Live in the wild?

[sam92]

Hello all,

I live in the Portland area of Oregon and I am going to begin a wilderness trek to the coast and back. I will begin March 15th this year. My goal is to not only survive, but thrive. I want to see if it is feasible to forget about this modern world and live off the land. I don't want to go crazy so it would be nice if people joined me. I am also open to advice and suggestions!

Thanks

-Sam

[crashdive123]

I've edited the email address from your post for two reasons. First - it really isn't a good idea to publicly post your email on an open forum (for a host of reasons). Secondly - It really was no different than some of the other SPAM we get. People can respond to you in this thread, and you can participate in the forum if you like.

Are you planning on doing this on a break from your school located in Kings Point, New York?

[el-amigo]

Hey, Sam! Do you have any routine in the wild? :) Tell us about your current experience.

[birdman6660]

Good luck to you ... keep your eyes wide open and your options wide open....i would lve to join you but im far away and have done these kind of trips before ...ITS NOT EASY !! but with some perserverance you'll gett there !

[TresMon]

I don't know your experience level. But- Survival on the move if even far harder than stay-put survival. If your on the move you don't have time to wait for traps to catch something. That's only one example.

Typically its three down days (to restock & resupply [primarily food stores]) and then a few moving days, repeat, scenario. And that's when your really skilled. And familiar with the region Now if this is somewhat of a backpacking trip- okay.

My (safety) advice would to be take all the gear you'd need to make it a fully stocked "backpacking trip" but try really hard to use none of it.

Have fun,

[Wildthang]

Take a big pistol for bear, and a light .22 for a game getter! If you have campmates, then you wont have to pack both!

[jake abraham]

good luck keep safe

[SemperFi]

sounds a little fishy , he says hes from portland , yet crash (probably took his ip) and it listed New York , and he hasnt responded!

[sam92]

Whoah, that's creepy that you can figure that out! Thanks for taking my email off then...

Thanks for the advice guys. I plan on moving from stream to stream and staying at ech one for several days until I can move on again. I don't have much outdoor experience besides weekend camping trips.

Nothing fishy here... I'm actually in the middle of the Red Sea right now on a container vessel for my sea year internship. Once I get back home to Portland I'm free!

[Wildthang]

Whoah, that's creepy that you can figure that out! Thanks for taking my email off then...

Thanks for the advice guys. I plan on moving from stream to stream and staying at ech one for several days until I can move on again. I don't have much outdoor experience besides weekend camping trips.

Nothing fishy here... I'm actually in the middle of the Red Sea right now on a container vessel for my sea year internship. Once I get back home to Portland I'm free!

Well if you have very little survival experiencs, I hope you realize the dangers invovled in this. Learn to read a compass, and some basic skills before you go, and try to get an experienced person to go with you. If you have never survived in the wilderness before, you may want to rethink this trip and gain some skills first!

[Sarge47]

Well if you have very little survival experiencs, I hope you realize the dangers invovled in this. Learn to read a compass, and some basic skills before you go, and try to get an experienced person to go with you. If you have never survived in the wilderness before, you may want to rethink this trip and gain some skills first!

Like Wildthang says. It's not all that easy when you go out of your way to deliberately put yourself in a potentially hazardous situation. I never condone such plans. Backpacking is one thing, "playing survival" is quite another. :cool2:

[crashdive123]

Whoah, that's creepy that you can figure that out! Thanks for taking my email off then...

Thanks for the advice guys. I plan on moving from stream to stream and staying at ech one for several days until I can move on again. I don't have much outdoor experience besides weekend camping trips.

Nothing fishy here... I'm actually in the middle of the Red Sea right now on a container vessel for my sea year internship. Once I get back home to Portland I'm free!

Not creepy at all. You provided the information in your bio where you said you were a Merchant Marine Cadet. That means you attend the Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, NY. And yes - I saw that your internet connection was via satellite.

[payne]

If you want, in March or April, I will be travelling across Canada: you can join me and we'll head into the bush with an objective of surviving for just 4 days.
I am far from having as much experience as all the other members here, but I'm motivated.
This simple 4 days trip will let you know how hard it is, and how properly prepared you must be to thrive into the wilderness.
I have myself tried three times to survive only 2 days in the wilderness, and I've always failed to obtain food.

I had already planned to head out into the bush with a few different people in the course of the next few months during my travel, so just another person with who to hang out with in the bush can just be nice.
If you're really interested, however, we'll need to get into contact and discuss a bit more.
My approach is to bring all the food we'll need, and to try to hunt/gather some food to see if we can make it. There is no point in starving: we just want to gain experience and knowledge.

[Wildthang]

If you want, in March or April, I will be travelling across Canada: you can join me and we'll head into the bush with an objective of surviving for just 4 days.
I am far from having as much experience as all the other members here, but I'm motivated.
This simple 4 days trip will let you know how hard it is, and how properly prepared you must be to thrive into the wilderness.
I have myself tried three times to survive only 2 days in the wilderness, and I've always failed to obtain food.

I had already planned to head out into the bush with a few different people in the course of the next few months during my travel, so just another person with who to hang out with in the bush can just be nice.
If you're really interested, however, we'll need to get into contact and discuss a bit more.
My approach is to bring all the food we'll need, and to try to hunt/gather some food to see if we can make it. There is no point in starving: we just want to gain experience and knowledge.

Okay Sam, here's your chance! This is what you need before the big trip!

[finallyME]

One thing that people don't often realize, and other have pointed it out already, is that Trekking and survival are different activities. I belong to a few backpacking forums, and not surprisingly, we get the same types of questions. " I want to backpack from this place to that place and live off the land". The answer is same. You either choose to backpack/trek, or you choose to live off the land. Even native societies knew this. So, you need to make up your mind on what you want to do. Here are some options:

1. take a trek/backpack. You carry all your stuff, including food.
2. Go to one place and try to live off the land. You won't be moving around, but spending all your time acquiring food.
3. Mix the two. You travel a little, then set up a base camp and spend a month or two getting enough food to sustain you on the next leg of the journey.

#1 has the least amount of skill required. It would only take you a few months and a little under a grand to outfit you properly. It would cost less if you know what to look for. You still need to learn skills here, but they aren't as hard to learn.
#2 and #3 require a lot of skills to learn. Without a mentor, it would take years.

The choice is yours.

[el-amigo]

One thing that people don't often realize, and other have pointed it out already, is that Trekking and survival are different activities. I belong to a few backpacking forums, and not surprisingly, we get the same types of questions. " I want to backpack from this place to that place and live off the land". The answer is same. You either choose to backpack/trek, or you choose to live off the land. Even native societies knew this. So, you need to make up your mind on what you want to do. Here are some options:

1. take a trek/backpack. You carry all your stuff, including food.
2. Go to one place and try to live off the land. You won't be moving around, but spending all your time acquiring food.
3. Mix the two. You travel a little, then set up a base camp and spend a month or two getting enough food to sustain you on the next leg of the journey.

#1 has the least amount of skill required. It would only take you a few months and a little under a grand to outfit you properly. It would cost less if you know what to look for. You still need to learn skills here, but they aren't as hard to learn.
#2 and #3 require a lot of skills to learn. Without a mentor, it would take years.

The choice is yours.

What a great and full comment! (Where is the Like button? :tank:)

[hunter63]

If you want, in March or April, I will be travelling across Canada: you can join me and we'll head into the bush with an objective of surviving for just 4 days.
I am far from having as much experience as all the other members here, but I'm motivated.
This simple 4 days trip will let you know how hard it is, and how properly prepared you must be to thrive into the wilderness.
I have myself tried three times to survive only 2 days in the wilderness, and I've always failed to obtain food.

I had already planned to head out into the bush with a few different people in the course of the next few months during my travel, so just another person with who to hang out with in the bush can just be nice.
If you're really interested, however, we'll need to get into contact and discuss a bit more.
My approach is to bring all the food we'll need, and to try to hunt/gather some food to see if we can make it. There is no point in starving: we just want to gain experience and knowledge.

Seems your experience from your day trips are starting to make sense to you for the big picture....and does seems to be a opportunity here.
Good luck guys.

[Warheit]

Payne: Where will you be in May re: Canada? I'm originally from the Dakota's and my past stomping grounds are about an hour and a half from the border. Send me a PM!

[MiddleWolf]

Remember one thing. The coast range between Portland and the coast is pretty well settled with people. Be sure to check if any hunting would be allowed if that is on the agenda.

[Northern Horseman]

First off Sam I'm not a vegetarian, just a smart survivor. Many people recommend getting your emergency supply of protein from Beef jerky, as it keeps well for back packing trips, but compared to other natural foods jerky will just make your body work harder to get even less nutrition.
My favorite thing to carry protein in my emergency supply is to carry hemp seeds.

Hemp seeds
1-ounce serving of the seeds provides 11 grams of protein—but not the kind of incomplete protein found in most plant sources. Hemp seeds provide all the essential amino acids, meaning the protein they contain is comparable to that found in meat, eggs, and dairy.

Hemp seed protein has some unique features. First, 65% of the total protein content of hemp seed comes from the globular protein edestin, which is easily digested, absorbed, and utilized by the human body. As a side note, it closely resembles the globulin found in human blood plasma, which is vital to maintaining a healthy immune system. As such, edestin has the unique ability to stimulate the manufacture of antibodies against foreign invaders. It is also hypoallergenic.

Beef jerky
One ounce of beef jerky supplies 9.41 g of protein. The USDA recommends that adults consume 0.8 g of protein for every kilogram of body weight. This means that a 180-lb. man needs to consume 65.45 g of protein every day. One ounce of beef jerky satisfies slightly more than 14 percent of this requirement.

Unless you make it yourself, One ounce of beef jerky has 590 mg of sodium, which is more than one-third of the 1,500 mg limit that the American Heart Association recommends. Controlling sodium intake can decrease or prevent high blood pressure, or hypertension. While it is important for everyone, people with heart and kidney disease are particularly at risk for the cardiovascular complications caused by hypertension and should be very conscious of sodium intake.
Here is a link (http://www.bpassoc.org.uk/microsites/salt/Home/Whysaltisbad/Saltseffects) to some very good info as to why we all need to consume less salt.

Bottom line; in a survival situation the back up food we bring in our packs needs to do the maximum for us, not against us, their will be enough against us on the way.

From the looks of it, you have some good resources to the types of plants are edible and medicinal right in the Portland area.
This organization might be a useful tool Trackers Earth, Inc (http://trackerspdx.com/outdoor-adventure/edible-and-medicinal-plants.php) luckily for you they are having a Free Informational Evening March 13, 2012, 7pm-9pm, Portland, might be a good opportunity to meet some like minded people in the Portland area and pick some brains.
Have a great time and stay safe.