The Basics Pt 3. Food
Ah food, it gives us energy, makes our stomachs not hurt, and it tastes good most of the time. Food is all around you although sometime it may seem unappealing from insects and grasses to wild fruits and vegetables. In Iowa darn near everything that walks or grows is edible but that is not the case in many places so it is always a good idea to have some sort of food with you even if it just a day hike. How long you are out and available local food will determine what to bring. Trail mix is always a good thing to bring, you get plenty of protein from the nuts and sugars from the fruits to give you a nice boost. MREs (meal ready to eat) may sound like a good idea but they are heavy. Freeze dried foods are a good alternative but keep in mind that you need water and heat to prepare them. I always carry a package of lifeboat rations in my bag when I’m out and about, they will keep you alive, don’t weigh much and are non thirst provoking. I will have a more in depth post food and food gathering in the future
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The Basics Pt 2. Water
My apologizes for the late post but I have been swamped with the holidays. This post we will be covering the basics of water. Water is essential with out it you will die. Hydration is a personal thing, some people need more water than others and the temperature plays a big factor too. Plan on drinking a gallon a day and reevaluate based on temperature and easy of water gathering. My personal preference is to carry plenty of water even if I need to lose the weight somewhere else. There are other options however, if you are in an area with streams of rivers nearby. I live in Iowa and the waterways here are pretty dirty and you can maybe seen 6 inches in the water so it’s not something I like to drink straight from on a regular basis but it will do in an emergency, which is why I carry a water filter. My favorite water filter is the Sawyer mini filter, it’s small, lightweight, filters 100,000 gallons of water and it can be used inline with a Camlebak hose or be screwed onto any standard size water or soda bottle. There are other options like a Lifestraw that are fine products but I prefer the flexibility of the Sawyer and by carrying a water filter I only need to carry a litter or two with me while hiking. There are other sources of water that I will cover at a later time
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The Basics Pt 1. Shelter
Whether you you are camping out of your car, going on a backpacking expedition, or in an extended survival situation there are 3 things you absolutely need. You guessed it food, water, shelter. For this part we will be focusing on shelter. Shelters main goal is to protect you from the elements and keep you alive, if it keeps you comfortable thats even better. Shelter runs from a high end tent with climate control to a hole in the ground. most people are familiar with tents so i won’t go into more detail than to say you get what you pay for. I always have some sort of shelter with me in my vehicle, usually it is what’s called a casualty blanket. there are 2 types of casualty blankets, thin ones like a disposable space blanket and thicker ones more like a tarp these usually have grommets in the corners for tying. They come in different colors like blaze orange if you are in distress or olive drab for if you wish to remain unnoticed. The thin ones are very light and small whereas the thicker ones are a bit bulkier but still pretty light. I use the thicker kind and set it up as a lean to and with a small fire you can remain pretty cozy down to the single digits. The reason for this is the aluminized side of it opposite the colored side, it reflects the heat back at you so if you use it just Continue Reading →
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Welcome I hope you enjoy your visit.
Hi welcome to backpacking and survival. This site will feature blogs of backpacking and survival skills and tools. Will also be covering some disaster preparedness. We’ll be focusing on budgets starting with low end and going to the high end. Any and all feedback and if you have any questions on anything or there’s a specific item you would like me to talk about just drop me a line and I’d be more than happy to cover it for you.
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