10 Survival Skills You Need To Know

Imagine being lost in the woods without a compass; what survival skill advice will you follow?

Don’t panic; follow this essential survival skills advice: “Look where the moss grows on the trees because it always grows on the north side.”

Unfortunately, following this advice will make you lost, walking in circles.

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This article scrutinizes ten traditional survival skills advice; we will explain why they do more harm than good.  Keep reading to see which survival skills information you are familiar with and what the experts recommend.

Now, back to getting you out of the woods.

 #1  Look for moss growing on the north side of trees

The thought behind this is that moss commonly grows on the north side of trees because the north side gets less sunlight as the sun moves from east to west.  Looking at moss on trees is not helpful advice.  Trees can be shaded from any direction in the forest.  As long as sunlight is lacking, moss will grow anywhere on a tree, as long as sunlight cannot reach it.

Expert  Advice- Invest in a compass and learn how to use it.

If you plan to go hiking and want to avoid getting lost, heed the advice of survivor experts:  purchase and learn how to use a compass and read a map.

#2  Rubbing frostbitten skin will warm it up

The opposite is true; rubbing frostbitten skin only makes the problem worse.  The friction generated by rubbing the skin’s surface will damage the tissues.

  Expert Survival Skills Advice- If you get frostbitten, seek shelter from the cold.

If you become frostbitten, do the following:

•  Find shelter from the cold as a priority.
• Cover with warm clothing or a blanket.  Drink warm fluids to restore your internal body temperature and help prevent hypothermia.
• Do not use warm, hot water or heat from a fireplace to warm the frostbitten; this could cause burns.
• If numbness and pain continue, get help as soon as possible;  severe frostbitten areas can result in amputation if left untreated.

#3  Prioritize having a roof on your shelter

Movies, books, and  TV shows about surviving in the wild show individuals building shelters that have roofs.  Making a refuge with a roof overhead is portrayed as the number one priority.

Although it’s essential to look for shelter from the elements, whether from the scorching sun or the cold rain, is a roof over your head necessary to do that?

  Expert Survival Skills Advice – Build an elevated, insulated bed from grass, leaves, and sticks.  The surrounding trees will act as a roof and provide protection and shade.

An insulated bed should be the primary issue for keeping you warm.  Why do you need a bed when you could always lie on the ground?

You can sleep on the ground but risk freezing to death, especially if the ground is wet.  It gets colder at night, so it’s essential to have something to keep your body from losing heat to the surroundings.

The best way to make an elevated bed outside

• First, lay two thick branches or logs parallel to each other, relative to your height.
• Add a third thick branch into the middle to give it more structural integrity.
• Look for thick, long sticks and place them on the platform.
• Insulate the platform using grass or leaves.  Take branches off an evergreen tree and put them on the platform if possible.

Only after this is completed should you construct the overhead shelter as an A-frame or lean-to.

#4  It’s essential to find a food supply immediately

  Expert Survival Skills Advice-  Focus on finding drinking water before looking for food.

Dehydration will occur before hunger and will negatively impact your chances of survival.

#5  Eating snow can hydrate you

Expert Survival Skills Advice- Do not eat snow directly; melt it first.

Eating snow will not hydrate you; it will decrease your body’s internal temperature, which, in severe cases, can lead to hypothermia.

 #6 Locate a water source immediately in a desert

Suppose you are stuck in a desert with a decreasing water supply; of course, the first thing to do is locate water to prevent dehydration, right?

Not at, because you’d sweat a lot and lose body fluids.

Expert Survival Skills Advice-  Find shade in the desert and wait for it to cool down at night to search for water.

If you’re feeling thirsty, drink all your water, don’t ration it.  People have been found dead from dehydration after rationing their water.

Keeping yourself hydrated allows you to keep a clear head to focus on survival.  Once night arrives, you’re free to roam around and look for a source
of drinkable water.

Another desert survival myth is that you can drink water stored inside a cactus.

Drinking the water inside a cactus will do more harm than good, such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and sometimes paralysis.  Cactus water contains highly toxic alkaloids, harmful to humans.

Look for places where vegetation grows and there may be underground water; rule out drinking water from a cactus.

If you know where to look for water in the desert, you should be able to survive for days.
Look at the base of the mountains, canyons, flat terrains, and dried river beds for vegetation; these are often underground water sources.

#7  Boiling water will make any water supply clean

You have a water source, but you’re unsure whether it’s clean enough to drink.  What do you do?

If you boil the water, it’ll be completely safe to drink, it is the usual claim, but this is not the whole story.

  Expert Survival Skill Advice- Filter water using a clean cloth before boiling it.

Merely boiling the water will not make the water safe to drink.  Boiling the water kills certain harmful microorganisms, but boiling will not remove harmful sediment.  Here is what to do

Filter water through a clean cloth into a clean container.

Boil the filtered water.

• Pour the water through a cloth into a container.  The fabric will filter, removing the water’s sediments and other visible impurities.  You can use two pieces of material and filter the water twice to remove more contaminants.
• Once you have filtered the water, boil the water to kill bacteria and other microbes.  This additional step will help make the water safer, lessening the risk of water-borne diseases.

#8  Suck out snakebite venom

Expert Survival Skill Advice- Remember the snake’s appearance, size, color, and shape to match the snake to its anti-venom when you get medical help.

What do you do if a snake bites you?

The best thing to do for a snake bite is to try to avoid being bitten.  If you do get bitten, here is advice to follow.

Snake Bite First-Aid

• Call for emergency help immediately or get to an emergency room as soon as possible if a snake has bitten someone.
• Picture what the snake looks like the size, color, shape of the head, and eyes to tell the emergency room staff.  Take a picture if you have your phone.
• Keep the bitten area still to slow down the spread of venom through your lymphatic system.
• Do not wash the area where the snake bit you—cleaning where the snake bit you eliminate traces of the venom.  Hospital staff will have more difficulty identifying the snake.
• Remove all jewelry and constrictive clothing in case of swelling.
• Don’t apply a tourniquet.

#9 Playing dead will avoid bear attacks  

Playing dead to avoid being mauled by a bear is probably the most well-known survival tip.  But does it work?

Expert Survival Skill Advice- Survival experts recommend packing bear pepper spray whenever traveling to areas where bears are known to frequent.

The Best Ways to Decrease Bear Encounter

Knowledge of bear behavior can help decrease the chance of bear encounters and diffuse aggressive encounters if they occur.  If you are hiking, camping, or live in an area there near bears, pay attention to the following advice.

• Do not give bears access to human food.
  Do not leave containers or packages of water, drinks, food, or condiments unattended or unsecured.
  Giving bears access to human foods makes them return to the new food source.
• Be Alert.  Avoid areas designated for bears and stay on hiking trails.
• Look for signs of bears to avoid them before they see you.  These include fresh tracks, signs of digging, torn-up logs, ripped-open anthills, or fresh carcasses.    Bears will defend their food.
• Avoid hiking at dawn, dusk, or night during the summer.  This time is when grizzly bears are more active.
• Don’t hike alone.
  Travel in groups of three or more.
• Make noise.
  Yell out when hiking—Forewarn bears of your presence.  Be especially noisy on windy days or when you are near loud streams.

#10 Punch a shark to stop an attack

Shark attacks, although rare, are still frightening.  What is the best defense in this situation?  Punching the shark on the nose is commonly suggested to dissuade it from attacking you.

It sounds easy.  Have you tried punching underwater?  Try this in a pool to see how hard it is.

 Expert Survival Skill Advice- The best way to stop a shark attack is to avoid the shark by swimming calmly away from it before it notices you.

How Do You Survive a Shark Attack?

Knowing some facts about sharks and what attracts them goes a long way to avoid encountering sharks.

Before You Get in the Water

Below are precautions before entering the water and tips for dealing with shark encounters.

• Do not swim alone.
  Swimming yourself makes you appear more vulnerable to sharks; you will have no one to provide assistance or get help should a shark attack.
• Take off shiny jewelry.
  Shiny jewelry reflects light and shimmers, which resemble the scales of fish.
• Avoid swimming at dawn, dusk, night, or in murky waters.
  These are when the shark tracks fish, and you do not want it to misidentify you as prey.
• If you have a cut or bleeding, do not go into water that sharks frequent.  Also, do not urinate in the water.  Blood and urine have the same effect.  The shark’s sense of smell is exceptionally accurate.  Sharks can recognize a drop of blood in the water miles away.
• Avoid going near fishing boats or individuals fishing.  Unwanted fish and parts with blood are discarded in the water, attracting sharks.
• Wear a Sharkbanz.  The Sharkbanz disrupts the shark’s electroreceptors.  The shark receives an electrical signal beyond the low-level electromagnetic signal, the fish’s muscle contractions and heartbeats.

How to Survive a Shark Attack in the Water

• Stay calm.  If a shark approaches, do not splash in the water;  this is prey behavior.  Look it in the eye and push it away if it comes closer.  Let it know you are a predator as well.
• If a shark attacks, fight back.

Use any weapon you have: a camera, snorkels, a knife, even your fist.  Attack vulnerable areas of the shark, the eyes, the gills, and the underbelly.

If you are lucky, the shore will lose interest.  Swim quickly to shore.

• If your arm gets bitten, keep it above your heart and avoid looking at your injuries; seeing them may contribute to shock.
• Seek medical help for any injury.

Conclusion

Surviving in the wild or any disaster scenario is not easy.  If you equip yourself with proper knowledge and survival skills, you can get through whatever ordeals you may face, from being lost in the woods to finding food in the wild and shelter to surviving animal attacks.

Keep reading the articles in this blog for survival skills and information to practice your survival skills now.