You're All Alone... Now What?

Would you know how to survive if you were all alone? In this exclusive Survival Guide from The History Channel, survival expert Greg Davenport outlines all you need to know to stay alive. The first step to survival is to know what your needs are. Make a note of these five survival essentials:

Personal Protection

To keep your body temperature in its safe zone, you'll need protection from the elements: heat, cold, precipitation and wind.

Clothing is your first line of defense, keeping you warm or cool by trapping air between its fibers and layers. It is important to keep your clothes clean and dry and wear them in layers. Clothes that are wet or dirty can't trap air, and thus can't keep you warm. Loose and layered clothes allow you to take off or add layers as needed for comfort. Wear a wicking layer, like polyester, next to the skin, an insulating layer, like fleece, in the middle, and an outer layer, like Gore-Tex, that protects you from the wind and rain. In a crisis, leather and foam padding from a car, plant fibers and animal hides can be used as personal insulation.

Shelter. In urban and suburban areas, find shelter in an existing structure. In the wilderness, you'll need to improvise a shelter from manmade and natural materials. When creating a shelter, use the same principles seen in home construction. Create a stable framework that will support the weight of the walls; a roof with enough pitch to repel rain and snow; and insulation in the roof, walls and floor to keep you warm. If the shelter is airtight, make a ventilation hole in the roof (to avoid asphyxiation).

Fire. Although it's nice to have, meet your clothing and shelter needs before you consider fire. When building a fire, remember that you'll need heat, oxygen and fuel. Your heat source may initially be matches and lighters but over time, you'll use this resource up. Better options are flint and sparkers. For fuel, don't limit yourself to wood. Consider other options like bundles of grass or scavenged wood products.

Signaling

Don't be left behind because potential rescuers didn't know you were there. A signal can be as simple as blowing a whistle or scanning the horizon with the flash from a mirror. Other options include honking a car's horn, beating metal objects together, painting a big S.O.S on your roof or creating a big ground-to-air signal out of sheets or other material that contrast with the ground. The key is to catch someone's attention so they decide to take a closer look. On the flip side, you never know who might be out there and what their intentions are, so use caution.

Sustenance

Without water, you'll perish in three to four days; without food, you can live for 3 or more weeks.

Water. Our bodies are composed of approximately 60 percent water, and it plays a vital role in our ability to get through a day. During a normal, non-strenuous day, a healthy individual will need 2 to 3 litres of water. This amount increases with activity or extreme weather conditions. In urban and suburban areas, look for water in home gutters, drains and open containers where recent precipitation may have settled. Perhaps the town had a water storage tank or treatment plant you could access. In all situations, consider surface sources like local ponds, rivers, creaks or natural springs. If able, you should treat your water. The best treatment is to boil your water for one minute. Other choices include the addition of iodine and chlorine.

Food. If you have water, you can eat. Otherwise, don't--the digestion of food can speed up dehydration. To survive a disaster, first look to canned and dehydrated foods for nourishment. As soon as you can, create a garden using seeds found in decaying vegetables and fruit. Other food options include indigenous vegetation, bugs and small wild game like squirrels and rabbits. Don't eat any vegetation or bugs that you can't identify as edible. To avoid a parasitic infection, bugs should be cooked whenever possible.

Travel

As long as the area you are in meets your needs, stay put. If it doesn't, consider traveling to an area that does. Make sure you pack enough gear to meet all your needs during the trip or plan your route so that water, shelter and other needs can be met along the way.

Health

Survival stress will play a big role in how well you meet your other needs. Focus on positive events like a successful fire or catching that squirrel for dinner. Put the negative thoughts into perspective, and don't dwell on them. Avoid environmental injuries like cold and heat-related problems (hypothermia or hyperthermia) by staying hydrated and dressing appropriately. Treat all traumatic injuries immediately and do everything you can to prevent secondary infections in cuts and abrasions by keeping the area clean and protected from outside contamination.

Understanding the five survival essentials is key to meeting them. The order and methods used, however, will depend on your climate, circumstances and available manmade and natural resources.

10 Essential Items

The 10 survival essentials for long term survival differ somewhat from those, for instance, that might be carried by a hiker in case he gets lost. And, of course, each situation, may dictate a slight adjustment to this list. For example, if you were the last person left in an urban area, you might be able to access a hand crank or foot-pedal-powered sewing machine. You may have access to fuel and could use cars to get from one point to another. Perhaps the house you occupy has a natural gas or propane source that might be used for cooking and heat (although no electricity means no fan). Given those conditions, the following items may change. Having the items on this list, however, would be essential for survival in any area with few resources.

1. A Backpack

You can't depend on planes, trains or automobiles to move from one place to another. A large backpack provides a comfortable method of transporting your gear. A smaller pack, like the CamelBak's HAWG (holds a lot of water and gear), allows you to carry life-saving gear and water (1000 ml) in and around camp.

2. Sewing kit

Clothing is your first line of protection from the elements (heat, cold, wind, precipitation) and you need to make sure you have an appropriate assortment for all seasons. But what happens if it gets damaged? The sewing kit (various needles and heavy duty thread) makes mending possible.

3. Large tarp

A tarp can be used for a myriad of survival needs from protecting your gear to providing shelter to collecting water. Another option to the large tarp is the hooded all-weather blanket, which can be used as another layer of clothing, shelter or in signaling.

4. Parachute line

A basic key to survival, parachute line can be used in the creation of shelters, tri-pods (three branches lashed together, at the top, with the bottom branches spread apart to form a stable self-supporting frame that items can be hung from or attached to), and weapons like spears (the line is used to attach the sharpened rock tip).

5. Sparker

The lighters and matches you have will eventually run out, and you will need to make a fire. A sparker is a rod that produces a spark when scraped with a knife or similar edge. The ideal sparker will be 2cm in diameter and 10cm long. When used correctly, it doesn't take any effort to light tinder.

6. Fixed blade knife

A knife is useful for building fires for heat, cooking, and purifying water. It allows you to cut wood into the various sizes of fuel needed to build a fire, from small to large. It can also be used to cut line, kill and gut game, and many other survival tasks.

7. Assorted snares and fishing kit

You will get hungry, and a snared rabbit or caught fish makes a better dinner than roasted grasshoppers or slug stew.

8. Map and compass

It's a lot easier to get from point A to point B when you have an idea of which direction to go. Without a map and compass, it's usually best to stay put.

9. First aid kit

Bandages, ointment, antiseptics, tape, scissors and super glue are among the items you should pack. Why super glue? For small abrasions and simple cuts (not good for deep lacerations) it can close the wound (after it is thoroughly cleaned) and protect it from outside contaminants.

10. Family Photo

Nothing will motivate you more than to have a reminder of the ones you love.

Learning to Improvise

No matter where you are or what the situation, it's unlikely you'll have everything necessary at hand to meet your needs. With a little imagination and ingenuity, however, most needs can be met! The easiest way to work through the process is by using the "five step approach to improvising."

Five Steps Approach to Improvising:

1. Determine your need

Do you need a shelter, water storage container, or splint for an injured leg?

2. Inventory your available materials, man-made and natural.

Take a look around. If in a building, what does it offer you? Can you use the molding around the floor, the carpet, the attic insulation or the cushions in the couch? A car might provide materials from its glass mirror, wiring, seats, carpet or spare tire. If carrying a backpack, what's in it? What does Mother Nature provide? Perhaps surrounding trees, grass, rocks, moss or vines can be used alone or in addition to the manmade materials you have.

3. Consider the different options of how you might meet your need.

What type of shelters could be made from the materials you have? Take a look at each option. If possible, write them down.

4. Choose an option, based on how you can make the most efficient use of your time, energy and materials.

This doesn't mean pick the quickest and easiest option or the one that is the most complicated. The best option doesn't waste a lot of time or energy to construct and uses material that isn't best utilized meeting other survival needs.

5. Proceed with the plan, ensuring that the final product is safe and durable.

There is nothing worse than improvising a shelter that's located in a dry river bed or falls apart when the wind starts to blow. Take the time to make sure any improvised item doesn't put you at risk and make sure it can withstand potential threats.

Overcoming Stress

Life-and-death situations invariably cause stress. Stress can come from your environment, difficult terrain and weather, as well as physical injury, pain, hunger and thirst. Many survivors find, though, that loneliness and fear are the most difficult stresses to handle and have the biggest impact on your ability to survive.

Signs and Symptoms of Stress

A stressed person may feel fear, anger and frustration; have problems making decisions; act carelessly; have little energy; and think about death. When used as a motivating force, though, fear, anger and frustration can lead to a change in behavior and positive outcome. If these emotions overwhelm you, they often lead to poor decisions and low energy. Once thoughts center on impending doom, it's often difficult to focus on meeting basic survival needs.

Overcoming Stress

The first step to overcoming survival stress is to recognize it. The second step is to identify your needs and prioritize them. Overcoming psychological problems may be the most difficult task you'll face. Loneliness can be overwhelming. Focus on positive events and keep hopeful that you aren't alone. No matter what scenario you find yourself in, it is doubtful you'll have all the supplies you desire: In order to overcome survival stress, you'll need to improvise. With a little imagination, you should be able to find the right manmade and natural materials to provide for your physical needs.

10 Common Mistakes of Wilderness Survival

1. Drinking Urine.

Urine contains dissolved solids (urea, uric acid, creatinine and ammonia), inorganic substances (sodium, chloride, calcium, potassium, phosphates and sulfates) and bacteria (often from the surrounding skin). Urea is a natural diuretic and water is required to dissolve and excrete it from the body. As dehydration increases so does the amount of urea that needs to be processed. In other words, drinking urine dehydrates you more quickly than drinking nothing at all.

2. Trying to snare a deer.

Imagine a 70-90 kg animal with its neck or leg stuck in a snare. Not only will you be causing it a lot of unnecessary pain, you're left with a problem: How are you going to kill it? Unless you have a firearm, you'll likely get hurt trying to put the animal down. In a survival setting, it is much safer and more efficient to focus on small game like rabbits, squirrels and rats.

3. Eating a raw bug.

Although bugs, like grasshoppers, can be a great food source, they are known to carry parasites and should be cooked before consumption. In addition to killing the parasites, cooking a bug usually makes it more palatable. Better to have a stew made from slugs, maggots, grubs or cockroaches than to eat them raw.

4. Eating food when you don't have water.

You can live weeks without food and only days without water. Your body needs water to digest food, so eating when you don't have water will only accelerate dehydration. In a long-term survival situation, of course, food will become necessary, so it is important to establish your camp near a location that provides both water and food.

5. Wearing a wet base layer.

The layer of clothing closest to your skin--which should usually be made out of a material like Polypropylene--should always be dry. Polypropylene wicks moisture away from the body, making it a great base layer. Wearing it when wet, however, is a mistake, as it will have a major impact on how quickly your body loses heat (you lose body heat 26 times faster when you are wet then when dry). For best use, keep the base layer dry. If it gets wet, change it or take it off, wring out the moisture, and put it back on.

6. Choosing fire over shelter.

Building a fire takes time and even if you get one going, you'll be up all night adding fuel to the flames. Fire is the third line of personal protection (it comes after clothing and shelter) and shouldn't be considered until a shelter that protects you from wind and moisture has been established. It is okay, however, to use a small fire to warm you during the shelter-building process.

7. Traveling when you don't know where you are.

If you don't know where you are, how will you know where to go? Travel should only be considered if your location doesn't meet your needs, rescue doesn't appear imminent and you have the navigational skills to get from one point to another (know where you are and where you are going).

8. Drinking alcohol to stay warm.

Although a sip of whiskey may make you feel warmer, it actually promotes hypothermia. Alcohol causes blood vessels to dilate, which increases blood flow to the surface of the skin and allows the outside cold to pilfer heat from the body core (brain and vital organs). Instead of alcohol, drink water and wear appropriate clothing!

9. Believing the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, relative to your position.

The sun's path changes daily, reaching its northern and summer extremes on June 21 (summer solstice) and December 21 (winter solstice). The sun passes directly over the equator during the equinoxes (March 21 and September 23). Unless you are on the same latitude as the sun's path, it will not rise or fall directly east or west of your location. In fact, it can be off by a large percentage, making navigation by sun next to impossible.

10. Taking your hat of when you are hot.

You lose 50 to 75 percent of your body heat through your head. Heat is calories and calories provide the body with the energy needed for daily tasks. It is better to slow down or remove a middle layer of clothing (between your coat and T-shirt) than to work up a sweat and waste precious calories.

Five Skills You Should Learn

The ability to stay warm, hydrated and fed is absolutely essential for long-term survival.

1. Sewing

Taking care of what clothing you have is essential. However, if you're in a long-term survival situation, the chances are good that you'll eventually need to repair old clothes or create new ones, and for that you'll need to know how to sew. If you have thread, great. If not, create it from parachute line inner cord, strips of material, fishing line, etc. As a minimum, learn two basic stitches, the running stitch and the locking stitch.

• The running stitch is a continuous stitch from beginning to end. To do a running stitch, push the needle through the material, pull the thread snug and then repeat the process. The stitch moves the thread from side to side in a continuous line across the material. Although this method is easy, it has a flaw: If the line breaks at any point it compromises the whole stitch.
• The locking stitch is similar to the running stitch except that each time the thread comes through the opposite side, the needle is threaded through the "created" loop before the thread is pulled snug. This prevents the line from completely unthreading when one section gets worn or breaks.

2. Building a Fire

Fire provides light, warmth, comfort and heat for cooking, purifying water and drying clothes. If you don't have a ready source of heat from oil, propane or another fuel, at some point you'll need to build a fire. To do this, you'll need heat, oxygen and fuel.

• Heat. Heat sources include matches, lighters, flint and steel, sparkers, a bow and drill, a hand drill or a pump drill. In the early days of survival, matches and lighters may be abundant and are a good choice. At some point, however, they will run out, and when this happens, the best product to use is a sparker. A sparker is a rod--the optimal size is 2cm by 10cm--that produces a spark when scraped by a knife blade. Start practicing before you use up your manmade resources. No matter what heat source you choose, it should provide enough spark to light tinder (your smallest fuel).
• Oxygen. For a fire to start and continue to burn, oxygen must circulate through it. To help the process, use a platform and brace. The platform should be made of a dry material, like bark, that protects your fuel from ground moisture. The brace is anything that creates a small space between the platform and your fuel. The space helps ensure that the fuel receives adequate oxygen to burn. The ideal brace is a branch with a diameter about the same size as your wrist.
• Fuel. For best results, fuel needs to be staged from small (tinder) to medium (kindling) to large. Tinder can be any material that lights from a spark (cotton balls saturated with Vaseline is a good example). Kindling is often about pencil thickness in diameter and lights from a small flame (wood shavings, twigs, etc.). Fuel is material that is thumb- sized or larger that can be used to sustain a fire.

To build the fire, place the brace across the platform and the tinder on the brace. Light the tinder with your heat source and then lean your small kindling against the brace and over the small flame. Once the flames wick through the kindling, add another layer of kindling to the first (perpendicular). Once the kindling fire appears sustainable, begin adding small fuel. Add bigger fuel as the fire allows.

3. How to find water.

Human beings can live only three to four days without water and, in some situations, not even that long. In the city, you may find water in a variety of "containers"-so be sure to check out gutters, sand boxes, tires, etc. Over time, however, you'll need to find more. If you know where a river or pond is, problem solved. If you don't, how will you find it? Provided insects, reptiles, birds and mammals survived the tragedy, they will give clues about where water is located. Land features can be helpful too.

Water can be found within miles of bees, ant's nests, swarms of mosquitoes and flies. In addition, birds that feed on grain (pigeons and finches) frequently fly toward water at dawn and dusk and frogs are almost always close to a water source. You'll need to be observant-for example, two animal trails that merge into one often point toward a water source. Land features that suggest the presence of water include drainages (the gap between two ridgelines) and winding trails of deciduous trees. Green vegetation at the base of a cliff or mountain indicates the presence of a natural spring or underground source of water.

4. How to snare game.**

In short-term survival situations, food isn't really that important, as people can survive for weeks without it. In a long-term scenario, however, finding food will be necessary. Initially, the best sources of food will be vegetation and insects. After time, however, you may crave and need meat. Your best bet? Catching small game like rats, squirrels and rabbits with a simple loop snare.

The snare can be made from cordage or copper wire. When using wire, bend the end back on itself (two inches from the end) and twist the end of the wire and wire body together creating a small loop (oval shaped). Twist the loop at the center creating a figure 8 and then fold the figure eight in half creating two circles (one on top of the other). Run the free end of the wire through the two circles until you create a loop slightly bigger than the head of your intended catch (rat, squirrel, or rabbit). If using cordage, make a slipknot that tightens when the animal puts its head through it and lunges forward. You'll need to use branches or vegetation to create the desired loop (done when placing the snare). When placing a snare on a well-traveled trail or den opening, try to utilize the natural funneling effect of any surrounding vegetation. Finally, attach the free end of your snare to a branch, rock or large heavy stick. The best times to check your snare is dawn and dusk. Always make sure any animals caught are dead before you touch them to avoid injury.

**Please note that snaring animals can be dangerous and should only be done in a survival situation when other food sources are not available.

5. How to fish.

There are no poisonous freshwater fish, making it a safe and likely abundant food source. The best time to fish is just before dawn and dusk, at night during a full moon or when bad weather appears to be coming. To increase your odds of success, place your line in deep pools (found close to the bank), under outcroppings (bank, brush or logs), in eddies below rocks or logs and/or at the mouth of two intersecting streams. If you have fishing tackle, use it. If not, you'll need to make some.

Hooks can be improvised from wood, plastic, safety pins, paper clips or any similar item. If you don't have fishing line, use a 3-metre section of parachute line inner cord or any similar item. Attach the hook to your line, bait to your hook and the line to branches that drape over the water or poles that can be secured to the bank. Doing this lets you tend to other tasks while the fish are checking out your bait. Check the lines throughout the day.

If you don't have any tackle, you may want to try catching a fish with your bare hands. This technique works best in small streams with sharp, undercut banks. The goal is to place your hand, palm side up, in the water as close to bottom as possible. Let your arm become one with the stream's current. When your palm makes contact a fish's belly, slide your hand up the belly, grab the fish's gills with your fingers and scoop it out of the water.