Originally Posted by
Sarge47
While I was never actually in the Boy Scouts I always wanted to be, so at the age of 9, at a local "resale" shop I picked up cast-off Boy Scout Uniforms and old manuals. Thanks to the manual I learned a lot. Survival starts with learning outdoor skills and lore and that's what I did. I acquired a two-quart canteen, mess kit, pocket knife, and such. I learned how to start a fire with a limit of two matches. While I know that's not a primitive method I could give a rat's hind parts! Fire is fire and there is very minimal energy expenditure involved. You'd be surprised how many people today can go through a whole box of matches and not get the job done. Now I can start fires without matches, but I save those methods for back-up. My favorite tool is the butane device used to start charcoal fires. I know, not what you expected to hear, right? My philosophy is simple, get the job done properly as quick and as safely as possible without wasting a lot of energy! :nod:
