What is important to know?
 

Well you can't be ready for everything, and unexpected things can happen to ruin any plan. Just having a bunch of 'stuff' isn't a guarantee of anything either.

So I was wondering, what do you think are the most important things to know or learn to be ready? Stuff that will save you, or make your life a whole lot easier. I am sure people here could write entire books on the subject but I am just curious what tops people list of need to know information.

Re: What is important to know?
 

basic survival priorities are good advice in this order
PROTECTION,LOCATION,WATER,FOOD

PROTECTION involves first aid or field doctoring clothing, shelter, and self defense whatever you think this involves should be at the top of your list
of things to learn

LOCATION where am I? is this the best place to be? how can i get elswhere?
do i try to signal for assistance or avoid contact?

what you think you need to know here should be close to the top of your list

WATER AND FOOD very important but unless you attend to the above first it isnt
going to matter

Re: What is important to know?
 

Rely on nature. She has been feeding her offspring for billions of years.

Learn which plants to eat and what time of the year.

Mayapples will be ready in another couple of days. The green ones are not good yet, leave them to ripen, and the rest of the plant is poison.

Virtually all other plants are edible; but you will enjoy different plants at different stages.

Box elders are good to eat, but budding branch ends are best in spring.

The box elder sprouts are good any time you find them.

Thistle is hard to eat, but the roots are fantastic (no pickers, either).

Most blossoms are good to eat; but don't pick them all.

Milkweed blossoms are so sweet that you must get them early or they will be full of ants.

Always remember that when you pick the blossoms, you won't get seed-pods from those blossoms.

I am going on about milkweed 'cause this seems to be my first good year for them in about 4 years.

I tried to grow them in a beautiful bed I built for them, but they refuse to participate.

Most people only eat the horseradish root and garlic bulbs.

Unfortunately the plant dies with that attitude.

Eat the leaves. If you like horseradish, you will not be disappointed by eating the leaves instead!!!

Garlic the same way. The garlic leaves are awesome and will provide whatever gustatory experience you desire from the plant. Plus, you get a lot of vitamins and minerals the root does not have!

Enjoy your opportunity to benefit from these changing life experiences.

Don't do too much forward planning and take a serious look at some "sideways" or "out of the box" planning.

Plan on having fun instead of having the life you always wanted, disrupted.

Seek a dialog with the child inside; both of you will appreciate it.

Was at my dentist the other day and he was telling me about a patient he has that is so environmentally ill she had to spend the winter in Minnesota in a cardboard box on the side of a south facing hill.

I said, "And that's a BAD thing?" "Hell, that's my dream!"

Re: What is important to know?
 

me: :love: :jerry

First year we learned: "Don't crowd the cucumbers."

Second year we learned: "Don't suck up the snow-peas." (in a food saver/sealer bag/device ---- it ruined 2000 of our snow peas last year..)

Third year (this year) we learned: "Spraying plants with seaweed extract in water makes them produce like mo-fos." (They really really like it.)

Next year we will learn: (who knows, but we will learn...) :yes:

Re: What is important to know?
 

Try this year for: quantity is never a substitute for quality.

Don't try for max production, try for flavor and diversity.

Many of those weeds that you see in your garden as "enemies" are really tempting your taste buds.

Re: What is important to know?
 

http://www.buildanark.net/survival_stories.html

NOTHING is more important than reading the above. Everything else will play into what you learn from reading that link. I have copied and bound this entire story and place it in 7 emergency boxes that I have prepared for each of my immediate family as welly as my wife's immediate family. They won't think about it now, but I will be glad that they have it when the time comes.

Re: What is important to know?
 

i have been wanting a couple of good references re wild foods for US. Got some? i know about gibbons ' stalking the wild asparagus'. thanks.


also SLV great link & i agree one of the best available; read & studied it a no. of times & found myself reading it again. thanks.

Re: What is important to know?
 

I second this.
It really is that good....

SLV, great idea about copying and binding!! :s1:

Re: What is important to know?
 

I copied the whole thing into a Word document. I've attached it here to make it easy for you to print.

Re: What is important to know?
 

I forgot about this. It just gets better and better.
Thanks SLV!!! :adore:

Re: What is important to know?
 

Knowing what to do in case of nuclear or biological attack

Re: What is important to know?
 

Hey <SLV>, thanks for the word doc. I printed out the web pages, and almost need a magnifying glass.... good man.
:coolbeer:

Re: What is important to know?
 

If I may recommend a book on the subject of survival it is "The Frontiersmen" by Allan W. Eckert. Not only is it a fascinating read but there is lots of good food for thought on survival in extreme conditions. It's really quite amazing how well men like Simon Kenton, Simon Girty and Daniel Boone did with little more than a tomahawk, a knife and a flintlock (this book also contains great info about the Shawnee tribe and it's leaders at the time - Logan/ Blue Jacket/ Tecumseh etc.). Eckert's other books are great too, such as "That Dark and Bloody River" which is about the ugly, brutal conflict between European settlers and the native-American tribes in the Ohio River valley; and "The Trial of Daniel Boone."

http://www.amazon.com/Frontiersmen-N...1397268&sr=1-1

Re: What is important to know?
 

Hey gasilat....

First of all, I been wanting to tell you this for awhile now. At first I thought I was jealous of you...but that word has a negative connotation. In truth, I admire you and your living situation and appreciate the information (especially the pics....) you post here. There, I said it.

Question. Did you build your home from the ground up?

Re: What is important to know?
 

The most important thing to know is that what you don't know can be more important that what you do know.

"Expect the unexpected" - Heraclitus, circa 500 BC

Re: What is important to know?
 

Very true. Much of the world's population survives on less than what the average survivalist probably carries in the back of their vehicles. When I was a docent at an 1850s farmhouse (incidently, a great way to start learning frontier skills), we use to give a little talk to visitors about how few items these people used to meet their daily needs. Then one day a group of Japanese monks came through. The monks kept commenting on how luxurious the farm families' lifestyle was and how many things they owned (the rope bed with the straw mattress, in particular, they deemed a luxury item). It kind of put things into perspective.

I've been on caving expeditions to remote areas in the mountains of Mexico and travelled a bit in South America, and the locals in the small mountain villages are usually fascinated by all the stuff we drag around with us and the gear we carry just to camp (and I'm pretty much a minimalist, so I don't carry much). Camp stoves and tents, in particular, seem to be the center of attention, as well as the variety of food we have and our wastefulness with it. I tossed a handful of stale Goldfish Crackers on the ground for some dogs once, and the shocked local men looked at me like I'd just set fire to their church! I had to redeem myself by digging out some mixed nuts to share with the men. They carefully apportioned the nuts out amongst themselves, one by one. In return, they brought lunch to share with me: corn-husk wrapped spiced pork tamales with lots and lots of splintered bone in the pork. I was pretty sure that either the splintered bone or the undercooked pork was going to be my downfall, but you can't turn down that type of proudly offered generosity, and you don't p.o. the locals in remote areas.

Re: What is important to know?
 

I don't want to sound overly dramatic here but it occured to me as an answer to your question.

The price of freedom is constant alertness and willingness to fight back. There is no other price.

The second part would be: don't be discouraged if you didn't predict something. You can't keep your foot on the neck of everything.
:D

But how you react and even being able to react after that nasty surprise is paramount.

(Steps down off of soapbox.)
:bear_tongue:

Re: What is important to know?
 

This applies to everything we're trying to do.

I don't care if you were a Double-Secret Super SEAL, and have more Black Belts than a Bruce Lee movie, and a bunker bigger than Fort Knox: You WILL run out, eventually, of (insert necessary supply here)

What is important to know is your level of preparedness, and what you DON'T know. Without going into specifics, I can handle a Katrina-level SHTF, but not a Lucifer's Hammer EOTWAWKI. There are some here with the abilities, skill, and a few crucial things to get through even that.

Know what you realistically might have to face. I live in a flood plain, but tornadoes aren't a realistic threat; so my important gear is going to be as high up as possible, not in a basement. Rioting is a possibility, whereas frostbite is not. Do you need a rifle that can hit a man a kilometer away, or is 150 yards the most you can expect?

The right gear can make your life easier, even save your life. But if I had the choice between 250K of gear, or knowing what Gasilat and TN Andy know and having to scrounge or make everything I need, which do you think I'd take? (Though having a British Ferret would be nice... :bear_tongue: )

Know what your weaknesses are. If you're an internet armchair Rambo, at least know you're more armchair than Rambo, and ready yourself accordingly.