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1. Another excellent installment. I have often wondered about the entire “eating bugs and bark to survive” crowd, and if the calories expended acquiring them where in fact a net loss upon consumption. Better than starvation, certainly, but to me, just another reminder that only a naive fool would consider bugging out to the woods la viable option.

   Thank you for a great series of articles!

   1. Agreed. The idea is lunacy. The majority of people today are certainly a far cry from those who adventured into the woods on their own in the 18th and early 19th centuries. Even then they did so with tools, supplies, and the knowledge of how to use them to great effect. They also had the luxury of time and preparation before knowingly stepped into great danger of isolation and a high mortality rate.

      Thank you for reading!

2. 1) I concur — great set of articles.
   Re the minnows, did the instructors talk about fish traps — woven nets, baskets, stone weirs,etc?

   2) Although the fish probably would not have much calories. May spend more calories acquiring them than what you get back from eating them.

   3) It seems like you were in a difficult location for foraging — on a mountain. Unfortunately, my impression from SERE manuals is that 3/4ths up the side of a mountain is where an evader trying to escape an enemy wants to be. Which kinda limits the opportunities for poaching.

   4) Re the mule deer, a silenced 22 aimed for a brain shot may kill them at less than 40? yards.
   Chiappa has a version of the old Air Force survival rifles that is chambered for 22 LR or 22 magnum (vice the AF’s 22 hornet) and is tapped for a silencer. Youtube has a demo of it with silencer — search for “chiappa little badger tiffany”

   5) Don’t know how you would smuggle it past the instructors, however. Maybe infiltrate Bridgeport a week or two before the course and bury it somewhere. heh heh It would blow the instructors’ minds to discover a student roasting a mule deer on a big spit.

   1. We did go over fishing traps, as far as I know no one wove any but I know several attempted to build ‘funnel traps’ of the sort where you apply stick and/or rock to create a pull for fish to swim into but have a hard time swimming out. I don’t know of any success in this matter.

      A .22 would have been fantastic. I made it within 20 yards of the Mule Deer and a shot with a .22 would certainly have been taken had it been available. A great boon for any food acquiring.

      Never leave home without a gun!

3. Here is a question I have always wanted to ask a military professional. What is the opinion on having a heavy smoker in your squad? I am very sensitive to smoke and can often smell a smoker several yards away. Not good for someone hiding in the bushes. Some are so bad that they leave a scent trail for a period of time. Also, what about a smoker lighting up at night? Logic may dictate actions but I’m not confident that all smokers operate with logic. I guess I would just like to know how this subject is covered in training.

   1. I’m not sure about the other branches, but in the Marine Corps smoking is not very common. Regulations forbid you to do much of anything with a cigarette in your hand. Such as walking, talking to superiors, being inside doors, etc.

      Dip is all the rage now. You can do all of the above with a dip in your mouth. You have to be careful what bottles you drink out of…. or canteens for that matter.

      Most marines I know of will dip if they can’t smoke.

      There is still some smell, especially with all the fruity flavors they have, but unless someone comes in close to you there won’t be a noticeable stench.

      Heck, some guys even do PT with a dip in. It’s bragging rights.

      But to go back to your original question, during School of Infantry we do go over smoking and detection. It’s part of our Combat Hunter training.

      1. Thanks for responding. I have had that on my mind for years. As with the other readers I have enjoyed hearing about your training. Thank you for your service.

4. “Planning for” failure should be the name of the course. I strongly believe the vast majority of those rugged individual loners will die alone. If the individuals took stock of the diversity of talent in the group taking the course and then worked together as a group they would greatly improve their survivability. Two men hunting in a team can be much more effective. There is an old saying that “two can get something done three times faster than one”. This is a very critical principle when seeking water, nutrition and shelter in a crisis survival situation. This is true with families as well. For example; several families can man a 24 hour patrol in their neighborhood while an individual family cannot. Yes it is time to train and stock up but don’t neglect teaming up. For those who have faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, teaming up with like minded brethren is critical. Seeking the wisdom and protection of God when dealing with a SHTF situation is a foundational preparation that should be at the top of your list of preps. Just my humble opinion.

   1. The next section will discuss our Group Survival portion of the training.

      It would have made life easier… if the Instructors hadn’t made life harder.

      But agreed.

5. One thing survival people need to learn is the basic plant species. If there are any wildlife of any type, they are eating some type of plant, from the smallest to the largest animals. Of those plant types, some should be edible and palatable. A “weed” to us is a wild potato to native Alaskans and tasty. A “weed” to the uninformed can be a plant tastier than lettuce to those who know better. Get an “edible plant” book for your area and then become proficient. How did the indigenous people survive in your area? I purchased one for my area. As a “raised bed” gardening area was cleaned out for spring planting, we found that there were 5 edible plants already growing there that were native to our area.

6. I have been really enjoying this piece every day and find myself looking forward to it. I want to know more, but don’t want it to end.

7. Loving the series, E.T. Thanks!

   On a side note to admin: I read this site almost every day, but I still manage to miss things some times. I had to scroll back aways to find part 1 of this article. I’ve always wondered, for multi-part articles: Is it hard to put a link under the title? Like, say, after the title of this one, two links saying, “Pt. 1” and “Pt. 2?” Could be difficult; I’m clueless. Thanks as always.

   1. Duh, just noticed after reading part 5, you have links at the bottom of the article. Don’t know if you just added them, but thanks!

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