Course Outline

Too often we hear in the media that someone has gone missing in the outdoors somewhere here in Australia. On many occasions it is often a singular person particularly children that have wandered into the bush and become lost. Thankfully they are often found in a matter of hours and even days suffering from dehydration and exposure, but alive. Sufficed to say, adults are not immune from this situation and can find themselves in a survival predicament just as easily.

This can also apply to going out in boats, crashing in light aircraft and in fact any situation where you find yourself out of contact and with no communication and supplies. Unfortunately this can spell disaster for some people as they haven't taken the time to learn about survival.

In order to improve your chances of survival we put our heads together and decided to develop this course, hopefully imparting a little of our knowledge on to you. You don't need to be an authority or experienced in this field be able to survive, anyone and everyone should be more than capable of doing that, after all we are human beings with instinct. We just need to develop it.

As you may know there are electronic signaling devices you can carry, that emit a signal if triggered by you, but these systems can be expensive. If you are like me and on a limited budget, do yourself a favour and learn about basic bush survival. Remember, things can break or get lost, what do you do then? Having learned about finding water, signaling with fire, mirror and a whistle may be indeed very valuable to you one day.

The trick, is taking responsibility for yourself and ensure you always prepare for any bush adventure.

Red Cross and St Johns Ambulance often conduct courses in first aid which take only a couple of days to complete and can be very valuable in the event you or someone you know gets hurt. Boy Scouts and schools and so on often run courses in navigation. I suggest you make inquiries and take suitable courses.

Where and how you are going, to a degree determines your preparations. Scouts and schools usually lay out preparations that are adequate. However, this is not always so. Following is a list of things you can do yourself to make your journey safer.

Our Recommendations:

Here's a list of minimum items that we recommend you have on your person at all times;

1. We sell a small portable emergency kit we call a survival kit that contains basic essential items enclosed in a sealed tin that you would carry on your person only to back up your own preparations, you will find details of this kit later. This kit does not contain water or food but will help you gather water. In a survival situation food is not that important as you will more than likely be found in a few days anyway.

2. Although the kit contains a combination emergency compass whistle it is in your own interest to have and carry a good quality compass. There are many brands and types of compasses, be advised by your leader or visit a camping store and seek advice. The more expensive the compass usually the better. Twenty five to thirty five dollars usually buys something suitable.

Only use a compass if you are know how to use one, if in doubt do nothing, STOP where you are and wait for help!

3. Know where you intend to go and then buy a map or maps. Most good camping stores will stock these and should help you. You will also need a protractor and a couple of pencils to use with the map.

4. Without over loading yourself, ensure the cotton trousers you wear have at least two pockets at rear, two on the side and a map pocket. Ex army trousers or cargo pants usually fit the bill spot on.

5. Two ex army type water bottles should handle your water. They require a decent belt, again an ex army web belt is adequate. Always keep your water bottles full.

6. Although you think you have enough pockets chances are you don't, a body waist bag or bum bag can be handy along with ex army type pouches.

7. Footwear is important, it is not a good idea to buy a pair of boots one day and then go out into the bush the next. If you intend wearing hiking type boots buy them weeks before you go and wear them in. Other wise wear good strong comfortable footwear. Do not tuck your trousers into your boots. Let them flap freely. Better in case of snakebite.

8. As previously said wear long cotton trousers and a good cotton long sleeved shirt, again ex army is good.

9. It is a good idea to carry a couple of metres of rope. Cotton window sash cord is ideal. Make it into a belt and loosely tie around your waist, comes in very handy in a survival situation, tying up a splint and many other uses.

10. In a survival situation water will become an issue. Later on in this course we will discuss making a Solar Still. You need about a meter square of good strong plastic. Ideal for this are plastic garden bags, which are larger than normal garbage bags. They are usually orange in color. Better still, duck off to your hardware store and buy a couple of metres of plastic off the roll. Fold and pack one tight and place in one of your pockets.

You can't do without water; take as much as you can carry. You may think you have enough but in all likelihood you probably don't. It's important stuff, without it you’re in trouble.

11. Food and what to take really depends on many different factors. Where you are going, time of year and for how long are the main factors. Be guided by you leaders and your own common sense. But here are a few tips. Chocolate in the heat is not a good idea, try and avoid foods like rice that require water in their cooking. Tins of meat, cheese, biscuits are all good. Cram tid bits of food into all pockets, belts and pack. Don't forget a couple of boxes of waterproof matches.

Think very carefully about what you will need to carry with you on your trip. Make sure you include an adequate supply of any medication, asthma puffer, pills or anything else you need. See yourself as a self-contained unit and understand that it is up to you to look after yourself.