campin, cookin, survival tidbits

[le Voyageur]

 

Dishwashing - here's a tip for a little enhancement in a Unit's totem chip training...how to wash knives (butcher knives, serated blades, etc...)

 

Here's how... knives are always washed alone and never mixed. The handle is always kept toward you and the pointy end away. If you're right handed you want to keep the sharp side on the left (reverse this if you're a lefty).

 

Thus, you can reach into the water without fishing around, pick up the knife by it's handle with the left hand, and wipe down with the right(again, reverse this if you're a lefty...weak hand controls the kife, strong hand scrubs along the dull side)...make it a habit, and this chore becomes a lot safer..

 

 

 

 

 

 

[le Voyageur]

 

Forgot to add,

 

as always, practise with plastic ware first....

[mk9750]

AK Eagle,

 

Your note about playing reminded me of one of the best survival hints I ever was told:

 

ALWAYS carry a deck of cards. If ever in a survival situation, play solitaire. Because eventually, someone will come by to tell you to play the red six on the black seven.

 

well, OK, it's not VALID, but it's funny, isn't it?

 

Mark

[AK-Eagle]

Mark,

 

Yep I've heard that one as well... Use it in Wilderness Survival mb training as well as good dose of Murphy's Law.

 

If it can go wrong it will go wrong at the worst possible time.

 

 

[OneHour]

Thanks AK-Eagle ... this is exactly what I was looking for in another post. Thanks.

 

1Hour

[willysjeep]

OK, sorry if any of tis is a repeat but I didn't have a chance to read allof the posts.

 

Take a small paint can or an old sterno can if it seals tight and clean it out. FIll it with cotton balls and soak them with denatured alcohol for a small camp stove.

 

Use the frying pan and pie tin of a scout mess kit for a mini dutch oven.

 

FOr cooking a turkey on a tripod they used to cook chickens on a string. They'd build a fire with a reflector behind it and hang the chicken over a pan a foot or two from the fire opposite the reflector. Turn it once in a while. This would probably work a lot better with cornish game hens or smaller birds.

 

If you don't have clay to cook potatoes or fish in the coals paper wetted with water is supposed to work. If you use newspaper the ink will bleed out but it is usually made of soybean derivatives anyways.

 

Try open fire cooking on an idiot proof meal like hotdogs to raise spirits on campouts that go sour.

 

Bring extra trash bags on every campout.

 

DOn't be afraid of old equipment or methods. Many a night has been spent under a canvas tent and wool blanket. If you are getitng bored with camping or want to challenge your troop try making a historic campout some time.

 

Seasoned salt is your friend!

 

ALcohol prep pads in a first aid kit make good emergency fire starters.

 

If you want to start a fire with a magnifying glass really fast, get a full page magnifier. They cost a few dollars and are so big they can start a fire wit the sunlight from breaks in the clouds.

 

Touching steel wool to the terminals of a 6 or 9 volt battery can start it glowing. A few blows and it will burst into flames.

 

Potassium Permangenate (Kondies Crystals) and pure antifreeze (Or pure glycerin) will also make fire, that's how liquid match kits work.

 

Zippo lighters work even after being dunked. Just blow the water out of them and go to town. Carry extra flints under the wicking.

 

Ivory or Kirks Castile soap work better than most in cool water.

 

Dryer sheets are suposed to repel mosquitos.

 

If your nylon rain poncho starts to leek, dry it on a clothes dryer on a low setting and then spread it out flat. The heat is supposed to melt the coating on the nylon and seal some of the little holes. That's what they say about army ponchos atleast.

 

Don't be afraid to sleep without a tent when you don't need one. It saves time and can make a mroe memorable experience.

 

Pole barn nails make good sturdy tent stakes.

 

1/4" bolts make good backpack clevice pins and they don't squeak as much, or break ever.