Easy Survival Shelter (Stay Warm and Dry)

Instagram: WildSurvivalSkills

I began studying wilderness survival when I was 17 in order to have the ability to spend extensive periods of time in nature, seeking out empowerment and without the need for external sources. I began studying in 1993 under Tom Brown Jr eventually teaching for Tracker Inc. I sought-out every old Native American teacher I could and eventually traveled the world living in very remote indigenous villages in the Amazon, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and Peru. My school teaches survival and primitive skills, nature awareness, how to live off the land, re-wilding, prepare for disasters. I strongly believe that experiencing survival living changes the way people approach their entire lives.

[haukepowers]

As a Eagle..1973..and as a two-time AT trekker, I commend your site..CONTINUE this education..it is needed..

[poplarridge]

I've made a bunch of debris shelters, & you are spot-on. I like your rule of adding leaves until it gets too dark to see. I always pile them to a depth of at least fingertips to armpit. Then throw a bunch of wood on top to hold the leaves in place.

[allieelizabeth]

If I’m being honest these shelters feel better than a bed because you are so tired after making them

[russellsage]

Stellar...resssspect! I made them that way for ages. A guy came by and upped my game. At that point where you (and I) stopped, he added what he called lattice (a big leafy branch on both sides); he added a few big leafy branches on the outside of the leaves, added more leaves, and added some more ribbing (bigger sticks along the tent shape) to hold the leaves in. That way, the wind comes, the structure keeps. He told me some guys made structures like that in a storm (not my experience) and they were fully exposed by morning. Another upgrade is to put leaves and such down firstly, because if you're on the hard earth...there's nothing you can do about that frozen ground--or cold ground. So now....years later...i put bedding down, and add lattice on the outside, and bigger sticks along that initial shape. Let me tell you, that structure is disturbingly like an incubator. No sound, and not too much cold. The only thing to fear at that point (my bag, or a big scarf of leaves, is the door) is thinking about some snake catching some warmth in there too, haha. You sound like you've spent some nights out there so props to you Fam, bare feet and all. You just won yourself another fan. The same guy that educated me on this said, we are part of the earth...the more we learn about her rules, the better she can take care of us. That's when it hit me, we're only as strong and successful as we are able to realize our place--at best a kitten on the lap of an enormous mother earth. It makes me think longer about those images of Hindu deities. The earth is the mother. The spiritual element is the father. There are two forms to come to terms with, the world we take on and that 'other'...we are foolish to neglect either parent.

[johnloraditch]

Last night you I saw you on Naked and Afraid. That was really amazing. They said that you survived some of the harshest conditions and your shelter, though not perfect, without it you would’ve easily died. You lost 30 lbs in 21 days...I think that is a record.

[Hiiyoo]

you should have crawled in at the end and closed the entrance for us to see :3

[brookewalters]

He protec
He attac
But most importantly,
He builds smol shac

[iamfumes]

I went camping with my cousins and my gf a while ago and they forgot tents all we had were tarps. It was getting dark when we got to camp and we had to walk like 2-3 hours so we couldn't go back. thanks to this video I got to sleep comfy as well as my gf because she helped me set it up while my cousins laughed at my idea... anyway I made it bigger and folded the tarp so that we didn't sleep on the floor. by bigger I mean I played around with this idea and added more stands and lifted the back side as well as extending the roof to the side

[VALAK]

lmfao he wasnt kidding about the leaves

[lanejohnson]

I really enjoy your videos Tom. I have been an outdoor person since I was 10 years old and I too had a desire to live free of the grid and being able to live off the land.
I read many of TBjr's books, many wild edible plants books. My wife and I did many hikes, practicing survival, finding wild edible plants and constantly adding to our
ToGoPacks. YouTube videos and books were very helpful and hands on self-teaching was an obsession of mine. I was always training my mind and heart to be
complete in a survival situation. We camped in New Hampshire at Waterville Valley, along with other NH. The peace of mind that the woods gives to a person is well
worth the effort to learn enough to survive in the wilderness. At my age now I have learned to slow down my pace due to poor health. So I stayed focused on the 1970
Army - Factors for Survival. The "U" in survival says "Undue haste makes waste". (FM21-76) So now I have learned to "wait for myself" with a conscious deeper awareness
which is relevant to survival. Thanks for your videos, they are some of the very best that I've looked at. -Lane Cash-

[zachfisher]

03:06 - You mess with me, and not break from my knee... I SMASH you on a BIG tree!

[jackblack]

probably one of the best videos on making a debris shelter...

[ozly]

Ok Ive been using this shelter for years and its the best all these other people have know idea what there talking about one thing to remeber is you also need a lot of debris in the shelter as well. Nice vid!

[Platinum]

Did it once and slept overnight once. Thank you Troop 55. Will never forget, but thanks for the video. Confirmed I haven't forgotten. You are spot on that this is a skill everyone should be taught.

[clodovo]

I tried this before watching this video and I can approve that this 100% works

[dixieh]

Best video I've seen on this subject! Basic, simple to do and easy to reproduce!

[theunknown]

This is SUPER helpful for my wilderness survival merit badge in Boy Scouts! Thank you

[KM]

Thank you for making this simple and easy to do and understand. Gonna practice this this weekend!

[josephjohnson]

Made one in like 10 seconds when I got lost once due to the paths keep leading me the wrong way from what I heard was vehicles. Mostly was a leaf pile against a log on a hill, but made a crude wall. By 2 am it was too cold so I got up and moved, and spoke softly to keep wildcats away.

[SweetLilyofPeace]

Good survival video and to be honest I would rather risk limes disease rather than die of cold if stuck in a situation where I had to survive a cold night out in the wild. Only disappointment for me is I wanted to see you actually enter it and close up entrance as you said. It was so small and I would have felt more comfortable if it had been a tiny bit bigger as it made me feel claustrophobic watchig it. Still very useful for someone who needs to survive a cold night.