Wilderness Preparation for Kids

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Ah, camping in the National Park.  Warm days and cold nights.  Birds chirping, chipmunks scampering, and a brook bubbling nearby.  Peace and tranquility.  A stark contrast to the chaos of your hectic work and kids' schedules.  For the first time in months, you sit down to read a book.  You glance over to your smiling spouse doing the same.  You catch a glimpse of your two kids playing near the tent.  Time slows down.

Sometime later, your daughter disturbs your serenity, "Colton's gone."
"What do you mean Colton's gone?  Where is he hiding?"
Now, you see on her face and hear in her voice real concern,  "He's gone."

Your son is missing.  What should you do?

Hasty Search

Once you realize your child is missing, actively search, not become a missing person yourself.

Activate Search & Rescue

If you do not find your child quickly, get help.  Search & Rescue (SAR) volunteers would rather be recalled knowing your child is found safe versus losing precious search time while you 'make sure' the child is actually missing.

Preparation

Before you and your family venture out, train and equip each family member to deal with becoming lost and spending an unexpected night alone in the wilderness.  Basic training and equipment greatly increase the odds of surviving the ordeal.     

Stop Moving.  The moment you realize you're lost, find a safe spot^1, and stop moving. This helps rescuers find you faster.

Build a Nest.  Make a nest of boughs², pine needles, leaves, or anything else to keep you directing off the ground.  Sitting directly on the ground sucks the heat out of your body.³  A small foam pad works great.  

Emergency Shelter (immediate action shelter⁴).   Put on your whistle (see below), climb into your emergency shelter, and sit in your nest on a foam pad or your backpack. 

Whistle.  Once in your shelter, start blowing your whistle every 10 minutes or so.  The sound of a whistle carries much further than your voice. 

Water.  Carry at least a quart; more if you are in an arid environment. 

Food.  A favorite candy bar or two will do two things for you:  1) help maintain a positive attitude, and 2) stoke your body's internal furnace generating heat from within.  

Something from home.  A small toy or stuffed animal can do wonders for maintaining a positive attitude.

Footnotes

¹Choose a spot clear of potential falling objects from the environment (branches, trees, rocks, etc.)
       

²Boughs: It could be pine, spruce, fir, etc.

³Conduction:   The transfer of heat through direct contact with an object.  Heat flows from the warmer object to the cooler one.  If you sit on the ground, heat conducts away from your body and into the ground. 

⁴An immediate action shelter is a windproof, waterproof barrier that traps your body's heat.  Choose a blue shelter to maximize your visibility to SAR.

Survival Gear
Whistle
Immediate Action Shelter (adults)
Immediate Action Shelter (children)

98.6F - Cold Weather Clothing

Excerpts from our new book The Handbook for Survival Sense in the Outdoors

Virtually every process in the body, including problem solving capabilities, tie directly to proper body temperature.  Maintaining thermal balance (98.6°F) remains one of the most important personal goals in any survival situation.  Given the human body’s narrow functional temperature range of about 12 degrees (+/- 6°F), self-help becomes impossible below 92°F and above 104°F.

Proper Clothing for Cold

Try to protect areas of the body that lose a lot of heat when exposed, and protect the extremities (hands and feet) critical to solving survival problems.  Pay close attention to the head and neck, the sternum, the lateral sides of the body, the groin, the hands, and feet.

     1.   Wearing clothing in layers helps insulate and ventilate as necessary.  

           (Many thin layers work better than one thick layer.)

           a.   Base layer:  non-cotton long underwear

           b.   Insulation layer:  fleece or wool work well

           c.   Environmental layer:  windproof / waterproof (breathable)

     2.   Avoid constricting garments, especially at wrist, neck, waist, ankles, and feet.  

           (Constriction tends to cause cold hands and feet.)

     3.   Keep clothing as dry and clean as possible.

           4.   Wear darker colors in winter climates.  (Dark colors absorb heat energy from the sun.)

           5.   A warm head usually means warm feet as well.  (Warm cold feet by putting on a hat.)

           6.   Never overheat from excessive activity without shedding layers.  

                 (Try not to get wet from perspiration on the inside of clothing.)

      Order yours here:  The Handbook for Survival Sense in the Outdoors

Physical Fitness + Proper Nutrition = Increased Survivability (and More)

Busy schedules make it challenging to live a healthy lifestyle. Yet, I believe the benefits of physical fitness and proper nutrition justify your time commitment. Below are three benefits from living a healthy lifestyle:

1) Feel better.
Speaking personally, when I feel better, I am an improved husband, father, and teacher.

2) Live Longer.
There are no guarantees, but all things being equal, physical fitness and proper nutrition keep you healthier longer.

3) Increase survivability.
In a survival situation, your odds for survival are better when you're healthy. You have more options. A perfect example is my friend who was able to walk down dozens of flights of stairs in order to escape out of the North Tower on 9/11. Those who were unable to walk down the stairs perished.

Where do you start?   With your doctor's help, design a healthy lifestyle specifically for you. Then start. Start small if needed, but for heaven's sake, start.

You, your family, your friends, and coworkers will all benefit.

Start now.

Chris