HOW TO MAKE AN EVAPORATION TRAP
You will need some plastic sheeting, a digging tool, a 1¾-pint (1-liter) container, a drinking tube (optional), and some rocks.
• First find a moist area that receives sunlight for most of the day. Dig a bowl-shaped hole about 3 ft 3 in (1 m) in diameter and about 2 ft (60 cm) deep.
• Dig a hole the width of your container in the middle of the floor of the hole and sink the container into it.
• If you have a drinking tube, place one end in the container and the other end outside the hole.
• Place the plastic sheeting over the hole, trap the edges with rocks and then place a single rock in the center of the sheeting so that it forms an inverted cone. Then seal the edges of the sheeting with soil so air cannot escape from the hole.
During the day, the heat of the sun will make the moisture in the ground evaporate into the air, but it will condense again when it hits the plastic sheeting, and this condensed water will drip down the inside of the sheeting and collect in the container. A large trap should produce about 1¾ pints (1 liter) of clean water a day.
HOW TO FILTER WATER
Fill a container (hollow log, plastic bag) with alternating layers of rock, sand, and cloth. Make about ten small holes in the bottom of the container and place an empty container underneath. Then pour water into the top of the filter. This process will remove grit and sediment (a filter made solely of cloth will only remove visible particles). If possible, allow the water to sit for twelve hours after being filtered, to improve the taste.
HOW TO PURIFY WATER
The best way to purify water is to boil it for at least ten minutes. Alternatively, let the water sit for at least six to eight hours in full sunlight. The ultraviolet light will kill most microorganisms.
MAKE A DUGOUT CANOE
If you can only spare a couple of days, use a chainsaw, but if you have a month to burn, why not try the traditional Native American method of using fire as the main tool to hollow out your canoe?
1. Locate and chop down a pine tree with a trunk base that is completely straight, at least 20 ft (6 m) long and about 3 ft (90 cm) in diameter (you can also use a hardwood such as elm or chestnut). Traditionally you would chop down a tree close to a river and work it into a canoe on the river bank, because there would be no easy way to transport the log somewhere else.
2. Strip the branches and place the trunk on a row of smaller logs so that it can be maneuvered more easily.
3. Remove the bark using a three-quarters ax, spade, or a foot adze.
4. Flatten the top by sawing or chopping parallel lines across the trunk and then chipping away with an ax or adze.
5. Dig a depression under the front and back ends of the log and light a fire in each. The flames will burn the underside of the log so you can chop away the charred wood with an adze to create a sloped bow and stern.
6. Burn fires on top of the log along its length and dig out the charcoal each day to hollow out the inside of the canoe. This will take several days. Protect the sides and other areas that you don’t want to burn by splashing them with water or backfilling them with clay and mud.
7. Don’t let the fire go out. Keep tending it round the clock and make sure you aren’t burning the precious sides. The sides should be about 2 in (5 cm) thick.
8. Once you have created the rough interior, lay smaller targeted fires to burn away areas that are too thick, using rocks to press the fires against the targeted areas, while protecting the areas that are already at the required thickness.
9. Traditionally, clam shells would also be used to create a smooth finish inside and out. Then the wood would be rubbed with animal fat.
10. Drag your 220 lb (100 kg) canoe down to the water for its test launch. The beauty of a dugout is that even though it is less stable than a modern canoe, it won’t sink if you capsize, even when filled with water.
Tell the time without a clock
Whether it’s day or night, so long as you can see the sun or moon, you can estimate the time to within an hour by observing their position in the sky.
DAYTIME SUN METHOD
1. If you are in the northern hemisphere, face south; if you are in the southern hemisphere, face north. The sun always rises in the east and takes between 10 and 14 hours to travel in an arc across the sky before it sets in the west.
2. For this example, let’s assume you are in the northern hemisphere. Facing south, look at the position of the sun, then estimate how many hours of daylight there are today (if it’s high summer, you can expect about 14; if it’s spring or autumn, about 12, and in winter it will be about 10).
3. Mentally divide the 180-degree sweep of sky into equal parts, according to the number of hours in the day. If it’s twelve hours, then there will be six hours on the eastern half and six on the western half.
4. If you know how many hours ago the sun rose, you can then count from sunrise to find the approximate time.
5. The sun should be directly in front of/above you at noon, although this doesn’t allow for daylight saving hours. Also, in a country with several time zones, you must allow for your position within the country, either adding or subtracting half an hour.
NIGHTTIME MOON METHOD
1. If you are in the northern hemisphere, face south; if you are in the southern hemisphere, face north. The moon always rises in the east and takes between 10 and 14 hours to travel in an arc across the sky before it sets in the west.
2. For this example, let’s assume you are in the northern hemisphere. Facing south, look at the position of the moon, then estimate how many hours of darkness there are tonight (if it’s high summer, you can expect about 10; if it’s spring or autumn, about 12, and in winter it will be about 14).
3. Mentally divide the 180-degree sweep of sky into equal parts, according to the number of hours in the night. If it’s twelve hours, then there will be six hours on the eastern half and six on the western half.
4. If you know how many hours ago the moon rose, you can then count from moonrise to find the approximate time.
5. The moon should be directly in front of/above you at midnight, although this doesn’t allow for daylight saving hours. Also, in a country with several time zones, you must allow for your position within the country, either adding or subtracting half an hour.
Build an igloo
An igloo is a shelter built out of snow, which is traditionally associated with the Inuit, but it was predominantly used by people of Canada’s Central Arctic and Greenland’s Thule area.
Snow is a good insulator, so even if the temperature outside is -49°F (-45°C) the inside temperature can reach 61°F (16°C) from body heat alone.
1. Use a snow saw or large knife to cut your building blocks from an area of compacted snow. Each block