Who has had to actually survive?

Diomedes Industries

Diomedes Industries

Joined
Mar 19, 2007
Messages
7,443
We talk all the time about PSK's and the like. Who has actually had to lean on their kit or their knowledge and preparation and feel like either saved their lives - or perhaps saved their lives.

What was learned? What can you share?

TF
 
Twice, I have posted the stories on here before but I can do a short review. These do not include military missions which were often survival situations but they were expected to be so usually I was well prepared. However one time while deer hunting in the Black Hills, I slipped and fell of a ledge and injured my leg. It was almost dark and the temp was about zero. All I really had for gear was my knife and a Zippo lighter because i smoked at that time. I was able to start a fire and crawl under a big fallen tree for shelter. I had a rabbit for a meal and fashioned a cane the next morning and made it down hill to a fire road. Some other hunter came along and gave me a lift back to town.

Another time my son and I flipped a canoe in a storm and managed to drag the canoe to the shore and start fire and set under the over turned canoe. The water was very cold and the fire saved me for sure. That time I had the same old knife and still had the zippo. That night we were lucky and the storm let up just before dark. We made it back to the tent and some warm dry cloths. My son found a old bird nest in a hollow tree that worked very well to start a fire and is often a good source.

Several time while fishing remote lakes in Canada I have used my heavy drop cloth to stay dry in some wicked storms. I carry a Five gallon bucket which floats, in my boat at all times. I have the heavy drop cloths, fire starting stuff, instant tea and coffee and some dry soup mix with a couple tin cups to heat water. Also some heavy nylon line to hang the tarp on.

I have never had a case where I had my kits along and ended up NEEDing them. However that is a good thing.:D
 
I dont have a story of how a skillset saved me but I have a very embarrassing one where the lack of it almost cost me bigtime.

A long time ago I got caught in the southern appalachians in early march in an all day downpour with all cotton clothes, and no rain gear. The weather report had said sunny and mid 50* for a low. I took a sweatshirt and a long sleeve shirt and thought I was adaquately prepared. Well the weather turned. First it turned cold ,30*s , then it turned rain, then my situation turned to s@@t! Was forced to spend the night in the woods shivering and cursing and praying. When the sun finally started coming up (which i honestly wasnt sure Id live to see) I had to get back out in the rain to refind the trail and get back to my vehicle. I had to jog just to keep my temerature high enough to barely be able to think about what I was doing. Luckily I finally cut across the trail and hauled ass back to my truck!

I didnt have the knowledge back then of what to do to improve my situation, nor had I ever been shown that cotton loses all its insulating value when wet. I was just a stupid kid and didnt know any better or have anyone to show me. The clothes I was wearing kept me warm all the time so they must work?:thumbdn: We couldnt afford when I was growing up for me to be in the boyscouts or something like that, so I had to learn by trial and error. mostly error:D

Needless to say, I decided after that trip that if I was going to run around in the mountains at all times of year I had better damm well know what I was doing. Now when the weather turns on a dime in the mountains I smile and think back to that night, knowing Ill probably never be that miserable again.

Lesson learned! Proper clothes, proper shelter, map and compass skills, warm drink on a cheery fire with a built up heat reflector= Sitting comfortably gazing out at the beautiful rain, sipping pine needle tea, and drifting off to sleep warm relaxed and wondering "why do I ever go back". As opposed to shivering violently in a fetal position under some half-a$$ rock overhang praying for the sun to come up.
 
there was this time in tiajuana when i had too much jose curevo, i had kissed the worm and needed to get back home, fortunately my survival kit included a $20, which i gave to a cab driver and it got me home, i had trouble with the key so i put a large survival key fob on the key ring after that.

lessons learned never kiss a worm, and keep an extra 20 around.
;)

alex
 
Don't know that I would call it a survival story per se, but I got caught in a gale one fall while out in a canoe. Soaked to the bone and freezing, couldn't control the canoe because of the wind. Should have been paying better attention to the weather.

Ended up being stranded on the edge of the bay, hypothermic. Was able to start a fire (camp stove fuel is your friend), erect a tarp, and warm up. Later dragged the canoe along the shore line until I was able to find a road. The storm had flooded the drainage ditches and furrows in the fields, so I was able to drag the canoe and my gear up the side of the road. Caught a ride for me (and the canoe!) to where I had a friend pick me up. The guy who picked me up made fun of me for trying to canoe on roadways. Hell, I was too grateful for the ride to protest. He probably still tells the story.

Looking back it doesn't seem like much of an ordeal, but at the time, cold and wet and shaking uncontrollably, I thought I was in big trouble.

Another incident occurred once when a friend and I were caught in a storm in a small sailboat. Ended up beaching on a deserted island and weathering the storm out. Fortunately none of the rigging was damaged and the boat was good to go with fairer seas. If we hadn't found that island, it could have been dicey though (we had already capsized several times). Tough storm.

Now I'm in Wyoming without any water in sight. :D
 
I've been fortunate so far but about 30 years ago, a friend and I were hiking along the Snake River in Eastern Idaho and came across two shivering and wet rafters. They had lost their raft and all their supplies and were getting to that point where they were in trouble. My friend stayed with them, made tea or coffee, got his clothing and sleeping bag out of his pack and made them comfortable while I went back to get help.

It was a lesson learned that you'd better have something on your person when you're out in the boonies. These guys were prepared right up until they lost their gear and got wet on a cool spring morning.
 
I posted this here before but not in a few years.

In my late 20's I did not have much woods experience being more of an urbanite. I bought a plane ticket to Queen Charlotte Islands in Canada. I had this idea of camping out and learning how to carve totem poles. Well when I got there there was nothing but logging roads. There was a moving company who flew up on the same plane as I did. I ended up working for them for the next 3 weeks. I was also invited to live with some of them and stay in BC. The owner was really into hunting.

A few weeks after that we went on a hunting trip to 60 mile house. That morning he gave me a shotgun and said go hunting. At that time I did not know the difference between a buck and a doe. seriously! We had also been drinking a bit. I started following tracks. The next thing I knew it was evening and I was alone and completely lost. Oh and it was sleeting and windy early November.

I had an m5 army jacket, boots (the actual ones in my boot thread.) About 5 power bars, an cold steel SRK and of course the shot gun.

While the sleet was coming down hard and the winds picked up, I started yelling but to no avail. So I realized I was in deep sh!t and cold as hell. I looked around for shelter materials and found a decent size piece of corrugated steel that I leaned up against a tree. I needed more protection. I took my SRK and lopped off some pine branches. This is one reason why I support BIG knife carry. It took some serious umpf to get some of those branches, where as a machete could have built me a house. Then I cried some and started getting colder. I knew if I ate the power bars it would give me some energy. I ate them all and did some exercises to keep warm.

Finally, after 5-6 hours being out there, the winds died down. I fired off some shot gun shells and I heard a response shot. Instant peace. I began a B-line through the woods in pitch black darkness. I heard all kinds of animals running as I blindly ploughed through the woods, following the shots. As I walked out of the woods the owner said, "you are so lucky we were just about to leave."


This experience shaped my whole life and of course my survival theories. I know for me a big knife, fire steel and a survival blanket. would have made the most difference. But the other argument is--had I been a lot more wary of my surroundings I never would have gotten lost in the first place. I am much more cautious now!
 
Last edited:
Talfuchre said:
We talk all the time about PSK's and the like. Who has actually had to lean on their kit or their knowledge and preparation and feel like either saved their lives - or perhaps saved their lives.

What was learned? What can you share?

TF
Click to expand...

I have had to lean on my kit, knowledge and preperations many, many times professionally and personally. I really can't say about lifesaving, you don't know unless it happens, I have done several open water rescues that could have went really bad and I have spent a few unexpected nights in the woods that without a fire would have been touch and go and once gave aid to a very bad knife wound several miles from civilization. I won't even mention some of the things that have happened in my professional life, leave it to say that your kit and training is very important in my line of work.

I carry a loaded camelback hawg everyday and use something out of it everyday, if people aren't using their kits why do they carry them? Chris
 
G'day TF

Talfuchre said:
....

Who has actually had to lean on their kit or their knowledge and preparation and feel like either saved their lives - or perhaps saved their lives.

What was learned? What can you share?
Click to expand...

I can't say I've ever thought that my life was at risk when out in the bush.

I have had several occassions where knowledge and preparation enabled me to complete the trip, rather than pull the pin.

The last one was three years ago when a friend and I went for a weeks backpacking/hunting trip in my local area. Water would be an issue as this hilly area is part of a larger region that was still in drought after 2 years.

We had planned basing our campsite at the junction of what would normally be two permanent creeks.

A couple of hours of cross country hiking brought us to 2 bone dry streams.
Drypermanentcreek.jpg


Initially we found enough water for the night in a undercut cistern at the base of a rock wall.
Filteringwater.jpg


The next day, we located a game trail recently used by both Goats and Pigs.
Followingagametrail.jpg


Following for some distance we came across a spring that provided us with water for the week.
Mountainspring.jpg


Knowing how to find water enabled the trip to last the week, rather than shorten it due to lack of water :thumbup:.

The one piece of kit that was used is a 4 litre recycled wine cask bladder to hold the water.
Drinkingwater.jpg



Hope this helps


Kind regards
Mick
 
Last edited:
This is exactly why I don't carry a "kit" any longer.

Real life survival situations are not going to require the stuff in an altoids tin. Of course that doesn't mean you shouldn't carry one because they CAN help keep you more comfortable.

A knife, a good fire source with a backup and a means of getting some water are all I need.
 
I have never been is a survival situation myself. Three time though , someone else was, and I was able to return them home . Saved a man from drowning, just last year. One man fell down a hill, knocked himself out ,fractured his sinuses, it was ugly. Another guy had seizures deep in the woods. He was not breathing. I opened his airway, sat with him for a couple of hours then started the slow walk back.
 
PrimitiveMan said:
This is exactly why I don't carry a "kit" any longer.

Real life survival situations are not going to require the stuff in an altoids tin. Of course that doesn't mean you shouldn't carry one because they CAN help keep you more comfortable.

A knife, a good fire source with a backup and a means of getting some water are all I need.
Click to expand...

What do you do if you loose a button or rip your clothes, cut your finger, get the trots or a headache? What if it blows up a storm?

There are many instances where you will survive with nothing but a knife, fire and water. In other instances a small kit can make it much more bearable, or make the difference in making it or not. Just a basic FAK, a contractor plastic bag and some cordage takes up very little space and can be worth their weight in gold. Chris
 
If I lose a button, it isn't a survival situation.

I've lived through "the trots and a headache" without medicine

And if a storm blows up, I am going to hunker down under a tree with a fire or bust some branches off a tree to make a shelter and get a fire going.

As I said, a kit can make things more comfortable, but I got to the point where I could not imagine them making the diffrerence between me coming back or ending up as bleached bones.

Kits certainly have their use and I am not trying to dissuade anyone from carrying one.
 
PrimitiveMan said:
If I lose a button, it isn't a survival situation.

I've lived through "the trots and a headache" without medicine

And if a storm blows up, I am going to hunker down under a tree with a fire or bust some branches off a tree to make a shelter and get a fire going.

As I said, a kit can make things more comfortable, but I got to the point where I could not imagine them making the diffrerence between me coming back or ending up as bleached bones.

Kits certainly have their use and I am not trying to dissuade anyone from carrying one.
Click to expand...

How I wish I was as good as you, explosive diarrhea 10 miles from the trailhead, life or death, maybe.

Lopping branches for a shelter and getting a fire going with a broken arm or leg, very tough, climbing into a bag not so much.

Making a shelter with no cordage, doable..... 34 degrees, mildly hypothermic, in a sideways rain, not so much fun anymore, life or death? maybe.

Bad cut, again, 10 miles from the trailhead, decent FAK probably OK. No FAK still OK but tourniquets tend to cause the loss of the limb, probably not life or death but I would like to hold on to my extremities.

I totally agree about the button and the headache.

Skills and training can not be replaced with technology..period. However primitive man had a much lower survival rate than modern man, I don't think that is because of skills alone. ;) :D Chris
 
Last edited:
RB,

I carry other stuff depending on my situation. If I am going to overnight I will have a sleeping bag, food, and some gear with me.

I do carry 550 cord all the time and replace all my boot laces with it. Just don't see a fishing kit and immodium saving me.

I am certainly not as skilled as many here and I am definitely limited by my outdoor exposure being on the eastern side of the U.S. I have NO desert or high mountain (Rockies) experience.

I have been out solo off trail on many occaisions and have done a good portion of the AT and some other established trails. I certainly have been in some tough scenarios, but I wouldn't necessarily call them life threatening. I have been in a survival situation outdoors, but a kit would have done me little good. Those experiences have kind of molded my preferences to go lighter and more basic for my toolset. I used to carry an extensive kit, but little by little, removed those things I decided I would never use. Eventually, all it had was a compass and waterproof matches in it.

Believe me, If I went out to the Rockies to head out in the big woods, I am going to listen to every piece of advice given by those that do it regularly in the area.

I am figuring this, and myself out as I go along just like the rest of the folks here. So, while I think I am pretty skilled, I don't consider myself an "Expert"
 
PrimitiveMan said:
RB,

I carry other stuff depending on my situation. If I am going to overnight I will have a sleeping bag, food, and some gear with me.

I do carry 550 cord all the time and replace all my boot laces with it. Just don't see a fishing kit and immodium saving me.

I am certainly not as skilled as many here and I am definitely limited by my outdoor exposure being on the eastern side of the U.S. I have NO desert or high mountain (Rockies) experience.

I have been out solo off trail on many occaisions and have done a good portion of the AT and some other established trails. I certainly have been in some tough scenarios, but I wouldn't necessarily call them life threatening. I have been in a survival situation outdoors, but a kit would have done me little good. Those experiences have kind of molded my preferences to go lighter and more basic for my toolset. I used to carry an extensive kit, but little by little, removed those things I decided I would never use. Eventually, all it had was a compass and waterproof matches in it.

Believe me, If I went out to the Rockies to head out in the big woods, I am going to listen to every piece of advice given by those that do it regularly in the area.

I am figuring this, and myself out as I go along just like the rest of the folks here. So, while I think I am pretty skilled, I don't consider myself an "Expert"
Click to expand...


This post makes more sense, I have went through the same kit evolution and go much lighter now days myself, however I still carry a kit, virtually everywhere. A kit might be as simple as the butterfly bandages, bandaids and needle and floss I carry in my billfold. Or as complex as the things I carry on a 5 day pack trip. Most of the things in my kit are comfort items I agree, the human animal can suffer through almost anything, but why if you don't have too.

Trapping skills, and fishing skills are loads of fun and I like to practice them, whether or not they are true survival skills is debatable. Water, shelter/warmth, and health are not debatable and I like to carry a means for all three as quickly as possible, ie a "kit".

I spent some time in Cairo and ate some food from a street vender, if I was in the backcountry without medicine I am not sure I would have made it. Sometimes it's the simple stuff that gets you. Chris
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top