October 18th, 2011 at 1:39 pm (survival skills, urban survival, the human path, texas outdoor education, Outdoor Fitness and Self Defense, readiness, survival gear, weapons)
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Firearms 101 - Handguns: In this episode, Sam Coffman begins what will probably end up being an ongoing, intermittent series on firearms. As law-abiding citizens we use firearms for hunting, target shooting (sport) and self-defense. In a self-defense situation, guns become the great equalizer for those who are physically less strong or outnumbered by others who wish to do harm. In hunting, firearms present us with an incredible advantage over wild game as a food source. |
One of the biggest hurdles to get over, if you have never owned or even shot a firearm, is what to buy and why? Sam breaks down the information starting with handguns. In this episode he starts at the very beginning, covering:
- Firearm safety
- Definitions like "caliber," "rim-fire," "center-fire," "semi-automatic vs. revolver" and more
- What caliber weapon should you buy as a first gun and why?
- When does "stopping power" matter, if ever?
- Practice makes perfect
- New vs. Used, which should you buy?
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October 17th, 2011 at 12:36 pm (survival skills, the human path, texas outdoor education, Outdoor Fitness and Self Defense, outdoor survival, bushcraft, readiness)
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In today's episode, Sam Coffman and Jonathon Pinckard discuss why primitive skills instruction is so important for society. Jonathon Pinckard founded and runs the survival school Wild Bayou - http://www.wildbayou.com/ , which is located in Louisiana. He focuses on a lot of the skills and knowledge specific to the Louisiana area and surviving in wetlands & marsh. Jonathon grew up learning outdoor skills and bushcraft from his family, where living without running water and electricity was a normal way of life. |
In today's podcast, Sam and Jonathon discuss:
- how a community approach to survival schools and outdoor skills is of vital importance and why
- how our society has come to expect abundance and does not appreciate where it comes from. A lack of understanding of where our resources come from is the root of the problem
- how outdoor education students learn how their own small actions affect the environment by interacting with nature
- many people experience a 'lack of understanding' about all there is out there beyond the programmed life experiences
- learning outdoor skills helps build confidence that allows a person to be dependent on themselves, not a system.
- also helps people learn to be comfortable regardless of the external circumstances
Check out the Wild Bayou YouTube channel
Visit their Facebook page
Did you miss the first part of this podcast? Check out Episode #66 here: 'In The Wild Bayou, 1' |
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October 14th, 2011 at 2:11 pm (survival skills, primitive living, the human path, texas outdoor education, outdoor survival, bushcraft, readiness)
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In today's episode, Sam Coffman and Jonathon Pinckard discuss primitive skills instruction and survival schools.Jonathon Pinckard founded and runs the survival school Wild Bayou - http://www.wildbayou.com/ , which is located in Louisiana. He focuses on a lot of the skills and knowledge specific to the Louisiana area and surviving in wetlands & marsh. Jonathon grew up learning outdoor skills and bushcraft from his family, where living without running water and electricity was a normal way of life. |
In today's podcast, Sam and Jonathon discuss:
- How Jonathon got started teaching and what the mission of his school is
- The various programs available at Wild Bayou
- Some of the differences between surviving in most of the rest of North America vs. the swamps of Louisiana
- Dealing with mosquitoes and some of the other hazards of the wetlands - some of the plants and natural methods to keep yourself alive in heavily infested areas
- Fire and shelter in a wetlands area
Check out the Wild Bayou YouTube channel
Visit their Facebook page
We'll follow up on Monday with the second half of this podcast! |
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October 13th, 2011 at 12:26 pm (the human path, texas outdoor education, Outdoor Fitness and Self Defense, bushcraft, readiness, survival gear)
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Shaun McKey is a former U.S. Marine Corps infantryman with many years' experience as a camper, hunter, fisherman, backpacker and outdoorsman. Today, Sam Coffman and Shaun McKey pick up their discussion of knives with sharpening techniques and tips. |
In these two podcasts, they finish discussing:
- How to sharpen a knife correctly
- Some good brands of survival knives
- Does the shape of a knife blade make a difference in its usefulness?
- Where can I find out more comparison information on knives before I buy?
| Useful websites relating to knives:
www.knifetests.com - Great website that Sam and Shaun discuss, where knives are put to the test.
www.coldsteel.com - Great page with lots of answers about types of steel, edges, sharpening, etc. Weighted of course toward the Cold Steel products, but still some great information.
www.gerberknives.com - Gerber Knives. Good quality knives, some of which are excellent candidates for a survival knife (good quality for under $50).
www.bestsurvivalknifereviews.com - Decent review site of various survival knives. |
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October 12th, 2011 at 12:32 pm (survival skills, the human path, texas outdoor education, outdoor survival, bushcraft, readiness, survival gear)
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Shaun McKey is a former U.S. Marine Corps infantryman with many years' experience as a camper, hunter, fisherman, backpacker and outdoorsman. Today, Sam Coffman and Shaun McKey discuss the most important tool a person can take with them into any outdoor setting: The Knife. |
In the following two episodes, they answer questions such as:
- How much should you spend on a survival knife?
- What are the different kinds of steel?
- How do you sharpen a knife correctly?
- What are some good brands of survival knives?
- Does the shape of a knife blade make a difference in its usefulness?
- Where can I find out more comparison information on knives before I buy?
- Folding Blade vs. Fixed Blade knives - which is preferable?
- Handles and Tangs - what to look for?
Useful websites relating to knives:
www.knifetests.com - Great website that Sam and Shaun discuss, where knives are put to the test.
www.coldsteel.com - Great page with lots of answers about types of steel, edges, sharpening, etc. Weighted of course toward the Cold Steel products, but still some great information.
www.gerberknives.com - Gerber Knives. Good quality knives, some of which are excellent candidates for a survival knife (good quality for under $50).
www.bestsurvivalknifereviews.com - Decent review site of various survival knives. |
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October 11th, 2011 at 11:24 am (survival skills, urban survival, the human path, green homesteading, self sufficiency farming, long-term food storage, readiness, health and nutrition)
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When Laurie Neverman left suburbia and a mainstream life behind to live on a rural 35-acre plot in Wisconsin, she was looking to reclaim a sense of community she'd enjoyed growing up and live a healthier more self-sustaining lifestyle. The author of both the popular blog Common Sense Homesteading and Facebook page, Laurie and Sam talk today about a healthy diet and what it means to be a homesteader. |
- Probiotics: Laurie's experience with trying them and how they have changed her diet patterns
- as the body ages, it produces less digestive enzymes. Protiotic enzymes need to be added to the diet; otherwise the body has a harder time extracting the nutrients from the foods we eat
- Laurie's experiences with brewing and fermenting yogurts, kefirs, sauerkraut, vegetables and more.
- Experimentation with adding medicinal herbs to fermented food -- one must take care not to kill the live cultures in them.
- How highly processed and refined foods lead to a breakdown in a good digestive system and impact the overall body health
- How the digestive system plays the role of a 2nd brain for the body
- How urbanization and living in modern-day society has caused us to lose touch with what it takes to survive, a sense of cooperation that comes from working together to achieve common goals and the sense of accomplishment from knowing that you can do it yourself.
- Homesteading requires becoming good at everything, being independent and self-reliant.
Wife and mother with a background in engineering and a passion for natural healing, nutrition, homesteading and gardening. Advocate for a common sense approach to living "green". Operated the world's largest flat plate collector solar water heating system. Experienced with residential active and passive solar applications, green building, heirloom gardening, low-energy food storage and other self-sufficiency/sustainability topics.
Currently a writer and educator, my focus is providing accurate, timely and affordable information for the average person who is looking to reduce their environmental impact, become more self-reliant and live a healthier life.
Common Sense Homesteading blog
Facebook page
Twitter – CommonSenseIdea
Check out yesterday's podcast if you missed it, on Homesteading Basics with Common Sense Homesteading! Episode 062. |
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October 10th, 2011 at 12:23 pm (the human path, texas outdoor education, green homesteading, self sufficiency farming)
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When Laurie Neverman left suburbia and a mainstream life behind to live on a rural 35-acre plot in Wisconsin, she was looking to reclaim a sense of community she'd enjoyed growing up and live a healthier more self-sustaining lifestyle. The author of both the popular blog Common Sense Homesteading and Facebook page, Laurie talks today about her experiences in setting up their property into the ultimate homestead. |
Prior to starting their plans for making a family homestead, Laurie and her husband did some research:
- checked the soil for quality and pesticide content
- land had to have a good passive solar orientation with open south-facing exposure for maximum advantage
- and most importantly, good neighbors. "its where you want to be"
Laurie's family has taken care over the last 6 years to create an environment that is both self-sustaining and community-oriented. The garden has acted both as a significant food source but also as a bonding element for important community ties.
- They tend a 1-acre garden, plus fruit and nut trees, resulting in plentiful harvests and long canning sessions to preserve the foods.
- Self-seeding herbs in the garden act both as companion plants and as edible and medicinal sources
- Local sourced meat, from a share of a cow to local chickens, etc puts into the local economy and ensures fresh healthy meat
- their home was built and designed as 'green' with both passive and active solar hot water systems
- Water is supplied from a 100-foot well on their land
Wife and mother with a background in engineering and a passion for natural healing, nutrition, homesteading and gardening. Advocate for a common sense approach to living "green". Operated the world's largest flat plate collector solar water heating system. Experienced with residential active and passive solar applications, green building, heirloom gardening, low-energy food storage and other self-sufficiency/sustainability topics.
Currently a writer and educator, my focus is providing accurate, timely and affordable information for the average person who is looking to reduce their environmental impact, become more self-reliant and live a healthier life.
Common Sense Homesteading blog
Facebook page
Twitter – CommonSenseIdea
Make sure you join us tomorrow when we continue this podcast and discuss food preservation and fermenting techniques!
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October 6th, 2011 at 11:41 am (survival skills, urban survival, primitive living, the human path, texas outdoor education, Outdoor Fitness and Self Defense, outdoor survival, tracking, scouting, disaster preparedness, readiness, survival scenario)
You do a thorough check for high-speed avenues of approach as well as your own E & E possibilities from this location if necessary, and decide to bed down in the first spot you found with some great natural cover and concealment, as well as being a decent natural shelter that wouldn't take much work to become a refuge from even a serious rainstorm. However, the weather looks like it will be dry and clear during the day anyway, so rain is probably not an issue.
You dig a scout fire-pit and make a hobo stove out of a large can you found. You gather enough small pieces of dry wood (mostly the ashe juniper) to boil several pots of water, and go about restocking your water supply as well as hydrating fully.
You still have about 3/4 of the food you started with, but you're hungry and don't want to eat the food you're carrying if you don't have to. You don't really have time to look around too much for animal food, but there are a number of things that are presenting themselves to you as possible easy food. Describe how you would capture/harvest & prepare for eating, the following possibilities that you see here:
1)
2) 
3)
This is the final part of this disaster scenario. Post your comments here and we will reply at the end of the day with feedback.
To see the first part of this disaster scenario, check out Episode 057.
Part two of the scenario, click here for Episode 058.
Part three of the scenario, click here for Episode 059.
Part four of the scenario, click here for Episode 060.
We'll be returning to our regular podcast routine on Monday October 10th with a very cool interview on modern-day homesteading!
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October 5th, 2011 at 10:19 am (survival skills, urban survival, the human path, texas outdoor education, Outdoor Fitness and Self Defense, outdoor survival, scouting, disaster preparedness, readiness, survival scenario)
You follow the direction of the red-winged blackbird songs, and sure enough head down a gentle slope into what seems to be a small drainage marsh that is ringed with several acres of woods. The woods appear to be made up of a lot of pecan, texas persimmons and ashe juniper trees, as well as a lot of understory growth.
You scout the wooded areas carefully around the marsh as the sun is just starting to rise, and don't see any signs of people in the woods, although there are a couple of buildings at least 1/2 mile in the distance to the west that look like they might be ranch or farm houses.
You find a good natural shelter and decide one of your main priorities is making sure you hydrate and refill all your water. It looks like this small wetlands area may actually continue and feed into some larger body of water, and you're pretty sure that there is a river running north/south that would take you close to your sister's house.
You have iodiine tablets, a small metal pot and the ability to make fire. There is a lot of tinder and kindling available, as well as many thickly vegetated areas and the usual piece of occasional trash, to include glass bottles, beer/pop cans, plastic bottles and tin cans.
Question 10:
What do you think is the best way to purify your water from this marsh?
A) Boiling
B) Iodine
C) Other (what, specifically if so?)
Question 11:
What are some of the pathogens might you be most concerned with from water in a location like this?
Question 12:
If you had to start a fire to boil water, either during the day, evening or night, what are some of your options to do so and avoid being seen? What would be your first choice of ways to do this?
Question 13:
What do you think are some of the primary security considerations that determine your best location to hide out and sleep during the day?
The final part of this disaster scenario will be posted next week. Post your comments here and we will reply at the end of the day with feedback.
To see the first part of this disaster scenario, check out Episode 057.
Part two of the scenario, click here for Episode 058.
Part three of the scenario, click here for Episode 059.
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October 3rd, 2011 at 11:53 am (survival skills, urban survival, primitive living, the human path, texas outdoor education, Outdoor Fitness and Self Defense, primitive hunting, wild food sources, outdoor survival, tracking, scouting, disaster preparedness, readiness, survival scenario)
**just joining us? This is part of an ongoing survival-scenario challenge that we posted last summer via Facebook. We are re-posting it now for the new people who've joined us since then. We will have these from time to time with different scenarios that people can offer feedback on to test where their knowledge/skills are at. Just post below on the podcast site, and we'll reply at the end of each day.
Part 3:
You walk all night in a southwesterly direction, and walking along back roads that you are not completely familiar with. At one point during the night you hear what sounds like a protracted gun battle, maybe 1/2 mile or more to the west of you in what you think is a small town, but otherwise you encounter no problems. You have passed many ranches and farmhouses, but are concerned that you might get shot at if you walk up to, or enter someone's home. You decide that if you could find natural water, the best thing might be to hole up for the day, get some much-needed rest, maybe in a spot where you can observe a farmhouse or two and see if there are people who would be helpful to your situation.
Your water supply is running low, and of course you'd like to find some place to hide out during the day that's near some natural water, but you haven't seen any yet, even though the area you're traveling through seems to be mostly woodlands and farmlands.
It is an hour or so before dawn, and you happen to hear a bird call to the southeast that sounds like this.
(If the above link to the bird call doesn't work, you can also reach it directly - http://www.thehumanpath.com/media/sound/Scenario_Part3.wav)
Question 7:
What bird is this?
Question 8:
Would hearing this bird at this time of day bear any significance to your needs?
Question 9:
Are there any general habits of many bird species at a given time of day that would indicate location of water? What are those habits?
The next part of this disaster scenario will be posted next week. Post your comments here and we will reply at the end of the day with feedback.
To see the first part of this disaster scenario, check out Episode 057.
Part two of the scenario, click here for Episode 058.
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