Show Contents 8th August 2014

Show Notes

I begin this week with The Wilderness Gathering, The Blizzard Survival 10% Discount Offer, SCPENBK Tactical Pen Review, Solar Super Storms pose a ‘catastrophic’ threat to life on Earth, Training to Survive, Support these companies,  Hot Rocks, Ribzwear 30% Discount Offer, You could not make it up, EMP Myths, Wilderness 121’s 10% Discount Offer, The Will to Survive - The Mental Challenge, The Field Leisure 10% Discount Offer, Snugpak Response Pak Review, Buggrub’s 10% Discount Offer, More companies to support, Stopping Bleeding with Crushed Black Pepper, Hunters-Knives 10% Discount Offer, UK Cross Bows, Finding Food, When the Power stops, Further companies to support, The Get-Home-Bag, Schrade Full Tang Drop Point Fixed Blade G-10 Handle Review, So You Want Your Own Land, Survival Nutrition, Wilderness Survival Tools, Cyber-attacks, Terrorism, Natural Disasters Top Threats Facing U.K. The Breathing Mobile Washer Review.

Have you booked your ticket for the Wilderness Gathering? You can get full details at www.wildernessgathering.co.uk or call 0845 8387062

THE WILDERNESS GATHERING 2014 14th to the 17th August

The Wilderness Gathering has over the years become a firm date in the diaries of those who enjoy bushcraft, nature and wilderness survival skills. The previous ten years have seen this event grow from a small event in one field with some traders and schools sharing bushcraft skills and knowledge to a festival of wilderness living skills encompassing bushcraft/survival and woodland crafts.

The show has grown into an event with something for all the family with stories and music by the campfire in the evenings and skills workshops and activities throughout the three whole days of the festival.

The Wilderness Gathering has without a doubt become the premier family event for all those interested in bush crafts and the great outdoors.
The show has bushcraft clubs for all age groups of children to get involved in plus more activities for all including den building and wilderness skills classes for all.

There are hands on demonstrations of game preparation, knife sharpening, basha boat building, bow making, greenwood working, archery and axe throwing and primitive fire lighting to name just a few. There are talks on survival phycology, classes on falconry and wilderness survival fishing. All of these skills are there for everybody and anybody to participate in.

You can probably pick up information on nearly all the skills needed to live in the wilderness and prosper at The Wilderness Gathering.

There is a wealth of good quality trade stands that are carefully selected to be in theme for the show selling everything from custom knives to tipis and outdoor clothing to primitive tools. The organisers have even laid on a free service bring and buy stall where you can bring along your used and unwanted kit and they’ll sell it for you.

There are local scout and explorer group’s onsite promoting the World Wide Scouting Movement as well helping out with some of the classes and site logistics.
The catering is within the theme of the event with venison and game featuring on the menus plus organic cakes and drinks. The woodland and open field camping facilities (with hot showers) giving you the option to visit for the whole weekend or just to attend as a day visitor.
Check out www.wildernessgathering.co.uk or call 0845 8387062 you really won’t regret it.

 

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SCPENBK Tactical Pen Review

The Schrade Tactical Pen, CNC Machined 6061 T6 Black Aluminum, Pen Cap Features Pocket Clip, 1 Black Schmidt P900M Parker Style Ball Point Ink Cartridge.

Specifications

Overall length 5.7 inch (14.5)

Weight 0.06 lbs

There are lots of self-defence aka "Tactical" pens to choose from.

Many sites sell them, and a quick search on Amazon will give you dozens of different models to choose from, ranging from about £5 to well over £100 for the higher end ones. If you want to spend about £100 for a top of the line pen, more power to you.

This is a basic tactical pen. It's anodized aluminium with a screw-on cap and blunted tip, which makes it look at first glance like a common pen. To use as a pen, you take the cap off and put it on the self-defence end, turning this into a common pen.

In fact, if it would be hard to tell this is a tactical pen at first glance in self-defence configuration, it's very unlikely you would get much scrutiny.

The SCPENBK also features a deep carry clip and takes Parker refills. Other than that, it's basically just an anodized Aluminium pen.

This pen appears to be well made. The threads on the body of the pen are well machined, as are the threads on the cap, meaning that the cap is very secure when it is screwed on. The seam between the cap and body is nearly invisible. It looks solid and feels solid.

The ink cartridge seems OK. I don't know much about ink cartridges but this one seems to be of good quality and it writes just fine.

I've been carrying mine around with me everywhere for around two week’s now. The pocket clip was a little stiff at first, but it loosened up and now has a good feel in my pocket.

I feel very confident that this pen would make a great Kubotan. And unlike most martial arts Kubotans, the tactical pen is very low key.

I think there are other model pens that are even lower key than the Schrade, but they usually come at a higher price, and I wanted something basic to start with.

Since the day I bought this pen, it seems like everyone in my family has either tried to liberate it from me, or dropped hints that they want one for the holidays. So needless to say, we will be giving several of these out as gifts.

These types of tactical pens are one of the few types of self-defence weapons not immediately identifiable as a weapon.

I have stabbed a concrete wall, a Brick wall and even stabbed a steel skip, and you know there was no damage to the pens tip at all.

But the concrete and brick had a degree of damage to them and when I stabbed everything from a tree to a pallet they too had dents and even a bit of cracking along the grain of the pallet wood.

I really like this tactical pen, it is great value for money and being a normal pen, this one could even save your life.

You can get yours at http://taylorbrandsllc.com/

Solar Super Storms pose a ‘catastrophic’ threat to life on Earth

Massive storms are caused by violent eruptions on the surface of the sun and they can cause surges of electrical currents in the ground on Earth

A storm can also affect overhead power lines causing a black out

These huge storms are caused by violent eruptions on the surface of the sun and are accompanied by coronal mass ejections, or CMEs.

CMEs are the most energetic events in our solar system - involving huge bubbles of plasma and magnetic fields being spewed from the sun’s surface into space.

A solar eruption could take out the National Grid, along with many electrical systems across the world

They are often preceded by a solar flare - a massive release of energy from the sun in the form of gamma rays, X-rays, protons and electrons.

A solar super storm occurs when a CME of sufficient magnitude tears into the Earth’s surrounding magnetic field and rips it apart. 

Such an event would induce huge surges of electrical currents in the ground and in overhead transmission lines, causing widespread power cuts and severely damaging critical electrical components.

To be honest I think that it is only a 'matter of time' before an exceptionally violent solar storm is propelled towards Earth.

Such a storm would wreak havoc with communication systems and power supplies, crippling vital services such as transport, sanitation and medicine.

A big enough solar storm could even send us back to the 1800’s in a split second.

Solar flares can damage satellites and have an enormous financial cost.

Astronauts are not in immediate danger because of the relatively low orbit of the space station. Although they do have to be concerned about cumulative exposure during space walks.

The charged particles can also threaten airlines by disturbing the Earth’s magnetic field.

Very large flares can even create currents within electricity grids and knock out energy supplies.

Geomagnetic storms are more disruptive now than in the past because of our greater dependence on technical systems that can be affected by electric currents.

'Without power, people would struggle to fuel their cars at petrol stations, get money from cash dispensers or pay online let alone eat and keep warm.

'Water and sewage systems would be affected too, meaning that health epidemics in urbanised areas would quickly take a grip, with diseases we thought we had left behind centuries ago soon returning.'

The largest ever solar super-storm on record occurred in 1859 and is known as the Carrington Event, named after the English astronomer Richard Carrington who spotted the preceding solar flare.

This massive CME released about 1022 kJ of energy - the equivalent to 10 billion Hiroshima bombs exploding at the same time - and hurled around a trillion kilos of charged particles towards the Earth at speeds of up to 3000 km/s.

However, its impact on the human population was relatively benign as our electronic infrastructure at the time amounted to no more than about 124,000 miles (200,000 km) of telegraph lines.

Nasa scientists have predicted that the Earth is in the path of a Carrington-level event every 150 years on average. 

This means that we are currently five years overdue - and that the likelihood of one occurring in the next decade is as high as 12 per cent.

A sub-group of scientists concluded that advanced space-weather forecasting is the best solution, which could be achieved by sending an array of 16 lunchbox-sized cube satellites into orbit around the Sun.

The network could give around a week’s notice of where, when and with what magnitude solar storms will take place, providing adequate time to switch off vulnerable power lines, re-orientate satellites, ground planes and begin national recovery programmes.

Perhaps we have never been more vulnerable to the volatile mood of our nearest star, but I think it is well within our ability, skill and expertise as humans to protect ourselves.'

Training to Survive

You will need to build up your physical abilities to be able to survive when SHTF. 

If you have never really carried a full Bergen before then prepare your body for the challenges that lie ahead and start out slowly.

If you are a great swimmer and you think that you are in great condition and could easily hike for hours on end, you can be wrong. 

Hiking up- and hiking downhill on varying terrains and conditions are pretty specific fitness exercises that strain your body in ways that it may not be used to. 

Even if you are used to walking, strapping a 30-pound backpack will suddenly change your entire experience.

The key to training yourself lies in slow but steady progress. There is no fun in draining yourself to the point of collapse. 

Remember that we are walking for with a purpose so it is alright to push your boundaries but do not go too far. 

Make sure to set obtainable and measurable goals. Here are some suggested schedules when you're training for bugging out on foot.

Start off by making small 2-4 km (1-3 miles) hikes on regular intervals (1-2 times per week) under not too challenging conditions and without a backpack. 

Do it near your own home so you can make sure that you are able to be back before sunset?

Steadily increase the length of your hikes until you are able to comfortably make a 15km (9 miles) hike.

On your 15km hikes, you will most likely already be carrying a small day pack with some snacks and drinks. 

Now work on increasing the weight of your load by adding more equipment or food/drinks.

Steadily increase the weight of your expedition pack until you are able to comfortably finish a 15km hike with 10kg (22lb.) backpack.

At this stage, you are set to go on basic day hikes and you can train yourself in more challenging terrains and greater vertical gains.

From this point on, you should steadily increase your distance and the weight and size of your pack. With the proper training, you should be able to carry up to 25-30% of your body weight as Backpack Load.

There is a big difference between hiking on flat terrain and having to deal with uphill- and downhill walking. Steadily increase the number of vertical meters you gain on your day hikes.

Walking for consecutive days is very different from single day hikes with periods of rest between them. Consecutive hikes bring the added challenges of possible blisters, muscle aches and skin irritation. 

Train yourself by increasing the number of consecutive Hiking days.

This training routine should increase your overall fitness level and will get your body adjusted for bugging out.

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Is a solar powered phone charger really useful in the UK?

Recharge via mains usb, PC, Car usb and in addition, Solar

Hold charge for months, even when in a pocket

Any direct sunlight will trickle charge the battery.

Get more charges per given capacity and very useful in an emergency

Hot Rocks

Lots of survival manuals and shows teach you how to make a fire so you can stay warm. But what they don't often explain is how in cold weather the cold will cause you to wake up multiple times each night because you will have to tend to your shrinking fire.

Getting a good night’s sleep is a huge advantage when in a survival situation. Sleep is essential for life and without good sleep you will be less capable during the day.

To greatly extend your sleep time at night you will of course want to get a good fire going. Now you will also need a good rock or two. The bigger the rock the longer it will provide heat. Multiple rocks can be used. Match and suit to your needs.

Whatever size you choose it ideally needs to fit within a sock or some other shaped cloth such as a pillow case. The sock, pillow case or other cloth will insulate the rock so that the heat lasts longer and protects you from burns.

Now that you have your rock place it about 6 inches or so from your fire. If the fire is really large (wasteful) place the rock further away.

You want the rock close enough to absorb a lot of heat, but not so close that you can't easily control the rocks temperature. Water boils at 212 degrees F. and you only want the rock to about 150. Get it too hot and it can explode and it will be too hot to handle and will melt or scorch any cloth material that it touches.

You will need to turn your rock(s) every few minutes to allow for even heating and full heat absorption. Basically the rock is "ready" when it is too hot to leave your hand on it but not so hot that it burns you when you test its temperature by touching with your fingers.

Once the rock is heated to the proper temperature pull your sock over your hand like a puppet. Grab the rock with the sock hand and quickly with the other hand grab the top of the sock and pull it down to capture the rock in the sock.

Let go of the rock!!! Twist the sock once or twice and pull the sock again over the rock to give it a double layer of insulation. Do this as many times as you can?

Now place the sock rock into your sleeping bag or bed and you are ready to get a good night’s sleep!

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A front pack is a pack or bag that allows for access of equipment from the persons chest. Front packs

first and foremost allow for easy access of gear without the removal of any equipment.

Backpacking is a sport where in many situations it is critical to both minimize and maximize the contents of your load for a longer or lighter duration of stay. The ability to move small amounts of weight to the frontal region significantly reduces overall stress on a person’s shoulders and back.

In all there are unlimited uses for the front pack. Front packs are the best compliment to any outdoorsman’s gear when accessibility, functionality, mobility and simplicity are required. From horseback riding, long distance biking, motorcycling and kayaking.

All sports where fast and easy access of gear is essential, a front pack is your best solution and as you can imagine it is going down a storm within the prepping and survivalist community.

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You Could Not Make it Up

An Oregon man was sentenced to 30 days in jail for collecting rain water on his own property because according to a decades-old law, the water belongs to the government.

Mr. Gary Harrington spoke about the ponds he’s created to collect water, saying, “We’ve had these ponds for 37 years and they were designed and built for the purpose of water, fire protection yet now, they want to drain them and put me in jail for it.”

According to the state, a law established in 1925 gives the water commission the rights to the water but according to Harrington, “This is big government getting greedy.”

Dominic Notter, legal adviser, who appeared with Mr. Harrington asked, “What’s next? We go out in winter time on Gary’s property and you open your mouth and catch a snowflake and the state’s going to say you’re the containment and that’s their water?”

Harrington further asked, “Are they going to start regulating our air that we breathe?

Well said Mr. Harrington and I wish you well in your struggle.

EMP MYTHS

When discussing what measure can be taken to guard against an EMP; it’s first necessary to get rid of a few myths.  It’s essential to understand the nature of EMP and how it works.

One major myth or misconception is that an EMP is similar to a powerful bolt of lightning. While the two (lightning and EMPs) each produce similar results; an EMP is actually more like to a super-charged radio wave.

So you can forget using lightning-rods, lightning arrestors or any such grounding techniques as they will undoubtedly fail in protecting equipment from EMP.

Another false concept is that EMP “out of the blue” can harm your body or cause major damage to your brain way lightning strikes can.  The EMP levels created by a nuclear weapon would be so minimal, they wouldn’t pose a serious health threat to plants, animals or man.  This is assuming that the EMP isn’t concentrated.

EMP can be concentrated. EMP occurs when it is “pulled in” by a stretch of metal. EMP would be dangerous to living things in this case.  It could become concentrated by exposed metal girders, telephone lines, long antennas or anything similar.  

Avoid being very close to such concentrations in event of nuclear war.  A minimum distance of 8 feet from such stretches of metal is recommended for nuclear-generated EMP.

Concentration of metal, wiring etc. is the main reason that most electrical equipment would be destroyed by the EMP.  It’s not that the electrical equipment itself is really that sensitive, but rather the massive electrical surge would be so concentrated that anything working on low levels of electricity would be completely fried.

So What Can I Do to Prepare For An EMP?

A Faraday Cage (or Shield) can be described as an enclosure created by conducting materials that blocks external electric fields (both static and non-static).

These shields – cages can be used to protect different kinds of electronic equipment from electrostatic discharges. They can’t block magnetic fields like Earth’s magnetic field, but they can protect the interior from electromagnetic radiation coming from the outside.

The Invention of the Faraday Cage

Michael Faraday invented the “cages” in 1836, and they were named after him, but Benjamin Franklin also made a great contribution to “Faraday Cage” development and application.

Faraday noticed that the conductor charge (on a charged conductor) did not influence anything that was enclosed within; the charge resided only on the exterior.

Faraday constructed a room, coated the entire room with metal foil, and used an electrostatic generator to create high-voltage discharges that stroke the outside of his metal foil-coated room. He found no electric charge on the inside walls. Faraday used an electroscope to prove this.

In 1755, Benjamin Franklin discovered what we now call “A Faraday Cage”, in his own experiment. He used a cork ball and a can. The cork was suspended on a thread and put into the can through a small opening. Franklin found that the cork wasn’t attracted to the inside, although it did touch the bottom; when drawn out, the cork was not electrified. If it touched the outside, it would have been electrified.

How Does It Work?

An external electrical field leads to rearrangement of the charges, and this cancels the filed inside. Electric fields (applied externally) create forces on electrons in the conductor, creating a current, which will further result in charge rearrangement. The current will cease when the charges rearrange and the applied field inside is cancelled.

So what are the applications of the Faraday Cage

Safety against lightening: The cage protects the interior of the vehicle from the strong electric fields. Cars and aircraft act as Faraday cages / shields to protect people when the vehicle is struck by lightning.

Microwave: the microwaves inside the oven are trapped and used for cooking. The metal shell of the microwave acts as a Faraday cage.

Protections for electronic goods: Electronic equipment can be shielded and protected from stray electromagnetic fields by using coaxial cables that contain a conducting shell that acts as a Faraday cage.

Protective suits for power line workers, who often wear protective suits that act as Faraday cages while working with high voltage power lines. These suits protect them from getting electrocuted.

MRI (Magnetic resonance imaging) scan rooms are good examples of a Faraday cage. External radio frequency signals are prevented from interfering with the data coming from the patient.

How to Build a Faraday Cage

Do you know that your fragile computer chips need protection from the Electro Magnetic Pulse (EMP)? To prevent them from getting disrupted by the EMP, we can build our own Faraday cages. There are also other numerous examples of the Faraday cage. Here is how to construct your own Faraday cage.

You will need:

- Two cardboard boxes – one cardboard box should fit tightly inside the other
- Aluminium foil
- 6 to 10 mm black polyethylene sheeting
- Grounding wire (wire that connects metal components in a circuit to the ground)
- An Alligator clip (also called spring clip / crocodile clip)
- Cellophane tape

• Place the smaller cardboard box inside the bigger one.
• Cover the external box completely with aluminium foil.
• Attach a grounding wire to the aluminium foil using the cellophane tape. Attach the crocodile clip to the end of the grounding wire.
• Wrap the covered box with the black polyethylene sheeting
• Use tape to prevent the foil from ripping
• Put the item into the smaller box

Job done.

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The Will to Survive - The Mental Challenge

Will: The mental faculty by which one deliberately chooses or decides upon a course of action.

The single most important survival skill is the will to survive. If you find yourself in a survival situation, you must make up your mind that you are going to survive! Attitude and determination are your allies, doubt is your enemy!

According to the US Army Field Manual, the two greatest dangers to survival are the desire for comfort, and a passive outlook.

Desire for comfort: You must change the way you think of comfort. Compare your current situation with a far worst situation, and realize that your current discomfort is only temporary. Knowing how much discomfort you can handle, and understanding your need for comfort can help you through your survival situation. Remember, comfort is not essential to your survival!!!

A Passive Outlook: (Passive: Accepting one's fate without objection or resistance.) We all have the basic will to survive, but the overwhelming stress caused by our situation can lead to a passive outlook. The best way to ovoid a passive outlook is to understand the physical and mental stress that can cause it.

Physical Stress

Climate

Cold:

Cold weather slows down your blood flow, and reduces your ability to think clearly. The cold can also make you sleepy, week, and reduce your will to survive. Hypothermia can set in, even in warm climates if you get cold by being wet. If you are cold, immediately find shelter, and start a fire!!! Heat:

Heat can also weaken your will to survive. Hot temperatures can lead to heat exhaustion and even heat stroke. Try not to exert yourself during the hottest part of the day. Protect yourself from direct sunlight. If you are not accustomed to the higher temperatures take extra caution. Your body will start getting accustomed to the higher temperatures after a few days.

Dehydration

Once you start getting thirsty it can weaken your ability to think clearly. Dehydration is one of the most common problems associated with extreme survival situations. Dehydration can weaken, and kill! Lack of water affects your body’s ability to keep warm, and cool. Drink plenty of water when it is available and ovoid eating too much food when water is not available.

Hunger

Hunger can affect your will to survive, and morale. The hardest thing for most people is overcoming the Yuk Factor. When it comes to survival you may have to eat things that you normally would consider disgusting to even look at.

Physical Pain and Fatigue:

Pain: is your body’s way of telling you that something is wrong. The sensation of pain itself is not harmful, but it can seam unbearable. The best way to deal with pain is:

Know its source (treat the cause if possible).

Understand that it must be tolerated.

Concentrate on surviving (keep mentally & physical busy).

Think tuff, and take pride in your ability to take the pain.

Physical Fatigue: can be caused by over exertion, and can often be relieved by resting. You should ovoid repetitive activities that can lead to soreness, and strained muscles.

Mental Fatigue

The best way to overcome mental fatigue is to get rest, change your activities, mild exercise, have a conversation, play a game, and use your imagination (fantasizing).

Boredom & Loneliness

Boredom is usually experienced in long term survival situations, were loneliness and repetitive activities are keeping the human mind from being challenged. The best method for dealing with boredom is to keep busy, and remember that even your smallest activity is playing a part in your overall survival goal.

Loneliness can often leave you with a feeling of despair; it can make you want to just give up and die. In order to deal with loneliness you must first accept your current situation, and understand that by keeping busy and focusing on your goal you can survive. Rely on your skills, and on your ability to get through your situation and ultimately reach your goal of survival. Talk with God!

Fear

Fear is our body’s way of avoiding dangerous situations that can cause use physical and mental harm. As long as the fear is founded on tangible facts, it can be very useful. Fear can keep our actions in check, and it can trigger our natural “fight or flight” response. Fear that is unfounded in facts can impair our ability to make rational decisions, and it can jeopardize our ability to survive. Worry is a type of fear that can be based on facts, but is usually something that has not, and may not ever happen. Don’t be fearful of the unknown; don’t worry about that which you cannot control. Instead keep your mind on the task at hand; Survival!!!

When you find yourself in a survival situation always remember to S.T.O.P.

Stop

Think

Observe

Plan

The US Army uses the acronym S.U.R.V.I.V.A.L. to help soldiers’ remember how to survive.

Size up the situation.

Undue haste makes waste.

Remember were you are.

Vanquish fear and panic.

Improvise.

Value living.

Act like the natives.

Live by your wits.

Be Prepared

Being prepared ahead of time will give you confidence and the skills you need to survive. Always assess your situation, and prioritize your current survival needs (water, shelter, fire, food, first aid, and signals [order changes depending on your current survival needs).

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Snugpak Response Pak Review

When travelling light it pays to have all your essentials in one place and the handy Response Pak has a place for just about anything.

With multiple inside and outside pockets, including a main compartment and two side pockets, it carries a wide range of items, from cameras to first aid kits and it will easily accommodate all of your essentials and will always be ready when you are.

The Responsepak can be used as a ‘quick grab’ bag with the heavy duty handle on top, or can be worn as a bum bag via the 46 inch waist strap.

The Snugpak Response Pak is a perfect choice when you are travelling light. The Response Pak is a small holdall designed to carry your essentials when you need to carry them all in one place.

It has a place for just about anything and comes with multiple inside and outside pockets, therefor allowing you to carry a wide range of items, from cameras to first aid kits.

Features of the Snugpak Response Pak

Multiple Pockets

Clip Fasten

Shoulder Strap

Colours Available Black, Olive

Weight 440g

Dimensions 36cm x 14cm x 22cm cm

This is what I managed to fit into mine:

First-Aid-Kit

Write in the rain pad and pen

Elzetta MF60 Tactical LED torch

Gerber Drop Point Remix

Resquick orange signal sheet

Two survival blankets

An emergency poncho

A multi-tool

The ultimate Compact survival Kit

The EDC Fire Kit

My medication

The survival straw

It is like a tardis inside and very well made indeed, I really like the bum bag idea as it leaves your hands free for other tasks.

This sort of Pak would be the one that I would keep my personal survival kit in so if I lost my backpack then I would still have the kit I need to survive on my waist.

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Gold Standard Whey Protein isolates which are 90% pure protein by weight

http://www.ribzwear.com

The RIBZ Front Pack

http://www.eskimoagency.com/

The LuminAID

http://www.watertogo.eu/

Your own water purification system­­­­

http://www.ilumiworld.com/

Nut, gluten- and milk-free foods for nearly a decade here.

http://survivalslingshot.com/

The Survival Slingshot

Stopping Bleeding with Crushed Black Pepper

When it comes to survival and wilderness first aid, I highly recommend you carry a blood clotting agent with you in your first aid kit, personally I believe that CELOX produce the best consumer available blood clotting agent, as unlike many other brands, CELOX is also effective for people on blood thinners such as heparin and warfarin etc. You can purchase CELOX from Amazon. It is quite expensive, but simply put – it could save your life one day…

If you do not have a clotting agent such as CELOX, you can in fact use simple ground black pepper to stop bleeding quickly for small to medium sized cuts/wounds.  

Black pepper is naturally antibacterial and makes blood coagulate quickly and stop bleeding. Black pepper was commonly used by soldiers in the Second World War, and even today it is often used in professional kitchens (probably due to its availability) to stop cuts from bleeding.

It couldn’t be simpler to use black pepper to stop bleeding – simply pour a generous amount of ground black pepper onto the wound and apply pressure (and bandage if necessary) and it should quickly stop bleeding (please use common sense though as serious cuts may still require the attention of an A&E Surgeon). 

Note: Finely ground black pepper works best, and no, black pepper does not sting when put on a cut!

Personally I keep some CELOX in our first aid kits for emergencies, but for day-to-day and around the home, black pepper is a useful alternative for smaller wounds.

I am not a medical expert, this information is based on my own experience and research. Please do your own research and exercise common sense before trying this. If you have an existing medical condition or allergy, please check that this won’t interfere with your condition or medication.

Nigel at www.hunters-knives.co.uk has offered you dear listener 10% on all his products simply by using the code PREP10.

UK Cross Bows

It is an offence for a person under 18 years of age to have in their possession a crossbow which is capable of discharging a missile, Or Parts of a crossbow which together (and without any other parts) can be assembled to form a crossbow capable of discharging a missile UNLESS the person is under supervision of someone who is who is 21 years of age or older.

This is an ancient weapon whose origins date back to the ancient Greeks in the 4th century BC.

The modern crossbow is the UK's fastest projectile firing weapon without the need for a licence, is deadly accurate at 40 yards and is popular for target shooting.

In York it is perfectly legal to shoot a Scotsman with a crossbow upon seeing one, except for on Sundays. However any Scotsman caught drunk or with a weapon can still be shot on a Sunday, except with a bow and arrow.

Similarly in Chester it is legal to shoot a Welsh person with a crossbow, as long as it is within the city walls and is done after midnight.

I have the 175lb Jaguar Crossbow Rifle from http://www.hunters-knives.co.uk/

With 175lb draw weight this bow will launch a bolt at a blistering 245 FPS and is the most powerful recurve crossbow in their range.

Draw Weight: 175 lbs
Limb: Compression Moulded Fibreglass
Barrel : Aluminium Alloy
Stock : Camo Wood
Velocity : 245 fps

Included with the crossbow

4 x 17" bolts

Stringing aid

Bow wax

Open sights

Foot stirrup

All tools required for assembly

The bow is supplied with open sights but optical sights (scope or red dot) can be fitted to the 20mm weaver rail.

Due to the high power of this crossbow they only recommend using 16" bolts or longer.

A hard hitting crossbow that's real value for money.

Finding Food

You can go weeks without food, however hunger can weaken you, and impair your “will to survive”. Lack of food can also increase your chances of hypothermia, and effect your overall health and feeling of wellbeing.

In this section we will go over the very basics of finding food. Hunting mammals, gathering plants, and other advanced techniques will be covered in greater detail in future updates.

Insects & Snails

Insects are one of the best survival foods available; they are easy to find & catch, and are high in protein and fat. In a life or death survival situation you need to get over the yuk-factor and do what it takes to survive.

Slugs, snails, grubs, earthworms, mealworms, ants, termites, locust, grasshoppers, and crickets are some examples of creatures that can be eaten. Insects can usually be eaten raw (grasshoppers, locus, and crickets should be cooked to kill parasites), but will taste better if fried, roasted, or boiled.

You can find insects inside of rotted logs, and under tree limbs. There are always insects to be found around water, and under leaves.

Plants

If you don’t know what you’re eating, don’t eat it! Watching what animals eat proves nothing; some animals can ingest toxins that are harmful to humans. Choosing plants for food is beyond this basic survival guide, for an advanced plant gathering guide check out our “Advanced Gathering” survival guide.

Mushrooms

Don’t eat mushrooms unless you are 100% sure that it is safe!!! Mushrooms can kill the untrained.

Water Wildlife

Fish, are the next easiest to catch food source. Turtles, frogs, snakes, newts, salamanders, lizards, molluscs, crustaceans, shrimp, and ells are some of the available food that can be found near fresh & salt water.

Fishing

The best times to fish is before dawn, and after dusk.

Use bait (small fish, worms, etc.), or create a lure out of a shiny piece of metal to attract fish.

You can make fish hooks out of natural or man-made materials

You can make fishing line from plant or cloth fibres. Some materials that work well for fishing line are the inner bark of trees, hemp, nettle, milkweed, yucca, and reeds.

Gather the fibres together and tie one end together.

Tie the strands onto something solid (tree branch, etc.).

Separate into two separate strands.

Twist each strand clockwise.

Wrap the strands together in a counter clockwise motion.

Tie the lose end together.

You can also set out trot lines, and check them every hour.

You can also make a fishing spear out of many man-made & natural materials.

You can make a fish net for catching smaller fish, or pulling large fish to shore.

You can also make several handy types of traps for catching fish.

You can even poison fish by dumping a lot of lime into the water. Heat coral, or shells till brittle, and beat into a powder to create lime (or use lime stone).

Hunting

I will only mention a few types of traps here

Noosing Wand

A noosing wand can be used for catching a variety of animals including lizards and nesting birds.

Squirrel Pole

Ground Snares

Dead Falls

Preparing Food

Here are some of my recommended methods for cooking various foods.

Insects

Fry, boil, or eat raw (grasshoppers, locus, and crickets should be cooked to kill parasites).

Frogs

Skin, cook, and eat the whole body.

Salamanders

Skin, gut, and eat.

Snakes

Cut of the head, gut, skin, cook, and eat.

Lizards

Skin, gut, cook, and eat. Small lizards can be skewed and cooked whole; meat is done once skin bubbles and cracks.

Birds

Pluck feathers, gut, cook, and eat.

Mammals

Skin, gut, cook, and eat.

Tip: You can skewer small animals, and burn off the hair; this will help to kill parities, ticks, and fleas that may carry diseases.

Fish

Gut, remove scales, and cook. (You can fillet the fish, but cook and eat all of the remains.).

 Cooking

One of the fastest ways to cook something is by skewing it, and cooking over open flames. You can boil many foods to remove unsavoury flavours, and to retain many of their vitamins and minerals.

Boiling

Depending on where you are in the world if you don’t have a pot available for boiling, you can use natural and man-made materials like.

Turtle Shell

Coconut Shell

Sea Shell

Bamboo

Rock Method for Boiling

For non-fireproof pots, you can heat rocks and place in your water. Keep replacing cooled rocks with hot rocks until your food has been adequately boiled.

Warning: Porous rocks, water logged river rocks, and concrete may explode when heated.

Wood Bowl

Animal Stomach

Animal Hide (Skin)

When the Power Stops

It is a fact that our country is more reliant on electrical power today than at any time in its history. Our way of life – from everyday conveniences and the security of local emergency services to commerce and communications – is contingent upon an always on, always available flow of electricity.

But an aging infrastructure coupled with a rise in natural and man-made disasters threatens our entire modern day digital infrastructure. According to many experts from the private and public sector, we’re just one major catastrophic event away from a complete meltdown of life in the United Kingdom as we know it today.

So, what happens if and when the grid goes down for an extended period of time? Aside from the aggravation of not being able to determine what is happening through traditional media channels, for the Average person, his problems have only just begun.

 Our dependency to the power grid doesn’t just stop at the lack of electricity in our homes to power our appliances or an inability to charge our mobile phones; it is much broader and affects every aspect of our lives.

We are regularly inundated with news reports covering power cuts that last several days or weeks resulting from bad weather or snow storms. During those times, when entire towns or regions experience power cuts, we get a glimpse into what a truly widespread emergency might look like.

It is often the case that the first thing residents of affected areas do is rush to the supermarket and DIY stores hoping to acquire critical supplies like food, water, batteries, flashlights and generators.

And while these supplies acquired at the onset of crisis may provide short term sustenance, any long-term power cut situation that lasts for many weeks or months will prove dangerous, and perhaps fatal, to the unprepared.

Consider, for a moment, how drastically your life would change without the continuous flow of energy the grid delivers. While manageable during a short-term disaster, losing access to the following critical elements of our just-in-time society would wreak havoc on the system.

Challenges or shut downs of business commerce

Breakdown of our basic infrastructure: communications, mass transportation, supply chains

Inability to access money via ATM machines

Payroll service interruptions

Interruptions in public facilities – schools, workplaces might close, and public gatherings.

Inability to have access to clean drinking water

The last widespread outage in the Northeast with over 80,000 homes without electricity, showed how intimately interconnected and alarmingly fragile our power grid is.

If our society is more reliant on power than at any time in history – without it, we’ve got no commerce, no communications, and no clean water – and if power becomes less reliable in the future, the big question is: Will we be able to hack it?

THE TROUBLE with the future of power isn’t that there is one big problem that could knack us. It’s that there are a host of them, any one of which could knack us.

These things that could knack us I would class as Extreme Natural Disasters

This includes earthquakes, hurricanes, snow storms, thunderstorms as well as massive solar storms that have the potential to seriously damage the electrical grid. You don’t think it could happen?

“It took just 90 seconds for a 1989 solar storm to cause the collapse of the Hydro-Quebec power grid, leaving 6 million Canadians without power for up to nine hours.

A 2008 NASA-funded report noted the risk of significant damage to our interconnected grid in light of the forecast for increased solar activity. The 11-year solar cycle is expected to peak in 2013, and just two weeks ago we saw one of the biggest solar-radiation storms in years.

Acts of Terrorism

This category includes, but is not limited to a physical attack on the bulk power system, either at its source of generation or somewhere along its transmission route, cyber-attack on the computers controlling our interconnected grid, electro-magnetic pulse, or an EMP, weapon.

Have you read me “effects of EMP” article. EMP’s will create long-lasting damage that would incapacitate electronic systems across the country and forever change our way of life. Cyber-threats are another concern and someone with serious hacking skills could easily take out computers, networks or information stored therein to cause lasting damage to our way of life.

The Ailing Grid

Our ailing power grid is almost as sick as our failing economy. With one malicious event, be it man made or by natural means, it is down. Our power delivery system is as old and stooped as a pensioner. As it is upgraded and its capacity is expanded, our rapacious need for more electrical power races to max it out once again.

A wide-spread emergency, such as a massive power surge, solar flare or a rogue electromagnetic pulse (EMP) detonation have the capacity to render our entire power infrastructure useless. Transformers and other key elements on which the grid depends could be permanently damaged as a result of massive electric surges.

In an event such as this our immediate problem will be finding a way to order, manufacture and take delivery of the components needed to replace the faulty ones.

Most of the parts made for our electrical grid are made in China – and many are decades old. It would take months to get the parts shipped to this country and replaced.

During the power cut, millions would be adversely affected; some even suggesting that within a year 9 out of 10 Britons would be dead from starvation, disease and violence.

Ladies and gentleman, if there’s one thing that can cause the veritable “S” to hit the fan, this is it.

So how do we remedy and/or prepare for a grid down scenario? Think retro – like pioneer retro- and by that we have to go way back to when we were not so dependent on the luxury of on-demand energy in its various forms. When preparing for a grid-down scenario, we must comprise different contingency plans for short-term and longer-term issues.

That being the case, we have to admit to ourselves that it could last longer than we expect and much more than just a minor inconvenience. Therefore, the best way to prepare is to start with your basic needs. That is the need for light, heat, water, and food. Some preparedness items to stock up on are:

Alternative fuel sources such as solar and diesel, wood for burning.

Food preservation supplies – dehydrators, canners, smokers, fermenting/pickling supplies. To learn more, click here.

Bulk food – Canned, freeze-dried, dehydrated or dry goods.

Water filtration supplies, rain harvesting supplies and large quantities of stored water.

Light sources: Lanterns, flashlights, candles and matches and alternative light sources

Batteries and chargers

Emergency stove – solar oven, rocket stove, camping stoves, etc.

Wood burning fire place – Central air heating systems, even if they use natural gas or propane, depend on electricity for the blower that will circulate the heated air. When the grid is down, this system will not work. Having a wood burning fire place is an alternative to central heating systems.

Cash money and/or silver or gold currency

The vulnerability of our grid is nothing new to preppers. Some have seen this problem coming for a long time and changed their entire ways of life by going off-grid. They have found alternative sources such as solar, wind and diesel to power their homes and machinery. A majority of us, who have not gone off-grid, are making a concerted effort to avoid dependence on this ailing infrastructure and preparing for life without it. That being said, all we can do is stay the course, prepare accordingly and continue on.

Further Companies to Support

www.solostove.com

Uses natural fuel

www.kaufmann-mercantile.com

EDC steel tools

www.nightgear.co.uk

Highlander Trojan Hydration Pack – Multicam

www.knifeman.co.uk

CUDEMAN HEAVY DUTY OLIVE WOOD BUSHCRAFT KNIFE - 111L

http://naturalspasupplies.co.uk

Alum Crystal and natural spa products

http://www.outofdoors.co.uk

Tool logic Survival 11 Credit Card

http://www.opticsplanet.com

BackHawk Web duty Belt

http://www.crkt.com

Guppie Multi=tool

http://www.eagle-outdoors.co.uk

Go Survival Pack

http://www.catapultelite.co.uk

Beautiful Handmade Catapults

http://www.moreprepared.com

1 Person BASIC Backpack Survival Kit, the back pack that does it all

http://www.rvops.co.uk

DD Hammock –The ultimate in Travel Hammocks

http://www.elzetta.com

Elzetta ZFL-M60 Tactical Weapon-Grade LED Torch

http://www.adventuresurvivalequipment.com

Ultimate Adventurer Survival Kit everything in one kit

http://www.etsy.com/shop/TheParacordWeaver

Adjustable Knife Lanyard Review

http://etowahedge.com

Handmade knives by James D. Sanders

http://www.saferlifemarket.com

Mini alarm Device with an Ultra bright White LED

www.Amazon.co.uk

Lightload towels

https://www.mpowerd.com

The LUCI light

http://bcbadventure.com/

Fire Dragon Gel

http://www.thebushcraftstore.co.uk/

TBS Boar Folding Pocket Knife

http://www.thebushcraftstore.co.uk/

Live Fire Emergency Fire Starter

www.survival-supplies.co.uk

THE ultimate Emergency Survival Fishing Kit

https://midimax.co.uk/Knives-Multi-Tools/Knives/mini-remix

Gerber Mini Remix - Drop Point, Fine Edge

https://www.uvpaqlite.com/

The Mule Light

http://www.vat19.com/dvds/body-gard-5-in-1-emergency-tool.cfm

The BodyGard is the Rolls-Royce of keychain emergency tools. Its two essential (and life-saving) tools are its seat belt cutter and door glass breaker.

The BodyGard also includes a sonic alarm (to attract attention and ward-off a would-be attacker), LED flashlight, and distress flasher (a bright red flashing light).

The BodyGard is compact and smartly attaches to your keychain so it's within reach during an emergency. You owe it to yourself and to your family to carry a BodyGard.

https://www.powertraveller.com/

The powermonkey explorer is not just for adventure travellers.  Compatible with the majority of smartphones including iPhone and BlackBerry, mobile phones, iPods, MP3 / MP4, PDAs and portable games consoles, the powermonkey explorer is a portable charger for your 5V devices - giving you 96 hours of standby on your mobile, 40 hours on your iPod, 5 hours on your games console, 48 hours on your PDA and 6 hours on MP3/MP4 players.

The Get-Home-Bag

WTSHTF maybe you are prepared for an extended survival scenario away from civilization, but you have to get out of the city first (maybe). In a disaster situation that might not be so easy. However If you have these three things in place you will greatly increase your chances.

Get Home Bag (GHB) Imagine for a minute that you work downtown in a large city; maybe you take the underground or take a bus to work every day. 

You are in a large office building with many floors, thousands of people, and you are on the fifteen or twentieth floor.

If a disaster strikes, how are you going to get out? I mean literally. 

If there is an earthquake or a catastrophic man made event how are you going to get out of your building? How are you going to get down the street? How are you going to get home? 

Do you want to be one of the people covered in dust wandering around in shock? I don’t.

But I have my Bug out Bag you say!

Oh really, where is it? Even if it is in your car it is useless to you at this point. The car park is at street level and possibly hundreds of yards away. That could mean life or death in this situation and you need to act now.

Even if you could get to your Bug out Bag, how much good would it do you in this environment? Most people’s B.O.B. is packed for survival with wilderness Camping gear, food, clothing, etc.

A Get Home Bag contains an entirely different set of tools and serves one purpose: To get you from wherever you are to your Home.

How to Choose an Urban Survival Bag

Your GHB should contain things that are going to get you out of the building like a crowbar. Things to help you make it through the aftermath like water and breathing masks.

Things you might use to help rescue others like flashlights or radios. Things that will help you on what could be a very long walk home such as food and maybe shoes.

Clearly a GHB is not a Bug out Bag. Sure they have some overlap, but a GHB can be much smaller, less weight conscious, have more specific tools, and be planned for one purpose. Do you have one cached in your office or place of work?

So you had a Bug out Plan so you made it home, now what? Let’s assume that the SHTF out there. 

You have surveyed the situation and determined that the city is in mass chaos and you need to get out now. What do you do? Again, you have your Bug out Bag, but you still have to get out of the city. 

Do you have a Bug out Plan?

For our purposes here, let’s assume that your Bug out Plan needs to get you from your home to your serious survival cache or Bug out Location outside of the city. 

I understand that not everybody has caches hidden in various places, and even fewer people have a dedicated Bug out Location. While you should probably be working on that, you still need a Bug out Plan.

There’s no way I can go through all of the various problems you might encounter while trying to bug out of your city so you will have to plan for yourself. 

What I will give you are some questions to consider and one rule: Contingency. Is your way out double, triple and quadruple backed up?

If the motorways are shutdown do you have an A road route?

If no roads are passable do you have an off road route?

If driving is out of the question do you have a planned walking or riding route?(Do you have maps of your area in your Bug Out Bag?)

Do you have a rendezvous point with other family members?

A Bug in Plan Let’s back up a minute. Pretend you just got home again, but this time you surveyed the situation and decided that you are not in immediate danger but are still not at situation normal.

Now what do you do? A Bug in Plan is for emergency situations where you can stay in your own home but have to rely on your own preparations to survive.

This might just mean that you will be without power or water for an extended period. Maybe it means you actually can’t leave your home at all for whatever reason.

What plans do you have in place to live like this? A Bug in Plan should include food and water preparations first and foremost.

What will you eat since all of the food in your refrigerator is going to be bad soon? Do you really want to live on the backpack meals out of your Bug out Bag when you don’t have to?

How much water do you have stored? Do you have a sewage system set up? (No water=nose wage: it’s always the little things….) Do you have unprepared neighbours’ to worry about? (To help or guard against?)

Starting out in a survival situation in an urban environment is almost an immediate set-back compared to those bugging out from more rural areas, but with a Get Home Bag, a Bug out Plan, and a Bug In Plan you are better off than most people.

Survival Preparedness is a process or a condition of being prepared to survive.

To Survive. The phrase could be taken literally – that is, to stay alive. The words, ‘to survive’, could also be interpreted less literally – more like staying healthy or healthier than otherwise.

In the context of survival preparedness, some will describe this notion to its very basic core – like the ability to survive in the wilderness without any modern help whatsoever, you are on your own, life and death circumstances, black and white.

Others will describe survival preparedness more-or-less in the context of living within today’s modern society parameters, and utilizing the modern tools available today in order to prepare or be prepared for various problems that may occur tomorrow.

What I’m trying to say is that there are some ‘survival preparedness’ “preppers”that are more hard-core than others and I’ve noticed that the movement has been coined with two labels in an apparent attempt to delineate their core values.

I’m not so sure that I agree with labels and definitions, knowing that there are all sorts of ‘shades of grey’, but having said that, the two labels are Survivalists and Preppers.

Survivalists are the hard core while the Preppers are the soft core. Again, I do not agree with the labelling here, but the fact is that it exists.

The Prepper is thought of as someone who is fully functioning within the system of modern society, preparing for minor disruptions that may come their way, while the Survivalist is considered to be on the edge, perhaps already hunkered down in their bunker or survival retreat – ready for Armageddon.

As in all walks of life, there are truly the extremes, and lots of in-between. When it comes to survival preparedness, I believe that the spectrum is all pretty much OK, so long as it’s within the law of the land.

Since there are so very many different types of people, personalities, skills, and interests, there will likewise be a multitude of variety when it comes to how one prepares, and what they are preparing for.

People will interpret risks differently from one another and people will be in varying vicinities of the risk themselves. Some face much higher risk than others based on their geographical location, their occupation, their own current financial and preparedness situation, etc.

Personally, I think that it’s great how more and more ordinary folks are waking up and realizing that things are not all Rosy out there and that there are very real risks facing us all as the world’s economic systems are teetering on the brink of failure while the rumour of wars fill the air.

There will always be ‘newbies’ to survival preparedness and there will always be veterans of the same. There’s room for everyone.
Just remember this… by failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.

Schrade Full Tang Drop Point Fixed Blade G-10 Handle Review

Part Number: SCHF14
Manufacturer:  Schrade
Our Price:  $53.33

This blade was ranked 9th by OutdoorLife on Great Fixed Blades for self-defense!

The Schrade SCHF14 Tactical, Survival Knife with survival and tactical applications, the SCHF14 is a fixed blade, fine edge knife... that is forged from tough, 8Cr13 high carbon, stainless steel.

The thick, 3.4 inch, drop-point blade is covered from tip to tail in a non-reflective, stone wash finish that gives the knife a handsome, vintage look.

It really is built to fight, the SCHF14 has a full tang design, with the blade steel running from the sharp and pointy tip, through the handle, and ending with a lanyard hole. Notched and patterned G-10 scales form a comfortable, yet rugged handle that is impervious to wear in even the most extreme situations.

And the exposed tang extends versatility, making the SCHF14 a capable crushing and breaking tool.

The knife is housed into a low profile, form-fitted, thermoplastic sheath. Multiple carry options are possible accommodating left or right hand carry in the vertical, horizontal or upside down positions.

Remove the belt carry loop for low impact pocket or pouch carry, or to lash the SCHF14 to gear using the four, reinforced grommet holes.

This knife is designed for every day, outdoor and tactical use, crafted from premium materials and built for a lifetime. This is the Schrade SCHF14 Tactical, Survival Knife.

Blade Length:	3.4 inch (8.6 cm)
Handle Length:	4.5 inch (11.4 cm)
Overall Length:	7.9 inch (20.0 cm)
Weight:	0.37 lbs

I decided to see how it would fair with what I would consider to be the bread and butter of survival knife capabilities.

Chopping, carving and dressing game.

It is not designed for chopping to be honest, however it fairs very well despite its blade size when it comes to battening smaller diameter sticks.

When it comes to carving it is just the job as it easily slices through branches and twigs and making feather sticks is really easy.

I shot a wood pigeon with my survival slingshot and I used the SCHF14 to easily cut through its breast feathers and remove the breasts which by the way I wrapped in Smokey bacon and cooked in the oven.

There is something about this knife, it just feels right in my hand, and I really like that.

http://taylorbrandsllc.com/

So You Want Your Own Land

Do you hold a dream to live off of the land and experience the joy of sustainable living? There really are countless things to consider when living off the land. However, if I was wanting my own land then these items would be on my list and I think they should be on yours.

1. Land

2. Natural Fresh Water Source

3. Food

4. Shelter

5. Power

6. Medical Skills

7. Methods of Communications

8. Disposal of Waste

9. Positive Mental Attitude

Land

I put land as the number one priority on this list ’cause without land, there’s no living off of it! There is a huge debate about how much is enough. I say, you make do with what you have.

But in order to produce enough to truly live off the land, you will need at least 5 acres. This allows for enough space to produce for your family and your animals. When considering where to purchase cheap land you must consider things such as acreage, amount of timber, quality of soil, presence of water, cost of land taxes, and weather.

Natural Fresh Water Source

We can live days, even weeks without food, but we will surely die without water in about 3 days. A fresh water source is crucial to your success in living off the land. Whether it is a lake, river/stream, spring or well, it must be close by and it must be drinkable.

The cost of digging a well depends on your location, water table, and contractor, but you can expect to pay up to £3,000. Water Storage (tanks, cisterns, aquifers, and ponds for domestic supply, fire and emergency use) is also a necessary system to consider and install.

Food

Nutrition, and the production of food, is super important and a key factor in living off the land not only for your family, but for your animals as well.

In most zones a greenhouse for the winter is a must as well as a garden in the summer. Books such as The Winter Harvest Handbook teach sustainable year-round gardening methods and will give you a good price point for getting started. Additionally, you’ll need a working knowledge of traditional food preservation techniques using salt, oil, sugar, alcohol, vinegar, drying, cold storage, and lactic fermentation. Preserving Food without Freezing or Canning is a great resource for this.

Production animals (i.e. bees, chickens, cows, ducks, goats, pigs, rabbits, and sheep) provide a fresh source of food, among countless other things.

The start-up cost of purchasing your animals will vary as will the initial cost of heirloom garden seed. Depending on where you wanted to start, chickens and goats seem logical to me, you may be looking at around £500 for animals, garden, and seed. If £500 seems like too much initially, get started with a small flock of chickens; the eggs alone are enough to sustain and nourish.

Power

When constructing your home/shelter, positioning it for power efficiency is of upmost importance. When living off the land, the hope is, our use of power will decrease. Some of the sources for off-grid power are wood/fire, solar, wind, and hydro. Ideally, your property and/or your local area should contain enough timber to provide a heat and cooking source.

The old-fashioned cook top stove would need to find its place in your home. Solar chargers, wind turbines, and water powered generators are all rather expensive forms of generating power, initially.

Which one’s better? It depends on who you talk to and where you live! Anyway you go, you can plan on investing around £2,000. Bottom line, the less power you need the less power you have to generate. Power conservation is your best bet when choosing to living off the land.

Medical Skills

Basic medical skills are a necessity for anyone living off-grid. Simply because in most cases you will be quite a distance from the nearest medical facility and you may not hold health insurance.

For a £50 start-up cost you can construct an emergency medical kit.

Purchase books like Where There Is No Doctor, Where There Is No Dentist, and Where Women Have No Doctor: A Health Guide for Women.

And for sustainability’s sake you will need to learn how to make homemade herbal bandages, tinctures, and syrups; all of which require knowledge of medicinal herbs.

Methods of Communications

Communication has been and will always be a very important aspect of our lives. Modern technology (aka The Internet) has dramatically changed the way we communicate with others.

There are a variety of Satellite Internet Services providers that are for the most part, pretty inexpensive. The initial equipment and set up fee will cost you approximately £200 with a monthly charge of around £30 depending on what provider you go with.

If you don’t want the monthly charge? CB radio works well for local use and the Ham radio is better for long range communications.

Disposal of Waste

In order of least expensive to most expensive, here are 3 options for the disposal of human waste.

Humanure. Composting human waste is free. The most amazing system has been created and you can read all about it in

The Humanure Handbook. If you are even remotely considering living off-grid this book should be in your home library.

Incinerator Toilet. The waterless incinerator toilet can be set up anywhere and is the perfect alternative to a septic system. One of these lovely things will cost you approximately £1.000.

Septic System. The septic system is the most expensive costing anywhere from £5,000. This system requires modern electricity and running water in addition to routine maintenance.

Positive Mental Attitude

If you are going to live off the land and thrive, you have to have your mind right. A positive mental attitude, and a willingness to learn, will see you through the tough times of sustainable living.

However, living off the land is no joke. It’s not romantic or sexy. It’s blood, sweat, and tears. It’s up with the sun and working for hours.

It’s unpredictable. An agrarian way of life is a willing submission to the laws of nature and to the Creator. This will cost you everything!

Don’t ever give up on your dreams of living off the land! I promise there is a way…you just have to find it.

Survival Nutrition

Your body needs three basic types of nutrients to survive: Protein, Fats, and Carbohydrates. Now you can argue that you can live without carbs but it would be very difficult and unrealistic, as almost everything contains carbs.

There are a lot of foods out there that you can consider for food storage. An ideal item would be something that has a long shelf life, and something inexpensive.

You really can’t go wrong with most tinned foods. They’re typically pretty cheap, and ready to eat. You just have to make sure you buy enough and then it all comes down to how much money you have to spend. Food prepping isn’t cheap so spend wisely.

In my opinion it is good to have a wide variety of food storage items, but everyone at least needs to have things that are ready to eat and don’t require preparation.

Don’t get me wrong, having things like rice, flour, and barley are great to have, but you may not have the resources or time to cook and prepare your food. That’s where tinned foods come into their own.

I have compiled a list of some of the best and cheapest ready to eat survival foods.

1. Beans (any) – simple, extremely cheap, ready to eat, and provides all three essential nutrients.
2. Peanut Butter – delicious, packed with calories, an excellent source of fat and protein.
3. Oats – can be eaten raw, excellent source of carbs.
4. Noodles – can also be eaten raw, extremely cheap, good source of carbs.
5. Tinned Fruit (any) – delicious, good source of vitamins, doubles as a dessert.
6. Tinned Meat (any) – cheap, excellent source of protein, delicious.
7. Tinned Beef Stew – a complete meal in a can that’s ready to eat.
8. Honey – natural sweetener, calorie packed, gives you a quick boost of energy.
9. Powdered Milk – good source of protein, and sometimes you just need some milk.
10. Spaghetti (with meat) – complete meal, great for children and adults too.

These are all suggestions. You may not like some of these. I personally hate oats, but I buy them anyway because they are cheap and I’d rather eat them than starve.

You might want to try out some freeze dried meals if you have the money. Most of them are pretty tasty and all you have to do is add water. They can be pretty pricey though so only do it if you have the money.

Wilderness Survival Tools

Should you find yourself unexpectedly lost, stranded, or facing a potentially life-threatening situation, it’s important to have the right survival tools at hand? Here are some wilderness survival tools that no emergency kit should be without.

Compass and Map

In this day and age, the old-fashioned compass has taken a backseat to GPS and other high-tech navigation systems. However, should you find yourself stranded in the wilderness without access to a charged battery or other electrical power source, a map and compass will allow you to get your bearings and plot a course back to safety.

Fire Starting Kit

In a survival scenario, a campfire can be the key to your survival. It provides warmth in cold weather, and heat to cook your food and purify your water. It can also act as a potential rescue signal.

You can put together your own fire starting kit by packing a couple of lighters, some waterproof matches, a flint, and a small magnifying glass in a small, waterproof container.

The flint can be struck against a stone to generate a spark, or the magnifying glass can be used to concentrate the sun’s rays into a beam of light and heat. Sparklers (with the stems cut off) also make good emergency fire starters, especially when dealing with moist kindling and leaves.

First Aid Kit

A well-stocked first aid kit will allow you to treat any minor injuries or mishaps, from cuts and gashes to sprained ankles. Your first aid kit should include the following:

• Alcohol Wipes
• Antibacterial ointments
• Aspirin
• Pain reliever
• Antacid
• Antihistamine
• Bandages
• Gauze
• Tweezers
• Scissors
• Eyewash
• Hydrocortisone cream
• Burn ointment

If you’re diabetic or allergic to insect stings, make sure you include emergency supplies of the appropriate remedies. It’s also a good idea to include a travel-size first aid manual in your kit.

Signal Mirror

Any small mirror can be used for signalling, but you should probably invest in a proper signal mirror for your survival kit. Signal mirrors are typically made of something sturdier than breakable glass, and will float if accidentally dropped in water.

The flash from a small signal mirror can be seen from as far as 100 miles away. Signal mirrors work best with direct sunlight on clear days, but you can also use them to reflect headlights, flashlight beams, and even bright moonlight if necessary.

Survival Knife

Survival knives can have long blades with serrated edges along one side. They also have hollow handles that can be used to store a compass, matches, or fishhooks and a line, although this type should be ignored.

You get what you pay for with survival knives, so make sure you don’t skimp on the quality. You’ll find it much easier to navigate the wilderness if you don’t have to contend with a dull and breakable blade.

Multi-Tool

A standard multi-tool consists of two halves, joined by a pair of pliers in the centre. Within the two halves are stored a variety of useful tools—screwdrivers, saw blades, bottle openers, can openers, scissors, serrated knives, metal files, and even Allen wrenches.

Water Treatment

If you’re lost or stranded in the wilderness, your number one priority should be drinkable water. That’s why any decent survival kit will contain one or more methods for purifying water.

Water filters are the best option, and they come in a number of shapes and sizes (and prices). Some are simply drinking straws designed to filter water. Others are pumps that can be attached to your water bottle. Just to keep your bases covered, you should probably include some water filter tablets in your kit as well.

These tablets are typically iodine or chlorine pills that you can dissolve in water to make it drinkable. It may not taste great, but it’ll keep you alive.

Or invest in a Purificup, or a Water to go Bottle.

Cyber-attacks, Terrorism, Natural Disasters Top Threats Facing U.K.

Recently the U.K. government issued a new National Security Strategy document, identifying sixteen major threats our country faces; the top — or “Tier 1” — threats are acts of international terrorism, hostile computer attacks on U.K. cyberspace, a major accident or natural hazard such as a flu pandemic, or an international military crisis between states that draws in the United Kingdom and its allies.

These and other threats will have to be met with a defence budget reduced by 8 percent — and with a cybersecurity budget which has been bolstered by £500 million

Attacks on computer networks are among the biggest emerging threats to the United Kingdom, the government has said in its new National Security Strategy. The report highlights cybercrime, alongside terrorism and a flu pandemic, among the key dangers to U.K. security.

There will be an extra £500 million to bolster cyber security, focused on protecting key infrastructure and defence assets.

The United Kingdom must “radically transform” the way it plans for threats in “an age of uncertainty,” David Cameron said.

The National Security Council, set up by David Cameron in May, has published an updated approach to national security which identifies sixteen threats to the United Kingdom.

In the forward to the document — released to Parliament Cameron and his deputy prime minister Clegg argue that the United Kingdom needs to think completely differently about the type of threats its faces.

We are entering an age of uncertainty…. This strategy is about gearing Britain up for this new age… weighing up the threats we face and preparing to deal with them.

The threats are placed into tiers

Tier 1. The most serious — which the report is calling “Tier 1” — comprises acts of international terrorism, hostile computer attacks on U.K. cyberspace, a major accident or natural hazard such as a flu pandemic, or an international military crisis between states that draws in the United Kingdom and its allies.

 Tier 2. Scenarios included in Tier 2 include an attack on the United Kingdom using weapons of mass destruction, a civil war in a region of the world which terrorists could exploit to threaten the United Kingdom, or a significant rise in organized crime.

Tier 3. A conventional large-scale attack on the United Kingdom, however, is ranked only in Tier 3 of possible dangers, alongside disruption to oil and gas supplies, a serious accident at a nuclear power station, an attack on a NATO ally and interruptions to food supplies.

Speaking ahead of the strategy’s launch, Home Secretary Theresa May said she was not prepared to say which was the single most acute threat facing the United Kingdom but all those in the top tier were of a “different nature.”

“We are facing a very serious threat from international terrorism… we must all be vigilant,” she said. The £500 million increase in budge would combat concerns that terrorist groups might be able to hack into critical infrastructure such as air traffic control networks and other cases of “cyber espionage” where rogue groups or even foreign states seek to break into computer systems to obtain top secret information.

There would also be extra protection for online business transactions from fraud and theft.

So we face 16 defined threats but we still reduce our armed forces, under equip them, under pay them and fail to secure our border. I fail to see why we cannot secure our border, I mean how difficult can it be to secure an island?

We continue to fail to deport known terrorists, their supporters and financiers, we allow radicals to preach terror up and down the country, and now we even allow known trained and combat hardened terrorist back into our country, are we mad?

It is quite plain for us all to see that this bunch of traitors in Westminster do not care a damn about our safety and security at all.

I firmly believe that if we are to survive then we must plan our own survival independently of the system, we have no other choice and we owe it to our families to secure their future.

Please discount any national government help post a natural or manmade disaster unless it is an election year.

Plan for your own survival, stock up on water, food, heating and lighting supplies, ammunition, clothing, medications, first-aid supplies, fuel, tools, seeds, etc. etc. You will find specific details on all of these items and much more on my site or on many others on the net.

Always read between the lines, distrust official information or take it but with a pinch of salt.

The Breathing Mobile Washer Review

Product Overview:
Lightweight and made from durable plastics with a sturdy wooden handle - it will not rust away ever. 
Easy to dismantle and reassemble for packing or stowing - portable washing system!
Powerful cleaning action - pushes AND pulls waster through the clothing - will actually pull out residual detergent left by electric washers!
Gentle on fabric, controlled agitation and easy to use
Sturdy enough for large items (Comforters, Sleeping bags, rugs and blankets)
Perfect "GREEN" product with less water, detergent and electricity used.

Great uses for the "Breathing" Mobile Washer

EMERGENCIES: Natural disasters that knock out electricity – you can continue to stay fresh and clean with the Breathing Mobile Washer.

EQUIPMENT FAILURE: Washing Machines breaks or it is too costly to repair - use this fast, efficient and cost effective alternative.

CAMPING/BACKPACKING:  Pack light and don't worry about smoky, fishy or dirty clothes - wash them on the spot.

CARAVANERS Skip the hassles of laundromats and stay someplace scenic (and off the beaten path?). "The Breather^TM" washes efficiently with minimal amounts of water. Your clothes remain fresh and clean, and you can enjoy that special spot you found just a little longer.

LAUNDROMAT USERS:  Why not just forget about dragging your laundry all over the place, waiting in line for machines and for your clothes to wash.  Wash in the privacy and comfort of your own place and save your coins for a better purpose.

GREEN ENTHUSIASTS:  Super way to save resources with water and electricity, but also saves money by saving the resources.

DELICATES / HARD TO CLEAN ITEMS: Trust the Breathing Mobile Washer to gently clean hand washed items or put it to the test with large comforters, sleeping bags, blankets, rugs etc.  The unique pulling action lifts dirt.

SEA MARINERS:  Need to freshen up on that long trip but you have a minimal amounts of fresh water? With "The Breather^TM," clothes can be washed in as little as 1 1/2 gallons of water in a 5 gallon bucket. 

MILITARY We have sons and daughters throughout the world that often find themselves in situations where there are no laundry facilities. "The Breather^TM" can ease their load by helping them maintain clean clothes. 

Although I am taking the Breathing Mobile washer to the Gathering I thought that I would cover it this week as having tried it in the back garden I am very impressed with it indeed. Get yours from http://breathingwasher.com/