Wilderness Survival For Dummies

Be prepared for anything, so you can explore where others fear to tread

Wilderness Survival For Dummies takes a practical approach to teaching you the skills you need to stay alive outside. Learn survival skills the Dummies way, with helpful diagrams and illustrations, step-by-step instructions, and tips from the pros. With expert tips and easy-to-follow instructions in this book, you’ll know what to do to survive in the wild. Stay calm, deal with the elements, make fire, find drinking water, and navigate your way to safety, thanks to your newfound survival skills.

• Enjoy the great outdoors with the confidence to take the path less traveled
• Gain knowledge that will help you stay safe if the unexpected happens
• Deal with extreme weather events, make shelter, learn to signal for help
• Learn navigation skills so you can find your way home if you get lost

You’re ready to take your love of nature to the next level and explore the wilderness. From forests and jungles to deserts, cold weather climates, and everything in between, you need this Dummies guide to stay safe while backpacking, sailing, camping, and adventuring …wherever.

Introduction 1

Part 1: Stayin’ Alive: Basic Wilderness Survival Principles 5

Chapter 1: Staying Safe in the Great Outdoors 7

Chapter 2: Preparing Yourself for a Survival Situation 17

Chapter 3: The Psychology of Survival: Gaining the Upper Hand 35

Chapter 4: Survival Style: Keeping Warm or Cool 49

Chapter 5: Making Fire in the Wilderness 65

Chapter 6: Home, Sweet Hut: Simple Survival Shelters 83

Chapter 7: Liquid Capital: Finding Drinking Water 95

Chapter 8: Gathering and Hunting to Stay Alive in the Wilderness 111

Part 2: Exploring Advanced Survival Techniques 145

Chapter 9: Finding Your Way with Basic Navigation Tools 147

Chapter 10: Looking Up to the Sky: Celestial Navigation 169

Chapter 11: Trekking over Land 177

Chapter 12: Signaling for Rescue 195

Chapter 13: Administering First Aid 217

Chapter 14: Survive or Thrive? Advanced Methods and Tools 245

Part 3: Surviving in Extreme Land Environments 267

Chapter 15: Special Considerations for Forests and Jungles 269

Chapter 16: The Big Chill: Enduring in Snowy Places 287

Chapter 17: Staying Alive under the Desert Sun 309

Part 4: Surviving on the Seas, Oceans, and Great Lakes 333

Chapter 18: Staying Afloat and Warm 335

Chapter 19: The Great Drift: Aboard Life Rafts and Disabled Vessels 351

Chapter 20: Finding Food and Drink at Sea 367

Chapter 21: Emergency Travel and Navigation at Sea 385

Chapter 22: First Aid on the Water 401

Part 5: The Part of Tens 411

Chapter 23: Ten Ways to Practice Wilderness Survival Skills 413

Chapter 24: Ten Quick Escapes 417

Index 425

John Haslett is an adventure writer with decades of experience in the remote regions of Central and South America, including voyaging on primitive wooden vessels. His exploits have been featured in National Geographic Adventure magazine. Cameron M. Smith has traveled from Africa to Alaska and back using his expedition, mountaineering, and polar travel skills. His expeditions have been televised on the National Geographic Channel International and the Discovery Channel.

Your ticket to backcountry confidence

Life is never better than when it’s just you in harmony with nature. But when your aventure goes sideways, it’s important to be prepared. Wilderness Survival For Dummies will turn you into a capable survivor who can make it through all kinds of sticky situations. Find food and water, face off against the elements, perform first aid, navigate by the stars, and live to tell the heroic tale. This fun and practical guide—full of helpful diagrams and step-by-step instructions—gives you the knowledge you need to stay calm and make it home.

Inside...

• The psychology of survival
• Signaling for rescue
• Making basic shelters
• Navigating on land and at sea
• Surviving in extreme climates
• Handling life rafts
• Emergency first-aid skills
• Ideas for survival practice