Wonders of Wildlife: Surviving the Wild
Purpose:
To learn to make decisions on what is the most valuable equipment in a survival situation, and to create a practical survival kit.
Materials:
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Survival Dilemma
Copies of the "Survival Dilemma" below
Survival Kit (see list in activity #2) |
Activity 1: Survival Dilemma
Put the kids into small groups or pairs. Give each group a copy of the story on page 3. Give them 15 minutes to complete the activity, then have a group discussion on the items they chose and why. The answers are listed below.
The 15 most important items for survival as rated by outdoor experts:
1. Matches - Fire may be necessary to dry wet gear, boost morale, make a signal fire and prevent serious hypothermia.
2. Sheath knife - Many purposes; cutting kindling for fire, cutting strings, or preparing any captured animals such as frogs.
3. Wool Sweaters - Provide light-weight warmth, wet or dry.
4. Four sleeping bags - Full rest and warmth are essential to survival.
5. Tent - For use as a place to keep warm and dry or to keep bugs out.
6. First-aid Kit - Useful for minor injuries
7. Tub of peanut butter - 1 tablespoon contains 100 calories and is high in protein.
8. Large cheese block - Provides calcium, fats, and is a good source of protein.
9. Instant Breakfast - A light-weight source of vitamins and protein.
10. Steak - A good morale booster, but should be eaten promptly.
11. Cat food - A valuable if somewhat unappetizing source of protein and fat. Protein lasts longer than any other nourishment in providing energy.
12. Bug-repellent - In early summer the bugs can be very fierce.
13. Fishing gear - May provide a supplementary source of food, or the line may be used for tying up supplies, etc.
14. Road map - might be useful for sighting major landmarks like lakes, rivers, etc.
15. Transistor radio and batteries - Tune in for radio programs about a search out for you or weather forecasts.
The following items would not be needed:
1. Marshmallows - Not necessary, but a possible morale booster.
2. House key - Light-weight, but not useful for survival.
3. Traveller' checks - Not necessary for getting out of the woods.
4. Clock - For survival it is not necessary to know the time.
5. Walkie talkie - Not needed as you will all be staying together, and it will not carry any useful distance.
6. Snakebite kit - There are no poisonous snakes in northern Saskatchewan.
7. Paperback books - Weigh too much to be useful.
8. Bathing suits - Not necessary.
9. Rubber raft - Too heavy, also not likely to be useful.
10. Paddles - No use without raft.
11. Coleman stove - Too heavy, wood fires can be used.
12. Pole - The knife can be used to cut a pole.
13. Five gallon water jug - Too heavy, and water in the north is usually palatable.
14. Cigarettes - Bad for your health. It's a convenient time to quit!
15. Coleman lantern - Not necessary, a fire at night will be adequate light.
Survival Dilemma:
On vacation in July, you and your family have been travelling through the wilderness of Northern Saskatchewan in a truck-camper. In a blinding rainstorm you made a wrong turn on an unmarked lumber road. You have wandered more than 150 miles over a maze of lumber routes, into the wilderness. The truck has run out of gas and now you, your parents, a 9 year old sister, a six your old brother, and the family cat named Charity, are lost.
After a family conference, you decide it is not wise to split up. You are going to try to walk back all together. You are pretty sure that if you pace yourselves, you can probably cover about 15 miles a day. Because of a fuel shortage, there are no helicopters or jeeps patrolling the area, and you have seen no other cars or houses.
The family is dressed in light-weight summer clothing and is wearing sneakers. Temperatures at night go down to between 5-10 degrees Celcius. It is also bug season. As you look around you pull the following items out of the camper, some of which may be useful.
You must choose, and put in priority order, the fifteen most important items for survival in the wilderness. The others can be eliminated. Outdoor experts have rated these items and put them in order of usefulness. Their reasons have been listed on the answer sheet.
Items found in the Camper:
- fishing gear
- $500 in traveller's checks
- 4 sleeping bags
- matches
- steak
- marshmallows (4 bags)
- bug repellent
- walkie-talkie
- road map of Saskatchewan
- 5 gallon jug of water
- instant breakfast (3 boxes)
- house and car keys
- cigarettes
- Coleman stove (2 burner)
- family tent
- 5 cans of cat food
- tub of peanut butter
- bathing suits
- large cheese block
- 3 m (10 ft) tent pole
- sheath knife
- wool sweaters for everyone
- raft paddles
- inflatable rubber raft
- paperback books
- first-aid kit
- clock
- transistor radio and batteries
- snakebite kit
- Coleman lantern
Activity 2: Putting Together A Survival Kit
Have the kids each put together a personal survival kit. They can bring the items for their kits from home or the branch may wish to purchase the items ahead of time.
Remind the kids that:
- A survival kit should supplement what you already have with you. You should never head into the outdoors without being prepared. This means always wearing proper clothing and carrying a knife and matches.
- The survival kit in the activity below is to help you survive for the first 24 hours after getting lost. Other kits may help you to survive for many days or even weeks at a time.
- A survival kit is only as good as the person using it. Make sure you have the proper skills and knowledge to use your kit. You need to learn how to start a fire in any weather and build a shelter from the natural materials found around you.
Survival Kit List:
r General Foods International Coffee Can
These small square cans work well to hold a survival kit. They are compact, have a lid, and can be used on a fire to heat water.
r Large orange garbage bag
This can be used for a shelter, and is much more visible to searchers than clear or black plastic.
r Waterproof matches
It is actually more important that the matches are in a waterproof container than they themselves are waterproof. Make sure you have strike anywhere matches not the safety ones that have to be lit off the box they came in.
r Small lighter
This is a good back up in case something happens to your matches.
r Thin flexible snare wire
This is not necessarily for snaring. Snaring takes lots of practice, time and energy. The wire can be used to create a handle for your tin pot, or can be used for a variety of repairs.
r Hot chocolate package
This can give you a few calories and be a morale booster while you’re waiting to be found.
r Rope or cord
Used for building a shelter, or for repairs.
r Signal mirror
This can be used, with practice to flash a search plane or helicopter on a sunny day. A simple signal mirror can be made out of thin cardboard and tin foil. Trace the bottom of the can onto the cardboard. Cut it out slightly smaller, so the finished mirror will fit on top of the can just under the lid. Cover the cardboard with tin foil (shiny side out), and cut a small hole in the middle.
r 2 gauze pads
After a wound is cleaned out, a piece of gauze can be placed on top, and held in place by a piece of clothing or rope.
r 2 rubbing alcohol pads
To clean out a wound. They can also be used to help start a fire.
r Flagging tape
A few feet of flagging tape can be rolled up and added to the kit. When lost, it’s a good idea to hang some flagging tape in the trees around you. In a shelter you may be difficult for searchers to see.
r Candle
A candle will hold a flame much longer than a match, and can give you a chance to get a fire lit even with quite wet wood.
r 2 small plastic bags
These can be used for carrying water, to put the contents of your survival kit in while you boil water, or for a variety of other purposes.
r Whistle
A whistle can be heard farther away than you can yell for help. Be sure to blow it in bursts of 3, which is the international signal for help.
Believe it or not, all of this can fit into the can with a little creativity and good packing. It’s a good idea to tape the kit shut with some duct tape. This will keep the kit waterproof, and prevent you from ‘borrowing’ something from the kit while you are at home.
Resources:
Swedo, S. Wilderness Survival: Staying Alive Until Help Arrives. Falcon Publishing Inc., 1998.
Tawrell, P. Camping and Wilderness Survival. 1996.
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