Basic Wilderness Survival AAR, by NC Sheepdog

I recently had the opportunity to attend the Basic Wilderness Survival course at Brushbeater G Camp taught by Kevin. I have attended other outdoor survival courses in the past in the Catskills, Pennsylvania and in Southern NJ so I was going into this with a little advanced knowledge of what was to be taught. All of the classes that I have attended or participated in given by Brushbeater and his instructors are top notch and the instruction is on the highest level and this course was exactly that.

The weather wasn’t as bad as it had been expected to be and got better throughout the weekend. It made for a better training experience.

Although the course is not an intense, high stress course with high pressure instruction, the students managed to obtain all of the goals within the set time limits that were taught by Kevin.

Day one was a little late start because of another course being held in the classroom so we adapted. We went down to the open air classroom in the woods under the parachute shelter and began the block of instruction in knot tying. The class consisted of Kevin as the lead instructor and Manny as the assistant. Three of us were present for the start of the class and two others showed up late.

The first block of instruction was knot tying where were shown basic simple knots that were to be the foundation for building our shelters and lashing items together. I was rusty at remembering the names, but as soon as they were being taught, I remembered them and progressed nicely. The late arrivals were shown the knots and a few students worked with them until they were caught up. We were all given ample opportunity to practice the knots over and over until we were confident with them.

The class then learned how to pick a safe area for the tarp shelters observing the area for widow makers, dangerous hazards, insects, etc. Kevin then demonstrated how to set up a tarp shelters using different tie out options. The class then went on to set up our own tarps using the different tie out methods and making our own tent stakes.

The next block of instruction was wood gathering and fire making. We were all given a demonstration of how to look for and gather wood for a fire and the proper method of batoning wood for fire building. The class then made firestarters out of cotton balls and petroleum jelly and were shown how to use them with a ferro rod and how to build a fire. We then set out to build our own fires. While that was going on, Kevin brewed some pine needle tea and we all had a taste. He then explained the benefits of the tea in a survival situation. We also were given small tins and burlap to make char cloth.

Once all of the goals for Day One were completed, we were debriefed and class concluded for the day.

Day Two was an unexpected surprise for me. We went on a plant walk to look for edible plants. I enjoyed it, because as a young child, my grandfather and I would look for field greens and edibles and have lunch in his garden. It brought back some nice memories.

Kevin pointed out four different types of edible plants and their properties. We then went back to the “forest classroom” where Kevin demonstrated lashing techniques with paracord. The class then went out to find wood to make a platform as a class project for the “classroom”. Once that was done, we completed the platform and Kevin demonstrated another knot.

After a short break, we were given a task to put everything we learned in class together. We needed to set up a shelter, gather wood for our fire, start our fire, find fatwood, find two types of edible plants, boil pine tea, make char cloth and do a sock change in four hours. During that time, one of the students got a minor burn and Dr. Teddy Bear used a poultice of plantain leaves and yarrow as first aid.

The majority of students achieved the goals in the set period of time. One student ran out of firestarters and had to adapt with another form of fire starter obtained in the field.

I had the opportunity to learn how to use a two man bow drill to start a fire. I had tried it in another class that I had taken years earlier, but that didn’t work out. Kevin and I worked on the bow drill technique and got it to work. It felt really great to actually do something like that and see success.

Safety was the ultimate goal throughout the entire class. A minor injury in the field can just balloon out of control in a few days without proper care. When doing anything take proper safety precautions. When learning fieldcraft, use gloves around sharp objects and think things through before you do it.

This is a basic course and I’m sure there are advanced courses in the offing. I highly recommend anyone who is just a casual hiker take this course. Kevin is a highly skilled and very knowledgeable instructor. He has a lot to offer.

The only thing I missed during this course was my recliner and maybe I can come up with a way to make one in the field. My takeaway from this course is even if you have the skills and training, attending a course like this. I was rusty on some things and I’m glad they came back to me. If you don’t practice, you will lose a lot of skills.

Once more, great course, great instructor and great friends! I am thankful for all of you and proud to call you my brothers! In all Basic Wilderness Survival Class 25-01 was a success.

Get out and train, learn, teach, build community. No one is coming to help us. We are on our own.