization of the positives.

Control Fallacies: Control fallacies can go two ways.

An individual either feels responsible for everything and holds all the control or blame when things don’t go right, or the individual believes they have no control over anything that occurs in their life.

Heaven’s Reward Fallacy: The belief that good things will happen to good people or that one will be rewarded based on how hard they work. This cognitive distortion will leave its believers constantly disappointed, frustrated and even resentful.

How many of these cognitive distortions do you fall prey to in everyday life? Our thoughts have an impact on our behaviors as well as our feelings and mood. The moment negative thoughts, self-doubt, or cognitive distortions enter your mind it is important to quickly reverse it into a more adaptive and helpful thought. For example, change “I won’t ever get this fire started” to “I didn’t get this fire started this time, let me come back to it and try again.” Assess how well you handled that stressful situation and decide how you can adapt and do better next time.

Adaptation- Constantly analyzing and monitoring your reactions and making necessary changes to be more successful. Heighten your awareness of how you respond to stress. Maybe log it in a journal. Take note of what happens in your body and practice different techniques to find which ones works best for you. Reassess early and often during your preparation, planning and execution to see where you need to improve and then tackle it.

Understanding the psychology of survival and developing a stout survival mindset is an invaluable resource for anyone who finds themselves in an extreme or dangerous situation. It has been consistently proven that no matter the size, age, physical strength or skillset a person possesses, if the individual loses hope and the will to survive, their chances diminish greatly. The human mind is profound in its ability push through and overcome the most austere circumstances. The body’s natural defense system is nothing short of a real-life superpower. Understanding the mind/body connection and working to become a psychological juggernaut takes practice and consistency. The tools and techniques discussed within this article to develop a healthy nervous system will increase resiliency and improve the overall mental health of those who practice them.

Whether we find ourselves in the elements, battling mother nature or surviving a world that is growing more uncertain every day, a survivor will never discount the importance of mental fortitude and developing the survival mindset in all that they do.

15

16

Ap o c alypse S mo rga sb o rd - eat the b u gs!

Learning how to eat insects could give a person an advantage in times of hardship.

Fo r ward by D ougla s B o udrea u a nd J o hn D owd

I

f society as a whole were suddenly faced with a famine, doomsday, or a survival situation what could we eat from our environments? How would people who generally have plenty of food available deal with a catastrophic event that leaves their restaurants and grocery stores empty and their money worthless?

First, the fish from the local ponds, lakes and rivers would become severely depleted in no time. Then the local wildlife would be devastated by hunters leaving barely enough to prevent extinctions of local species.

What then? Insects? Yes! There are lots of insect species that can be edible to humans but there are choice edible insects and then there are barely-food edible insects. It can be difficult to gather, dig up, and swat to collect enough for a decent meal. Add to that the reluctance of Americans and many people in general to consume anything that isn’t normal sustenance to them and for many it would be an act of desperation they would have to be forced into.

However, according to Lenka Kouřimská and Anna Adámková with the Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, in their article Nutritional and sensory quality of edible insects, “Nowadays human insect-eating is traditionally practiced in 113 countries around the world. Over 2000 insect species are known to be edible. Globally, the most frequently consumed species are beetles, caterpillars, bees, wasps and ants. They are followed by grasshoppers, locusts and crickets, cicadas, leafhoppers and bugs, termites, dragonflies, flies and other species.”

Photo by Laura Parenti

With anywhere between 20% - 76% protein for every amount of dry matter of insects consumed, it is hard to get around the fact that eating insects should be an integral part of any solid plan for a famine scenario.

Certain bugs like crickets and grasshoppers are especially high in protein per ounce. In fact, today crickets are farmed and used to produce both cricket powder and cricket flour. According to Preston Hartwick’s article Can You Eat Crickets? All You Need to Know on Healthline.com, “Studies show that cricket protein powder contains about 65.5% protein and adult crickets provide 13.2–20.3 grams of protein per 100-gram serving.” Comparing that to beef which has only seven grams, or 26%, and chicken which contains only eight grams, or around 30% per that same serving size, it is easy to see the benefits of eating bugs.

17

that may be carried and is a good practice to fall into when eating most things from the wild.

There are many caveats to eating insects that can help keep a survivor healthy. Survivalists generally exclude flies because of the nasty stuff they consume and diseases they might carry. They also warn against any otherwise edible species if brightly colored like Lubber grasshoppers.

As stated before, the only big issue is collecting enough insects to supplement an individual, or even a group of people. In large fields, crickets and grasshoppers are both often very prevalent in the summer across the United States and many parts of the world. Carrying a butterfly net, or even a smalldiameter-hole fishing net and swinging it about the grass can help speed up the collection process.

Getting youth to do what they do naturally and encouraging them to keep the bugs they catch can supplement the group’s haul further. Hawke added the anecdote, “I have eaten buckets of bugs, called flying termites, in Africa. They tend to come in swarms, and everything stops, including military training for every man, woman and child to harvest the bugs that cover the entire village inches deep.

They consider it a time to feast and celebrate.”

When considering insects to eat, color, smell, and what they consume are major points of concern for a survivor. Bright colors in the natural world usually signal poison, especially with insects and arachnids.

Mykel Hawke, Retired U. S. Army Special Forces officer and survival television personality, often uses the saying, “If it’s Bright, it ain’t right, but if it’s bland, it’s likely grand.” It is safer to restrict one’s diet, unless with knowledge otherwise, to dull earth tones. Many bugs that may be poisonous also excrete certain substances that can result in a bad or “chemical” smell. As for what they eat, it is usually a good idea to avoid eating insects that feast on rotting flesh and excrement. However, Hawke adds that “maggots are a very good food source if stir fried or boiled.” This cooking is done to help kill any bacteria or parasites

Many ground grubs and worms are edible, and rotten wood grubs are as well, though the latter

18 Photo by Daboost

tastes far better. According to Hawke, “These are my personal favorites to go after. Lots of old fallen logs in forest and jungles, no climbing required so minimal risk, often so rotten, no tools needed, only fingers.” In Australia many aboriginals will collect the witchetty grub from hollow places in the trunks of living eucalyptus trees. These very large grubs are extremely high in nutrients. Hawke also commented on while scavenging for any insect or food, “one needs to remain alert while focused on foraging for other predator type animals that might see you as a meal while you seek bugs to eat.”

In some places like Mexico, there are times of year where large swarms of insects appear all at once. In the state of Oaxaca, during the late spring and early summer, vast numbers of chicatanas (a type of leafcutter ant) swarm and can even be drawn into towns at night by lights. These coveted insects are collected in huge quantities and are used in a variety of dishes, and even in salsas.

In parts of the middle east, locusts swarm and can be amassed, as they also do in parts of India and Australia. In the western United States, there was historically a similar swarm, however, the American locust has now gone extinct post mass agricultural use of pesticides.

In modernity, during summertime, some years see great numbers of grasshoppers try to fill that niche, and they can be capitalized on in the same manner as the locusts.

To prepare insects, the common course is roasting. In Mexico, grasshoppers called chapulines are harvested in the early autumn and late summer and are roasted in large wok shaped cooking pots with peppers, spices, and lime juice. They are then used as garnish for many other foods like tacos, tostadas, and empanadas. In the field, grasshoppers can be collected, and the heads removed, bringing out with them the internal guts. In certain areas hoppers can carry worms in their intestines. Though cooking well can kill the worms, in a survival situation it can be hard to fully cook one’s food over

an open flame. Many survival practitioners have gotten sick to undercooked food this way. Once the heads are removed, they can be strung up with a thin stick of grass and roasted like a shish kabob. This is an effective way to cook many insects and arachnids in the field over a campfire. Scorpions are eaten this way but need to have their stingers removed. Large spiders and tarantulas are eaten worldwide this way as they need to have their bristly and irritating hairs burned off.

Having eaten many kinds of insects through his

television shows and survival practices and teachings, Hawke offers some considerations as far as palatability. “One of the keys for making them more palatable, is to remove any hard parts, usually legs, wings and heads. If it’s too difficult to stomach in their current form, you can also boil them into a broth so that you don’t see the bugs once they become soft and mushy, but you get all the nutrients. Beetles particularly are best boiled as their hard shells can be scooped out and the nutritious insides savored. Another way is to roast them on a rock.” Hawke also says he tries to always keep his favorite spices on hand to help with these less flavorful food sources. He usually has some garlic salt, lemon paper and/or Tajin.

19

Photo by Alexander Slutskiy

were often employed to eat dying flesh from serious wounds. They would excrete a compound that numbs the skin and breaks down dying flesh, leaving healthy living flesh alone. As long as maggots are watched and removed at the correct times, as well as contained in the area meant to be treated, they effectively speed up the healing process. There are similar medical uses across history and into today for leaches, though today doctors mainly rely on the excretions of leach mouths with help prevent blood clots.

While Hawke was serving in Thailand as a Special Forces Officer, he was served numerous plates of various insects. They were stir fried, seasoned and he promises that were quite tasty. They were considered a delicacy, so the Thai enlisted were not served any.

However, when Hawke shared his with the Thai Sergeant assigned to him, the Sergeant devoured it like a kid eating candy!

Aside from edibility, there are some other uses for insects practiced around the world. In South and Central America, the cochineal (cochinilla in Spanish) is a variety of scale bug that infests prickly pear cacti. The insects are harvested, dried, and then subsequently used as a natural die. The dye is very effective and was produced through the 16th and into the 18th century as a food dye. The color these insects produce is a rusty faded maroon color, which appears in many native clothing and body painting in Latin America even today.

Whatever the use, bugs are innately tied to survival across history. This ties into man’s ability to use everything around him to effect survival.

Consuming bugs is just another tool to add to the brain box for survival, and can be an important fall back, or food supplement, for any survival plan. And in reality, if you close your eyes and imagine really hard, those bugs may actually start to taste like chicken. Maybe.

In some modern and ancient hospitals, maggots 20

Orienteering Basics

How to use a compass and map in conjunction to find direction. An excerpt from The Wild Journey to Survive by John Dowd, altered for Survival Homes and Gardens) B y J ohn D owd

M

aps give a display of the land, with representations of direction, altitude, landscape, and landmarks. The only problem with maps is that they are very little help in travel when one does not know where he or she is on it. Using some deduction and a vantage point, one can surmise their position on a map in the wild. The use of landmarks, combined with pictorials displayed on maps, can give an idea of position, and then direction.

Common sense can play a huge role. For example, if one knows they are lost somewhere near a river, then if the map shows a river to the west, one can conclude (knowing where the river is from one’s own location and on what general side of it one is on based on direction of flow, location of other land marks, etc.) that if they face the direction of the river from their position, then north is to their right. If on the other side of that river is civilization, then that is the direction to travel.

There are several types of maps one could encounter in a survival situation, depending on the location.

The most useful of these include sea navigation charts and topographic maps. All maps and chats have a few simple components. The legend, which is a box at one of the corners of a map that will display symbols and their meanings, is a big part of understanding a map. This will tell the user of things like buildings, streams, railroad tracks, landmarks, and more. There is also the face, where the title and

often the map’s scale can be found.

On many maps, including navigational charts, there are vertical and horizontal lines that run north/ south and east/west. These lines help determine exact position on a map, chart, or GPS. The horizontal lines (left to right, east/west) are the latitude lines.

The vertical lines (up to down, north/south) are the longitude lines. Lines of latitude describe how far north or south one is from the equator (the middle line of the earth, where the earth rotates around the sun). Longitudinal lines describe how far east and west one is from the prime meridian (an invisible line drawn around the globe cutting it vertically between the poles; the opposite cut from the equator, both of which together cut the earth into four parts). These two measurements will appear on a map with the latitude written out first, and work like a grid on the surface of the earth. For example, and object is sitting at 50°N, 69°W. This means that the object being located is 50 degrees north of the equator, and almost 70 degrees to the west of the prime meridian. It begins to get more complicated, as not all things fall in those spaces. These degrees are then further boiled down into minutes and seconds (easy to remember, as there 60 minutes in a degree and 60 seconds in a minute). This means that most GPS coordinates will look something more like: 10°24’12.5”N, 70°14’15.2”W. What this basically translates into is 10 degrees, 24 minutes, and 12.5 seconds north of the equator and 70 degrees, 14 minutes, and 15.5 seconds west of the prime

21

meridian. For the curious, this is a random location in a northern Venezuelan mountain range.

Navigation charts will display land masses, sea depths, and even tides. There are a lot of other bits of information that can be displayed, however, for the quick and dirty reading of a navigation chart, those three things are the most important. There can be contour lines that determine depth, but there will also be a series of numeral values all over the chart.

These numbers explain the depth measurements, or soundings, of the water in various places. The chart user must read the map face to learn the scale and the measurement for the number’s meanings. This will often be in large print and will read something like: SOUNDINGS IN FATHOMS AND FEET. Most charts today in the U.S. today are measured with soundings in meters, but charts made before the early 1990s were mostly in fathoms and feet. Generally, they are a two-digit code, with the first number in fathoms and the second in feet. For example, one may see a sounding of 64. This would be six fathoms and four feet (fathoms are equivalent to about six feet). If the chart is in meters, then a meter can be divided by 0.3 to find the depth in feet. On navigation charts, tides

and their directions can often be displayed by arrows.

Finding position on a navigational chart can be far more difficult than on a topographic map. On the later, one must only triangulate their position with two or three landmarks on the map, such as a mountain and a lake. This may not bring an exact set of coordinates, but it will allow a survivor to generally use a map and find his or her way around an area. On the ocean, with no reference for position but the stars at night, navigation becomes extremely challenging. The simplest way, without tools, is to find one’s latitude. This is done by determining how far the north celestial pole (the north star) is above the horizon. Traditionally, this was done by looking through a tool known as a sextant. Since it is unlikely that a survivor is carrying one of these around, the human arm will work in a pinch. To find latitude, one must outstretch his or her fists and place them one after the other, stacking between the north celestial pole (north star) and the horizon. Each fist length measures about ten degrees of latitude from the equator. This same trick can be done on the southern hemisphere by finding the southern celestial pole

22 Photo by Richellgen

Photo by Joshua Woroniecki

(finding both celestial poles is described later in the section Using the stars). Longitude is far harder to determine accurately using only the stars.

The topographic map is like a navigation chart, but on land. These maps will display things like water sources, topography (hence the name), and prominent landmarks. The most obvious features on this type of map are the contour lines that snake about the surface. These will run mostly parallel with other lines and will display altitude. The basic idea is, the further the lines are apart from each other, the more gradual the rise in elevation, and vice versa.

This means, that if there is a collection of lines very close together, one can rightly assume a steeper pitch. Displayed along these lines will be numbers that can mean measurements of either feet or meters (most U.S. topo maps are in measurements of feet above sea level). Again, like the navigational charts, the map face or legend will explain. Towns or high points can usually be found displayed on these maps as well.

Finding direction is generally, the easiest piece of information one can acquire. Usually, direction is

defined by the four cardinal directions, north, south, east, and west. North points towards the north pole (top of the globe/ earth) and south to the south pole (bottom of the globe/earth), relatively. East and west refer to the directions around the planet. If one is looking directly north from their position, then east is the direction immediately to the right of that person and west is immediately to his or her left.

There are different types of north, such as true north and magnetic north, however, in survival these details do not matter. Finding any north will work with a map well enough for a survivor’s purposes.

The compass is one of the most universal tools for orientation. A compass will determine magnetic north, as the red arrow on the compass will be drawn northward, and its opposite pole towards the south.

If one does not possess a compass, there are ways to make one expediently. The best way is to collect a metal needle, a magnet, a small piece of buoyant material, and a small container for water. First, one should take the magnet and run it up the needle rapidly. This should be done in one direction, preferably towards the point, and as many as a dozen times. This will temporarily, and mildly, magnetically 23

charge the needle. Next, the person should take the needle and poke it through a cork, piece of wood, or anything small that will float in water. The needle should be pierced all the way through the material, with the eye side and point side both sticking evenly out of the object, balancing on the center of the floating material. Next, a bottle cap, bowl, or shell must be filled with liquid. The floating needle can then be placed into the water and let to rest. After a few minutes, the needle should come to rest pointing north. It may help to spin the needle to loosen it up and get it to rest properly. If this is done, it must be done several times in order to confirm a correct reading. Taking the magnet near the new compass and spinning it around should draw the north end of the needle towards the magnet. This will check which end points where.

possible, and the compass set anywhere on it. An orienteering compass works the best. Next, the map and compass must be rotated until the needle pointing north lines up with the north-south lines on the map, lining everything up with north. This should be done in an environment with easily seen natural features which can help establish location on the map. If the survivor takes the map to a high point, he or she can triangulate, as mentioned before, his or her location. Once a single feature is identified on both a map and in reality, they can begin to work out their position that way. This process would start with the survivor making their way to that point, as they would then know at least they are somewhere relative to that feature.

If a person has that orienteering compass, this next step is easier. In many environments, a good easy to see starting point can make a big difference.

This can be a river, a mesa, a ridgeline, etc. This following technique can also allow a person to move from one point of interest to another, without getting further lost. It is called following a bearing.

To use the compass and a map in conjunction, the basic simplified technique is as follows: The first task to using both is to “set the map.” This involves getting the map to orient north and match the environment. The map should be laid as flat as

24 Photo by Bayram Gurzoglu

To set a bearing, or a direction, the orienteer should take the compass and map, once set, and look towards the target location. Taking the compass, keeping its north orientation, the orienteer must then look out, towards that object or location again.

A mark should be made on the compass (or, in the case of the orienteering compass, the directional arrow that moves independently of the north arrow turned) to indicate that direction. Both should indicate or point to the object or location. Now, if the user walks in a relatively straight route, and considering that the location or object is a big target, the orienteer can always pull that compass out, point it north, and see which relative direction they should move to find that place or object as its location will be indicated by that mark or independent arrow. This is true, even if the object cannot be seen, which is often the case if the object was only found by moving to a higher plain in order to see said object.

A survivor can then mark a line on their map, indicating their rough rout of travel, and find how far they have come if there are corresponding features on the map the person can find in reality. New more accurate readings should be taken often the closer one gets to said target location. Using this last technique in conjunction with a map, a person can find their relative or, with practice, exact location on the map. To get that relative location, using the compass to find the directions to three or more different points and measuring the space between them, can get the user in the ballpark.

Another technique for finding a bearing without a compass employs the ability to find north by any other means, and some creativity; drawing on paper, carving on wood, or fashioning a circular device out of stone or grass. The basic principle is the same as with the compass, however, north must be manually marked on or in the compassing object, and then the direction towards the landmark should be marked, and the two types of marks must be discernable. This technique will require the user to find north again upon every use of the expedient compass. When the north line is lined up with the northerly direction, it will again display the direction towards the landmark, regardless of if the landmark is visible. A common way to use this without-a-compasstechnique is to check orientation at night, with the stars, and to draw a line in the dirt or sand to show the way for the traveler the next morning.

To find cardinal direction without possession of a compass is simpler than many people realize.

Following are two ways to do so, one during the day and one during the night.

One way of using the sun requires the use of a watch (or the understanding of how a watch face works) and a visual of the sun. First, one must find the sun. Then, the user must point the hour hand towards the sun. The last step is to determine the halfway point on the watch face between the hour hand and the number 12. That line points south, away from the user. Now, knowing that, one can infer the other three cardinal directions. This method works to find south in the northern hemisphere.

When used in the southern hemisphere it will determine north.

Using the stars to find direction is one of the most ancient tools of orientation. There are numerous ways to use the stars in navigation, some require tools and others can be done with a little imagination and the human eye.

Star position tracking is a method that can be used anywhere in the world, and by using any star.

Start by picking a star in the night sky. It helps to pick the brightest one, that can be recognized later.

Then drive two stakes, or sticks, into the ground about a yard apart, with the tops lined up with the position of the star. Now wait. As time passes, and the stars move through the night. The relative direction they move will determine the direction one is facing. The stars move collectively in the sky from east to west. This is because the earth rotates on its axis counterclockwise when viewed from above the north pole. This means that if the chosen star rose, the user is facing east. If the star dropped, the person is facing west. If the star traveled to the left, the user is facing north. Finally, if the star traveled to the right, the user is facing south when looking out at the direction of that star where the sticks are pointing. In other words, whichever way they start, stars always appear to move west across the sky.

25

26

A Western Hunt

Pronghorn antelope are iconic western animals. Extremely hardy, and famously challenging to hunt, in the savage environments where they roam even a tough meal is a meal. Dowd talks the ins and outs of hunting this incredible animal.

B y J ohn D owd

H

unting for sustenance is a key part of survival. Being able to put large amounts of food on the table is a skill older than man himself.

Though man has the capability of hunting anything, there are powerful lessons that can be taken from hunting the fastest land animal in the Americas: the American Pronghorn.

Pronghorn antelope are likely one of America’s most iconic animals.

Found nowhere else in the world, and truly unlike any other animal, the American pronghorn has found its way into the natural mythology of the west. West goers chasing their piece of manifest destiny dubbed them the ghosts of the prairie, as did the natives who had lived beside them since the dawn of the last ice age. They are the second fastest land animal in the world, which has given them another name to honor that special trait. Speed goats, as some call them, have numerous features that make them an incredible challenge to hunt.

Photo by John Dowd

27

With supernatural senses, and speed derived likely from a predator long extinct, American antelope can bring forth the hunt of a lifetime.

These creatures inhabit the western great plains, which is an extremely hostile stage in which to commence the hunt. Dry and desolate, full of sharp things and no water, those who may find themselves in need of food in an extreme situation, or want to test their hunting ability, may need to turn no further than the speed goat.

To hunt them, the practitioner may find themselves trudging through dense deep mud, crawling through low growing cactus and doing so all often without even a measly tuft of sagebrush behind which to hide.

Photo by John Dowd

28 Photo by NaffNaff

For many, one of the best places to hunt pronghorn is none other than eastern Montana.

A landscape of rolling plains, stark contrasting mesas, and rocky spines that ode back to time long forgotten like the great creatures that may have once died there. There is indeed an ancient feel that the hunting of antelope seems to bring out in those that wish to tackle these incredible animals in this extraordinary space. Of the many places to go in the state, the 700 units of eastern Montana offer a wide variety of environments, and a plethora of pronghorn. These units stretch from just under the Missouri breaks, south to the Wyoming boarder, and east to the boarders of both Dakotas.

The area is a patchwork of private, public and state land that can be daunting at first, but with a little preplanning, and possibly a few calls to landowners for permission, getting out to hunt can be easy and rewarding. Of the three options, most people with take the public BLM rout. Though this can mean very little contact with locals, it is also what many other hunters will be doing. This can mean some of the better areas will become crowded, which ruins the point of a plains style hunt, where the vast landscape and empty openness is the major draw. Many hunters will drive the roads and highways along these stretches and, once they see antelope off in the distance, will get out and engage in a short pursuit. For these spaces, as with much of the good hunting in the world, the solution for a devoted hunter is to hike back further, and over rougher terrain. It can be the only way to beat out the majority of less persistent hunters.

For those who are looking for state land, the story remains the same, as persistence and patience to get out further than the competition makes the difference. However, for those looking for the best hunt speed goat can provide, they should look to private landowners in combination with other property stretches. Most landowners consider the pronghorn either a nuisance at worst, or a distraction at best. Few are keen to prevent hunters from entering to pursue any of the number of game in that country. Breaking through timidity, a few simple calls and possibly a bottle of good scotch whiskey, can be all that is needed to Photo by John Dowd

29

Photo by Twister40

break into relatively unspoiled ground. Be kind to the owner, respectful of his operations and conditions, coordinate times if there are other hunters seeking access, and the hunt can be yours.

Once access is granted, one way or another pronghorn offer several unique challenges.

However, if understood, these quirks can be made into assets. Antelope not only possess incredible speed, but seemingly supernatural senses. They can see well over a mile even on dusky days and have a sense of smell that rivals a bloodhound’s. This olfactory ability yields from their greatly expanded nasal cavity which allows pronghorn to draw in vast amounts of oxygen to fuel their quick-fire muscles.

That increased surface area allows them to perceive smells on the wind that even the least frisky elk could miss. Once they pick up on a scent, they become extremely nervous and agitated. When this happens, the white hair on their rump stands on end, like the tail of a while tail. This signals to other pronghorn to be on the lookout. They also release a

30

hormone that the other animals can smell, furthering that warning. If they feel as though danger is in any way imminent, it is little effort for a pronghorn to turn 60 seconds into a mile and disappear into the land.

This is another of their incredible abilities, to read the land. They seem to know which grottos to run into and how to leave them, while wily hunters follow them into spaces that seem to have no escape, only to be left peering through dust left miles behind the goats. This is what earned them the moniker of ghosts in the old west.

As always in hunting, be aware of the wind, and bring a breeze indicator, such as a feather or fine flower in a puff bottle. Staying upwind is essential in a spot and stalk scenario. The greatest advantage to the hunter of antelope, however, is mastering the land. With the keen ability of ghosts to disappear, learning the habits of these animals can help plan the stalk to prevent their escape. Pronghorn tend to do a few predictable things.

First, they move as schools of fish do. When they run across the landscape, they can easily be mistaken for fish being chased by a predator. This also means that, as fish do, when they find an opening in a fence, they will all use the same one. As they bunch up and wait their turn, this can be a chance for a clean shot or to get close. As pronghorn are poor jumpers, a hole or space at the bottom is really their only fair chance to get through. Otherwise, they will follow along a fence line predictably.

Second, pronghorn tend to circle their perceived threat first, before escaping. This may be to confuse or throw off a predator but is very predictable. They will circle a crescent along the side and then fall out quickly away from danger one by one. At the point where they again wait their turn, they will stop for a few seconds and look at the threat, standing perfectly for a broadside shot.

Thirdly, antelope will often try to first pinpoint their threat. If they smell, but are unsure, there is still a chance. Employing the understanding of land, and getting high above a pronghorn, a hunter can purposefully signal the antelope when moderately close to investigate.

With speed, smell and mind, pronghorn can seem overwhelmingly difficult to get within even 500 yards of. This is where knowhow and cunning can change the game. Pronghorn are easily aware of their surroundings, but on the other side of the coin are very curious. If they are unsure if that which they have sensed is friendly, they will investigate. This is where being very purposeful can go a long way.

Carry a white handkerchief onto the edge of a rise overlooking pronghorn, or that which they can see peeking out from in a cut in the land. Lay low and waive the cloth, allowing the speed goats to do the work. They will take notice and move in slowly to investigate. This can be done to such great success that they can be brought within mere feet of a well-hidden hunter. That eliminates the need to do the chasing, because a pronghorn’s speed is unmatchable.

hunting can be done successfully and to great enjoyment. The final questions are what weapons to use, and what other equipment to carry.

To answer these, it must be understood that pronghorn are again built light and for speed, so a large bore gun is not the ticket to bring one down.

Often it is suggested that a mild shooting moderate caliber be used. .243 or most other derivatives of the .308 Winchester are often the perfect choice. Flat shooting, and with some ability to juke wind, are important aspects for longer shots at speed goat.

As a rule, the average shot taken will be at 300 yards and over, but with the afore mentioned tips and tricks, a goat can be brought far closer. Even at sub 300 yards, a good pair of binoculars, 10x42 or better, are suggested. The better the binos are, the further one can pick out the light bodies of pronghorn against the vast blank canvas of the prairie. Good nocks are also invaluable for picking apart the landscape and planning a good stalk.

Fortunately, pronghorn are not an early hunt, as the animals will be active at all times of day, except at the hottest points when they seem to bed down.

Aside from time, the last piece of advice is to be prepared for the eastern Montana dust. The prairie’s “gumbo” is well known and feared, especially for trapping vehicles right after rainy periods. In times of dry, that same dust can be even more maddening, seeping through clothes and into everything. However, like the west goers of the past, the plains hunter traveling to eastern Montana for pronghorn need only bring a hardiness of spirit, a trusted rifle and possibly a white handkerchief around their neck.

Whether for food, fame or fight, pronghorn are sure to deliver. Considered by many the tastiest game meat around, antelope of the great American plains is an important hunting game of choice.

Using altitude to one’s advantage, a hunter can keep themselves hidden more easily behind a crest.

Putting all of these ins and outs together, pronghorn

31

Du ck

Communication Getting started buying duck calls can be daunting.

Green gives his two cents on where to start.

B y Ky l e Gre e n

I

t may be impossible to figure out who made the first duck call, but we do know that in 1870 Elam Fisher was issued the first duck call patent for his tongue-pincher style call.

Apparently, the name was pretty accurate, and the call did pinch your tongue when you used it. Records say that this call sounded more like diving ducks than mallards. I found a few of these vintage calls selling online for over $800 to collectors. In my research, I found out Fisher lived in my home city of Detroit. You might not think of Detroit as a duck hunting paradise, but even today places like Lake Eerie, the Detroit River and the surrounding waterways offer great waterfowl hunting. I grew up hunting in the Pointe Mouillee game area. Likely this was the same area Fisher was hunting back then.

Sadly, he didn’t go on to see his idea grow as he passed away shortly after the patent was issued.

Photo by Ryan Parks (Producer): Kyle Green with a mixed bag of puddle ducks hunting in Washington State.

32

In 1885 David Fuller was awarded a goose call patent. In 1905 Phillip S. Olt received a patent for his adjustable-tone duck call. As time went on, duck call culture began to look at duck calling like playing a musical instrument. Competitions became popular and complicated cadences were rewarded with trophies and prizes. The only problem was,

Photo by Aaron Beadle (Director): Kyle Green blowing the PH-2 polycarb duck call hunting mallards in his home state of Michigan.

these calls were to entertain humans, not sound like ducks. This is what prompted Phil Robertson to create his first Duck Commander call in 1973. He felt that duck calls were not being made to sound like actual ducks in the wild, and it turned out the marketplace agreed with him. He went on to have a very successful company. A&E produced 11 seasons of the hit show Duck Dynasty to document the life of Phil Robertson’s family and the Duck Commander company.

Now let’s break down some basic points that should be understood since buying a duck call can be intimidating. Most stores won’t let you just “give

it a try,” especially with Covid-19 turning the world upside down. Some of them are a couple hundred dollars and some of them are fifteen. What is the difference? Normally, the initial price difference will come from the material the call is made from. Wood, polycarbonate and acrylic are the three main choices. Wood is often chosen by hunters in close hunting situations, such as small ponds. Wood calls are often quieter and a fan favorite of the old timers.

Polycarbonate is often your budget friendly material. It takes less work to maintain than acrylic and wood. In my experience this material works just fine but seems to be impacted by long term moisture after a few hours of calling more than the other two 33

blow. The double reed has an easier to find “sweet spot” when it comes to sounding like a duck. It just has less tone options and won’t carry as far over big water. options. The calls also do not seem to be as crisp. I would say the sound is just slightly off, like a camera lens that is just slightly out of focus. Last up, you have Acrylic. No doubt it is the choice material of the professionals, and its big price tag will reflect that. It has the crispest sound and seems to handle the elements better than the other two. However, I will say this, a skilled caller will sound better on a polycarbonate call than a newbie on an acrylic. Skill is still the biggest factor.

Once a decision is made on the choice material, the buyer will be faced with a reed decision. The single reed duck calls are known for their versatility. They take less air to blow but can still project a louder sound than the double reed alternative. They can also make a wider range of sounds. The tradeoff is that they require more skill to

At the end of the day, you have to weigh out cost, distance, skill level and material. Below are my suggestions based on what worked for me as my duck call skills progressed. I hope it helps point you in the right direction!

My “go-to” wood call is the Duck Commander Classic Commander All-Purpose Duck Call I chose this call because it sounds extremely ducky and has the right volume for close ducks when I’m hunting small ponds or near a refuge. Here is a link to find one of those: https://www.cabelas.com/shop/en/duck-commander-classic-commander-all-purpose-duck-call.

Next, I like the PH-2 Polycarb. I like that this call doesn’t squeak if I over blow. It also truly sounds like a duck and has a better range than the other budget friendly double reed options. I feel like I could be effective with this call after about an hour of practice. The price point is also fair for a person just starting out. Following is a link to this one: https://www.cabelas.com/shop/en/zink-calls-ph2-duck-call.

Finally, my go-to pro call for big water is the Rich-N-Tone MVP Acrylic Duck Call. I like this call because I am able to get the volume I need while hunting big open water and performing hail calls at ducks. This is a professional level call and is a fit for more experienced callers. That call can be found here: https://www.cabelas.com/shop/en/rich-n-tonemvp-acrylic-duck-call.

34 Photo by Allexxandar

Your Ferrocerium Rod Is Not a Primary Fire Tool S a fe an d Ef fe c t ive Firecraf t in a Wi l d e r n e s s E mergenc y B y Pa t r ick N or ton

Photo by Patrick Norton A high-quality stormproof match, such as this UCO Titan match, is easy to strike, has high wind and water resistance and can easily light most any tinder, even if moist.

T

here is a dangerous trend in firecraft that is taking the wilderness survival world by storm. This is the knee-jerk tendency of the survivor to immediately go for his ferrocerium rod (ferro rod) to make a fire in a wilderness emergency. This is written in jest. However, I have recently become preoccupied with how often I see this tool used by outdoorsmen as a primary fire starter. This article will focus on firecraft but I will begin with a disclaimer.

I love bushcraft and primitive skills, but I must make a distinction that is very important, in my opinion. To me, the disciplines of bushcraft and wilderness survival have a lot of overlap but are not the same. Bushcraft conjures images of the practitioner venturing out in the backcountry with his specialized bushcrafting kit and an intention to live off the land using his bushcrafting tools, skills and surrounding resources. Wilderness survival situations, on the other hand, generally occur while recreating or working professionally in the outdoors.

The victim of a survival situation must mitigate the negative effects and hazards associated with an emergency incident in the field. He or she must also provide for vital needs and attempt to summon rescue parties or self-rescue using critical skills and resources. These resources may include survival and medical gear hopefully packed in with the gear used for the given activity or job.

Having said that, the survival skills and tools used in an emergency should emphasize ease-ofuse, efficiency and safety to accomplish these tasks.

My somewhat controversial statement on the use of ferro rods in these situations has caused some heated debate and has even gained me some critics to be sure. But let me explain my position to clarify why I do not recommend ferro rods as a PRIMARY emergency fire tool. This is not to say that they are not a valuable tool to have in your survival kit or for practicing bushcraft or for making fire under normal circumstances. They absolutely are and I recommend packing one or two. In fact, I carry them myself.

35

In a survival emergency, some of the very first moves to make are to find a proper location for camp, build a shelter and make a fire as soon as possible. As many already know, the ferro rod takes some practice to master and a certain level of precision to successfully utilize.

When combined with things like high-stress, adrenaline, tunnelvision, impending darkness and possible illness or injury (which commonly occurs in a wilderness emergency or are the cause of the emergency in and of themselves), jumping right to the ferro rod can create some problems. To add the cherry on top, with the possibility of hypothermia (the main and early symptoms of which include shivering and loss of fine motor function), unless you keep a striker with your rod, you are now fiddling around with a sharp knife. Under these conditions, that could result in adding a severe hemorrhaging incident to the equation.

In these situations, the survivor must get warm immediately by making a fire quickly, easily and safely. Now, I recommend also packing a lighter. However, some fine motor function issues can arise here as well, and lighters can also become useless if wet. This is why waterproofing kits and gear are important as well. Here is where the high-quality waterproof storm match comes in.

I personally recommend the UCO Titan Stormproof Match. I am in no way endorsed by or affiliated with the company, but

of all the matches I have tested, these are the only ones that I have never seen fail. They are incredibly easy to strike with little dexterity and no matter how hard you blow on them or how long you submerge them, they do not go out until all of the accelerant is burned off. They also come in a waterproof canister, with a spare striker wrapped in plastic and are larger than the standard size UCO match. This greater size helps mitigate the previously mentioned loss of fine motor function due to things such as hypothermia, high stress or sausage fingers, the latter of which being a condition I was born with. Add a quality accelerant, like a WetFire cube or some other viable option and you will have a raging fire in no time, provided that you have collected the required fuels to build it and keep it going.

Collecting fuels is a task that should be completed ahead of time, which even further emphasizes the need to have tools to get fire started quickly and safely.

One might ask, “But Patrick, what if I run out of matches?” To that I say: In a survival situation, if one can help it, ideally a survival campfire should never be allowed to go out completely, even if it just a pile of hot embers. If it does go out and you have no more matches, this is where having redundancies (i.e. lighters, ferro rods) are important. In this case, ferro rods make a great backup.

So, should you carry a ferro rod and a lighter? Certainly.

36 Photo by Rkankaro

Photo by Patrick Norton Relying on a ferrocerium rod, even the extra-large one pictured, to start an emergency fire can lead to dexterity issues as well as safety hazards.

Should you learn to make a friction fire? Absolutely.

But just because you can achieve a fire with these methods does not mean they should be your go-tos when safety and seconds count. This goes for many other aspects of wilderness survival as well, but that is outside the scope of this piece.

In an outdoor emergency, the victim’s focus should be providing for vital needs using the most safe, effective, efficient and practical methods and equipment. As a wilderness survival instructor with a background in wildland firefighting and emergency medicine, this is the focus of the basic survival curriculum at my school, ARTOS Survival. While I love to practice bushcraft and primitive skills and offer classes in both, I believe these basic life-sustaining

37

skills and principles are the foundation on which all other survival and outdoor skills should be based.

Having them in the back pocket, so to speak, also gives the outdoorsman piece of mind, allowing for optimal enjoyment of his or her activities in the woods. If you are interested in learning these essential skills, while also earning a wilderness first aid certification on a three-day, all-in-the-field course in Northwestern Montana or a private course near you, visit artossurvival.com for more details.

Photo by Schulzie

38

Ra i n c a ptu r e pr o j e ct f o r o f f- g r i d c a b i n DeMyer talks about her experience utilizing rainwater.

B y Ya na D eM yer

T

wo years ago, my husband Jim and I started building a 12-foot by 16-foot cabin in a remote wooded parcel in Wisconsin. Because it is landlocked, but on a river, we had to float every stick of it, via our aluminum boat. Although I was more of a “Prepper” at the start (which was right about that time “Doomsday Preppers” aired on TV) we now only semi-jokingly refer to it as our “bug-out” location of last resort. I am happy to report that Jim has steadily bought into the idea over the years, and we truly enjoy our time there, pre SHTF. It’s our little getaway and hunting/fishing cabin.

A year later, we added an eight foot by 10-foot “master bedroom”, which fits two beds and has a door to a small deck outside. It can now actually sleep eight people pretty darn well, as it has two loft areas above. One thing it still lacked was water for drinking and washing up. So, our next project became a rainwater catchment system. While It’s not 100% complete, I hope you will find value in seeing what we designed, and essentially installed, in just one day.

Now, for sure, it took at least five trips to the hardware store for everything which was needed, but at least now we can share with you a list of what we eventually used. Hopefully this could save you much time and frustration, should you wish to build your own.

First let’s talk about our goals. We wanted a system that would: 1) Catch water, filter out leaves and gunk and keep bugs and pests out 2) Let the water be easily purified using a series of products that would: a. Not clog and therefor require filter replacement. b. Guarantee water safety in a non-chemical-dependent way. c. Require only a bare minimum of power to be operational. d. Cost under $500.

Photo by Yana Demyer Barrel top off grid rainwater harvest project.

We decided on a rain gutter-based system, which we lined with a sponge filter to keep out the large bits of leaves and twigs. The downspout water is intercepted by a rainwater colander, which has fairly large holes, so, we lined it with a nylon stocking.

39

This catches the smallest bits. The colander comes with a bracket that makes it easy to remove and clean out.

We used an RV drinking-water-safe hose to connect the colander to a barrel. The barrel we chose was a food-safe pickle barrel, found on Facebook marketplace for $20. This barrel has the advantage of having a big screw-on top. This allows smaller persons to reach in to be able to tighten bulkhead fittings with relative ease.

The hardest part of the whole exercise was figuring out what fittings we needed to connect what to what. Finding a hardware store employee who knows the plumbing parts aisle well is essential.

We collared them and used the list detailed here, to get what we needed. The next hardest part was determining the order to do things in.

Photo by Maridav

40

Graphic for off grid rainwater harvest project.

Photo by Yana Demyer Aerial view of cabin.

Graphic for off grid rainwater harvest project.

41

For a good video describing how to do this, check out “Cutting Downspout: Starting the Cut, Making Straight Cuts, Tool Use, Crimping, and Connection!” on YouTube, by AC Service Tech LLC. Then attach the downspout to the outlet with metal screws.

This is what we recommend doing: Start with drilling a one-and-a-half-inch hole for the inlet bulkhead fitting on the top of your barrel. Install the bulkhead fitting. (11) Next, install the brass fitting (12) that will adapt to your drinking water hose. You can figure out where to place the outlets later once you have your barrel in place.

We then attached the colander bracket and then the colander (7). The center of the colander connects to a standard downspout and goes down to the ground. The rainwater collector part of the colander

Next, place your endcaps on the gutters, using metal screws.

You can then hang the high end of the gutters on your house.

A one-fourth drop per foot is the angle you need and using a string will help you keep things aligned. Work your way to where you want the downspout. Place the end of the gutter where you want the downspout to be and insert your “drop with outlet”4).

This will determine how high you can go with your barrel. We wanted ours to be as high as possible, as we wanted to use gravity rather than a pump to get water to our outlet fixtures. It is possible to use barrels lying on their side to gain greater height, but since ours had a screw-on top which we didn’t really trust it to be leak-free. In the end, we decided to use it standing upright.

Once you know how high your barrel will be, build your base for the barrel with two-by-fours and wood screws. At 8.33 pounds per gallon, our pickle barrel is 65 pounds which equals about 541 pounds. Make sure you build it nice and sturdy.

Place the barrel on the stand in its permanent place. We only had about four inches to spare so that became the dimension of the downspout that led into the colander. Cut the down spout (6).

42

shunts the water to a male garden hose, to which you will attach the first part of your RV drinking water hose. Measure how much hose you will need and cut it. Place the swivel barb fitting (9) in the cut end of the hose and secure it with a hose clamp (10).

You can then screw it into colander, and the top of the barrel. The rest is pretty self-explanatory.

You will continue to locate and drill holes where you want your outlets. In our case we wanted one for

inside the cabin, one for an outside shower, and one for an overflow hose near the very top. The parts specified here all connect to garden hose style fittings. The outlets all have shut-offs so you can work on adding in sink fittings, etc., without having to fight the water later on.

You are now on your own for how to attach the garden host to what ever fixture you have in your house. There are just too many ways to do it! As far as making sure the water is safe to drink, we chose a unique new technology that you may not have heard of yet. An electrolytic ozone generator made by a Wisconsin based company, Roving Blue (our invention). We have a small device, called the Ozo-pod 10, which infuses the water with ozone. Not many people know this, but ozone, when dissolved into water, is actually far stronger than chlorine. So, in minutes, a drinking water dispenser such as the one we chose, will be zapped with ozone strong enough to kill any microbes that might make a person sick. The neat thing about ozone is that it quickly reverts to ordinary oxygen. This means there are no chemicals to buy, no filters to clog and no chemicals remain in the water. You can check these out at www.rovingblue.com.

Remember, in some areas, collecting rainwater for human use can be considered illegal, even if there is a clever and effective way to purify it installed. Please check local regulations before attempting. Included is the list of parts we ended up using and a diagram of where they were used that follows the article.

Photo by Yana Demyer Rainwater capture 1 Our son, Spencer, enjoying his perch on the couch we floated it down to the cabin.

Photo by Timltv

Ac t ive S h o o t e r D e f e n s e : What to Do in the Event of Workplace Violence, School Shootings, and Other Indiscriminate Mass Shooting Events Brian M. Morris Risk Mitigation Specialist (910) 528-4927

T

• Signs of aggression or threats directed at coworkers or supervisors • Existence of unapproved weapons • Severe mood swings • Depression/withdrawn behavior • Talks of suicide • Paranoia • Strange behavior such as flashbacks • Drug and alcohol abuse • Repeated violation of policies in the work place • Talk of personal problems such as marriage or finances

he world we live in is a dangerous place. The possibility of violence happening in the workplace is a real and present danger. In 1999, twelve students and one teacher were shot and killed at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado and an additional 24 students were injured. In 2012, twenty-six people were shot and killed and twenty-four additional students were injured at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. The likelihood of one of these incidents happening again in the future is likely. Regardless of what the shooter’s motivation is, be it a mental condition, a disgruntled employee, or a terrorist, it is imperative that you know the proper signs to look for, precautions to take, and what your actions should be in the event of an active shooter scenario taking place.

It is not always possible to predict an active shooter incident and not everyone who exhibits these signs is a potential active shooter. These are just situations to be sensitive of and to notice when someone displays one or multiple signs. In any case, you should report this behavior to your supervisors or to the local authorities, depending on the severity of the situation. Doing nothing is rarely the right answer.

Look for the signs Start by using your situational awareness to identify pre-attack signs that something is wrong, such as:

44

Photo by Harrison Haines

45

may not always be an option. If you find yourself unable to evacuate, consider finding a place to hide.

The location you choose should: • Be out of the view of the people or person doing the shooting • Provide good cover (be able to deflect bullets fired in your direction), such as a concrete wall • Have an escape route if possible/try not to box yourself in • Have doors that lock from the inside • Have heavy objects like furniture to block the door.

How to respond If you find yourself in an active shooter situation, you have several options regarding how to respond. Your first choice should always be to help others to evacuate the area. If there is an opportunity to evacuate, make sure you: • Have a plan: Make sure you have an escape route in mind before you move • Leave your belongings, they will just slow you down • Help others escape, if possible • Prevent other people from going near the area where the active shooter incident is happening • Call 911 immediately • Go out in the direction first responders are coming in • Do exactly what the police officers tell you to do and keep your hands visible. Evacuating the area

Remember to put your cell phone on silent and hide behind the largest items you can find in your location. Stay calm, cool, and collected, and call 911 as soon as you get the chance.

Taking action In a worst-case scenario, you may find yourself having to take physical action against the shooter.

46

This is a very difficult situation, particularly if not trained and conditioned in the art of hand-to-hand combat. Still, it may be your last resort in a desperate situation and when innocent people are dying. If this is the case, remember to: • Have a plan • Commit to your actions 100 percent • Be as aggressive as possible • Improvise weapons if you can find any…throw large objects if they are available • Get others to help you incapacitate the shooter if possible… several grown men can often combine their strength to tackle down a lone shooter. Taking action against an armed aggressor is extremely risky but it may be your only chance (or the only chance for those you are responsible for) of survival.

What to do when the police arrive One of the most dangerous times during an active shooter scenario is when first responders arrive. It is extremely confusing for them to differentiate between the victims and the perpetrators when these incidents take place.

The best thing you can do when you make contact with the police is to: • Stay calm and follow the instructions of the police • Put down anything you may have in your hands • Raise hands high in the sky so they can be seen by the police and keep them there • Don’t make any quick or jerking movements • Avoid screaming and yelling. Maintain your situational awareness so that you will be able to provide the police with:

Photo by Prot Tachapanit

• Location of the shooter(s) • Number of shooters • Description of the shooter(s) • Type of weapon used by the shooter(s) • Estimated number of casualties Being prepared for an active shooter scenario requires not only personal situational awareness but also teamwork, leadership, and practice through response drills as well as continuing education on the topic. In a work environment, actions to take should come naturally through rehearsal and duties and responsibilities should already be assigned long before one of these instances occurs. Additionally, remember, if you see something, say something. All too many active shooter events could have been mitigated or stopped all together had people that observed signs that something was happening out of place and reported those events to the proper authorities.

47

48 Photo by David Pereiras

Y

Bugging In

ou hear the term all the time, “bugging out,” and most people believe that when the SHFT that is what everyone will do. However, it’s quite the opposite in my humble opinion. I believe that 90% of the populace will actually stay put and not go anywhere. Those that do “bug out” are only moving to another place to “Bug In” anyways, so everything I am about to present to you applies to both. With that comes the need for home defense as well.

We saw this happen during the COVID-19 pandemic and many folks were not properly prepared to do so. Many people quickly ran out of supplies, food, medical needs and other things very quickly. Store shelves emptied quickly, factories and distribution centers shut down, transporting these things by way of trucks, rail and air came to a halt and so many people in the world were left wondering how they got to this point and how it happened.

Snyder talks about how he stays prepared for a bug-out situation.

B y E j Snyder

All great questions and thoughts, and the answer is very simple...lack of planning! People may say well, this was a once in a lifetime event. But was it? Never make the mistake thinking that a disaster or emergency is not going to come knocking on your door when it comes to you and your loved one’s survival. A myriad of things can happen and will happen. It’s just a matter of when. So, the time is now! This is when planning for these things matters most. The next pandemic, hurricane, earthquake, civil unrest, wildfire, even war, etc. could be just around the corner.

Do not be caught with your pants down, wondering, “why did this happen.” Be the solution to your own problem by acting. You don’t need to be a millionaire to prepare. There are lots of budget friendly options to fit all economic situations. Visit ejsnyder.com to see the “Ultimate Bug In and Home Defense” video for mor in depth information. For now, here are some things you can do immediately to start getting ready! There is a plethora of other related items on my website as well.

So, the first of many things you need to do is assess where you are at in your preparedness level.

Start a list, organized by category, so that you can get that survival preparedness laundry list going and fill it up. It is a critical step in the process and will help keep you on track, even sane, and make your needs a lot clearer.

Photo by Cottonbro

49

Navigation: - Extra fuel for generator and vehicles - Flashlights - Extra batteries - Headlamps - Compass - Candles - etc.

I am old school, so I always grab a clean sheet of paper, a pencil and a clip board. Electronic lists are great, but this list is one thing you need to see looking at you in the face every day and often, as a staunch reminder of what you got but more so...what you still need! Here is a sample list and it’s just that, everyone’s list will be different.

Water: - Several five-gallon water jugs - Filter system - Water bottles (2 for each person) - etc.

Bug-in list: Shelter: - Radio - Extra blankets or sleeping bags - Shelving - Backup generator - Extension cords - Solar chargers - Tent - etc.

Food: - Extra non-perishables foods and canned goods - Coolers - Cases of dehydrated meals - MREs

50 Photo by Emfotografia

- Camp meals - Pots and utensils - etc.

Fire: - BBQ grill - Extra propane - Firewood - Portable heaters - etc.

Security: - Alarm system - Locks - Security lights - Safe - Firearms - Alternate defense weapons - Extra ammo - Mace or pepper spray - Taser - etc.

Medical: - First aid kit - Prescription medications - Pain relivers - Medical equipment - Extra batteries - Chargers - etc.

Photo by Anthony Acosta

Some budget friendly things you can do for example: if you can’t buy a bunch of five-gallon camp water containers, start saving milk jugs and two-liter plastic bottles. Rinse them out, fill them with water and take a permanent marker and write the current date on them. This way you will know how old they are. I love permanent markers and using them to clearly write dates on items where they are large and visible really helps out.

While this is just a sample, the point is still present: start listing everything you need on the list.

Afterwards, make another couple columns right next to it with one saying “on hand” or “yes” and the other saying “need” or “no.” Next to each make a check to where you are at. Next, make a fourth column with “quantity”, which is extremely important. It will notate if you have enough and as you consume it is updated. Make a fifth column stating a number that you always want to be as close to as possible for you family’s needs, and then a sixth column for “cost.”

Lastly, include notes.

I mark the expiration dates on all food items, so in my rotation of food I consume stuff that expires first.

I only dip into long shelf-life supplies if I have no other options. It’s stuff like this, thinking outside the box and forward, that helps get ahead of the curve.

I always look for grocery store sales and when I see canned food deals, I go buy up as much as I am allowed and store it away. You can even plan for every time you go to the store during your regular grocery shopping time that you plan to purchase 3 survival planning items each time. Before you know it, your shelves will fill up fast.

This type of survival matrix, which will be available along with my new upcoming film, will definitely help you out to see the bigger picture to where you are at in your Planning. Now, get after the needs and start filling in where you can immediately, based on your personal situation and budget. You may even highlight or put a little star next to things that are most important to you.

51

Photo by Robert Knechke

additional space.

I even visit those great and abundant dollar stores, as it’s surprising how affordable the items in there are and how many quality items a person can get in large numbers without breaking the bank. You can really knock at that list fast, even if you are not on a strict budget.

I recommend good sturdy shelves. You can buy some plastic ones of different types and sturdiness, or get some metal racks, or build wooden ones yourself. Even wall lockers can work and give you the ability to lock them up for added security. I also suggest categorizing your shelf or storage areas by type: water, food, medical, etc.

When it comes to storage, that also depends on your particular domicile situation. Somebody in a rural area, say on a farm, may have several outer buildings and designate one for their Survival Storage area. Suburban types may have a basement or garage to use. This can apply to a town home. For my urbanites things get trickier, but being a professional hoarder, I can tell you that every nook and cranny counts and can be used.

All of these tips and things should now have your mind engorged in the planning and stocking phase of “bugging in.” They say, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” That holds true here, and I like to say, “Good planning prevents pain!”

GET TO YOUR SAFE ZONE Now that you have gotten things straight at your “bug-in” safe zone and things are set and ready for when you and your loved ones arrive, what do you need to actually get you here from where you may be? Well, you never know when, where, how, why or what will cause you to be smack dab in the middle of a catastrophe. Again, planning and

I usually try to suggest to those in apartment situations to think about getting an apartment for what you need in terms of bedrooms, plus one. This way you have sleep spaces for everyone and one extra room that is usually at least a 10-foot by 10foot size to set up shelving and make it a survival supply storage area. Never forget the laundry rooms, utility closets, attics, crawl spaces and sheds for 52

preparing are key for when you are. You need to think about and evaluating your particular situation.

Where are the possible places you could be when you are away from your domicile?

be allowed in the workspace, school building, or government institution. This discretion is up to the reader on what they can carry for their own situation.

Items to consider are listed below:

You could be at work, school, the gym or shopping. You could be on vacation, or at a function, like a family event, a charity fund raiser, a sporting event or anywhere! How will you get from there to where you need to be, and do so safely? Again, it can start with something as simple as a checklist. As an avid survivalist, it is not uncommon for me to have covered all my bases and have multiple set ups all over.

“Get-to-your-car bag” list: - Bag or one-gallon Ziplock bag - EDC knife (your choice to help with tasks like a pocketknife, multi-tool, or regular fixed blade or folder) - Water container (preferably one that filters water, or a steel canteen where you can boil water in) - Water purification tablets or other means to purify - Fire starter or lighter - Small flashlight and/or headlamp with extra batteries - Compass - Emergency blanket and poncho - Raincoat (great asset to keep you dry and warm) - Small tarp and 50 feet of paracord - Snack food like jerky sticks, granola bars, trail mix, etc.

- Small first aid kit with pain meds and prescriptions - Communication needs: cell phone, small portable radio, walkie talkie, etc.

- Additional self-defense items to protect you (maybe a walking stick, small club, mace, pepper spray, taser, etc.)

- Firearm for protection (local, state, and federal laws definitely apply here)

The set ups I am talking about are things like a “get-to-your-car bag,” having your vehicle set up properly, “bug out bags” and even caches. These can be crafted to fit your needs and situations; tailored around your lifestyle. I am not saying that everyone needs to carry a day pack with them everywhere, though some people do. Be practical!

If you go to work and normally carry a briefcase, a shoulder satchel or a purse, these things can be modified and adjusted to act as “get-to-your-car bags.” Some people even bring a separate bag and leave it at their work and others in their school or work locker, so it is always there and ready to go.

The “get-to-your-car bag” doesn’t have to be very big because it is just for trying to get from wherever you are to your vehicle. That normally is not a great distance, but you want to make sure that if some reason you cannot make it to your vehicle, it can have enough things in it to cover your needs if now you find yourself on foot and have to huff it out of there!

These items will aid you in getting to your vehicle, keeping you safe and making the situation more manageable. You probably are not going that far but something like civil unrest may be going on with riots and bad actors out and about taking advantage of the situation. In such a case, a mile can seem like 10 miles.

You may decide to modify something you use regularly like that purse, briefcase or school bag that you always have on you. I recommend putting the items, at least as much as you can, inside a 1-gallon zip lock bag. That way they are all together. In any case here are the items you will want to consider putting your “get-to-your-car bag,” whether modifying your Everyday Carry (EDC) set up or filling a separate bag. Remember that I will list a lot of the things that I highly recommend, but it is up to you to know whether you really need it or can live without certain items. You can also add or subtract anything you feel you need to it that fits your situation like prescription medication for instance. It is also important to consider that many items may not

Now that you have reached your vehicle and do not have to head home on foot, “What’s in your trunk?” Your vehicle is now actually a Large “get-youhome bag,” and what is in it matters. You have just increased your capabilities, adding what you are already carrying to the now “get-you-home bag.”

Here is how I suggest you outfit that. First, your vehicle needs to be covered, as it is your main support to get you home Below is a List of items 53

and things to consider for your vehicle. Again, user digression is advised, pending various state and federal laws.

budget, situation and what I call plain old “skullcrushing sense!”

This is just like common sense but with attitude.

“Get-you-home bag” list: - Vehicle (no matter what your ride is, it needs to be in good working order, serviced, and topped off on all fluids) - Paper maps (road and topographic) - Additional communication (optional like a CB, Ham Radio or satellite phone) - Spare tire with working jack and car iron - Small tool bag with basic tools in it - Flashlight with extra batteries - Road flares (excellent fire starters and signaling devices) - Extra fuel can, oil and other fluids - Small shovel - Tow straps and chains - Extra fresh water - Box of Food and a way to prepare it - Larger tarp, - Extra rope, cordage or paracord - Sleeping bag and or blankets - Possibly another bug-out bag in case of breakdown (beefier than the “get-to-your-car” bag) - Winter Kit (if in a snowy area, including tire chains, ice melt, snow shovel, candles, winter clothing, etc.)

Now that you are rolling in your vehicle heading to your domicile with a backup plan in the trunk, all is well, right?

Wrong. It seems the analogical riot has cut off both your primary and alternate routes. Thankfully, you were planning ahead and have a contingency plan that takes you to a “Hold-up” spot at one of several cache sites you planned for and have in place. So, what exactly is a cache site?

The vehicle offers a lot of protection from the elements, helps conserve energy and can carry a lot more supplies. The bug-out bag is a very important back up plan for in case your vehicle breaks down or you must bail out of your vehicle due to the situation and must now get home on foot. The argument of what goes in the perfect bug-out bag may never be settled, but for me it’s all about your needs, must haves, 54 Photo by David Pereiras

A cache site is a location where you can get to either by vehicle, or on foot, that is off the beaten path, so it does not draw attention. This spot should be hidden enough to keep you safe but easy for you to find, day or night. It should be marked in a way so that if anyone sees it, it doesn’t cause them to investigate it. It should provide some cover from eyesight of others, protection from the elements and be easily defendable.

You will also have already hidden supply caches there in some fashion. Whether you bury your caches or simply hide them by camouflage, you need to ensure they cannot be found and pilfered, because you want them there for you when you need them. They will act as ways to support you without dipping into your vehicle set up or bug-out bag, as well as to resupply what you used. There are many ways to set them up.

Where you place them needs to have enough space to hide them or bury them. If you are hiding them by camouflage, you

can use natural brush. However, over time vegetation dies and turns brown, so I recommend using some military camo netting, or an old canvas tarp that you can spray paint with colors to match the area and season.

I have seen these large fake boulders that look very real in which to hide things. This technique is most vulnerable to theft in my opinion. I personally like to dig a hole and bury stuff.

Once in the ground you can cover the cache supplies with an old tarp or some wood and throw the dirt right over top of it. Camouflage the area where it’s buried, and you are good to go. You can mark it in some way to easily be found, but I generally like to make a small strip map of each cache site and pace the buried site off from a known point, like a recognizable tree covertly marked. I also would stash a D-handle shovel somewhere nearby, or in your kit, so you are not stuck using your hands to get to it.

Lastly, I have known folks to just be blatant about it and drop a Connex, dumpster, locker, container or some sort of shed at a spot and just throw a lock and or chains on it. I even knew a guy who used a Port-A-Potty.

Now, the cache supplies themselves can be packaged in many ways. I love old military canvas duffle bags, and I usually stuff the items into heavy-duty leaf trash bags (this is added layer of protection, waterproofing, and preservation) and then tape it closed with duct tape before putting them in the duffle bag to help protect them.

Duffle Bags are generally good for most any items, like extra batteries, gear, food, etc. I also like using footlockers with a lock on them. Plastic heavy duty tote boxes work really well.

Place your supplies inside them, separately packaged for protection, then seal them up with Duct Tape. For a third layer of protection, put the totes in heavy-duty leaf trash bags before you are done. All these steps help protect your supplies from the elements and wildlife.

For things like fuel I just use the plastic five-gallon fuel containers and for water I use five-gallon plastic jugs, one-gallon milk jugs, two-liter plastic bottles or the collapsible camp water jugs. I will even have dry cut firewood in plastic trash bags stored, so it’s there and ready to go with a few bags of tinder, kindling and even some fire starter. Things to include at a cache site may include, extra fuel cans, water, firewood, food batteries, extra survival gear and supplies, tents, clothes, extra ammunition, etc.

Together a hold-up site with a cache will give you a place to refit, rest and adjust your plans.

You should be able to stay there for a few hours or up to a few days. I normally try to only plan for 72 Hours max, then get mobile and maybe head to the next hold-up/cache site if I can’t get home.

All these things I have talked about here are things you need to be thinking about. You need to be thinking about and planning for your very safety and success in getting back home may depend on it. Having your home ready for bugging in does you no good if you can’t even get there!

55 Photo by CatLane

P

roviding you with the information and knowledge you’ll need to survive any emergency situation is our goal. Because this can be a complicated endeavor, we have developed this “prepper’s checklist” to help simplify and organize your efforts and gear.

American Survival Guide

Prepper’s Checklist

Whether you’re concerned about a short-term rural survival scenario, civil unrest in an urban area or a massive natural disaster, Survival Homes and Gardens is dedicated to making sure you know what it takes to develop the skills and collect the right gear to protect yourself and the rest of your survival group.

B y Brian M. Mo r r is

This comprehensive checklist is invaluable for ensuring you have what you need to survive almost any adverse situation. It is organized according to our “Six Pillars of Survival”—Food, Water, Shelter, Security, Communications and Health—so you can instantly assess and track your level of preparedness in each area. We encourage you to customize it so it will meet your specific requirements.

We also suggest you print these pages out and make copies to be kept in your storage area as an inventory sheet and with your important documents.

It can even be used as a shopping list for items you have yet to acquire.

1. FOOD PILLAR SHG recommends keeping a 30-day food supply on hand for each person. Remember that, on average, men need about 2,500 calories a day and women need around 2,000. Depending on your condition, level of stress and physical exertion, you might need more.

1.1. FOODSTUFFS • • • •

Photo by Zaiwizi

56

Cooking oils (coconut, vegetable, olive, etc.)

Cooking powders (flour, baking powder/soda, etc.)

Dairy products, dry Eggs, dry

Photo by Brian M. Morris

• • • • • • • • • • • • •

Freeze-dried entrees and meals Fruit (dried, canned, preserved) Grains and cereals MREs and other ready-to-eat packaged foods Pasta Protein, animal (fish, meat, poultry) Protein, plant (beans, lentils, nuts, powdered mixes) Rice Salt, iodized Seeds for both consumption and planting Soups and stews Sweeteners (agave, honey, sugar, etc.)

Vegetables (dried, canned, preserved)

1.2. FOOD PROCUREMENT NEEDS 1.2.1. HUNTING AND TRAPPING • • • • • • •

.22 air pellet gun and pellets and gas cartridges .22 rifle and ammo Compound bow/crossbow and arrows Maintenance materials for items in this group Rifles and ammo Shotguns and ammo Traps and snares

1.2.2. FISHING • Compact fishing kit • Full-sized fishing rod and tackle

Photo by Maria Shipakina

2. WATER PILLAR You should have enough potable water to support each person with 2 gallons per day for 30 days of hydration, food preparation and hygiene.

Store water away from light, chemicals, and pesticides, and don’t stack plastic containers on concrete surfaces. Always use opaque, FDAapproved, food-grade containers to store your water.

SHG recommends you cycle your water supply every six months—unless you treat it with a water preservative.

2.1. WATER STORAGE OPTIONS • Individual bottles or cans • Portable water containers (1-, 5- or 7-gallon sizes) • Static water containers (30- and 50-gallon drums, larger tanks or blivets, cistern) • Water resupply plan 57

are, you need to have a bug-out plan for a safe location where you can take shelter.

3.1. HUNKERING DOWN AT HOME 2.2. PRESERVATION AND TREATMENT

• Fire extinguishers • Generator, fuel and maintenance tools and materials • Power inverter • Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms and batteries • Wood or manufactured fireplace logs and kindling

• Chemical disinfectant supplies • Heat source and fuel (set aside specifically) for boiling water • Ultraviolet water sterilizer • Water filter/purifier (one filter/purifier per person) • (optional) Water flavor enhancer to improve the taste of heavily treated water

3.2. FABRICATED SHELTER

3. SHELTER PILLAR

• Sleeping bags and ground mats, appropriately sized and insulated • Tarps, (real) 550 cord and bungee cords • Tent replacement and repair parts • Tent(s) large enough for people, pets and weather-sensitive gear

In an emergency, you are usually better off hunkering down in your home. But a time might come when you need to seek shelter elsewhere. In addition to knowing where local emergency shelters

58

4.1. HOME SECURITY/EARLY-WARNING SYSTEM • Home alarm • Motion detectors • Remote camera systems 4.2. LETHAL WEAPON SYSTEMS • Handguns and spare mags or speed loaders, ammo and accessories • Rifles and spare mags, ammo and accessories • Shotguns with ammo and accessories 4.3. LESS-LETHAL WEAPON SYSTEMS • Less-lethal shotgun rounds • Personal defense spray/tear gas dispenser and replacement cartridges • Restraint systems • Stun guns and batteries • Tasers and replacement cartridges, batteries and other accessories 5. COMMUNICATIONS PILLAR

Photo by Extreme Photographer

• Amateur/HAM radio, CB radio scanner and accessories • Cell phone and accessories • Chargers and batteries • Faraday cage or other protective containers • FM/AM/SW/Weather radio and accessories • Personal locator beacon/EPIRB • Satellite phone and accessories • Solar charging panel and accessories • Television and power source • Two-way radios and accessories

3.3. LOCAL EMERGENCY SHELTER • Know the location of the closest emergency shelter 3.4. CLOTHING AND EQUIPMENT • Base layer and street clothing suited to your environment at any time of the year • Hunting/camouflage clothing and accessories • Insect and snake-protective clothing • Weather-resistant clothing, outerwear, headwear and footwear

6. HEALTH PILLAR • 90- to 180-day supply of all vital prescription medications • Backboard or other litter • Blankets and space blankets • Emergency dental kit, one per person • Epinephrine pen kit • Home first aid kit

4. SECURITY PILLAR The Security Pillar includes safety issues, along with self-defense, making it a very broad category. If you have additional security and safety preparations, you should add them to this list.

59 Photo by David Pereiras

Photo by Fstop123

• • • • •

Individual first aid kit, one per person Neck brace and splints (preferably SAM splints) Personal hygiene kit, one per person Slings and cravats Special medical equipment: defibrillator, CPAP, oxygen machine and any accessories • Suture kit • Trauma kit, one per person

• Optics for day, night and thermal, with batteries and accessories • Pace-counter beads • Road flares • Wind/waterproof matches, fire starters and tinder (we recommend steel wool and ferro rods) • Windproof lighter and fuel EMERGENCY PLANS

ADDITIONAL ITEMS

• Bug-out plan and leave-behind note • Group emergency preparedness plan • Local Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) point of contact • Local FEMA/Homeland Security point of contact • Local hospital phone number • Phone number and address of local National Guard Armory • Police and fire phone numbers

• Assorted hand tools, according to your needs • Bug-out bags/three-day packs • Bushcraft knife (we suggest carrying more than one knife) • Candles • Dependable transportation, fuel, with repair and maintenance supplies • Flashlights and hands-free lights with batteries • GPS, compass, maps, protractor and marking pens 60

61 Photo by Emre Ceylan

The eight pillars of s urvival A Core Tenet of Survival Homes & Gardens B y M y ke l H aw ke

T

get to go out and do as much in nature and the outdoors as we’d like to. So, some skills can atrophy over time without use. We are always looking for what advantages modern tech can give us to offset the perishing skills or to simply enhance our survival capabilities by fusing the old with the new.

he topic of survival is nothing new. Humans have done it since the beginning of time. But times change and our core life skills have changed to reflect those needed for modern times. That has come at the expense of losing some other skills, such as those needed for primitive survival. In addition, there have been so many new technologies and capabilities developed in the last few generations that the very definition of survival has changed from solely primitive skills to the very highest levels of tech gadgetry designed specifically for the purpose of survival. Most of us fall somewhere in between on that scale. That is why we have created Survival Homes & Gardens.

That is what SH&G is all about, bringing together the time-tested old-world skills and the modern science and technology-new-world capabilities. It is a wise person who maximizes their survivability by exploiting both. We know folks are busy, and many don’t have the time to peruse stores or scour the internet to find the latest in new tech, good books, great products and sound teachers. That’s where we come in. Bringing you everything survival related all together in one place for your family.

We know many folks like to live off grid, or to develop their primitive skills for emergencies, and we love that. Most of our Staff is steeped in primitive survival; That is our foundation. Some fortunate and/ or bold souls, have gone to living off grid completely, being entirely self-providing and self-contained, and we love that, too. Their experiences teach us much in these modern times.

My story is long and diverse but in its simplest form, I grew up very poor, often without food, water, power or even shelter. I had to survive a winter on the streets at 14 and from that experience, developed a lifelong passion for survival. This led to me joining Special Forces, learning about medicine, communication, intelligence, operations, logistics & leadership. From this experience, I started a survival company in the early 90’s to teach the public and have been doing it ever since. From this, I fell into the media by accident and before long, had made many

However, the majority of folks have to balance real life and being prepared. We have our educations and professions that permit us to have homes and provide for our families. But it often means, we don’t 62

Photo by Hakan Erenler

survival TV shows, written survival books and made survival products. But my true love and passion, is teaching and helping others. That is what SH&G is about.

between. We will cover all things to do with water from purifying a canteen to creating an entire hydration and irrigation system that serves your needs. For shelters, we cover everything from bivy (bivouac) sacks and tents to how to make your home safer from environmental threats, fires, floods, hurricanes, etc. covering all the newest tech from fire resistant paint for homes in fire zones to tsunami balls for those in flood zones. For fires, there is no end to all the things covered under this topic. Not just old fashion friction and percussion fires but the best in fire starting tools, to stoves for camping all the way up to smokers, preserving and storing food.

This brings me to the eight core tenets of survival.

We all know about the four primary pillars of survival: Food, Water, Fire and Shelter. But most folks end up overlooking one of the four secondary pillars of survival: Communications, Navigation, Medicine and Security.

Now when it comes to the four primary pillars, I’d like to note that those shift in priority according to what resources you have and your situation at time of need. But everyone can see and agree, these are crucial for survival. Part of what SH&G focuses on with the basics is what kind of food you can grow at home based on your weather, terrain, space, etc.

Best foods, devices for preparing storing and all in

The secondary pillars, cover everything else needed for and related to survival. The category names are all encompassing umbrellas for the many sub-component derivatives. For example, under Security, will be all your weapons and systems to protect yourself and your property. It also covers all 63

Photo by James Mahan

the tools you need in survival for your security, such as knives, guns, bows and arrows, sling shots, blow guns, etc, etc, etc.

Our focus on Medicine (Health) is a precious fundamental for SH&G. Not only are we all about teaching and learning new life saving skills, sharing the latest tech for trauma and helping folks best be ready for emergencies, but we are also about teaching the real medical skills like dealing with illnesses. How to diagnose, planning your aid bags and medicines, even growing your own medicinal plants and utilizing use them.

The secondary pillar of Navigation covers everything to do with movement. Not just maps and compasses or GPS’s, but everything to do with how to get from one place to another. That is everything from family and off road vehicles, to route planning and caches, and even LPC’s or what we call in the military, Leather Personnel Carriers (AKA- Boots).

That said, from all of us here at the Survival Homes & Gardens Magazine, we look forward to sharing with and serving you. We thank you for coming along with us on our journey. We intend to earn our keep by proving to be the very best source of knowledge, know-how, strategies & technologies to help everyone and anyone who cares about survival for them and their loved ones by covering everything survival- from basics to beyond.

Our Communications will cover everything from satellite phones and radios to primitive signals and everything in between. This also covers areas like lights for signaling (as well as other uses of flashlights), whistles and other sound making signal devices, to Apps, beacons and anything that could help facilitate rescues and communications for help.

64

M

ost people don’t know much about wild plants --- much less about the wild plants that they call “weeds” --- and just ignore them. The weekend survivalist assumes that all they need are guns, shelter and a water source. My partner in grime Mykel Hawke and I knew that a book was needed which details many edible plants with hundreds of photos and every warning included that we could think of combined into the study of survival.

Eat Those

Weeds

Wild plants that are edible to humans tend to contain more beneficial nutrients like vitamins and minerals than cultivated foods. All cultivated foods originated as wild plants, and over the long history of agriculture. Likely starting around 12,000 years ago, humans have saved seeds and hybridized plants to genetically select larger, easy-to-grow varieties.

Such plants make for greater crop yields but tend to contain fewer nutrients than their wild counterparts.

Add to that the fact that most cultivated food sold in stores and restaurants is produced on soil so depleted of minerals that they require artificial fertilization, unless grown organically, this leaves them even more lacking in nutrition than those wild weeds growing around the home or in that empty unused vacant lot down the road. I cannot tell you whether or not it’s legal to forage for food away from your own home, especially on someone’s private property, or in the woods, but in that famine, doomsday or survival situation legality would be the least of your worries.

B y D ougla s B o udrea u

According to Katrina Blair, in her book The Wild Wisdom of Weeds: 13 Essential Plants for Human Survival, “Wild edible foods tend to grow within biodiverse communities, enabling them to garner nutrients from the richer soil conditions supported by this biodiversity. Additionally, fresh wild foods can be eaten on the day of harvest, whereas cultivated foods often lose nutrients during transportation and storage.”

When you build a garden, you are wise to pull up other plants that sprout up around your cultivated species, but you probably don’t know that much of the plants referred to as “weeds” are actually species of wild food plants that were purposely bred by our ancestors to be invasive and noxious. In some places the majority of the “weeds” that sprout up wherever you turn the soil for gardening and landscaping

Photo by Ekaterina Bolovtsova

65

either has edible and nutritious parts, medicinal uses, or both. Yes, I said most of those weeds! Learn what they are and leave room in your garden for some wild food like the nutritious dandelion, wild spinach (Lamb’s Quarters), dock, burdock, milkweed, minor’s lettuce, fireweed, chickweed (your chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, etc. will love it), peppergrass, and many other species. In fact, every corner of America and every region of the world has wild food of some kind if you know what to look for and how to use it.

Know your plant species! Positive identification is the Rule #1 priority in my opinion. Rule #2 is do not try to eat something that your tastebuds find disgusting. If your reaction to chewing something is to spit it out it will be wise to spit it out. Particularly if there’s any question of its edibility and especially if it is a survival situation when you are already very hungry and maybe already very weak so anything that could cause you to get sick could be the very last thing that you eat.

edibles that include delicious berries, starchy roots and tubers, ground up seeds removed of chaff, stalks, leaves and gourds that can be boiled and eaten as is or in a stew and there is also what I consider “famine food” wild edibles which have varying degrees of palatability and practicality. Beware, there can be toxic lookalikes to edible species. Also, be sure of which parts of a species are edible, which are not, and how to properly prepare each when necessary.

When researching, I have seen bad information being posted online. Always verify information on the edibility of anything with multiple sources.

Especially look for accredited experts like Green Deane of eattheweeds.com, myself and a variety of books available.

Rule #3 is too much traffic near potential wild edibles is contaminating to them with the heavy metals and chemicals of engine exhaust, oil, gas, and rubber. Downhill embankments from roads are not safe either because of the runoffs from rain carrying those same heavy metals and chemicals downhill.

For this reason, look uphill from roads and as far away from the curb as possible, depending on how

There are many species of plants that are edible in varying degrees. There are choice (the best)

66

Photo by Alexey Demidov

much traffic uses the road. In all survival foraging, weigh the risk versus the reward.

“Textile Onion, A. textile” in Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, and North & South Dakota.

Why would you look near roads then? The further away from human activity, the less species of edible plants you will see. Many species were bred to invade disturbed ground and are usually listed as “introduced” and “invasive” species. What is generally described as “weeds” are mostly edible and medicinal species that humanity has been using for survival purposes for many generations --- perhaps thousands of years.

“Tall Swamp Onion, A. validum”, aka “Swamp Onion”, along the Pacific states.

“Plains Onion, A. perdulce,” in western and northern Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas.

“Taper-Tip Onion, A. acuminatum,” across western states except California, Utah, east Wyoming, and Montana.

One example is the humble wild onion. Lots of wild onion species grow throughout North America.

All species of garlic and onion come in the same scientific, botanical genera (genus) called “Allium.”

One that grows in Florida is called, “Wild Garlic, Allium canadense. While the taste and aroma of this Allium is like an onion and garlic mix, it grows seeds at the top of the flower stalks that resemble cloves.

This specific species has a range here from central Florida west to east Texas, northward from there along the continental divide to the Canadian border and across the entire eastern US. These bulbs are very hard raw so I like to chop them up for salads and cook with my soups, stews, and stir fry. Any part of an onion that is soft enough to chew or chop is good to eat. Garlic and onion species are a particularly healthy species to consume on a regular basis.

“Ramp, A. tricoccum,” --- and others elsewhere --- which ranges throughout the northern half of eastern US and can be found in woods, floodplains, and ravines. The leaves are broad that appear in the spring and then die back as the leaf-less flowering stalks emerge.

However, there are also toxic lookalikes that have no aroma or onion-like odor or flavor. Some are called “False Garlic” that include the “Nothoscordum” and “Muilla” genera (genus). I have accidentally dug up these species and transplanted them around my trailer. So, with wild onions the basic rule for identification is simple, “If it looks and smells like an onion, like this wild garlic, you can practically bet your life it is. But it must be both, looks and smells!

There are many other varieties, including:

I suggest learning as much as you can about edible wild plants like these before some disaster occurs and forces you to guess at what kind of wild food is available around you and do your children and grandchildren a favor and teach them this.

I greatly suspect that they will need to know it someday.

“Prairie Onion, Allium stellatum” across parts of the central plains states.

“Nodding Wild Onion, A. cernum” only found along Rocky Mountain states and mountainous regions of eastern US.

Photo by Dmitry Tkachev

67

68 Photo by Sanghwan Kim

H

ugelkultur is a concept that has probably been around for at least centuries if not millennia.

The word “hugel” means “hill” in German, and “kultur” means, well… culture. The idea is pretty simple. Stack a lot of rotten logs and other natural plant debris into a mound and cover it with dirt. This is a little oversimplified however, and I would like to explain how to use and modify this concept to produce excellent garden yields with a fraction of the water used in a flat-bed style garden watered from above.

HugelKultur Using Hugelkultur for Flourishing Gardens and Effective Water Conservation.

My primary reason for first using hugelkultur in my own gardening was primarily to be able to conserve water in the very hot and dry drought years in central Texas. I found it to be almost as effective as a closed wicking bed in water conservation and an amazing way to create nutrient-dense soils that can last for years without needing much extra work once they are made.

B y S am Co ffma n

While water conservation may not be an issue depending on where you live, hugelkultur can still be a way to get better long-term high yields from your garden for several years without as much work as raised beds and other closed systems. This is because of the way in which nutrient cycling takes place in a well-built hugelkultur bed.

In regard to where you live and whether hugelkultur will work for you, there are a few considerations. First, a hugelkultur bed works best the first season you plant in it if you prepare it at least a few months ahead of time. This is because it takes a little time for the bed to both settle and “cure” as well as the nutrient cycling to be underway by the time you plant.

Another consideration is wind. If you live in an area that has a lot of wind during your growing season, you may want to build a wind block to prevent erosion of your hugelkultur garden topsoil.

The same erosion issue is true of heavy rains if they happen before your crops have grown enough to give you a root system.

Speaking of roots, the first year or two of a hugelkultur bed works better for above-ground harvests than root crops. This is because of the branches and plant debris deeper under the topsoil, such as tubers and roots, will get stuck in. This will make it harder to harvest without tearing up portions of the bed.

Photo by Markus Spiske

69

Photo by Kristina Paukshtite

So aside from the excellent water conservation and nutrient cycling that one can get from a hugelkultur bed, what are some other advantages? One is that it is easier to weed and harvest from a hilly garden bed, and if it is built correctly and one does not have to worry about walking on it – especially if one is trying to maintain a no-till garden. Another is that from year to year, if you build it correctly, you can continue to plant without having to worry as much about feeding the soil from the top. Finally, you can not only get a better effect from top-down drip irrigation, but you can also automate an underground watering system if you want to set up your hugelkultur bed similar to a wicking bed.

To make a hugelkultur bed there are several variations, but I will discuss my own personal tips that have worked best for me over the years.

First, although you can place your branches and natural debris directly on top of the ground, I prefer to dig a trench. My reason for this is that it gives more depth to use, and also that it integrates the soil health better into the earth around the bed, making for a better garden space even years later if you decide to unearth the mound and plant on flat ground. By adding a trench, the whole bed becomes some sort of slow nutrient feed to not just your garden on top of the mound, but to the surrounding area including the sub-surface.

Additionally, a trenched version will retain water better and not dry out. Building on top of the ground can also be more of an attraction to rodents who might start making their homes in the base logs of your mound. If you are trenched, there is more dirt

and protection. Finally, if you dig a trench, you will be able to re-use that dirt on the bottom layers of your mound. Or, if it is already really good soil, it can make up the top layers of dirt too.

I start with a trench that is anywhere from eight inches to one foot deep, about five feet wide and 10-15 feet long. Since I spent the last 15 years in the hill country of Texas, it wasn’t easy to dig very deep because of all the limestone. It is fine if you have to dig around rocks a little and your trench is not completely uniform in shape. Bear in mind that your mound can be anywhere from a few feet to even as high as six or seven feet. The higher you are making the mound, the steeper it will be, given the same width. Therefore, a higher mound usually needs to have a wider base. Note that having a high mound that is protected from wind and water erosion until fully planted can create different microclimates that produce more of a polyculture and healthy garden.

In fact, a high mound itself can serve as a good wind block for other parts of the garden.

Now it is time to layer your material. Starting from the base of your mound, in your trench, you generally want to put the largest pieces of wood that you have. These will take the longest to break down and will hold water at the base. It is very important you are not using green wood for any of your hugelkulture. Green wood will take much longer to break down and could arguably rob the soil around it of nitrogen for some time while it slowly decomposes. Ideally you want wood that is not only dried, but at least partially rotted. The more it is already aged and rotting, the better. Again, place

70

the thickest and largest pieces of rotting wood at the bottom and then slowly start to pile on thinner and smaller pieces of dried and/or rotting wood. Many folks say it is best to use hardwood logs at the bottom and then use softer woods as you layer up.

If you don’t have the luxury of selecting different hardness’s of old wood you might have available, do not worry about it. If you don’t have any larger old wood at all, then use what you have. Bark, smaller branches and clippings that have had time to dry out, dry leaves, dried grass clippings are all fine, but the larger the wood pieces can be at the bottom, the better.

composted matter from your compost pile. Burying vegetable scraps in or around a garden is sometimes referred to as “trench composting” and it works well if layered into the smaller wood pieces along with some dirt.

We have grown rabbits for food for years, and I like to use straw for their bedding. They like the straw as well because it’s easy to burrow in, nest with, etc. This rabbit straw mixed with rabbit manure has always made an excellent addition to my hügelkultur.

Add layers of thin or small woody debris mixed with dirt on top of the mound at least a few feet over the ground level. This sort of “lasagna” layering approach to creating the above-ground layers of your mound allows a lot of potential nutrients to cycle inside the mound over the years.

Have a hose and spray nozzle nearby to thoroughly spray down each of these layers as you go. Spray down the old logs filling your trench. You can even spray down the trench before you put the logs in. Spray down the smaller wood pieces after you layer them up at least a foot over the ground level. Walk on top of all the mound to help pack it down and spray it down some more. I like to make sure that at a minimum the lower 2/3 of the mound is soaking wet as that will retain the water best and help with decomposition over the next few months.

Spray everything down again with water. This is now a great time to add in some earthworms. Worms are colony insects and do best if you put at least a handful together in each location throughout the length of the mound. Earthworms can be bought online or at your local garden store by the hundreds or thousands. They can even be grown at home. 2000 worms are more than enough for the dimension of the kind of mound I am discussing here. They will do best on top of the pre-wetted hay or dried grass clippings, then covered in dirt and with plenty of fresh kitchen scraps, rabbit poop, or other good worm food nearby. If you don’t have or want to put worms in the mound, that is fine too, but they will greatly speed up the decomposition and nutrient cycling of your hugelkultur mound. Whether you added worms or not, this is now the time to add about four to six inches of dirt across the whole mound. If possible, use the dirt you dug out from the initial trench for the mound. Spray it all down with water again until it is soaked through.

As I work my way up the mound and I am at least a foot or two (depending on how high I want my mound to be, at least 50% - 60% of the final height) over the level of the ground, I like to add layers of old straw and some of the “greens” in composting along with the small dead wood pieces. This can include everything from kitchen vegetable scraps that you would put into your compost pile, to partially or fully

At this point the mound should be somewhere between two and three feet about the ground. This is where I like to mix up enough good topsoil to give myself at least three to four inches on top of the dirt we just put on to work with across the entire mound.

Of course, you can buy ready-made topsoil, but it can be on the expensive side. If you are composting already and have some finished compost, this is a great time to use it and it can be part of a much

Photo by Julia Volk

71

less expensive DIY mix for basic topsoil. I usually mix roughly equal parts finished compost (humus – whether store bought or homemade), sand (and/ or perlite), and peat moss to make my topsoil. I also throw in several handfuls of pea gravel per wheelbarrow load of topsoil to help with drainage.

The peat moss is more acidic in pH (which you may want, depending on what you are growing), and the pea gravel down in central Texas usually has limestone (alkaline) in it which helps balance out the pH a little.

moss and compost, but also good drainage thanks to the sand and pea gravel.

On the topic of drainage, a hugelkultur mound will usually have very good drainage, but as I mentioned we want the whole mound to settle for a while first before planting in it. Ideally, we want not only good drainage downward, but also some wicking upward of moisture. As the mound settles, one should have a nice balance of moisture retention in the woody parts of the mound, while also having some wicking effect upward with the wood, sand and even pea gravel. At the same time, it should have good moisture retention in its topsoil with the peat Photo by Sanghwan Kim

72

Once you are ready to plant in your hügelkultur mound you can either plant seeds or seedlings.

Using mulch material such as straw on top helps retain the moisture in the soil. If you are planting early in the year, it can also help protect your seeds or plants from colder temperatures. Adding in some logs, boards or even rocks or cinderblocks along the edges of the mound (where the mound hits level ground) will help mitigate any erosion, both while letting the mound settle as well as once it is planted.

This also gives you some footing to more easily reach the top and upper sides of a mound for planting and harvesting.

You can water your hugelkultur garden from the top, with drip irrigation, or even use a root feeder or buried hose or PVC pipe in the same manner as a wicking bed. The logs, wood, and other plant material in the lower half of the mound will retain moisture for much longer than the upper soil and will both water and nourish your plants’ roots.

73

R E A DE R S C HOI C E

The Poncho A Story of Grit in a Flash Flood - I did not get a degree or even take a course about what to do, if there were ever a sudden…READ MORE

The Importance of Taking Care of Your Feet The art of backpacking has entranced many survivalists as it can push any hiker to their max. Intending to hike just over 1,000 miles on...READ MORE

Consider the Sun Oven I have been using my sun oven for close to 10 years. It only weighs 22 pounds, has a carrying handle attached to it and.…READ MORE

74

75