Outdoor Survival

If you find yourself lost in the wilderness, don't panic. The ability to have a strategic and positive attitude is imperative to survival. To remain calm, remember the acronym S.T.O.P. 

S: Stop, take a deep breath, sit down and rest, don’t panic!

T: Think before you act. How long have you been out here? Remember the last place where you knew where you were. 

O: Observe your surroundings. What time is? Is it near when you said you’d be back?   What does the terrain and weather look? Is it getting dark? Do you have all of your survival equipment, water, and snacks?

P: Plan your next step taking your observations into consideration. STAY PUT, wear your brightly colored bandana, blow your whistle, start planning a shelter and gather fire materials in case you have to spend the night. 

It is imperative to shield oneself from natural elements. Among other benefits, shelters are integral in preventing hypothermia, heat loss and minimizing water loss. 

The human body is 78% water. Therefore, access to water is more important than food. Ideally, an individual should drink a gallon of water a day. 

Fire is one of the most basic and useful survival skills. It can help warm your body or shelter, dry clothes, or boil water. 

Amazingly, humans can survive for three weeks without food. In a survival situation, it's a possibility to eat wild plants, insects, and small wild game.

Not suprisingly, the more knowledge you have about the environment and the outdoors, be it plant identification, knot tying or shelter building, the more you are set up for success.