A little something different for today’s post. If you are trying to increase your chances of survival or self-sufficiency, you are going to need to learn a ton of stuff.
Whether you learn it now, or take it step by step once you have the need depends on your time and resources. A strong case can be made for getting your food, water, shelter and energy preps in place before working on self-sufficiency. That way you are covered for low risk, high frequency disasters (like a job loss or extended health emergency), moderate risk and moderate frequency disasters (like hurricanes, winter storms and power loss) and even higher risk low frequency disasters (like a pandemic, or extended grid down situation).
The amount of food, water, energy and shelter you have available determines how well you will be able to cope. More preps means longer coping ability. But the more self-sufficiency you can arrange for today, the better prepared you are for all contingencies. And generally, the more self-sufficient, the lower your cost of living, so the more flexibility you have even if nothing happens.
Whatever your situation, or inclination in terms of how you prepare for life’s surprises, I am pretty sure you will find something here to engage your interest and help you achieve whatever your aim is. Below is a list of downloadable documents (PDF format) that address the following:
Energy – Efficient Wood Stove, Paul Wheaton’s Rocket Mass Heater
Food Resources – Nuts and Nut Trees, Integrated Farm Design, Tree Crops, Mushrooms -Shiitake/Oyster/Wild Edible, Microgreens, Aquaculture, Small Game Traps, Bird Harvesting, Fish Traps,
Bushcraft – Ropes and Cords, Huts and Thatching, Food and Water, Firemaking etc. Making Traps, Snares and Deadfalls, Camp Life
All of these items are available as free downloads as of the time of writing. No guarantees. You know how the internet is. If you find a broken link, let me know and I will find an alternate source or find something as good to replace it with.
Hope you enjoy going through these documents. There is a lot to learn. I am working on preparing more pages like this. Check back periodically and look under the category of “Information Resources.”
Resources.
Energy
Construction Manual for the Firewood Saving Household Stoves
Paul Wheatons Rocket Stove Mass Heater
Tree Crops
Tree Crops: A Permanent Agriculture
Farm Design
A Manual on Integrated Farming System
Mushrooms
Growing Wild Mushrooms
Shiitake Mushroom Production on Logs
Growing Shiitake Mushrooms
Microgreens
Growing Microgreens and Baby Greens for Home Use
Guidelines for Growing Microgreens
Meat
Game Drives
Small Game
Bird Traps
.Propagation of Aquatic Game Birds
Dove Trap
Wild Bird Capture Techniques
Aquaponics
Small Scale Aquaponic Food Production
Fish
How to Make Various Types of Traps and Pots
Traps
Deadfalls and Snares A.R. Harding
How To Make It: Rabbit Trap is Easy to Build
Rappahannock Taking Devices: Traps, Hunting and Fishing
Bushcraft
The Ten Bushcraft Books of Robert Graves
Camp Life in the Woods – Tricks of Trapping – Trap Making
