Living 'Wild' for 2-3 months, ideas? tips? etc

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Ninaslug

Member
Apr 26, 2012
14
0
UK
Hello everyone,

I am going to have to live in a tent for a couple of months, maybe longer. I am trying to make a list of things I need to know, get ready before hand/purchase etc. I dont have much money so would rather keep as basic as possible say £100 at the most for everything.
The climate is the western scottish isles, so very wet, windy, minimal trees, midges.
There is a managed wood nearby but i dont know if its public or not and I dont have any permission as of yet to go and collect anything from it.
The beach is 2-5mile walk away. I am staying on families land on a 2-3 acre field with no trees and has a deep slope down to a very boggy area and beyond that a river(Not owned by landowners) that has a 7 foot drop and is very rapid.
Im hoping to take a dog with me for protection and for company,possibly some chickens for eggs and I have seeds and plants but obviously will take time to grow and only going to account for a small amount of food.other than that will have to forage for everything else.
I have no fishing or hunting skills so anything that would make that easier. Who do I ask about what im allowed to hunt/fish in the area, the council? the environment agency? the local hunting club if there is one, which i think will be hard to find as quite remote area.
There are plenty of sheep so might steal a few to put in my tent to keep me warm:D Im seriously thinking that using their poop in a log maker if i could get it dry enough might be of some use? If not thought i could collect driftwood but its whether there is enough. Do I really need a fire in the UK in may-june, i have followed a raw diet many times, just not a 100% wild raw diet, maybe alot of kelp. stocking up on things like honey,nuts as I usually do quite well filling myself with wild greens its sugar that i constantly crave.

I realise im slightly naive doing this and being young female people I have told are already telling me im being silly, wont last long etc so wanting to ask people who have done similar things, did they wish they had taken anything, practiced anything in particular before they went ahead and did it?
I dont drive and there is only an air ambulance so need first aid things also, there are locals and post office is not that far away if I got desperate but dont want to bother anyone unless my arm is literally hanging off. Also I want to try and live as wild as possible, with no money, unless an emergency I dont really want to have much contact with the outside world.

Im hoping to do this in 6-8 weeks time
 

Toddy

Mod
Mod
Jan 21, 2005
38,937
4,570
S. Lanarkshire
Firstly, welcome to the forum :D

Secondly, you *have* to have other options.
No one lives like that, and survives healthily, and never did, not alone and with no experience.
Society/ family is why people managed living a foraging lifestyle, even in Summer, and they roamed over a wide area seeking out seasonal resources.

Incoming............. I suspect :)

You do realise that this is a bushcraft forum ? not a hardcore survival one ? we're inclined to think we're the sensible folks :D

cheers,
Toddy
 

Ninaslug

Member
Apr 26, 2012
14
0
UK
Haha thanks :D

My options are pretty low, but it kind of excites me. I have family so if I weighed 5 stone and had been seen drawing faces on rocks and talking to them(I do that kind of thing anyway so something more 'weird' than that) then they would come and get me. Im a loner anyway though so in that sense it wont bother me.

Im happy with my shelter building skills and survived last spring/summer pretty much on nettles,potato, fruit and oats occasionally. I will get myself in training. The things I worry about the most is my hunting skills, i've never caught/killed anything to eat, I dont eat meat anyway as only want to eat wild things or if i know how its been killed/where its come from etc I have fasted in the past and followed monk type fasts(half day permanent fasts) so my body is quite good at coping with things like that, aslong as i got 1 carby meal a day, fish or protein every 2-3 days and a form of sugar every day I believe I will be fine. I plan to find out where the local spring is and collect from there, the place is covered in springs and waterfalls so im sure at least one of them will be okay to drink from but of course will double check.

Haha yes I typed in bushcraft/survival forum and this was the first one that came up. After the 2-3months are up I will be living more bushcraft, aiming towards self sufficiency.

Firstly, welcome to the forum :D

Secondly, you *have* to have other options.
No one lives like that, and survives healthily, and never did, not alone and with no experience.
Society/ family is why people managed living a foraging lifestyle, even in Summer, and they roamed over a wide area seeking out seasonal resources.

Incoming............. I suspect :)

You do realise that this is a bushcraft forum ? not a hardcore survival one ? we're inclined to think we're the sensible folks :D

cheers,
Toddy
 

Retired Member southey

M.A.B (Mad About Bushcraft)
Jun 4, 2006
11,098
13
your house!
If you doing this because your being made homeless then there is help, if tour doing this because you want to then you are not slightly naïve you are foolish. 6weeks is not long enough to learn the skills and knowledge let alone research. The area your going. Welcome to the forum but what a silly fist post, maybe just calm down and read for a while? :)
 

Perrari

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Feb 21, 2012
3,090
1
Eryri (Snowdonia)
www.erknives.com
I admire & slightly envy what you are trying to do, but your location does not sound ideal. You are going to collect driftwood ? But the beach is 2.5 miles away, so at least 2 trips for firewood daily, providing there is enough there ? What food do you think you will be able to hunt & forage ? The dog will also need feeding ? Plus numerous other potential problems that could affect your health.
I think you are as you said a bit naive, but in saying that I admire your courage to have a go. Even if you last only a week it would be a great experience for you and there would be no shame in quitting, but I think 2 months or longer is a bit ambitious.
This is really hard core stuff and I wish you all the luck in the world !
Eifion
 

Ninaslug

Member
Apr 26, 2012
14
0
UK
Haha Toddy I just replied to you but I cant see it, hope it posted.
treebloke ' if you are serious' ha yes I am deadly serious. Like I said there is a post office not that far away im sure in emergency if I gave them change they would let me ring somebody. I have a gorilla charger so would take that and get a cheap mobile that fits it.
I thought of building a tall shelter and using a solar shower if i get desperate, using a bucket and emptying it into a wheelie bin or something for the toilet. Was thinking about soap etc though, not sure how im going to work that one without polluting or damaging the grass.

Im not going to be stupid and not take back up money, phone etc, just want to not use them unless I really have to do.
 
six to eight weeks is a very very short time period to learn all the skills,prepare the equipment (on a tight budget), as for taking seeds and so on that isn't going to work you need the plants not the seeds, wild food id needs to be great, food prep and storage needs to be good
my advice without wanting to sound patronising or condescending-leave it a year or two learn the skills gather the kit slowly prepare food stores maybe even plant the seeds etc you mentioned then do it
 

The Ratcatcher

Full Member
Apr 3, 2011
268
0
Manchester, UK
Hello, Ninaslug, and welcome to the forum. My advice is as follows:

IMPORTANT SKILLS:
1: Be able to light a fire first time, every time, in any weather conditions.
2: Be able to recognise as many edibles as possible in your area.
3: Be able to administer emergency self-aid in case of an accident. (Ever tried tying a sling on yourself with one hand?)

USEFUL KIT:
If you're near the coast, a couple of Crab Traps (about £7 each from Go Outdoors), set among rocks will bring something to eat on almost every tide.
A copy of "Food for Free" by Richard Mabey (Collins Gem}, to identify edible plants.
A tick remover (and a mirror if you're on your own).
A good first aid kit, put together with self-aid in mind.
A good quality stainless steel billycan with a bail handle and a lid.
Some means to communicate with the outside world in emergency.

Other than that, all I can say is GOOD LUCK.

Alan
 
Jul 7, 2011
8
0
Hampshire
You do realise that this is a bushcraft forum ? not a hardcore survival one ? we're inclined to think we're the sensible folks :D

cheers,
Toddy

i'm from a hardcore survival forum and I don't think I've ever seen such an 'out there' post.

@OP - please consider it very carefully. People die from lack of planning on these matters!
 

bigegg

Member
Jan 24, 2012
15
0
leeds
I lived rough on Mull for just short of five weeks when I was 18 - in summer.
I was cold, wet, hungry and miserable for most of it, and by the time I'd finished I'd lost two stone.
And I was reasonably well-equipped, experienced, and lucky.
If you try this without the equipment and skill, then unless you have LOTS of luck, you will end up DEAD.
you can twist your ankle and die of hypothermia overnight 1/2 a mile from help.
Give your local authority a ring (or visit) they MUST find you somewhere to live if you ask for it-it's likely to be a hostel, but less chance of dying.

If this isn't a wind-up, and you really MUST live like this then I have the following advice:

1. Take someone else with (preferably a "survival" expert, not just a bushcrafter)
2. Take *at least* 20 disposable lighters and you'll need to know how to build, light and feed a fire even if you can actually get a flame.
3. Lots of the western isles seem to be over-run with rabbit. Learn to catch and clean them, and stomach them raw -
cos there won't be much in the way of dry firewood, even if you manage to get a fire lit. The little buggers don't like to be eaten tho! and you can't live just on rabbit.
4. Pick a spot nearer the coast - a five mile round trip is going to get *really* onerous, and burn up more calories than you can afford.
5. Put on as much weight as you can - if you're carrying an extra 2 stone of weight, thats 84000 calories, or 17 days of starvation (at 5000kcal a day) - take a couple of months supply of one-a-day vitamin tablets *and take one every day*
6. Take as much food as you can with you - and water sterilising tablets.
7. DON'T DO IT. YOU WILL DIE
 

wildrover

Nomad
Sep 1, 2005
365
1
Scotland
To the OP.
Not sure of what to make of your post to be honest!

Do you really need to live in a tent ( 8 weeks, really?).
you say the Western Isles. Which one?
If it must be the western Isles, why not Skye or Mull. You could get a summer season job in one of the hotels.
That way you would get paid, possibly fed and accomodation for at least minimum wage.
No starvation, apocalyptic scenario, no 5 mile trek for firewood for a fire you (at present don't know how to light).
No having to deal with weeks of horizontal rain, constant clouds of midges,ticks, randy locals etc..

You have no gear (not absolutely essential if you know what you are doing), a very modest budget to buy kit, yet no idea what to buy. You talk of seeds to grow food (from seed in 8 weeks?).You say you will and can forage. I hope you are right, because thats a mistake you might only be able to make once.

Honestly, take a long hard think!


Chris
 

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