With little more than the clothes on their back and a good wool blanket, Rich Johnson and his family spent a year in the Utah wilderness.
His goal: honing survival skills based on real-life experience.
In the last of this series, Johnson shares his insights for winter survival based on his book, "Rich Johnson's Guide to Wilderness Survival" (McGraw Hill, 2009).
The moment you least expect to be in a survival situation is exactly the moment you'll find yourself in one.
Being able to assess and prioritize needs is the basis for making a plan for survival. What is the most urgent need at the moment? Prioritizing threats allows you to increase your chances of survival by methodically eliminating them one by one.
Maintaining your psychological bearing is critical to survival. "I start the book intentionally on the psychological side of things," Johnson said. "If you lose your psychological strength and balance, you start making mistakes. You can't panic and let things go from bad to worse."
During the winter, Johnson advises never to go out alone under any circumstances. "When you're alone you become psychologically weak faster," he said. "If you have someone there to help you as a backup, to help you with judgment calls, that's always better. If you're injured, you'll have someone who can help you. Poor judgment also comes with hypothermia."
Stick to a plan.
"Before heading out, let people know where you are going and when to expect you back," Johnson said. "Make sure you are there and don't deviate from your plan. If you do deviate from your plan, contact the people who know about your plans if possible. If you don't turn up at the time you're supposed to, they know where to begin looking for you."
Johnson also recommends maintaining a line of communication either by cell phone or two-way radio. "Have everything charged up and have extra batteries," he said.
Lost? Don't wander.
"If you don't know where you are, you're not going to make the situation better by continuing to walk around," Johnson said. "You don't know where you are in the first place. If people come looking for you, you may move out of the range of the searchers, reducing your odds of being found before the elements do you in. So stop where you are and make camp the best you can. You should continually improve that camp for survival and set up some signaling devices to call for help. Smoke signals during the day or a fire at night are good ways to signal your location to searchers. Use your whistle and mirror to signal, as well."
Wear the right winter clothing. "There's an old adage: There is no bad weather, only bad clothing," Johnson said. "Your clothing is your primary shelter and first line of defense against the elements. With the right clothing, you can survive an extreme environment like cold weather. For the average outdoorsman, wools and synthetics that don't hold moisture against the skin are the only way to go. Avoid cotton because it's like a sponge that soaks up moisture. Dress in layers that can be added or removed easily."
Carry high-calorie, high-fat foods to ensure you stay as physically strong as possible in a survival situation.
For a free copy of the full interview with Johnson, which includes more on winter survival strategies, send an e-mail to dirksoutdoors@hotmail.com.
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David Dirks' outdoors column appears weekly. Contact him through his Web site, www.dirksoutdoors.com, or write P.O. Box 87, Westtown, NY 10998.
