Skills are the second most important after fitness for survival. Like I have told many people, fitness and skills trump contents in bag. I have survived on very little. A knife, a fire starter, a small pot, a paracord bracelet, water bottle, and a small water filter. All of this was contained in a very small backpack while hiking in a remote location where a survival situation occurred. 5 days later, I was back to civilization. Skills are studied, learned, practiced, memorized, and practiced some more. Here is a very short list of skills you must have:
- Building a shelter
- Starting a fire
- Making water potable
- First Aid/CPR
- Hunting, trapping, and fishing
- Navigation
- Knots
- Evading
- Running
- Climbing
- Free running
- Fighting
- Hand to hand
- Knife
- Gun
- Other weapons
- Communications
- GMRS
- HAM
- Satellite
My list of what I consider is essential is very long because I break down each of the above into sub categories. There are sections on this site that will provide skills you need but, in some cases, it is best to seek instruction from a professional instructor or coach to gain the required skills. You can’t look at videos online to learn some things. I will try to post a weekly blog entry for a skill to learn every week – Tip of the Week. If you follow my site, you should learn at least 30-40 skills a year. Remember, practice makes perfect.