4 Swivel the mirror back and forth.
Let the reflected light jump from one finger to another. As you do, the light will hit the plane in the middle.
BE AWARE!
You can use a handheld mirror, as from a compact, or a wristwatch dial to signal passing aircraft.
Mirror signals can be seen for up to 100 miles in the desert, and rescue pilots are trained to look for them and trace them to their source.
Position the mirror under your eye and sight the airplane between the fingers on your other hand. Swivel the mirror so the reflected light moves from one finger to the other, hitting the plane in between.
Ground Signals for Passing Aircraft
Pilots can read these symbols and help accordingly. Find a clearing or hilltop, and make your signals with twigs, clothes, or footprints, keeping them far enough from one another to avoid overlap and confusion.
Need food and water
Require medical assistance
Yes
Serious injury/Need doctor
Am traveling this way
Do not understand
Need to know which direction to proceed
Believed safe to land here
No
Need compass and map
All is well
International distress symbol
HOW TO CREATE A SIGNAL FIRE
1 Seek the highest ground.
The fire and smoke will have the greatest visibility from a high, unobscured spot. Take branches with you if you go above the tree line.
2 Make a tripod.
Put three long branches together in a tripod formation, tying them at the top with cord, rope, or vines.
3 Make horizontal ties.
About three-quarters of the way down the boughs, tie smaller branches horizontally between them. Lay sticks across the smaller branches to create a platform. Elevating your kindling on a platform like this ensures that it stays dry.
4 Lay tinder.
On the platform you’ve created, add a thick layer of dry tinder (e.g., dry grass and leaves, wood chips, birch bark, twigs, paper) and use it to build your fire. Keep adding branches to fuel the fire further.
5 Add leafy green vegetation and living brush to the fire.
This healthy vegetation will create white smoke, best seen when the sky is very blue or at night.
6 Add oil.
If it is a foggy or overcast day, add an oily substance (e.g., motor oil, tire rubber, brake fluid, cooking oil) to create black smoke.
7 Put it out.
Once help arrives, fully extinguish your fire before leaving.
WARNING!
Observe which way the wind is blowing and how much dry vegetation is surrounding you to avoid starting a brush fire. You may need to create a clearing or find an area by a stream.
Even white smoke can be hard to see at night. Once it is dark, focus on creating high fames that can be seen unobstructed from far away.
If you have limited branches and other fuel available, wait until you see or hear signs of a search and rescue team before lighting your signal fire.
Never create a fire so big that you won’t be able to control it and eventually put it out with the resources at hand.
Make a tripod of three long branches, tied at the top. Three-quarters of the way down, tie smaller branches between them making a platform.
On the kindling platform, add dry grass, leaves, and twigs and leafy green vegetation.
CAN I EAT IT?
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HOW TO SET ANIMAL TRAPS
Holding Traps
Use a holding trap (or snare) to trap small ground animals. Holding traps capture animals but do not kill them.
1 Procure a two-foot-long wire and a small stick.
Wire is essential—animals can bite through string and twine.
2 Wrap one end of the wire around the stick.
Twist the stick while holding the wire on both sides of the stick with your thumb and forefinger. You will create a small loop around the stick while wrapping the wire around itself.
3 Remove the stick by breaking it near the wire.
Slide the ends out. You will be left with a small loop at one end of the wire.
4 Take the other end of the wire and pass it through the loop.
This will make a snare loop, which becomes a snare that will tighten as the animal struggles. The snare loop should be about five inches in diameter.
5 Twist and tie the end of the wire to a one-foot stake.
6 Place the snare in an animal track or at the entrance to an animal burrow or hole.
You can also use two snares, one behind the other, to increase your odds of catching something. The struggling animal that escapes one snare will likely become caught in the other.
7 Anchor the stake in the ground.
Position the stake in an area where the animal won’t see it. Mark it so that you can find it later.
Holding trap (or snare)
Machine trap
8 Check the trap only once or twice daily. Checking the trap too often may frighten away the animals. When an animal heading for its home becomes caught in the snare, it will struggle to get away, which will tighten the wire trap.
Machine Traps
Machine traps use gravity, activated by a trigger, to trap or kill animals. The easiest machine trap to build is a deadfall, where a trigger releases a rock or heavy piece of wood to trap or kill an animal.
1 Look for a well-worn animal path on which to place the trap.
2 Find three straight sticks or pieces of wood that are approximately the same length and diameter, and a large, heavy stone or log.
The length and thickness of the sticks you need will depend upon the weight of the stone or log you intend to prop up—use your judgment.
3 Cut a squared notch in the middle of one stick.
Cut the point of the stick to look like the tip of a flathead screwdriver—thin and flat. This is your upright support bar.
4 Cut a squared notch (to fit into the first squared notch like Lincoln Logs) in the middle of another stick.
On this stick, cut a triangular notch a couple of inches from one end, and whittle the other end of the stick to a point. This is your bait bar.
5 Cut a triangular notch into the middle of the last stick.
This notch should fit on the top of your support stick. Cut one point of this stick to look like the tip of a flathead screwdriver (to fit into the triangular notch of your bait bar), and cut the other end flat. This is your locking bar.
6 Anchor your support stick in the ground, perpendicular to the ground.
7 Attach a piece of meat or food to the end of your bait bar, and insert the bait bar into the notch of your support stick, parallel to the ground.
8 Place your locking bar on top of your bait and support bar, forming a 45-degree angle with your bait bar.
The screwdriver tip of your locking bar should fit into the notch at the end of your bait bar, and the tip of the support bar should fit into the triangular notch of your locking bar.
9 Lean the stone or log so that the top end rests on the top of your locking bar.
When an animal comes along the trail, it will take the bait, causing the locking bar to dislodge and trigger the deadfall, trapping or crushing your prey.
WARNING!
To increase the odds of trapping an animal, always set multiple traps, preferably 8 to 10.
Set the traps where animals live or in areas they frequent, near water and feeding areas. Watch animal patterns to see where they come and go regularly. Dung piles indicate nesting areas.
Check traps once or twice daily Dead animals will quickly rot or become food for other animals.
Do not build the trap where you intend to place it. Build the trap components in camp, then bring them to the place you have chosen. This way, you will not frighten away animals by spending too much time in their habitats. Try to de-scent your traps using leaves
or bark to remove your smell.
Set traps in the narrow parts of animal trails, such as between rocks or in areas with thick brush on either side. Animals will generally only approach traps if there is no easy way around them. Like humans, animals tend to take the path of least resistance.
Be careful around traps. Animal traps can injure you and can trap bigger animals than you expect.
Be alert when approaching any trapped animal. It may not be dead, and it may attack you.
Do not leave traps or trap elements behind when you leave an area.
HOW TO CLEAN AND COOK A SQUIRREL
1 Place the dead squirrel on the ground, belly up.
2 Pull the end of the squirrel’s tail up slightly toward you.
3 Cut.
Using a very sharp knife, make a small incision across the base of the tail, where it meets the body. Do not cut the tail completely off: the cut should be deep enough to sever the tail but should leave the skin on top of the squirrel intact.
4 Split the hide.
Make an incision through the hide down the inside of one hind leg so it connects to the cut at the tail. Repeat for the other hind leg. You should have one continuous incision from the tip of one hind leg to the tail, then back up the other hind leg.
5 Place your foot on the squirrel’s tail.
6 Pull.
Pull up sharply on the squirrel’s hind legs. The skin should peel off from the bottom of the squirrel to the head. Squirrels have tough skin that is difficult to remove, so it will take some time.
7 Remove the head and feet.
Cut the squirrel’s head off at the neck; then cut off the feet.
8 Field dress.
Slice the belly from stem to stern and remove all entrails. Discard. Rinse off excess blood with clean water.
9 Cook.
A smaller, younger squirrel will be tender and may be roasted, while an older squirrel will have tough meat that is better stewed, if a pot is available.
To roast. For a youngster, sharpen a green stick (sapling) and impale the squirrel from stem to stern. Lay the sapling horizontally between two upright, forked branches positioned on either side of a fire. Slowly cook the squirrel, rotating the sapling periodically for even cooking. The meat is done when it is slightly pink inside the thickest part of the thigh. Cut with your knife to check.
To stew. Cut an older squirrel into serving pieces: legs, back, and rib sections. Place the sections in a pot of boiling water. Add fuel to the fire to return the pot to a boil, then remove fuel as necessary to maintain a simmer. The squirrel is done when the meat falls off the bone easily. Remove from the heat and remove bones before eating.
Eating Lizards
Virtually all lizards are edible, but some have glands that contain toxins. Before cooking a lizard, cut it from shoulder to shoulder and discard the head and neck, where poisonous glands are located.
Edible Plants of the Ocean
NAME: Sea lettuce (Ulva)
CHARACTERISTICS: Light green leaves with ruffed edges
EDIBLE PART: Whole plant
HOW TO EAT: Wash and boil.
NAME: Dulse
CHARACTERISTICS: Red or purple foot-long fronds attached to rocks
EDIBLE PART: Whole plant
HOW TO EAT: Raw, fresh, or dried.
NAME: Kelp
CHARACTERISTICS: Olive green or brown fronds as long as 10 feet
EDIBLE PART: Leaves
HOW TO EAT: Discard leaf’s dark membrane; boil middle section.
NAME: Irish moss
CHARACTERISTICS: Bushy, anchored to rocks, color varies widely
EDIBLE PART: Leaves
HOW TO EAT: Boil; dry fronds in sun for storage.
Edible Plants of the Desert
NAME: Acacia
CHARACTERISTICS: Short tree; gray-white bark; small, alternating leaves; yellow ball-shaped flowers
EDIBLE PART: Dark brown pods, flowers, young leaves
HOW TO EAT: Raw.
NAME: Agave
CHARACTERISTICS: Cluster of long, fleshy green leaves radiating from a central stalk
EDIBLE PART: Flowers, flower buds
HOW TO EAT: Boil flowers and buds before eating.
NAME: Amaranth
CHARACTERISTICS: Tall, with alternating leaves; green flowers at top; brown/black seeds
EDIBLE PART: Seeds, leaves
HOW TO EAT: Seeds and leaves: raw; seeds: pound into four.
NAME: Date palm
CHARACTERISTICS: Tall tree with no branches; huge compound leaves at crown; yellow fruits
EDIBLE PART: Fruits
HOW TO EAT: Fresh or sun-dried.
NAME: Prickly pear cactus
CHARACTERISTICS: Thick stem; clustered pads covered with needles; red or yellow flowers; punctured pads seep non-milky juice
EDIBLE PART: Fruits at the top of the stalks; the pads themselves
HOW TO EAT: Fruit: raw; pads: remove thorns and nodes, peel, and boil or grill.
THE OCEAN
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Keep your regulator in your mouth. Keep your airway as straight as possible by looking toward the surface. Swim at a slow to moderate rate, exhaling continuously.
HOW TO GET TO THE SURFACE IF YOUR SCUBA TANK RUNS OUT OF AIR
1 Do not panic.
2 Signal to your fellow divers that you are having a problem—point to your tank or regulator.
3 If someone comes to your aid, share their regulator passing it back and forth while swimming slowly to the surface.
Take two breaths, then pass it back to the other diver Ascend together, exhaling as you go. Then take another two breaths, alternating, until you reach the surface. Nearly all divers carry an extra regulator connected to their tank.
4 If no one can help you, keep your regulator in you mouth; air may expand in the tank as you ascend, giving you additional breaths.
5 Look straight up so that your airway is as straight a possible.
6 Swim to the surface at a slow to moderate rate.
Exhale continuously as you swim up. It is very important that you exhale the entire way up, but the rate at which you exhale is also important. Exhale slowly—do not exhaust all your air in the first few seconds of your ascent. As long as you are even slightly exhaling, your passageway will be open and air can vent from your lungs.
WARNING!
Never dive alone.
Watch your pressure and depth gauges closely.
Make sure your fellow divers are within easy signaling/swimming distance.
Share a regulator in an emergency. It is much safer to use your partner’s regulator than to try to make a quick swim to the surface. This is especially true the deeper you are, where you need to surface gradually.
Always use an alternate air source instead of swimming up unless you are less than 30 feet below the surface.
HOW TO SURVIVE A TSUNAMI
1 If you are near the ocean, be aware of the warning signs of an approaching tsunami:
Rise or fall in sea level
Shaking ground
Loud, sustained roar
2 If you are on a boat in a small harbor and you have sufficient warning of an approaching tsunami, move it quickly.
Your first choice should be to dock and reach high ground. Your second choice is to take your boat far into open water, away from shore where it might be thrown into the dock or the land. Tsunamis cause damage when they move from deeper to shallower waters; the waves back up against one another at the shallow shelf. Often tsunamis are not even felt in deep water.
3 If you are on land, seek higher ground immediately.
Tsunamis can move faster than a person can run. Get away from the coastline as quickly as possible.
4 If you are in a high-rise hotel or apartment building on the coastline and you do not have enough time to get to higher ground away from the shore, move to a high floor of the building.
The upper floors of a high-rise building can provide
safe refuge.
HOW TO SURVIVE ADRIFT AT SEA
1 Stay aboard your boat as long as possible before you get into a life raft.
In a maritime emergency, the rule of thumb is that you should step up into your raft, meaning you should be up to your waist in water before you get into the raft. Your best chance of survival is on a boat—even a disabled one—not on a life raft. But if the boat is sinking, know how to use a life raft.
2 Get in the life raft, and take whatever supplies you can carry.
Most important, if you have water in jugs, take it with you. Do not drink seawater. A person can last for several days without food at sea, but without clean water to drink, death is a virtual certainty within several days. If worse comes to worst, throw the jugs of water overboard so that you can get them later—they will float. Many canned foods, particularly vegetables, are packed in water, so take those with you if you can. Do not ration water; drink it as needed, but don’t drink more than necessary—1/2 gallon a day should be sufficient if you limit your activity.
3 Remain in the vicinity of the ship you’ve abandoned.
Rescuers answering an SOS message have the best chance of finding you if you stay close to your starting coordinates. Construct a makeshift sea anchor by tying a rope around the handle of a bucket or a roll of expendable clothing, and secure the other end of the rope to the raft. Put the anchor in the water on the windward side to keep the front of the boat facing into the wind, making the raft less likely to capsize and minimizing the amount of drift caused by wind.
Ultimate Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook Page 32
