Active Survival Training Posts
How To: Heat Your Home in an Emergency Without Gas Using Flower Pots & Candles
Not having power can make everyday tasks really difficult if you're unprepared. You have to find new ways to do things like cook dinner and charge your devices, and if it happens during the winter, you also have to figure out how to heat your home.
How To: Tie Seven Basic Scout Knots
How good of a scout were you? This how-to video goes over seven different knots that every Boy Scout should know how to tie. 7 knots every scout should know is filmed from the knot-tying point of view. The bowline, clove hitch, sheet bend, taut line, timber hitch, square knot, and two-half hitch are covered. Watch this video knot-tying tutorial and learn how to do seven essential scouting knots.
How To: Tie a Great Hangman's Noose (Or Hangman's Knot)
The hangman's noose is infamous for its use in hanging prisoners during executions. It was supposedly invented in Britain but eventually spread throughout the world, going beyond the prisons and even into our own homes. But the hangman's knot isn't all doom and gloom. There are plenty of practical (and non-lethal) applications for the hangman's knot, like a fishing or boating knot. Everyone should know this roped knot; this tutorial will show you the knot-tying process. Just remember, to be a...
How To: Make Your Own Charcoal
Hello, all. In this article, I will be showing you how to make one of the most useful products known to man. I am talking, of course, about charcoal.
How To: Prepare a bug out bag for escaping a disaster
A bug out bag, or BOB, is a prepared bag, usually a backpack, designed to sustain you for up to 72 hours while your escape wherever you are in case of a natural disaster, terrorist attack, or other catastrophe. This video will teach you everything you need to know to prepare an effective BOB that will help ensure your survival.
How To: Use dandelion tinder to make a fire
Need to make a survival fire, but don't have any matches and your lighter is out of fluid. Fear not, this how-to video can help. An empty flintwheel lighter can save the day when you need a fire. Dandelion seed puffs can be the perfect tinder for your spark. Watch this video tutorial to see how it works & learn a great survival tip.
How To: Get rescued from a deserted island
Whether your plane made a crash landing or your ship got lost on a three-hour tour, now you're stranded on a remote island. Here's how to get help.
How To: Cook with an ESBIT stove for camping or survival situations
There are all sorts of small survival stoves available, and the ESBIT stoves are some of the best. This video will teach you how to use an ESBIT stove to start a fire, even in the rain, and cooke a delicious and healthy backpacking meal on it.
How To: Tie a Hangman's Noose Knot
Probably the most iconic of knots, this knot is easy to make and absorbs movement and shock extremely well.
How To: Identify Flint and Other Types of Sparking Rocks to Light a Fire
If you're going to start a fire in the wild, you will need the right kind of rock. This great little video helps you identify the type of rock you'll need to light a fire in the wild successfully. You'll need some high-carbon steel for striking your sparking rock; then you'll be ready to make sparks.
How To: Tie a 6 Lead by 7 Bight Knot on the Turks Head Tool
These short videos show how to tie a 6 Lead by 7 Bight Turks Head on the Turks Head Tool. These videos introduce the Turks Head Tool, the Turks Head Cookbook recipe format, and some basic methods that may be used to tie Turks head knots.
How To: The End of the World Survival Guide: Staying Alive During an Alien Invasion
Will the predicted apocalyptic date — December 21st, 2012 — really be the end of the world? In this ongoing five-part series, we examine what would happen if zombies, nuclear weapons, cyberwars, earthquakes, or aliens actually destroyed our planet — and how you might survive.
How To: Boil Water on a Leaf in the Wilderness
This video shows a tip on how to boil water on a leaf in the wilderness. If you are stuck out in the wilderness and you don't have a plastic bottle for water you can use a leaf to boil water for drinking. Build a fire first. Then, find a large enough leaf you can hold over the fire without burning your hands. Fill the leaf with water and hold it over the fire. Only let the flames lick up against the leaf so it won't burn. The edges will curl up closed but the water will boil in about ninety s...
How To: Make a Slammin' Fire Piston for Under a Buck
Did you know that there's a way to start a fire by squishing air? In this project, I'll show you how to build a tool that does exactly that—and I'll give you a sneak peak into the principals of how a diesel engine operates!
How To: Use a can opener on your Swiss Army knife
This video shows you how to use a can opener, like the ones found on Swiss Army knives. There's also a strange fruit in this video, something called lychees. So, if you're ever in need of opening a can of lychees in the woods, this is the video to watch.
How To: Start a fire using potato chips
Did you know that there is enough fat and oil in most chips that they can be lit on fire? See how a potato chip (or similar chip) can be used to start a fire in a survival situation in this instructional video. Just don't burn up all your food.
How To: Light a match without a matchbook cover
When your matchbook cover is shot, you can still get a light from a match. Learn how to light a match on the bottom of a coffee mug. Fun survival skills when you have a match and no cover - the ceramic of the mug provides the friction necessary to light a match.
How To: Tie the Celtic heart knot
In this video, we learn how to tie the Celtic heart knot. Start off with your rope and make a loop in the middle of it. Now, bring the working en on the right side into the loop so you have a circle. Now, bring that end back into the knot and braid it through the other loop. Next, push this through the bottom loop, then braid it through the lines that are on the shape. After this, you will see a heart shape start to form. Pull gently on the heart with both sides of the rope and shape the midd...
How To: Purify Urine for Drinking with an Emergency Solar Still
It’s called Urophagia—the art of consuming urine. There could be any number of reasons for having the desire to drink your own urine (or somebody else’s). There’s the so-called term “urine therapy,” which uses human urine as an alternative medicine. In urine therapy, or uropathy, it’s used therapeutically for various health, healing, and cosmetic purposes. There’s also those people who drink urine as sexual stimulation, where they want to share every part of each other. And then there’s the o...
How To: Make a survival fire from a battery and staple
Check out this how-to video to start a fire using an AA battery and a staple. You can do this while listening to the classical guitar piece, "Malaguena" if you feel like it. It could save your life! With your battery: start by cutting the plastic away from the negative terminal. Watch the video survival training tutorial for more tips on starting an emergency fire!
How To: Survive when lost in the rain forest
Learn the first rules of survival and avoid panicking. Ray Mears from the BBC gives rain forest survival tips including how to use a machete and to build a shelter from available materials.
How To: Build a shelter in the forest
Watch this video tutorial to learn how to build a shelter in the forest. If you get stuck in the woods, you'll need to know how to protect yourself from the elements.
How To: Purify water when in the wild
Whether you are venturing on a rugged camping trip, or simply want to brush on your outdoor survival skills, this video will come in handy. Learn how to purify water when out in the wild. Mike uses various methods to purify water and drinks the end result.
How To: How the Headrest in Your Vehicle Can Potentially Save Your Life One Day
If you ever find yourself in a car that's submerged under water, your first instinct should be to try and open either the window or the door in the first few seconds of touching water. Unfortunately, if you wait any longer than that, the lopsided ambient water pressure subjected to the car will make it impossible to open the car door, and the now ubiquitous power windows will likely short out. Sure, you could wait until the pressure has equalized on both sides of the car, but this usually hap...
How To: Make a Fire by Rubbing Two Sticks Together!
Here's a survival technique for making a fire with the most basic of resources—assuming you can find two sticks to rub together!
How To: Tie a pegged bowline knot
The pegged bowline, as demonstrated in this how-to video, is similar to a bowline on a bighte knot. Using pegs to construct knots is well documented. Simply tie the bowline as usual in the bight of the rope then peg the running end to the standing part. Watch this video knot-tying tutorial and learn how to tied a pegged bowline knot.
How To: Survive in a Falling Elevator
The tragedy of a falling elevator is not unheard of. This could happen to you at any time, and you will most likely not be expecting it. Who would step into an elevator if they had an idea it might plummet to the ground? The best thing you can do is be prepared. First you want to stay calm. Next you want to lie, belly down, on the elevator floor with your hands behind your head. Make sure you do not panic. This is crucial in times of crisis. When all is over, you'll notice that you're still a...
How To: Build a Homemade Portable Water Heater for Your Outdoor Camping Adventures
Warm water is an essential part of life that we sometimes tend to take for granted. Over one billion people, or roughly one-seventh of the world's population, have no access to hot water.
How To: Build a rocket stove
The rocket stove, invented by Dr. Larry Winiarski, was developed to require much less cooking fuel than a traditional stove. The rocket stove also emits less dangerously, as most of the energy burned turns into heat. To build this rocket stove, you will need sheet metal or a 5 litre metal can, clay, water, sawdust, a wooden mold, a clay brick, vermiculite or perlite, and cement. Learn how to build a rocket stove by watching this video tutorial.
How To: Remove Maggots from Your Eyeball
While maggots living in human eyeballs isn't necessarily a problem in the states, it could happen to you one day if a fly decides your warm eyeball is a suitable place for its larvae. If this rare event should happen, before you start gouging your eyeball out, remember this trick from National Geographic explorer and engineer Albert Lin and everything will be okay.
How To: Make a Soda Can Stove
Survive the apocalypse by learning how to make a stove out of nothing but a soda can!
How To: Build a self feeding fire for wilderness survival
This instructional video demonstrates a technique for building a fire structure that will burn continuously and does not require ANY managing. This is a great method to know if you need the heat from a fire while you are sleeping, but do not want to wake up repeatedly during the night to add more wood.
How To: The End of the World Survival Guide: Staying Alive During a Nuclear Holocaust
Will the predicted apocalyptic date—December 21st, 2012—really be the end of the world? In this ongoing five-part series, we examine what would happen if zombies, nuclear weapons, cyber wars, earthquakes, or aliens actually destroyed our planet—and how you might survive.
How To: Make an emergency candle from a crayon
When you're without power, and, you don't have conventional lighting, you can use crayons for candles. See how it's done.
How To: Survive an Icy Walkway Without Falling
The months of constant snowfall and freezing temperatures seems endless once the excitement of the first snowfall fades, and you become weary of traversing black ice and other slippery streets.
How To: Use a Light Bulb and the Sun to Make a Fire
Don't throw away your dead light bulbs, they may come in handy one day. This video will show you how to start a fire using a dead lightbulb. And no electricity. The tricky part is emptying out the insides, but this can be done with sticks and stones, assuming you're in a survival situation and just happen to have a light bulb with you for whatever reason.
How To: Make a trapeze spring snare to catch small game
Ryan teaches us how to make a trapeze spring snare to catch small game in this video. You will need: finishing line, a knife, paracord, and natural living wood. the trap will have two snares built into one mechanism. Start off by gathering all your wood and then place a stake down into the ground. Make a notch in your anchor to place a stick through it, then tie paracord down into a "y" shape tied down onto the stick. When you pull the string, there will be a lot of tension. Tie the center so...
How To: MAKE FIRE with a MAGNIFYING GLASS
90 seconds that could save your life. How to actually MAKE A FIRE with a lens, rather than just burning a hole in a leaf. (Or frying ants, which seems to be the other thing that kids like to do with magnifying glasses.) By forming your target material into an efficient ball, you will be able to start a fire even with very small lenses. Like less than an inch across small. The finer the individual fibres, and the more densely they are packed, the more effective is your ball of smigtin (smoulde...
How To: Build & Hide a Campfire from Your Enemies — The Dakota Fire Pit
Fire. It’s everywhere— always has been. From the Ordovician Period where the first fossil record of fire appears to the present day everyday uses of the Holocene. Today, we abundantly create flames (intentionally or unintentionally) in power plants, extractive metallurgy, incendiary bombs, combustion engines, controlled burns, wildfires, fireplaces, campfires, grills, candles, gas stoves and ovens, matches, cigarettes, and the list goes on... Yet with our societies' prodigal use of fire, t...
How To: Build a RanDome Geodesic Emergency Shelter
This method is easy, intuitive and requires very little math. You will need:
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