by Les Stroud
Shelter
MOST NATURAL DISASTERS LEAVE YOUR HOME INTACT, which is a good thing. If that’s not the case, you need to look at your situation through a different lens and try to improvise shelter, perhaps by moving to your car or setting up a tent. If you don’t have either of these on hand, you’re back to finding or creating shelter the same way you would in a wilderness survival situation. You need a shelter to keep warm and dry, and protected from the elements.
Food
IN MOST CASES WHEN DISASTER STRIKES, you will have a refrigerator full of food, all of which begins to spoil once the power goes out. Be sure to eat the most perishable foods first. You can preserve meats by using the drying methods described in “Food,” Chapter 8. You can also place fish such as salmon in a dish or Ziploc bag and cover it with lemon juice (the process used to make ceviche). The citric acid “cooks” the fish through a process called naturation and preserves it for at least a few days.
Travel and Navigation
THE DECISION WHETHER OR NOT TO TRAVEL after a natural disaster is as critical when you are at home as when you’re in the wilderness. If you are considering moving, the first thing to do is make sure the route is free of hazards. Listen to the radio before heading to the next community, so that you know, for example, whether a river has broken its banks upstream and is flooding the highway.
When it comes to navigation, GPS units are invaluable for locating street addresses. After Hurricane Katrina, I flew down to New Orleans to meet a woman and talk to her about her experience, but she had given me only her street address, not terribly useful because all the street signs had been wiped out. Luckily, the GPS unit in my car led me right to her house.
Don’t think it can’t happen to you! New Orleans and other parts of southern Louisiana were ravaged by Hurricane Katrina in August 2005.
Dangers and Hazards
WHEN DEALING WITH A NATURAL DISASTER it helps to recognize that the central event may have spawned other dangers around you, both seen and unseen. Think like a firefighter and address the risks of “gas, glass, fire, and wire.”
Gas: Check to see whether there’s any gas leaking in your house, such as natural gas or propane. Try to shut off the main valve into the house only if you have experience or training in doing so. If you suspect a gas leak, do not start a fire in your house, and leave the house if possible. If staying inside is safer than going out, keep the windows open for maximum ventilation.
Glass: Check for broken glass throughout the house and clean up as necessary. This will help prevent accidental cuts and potential infections in what might be unsanitary conditions.
Fire: This is one of the greatest dangers you’ll face. Check for gas leaks, oil tank ruptures, and other types of leaks that can cause fire.
Wire: Electrical problems can result in fire. Also, check for exposed, live wires in the home, particularly if you have small children.
Unfortunately, most people give little thought to so-called urban disasters, even though many people will experience at least one in their lifetime. Be prepared, be ingenious, play it safe, and you will likely live to tell the tale. Remember that when all is said and done, everything is replaceable…except life.
Weather
SINCE WEATHER MAY WELL BE THE CAUSE of the natural disaster, stay in touch with the outside world for updates. Weather will dictate the extent of your survival activities; you also need to know if and when bad weather is going to exacerbate your problems, and when it is expected to subside.
First Aid
EVERYONE—NOT JUST THOSE TRAVELING IN THE WILDERNESS—should have a basic first-aid course under his or her belt. First aid can make the difference between life and death. Check with your local college for programs.
Essential Survival Skills
RELY ON YOURING ENUITY AND ADAPTABILITY! Look at everyday objects around you and decide if, say, your couch would be better used as a survival tool than as furniture. In the case of any cherished memorabilia that may be used in an emergency, you need to get over the squeamishness of destruction. If it’s a choice between your life and protecting a keepsake, the keepsake has to go.
Author’s Note
IN WRITING SURVIVE!, I have tried to pull as much wilderness survival information from my memory as I can. Given that the past eight years have seen me survive in some of the most challenging environments on earth, much is still fresh in my mind.
Before I started producing Survivorman, I figured that my survival skills, all learned in North America, were pretty well honed. However, surviving alone in the jungles, deserts, oceans, and mountains of this planet have taught me how much I didn’t know. And I’m still learning.
From the herbal remedies of the Waorani to the hunting skills of the Inuit, there are many wonderful survival skills that exist only within disappearing cultures. When I spent time in the Amazon, for example, I was amazed to learn that there were still 70 confirmed uncontacted tribes living in its jungles. Call me naive, but I had been convinced that everyone who could have been discovered had been discovered. Clearly that isn’t so.
At the other extreme, new technologies are making survival easier and involve little more than pushing a button and waiting for rescue. PLBs and EPIRBs, cell phones and BlackBerries, and the new SPOT messenger technology have all made wilderness travel safer than ever.
In my research, I discovered that many survival publications are filled with outdated or untested skills and methods that may not help at all if you are in real jeopardy. Throughout the writing process, I always put myself in the position of an inexperienced person, lost and alone, and in need of basic survival knowledge that would keep him or her alive.
In my TV show, I like to throw in the occasional advanced survival skill. But that’s just for fun, and this book is not about having fun. It’s about surviving. That’s why I have stuck to the most essential, trusted, and universal skills—skills that have kept me alive in the far-flung corners of the globe.
So, if this book is in your hands because you are in trouble, don’t panic: calm down and assess your situation. Skim the book to the chapters that pertain to you. Make a plan. I sincerely hope there is something here that will improve your knowledge base and provide you with some practical ideas…even if it means ripping out some of the pages to start a fire!
You will survive. And perhaps like mine, your story can be told someday.
CHECKLISTS
Personal Survival Kit Checklist
Please see Chapter Two for a detailed description of the elements of this survival kit.
bandana
compass
flashlight (small, LED)
garbage bags (2, preferably orange, large)
lighter (my preference is a butane lighter that works like a little blowtorch)
matches (strike-anywhere type) in a waterproof metal case (with a striker, just in case)
magnesium flint striker (hey, I like fires!)
metal cup (folding, for boiling water)
multi-tool or Swiss Army–style knife (make sure it has a small saw blade)
painkillers (a few)
parachute cord or similar rope (about 25 feet [7.5 m] of 1/4-inch [0.6-cm] cord)
protein bar
sharp belt knife
solar, or “space,” blanket (small)
whistle
Ziploc bag (medium or large)
coffee can or similar receptacle (in which to place all items)
Complete Survival Kit Checklist
Please see Chapter Two for a detailed description of the elements of this survival kit.
bandana
belt knife (with sharpening stone)
candle
cup (metal, collapsible; for boiling water)
dried food
duct tape
fire-starting devices: lighter and/or magnesium flint striker and strike-anywhere matches in a waterproof case (with a striker)
fire-starting tinder
first-aid kit: See che
cklist on First-Aid Kit Checklist
fishing lures (3), hooks, sinkers, and fishing line
flares
flashlight (small, LED)
GPS (Global Positioning System)
garbage bags (2, preferably orange)
hand lens (small)
map and compass
marker or “surveyor’s” tape
money
multi-tool or Swiss Army–style knife (with a small saw blade)
needle and thread
parachute cord or similar rope
(about 25 feet [15 m] of 1/4-inch [0.6-cm] cord)
pencil and notebook
protein bars
safety pins
saw (folding)
signal mirror
snare wire
solar, or “space,” blanket
SPOT satellite messenger/EPIRB/PLB
water purification tablets
water-purifying straw
whistle
Ziploc bags (large)
Vehicle Survival Kit Checklist
Please see Chapter Two for a detailed description of the elements of this survival kit. In addition to the complete survival kit, you should keep the following in your vehicle:
cell phone
clothing (warm) and blankets
cook set (pots/pans)
cook stove and fuel
drinking water
flares
flashlight
food, including MREs (Meals Ready to Eat)
road maps (local)
snow shovel (collapsible or folding) and tire chains
tarp
toilet paper
tools
First-Aid Kit Checklist
Please see Chapter Two for a detailed description of the elements of this first-aid kit.
antidiarrheal tablets
antihistamines
antiseptic ointment
bandages
butterfly sutures
painkillers
prescription medicines (if applicable)
surgical blades
triangle bandages
Home Survival Kit Checklist
When assembling this survival kit, keep in mind that the size of your household will affect the quantity needed for several kit items.
Essential Items
axe or saw
basic tool box (hammer, nails, screwdriver, pliers, adjustable wrench, screw-in hooks, etc.)
belt knife (with sharpening stone)
camp stove (one burner) with all necessary supplies
cash
child-care items, if applicable (diapers, formula, bottles, etc.)
clothing and footwear suitable for outdoor temperatures
cooking container(s)
duct tape
emergency candles
fire extinguisher
first-aid kit and extra prescription medicines
flashlight
garbage bags (2, preferably orange, large)
lighter (butane is best)
matches (strike-anywhere type) in a waterproof metal case
meal-replacement drinks (7-day supply per person)
multi-tool or Swiss Army–style knife
non-perishable food (7-day supply per person)
pencil/pen and paper
portable toilet and sanitation supplies
rope or parachute cord
rubber gloves
shovel
sleeping bags
solar or hand-crank powered light, radio, and cell phone charger
thermal blankets
tissue packs and wet wipes
tube tent and/or tarp
Home Survival Kit Checklist (continued)
water purification tablets
water, for drinking, cooking, and washing (7-day supply of 7.5 gallons [28L] per person)
waterless soap or hand sanitizer
Other Useful Items:
emergency plans, contact lists, meeting place information, etc.
eyewear (extra glasses, contact lenses, cleaning solution)
fishing and/or hunting equipment
generator with extension cord
light sticks
pet-care items, if applicable (litter, carriers, bags, leashes, etc.)
portable heater
rain ponchos with hood
recreational items (board games, cards, books, harmonica)
siphon hose (rubber)
smoke/carbon monoxide detector (for stove/heater use)
spare gasoline for vehicle
wash basin
water filter
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I am greatly and deeply indebted to those who have helped me make this book happen.
Mike Vlessides is the ghostwriter, or perhaps more appropriately the editor, of this book. He spent hundreds of hours talking long-distance on the phone with me, pulling from my memory everything he could, to put down on these pages. Without Mike, and his tremendous patience, creative skill, and diligence, this book would never have been possible.
Laura Bombier is the photographer for this book. She is also the stills photographer for the TV series Survivorman and as such has traveled the globe with me, trying to capture the essence of what I do. And capture it she has! Her creative skill is second to none, and her partnership with me on this book has brought it to heights I could never have achieved without her.
Beverley Hawksley is the illustrator for Survive! I did not want the same old line drawings; I wanted the technical aspects to be combined with artistic beauty. Beverley captured that vision fantastically. Beverley’s work is inspired, beautiful, and powerful. She is an artist in the purest sense of the title.
I enlisted the help of a group of survival-instructor friends to read every word and throw their comments back to me, challenging anything thought to be not quite right. To Doug Getgood, Dave Arama, and Douw Kruger, thank you so very much. You saved me from a couple of blunders and some forgetfulness, helping to make this book the best it can be.
Along the way, I have learned so much from some great people in the field and often had my preconceived notions changed forever. Thank you to “Desert” David Holladay, Mike Kiraly, Allan “Bow” Beauchamp, Brian Brewster, Charlie Ford, Belly John, Frank Gagliano, Belize Sailing Charters, Lee Gutteridge, Koos Moorecroft, Raphael Gunduza, Douw Kruger, Ngaa Kitai, Dave Reid, Sam Omik, Jim Yost, Tomo, Kinta, Anna, Ippa, and Duey (from the Amazon rain forest), Ron Durheim of Alaska Aquatics, Fred Rowe and Frank Yamick (my very first teachers), Matt Graham, John and Geri McPherson, Robert J. Wilson, Gino Ferri, Ernie and Donna Nichols of Huron Air, Wes Werbowy, and Dr. Gordon Giesbrecht.
Sue, Raylan and Logan: You have put up with my absence, which was a hard sacrifice. You have feared for my safety. You have created an environment that nurtured and cared for me greatly during many times of stress and challenge. Raylan and Logan, I know it’s really hard to understand a dad who is away on adventures so much, but I miss you every single moment. You are the lights of my life, and I love you more than anything.
A special thanks to my “team.” Wendy Turner: I am there for you and you are there for me—it’s a beautiful thing; Beth Cavanagh, Andy Peterson, Max Attwood, Andrew Sheppard, Parres Allen, Barry Farrell, and Dan Larade: I have constantly felt bolstered and supported by you all and am very proud to call you my friends. Now “get back to work!”
Luke Despatie, for cover design and so much more—thank you so very much.
Also a nod of thanks to the Survivorman gang, who have fought hard through the challenges of making that series: Dave Brady, Seaghan Hancocks, Barry Clark, and Dan Reynolds. And none of it would have happened were it not for the first acceptance by Jane Mingay and Jane Gilbert of Discovery Canada and Anna Stambolic of OLN. Thank you, Patrice Bail-largeon.
As always, thanks, Mom. And thanks to my sister, Laura. A very special thank you to Peter Dale, whose faith in me got me into of all this in the first place.
Also a special thank you to Rick Bro
adhead, who came out of nowhere to quickly become a trusted literary agent and friend. Thank you for helping me navigate the waters of publishing, Rick.
Thank you Brad Wilson and Anne Cole, editors for HarperCollins. I am so very proud to become a member of the HarperCollins family. You have renewed my faith that large, successful corporations can also treat one lone person with integrity and respect, and I am very grateful for the incredible support, belief, and gentle advice you have given me.
—Les Stroud, from somewhere out in the wilderness
SEARCHABLE TERMS
Note: Entries in this index, carried over verbatim from the print edition of this title, are unlikely to correspond to the pagination of any given e-book reader. However, entries in this index, and other terms, may be easily located by using the search feature of your e-book reader.
action, taking, 50–51
A-frame shelter, 156, 157, 161–62, 165
Africa, food in, 211
alcohol, 314, 335
Algonquin Provincial Park, 217–18
allergic reactions, 184, 313–14
