anyone know about a shelter where you have a hole and then you place wood over the top i would like to attempt this anyone have any advice or info on it
Hole shelter
anyone know about a shelter where you have a hole and then you place wood over the top i would like to attempt this anyone have any advice or info on it
if it's a hole in the side of a hill that would be ok. A pit will just be a water collector in the rain. You'd never be able to keep the water out. If however you are trying to hide a frame covered with a tarpoline covered with soil and actually planted with local plants and made to look just like what the ground looked like before you dug your hole will be very effective camo and concealment. as long as you don't leave the big pile of dirt you took out of the hole beside it. and don't put it where there is a road or game trail unless you want a person or animal falling in on top of you.
Many of the wilderness survival books have pictures and descriptions of making a shelter out of a hole in the side of a hill or overhang in a rock face.
Sounds like you are describing a modified wig-wam. I read about this somewhere and now I can't remember where. But I seem to remember it was almost like a wig-wam, but only a dome would be constructed from wood on the ground. Once it was shingled and completed then from the entrance you would dig into the earth about 4 to 6 feet down. Once complete you have a nice little (or big) hooch.Originally Posted by WildGoth
On thing I would suggest to counter the rain pooling problem is to build it where there is a slight incline. Once your roof is complete you can go up-hill and dig rivulet channels in a semi-circle so water is channelled around and away. Also it doesn't matter if the ground is flat since you will be digging, so you can make the inside flat. Probably should design the dome to also empty into your rivulet channels.
This would be a significant project for someone who was planning to stick around for a while. I would probably do something like this if I were waiting for rescue and needed good cover, especially in cold weather. If you are at the onset of winter you would want to be out of the wind, and the ground wouldn't be too hard yet. I would expect it would take two days of hard work to get it done. Part of 1 day for your shingled roof, and the majority of the time digging.
Have any of our more experienced members seen anything like this, or even know what I am talking about?
That is a side view of what it looks like. The entrance is to the left. Pretend it is at an incline :PCode:___________ / \ <--Roof / \__________________ <--ground lvl -\ | \____________| <-Dug Portion
that looks more or less the same layout as the earth lodges used by various plains and eastern native american and first nations peoples at various times, and in some parts of northern europe.
Any sufficiently advanced incompetence is indistinguishable from malice - Grey's Law.
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It's what we call in the Army a Shell Scrape.
Dig in and place the earth around so it forms a lip (also keep the wind out). Place a poncho over the top at a slight angle for run off water.
Make excellent spotting places for shooting (And even sleeping in - Salisbury Plains in January (-4oC) wasn't a problem).
Put some Cam Netting/Foliage over top and you have a hide for shooting rabbits.
This is sort of related. Has anyone made an "autumn ghillie" by clearing an out of the way flat piece of ground, laying down a wool blanket and covering it with dead leaves, then getting underneath? I have never tried it myself but have always thought it would be a great way to hide if you were in a pinch.
it's a good way to stay partly warm and not completely wet in a sudden freezing rainstorm aswell, if the leaves are still deep on the ground. you do want a good insulation of leaves underneath aswell.
my recommendation, if you had said planket and where so desperate/inclined would be to level out about 1' of leaves, place half the blanket down on it, fold the other half over and place +2' of leaves above that, then you could more easily crawl into it.
a better idea would be a frame is boughs/branches to hold the stuff up better, with just enough room to squeeze in.
i've slept in these. they're no picnic but a sight better than nothing.
Last edited by canid; 05-01-2008 at 05:07 PM.
Any sufficiently advanced incompetence is indistinguishable from malice - Grey's Law.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
To see what's going on in my knife shop check out CanidArmory on Youtube or on Facebook.
More then once I have made a fox hole and covered it. This; if done right, offers you the ability to stay hidden and offers you very acceptable protection from the elements.
Covering the top with branches and then your poncho (over hang the hole by a foot all the way around with your poncho). Cover with more brush and dirt.
Don
No one knows more about a task then the person that does it, Practice makes perfect!
Something else to consider.. it only takes a minimum of 3 feet of earth insulation over the top and sides to protect against nuclear fallout. If you're building it, you might as well incorporate that factor into it... I would go with 4 to 5 feet over the top if possible.
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The Army guys I knew in back in the day called it an Ranger Grave.
This hole you're talking about digging and covering up doesn't include bamboo & cr@p does it? Inquiring minds want to know.
Fox hole? You talking about the armpit deep style foxhole, or a simple entrenched fighting position? If you are talking about a real fox hole, make sure to include the grenade sump. That way if you do get water in it it has a low point to run to. The deeper you dig yoru sump the better off you are in that case, but anything over a foot is probably overkill.
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Nope
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In the military we used to call this a "Bunker" or "Hidden Hilton". If you added a couple of portholes (windows in the corners) it could pass as a DFP. (defensive fighting position)
1. If it's in your kit and you don't know how to use it....It's useless.
2. If you can't reach your kit when you need it....Its useless.
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Thanks for the info I am planing on making like a foxhole and useing like one
and one more question how do you construct the rain slope with the pancho i got a bit lost on the directions
As grundle described...this hole shelter you are speaking about sounds like a wigwam of sorts....natives also made thier sweat lodges like this as well. Small ditch is dug inside rim of the hole just a little deeper than the hole...leaving dryer ground in the center where the fire pit will be.
Also...the Okanagan and Shuswap Natives lived in what has become called a kekuli or pit house. The pit is dug about 4-5' deep with a conical roof of wood and limbs about 4-5' high. All told the Kekuli is about 10' high at the center. Beds are carved in shelves along the sides of the hole.
I have pics of one in progress...just need to look a little deeper in my computer to find it LOL
Last edited by LadyTrapper; 05-04-2008 at 03:19 PM.
~Earth receives foot and paw, hoof and claw with equal grace. But it is the way of the wild not to overstep...let's leave no trace that wind, rain and snow cannot erase~
Clem: What you digging a new latrine?
His other brother Clem: nope.
Clem: A foxhole? You expecting an invasion?
His other brother Clem: nope.
Clem: A firepit or smoker?
His other brother Clem: nope.
Clem: A trap? Gonna catch bigfoot?
His other brother Clem: nope.
Clem: Looks like a waste of time. What are you digging it for?
His other brother Clem: Its a shelter from the weather.
Clem: That's the dumbest idea I've ever seen. Your an idiot. What you gonna do when it fills with water?
His other brother Clem: I guess I'll put rocks in your pockets when I hide the body.
P.S. Good idea if a bit labor intensive.
How to build a really good hole in the ground
Here is a link the free online book...Nuclear War Survival Skills...it has a really good hole in the ground...to be used for a fallout shelter.
'
See Appendices A...A1....A2...A3...you can access them from a column on the left hand side of the page...about 1/2 way down.
http://www.oism.org/nwss/
Last edited by KYMntMama; 05-27-2008 at 12:05 AM. Reason: forgot to include link
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