Bushcraft, Skills to Survive

Imagine you were in the middle of wilderness with only essential gear, off the grid while hiking or camping in a remote area . Far from human, far from help. Have you ever thought how to deal with a difficulty, an unexpected situation to overcome with your own? Such as a necessity to take shelter when caught in a rainstorm or to start a fire so as to avoid hypothermia after that storm. What would aid you apart from ‘bushcraft’?

What is bushcraft?

Simply, bushcraft is knowing how to use nature itself to survive with some basic skills everyone can develop easily. The skills to take control of the area you are in, even if it seems impossible to do so in where you have actually no control over. Confidence they give secures to get whatever you need, not staying alive in a dire condition. Wouldn’t it be good to possess the ability to catch fish using bootstraps and can lid? In a way Bear Grylls always do?

Skills

1 – Blade skills : To carve things out of wood, to skin game involves a knife, axe or machete and keeping their edges sharp. As a blade master, initiate yourself into the art of survival.
2 – Firecraft : To cook game you hunt, to boil water you find or to warm up. Moreover, fire provides protection against predators that you should be aware of. Learn ways of starting fire by creating sparks using a flint or magnesium fire igniter stick, and with bow drill and hand drill techniques.
3 – Sheltercraft : A roof over your head when there is no tent available. Building shelter is key to reduce the major impact of exposure to wind, rain and cold. It also needs perfection on blade and knot tying skills ( tying knot skills is here ), to arrange wood you gather for temporary accommodation.
4 – Hunting skills : Including tracking skills to stalk your prey before setting a trap (either for fish or an animal), hunting and foraging to spot edible plants in nature resolve one of the main issues. Feeding.
5 – Water : While building a place to stay and trying to find something to eat, losing liquid is inevitable. However, it is unimportant so long as you rehydrate yourself with clean water. If you can be sure as to where to look at and how to purify water. ( ways to find water and its purification are here )
6 – Navigation : In the bush, every direction seems to be similar thanks to tall trees scattered around. Reading maps, the location of the sun or the phases of the moon help you wander and travel safely, not depending on any device. ( direction in nature is available here )

How a perfection in bushcraft affects us positively?

First of all, the one who has the capability to survive in the outdoors can beat the city, all the stresses in life. The one who manages to adapt to a harsh environment gains confidence which is so precious in hard times. Bushcraft leads one to become less reliant on others. Being self-sufficient, self-confident, and self-satisfied in everything. It is a compound of knowledge and experience. The source of inner power, the strength to pick ourselves up. Certainly, it turns you into a bushcrafter who never gives up.

Bushcraft, a man trying to start a fire by creating sparks.

Bushcraft gear

In conclusion, bushcraft requires skills, skills require gear to have. So, what gear then? Some tools we couldn’t compensate for the lack of them? In other words, the ones we had better to make things easy?