Shelter

[zach225a]

hey ya what is you favorite shelter if you only had the woods to provide

 

[Rick Marchand]

A wiki-up..... hands down....

 

[RescueRiley]

I'd have to agree with Magnusse on that.. but more often than not I make a debris hut... although you need allot more debris than you'd think.

 

[Rockywolf]

I'm with John, I am in process of building a debris hut-not easy in winter!

 

[siguy]

this past weekend was the first time i slept in a primitive shelter...it was something like the wikiup that magnussen showed.

it was large, big enough to comfortably house 6 people at night. if i were to build my own, it would look alot like a debris hut.

i saw a neat shelter that i would like to try sometime...it was basically a debris hut, but instead of debris a thick layer of snow was used. looked nice.

most of the time in the woods i use a poncho though.

 

[benchmadebob]

I was searching for wiki up shelters and i found this http://www.lat-long.com/ShowDetail-50385-Oregon-Wickiup_Shelter.html

 

[NB16]

Because of the fact I can build a Debris hut with no tools and can be warm without a fire makes it my favorite..such as here.
Which i built a while ago

[/IMG]
However you are not always able to build a debris hut dues to environmental factors, such as lasck of Debris.
So a Wikkiup is my second choice due to this fact. Plus a Wikkiup is a little more comfortable than a Debris hut...(in my opinion)

 

[Rick Marchand]

Sweet hut...............

 

[KuRUpTD]

Great job on the hut NB16...anymore pics of it ?

 

[Sharp Eye]

Here is an article on 7 types of primitive shelters that I found interesting

 

[NB16]

Great job on the hut NB16...anymore pics of it ?

yep..The bedding on the interior was not done yet...at the end it was almost 7 inches off the ground while I was laying on top of it.

Before more insulation and before the front overhang/tunnel was built

A side View

It took maybe 4 and half hours to build. I use no knife only my bare hands..which is why I believe the debris hut is best..but ther are more comfortable shelters

 

[Gautier]

I was searching for wiki up shelters and i found this http://www.lat-long.com/ShowDetail-50385-Oregon-Wickiup_Shelter.html

There's one down here too, and a couple roads and canyons with similar names.

http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&q=wickiup arizona&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wl

As for the original question it mostly depends on the time of the year out here. Not a lot of materials to work with to begin with, so exploiting natural shelter is what I look for, especially in the winter. Plenty of caves and abandoned mines out here to keep me warm and dry in the winter, and keep the sun off in the summer.
If for some reason I didn't have my poncho in the summer, I'd go with a simple lean-to.


Gautier

 

[troutfisher13111]

I think for me, in a real survival situation, my shelter would be me bundled up in a heatsheet, next to a fire for the night.

But, to answer the original question, there are so many up rooted trees around here. I think I would build a lean-to type wall on each side of one and crawl in from the front under the tree trunk. The wall would be built with tree branches and some kind of conifer branch thrown over top.

 

[Rick Marchand]

I think for me, in a real survival situation, my shelter would be me bundled up in a heatsheet, next to a fire for the night.

That's kind of a no-no T-fisher..... the heatsheat would actually be insulating you from the benefits of the fire. better to find a way to "hood" it around you keeping it a few inches away for air circulation.... the radiant heat from the fire would circle around behind you.... very effective.

I learned this while trying keep from freezing to death beside a fire in -40deg weather with a constant snowfall. It was with a wool blanket... I sat close and propped it up behind me with a couple of shoulder high sticks held up with rocks. I actually got some sleep in, that night.

I suppose a strong wind would make that technique very difficult.

Rick


Ps.... Another problem with heatsheets is that they accumulate condensation on the inside. While they keep you warm they are also creating adamp "micro-environment" .... If you emerge from one into the cold you'll be in trouble as the moisture accumulated in your clothing begins to rapidly cool. I would use one if I was immobile from an injury ... other than that, I wouldn't "wrap up" in one unless I absolutely needed to.

 

[troutfisher13111]

Yeah, your right. I was not too specific in my post. Thanks

 

[Don Rearic]

I have an AMK Heat Sheet myself and I don't know how fire-retardant they are, but you surely won't catch yourself on fire if you have a wool blanky unless you actually roll in the fire.