GEAR STORAGE HACKS
USPS WATER-RESISTANT STUFF SACKS
Tyvek is a synthetic waterproof material made from polyethylene fibers traditionally used in the construction industry as a moisture barrier house wrap. Many shipping envelopes, including the ones used for Priority and Express services of the USPS, are also made of Tyvek to protect documents and merchandise from the weather. These envelopes also make great little waterproof stuff sacks. They can be used as is and sealed with the peel-n-stick adhesive strip to protect moisture-sensitive materials, or you can sew a handy drawstring channel around the top edge to make great waterproof gear sack for extended travel. Tyvek is also incredibly light! This is a great way to repurpose used packaging.
SKIVVY ROLL
Packing smart can allow more room in a backpack for important survival gear, so it’s always wise to save space whenever and wherever possible. A clean set of underwear, T-shirt, and socks can go a long way in maintaining personal hygiene when normal facilities for washing aren’t available. A great hack for packing these 3 items is called the skivvy roll. Packed according to the diagrams, these 3 items are barely larger than just one roll of socks. It really is a genius way to pack, whether going on vacation or arranging your bug out bag.
STEP 1
STEP 2
STEP 3
STEP 4
STEP 5
STEP 6
STEP 7
Chapter 7
Forward Movement
LIGHTING HACKS
Pop Can Lantern
Headlamp Camp Lantern
Flashlight Diffuser
Ladle Slush Lamp
T-Shirt Torch
Crayndle
Orange You Gonna Use That Peel?
Crisco Candle
NAVIGATION
Wristwatch Compass
Finger Clock
Air Goggles
Shadows Lead the Way
SIGNALING AND RESCUE HACKS
Bullet Casing Whistle
Busted Cell Phone to the Rescue
Glow Stick Buzz Saw
Rearview Rescue
Hansel and Gretel Survival
Staying put can be a good survival strategy in certain instances, such as when you’re lost. However, not having the option to move onward can be downright deadly. This chapter is filled with hacks that provide more options to keep moving forward. Sometimes in survival, movement is life.
Two elements that can stop a survivor dead in his or her tracks are lighting and navigation. In low-light, nighttime, or subterranean environments, the lack of a lighting tool means zero forward movement. Choosing to travel in darkness without a lighting tool can be dangerous and deadly. Without a tool to provide insight into direction, you can walk in circles or, worse yet, in the opposite direction of resources. In survival, every step forward should be with purpose.
The ultimate goal of every survival scenario is to make it out alive. For many, this involves being rescued. This chapter concludes with a small section dedicated to improvised rescue and signaling hacks. Whether during the day, at night, or along a trail, communicating to would-be rescue parties is a critical and valuable survival skill set.
LIGHTING HACKS
POP CAN LANTERN
The functionality of a modern lantern is very difficult to replicate using makeshift supplies. However, you’d be surprised at how much you can light up a small space with just a candle and a soda can (or any type of aluminum can for that matter). Carefully make 3 cuts in the can using your pocketknife as can be seen in the illustration. Then fold open the “wings” and place a candle inside. The shiny interior surface of the aluminum can reflects and projects the candlelight, creating a lantern effect in a dark room or cave. This can be used to not only navigate a dark building or trail but also to light up a food prep area. If you’re traveling, hold the lantern by the bottom where the metal does not get hot or suspend with a handle from the convenient pop tab bail.
HEADLAMP CAMP LANTERN
A headlamp can be quickly hacked into an outstanding camp lantern by placing it around a water-filled bottle using the head strap and with the light shining toward the center. The water diffuses and diverts the light, making a very comfortable camp lantern that can be much more pleasing to the eyes than blinding headlamps around the dinner table. It is also a slightly more discreet way of using a headlamp in the event that you are setting up a stealth camp or trying to remain undetected.
FLASHLIGHT DIFFUSER
Similar to the Headlamp Camp Lantern hack, an empty energy drink bottle with the shrink-wrapping removed can be fitted atop a bright flashlight to make a very functional little camp lantern. A flashlight is designed to project light in one direction in a focused beam. This isn’t always the best way to light a survival camp or shelter. Cut the top off of a mini energy drink bottle so that it fits snugly onto the face of a small flashlight. This solid, white plastic body acts like a lampshade to diffuse and spread the light in a much broader area.
LADLE SLUSH LAMP
The term “slush lamp” has dropped from most modern dictionaries—lost in history like so many other important survival skills. It is a crude lamp that typically burns on grease or animal fat. Eskimos used this style of lamp to burn seal blubber. However, the concept and principles can be applied to many different objects and fuels in a survival scenario. This hack uses the slush lamp model and 3 items found in almost any kitchen or grocery store—a ladle, some olive oil, and a strip of cotton fabric. Fill a ladle with olive oil and lay in the cotton strip (a cut piece of T-shirt works great) so that all but 1⁄2" is submerged in the oil. The lamp can be lit just like a candle once the 1⁄2" of protruding cotton “wick” absorbs the “fuel.” A slush lamp of this variety will burn very brightly and for a surprisingly long time.
T-SHIRT TORCH
When the sun goes down in the wilderness it’s game over without some kind of lighting tool. No flashlight means no work, no movement, and no progress—unless you know how to hack a good torch! It all starts with a fresh-cut green stick 1"–2" in diameter. It must be green because a dead one will catch on fire. Next tear a T-shirt (or any cotton fabric) into 1" strips and wrap those around the end of the stick like a giant Q-Tip. Soak the strips with a low-flashpoint cooking oil such as olive oil. Many cooking oils, including melted butter, margarine, or lard, will work for this. Bacon fat and pine sap are also suitable substitutions. Once the fabric torch head is soaked through, place it in the fire until it catches, and you’re good to go. A softball-sized wrap will burn for more than an hour.