Category: Traditional Skills/Fieldcraft

Letter Re: Lessons Learned from Hurricane Ike, by John in Texas

Jim, I really appreciate the people who share their lessons learned on SurvivalBlog.com, so I thought I would share my experiences and lessons learned from Hurricane Ike. Hurricane Ike hit Houston on Friday night September 13, 2008.  The hurricane was classified as a strong category 2 with maximum sustained winds of 110 MPH.  What was unusual about this hurricane was the large size of the storm.  Hurricane force winds extended 120 miles from the center.  Gas stations in our area ran out of gas the day before the storm (Thursday).  I waited in a very long line of cars only …


Advice on a One Man Git Kit, by J.S.I.

Growing up in a family which camped a lot, the family slang for what is now usually called the B.O.B. was “the Git Kit.”  As I am now an ossified old coot, I reserve the right to keep calling it just that. Something I have noticed in most written descriptions of BOBs/Git Kits is a generality of speech bordering on the uselessly vague.  No weights, no measures, no manufacturers, no clues!  It’s enough to give  Horace Kephart’s ghost a ripping case of hives. With that in mind, I dug into my gear with the goal of providing a more detailed, …


Letter Re: Learning from Living History Interpretors

Jim, D.R.W.’s essay titled “Learning from Living History Interpretors” describes a very clever and practical way to learn to do things as our ancestors did. He has hit on a great plan. In a TEOTWAWKI situation, we may not be starting from scratch–i.e. with only a rock and a sharp stick–but we will need to have skills that are foreign to almost all of us today. Those skills will restore a sense of community and division of labor. What better way to restore civilization, therefore, than to learn useful skills that will be beneficial to ourselves and others? Learning to …


Learning From Living History Interpreters, by D.R.W.

Many times I’ve read on these pages the prognostications of my fellow preppers as to the current direction and ultimate destination of our nation, government and way of life. Of these possible outcomes one of the most common themes that crisscross the apocalyptic visions of the future is the grid-down situation. The author’s often refer to the mid 1800s as a reference point to orient the reader to the reality of what life would be like without the precious electrical current that so directly (and alternately) influences our everyday life. Today we can read about the lives of people living …


Lessons from Eastern Siberia, by S.P.

Lessons from Eastern Siberia, by S.P. When I was 18, I spent six weeks in the Sakha Republic (or Yakutia) of Siberia. It is roughly three times the size of Alaska yet has a population of less than 1 million. With the Arctic Circle bordering the north of the Sakha Republic and the Lena River winding its way through it is a largely rural population of self sufficient farmers, fishermen, and reindeer herders. My time there was spent living in a soviet era apartment in either Yakutsk (its capital) or Moxogolloch (a small port town along the Lena River) or …


Two Letters Re: Food for Long-Term Survival

Hi Jim, Sheila’s article [“Food for Long-Term Survival”] contains a lot of good information, but seems to me to take the safety consideration of canning low acidic foods a little lightly. I’ve been canning for more than 30 years and even if you follow all of the rules, you occasionally get a bad jar of food. Low acid food, which include most vegetables, and all meats must be either pressure canned, or have their pH lowered (made more acid) below 4.6 by adding an acid like vinegar or citric acid. I’ve had good luck using a boiling water bath with …


Food for Long-Term Survival, by Sheila C.

Many food strategies have been discussed in preparation for a TEOTWAWKI scenario: beans, rice, MREs, coupon-based purchases and heirloom vegetable seeds, just to name a few. However, there are certain limitations to a food-storage-only strategy. MREs, for instance, are quite expensive and only provide one meal at a time. They would be great for an emergency G.O.O.D. situation, but not long-term sustainable when you are packing everything you have in the world on your back. And beans and rice are wonderful staple foods, but what do you do when you run out of them… or worst case scenario happens and …


Two Letters Re: Getting Myself Home to Bug Out

James, I want to disagree with anyone who might suggest that during a SHTF event that the highways and byways will suddenly be overcrowded with millions of sheeple trying to get home. I was on the road from work just after the second plane hit the second tower on 9/11. I was pretty convinced that this was an attack as soon as it happened. I had 20 miles in front of me on Highway 270 surrounding Saint Louis, and other highways and it was smooth sailing all the way. Most people were at work by then and while this was …


Running a TEOTWAWKI Training Weekend, by Skynome

First, a little bit of background. In August of 2009 a co-worker gave my husband the novel “Patriots“, he started to read it and told me that I would enjoy it, my response? “Pssh! It looks like more conspiracy theorist paranoia, no thank you” Then in November of 2009 my husband received “How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It” from a friend. I was bored, felt like reading, and saw it sitting on our coffee table so I started reading. A few hours later I put the finished book down and then immediately picked up …


Little TEOTWAWKI – A Children’s Book, by Benny in Florida

This may sound like a children’s book that the tells the story a young native American girl, but don’t be fooled. TEOTWAWKI is very scary for mature adults, but is terrifying to children. When we TEOTWAWKI discuss related issues at our house, my wife and I always make sure that we have a private conversation between just the two of us. After we have sorted things out we will discuss it with our children in an appropriate tone and with as little alarmism as possible. Last week one of our conversations started out with my wife asking “What will the …


Letter Re: Drive Your Own Sandpoint Well

Mr. Rawles, After reading the excellent article about drilling one’s own sandpoint well, I did a little more research, thinking this would be a perfect solution for backup water for our situation. I found a great resource with basically the same instructions, but he also includes diagrams. The best part, though are the instructions for a do-it-yourself “inertia pump” that can be used to draw water from wells deeper than a pitcher pump can handle. Thanks for all the info you share on your site, I’ve learned so much from you and your contributors. – Trucker Girl


Effective Partner and Small Team Tactics, by Officer Tackleberry

Please consider the following scenarios: You are sitting at a table in a local restaurant with your family, significant other, and/or friend when a person enters the business and starts shooting. You are shopping with your family at Christmas time and several subjects enter the mall and start shooting. The “Crunch” has happened and it’s now full-blown TEOTWAWKI.   Looters are present and have forced their way into one of the buildings on your homestead.  The 911 system doesn’t work and the area police force is non-existent.   It’s up to you and one other person from your homestead to find the …


Drive Your Own Sandpoint Well

Have you addressed the issue of water in your long term family preparedness plan, where will you get clean water when everything collapses? Have you considered installing a pitcher pump well at your home or retreat? The supplies and instructions are readily available and fairly inexpensive. It is a great project for your survival group or family. It requires no power to use and costs nothing to operate.  If you are a regular reader of SurvivalBlog and have a preparedness mind set then I’m sure your guns are well oiled, you have trained to use them effectively and you have …


Two Letters Re: Fire, The Flame of Life

Jim, TSK’s article on fire was well written; however, I would like to add a few items and clarify a few things for the novice fire starter. I teach fire starting as part of a larger course, and one of the things that I think needs to be stressed is the difference between flame and fire. When you strike a match, or use any of the other starting methods listed, all you have is a flame. In order to turn a flame into a fire you need to first build a proper fire bed, typically using any of the methods …


Fire, The Flame of Life, by T.S.K.

One of the basic requirements for survival in any situation for any sustained amount of time is fire.  Fire and the ability to make and maintain it can be the difference between life and death.  Having the proper materials and possessing the skills required to use them is something that needs to be practiced and learned before you are depending on them for your life. Why Fire is Important Depending on the situation fire serves many purposes.   In a short term survival situation (several hours to several days), fire provides both a physical and mental benefit.  Physically fire provides heat.  …