[Heretic]

Shelter

In making any shelter such as a lean-to, 6-8 inches are the “minimum” of foliage to keep dry during an average rain

Always use a smaller fire so you can sit closer and conserve supply

Construct your shelter a fair distance away from water, to avoid insects and unwanted animal encounters, yet camp close to supply demands if possible

River noise will greatly decrease your hearing range so camp in an appropriate place


Water Use & Purification

A seasoned hiker with a heavy pack can consume 2 quarts of water an hour

Use pool Chlorine to kill germs, Albumen to thicken around particles and sink them to bottom. (2 hours to 2 days)

Iodine can become toxic if taken in quantity and shut down kidneys or liver, but can be used with caution to purify water

Don’t pop ice in mouth for water, melt it first as it take calories for the body to melt, and calories must be replaced somehow

Methods to find fresh water, collect dew in the morning with a bandana or similar, gather any ice, foil on camp location to funnel water from trees etc

The boiling of water can disinfect but not remove toxins, 5 min at a rolling boil achieves disinfectant, add 1 min of boiling for every 1000ft above sea level (found by topographical maps)

Sun distillation can be achieved with plastic laid out conically over a pit of dense plant matter and weighted in the middle over a cup, no cutting is needed, the water droplets will form on the ground side because it is cooler and condenses on the hotter plastic, a rubber hose can be placed in the cup so you don’t have to mess with it after it is made (yield is about a cup a day in a hole 6 in deep and 12x18 in size pit



Fire Making

Three things to use in fire making: starter material or tinder can be dried leaves, moss, or any dry dense flammable material, use kindling to create a sub fire to ignite the larger sticks and logs

Avoid normal matches; instead use British Life Boat matches or hurricane matches, or common matches dipped in wax to water seal them

A magnesium fire starter, gun powder out of a ammunition shell, and other hot and abrupt flash point fire starter’s fire ribbon as a paste in a tube and can get damp fires going

Start fires at least 5-10 feet from brush or overgrowth, surround fire with a containment wall rocks or dirt,

Camera and scope lenses as well as fire kit lenses can be used to start a fire, the polished bottom of a coke can will also use the convex magnifier effect, and ignite tinder

Camp fires come in various shapes: the teepee, the pyramid,

Make use of fire shields or walls to aim heat in a desired direction

Matches are a false sense of hope, if you stay dry, under shelter, and out of the wind then they are less likely to be needed, if not then they will be less likely work anyway, adding to the psychological factor at night etc