Basic skills for survival in the wild
Survival in the wild means people survive in the mountains and jungles where there is no accommodation. Special forces, scouts, airborne troops, and marines who go deep behind enemy lines, as well as soldiers and air crews who lose contact with their troops during the battle, in isolated enemy rear areas or in unfamiliar wilderness jungles and isolated islands, where instruments are cut off. Under such circumstances, bottom-up skills in the wild are even more needed. Here are some simple common sense for survival in the wild.
1. Use natural features to determine direction
In the absence of standard equipment such as terrain maps and compasses, soldiers must master some methods of using natural features to determine direction.
It is very simple to use the sun to determine the direction
You can use a benchmark (straight pole) to make it perpendicular to the ground, and place a stone at the vertex A of the shadow of the benchmark; about 10 Minutes later, when the vertex of the benchmark's shadow moves to B, place another stone. Connect two points A and B into a straight line. The direction of this straight line is the east-west direction. The direction perpendicular to the line AB is north-south, and the end facing the sun is south.
Use an analog watch to determine the direction of the sun. The method is: place the watch horizontally and halve the time indicated by the hour hand (in a 24-hour format), facing the sun. The direction indicated by the 12 o'clock scale on the dial is roughly north. If the current time is 16 o'clock, the 8 o'clock scale of the watch points to the sun, and the 12 o'clock scale points to the north.
When the weather is clear at night, you can use the North Star to determine the direction. To find the North Star, you must first find the bear constellation (that is, what we call the Big Dipper). The constellation consists of seven stars that begin like a spoon. After finding the Big Dipper, follow the line connecting the two stars A and B on the edge of the spoon and extend towards the mouth of the spoon about 5 times the distance between the two stars A and B. The brighter star is the Polar Star. The direction pointed by Polaris is north. You can also use the Cassiopeia constellation opposite the Big Dipper to find the North Star. The Cassiopeia constellation consists of 5 stars that are about the same brightness as the Big Dipper and are shaped like a W. Polaris can be found in front of the middle of the W-shaped gap, about twice the width of the entire gap.
Using surface features to determine orientation is a supplementary method. When used, it should be used flexibly according to different situations. Freestanding trees usually have leafy southern foliage and smooth bark. The annual ring lines on tree stumps are usually thinner in the south and denser in the north. The doors and windows of rural houses and the main entrances of temples usually open to the south. Snow on buildings, mounds, field ridges, and highlands usually melts faster in the south and slower in the north. The south side of large rocks, mounds, and big trees is densely covered with vegetation, while the north side is prone to moss.
When you lose your way in the wild, do not panic, but stop immediately, always calmly recall the path you have taken, try to re-orientate according to all possible signs, and then try again. Find the way. The most reliable method is to "find your way back" and return to the original starting point.
After losing your way in the mountains, you should first climb up and look far away to judge which direction you should go. You should usually walk in a low-lying direction so that you can easily encounter water sources. It is safest to walk along the river. This is especially important in the forest. Because roads and residential areas are often built along waterfronts.
If you encounter a fork in the road and there are many roads that make you confused, you must first clarify the direction you want to go, and then choose the correct road. If several roads have roughly the same direction and cannot be determined, you should take the middle road first. This way you can get the best of both worlds, and even if you go the wrong way, you won't deviate too far.
2. Traveling Methods on Complex Terrain
When traveling in mountains, in order to avoid losing direction, save energy, and increase travel speed, you should strive to have roads that do not go through the forest and cross the mountains, and there are roads that do not need to be walked. For trails, if there are no roads, you can choose to travel on longitudinal mountain ridges, ridges, mountainsides, edges of rivers and streams, and terrain with tall trees, sparse forests, large gaps, and low grass. We must strive to walk across the bridge rather than across the ditch, and to walk vertically rather than horizontally.
When traveling, take long strides rather than small steps. In this way, after dozens of kilometers, you can save more than ten thousand steps. When tired, use slow, relaxed steps to rest without stopping. When climbing rocks, you should carefully observe the rocks, carefully identify the quality and weathering degree of the rocks, and determine the direction and route of climbing.
The basic method of rock climbing is the "three-point fixation" method, that is, fixing two hands and one foot or two feet and one hand, and then moving the remaining hand or foot to move the body's center of gravity upward. The hands and feet must cooperate well to avoid moving two points at the same time. They must be steady, light and fast. Choose the most appropriate distance and the most stable fulcrum according to your own situation. Do not take long steps or grab or pedal too far away.
Climbing hillsides below 30 degrees can be done in a straight line. When climbing, lean your body slightly forward, put all your feet on the ground, bend your knees, and make your feet appear in an outward "figure of eight" shape. Don't step too big or too fast. When the slope is greater than 30 degrees, a zigzag climbing route is generally adopted. When climbing, bend your legs slightly, lean your upper body forward, put your inner toes forward, touch the entire sole of your foot on the ground, and turn your outer toes slightly outward. If you accidentally slip while walking, you should immediately face the hillside, open your arms but straighten your legs, raise your toes, and move your body up as much as possible to reduce the speed of sliding. In this way, you can try to find climbing and supporting objects while sliding. Never sit facing outwards, as this will not only cause you to slide faster, but may also cause you to roll over on steeper slopes.