These classes fit well into my preparedness and survival regimen because whether I’m in an urban or wilderness setting there is always the possibility of injury or illness. Typically there is more advanced equipment available in urban settings but general first aid and CPR are applicable in each environment. Knowing what to do in an emergency can save lives!

The photo illustrates the First Aid Recovery Position. Putting someone in the recovery position will keep their airway clear and open. It also ensures that any vomit or fluid won’t cause them to choke. It is meant to protect a person who is unconscious but has regular breathing and pulse.

To achieve this position start by placing the person on their back and kneel on the floor by their side. Take the arm nearest you and lift it outstretched above their head. Lift their other arm and place their hand on the shoulder nearest you so that the back of their hand is touching their cheek. Bend the knee farthest from you into an upright position. Grasping their far shoulder in one hand and the far knee with the other, pull them toward you so that their body rolls on axis until they are laying on their side facing you. Their head will be in a slight downward position enabling any fluids to drain and helps to keep their airway open. It is best to stay with the person and monitor their condition until help arrives.

First Aid and CPR courses are developed by organizations such as Red Cross, American Health & Safety Institute (ASHI), and American Heart Association and may be offered online or at different locations such as YMCA, Red Cross centers, Colleges, your workplace, or other Public Service organizations. It’s a great investment of time and money for the ability to save lives, including yours!

In usual fashion we discussed the priorities of survival. I began to construct a campfire showing the progression of tinder-to-kindling-to-fuel. As I battoned some wood to create kindling the boys were able to practice using ferro rods to light cattail fluff. After some coals were established I used two cans of different sizes to clam-shell over a yam and let it bake. Then I passed around some edible flora that I had collected earlier in the morning for hands-on inspection and tasting.

We spent some time learning different ways to create fire by using solar, electrical, and percussion methods. Everyone had a chance to try flint and steel firecraft and I demonstrated how to make “Quickie Charcloth” with which to catch a spark. We celebrated with each individual who was able to achieve this method of making fire!

Between classes Eustace Conway stopped by to chat with me about his vision for Turtle Island Preserve and that he encouraged instructors to include cultural aspects of our craft beyond technique and how they relate to sustainability in contrast to modern society.

You can follow the activities of Turtle Island Preserve at their website where you can register for classes and events that they offer.

I always enjoy sharing my passion with others and having the fathers accompany these young boys was a throw-back to home-schooling my own sons. The boys ranged from approximately 12-8 years old and holding a class for two and a half hours went quite well with participation by all. The class was joined by some TIP staff and one of their fathers so it spanned several generations.

After discussing the priorities of survival I began to construct a campfire showing the progression of tinder-to-kindling-to-fuel. As I batoned some wood to create kindling the boys were able to practice using ferro rods to light cattail fluff. After some coals were established I used two cans of different sizes to clam-shell over a yam and let it bake. Then I passed around some edible flora that I had collected earlier in the morning for hands-on inspection and tasting.

We spent some time learning different ways to create fire by using solar, electrical, and percussion methods. Everyone had a chance to try flint and steel firecraft and I demonstrated how to make “Quickie Charcloth” with which to catch a spark. We had numerous victories of making fire!

As the class was held in the late afternoon I was able to stay for dinner at the famous “Nacho Mama” cafe which is the TIP dining area. The meals there are always great and varied. It was a great time with wonderful folks and made my father’s day weekend that much more special.

I began our session by handing out wallet-sized pieces of paper on which were printed seven points of survival priorities. We moved on to some edibles. I brought a prickly pear (or nopales) cactus paddle as seen on many survival shows and prepared pieces for sampling. Earlier upon my arrival I caught a grasshopper and then demonstrated how to prepare it for roasting. A young lad volunteered to eat it later with a nod of approval.

We progressed on to firecraft where I built a campfire from scratch so that everyone could see the progression of materials from thin to thick and lit it with the sparks from a broken flint-wheel lighter. Then I shared my “Five Fire Categories” of optical, electrical, chemical, percussion, and friction, and proceeded to demonstrate each one.

Optical – The sun had already set so I could not demonstrate optical fire methods but I did show the different optical devices and described how they are used. I gave each one a wallet magnifier of their own to experiment with on a sunny day. I always keep one in my wallet as a solar fire starter.

Electrical – I pulled off a piece of AAAA steel wool into a strand and crossed the terminals of a lantern battery. Nine volt batteries work well for this. I placed an ignited piece into a paper towel and coaxed it into a flame. Later in the evening I located a AA battery and created a flame using a strip from a foil gum wrapper.

Chemical – I poured out a small mound of Potassium Permanganate (KCO3) and made a small impression in the middle whereupon I added a little bit of anti-freeze (containing glycol). After a few moments smoke appeared followed by an erupting flame. This demonstrated how exothermic reactions of chemicals can create a flame.

Percussion – I showed the materials used for Flint & Steel fire making. I showed different strikers and various rocks. I demonstrated how to make “quick charcloth” by burning a piece of 100 percent cotton cloth until black and extinguished it between two blocks of wood. I then placed it on the flint to catch a spark from the steel striker. Later in the evening I demonstrated a fire piston using the quick charcloth as tinder.

Friction – My last demonstration was Bow & Spindle fire method. This took a few tries but demonstrated the nature of different woods and what to look for in developing proper char powder for the creation of a live coal.

By the end of the meeting the men had gained a greater knowledge of survival and firecraft skills that they can now pass down to their children and future generations.

It was a beautiful day for such an event even though there were pockets of icy puddles throughout the grounds. It was strategic to stand in the sunlight when possible. Eustuce began the instruction by telling the history of his efforts at TIP which included Spencer’s contribution thirteen years ago. Spencer, once a student, continued building his skill and returned this day as a teacher of the craft.

Although the majority of wood shingles are made from oak, this class focused on white pine which was the main resource at TIP. Whereas oak is split in a radial manner, white oak is cut in parallel fashion. This is all done with hand tools.

With a chain saw, Eustace felled the first of three white pines of the day. I was totally impressed with his skill as he selected the proper tree, called out the path among a stand of trees for it’s destination and then cut with precision and layed the pine right on target. He proceeded to cut out the segments that were to be split. He then demonstrated the splitting technique on one segment and groups of two to three students began to repeat the process on the rest. Spencer advised us on techniques that would benefit us throughout the day.

Having spent the day learning this skill, I will now be on the look-out to acquire the tools with which to perform this task on my own. As Eustace says, this skill empowers you to be self-sufficient. Now, having the knowledge and some experience, I will be able to teach others to do the same.

Although many people think “Wilderness” when they think “Survival” but actually, as evidenced by the recent “Super Storm Sandy”, survival can also mean “Urban” when the power goes out and water supplies are disrupted or questionable. The good thing is that survival techniques can be applied in various situations with the purpose of saving lives.

The 1 1/2 hour class consisted of a Power Point presentation accompanied by tools and improvised items to illustrate various points. I was able to demonstrate a few firecraft techniques that were brief with little or no smoke so as not to set off the smoke alarms. I also cooked an egg using hand sanitizer for fuel as illustrated in my video “Bottle Cap Burner Really Cooks!“.

In the end, we had a good time and made new friends. It was a Saturday morning well spent.

It’s comforting to know that Emergency Medical Services (EMS) responders are equipped with proper professional tools and supplies. However, most of us are not equipped beyond a simple first aid kit for day-hike trips or car kits. These usually consist of sterile wipes, adhesive bandages, gauze and possibly a variety of ointments. These are all good supplies but are limited and don’t address the primary rule of first aid response “universal protection”.

“Universal protection” is the approach by responders to employ appropriate barriers to possible transfer of infectious diseases when attending to persons requiring first aid. More folks are becoming aware of this need and have begun to carry disposable gloves as part of their kit. However if none are available, you can use other barriers such as sandwich bags, bread bags or shopping bags as gloves.

There are other ways in which to improvise first aid supplies. Towels, new diapers, or absorptive feminine hygiene items can be used as a compress to suppress external bleeding wounds. Rolled up magazines or newspapers can be used to stabilize possible broken limbs. Bandanas can be used as slings and bindings for stabilization.

“Improvising” is a key element in survival whether for shelter, food, or navigation, but in the initial response to a first aid scenario it can make a huge difference in the victim’s chance for full recovery and in the extreme case for life or death.

Recently I had the opportunity to teach a combined class of Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts filled with bright kids who came packaged with a short attention span. Being able to handle different plants and taste them did help to keep them focused. But what drew the most attention was when I took out a container of mealworms and announced that I would be cooking some for everyone to eat.

I used a small wood burning trail stove for my fire source and heated a bit of cooking oil in a Sierra Cup. while I prepared the stove, the Scouts separated the mealworms from the cornmeal that they come packaged in. when the oil got hot as evidenced by the wavy/watery appearance, I dropped the mealworms in that produced quite a crackling sound that drew everyone’s attention. After a short time they began to brown and I let them cool a little before offering them to the Scouts and their parents. To my delight, after first sampling a few myself, almost everyone clambered for their own to taste. The consensus was that they taste a lot like pork rinds which is a familiar taste to this group who grew up amidst the Southern cuisine. I heard one parent say “most people don’t realize how many mealworms they have eaten that were inadvertently included in their corn bread over the years.

In an emergency situation, you can eat bugs raw, but if at all possible, I recommend roasting or frying them first to kill any potential parasites or bacteria. You might be surprised to know that 1/3 of the world’s population include insects in their diet, so you can see that mealworms are a viable food source.

Next, we dug a Dakota Hole that consists of 2 holes about 8″ in diameter, each about 1′ deep, and separated by 10″. At the bottom of each hole a tunnel is dug to connect them. The finished Dakota Hole is “U” shaped and a fire is built in one side. The heat that is generated by the fire draws air into the other hole which begins a chimney effect and sustains the fire. Because the fire is below ground level, it is protected from windy weather and is more contained and thus safer. For persons who want their presence to be less visible, this is also a more stealthy fire. Another variation can be dug along an earthen bank, entering from the bank side and connecting with a hole dug from the top level.

After the initial campfire had burned down into a bed of coals we built the fire in the Dakota Hole. This process is quite simple and quick. You begin by placing large kindling in the hole in a funnel orientation then add smaller kindling in the middle. Place tinder on top of that then lite. It burns down nicely. Once established it can be controlled by partial closure of the air intake hole. You can place a tripod over the fire and suspend a pot for cooking. I chose to put 3 rocks around the hole’s edge to act as a trivet over which I placed a dutch oven. This orientation allows air flow with access to feed the fire with kindling.

As with all campfires, safety precautions should be observed. In addition, choose soil that is free from hummus or other ignitable material. You may want to place visual markers or a barricade around the hole to prevent accidentally stepping into it or you can temporarily place large rocks over the holes when not in use. When completely finished at the campsite, make sure the coals are completely extinguished and fill in the entire Dakota Hole.

Now is a good time to obtain a folding spade for your camping gear or Bug-Out-Bag and give this cooking fire a try.