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Outdoor Survival Guide
The beauty and tranquility of nature can be deceptively dangerous for the unprepared. A change in weather conditions, personal injury, or lost or damaged supplies can turn a scenic hike into a life-threatening ordeal. Those with the knowledge of survival stay calm, stay safe, and stay alive. Outdoor Survival Guide provides you with the essential survival information to help you overcome the most frequently encountered outdoor hazards. This guide offers practical, step-by-step instruction so you can implement the skills and techniques even under the most stressful circumstances. From extreme cold to the isolated wilderness, you'll have the tools to survive. In Outdoor Survival Guide , survival expert Randy Gerke shares the same techniques and strategies he has used with the U.S. military and other government agencies. You will learn these skills and more: -Assess your situation and prioritize your needs. -Use your surroundings for shelter and safety. -Navigate through isolated wilderness. -Survive in extreme heat or cold. -Signal for help. -How to find drinking water in the wild and make sure it's safe to drink. -Identify edible vegetation to stave off hunger. -Assemble your own custom survival kit.
Preparation is the key to survival, and Outdoor Survival Guide will ensure that you are prepared. Before you venture afield, read this guide, and then stow it in your backpack, in your glove compartment, or with your outdoor supplies. It might save your life.
Preparation is the key to survival, and Outdoor Survival Guide will ensure that you are prepared. Before you venture afield, read this guide, and then stow it in your backpack, in your glove compartment, or with your outdoor supplies. It might save your life.
- GenresNonfiction
248 pages, Paperback
First published October 2, 2009
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
January 25, 2018
I'll be honest, "Outdoor Survival Guide" by Randy Gerke is probably one of the best books on wilderness survival that I have in my library. Many of the other books I've read on this subject tend to use a lot of "filler" and that is really the last thing you need to be wading through in the event of a real survival situation. I don't think there is a single wasted word in this book. Every word, every section provides useful information that you might need in a situation.
The book is divided into chapters based on the topic, not like in some books where they are divided by type of environment. The first chapter "Art of Survival" should not only be read, but memorized prior to going on the trail. It lists types of survival responses, panic control, and how to assess a situation. If God forbid you find yourself in a survival situation that you did not intend to be in, you should at the very least know how you yourself will normally react. Are you going to be a leader? Proactive? Bewildered? What about the people you are planning to go with? Do you know their reaction?
Other chapters include shelters, food (from animals or plants), navigation, fire, water, signaling, injuries/illnesses, and dangerous environments. While all the chapters in the book are excellent, there is not a bad chapter in the bunch, the food from plants section is particularly well thought out. For the plants, it gives descriptions, habitats, uses, food, warnings (ie don't confuse Cow Parsnip with Hemlock), and in the middle of the book there are several pages of photos of the plants mentioned which should help ease identification. In the animal chapter, not only does it mention how to trap the animal, but also how to clean, skin, and use the bone and how to save the blood. I would suggest not reading that chapter after dinner.
At ~230 pages and only weighing one pound, it's a fairly standard sized paperback and about the right size to take on the trail. A few months before reading this one, on librarything I reviewed another outdoor book "The Survival Handbook" which was an oversized, overweight book that was completely infeasible for a survival situation. In that review I stated "you might be better off bringing separate specialised books. They would be more effective and would probably consume less space." I would like to change that just a tad, bring "Outdoor Survival Guide" instead, you will have almost all your bases covered (and much more effectively) and you would definitely use up less space. The only type I would suggest bringing as an additional book is if you are going into an environment that is not your typical woods, then certainly bring a survival guide on that particular environment in addition to this book as well.
The book is divided into chapters based on the topic, not like in some books where they are divided by type of environment. The first chapter "Art of Survival" should not only be read, but memorized prior to going on the trail. It lists types of survival responses, panic control, and how to assess a situation. If God forbid you find yourself in a survival situation that you did not intend to be in, you should at the very least know how you yourself will normally react. Are you going to be a leader? Proactive? Bewildered? What about the people you are planning to go with? Do you know their reaction?
Other chapters include shelters, food (from animals or plants), navigation, fire, water, signaling, injuries/illnesses, and dangerous environments. While all the chapters in the book are excellent, there is not a bad chapter in the bunch, the food from plants section is particularly well thought out. For the plants, it gives descriptions, habitats, uses, food, warnings (ie don't confuse Cow Parsnip with Hemlock), and in the middle of the book there are several pages of photos of the plants mentioned which should help ease identification. In the animal chapter, not only does it mention how to trap the animal, but also how to clean, skin, and use the bone and how to save the blood. I would suggest not reading that chapter after dinner.
At ~230 pages and only weighing one pound, it's a fairly standard sized paperback and about the right size to take on the trail. A few months before reading this one, on librarything I reviewed another outdoor book "The Survival Handbook" which was an oversized, overweight book that was completely infeasible for a survival situation. In that review I stated "you might be better off bringing separate specialised books. They would be more effective and would probably consume less space." I would like to change that just a tad, bring "Outdoor Survival Guide" instead, you will have almost all your bases covered (and much more effectively) and you would definitely use up less space. The only type I would suggest bringing as an additional book is if you are going into an environment that is not your typical woods, then certainly bring a survival guide on that particular environment in addition to this book as well.
May 23, 2011
some useful information but some of the medical items seemed to be a little off. I haven't been up to date on 1st aid lately but for a book written in 2010 I was surprised to see a couple of techniques that I would do differently.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews