Outdoor Survival Handbook: A Guide To The Resources And Materials Available In The Wild And How To Use Them For Food, Shelter,Warmth And Navigation

I honestly cannot think of anybody I know who does not like Ray Mears and everything he represents - except that bloke who likes to be called Bear, as if camping is really tough.Anyway in this book Mr Mears divulges many survival tips, from how to make a tree out of discarded camping materials, all the way through to how to catch and cook a conker for your tea.Alison says you cannot catch a conker, which Matt and I decided to test as if we were those two weirdos in Mythbusters, so off we went to The Hidden Fortress (Matt's back garden) and set to work.Matt threw a conker at me and, even after several ciders, I was able to catch the conker on at least nearly some occasions, sometimes twice on the bounce.I then tested Matt's conker catching abilities and he was rubbish, almost as bad as me, but what can you expect since the accident.Anyway it proves that Alison doesn't know half as much about conkers as Mr Mears does.What he doesn't know about conkers could be written on the back of Bear Grills' charisma.I should point out that, for the duration of our experiment, the conker was not mistreated in any way, exhibited no signs of stress and I think it almost enjoyed the experience.We also released it back into the wilds when we had finished.I don't know what Mr Mears would recommend as a suitable side dish to have with your conker, but I would not advise really funny looking mushrooms that grow near Matt's compost heap.At least the ambulance arrived in time and Matt will make a full recovery, but it’s his fault for accepting a dare in the first place.Anyway Mr Mears is the opposite of Bear Grills - he is erudite, well researched, humble, honest and passionate about his craft. He exhibits no desire to overcompensate or desperation to impress people, as he is evidentally secure in his abilities.Incidentally he actually does camp out at night, and practices what he preaches, as this book does not contain any tips on how to stay in a hotel.He also clearly believes that bushcraft is in no need of turbo charging in a shallow attempt to make himself look tough.A jolly good book, and it was promptly delivered by a postman who looked a lot like Larenz Tate, but it wasn't him as this bloke had a really heavy Italian accent and a limp.

If you can't get to learn from the indigenous people from around the world, as many of us can't, there is no greater teacher and role model for me than Ray Mears.He has a deep respect, appreciation, love and knowledge for nature, the people living along side of her and what it can take to survive the extremities of nature. His books are easy to understand, practical, and while he will teach exactly what you need to survive, he never forgets to include how to 'give back' to nature, preserve her for others to enjoy, learn from. Taking only what you need from nature to survive, doesn't have to deplete the resources around you. If you buy Rays books along side watching his dvds, and buying if you can afford to, from his woodlore website, you will have all you could possibly need to survive and enjoy/learn from any situation/holiday you undertake. The only thing left you need is a positive mental attitude and a little common sense. I've already added his other books to my lists to buy.Thank you.

This book was a very enjoyable read. For those interested in the wilderness or hands-on outdoor pastimes, it keeps you flicking forward to see what other goodies it contains for you to get stuck into, or even fantasise about. It contains many interesting activities on how to survive in or simply enjoy the wilderness, suitable even for a first-timer. It breaks tasks down into easy to follow step by step instructions, along with the more detailed paragraphs along side.There are well-drawn black and white illistrations, which for the most part are more than adequate to help you understand. It is, however, hard to get to grips with some of the plants, and to remember their uses due to the lack of colour. They all seem to merge into one multi-use supernatural plant, and you cant remember which plant is used for what. This isn't too much of a problem, as it isn't a heavy book and can easily fit in your backpack, available for quick referance.It lists many common British plants and what they can be used for. These include roasting dandelion roots for a makeshift coffee to what mushroom makes a good plaster.For the average city-person, there are still many interesting endevours within this book that can be practiced while on a strole through the woods.It is mainly writen on how to make use of your suroundings and become more self-reliant. If you are a camper, I thoroughly recommend this book to enrich your interest/knowledge of the local countryside. You can also use this book to experiment traditional methods, without having to camp. There are such activities as:Pottering, cooking, fishing, weaving, navigation, woodworking, cordage-making and tonnes moreVery informative and well writen.*Writen by my son*

Having read most of the survival books on the market ranging from Lofty Wiseman's to Tom Brown I can say that this is very informative. It is although, after reading it aimed, more for the person who is interested in Bush craft and the primitive skills for more prolonged survival situations than those wanting skills for a short term survival situation with the possibilty of a quick rescue.If you are interested in merely learning survival techniques for short term survival situations then you are probably better looking at Lofty's SAS Survival handbook. However, if you are looking at learning/becoming more in-tune with nature then this is certainly a book to read. The break down into different months of what resources are available I found very useful and the sections on wildlife observation and tracking were also useful.Although not an exhaustive manuel on survival techniques it is certainly a book to set you on the path to be coming a good bushman.

Gewoon heel goed

Das Buch von Ray Mears macht definitiv Lust, den Rucksack zu packen und in den Wald zu gehen. Man merkt dem Autor an, dass er gerne draußen unterwegs ist. Alleine schon die Einleitung und die schließenden Worte sind sehr bildreich geschrieben, man kann geradezu das Lagerfeuer knistern hören.Vieles ist aus Platzgründen recht knapp gehalten, die Beschreibungen sind jedoch sehr klar geschrieben und großteils anschaulich illustriert. Basiswissen wie die Wahl geeigneter Ausrüstung, Umgang mit Karte und Kompass, Messerpflege und vieles mehr wird ergänzt durch fortgeschrittene Bushcrafttechniken. Anders als in den meisten Büchern zum Thema gliedert der Autor das Buch nach Jahreszeiten. So befasst sich der Autor z.B. in verschiedenen Kapiteln mit Wasser und Feuer, geht dabei auf die besonderen jahreszeitlichen Anforderungen und Herausforderungen ein.Im Gegensatz zu vielen thematisch ähnlichen Büchern ist der Inhalt auf Mitteleuropa bezogen. Es werden keine anderen Klimazonen behandelt, auch das Jagen und Fallenstellen, was gerade in Büchern angloamerikanischer Herkunft hohen Stellenwert genießt, wird weitgehend ausgeklammert, da dies in Großbritannien - ebenso wie in Deutschland - natürlich nicht umsetzbar ist.Das Buch ist weniger für den "knallharten" Survivalfreak geschrieben, der mit nichts in der Wildnis überleben will / muss. Sondern vielmehr ist es ein Lehrbuch, welches Wissen für all jene vermittelt, die sich gerne in der Natur aufhalten. Nach der Lektüre dieses Buchs wird man den Wald mit anderen Augen betrachten; sehen, welche Ressourcen der Wald zur Verfügung stellt, die man vorher so nie gesehen hat. Dabei vermittelt der Autor stets den verantwortungsbewussten, schonenden Umgang mit der Ressource Wald / Natur.

Won't change your life if your used to the bush but will for sure learn you a lot of nice tips.Would have been amazed to read it when I was young.

il mitico Ray qui in uno dei suoi tanti libri ,ci spiega molte cose utili per la vita outdoor. in inglese ma di facile comprensione e dotato comunque di molte immagini esplicative.utile sia per i consigli in esso contenuti , sia come ripasso per la lingua...;) consigliato prodotto e venditore.

En conjunto está bien, sin embargo la calidad de edición es mejorable. Toma la forma de libro de campo, con dibujos en lugar de fotografías, pero por el precio, es un producto adecuado.