Rough Camping & Survival Tips

My small replica Condor OTZI 'survival' metal neck knife is in the same design than these other 'primitive' metal 'survival ' tools from the net.
I can not wait to test it out during my next hunting camp.

The small fixed blade iron knife that I want to take on my next hunting camp.
[In some parts of the world it would be called a 'survival' camp.]
A steel replica of the small 5000 yr old flint knife of Otzi he Iceman--the world's oldest mummy ever found.
Just for because....
[My motto----the day you stop 'playing'-doing what's nice for you--you could just as well die...]

The third series of Alone started here on the tv last night with the two in a team and as I suspected the young boys didn't last long. Am looking forward to seeing how two teams go. The husband and wife and the two brothers who grew up subsistance farming.

In my opinion the pairs concept in Alone S3 is not a very good advertisement for real survival as there were too many side-shows going on . Not much survival skills are shown. Pairs are supposed to give you a better chance for survival though. All the best to them. We are now finished with S5 Mongolia and I can give you a link to watch all the episodes for S1-5 if you have good access to the internet?

observe said:

In my opinion the pairs concept in Alone S3 is not a very good advertisement for real survival as there were too many side-shows going on . Not much survival skills are shown. Pairs are supposed to give you a better chance for survival though. All the best to them. We are now finished with S5 Mongolia and I can give you a link to watch all the episodes for S1-5 if you have good access to the internet?

Click to expand...

Thanks Willem, I do have good internet access so pleas post the link.

scratch around here for more seasons or episodes

https://www.dailymotion.com/search/alone mongolia

will do and thanks

Not only from a historical, but also from a survival perspective, Otzi the iceman (5300 yrs ago) really facinates me.
I am again reading / studying up on all the newest discoveries about him and his tools/ kit.
Interestingly he:
--lived before the great piramites of Egypt were built...
--before Stonehedge were built
--before the invention of the wheel...
He is supposed to be a dull under developed barbarian ....
He showed that we have a lot of wrong misconceptions about humans in times of long long ago...
(I plan to put up a post later on about all his ( modern) tools --between stone and bronse age--that really makes us sit still an ponder about what we think we know about our ancestors and the past...)
A very interesting topic to me...

Otzi's the Hunter/Gatherers tools......5300 years ago !
[A bit of a long [incomplete] post, but hopefully interesting to some]
Out of a purely Survival, Outdoors or Bushcraft perspective , Otzi was remarkably well equipped for living off the land. Depending on which source you use,this following list of equipment that was find on/near Otzi's body will be +_ 95 % + the same.

Now , if we take the modern equivalent of Otzi's tools with us outdoors, there are a remarkable comparison on what he had with him,and what we would take in today's modern age, making Otzi a sort of a master Bushcrafter/Survivor 5300 years ago! The detailed practical tools are remarkable !

The following is a [draft ?] list of tools Otzi had with him with the possible [debatable?] modern equivalent for today.
Whatever the case may be,Otzi was well equipped for his environment all those 5300 years ago !
There may be more--this is just to start this interesting topic..

1]1.8 m Bow , 2 m spare string, quiver and 14 arrows
2] State of the art copper axe [high quality gransfors bruks?]
3]Flint belt knife [Full tang fixed blade on belt]
4]Skin scraper [Another different fixed blade?]
5]4 x Antler tips for skinning [Pocket knife ?]
6]3 x Small sharp cherts for cutting [Mulitool?]
7] Bone awl & senew for mending arrows/equipment [SAK?]
8]Retoucher for his various blades[ blade sharpener/stone?]
9]Borer [multitool/SAK?]
10]Birch tar [glue ?]
11] Leather belt with pouch for smaller items [ belt pouch]
12]Extra piece of tanned skin- to cut smaller string [Duct tape /
bank line or even maybe paracord?]
13] 2 different fire starter methods [Bic & Fero rod/matches?]
14]Stone disk with 12 strings to carry hunted birds by the neck
15]Soft moss [fire starter/toilet paper?]
16]Grass string mesh for catching birds etc [net ]
17]2 x Birch/polybare fungus on a string [antibiotics/first aid]
18]2 x Birch bark containers 18 cm x 20 cm [pot etc]
19]Small rations meat & seeds [On the go energy rations?]
20] 3 x layers of leather clothing
21] Good hiking shoes & grass socks.
22]Bear skin fur hat
23] Swamp grass cape/poncho
24]2 m x 40 cm backpack
25] Maybe extra 2 & 3 strand grass string/cordage and leather string ? [Damaged and we can not be sure after so many years]

What were not find on/near Otzi [that we would probably have today?] due to maybe Otzi's hectic last days on the move before his attackers murdered him with an arrow in the back , or maybe the type of terrain high up in the mountains or who knows why....?
[Another possibility-Maybe he lost it ?]

There may be more.......
1] Fishing kit
2] NO friction sticks for fire [he had another at least 2 x
'easier' methods of making a fire---even 5300 years ago--a very interesting talking point !]
3] No water bottle--maybe enough resources in the snow ??
4]Blanket/skin etc for the cold/cover [?] [Tarp ?]
5]Cooking pot
6] Maybe more string/rope etc?

We know that Otzi was wounded days before with a knife between his thumb and finger, which as a right handed person , made it nearly impossible to mend his kit.[thus the 12 unfinished arrows?]
The blood DNA of at least 4 x different humans were found on various of Otzi's blades/tools--maybe he defended himself very well against a group of attackers ?
He was find with his stone knife in / near his hand in a last ditch effort to fight off his attacker in the end.
The arrow in his shoulder cut an artery and he died soon afterwards.[age 45-47]
Speculation that the murderer was known and that's why the arrow shaft was pulled out [?] and NOTHING has been taken --all very valuable items during that time -especially that axe !

This list is by no means complete , but maybe just a good starting point to think about from the perspective of Bushcraft, Survival, Primitive Hunting and Outdoors ?

Enjoy the research/journey !




Otzi's tools, including the
(a) dagger,
(b) end scraper,
(c) borer,
(d, e) arrowheads and
(f) small flake,

My 40 year old army issue one man tent just-just made it one last solo sort of "minimalist" camping trip with my primitive horn bow and spear on the right of the picture..
The tent pen loops are long gone and this is really the best I could do with it.
My corporal would have got a heart attack back in the day!!
It was really nice to do it for a couple of nights again alone after all these years.
Never ever forget / stop to "play" !!!
Life is what you made of it..

Seems good!!

Camp & kitchen tools [minimalist/lightweight/survival]
Lantern , solo stove 900, 2 x ss beakers, pocket knife, SRK belt fixed blade, Lansky sharpener, ferro-rod , big lighter , 5 x fish hooks and an small emergency 400 lm torch...