Practical Survival Radio Communications – Part 1, by G.H.

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Like many families, the miles between me and my brothers are many. Fortunately, we hold a conference call every Wednesday evening to stay in touch. We have been doing this for nearly a decade. Realizing how important communications are to all of us, and from my role as the Logistics Chief for our County during major emergencies, I accepted the assignment of finding communication tools that will ensure communications no matter what. It did not take long to realize that radio communication works when all others fail. I obtained my amateur radio license and have the honor of recognition by the American Radio Relay League for public service in the management of emergency communications.

Good communications are important in day-to-day routine lives and may become critical during stressful situations or extreme emergencies. During normal day-to-day situations, traditional communications methods such as telephone, texting and e-mail work flawlessly. However, minor incidents that occur in an area without cellular service or major events that knock out electricity and the internet require different tools for communications. In today’s world, there is no reason to lack the ability to communicate and a radio that can transmit and receive works when all else fails.

There are many published articles outlining the benefits and importance of amateur radio for survival purposes and this is not another one. While this article may introduce concepts that will spur unlicensed readers to obtain a radio license, it intends to provide concepts and tools any radio operator should use regularly to remain proficient in radio communications when an emergency does develop.
During Hurricane Michael, my family anxiously awaited news from my brother living directly in the path of the terrible storm and for more than four days, we did not know if he was alive or dead. Cellular services were down, texts did not go through and he was not able to get out to the highway to find an area where services worked. Continue reading“Practical Survival Radio Communications – Part 1, by G.H.”

Letter: Thoughts From a Richmond 2A Rally Attendee

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As we all now know, the 2A rally in Richmond, Virginia on January 20, 2020 to protest the tyrannical gun laws proposed and/or passed by Governor Ralph Northam and his Democrat cronies, proved uneventful. This not only shows that gun owners are some of the most peaceful and law-abiding people in the country, but also that the hysteria drummed up in the weeks preceding the event was just that, hysteria. In fact, if I had a dollar for every time I’ve heard “Civil War 2”, “It’s a trap”, “buffalo jump”, “false flag”, “Boogaloo”, or dozens of other terms designed to incite trepidation in members of the preparedness community, I could be writing this from the comfort of my own survival island.

In what will surely be spun as a public relations win for the tyrannical Left, there was not an ANTIFA goon or counter-protestor in sight to justify the cries of Richmond being a modern-day Lexington and Concord.

Much like other events that promised to be flashpoints of civil unrest, relentless tales of horrific outcomes at Richmond failed to play out, leaving gun owners and the preparedness minded to defend ourselves from misguided beliefs that we suffer paranoid delusions concerning the collapse of civilized society and rule of law.

Standing in stark contrast to the peaceful gathering I witnessed, almost every preparedness-themed web site I visited during the lead-up to this event used hypothetical extremes in order to stoke the embers of what is clearly a flailing “doom porn” industry– with SurvivalBlog being one of very few exceptions. Everyone from a former Navy SEAL to your garden-variety prepper used this event to promote their books, YouTube channel, or web sites in order to garner clicks and profit off the fear of others.

One thing that became clear to me in the hours following the rally is that despite what may have been their original intent, many survival-based authors and vloggers have morphed into preachers of a form of schadenfreude. Doubling down on years of failed predictions, I’ve read their responses belittling those who dared question their theories about Richmond or declined a seat on the doom train. Where once there was a modest desire to help the masses prepare in a reasonable and measured fashion, now it seems as if their only redeeming moment would be to yell those immortal words, “I TOLD YOU SO!” while standing atop a mountain of spent shell casings and MREs as the rest of the world burns around them.

Which leads me to the point of this letter: At what point do we, the rational and critical thinking members of the preparedness community, stop allowing those motivated by personal gain and notoriety to be the spokespeople for our movement? When do we stop clicking on the “Prepare for WW3!”, “Economic Collapse This Year!”, “Civil War 2 Any Day Now!” videos and articles that financially contribute to this over-the-top fearmongering?

It is my opinion that this type of notoriety only distracts from the true purpose of the preparedness mindset. It also deters new members who could potentially add to our strength as a group, but detest the thought of living in what they have been convinced is a near-constant state of fear and cynicism.

For now, the reality in Virginia is that Democrats will continue their push to disarm law-abiding citizens and any legislation they pass will be countered with lawsuits that could take years to settle in court. By all means, we should continue to prepare for the worst. Those unforeseen moments when we must defend our rights and our way of life from the forces of evil and tyrants, not to mention local or global catastrophes, always lurk in the shadows. Surely, there are enough real threats in our world that we don’t have to base our reasons for preparing on outlandish prophecies of doom and promote those that profit from them.  – D.D. in Virginia

SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt

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This weekly column features news stories and event announcements from around the American Redoubt region. (Idaho, Montana, eastern Oregon, eastern Washington, and Wyoming.) Much of the region is also more commonly known as The Inland Northwest. We also mention companies of interest to preppers and survivalists that are located in the American Redoubt region. Today, we focus on Washington State Representative Matt Shea. (See the Eastern Washington section.)

Idaho

Committee passes rules affecting hunting, trapping

o o o

‘Huge undertaking’: Highway 21 reopens after ITD clears snow from road north of Idaho City

o o o

Crews rescue doe that fell through ice at Hauser Lake

Continue reading“SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

2

“The principle that the majority have a right to rule the minority, practically resolves all government into a mere contest between two bodies of men, as to which of them shall be masters, and which of them slaves; a contest, that-however bloody-can, in the nature of things, never be finally closed, so long as man refuses to be a slave.” – Lysander Spooner

Preparedness Notes for Monday — January 20, 2020

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Today is also the birthday of Congressman Richard Henry Lee (1732–1794)

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On January 20, 1981, 52 American hostages were released by the Iranian government, following 444 days of captivity, to be reunited with their families. Not coincidentally, Ronald Reagan was sworn in is President, the same day.

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I just heard about a new retreat property listing, over at SurvivalRealty.com: A remote lakeside house, at the very eastern tip of Maine. It is only about two miles to the Canadian border or to the Atlantic ocean.

CRKT Clever Girl, by Pat Cascio

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I can’t keep up with all the CRKT new knife releases that they come out with. Many come out mid-year, and I can’t spend all my time on the ‘net, searching all the web sites, that have products our that might interest SurvivalBlog readers. So, I was surprised when I heard from the CRKT public relations guy who told me about the new Clever Girl folder. This knife really isn’t aimed at the female market, not that a lot of our readers, who are ladies, wouldn’t love this folder…its massive and it will sure get the job done.

Most readers will know that when it comes to folding knives, I like the blade to be between 3.5 inches and 4 inches in length. And, more often than not, a blade on a folder that is 3.75-inches just seems about perfect in my hand for some reason. I’ve been testing and writing about knives for 27 years now. And needless to say, since I got my first knife, when I was about  five years old, I’ve had an interest in many types of knives.

I’m from a time, back in the 1950s, and even into the 1960s, when it was common for school age kids to carry a knife and not for self-defense…we often played games, like throwing a knife – not smart when it’s a folder – they broke – or played Mumbly Peg. And, teachers didn’t think anything of it, when you were on the playground, showing one of your buddies your new folder that you’ve been carrying. How things have changed!  Many states, including my state of Oregon, forbid school aged kids to carry a “weapon” like a knife – and it calls for an automatic one year expulsion if you are caught. Common sense has gone out the window.

My wife’s family runs a 2,000-acre ranch here in Oregon, and like most farm and ranch kids, they carry a folding knife because they actually need it every day for some chores. Now, those kids have to remember to remove a folding knife from their pocket or belt, before going into school. There are still many common sense teachers and school administrators these days, who recognize that farm/ranch kids need a knife, and if “caught” with it, simply confiscate the blade for the day and tell the student to not bring it to school again.Continue reading“CRKT Clever Girl, by Pat Cascio”

Recipe of the Week: Hungarian Goulash

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This week’s recipe is for Hungarian Goulash. It is a recipe excerpted from the scarce book Nine Hundred Successful Recipes, by Lulu Thompson Silvernail. This book, from my own book collection, was published in 1923. A recent change in U.S. copyright law now puts most pre-1925 books in the public domain.

Lulu Thompson Silvernail’s emphasis in this book was recipes that included hard red winter wheat flour. This entire recipe book is just part of the extensive bonus content that is included in this year’s SurvivalBlog archive waterproof USB stick. The USB  sticks are now available for pre-ordering.

Ingredients

1 Ib. beef or mutton
1 medlum sized onion
1 small green pepper
1/4 cup bacon grease [Other oils could be substituted, to suit modern tastes]
1 cup boiling water
8 large size diced potatoes
1 cup rich [whole] milk
1/2 teaspoon paprika
2 teaspoons salt
Dash of cayenne pepper
1/8 teaspoon white pepper

Directions

Remove tough portions of meat and cut in cubes the size of walnuts.

Place bacon grease, chopped onion and pepper in skillet and simmer for 10 minutes, keeping the skillet covered.

Add the meat to onion and pepper mixture and simmer and brown in skillet for at least 15 minutes, leaving skillet uncovered.

When brown, add the cup of boiling water and the diced potatoes. Cover the skillet and let cook till potatoes are tender, but not too soft.

Last, add the milk, salt, paprika and pepper.

SERVING

Serve hot.

—

Do you have a favorite recipe that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers? In this weekly recipe column we place emphasis on recipes that use long term storage foods, recipes for wild game, dutch oven and slow cooker recipes, and any that use home garden produce. If you have any favorite recipes, then please send them via e-mail. Thanks!

Economics & Investing For Preppers

Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. We also cover hedges, derivatives, and obscura. Most of these items are from the “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective of SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor, JWR. Today, we look at the recent spike in spot palladium. (See the Precious Metals section.)

Precious Metals:

Lyn Alden: Silver Price Forecast: Most Likely A Strong Decade Ahead

o  o  o

Palladium Hits New Record; Gold’s Gains Continue to Chip Away. Here is a pericope:

“Spot palladium was up $53.36, or 2.5%, at $2,185.63 per ounce at 3:00 PM ET (20:00 GMT). It earlier hit an all-time high of $2,193.

Palladium futures settled up $44.20, or 2.2%, at $2,123.30, after touching a record high of $2,126.55 earlier.

Palladium, the commodities star of 2019 with a 55% gain, is once again leading the pack, with a return of nearly 11% year to date.

An ingredient for cleaner emissions and better performance from gasoline-powered engines, palladium has been boosted again in the past two weeks by a supply squeeze in major producing countries South Africa and Russia.”

o  o  o

Goldman Says Gold Is A Better Hedge Than Oil

Economy & Finance:

At Zero Hedge: US Consumer Prices Accelerate At Fastest Since Oct 2018

o  o  o

Another at Zero Hedge: Repo Shrinkage Begins In February: That’s When Fed Cuts Each Term Repo By $5 Billion

o  o  o

This was mentioned by the McAlvany Intelligence Advisor: $1,163,090,000,000: Federal Spending Sets Record Through December. This CNSNews article begins:

“The federal government spent a record $1,163,090,000,000 in the first three months of fiscal 2020 (October through December), according to the Monthly Treasury Statement released Monday afternoon.

That was up $48,008,200,000 from the $1,115,081,800,000 (in constant December 2019 dollars) that the federal government spent in the first three months of fiscal 2019.

o  o  o

At Wolf Street: Fed Pays $35 Billion to Banks, $6 Billion to Reverse-Repo Counterparties in Interest for 2019, Remits $55 billion to US Treasury

o  o  o

Treasury to start issuing 20-year bonds to fund ballooning deficit

Commodities:

What to Watch for in Commodities in 2020

o  o  o

OilPrice News reports: Bad News For Oil: Refinery Profits Are Sliding

Hedge Funds:

Hedge Funds Could Make One Potential Fed Repo-Market Fix Hard to Stomach

o  o  o

Fed Considering Lending Cash Directly To Hedge Funds In Next Repo Market Crisis

Forex & Cryptos:

In The WSJ: U.S. Drops China’s Currency Manipulator Label Ahead of Trade Deal

o  o  o

Stop Hunting With the Big Forex Players

o  o  o

Bill to Exempt Small Crypto Transactions From Taxes Returns to US Congress

o  o  o

Jameson Lopp: What are the Key Properties of Bitcoin?

o  o  o

Sorry Bulls, Bitcoin Isn’t Going Parabolic Just Yet: Here’s Why

Tangibles Investing:

Millennials, priced out of homes locally, shop for investment properties online

o  o  o

Finally Legal: Cars You Can Bring to the U.S. in 2020. JWR’s Comment: It is unfortunate that most Land Rover Defenders are still considered “Gray Market.” Clearly, clearly, we are governed too much, in every aspect of our lives, folks!

Provisos:

SurvivalBlog and its Editors are not paid investment counselors or advisers. Please see our Provisos page for our detailed disclaimers.

News Tips:

Please send your economics and investing news tips to JWR. (Either via e-mail of via our Contact form.) These are often especially relevant, because they come from folks who closely watch specific markets. If you spot any news that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers, then please send it in. News from local news outlets that is missed by the news wire services is especially appreciated. And it need not be only about commodities and precious metals. Thanks!

Preparedness Notes for Sunday — January 19, 2020

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January 19th is the birthday of General Robert E. Lee.

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This is also is the birthday of the late Carla Emery (born 1939, died October 11, 2005). She is well known in self-sufficiency circles as the author of The Encyclopedia of Country Living. (This book was re-released in a 40th Anniversary edition.)

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 86 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The more than $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A $3,000 gift certificate towards a Sol-Ark Solar Generator from veteran-owned Portable Solar LLC. The only EMP Hardened Solar Generator System available to the public.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any one, two, or three day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
  4. DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper. These have hammer forged, chrome-lined barrels and a hard case, to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel. This can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools. It also provides a compact carry capability in a hard case or in 3-day pack (an $1,100 value),
  5. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  6. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  7. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.

Second Prize:

  1. A gift certificate from Quantum Harvest LLC (up to a $2,200 value) good for 12% off the purchase of any of their sun-tracking models, and 10% off the purchase price of any of their other models.
  2. A Front Sight Lifetime Diamond Membership, providing lifetime free training at any Front Sight Nevada course, with no limit on repeating classes. This prize is courtesy of a SurvivalBlog reader who prefers to be anonymous.
  3. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  4. A $300 purchase credit for any of the products from EMPShield.com
  5. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  6. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  7. An assortment of products along with a one hour consultation on health and wellness from Pruitt’s Tree Resin (a $265 value).

Third Prize:

  1. Good2GoCo.com is providing a $400 purchase credit at regular prices for the prize winner’s choice of either Wise Foods or Augason long term storage foods, in stackable buckets.
  2. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  3. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  4. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  5. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  6. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances.

Round 86 ends on January 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Cold Weather Considerations – Part 6, by JM

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Editor’s Note: This is the concluding installment in this article series.

Firearms

No article on prepping would be complete without some discussion on firearms, and using them in winter conditions can present some unique challenges. Firearms are precision machines made from metals and polymers, and cold weather can have some big impacts. The materials themselves can become brittle at extremely low temperatures, so you should avoid sudden sharp impacts if possible. Shooting a firearm can heat up the barrel and other parts pretty quickly and cold temperatures can cool them back down rapidly, which can cause weaknesses in the materials, so you should start off with a slower rate of fire if possible so it warms up more slowly.

The more complex the firearm the more likely it is that it will be impacted by winter conditions. Break-action and bolt-action guns are pretty simple and tend to be reliable under any conditions; lever-action and pump-action guns are slightly more complex but tend to be relatively easy to clear if a problem does occur. Semi-automatic and automatic firearms are precision instruments with tight tolerances, and are the most likely to be impacted by winter conditions. Revolvers tend to be a unique case – I’ve talked to some people that have never had a problem with them in winter conditions, and others that have had jams and freeze-ups frequently. Whatever you plan on using, make sure you practice all aspects of firing and manipulation in cold, wet and snowy conditions.

Any liquid including lubricants can freeze up in a firearm and cause problems. Many common lubricants start to gum up around 0°F, which can cause jams and other malfunctions. You should ensure that every part of your weapon is dry of lubricant by disassembling it and wiping it down before using it in winter conditions, and switch to a low-temperature lubricant like Moly Coat, Slip 2000 or Break Free CLP in the winter. Water can also cause problems, especially with fine blowing snow that can get into everything and melt, then freeze up.

There’s a phenomenon known as ‘spindrift’ snow that consists of very fine snow particles being blown around by wind vortices, and it can get into the tiniest cracks. You should seal up any openings on your firearms including closing dust and optics covers, and cover the end of the barrel using a condom or electrical tape. Don’t forget to cover any openings in muzzle brakes, flash suppressors, etc. as well as the end or the barrel. A note from a friend of mine on using condoms – if you plan on using them to cover the end of your barrel, make sure you tell your spouse about them before they find them in your stash.Continue reading“Cold Weather Considerations – Part 6, by JM”

The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods

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SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods— a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from “JWR”. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. Today, we look at a new SARS-like virus contagion.

Geographic Evidence that Gun Deaths are Cultural

Regular link contributor H.L. sent us this fascinating set of maps, over that Jim Quinn’s blog: Geographic Evidence that Gun Deaths are Cultural. JWR’s Comment:  Beware, whenever you see the term “gun deaths” used by mass media news sources!

How Scalia Botched Heller

How Scalia Botched Heller and Let the Left Undermine the 2nd Amendment. A quote:

“Perhaps the most grievous error Scalia committed was his failure to overturn the Supreme Court’s decision in U.S. v. Miller, the only prior case dealing with the individual right to possess a gun.  Miller, decided in 1939, was a flawed precedent.  It upheld the National Firearms Act of 1934, which placed severe restrictions and punitive taxes upon machine guns, suppressors, short-barreled rifles and shotguns, and destructive devices “in interstate commerce.”  The Miller court ruled that these items were not “in common use” by the militia, thus not protected for individual ownership.”

SARS-Like Virus Spreads Outside China

Mystery SARS-Like Virus Spreads as First Confirmed Case Emerges Outside China. Here is the article’s introduction:

“A new virus from the same family as the deadly SARS disease has spread beyond China’s borders for the first time with a case emerging in Thailand, UN and Thai officials said on Monday.

Thai doctors diagnosed a Chinese traveller with mild pneumonia on January 8 later confirmed to have been caused by the so-called novel coronavirus – which has already given rise to 41 pneumonia-like cases and one death in China.

The outbreak has caused alarm because of the link with SARS (Sudden Acute Respiratory Syndrome), which killed 349 people in mainland China and another 299 in Hong Kong in 2002-2003.”

Continue reading“The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

1

“Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to you, to me indeed is not grievous, but for you it is safe.

Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision.

For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.

Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh, I more:

Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee;

Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.

But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ.

Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,

And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:

That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;

If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.

Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus.

Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,

I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you.” – Philippians 3:1-15 (KJV)

Preparedness Notes for Saturday — January 18, 2020

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Kevin Costner, who starred in Open Range, was born on this day in 1955.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 86 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The more than $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A $3,000 gift certificate towards a Sol-Ark Solar Generator from veteran-owned Portable Solar LLC. The only EMP Hardened Solar Generator System available to the public.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any one, two, or three day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
  4. DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper. These have hammer forged, chrome-lined barrels and a hard case, to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel. This can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools. It also provides a compact carry capability in a hard case or in 3-day pack (an $1,100 value),
  5. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  6. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  7. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.

Second Prize:

  1. A gift certificate from Quantum Harvest LLC (up to a $2,200 value) good for 12% off the purchase of any of their sun-tracking models, and 10% off the purchase price of any of their other models.
  2. A Front Sight Lifetime Diamond Membership, providing lifetime free training at any Front Sight Nevada course, with no limit on repeating classes. This prize is courtesy of a SurvivalBlog reader who prefers to be anonymous.
  3. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  4. A $300 purchase credit for any of the products from EMPShield.com
  5. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  6. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  7. An assortment of products along with a one hour consultation on health and wellness from Pruitt’s Tree Resin (a $265 value).

Third Prize:

  1. Good2GoCo.com is providing a $400 purchase credit at regular prices for the prize winner’s choice of either Wise Foods or Augason long term storage foods, in stackable buckets.
  2. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  3. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  4. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  5. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  6. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances.

Round 86 ends on January 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Cold Weather Considerations – Part 5, by JM

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(Continued from Part 4.)

Water

Staying hydrated when performing any strenuous activity in the winter is critical, since dehydration can cause you a whole host of problems. One big issue is that dehydration can reduce your appetite, and I’ve mentioned before how critical calories are to staying warm. However, there are a number of factors that are harder to overcome in the winter when it comes to staying hydrated:

  • Our thirst reflex tends to be reduced in the winter, which means we tend to drink less water
  • Water can be harder to obtain, process and transport
  • Water tends to freeze easily
  • Low humidity results in sweat evaporating faster
  • Cold weather typically results in more frequent urination, due to a mechanism called cold diuresis (your body squeezes water out of your blood to reduce blood pressure and make it easier to circulate)

So to begin with you need to make sure you drink plenty of water throughout the day. I try to drink at least 2 ‘glasses’ at breakfast, then at least a gallon or so during the rest of the day. You should also avoid drinking any diuretics like alcohol or herbal teas, since those will force water into your urinary system faster. Coffee is not actually a diuretic like many people believe, but you should still avoid it as mentioned earlier.

So where do you get enough water to stay hydrated in the winter? If there’s snow on the ground that’s one obvious source, although you should never put snow directly into your mouth – water is mostly air, so you’d have to consume a ton just to get a small drink, and it robs you of a lot of body heat. As a matter of fact drinking any cold water will force your body to warm it up, so keep it as warm as possible. Fresh snow on the surface should be safe to convert directly to drinking water, but you should look for discolorations or particles first to make sure it isn’t contaminated. You can melt it in a pot over a fire, which only needs to be slight warm (not hot) to melt snow, but that may take a while since you’ll need to keep adding more snow as it melts. One trick that we use sometimes is to bring a dark heavy-duty trash bag, fill it with snow and place it in the sun. In anything but the most freezing temperatures the sun will warm the bag and melt the snow faster than the outside temperature can re-freeze it. You can open up the bag and keep topping it off as the snow melts. Another option would be to place the bag near (but not too near) a fire. Either approach tends to give you a decent amount of drinkable water pretty quickly.Continue reading“Cold Weather Considerations – Part 5, by JM”