Survival Basics

heat your home It’s wintertime and the power goes out. If you’re like most of us, you’re not all that worried – you trust that the power will come back on soon. But when 12 hours goes by and you still don’t have any electricity, you start getting concerned. It might be days before the

Listen To The Article Livestock Winter usually means the end of the growing season, shorter daylight hours, and possibly bitter cold temperatures. That means your livestock will need to be handled very differently. The preparation leading up to winter will determine how well your livestock come through the winter months. Preparation is Important Following are

Fresh Pumpkin Nothing quite says “fall is here!” like seeing the season’s first big bins full of fresh pumpkins at the local store. They’re synonymous with autumn’s holidays — jack-o-lanterns for Halloween and pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving. Unfortunately, while the pumpkin may be popular in fall, it tends to end up being used for the

There are lots of ways to stay cool off-grid without air conditioning. Since I am living in a century-old home off-grid without air conditioning during what is shaping up to be the hottest summer on record in the Pacific Northwest, I am learning some lessons on staying cool. First, we need to take heat seriously.

Listen To The Article Survival Gear Once someone starts upon the road of preparedness, it seems never to end. The idea of actually having enough to get through any crisis may be something we all aspire to, but it’s an elusive goal. There’s really no way of knowing what will be enough, without knowing what

An ice storm is a good indicator of a winter power outage. It’s a simple fact. Power outages happen. Any outage always presents challenges, but a winter power outage presents a whole new set of challenges. Some outages affect a city block, others a whole neighborhood or region. The cause is typically an ice storm,

5 Winter Survival Skills That Will Keep You Warm, Dry, And Alive Every different climate delivers a unique set of challenges in a survival scenario, and winter is no exception. If you aren’t too careful, the frigid wind and cold can immobilize you with frostbite and then kill you off with hypothermia. In this article,

hidden dangers of winter Even for the seasoned outdoorist, it’s good to review wintertime safety protocols so that they are fresh in your mind. Too often we become relaxed, believing that nothing bad will happen to us. Yet things don’t always go as planned, and it is better to be safe than sorry. Here are

ice fishing If you’ve ever driven by a lake during winter in the colder states, there’s often an angler or two out there by a hole on the ice, waiting for the catch. Ice fishing has been practiced for thousands of years, but it will only yield its rewards after great patience, knowledge and skill.

Frozen Pipes One of the biggest issues during winter are water pipes freezing and possibly bursting. Frozen pipes can be a serious problem if they do burst and — depending on the damage — can cost quite a bit to fix. Not to mention it creates a mess and leaves you without running water. If

Survival in a Winter Blackout Many people prepare for winter weather by putting together a winter survival kit in their car. But too few prepare an additional kit for their home, which can leave them unprepared when a winter ice or snowstorm hits and leaves them trapped there. Because preparing your house for a winter

DIY Warm Winter Blankets Anyone Can Make As the winter temperature drops far below freezing, many people start to get out their thicker blankets and perhaps add a throw or two on the couch to stay warm. Learning how to make a quilt or even just simple layering blankets is a great skill to have.

Taking inventory gives me the chance to see what I actually have. Yet, it also gives me the chance to check the condition of everything in my prepping stockpile as well. Many people have special things they do at the beginning of the year. For me, that means taking inventory in more ways than one.

Chicks There’s nothing that hints of spring quite like newly hatched chicks. If you haven’t ordered yet, now is the time to do so, either through a nearby breeder, the local feed store or a mail order hatchery. You’ll also want to have your brooder set up so you’re all ready to go when that

Listen To The Article Always ask landowners before wildcrafting and foraging. Wildcrafting is the term that people refer to for collecting wild plants. Wild plants often have strong healing properties and exceptional flavor. I have never tasted a store bought strawberry that compared in flavor to the tiny alpine ones that grow freely in wild

Keeping warm during a winter power outage can be difficult. The recent polar vortex hit Texas hard. While the entire country suffered with unexpectedly cold temperatures which lasted for days; no other state had as many people without power, without water and dying from the cold weather. But why should this be so? First, no

Surviving Extreme Heat In The Summer Time Can Be An Emergency Situation. I don’t know how it is where you live, but where I live, it’s over 100 degrees Fahrenheit half the days of the year. We only end up using our home’s furnace a couple of weeks in January and February and then, it’s

Spring Storms are upon us. The spring storm season is here, and for thousands of people in the United States, that means time to start preparing the homestead. It is important to becoming mentally aware of how to react should you find yourself in the midst of a natural disaster. Summer and fall seasons bring