Surviving in the wild is challenging, but with the right knowledge, skills, and tools, you can survive in the toughest situations.
Even if you don’t know the basics of survivalism and have never been in the wilderness on your own, you can develop your outdoor survival skills to become confident and competent. It’s a great new hobby to try and may come in handy one day!
To survive in the wild, you will need to develop a number of skills. Some skills are more important than others and will be helpful in pretty much any survival situation. Below, we have covered the most important outdoor skills you need to know.
Starting a Fire
Being able to start a fire is a vital survival skill. Without a fire, you will be unable to stay warm, sterilize water, and cook any meat you’ve hunted.
Starting a fire should be one of the first things you do when you’re in an outdoor survival situation, so it should also be one of the first skills you learn.
There are multiple ways to start a fire, including with matches, friction, ferro rods, and damp timber or wet wood. You can learn more about how to start a fire with wet wood by reading this article.
Hunting
There are no convenience stores or fridges out in the wild. There are only wild animals and insects available to eat.
Therefore, in order to avoid starvation and provide your body with the energy it needs to find more food and run from potential threats, you need to know how to hunt.
Firstly, you’ll need to invest in the right hunting tools and weapons, which may include a hunting knife or a crossbow, binoculars, and proper storage equipment. Next, you’ll need to work on your physical skills, which include navigation, cardiovascular fitness, coordination, and accuracy.
Preparing and Cooking Food
Once you have hunted an animal successfully, you need to know how to prepare and cook it before you can eat it. To prepare your food, you will need to know how to skin an animal and store the meat properly before you cook it.
Next, you should be aware of how long each type of meat needs to be cooked to be safe and free of the harmful pathogens commonly found in raw meat. This is where being able to start a fire will come in handy!
Field Dressing
Field dressing involves removing an animal’s internal organs, and it’s necessary after you’ve successfully hunted and killed an animal for food. It’s best to start field dressing an animal as soon as you have killed it to preserve the meat as much as possible.
Field dressing is a relatively simple survival task, and all you will need is a sharp knife and sterile gloves to do it. Although you might feel a little unsure about what to do during your first time field dressing a hunted animal, it’s a skill that you will easily perfect over time. Practice makes perfect!
