Survival Skills Archives — Skilled Survival

How To Read A Topographic Map For Survival And Preparedness

By Just In Case Jack Leave a Comment

If you’re serious about survival and preparedness, you must learn how to read a topographic map.

These maps include a treasure trove of valuable survival and preparedness information.

Topo maps are essential in planning remote routes and handy to have in the heat of the battle.

But they are worthless if you don’t know what the lines and symbols mean.

So today I’m going to teach you how to read a topographic map and which topographic maps are the best.

That way, you can start using them to your survival advantage. [Read more…]

11 Best Trauma Kits (plus DIY Builds) On The Market Today

By Just In Case Jack Leave a Comment

If you’re actively searching for a new trauma kit (or want to build your own), you’re in the right place.

Nowadays, there are hundreds of unique trauma kits on the market. And in general, that’s a good thing.

But with so many options comes confusion and analysis paralysis.

For example, you may find yourself asking some of the following questions:

Which trauma kit is best? What trauma kit devices are “must-haves” vs “nice-to-have”? (Or even more important) – Which ones can I do without? What’s the recommended overall weight of a full-fledged EMT trauma kit vs. an EDC trauma kit?

That’s why today, I’m going to rely on my Research and Rescue training to share everything I know about trauma kits. [Read more…]

5 Best Tactical Pens On The Market Today [With Video Reviews]

By Will Brendza 1 Comment

The Ultimate Guide To Finding And Using A Tactical Pen

A tactical pen is a deadly survival weapon in the right set of hands.

In the wrong set of hands, it’s a harmless writing instrument.

But if you want to carry a “less-than-lethal” self-defense weapon, you can’t do much better than a Tactical Pen.

It’s hiding a weapon in plain sight.

And it’s an item that everyone should be carrying anyway, right?

I can’t count how many times I’ve had to borrow a pen to fill out a form or sign a check. [Read more…]

9 Clever Ways On How To Pick A Lock For Survival

By Just In Case Jack 1 Comment

Locks – an essential tool for protecting your most prized possessions.

Why? Because since the dawn of human history, there are people who will steal what’s not theirs.

They are called thieves and they are despicable.

And one of the only ways to combat a thief is to use tools to deter their behavior.

Tools such as locks, safes, diversion safes, alarm systems, and in extreme cases booby traps.

But while locks are better than nothing, they’re not foolproof! With the right skillset, most locks CAN be picked. [Read more…]

Gray Man – How To Blend In By Hiding In Plain Sight

By Just In Case Jack 5 Comments

“Sometimes the best hiding place is the one that’s in plain sight.” – Stephanie Meyer

Today, we’re going to discuss hiding in plain sight. But not about hiding “things” using diversion safes, but hiding YOU.

We’re going to dissect the psychology behind Gray Man theory.

The gray man concept is not new. Others have written about it, and we’ve even touched on it in previous articles as well:

[Read more…]

How To Master Flint Knapping For Survival And Preparedness

By Just In Case Jack 3 Comments

Flint Knapping (With How To Videos)

If you were to empty out your pockets right now, what would you find?

If you’re like me, you’ll pull out several useful survival tools; at least one being a small knife or blade.

And I’d imagine your survival pack includes several larger survival blades, right? Plus, gear to maintain them (i.e., a knife sharpener).

Because we all know how insanely useful a sharp tactical knife is in an emergency.

And it’s not just knives; survival hatchets, axes, multitools, are all bladed tools worth owing. [Read more…]

20 Camping Hacks That Will Make Your Next Advenature Epic

By Just In Case Jack 4 Comments

After reading this article, you’ll start taking camping hacks seriously. Why? Because humans invent; humans create, and humans hack.

It’s something we’ve always done and will continue to do.

We’re just never quite content with how things are.

We’re always looking for new techniques, better ideas, and epic hacks.

Anything to make our lives a little bit better.

We crave improvement progress in everything we do, and that includes camping.

Ever since man began sleeping under the stars, we’ve invented new ways to make camping better. [Read more…]

How To Disappear Completely – The Great Vanishing Act

By Will Brendza

How To Disappear Completely Without A Trace

I’m not here to question the reasons why you want to disappear.

I’m sure your interest in disappearing is complicated, diverse and very personal.

Maybe you are a curious surfer, casually perusing the Skilled Survival site.
Maybe you owe the mob a fortune in money you don’t have, and they’re going to break your legs and feed you to the sharks.
Or perhaps you are preparing to do something so dastardly – so sinister – so illegal – you’re going to need to vanish from the face of this earth.

Whatever your motivation, be it for good or evil, the following is a guide to disappearing entirely. [Read more…]

3 Easy Methods To How To Siphon Gas In A Survival Emergency

By Will Brendza 5 Comments

It doesn’t matter who you are, where you’re from, your age, your political views or you’re income level –

EVERYONE agrees:

Running out of gas sucks – BIG TIME.

It’s one of the most helpless and miserable feelings you can ever experience.

And if running out of gas is bad enough, running out in the middle of nowhere is even worse.

Becoming stranded in the boondocks, where there’s not a gas station for miles.

And this is during normal times, what about in widespread emergencies? [Read more…]

10 Simple Survival Shelters That Will Conquer The Elements

By Just In Case Jack 13 Comments

The Ultimate Guide To Building, Finding, and Deploying Survival Shelters

Note: This article is about wilderness survival shelters. We also have an article about survival bunkers for those more interested in that topic.

There’s more than one way to skin a cat.

And they’re even more ways to find, build and deploy survival shelters.

But only if you know what you’re doing.

In this guide, we show you our 10 favorite simple-to-build survival shelters.

And we don’t just show you, we teach you with how-to videos.

So in this article, we’ll cover the following survival shelter topics: [Read more…]