Many people out there really like the idea of prepping and learning survival skills. They know just how important it is to start gathering the supplies they need and gaining knowledge of how to survive in the wild. Even though they know it is something they should do, and they may have even halfheartedly started … Read more
You already know how important it is to know how to get a fire started as a survivalist. You probably have the knowledge and the tools to do it, even without matches or a lighter. However, you can never have too much knowledge or too many tricks that you can use when it comes to … Read more
When you’re just getting started, disaster preparedness can be very overwhelming…and expensive. There are a ton of products on the market out there, some that are real quality investments, some that are pretty much just designed to make money. But if you are a low-budget or fully broke prepper, it can seem like there’s not … Read more
Donald Trump was is the 45th President of the United States. The country is greatly divided between two drastically different emotions, and almost everyone lies somewhere between extreme excitement and relief and great despair and loathing. But what does a Trump presidency mean for preppers? Whether or not you support Trump and his policies, it’s … Read more
When you are out in the woods and trying to survive, knowing a bit about the trees and the plants out there can help you immensely. One of the trees that offers a wealth of help for those in the wild is the white birch. If you happen to live in an area where this … Read more
In the military, soldiers are trained to have a mindset that is proactive and that is always on the lookout for potential problems. Developing this mindset helps people to anticipate bad events before they happen. It doesn’t have anything to do with being psychic. Rather, it deals with recognizing patterns and analyzing situations, and then … Read more
Knife blades are made from many different types of materials, including bone and even wrought iron. However, the most popular types of knives and the most common are made from steel. They will be stainless steel or high carbon steel blades. It can be confusing to know exactly which one you should choose, as there … Read more
A lot of people who end up attacked and injured say they never saw the attack coming, or that they saw it at the last minute and didn’t know what to do. Many people simply don’t know how to recognize a bad situation even when they are in one, and it’s getting people hurt and … Read more
If you ever find yourself in a survival situation in the middle of the desert, or any other hot climate for that matter, you need to know a few basic tips to help you increase your chance of survival. The heat can take quite a toll on the body, and you need to be extremely … Read more
Over the course of the last few years, more and more people have started to learn about survivalists and preppers thanks to increased media attention. The Internet makes it easy to find out about what preppers do, but many people who have no interested in survival simply look at the surface and assume they know … Read more
The Mojave scissor trap is a highly effective small game trap that is known to us because of the natives of the American South West. One great thing about the Mojave scissor trap is that it is possible to build using only material that can be gathered from the wild unlike snare traps that … Read more
When most people think of the dangers involved in driving they think of excessive speed, blowouts, and bad weather. These are all real threats, but they are threats that we can mitigate with or even eliminate with our actions. If we drive carefully we can greatly reduce our risks, but there are factors that … Read more
According to a recent study by the University of Cambridge solar storms pose a serious threat to the American economy, our way of life, and life itself for many. The study suggests that depending on the severity of the incident 2/3 of the country could be without power for extended periods and the economic … Read more
This video contains the surveillance footage from multiple cameras at a convenience store that gets held up. Luckily, despite the use of a firearm, nobody involved gets hurt, including the armed robber. There are lessons that we can learn from this video, so that if we are placed in a similar situation, we too … Read more
Chickweed, or Stellaria Media, is a prolific wild edible green. In most areas Chickweed is an early spring crop, that prefers to grow in partial shade, but in warm areas with enough moisture it is capable of growing year round. Chickweed can be identified by its alternating pairs of egg shaped leaves, small white … Read more
Whether facing an inhospitable wilderness environment, natural disaster, or being forced to defend yourself from an attacker, your body is the most important piece of equipment you have, everything else is either meant to augment it, or protect it. A healthy body can better deal with the physical stresses of any survival situation. Inversely, … Read more
Food stores run out, as does ammunition, and snares are quieter than gun shots. Whether lost in the wilderness, struggling after an urban disaster, or if you have intentionally fled into the wild, trapping is a skill that you will need to be able to implement if you hope to have a sustainable supply … Read more
I have repeatedly said that a distance weapon such as pepper spray, or even a high lumen flashlight, can be combined with a knife to multiply their effectiveness. Anyone blinded by an irritant, or bright light, will be unable to effectively protect themselves from the knife. Normally, if you are being sprayed with pepper spray … Read more
Maybe one day we will again have something resembling law-and-order here in America, but it certainly won’t come before Friday. There have been online postings in dozens of cities that offer as much as $2,500 to anyone willing and able to disrupt the inauguration of president-elect Donald Trump this Friday. Though the inauguration itself … Read more
When endeavoring to protect ourselves we need to make sure that we are taking into account what threats we are most likely to face, not that we shouldn’t be prepared for all reasonable threats, but it would be foolish and even dangerous to only prepare for a threat that is statistically unlikely to happen. … Read more
In this video, we see a failed car-jacking from a gas station in which, thankfully, and surprisingly, no one was hurt. But the would-be thief was not the only one making mistakes in this video. Let’s learn some lessons from what the intended victim did so that we are not faced with this potentially … Read more
Covering uneven ground, in varying weather, and while carrying a pack, can easily lead to a stumble or a slip. And when falling on uneven ground while carrying a pack getting a sprang or even a fracture is not out of the question. While a sprang or a fracture in and of itself is … Read more
Purslane or Portulaca oleracea, is an annual succulent wild edible green that is usually considered a weed. It can be identified by its thick, succulent leaves that alternate on its tender, reddish stems. It has small yellow flowers that can be found year round depending on the weather conditions of the region. While the unappreciative … Read more
This video is surveillance footage that captured a violent mugging during “super storm” Sandy. The incident is captured from multiple angles, allowing us to see just how coordinated the attack was, which demonstrates the lack of randomness behind the assault and robbery. The footage is not great quality, but there are still several lessons … Read more
With less than a week before the inauguration of president-elect Donald Trump, Obama has ordered US troops into Europe, accusations of Russian hacking continue, China is rapidly taking military control of disputed waters and islands, and Syria is still smoldering and continues to draw the West and East closer to world war. With all … Read more
If you are planning for bugging out and surviving, you need to know as much as possible about the environment where you will be traveling and where you will be settling in your bugout location. This includes knowing things about the terrain, the average temperatures through the year, rainfall, and the locations of lakes and … Read more
Quail is delicious no matter how you happen to cook it. If you are hunting for quail, and you’ve never hunted the bird before, it can seem rather daunting. However, it is not too hard, if you understand a few simple tips about the process. Even novice hunters can get quail. Just keep the following … Read more
Over the past decade or so, television shows about surviving in the wild, as well as prepping, have become quite popular. This is a double-edged sword, though. While it is good to draw peoples’ attention to the need to learn survival skills and the importance of prepping, the demands of the production – namely to … Read more
If you have looked online or in stores for a first aid kit of any real worth you have probably noticed the price tag. Kits of any kind tend to be overpriced for the purpose of convenience, but overpaying and not getting everything you need isn’t necessary. If there is a dollar store in your … Read more
Chances are, when thinking about stinging nettle, images of painful rashes come to mind. Most people’s experience with nettle doesn’t go much further than this. But if you come across a patch of stinging nettle while surviving in the wilderness, it may be just what you need, though you might not know it. Stinging … Read more
This video is from home security cameras and captures an armed home invasion in the Atlanta area in which three armed men force their way in a home with guns drawn. Luckily the homeowner was armed and responded accordingly, shooting at the intruders and hitting one, with no one in the home injured. The scene … Read more
This video from West Virginia is a reminder that armed robberies don’t only occur at gas stations and liquor stores. Everything turned out fine for the bystanders and for the armed defender in this case, though not for the robber. Here are a few of the lessons that we can take away from this … Read more
Living in a modern, relatively clean environment with access to medical treatment that is available in the West can lead to complacency about disease. In the over vaccinated, hand sanitized, “health conscious” world we live in, many think of disease like Tuberculosis as a thing of the past. But the reality is that even … Read more
One major principle in selecting survival gear is versatility, you want gear that can do more than one job and is suitable for more than one situation. However; there are times when gear that would normally be on the top of anyone’s list is not going to suit your purposes. One of these cases … Read more
This video shows how important weapons safety is, not only when storing firearms but when handling them. In the video we see an armed robber accidentally shoot his partner in the back, killing him. What is a little harder to notice, is that the armed defender also nearly shoots the intended victim on accident … Read more
Wilderness survival is a near endless skillset, it can be hard to know where to focus your attention and what skills you should hone before moving on to less essential skills that fall more under the broad term of “bushcraft” rather than survival. The main difference between bushcraft and survival is that bushcraft is … Read more
Mallow, or Malva, is the wild edible green that is the source for the original marshmallow. Originally native to Europe this plant can now be found all over the world. Cultivated in some areas commercially as a vegetable crop and even growing as an invasive weed in other regions. Malva has adapted to a … Read more
If you are like me, you might be a little skeptical when you first hear that sugar can be used medicinally, but I’m not getting my medical advice from Mary Poppins, this is real. My dog got in a fight not too long ago, and had a sizeable chunk of flesh torn from his … Read more
I have written several articles lately about the recent survival stories of everyday people. Most of these stories share one commonality, they began with a vehicle getting stuck. Of course, it’s a good idea to drive with caution, and keep some basic supplies in your vehicle at all times in case you do find yourself … Read more
We’ve all probably heard the phrase “dressed for success”, and while it’s doubtful that the phrase originated from anything to do with survival, it certainly holds true for survival. Your clothing will be your primary shelter in a survival scenario, and it might be your only shelter. The wrong clothing could get you killed, … Read more