Fire will sustain you indefinitely in the wild by warming you, cooking your food, and destroying the harmful germs commonly found in food and water.
FIRE MAKING

You should be able to build a fire with matches, under any weather conditions. Always carry matches in a waterproof case, when you have to shift around in a remote area. Just remember and practice these few basic principles of fire building :

  1. Always select dry sheltered spots.
  2. Use only the driest of tinder to start a fire.
  3. Have a good supply of kindling on hand before striking the match.
  4. Start with a tiny fire and add fuel as the flame grows.
  5. Fire needs air. Add fuel sparingly.
  6. Blow lightly on the burning wood.
  7. Fire climbs. Place fresh kindling above the flame.
  8. Always use dry deadwood.
FIRE SITE

Use your judgement. Do not select a windy spot. Dry grounds are preferred and pick a spot where the fire will not spread, the last thing you wanna do is start a forest fire!! In rainy weather, build under a leaning tree or a rock shelf.
TINDER

Tinder consists of dry grass or plant stems, dry inflammable bark such as birch or dry leaves, or any kind of material that takes the minimum heat catch alight.
KINDLING

Kindling is the wood used to raise the flames from the tinder so that larger and less combustible materials can be burnt. The best kindling consists of small, dry twigs and softer woods are preferred because they flare up quickly.
FUEL

Not all wood burn alike. Some burn quickly and make a hit flame, some scarely burn at all. Some burn slowly and make good coals;some smoke. Use whatever it is at hand, but when there is a choice, select the best fuels for the intended purpose. In general, hard woods make a slow burning fire with lasting coals, and soft woods make a quick, hot fire with coals that are soon spent.
It is well worth remembering the FIRE TRIANGLE. Its three sides represents AIR, HEAT, FUEL. If any one of the sides is removed, the triangle collapse and the fire goes out.

When lighting a fire, always ensure adequate ventilation with enough fuel and a hot enough source to ignite this fuel. To produce a flame, this temperature must be maintained to keep the air and fuel continously reacting. With more oxygen introduced, the fire will burn brighter, because by using the wind or forcing a draught, the fire is fanned to a high temperature and rapidly burns fuel. By reducing the ventilation the fire burns less fiercely and embers are allowed to glow, needing less fuel.

If these principles are understood, smoky fires, which results from incomplete combustion, can be avoided.




It is easier to trap most small preys than to hunt them. Trapping requires less skill and leaves you free to spend time foraging for other food. Nevertheless, be ready to take advantage of sitting prey if you get a chance to.

The survivor's own preservation must take precedence over humanitarian principles, but unfortunately, some of the easiest traps can cause considerable pain and suffering to the trapped animals. A trap, which could bring a quick death to the species for which it is intended, perhaps by strangulation, may catch another animal by a limb and leave it to struggle and suffer for hours. Therefore, regular checking is essential and leaving a trap line unchecked will prolong an animal's pain and increase the risk that your catch may be poached by an animal predator.
In extreme cases, some animals are known to have bitten off a limb or inflict other self-mutilation to get away from a trap.

A great deal of error can be eliminated by studying the animals and their habits. Choice of bait and sites is important. Be patient. If one does not work, try another.

Even when on the move, a few simple traps, quickly set up overnight, may be producitve and if you are making a more permanent camp, you will be able to set up well-planned lines of traps.

Repair any traps as necessary and remove traps that are repeatedly unfruitful. To be effective, a trap must be very sensitive, so it may be fired accidentally. You will probably have several empty traps for one success, but this does not mean you are doing things the wrong way. If a trap is not fired, but the bait is gone, it is an indication that either the bait was not fixed sufficiently secure or that the trigger mechanism is too tight. Check both when you reset the trap.

By doing rounds regularly, you effectively patrol an area noting the many signs of activities or changes which help you to build up knowledge of your surroundings. At the same time, you can forage for plants and other food.

In a survival situation, food may be scarce, but if you know there are animals to trap, a little used as bait may bring large rewards.

Where to trap

Find the game trails or runs, which lead from an animal's home to where it feeds or waters.

Look for any natural bottlenecks along the route where it would have to pass through a particular position ---- a deadwood fall or a place where the track goes under an obstruction will be ideal places to set a trap.

Do not place a trap close to an animal's lair. That is where it sits, listens and sniffs the air. If it is suspicious, it will either stay put or use a less obvious route.

Do not place a trap close to its watering place either, as there, the animal is on its toes and alert and thus more likely to notice anything unusual.

If you lay traps down on the side of natural pastures, the animal will not go near then and use other routes. However, when alarmed, they panic and will take the shortest route to cover. That is when the crudest most obvious traps will be successful. Rabbits are easily caught if you make them to panic.

Trap construction

The simpler traps and snares are made of string or wire. It would be easier to keep a loop open in the air if you use wire ; the wire in your survival tin is ideal. Even the most sophiscated traps need nothing more than a knife to make them out of available wood.

The choice of wood is important. Use strong and springy wood. Do not use deadwood or wood found on the ground. Hazel takes a lot of beating : it is easier to carve and retains its spring and strength.

Types of traps

Trap mechanism make use of the following principles:
MANGLE STANGLEDANGLETANGLE
The deadfall mangles. The snare strangles. Springy saplings can make a trap more efficient and take the game up in the air. - it dangles. The higher the sapling, the more effectively it lifts the animal. A net tangles. Some traps combine two or more of these principles.

RULES FOR TRAPS

When setting traps, follow these basic rules:

  1. Avoid disturbing the environement. Do not tread on the game trail. Do all your preparation off the trail and do not leave any sign that you have been there.

  2. Hide scent. When constructing or handling traps, do not leave your scent on them. Handle as little as possible and wear gloves if you can. Do not Make a trap from pinewood and set it in a wood of hazel. Each tree gives off its own smell - and the animals you are trying to trap have a high sense of smell, many times sharper than yours. Although they fear fire, they are familiar with the smell of smoke, so exposing a snare to the smoke from a camp fire can help mask any human scent.

  3. Camouflage. Hide freshly cut ends of wood with mud. Cover any snare on the ground to blend in as naturally as possible with its surroundings.

  4. Make them strong. An ensnared animal is fighting for its life. It exerts a lot of energy in an attempt to escape. Any weakness in the traps will be exposed.

SNARES

Snares are the simplest of traps and should be part of any survival kit. They are made of non-ferrous wire, with a running eye at one end through which the other end if the wire passes before being firmly anchored to a stake, rock or tree. A snare is a free-running noose which can catch small game around the throat and larger game around the legs.

A snare can be improvised from string, rope, twine or wire. Consider the kind of animal you are trying to trap when you place the snare. A rabbit, for instance, tends to sit in cover and observe. When satisfied that all is well, it hops along. Setting the snare a hand's length from a fall or obstruction on the trail accomodates this hop. If the snare is closer to an obstruction, the rabbit may brush it aside.


A wire can be supported off the ground on twigs, which can also be used to keep a suspended string noose open.





Using a simple snare

For rabbits and small animals. Use your judgement to scale up those proportions for larger creatures such as foxes and badgers.

  • Make the loop a fist width wide.
  • Set it four fingers above the ground and one hand's width from an obstruction on the trail.
  • Check that it is securely anchored, with twigs to support the loop in position, if necessary.



A snare is a noose that will slip and strangle, or hold any animal caught in it. E.g. A Running Bowline.

DEADFALL TRAPS

These traps work on the principle that when the bait is taken, a weight falls on the prey. Most suitable for trapping pigs, foxes and badgers.


SHELTER

There are a few things to note before making a shelter.

  1. Choose a suitable campsite --- one that is not exposed to winds and not residing on wet grounds. Look for a place that has no risk of flooding and is safe from rockfalls or avalanches. Flat or gently sloping grounds is ideal.
  2. Check the trees for bees' or hornets' nests and for deadwood in the trees that could come crashing down in the next storm. Keep away from solitary trees which attracts lightning.
  3. Stay away to human tracks but keep away from habitats of animals.
  4. Ensure that there no sharp objects or rocks below the bedding.



GADGETS MAKING

Camp gadgets are essential for every campsite. They can range from a simple broom to a more complicated table and bench structure. There is no fixed way to construct these gadgets so let your imagination run wild and use your own initiative!

Basic materials required : twine and bamboo.
E.g. A stool.