Survival Shelter No No's: What not to do when setting up camp!

Like what you see? Want more? Visit us at..

and as always....
Stay in the Woods,

Dan

[madudeliets]

Thank you for not milking my time and keeping the videos to the point. The worst is sitting thru 20 minutes of youtubers repeating themselves. So thanks again!

[ogrbearded]

If you set up near a creek, look up in the trees for debris. If you see debris in low brush or tree branches it is because flood waters reach that height. I camped out by a creek once with 6 foot high bank but had debris 6 feet up in the trees or TWELVE FEET above the normal creek level. Luckily in my case the water only reached the top of the bank on my trip, but it taught me to pay attention to high flood water indications.

[vanhattfield]

I grew up in the woods, taught from an early age by my grandfather who was a relocated Kentucky moonshiner in Northern Michigan. One of my earliest recollections of the things he taught me was that when setting up camp, always do so with the mentality that you were doing it in the pouring rain. Developing that as a habit has been extremely beneficial through the years. When it is mentioned, it seems like a no brainer, but it is something easily overlooked when setting up camp on a sunny day and only becomes evident during a nightime rain storm.

[garryrice]

I’m not an expert, but I have often encountered yellow jacket nests near uprooted trees. So watch out for those.

[christopherbeckerdite]

Cold, dense air settles in low lying areas. Something to keep in mind depending on when you are outside.

[secondslater]

I live in Western Australia, in the country where everything tries to kill you...

Over here one of the things that gets taught to people by those that are proficient in bushcraft is to look up before setting up camp, pitching a tent, rolling out a swag or parking up your vehicle and so on.

We have Eucalyptus trees over here, certain species regularly shed very large limbs, (I have seen limbs up to half a metre diameter suddenly drop from a height of 15 to 20 metres). The trees usually shed limbs, or it is more common, during drought to conserve water or in heatwave conditions for the same reason, but not always, as it can occur during winter as well.

The trees do this by building up a pocket of gas at the limb/trunk junction and force the limb to break off, there is no warning, it is sudden and the limb breaks away fast and clean.

A lone camper or even a family seem to be in the news every couple of years having been seriously injured or killed by a falling branch from one of these trees.

These certain Eucalypt trees get dubbed Widowmaker trees, that name should be saved for trees that are likely to fall.

I think it is a bit unfair as local councils around Australia now remove these beautiful trees due to liability concerns, some of them hundreds of years old, a lot of them providing nesting for rare cockatoos in the hollows left by the gas pockets where a limb has been shed.

Anyway, just look up, for your sake and the sake of the tree.

[canoe]

I appreciate that you ACTUALLY TALK during your presentation. So many ridiculous 'survival' videos, they don't narrate and explain WHY they're doing what they do. You have good info, to the point, not wordy or dramatic. Subscribed.

[robertlivingston]

Learned about the low spot when I was 9, several of us boy's pitched our tent out in the woods about 3/4 mile behind the house, in the middle of the night we all woke up sleeping in a pond. That's one lesson never forgotten.

[alonzomaynard]

Done with the directness required without the unnecessary drama of so many other outdoor channels.
So glad I subscribed. Thanks.

[cevgunnerF]

Another example of great info for the toolbox ! It makes sense, especially when you approach the terrain from the standpoint of "why is it like that"

[laurabedford]

This mans clips are straight to the point good information and No FAFF. EXCELLENT

[rickysand]

Great video. One other concern, one which I am always concerned with up here in Northern Wisconsin in the Nicolet National Forest, is that of ‘widow makers’. Those are trees, usually tall mature ones, that are starting to drop their dead limbs, which can be massive and heavy. Wondering the woods, you will occasionally see large limbs or chunks of wood protruding straight up from the ground near a tree. These are the ‘widow makers’ that broke off in a wind, or no wind, and penetrated the ground. Could well have been on top of your head. I just removed two 50’+ trees that were along our driveway and beginning to drop such limbs. A potentially dangerous situation avoided. In summary, if you’re selecting a camp site under or near a tree, observe the tree above to assure yourself it’s a healthy tree, and not one holding potential ‘widow makers’, that could harm or kill you.

[moorefab]

I went on an overnight hike with some buddy’s last year and we ended up in a narrow canyon that seemed like a great spot. Had lots of downed trees for fire wood and a nice wide Game trail to set up our tents haha that night the wind picked up and I could hear some giant animal either a bear or elk crashing through the brush. I didn’t sleep a wink that night. I figured I was either getting crushed by a dead fall or a trampled by an elk coming down it’s trail that we were right in the middle of.

[steveowens]

Three great calls! I remember a trip into the back country in Glacier Park, where two friends pitched their tent in a low-lying area. It rained of course, and around 3 AM all of the runoff plowed through - they dragged everything to higher ground when the tent started leaking from the bottom without too much water damage to their gear or bags, and settled back down. In the morning, there was a fast moving creek three feet deep where they had set up the night before.

[erichjalmarson]

Hi Dan, good advice. Love how you picked out all the places that a lot of people would use. I have noticed that even on the show Alone there are some that put their shelters in low ground or even dig and hole to make their shelter. I sit there shaking my head yelling no no no. But they never listen. High ground on a hump, solid ground, solid trees, back from water source, away from cliffs and falling debris

[Geark]

Another reason not to mess with fallen trees is that there is a possibility that the trunk is still under tension, especially when its in contact with other trees. That's also why you shouldn't walk on it or things like that. Having this tension go off in your face is incredibly dangerous.

[zakkmiller]

You are a saint for giving away all this information and knowledge for free. Thanks so much for all the hard work on the videos, brother. This is one of the best channels on Youtube.

[ScottGostick]

I appreciate the "Keep these in consideration!" At the end. Situational awareness is key. Uprooted trees can often be a result of shallow soil beds due to shallow bedrock. Providing that the immediate surroundings do not present undesired hazards they are perfect spots to use. A downed tree properly assessed for stability can provide protection from other falling trees. Again situational awareness. A lowland area can set you up in reasonable proximity to a valuable lifeline water source. Again situational awareness is key. Survival is not an exercise or a plan but a predicament that will require wits and good judgement. The hazards you point out are real and important but real survival is situational.

[outdoorslifesurvivecraft]

Great video as usual. One thing, no one ever says don't camp on or near animal paths. I know of a lot of people that don't know what they are when they see them.

[helidude]

I had a job at a location in a wooded area.
I mentioned to my boss that a particular dead tree was likely to fall into the roadway, or another direction and land on customer aircraft or his building.
I informed him of the potential liability of damages, injuries, or death especially since it had been brought to his attention.

So a month or so later a storm came during the night.
When we arrived the next day, we noticed an area that looked a bit different.

The green “healthy” tree next to dead tree was the one that had fallen 🤦🏻