Shelters come in various shapes and sizes, the most important of which is our home. Creating a safe home away from home can be a difficult task. When thinking about staying outdoors, you usually think of tents. However, sometimes your tent might be damaged, lost, or it’s just not the best way to take shelter. Fortunately, there are simple alternatives that are more effective.
The first shelter that is often overlooked is clothing. In the wild, clothing can seriously affect performance and safety. Practice makes perfect when it comes to a survival situation. Try going out on your own, or with some friends or family and practicing making shelter. Some things to consider before embarking on an outdoor adventure are:
1. Check the weather and choose clothing that meets its level.
Dressing well or wearing too little can lead to disasters. It’s best to imagine your outdoor activities in the coldest and hottest temperatures of the current season. Unexpected storms, heat waves, or temperature drops are exceptions, but seasonal high and low temperatures are usually sufficient.
2. Layered dressing
Now that you know the hot and cold temperatures, choosing clothes becomes much easier. First, wear your clothes to the lowest temperature you can encounter. Then imagine that the weather changes to the highest temperature. In the new weather, choosing the right clothes is essential. This can be achieved by removing these layers to allow heat to escape from the body. Dressing in a layered system allows people to keep warm by adding layers and removing them as needed. Gloves, hats, and even buttons to unbutton coats are all part of a complex system.
3. Don’t forget accessories
Weather storms are the biggest problem for some people. Sudden storms, strong winds or sudden drops in temperature will have a impact on the choice of clothing. Bring extra raincoats, gloves, hats, socks, and even an ultra-light coat, in case you need it. It is always easier to have and not need than need and not have. But you always want to keep a balance and avoid lugging around too much.
In addition to clothes, it is also important to have stakes. Most people think of tents and forget about tarpaulins; however, a simple tarp shelter can be set up in less than a minute and effectively protect people from some of the harshest weather conditions. Think of this setting as an emergency tool that you can take with you at any time.
Kinds of Survival Shelters
Most people who never came back alive from the wild, died from exposure. In the worst case, if you do not stay away from the elements, you may die within a few hours. The survival order in almost any situation is shelter, water, fire, food. Knowing how to build the best survival shelter around you can save your life.
Snow Cave
Every winter, there are reports of people going out and getting lost in the snow. Usually they are found alive and had built snow caves. Snow is a good insulator, and knowing how and where to build it can help prevent hypothermia. The snow cave is almost always your best winter living space.
Debris Shelter
The temperature in the other three seasons varies depending on the location and the building materials used in the shelter. In wooded mountain areas, the temperature may drop below freezing, and the debris shelter is by far the warmest. Fold the pieces (needles, leaves, etc.) very thick and tightly. It should be as thick as your arm length.
Desert Cave
Due to lack of resources, desert survival is a completely different game. The desert can extreme temperatures in the day and night, and if you are left unprotected, it may kill you. The wind will only make you severely dehydrated and cause hypothermia. Look at the leeward side, from rocky outcrops to shelters for survival in these environments, or better yet, caves (just make sure you have no companions). You should be able to find enough brushes to isolate you and try making the situation as convenient as possible.
Tree Fall Shelter
In any survival scenario, energy saving is essential. Looking around, there are natural shelters in almost every place. Although a stone house is a good choice, it requires a lot of energy and time to build. Think of a shelter where you will only need least materials. Sometimes all you need to do is to put a few branches on it and fold the bows to isolate them (the main component).
Mattress or Cot
Remember, if you are not isolated from the ground, you can have the most comfortable shelter to survive and still freeze. The ground absorbs heat from you. Your mattress should be foot thick compressed and made of the driest material you can possibly find. Many areas get wet at night, so it is important to seal as much as possible.
Keeping it Small but Secured
Survival shelters are usually decorated with pictures of typical structures large enough for the whole family to use (there is a small bonfire in the middle). The reality is, the less warm air you need, the more likely you are to stay overnight. Animals can survive because they have good insulation and choose shelters to protect them from natural disasters. Always be prepared for the worst, because sometimes the worst will happen. In any survival scenario, a good shelter is essential.
Here Are the two traditional shelters you can also build:
1. Lean-to is one of the easiest survival structures to build because it is usually made of load-bearing building materials to resist existing structures or natural structures, such as walls, stone walls, fallen trees, etc. It doesn’t matter whether you can build a standalone 3-piece frame to hold your building materials. The disadvantage of this type of shelter is that it usually does not provide 360-degree protection, and unless you put a lot of effort into the design or have some kind of tarpaulin or garbage bag, it may not be very waterproof. However, as a last resort, this is a great build.
2. Round lodge is a kind of survival shelter, its other names are teepee, wickiup or wigwam, is similar to the natural evolution of Lean-to. Its construction is similar, tying many branches together to form the largest structure, but it provides more protection because if constructed properly, it can almost completely surround the user. This of course requires more time and materials, but in the case of survival, it is also worth the money, because it protects you, your equipment and the potential food you collect from the elements, and to some extent, any scavenger or predator.