ALTERNATE USES FOR OUTDOOR ITEMS

5/16/20

Outdoors

There are also alternative uses for several things found outside. Nature may provide us with many things to use in our survival that you wouldn’t ordinarily think of. Look around and envision your own alternative uses for every thing you see. As always, share with us so we can all be better prepared.

Garden Hose

Beyond the standard use of getting water from one place to another, you can use small pieces of hose to protect your hands from sharp or wiry items. Just split the hose down one side and slip over the offending item. Large enough hose can be split down one side and used as a finger splint, too. In conflictor defensive senaros, a hose makes a fair whip or garrote. Most hoses make fair ropes for tying or strapping, even for climbing in a pinch.

Lumber

Depending on the size of the lumber; it can be used for immobilizing limbs and for making splints. There are many shelters that can use lumber. You can use them as floatation devices, bridges. and shielding. A most obvious use for hand sized lumber is a club, thinner ones a fishing pole and all sizes can be used in fire making.

Garbage Bags

When talking survival medicine, garbage bags are worth far more than their weight in gold. Remember that a garbage bag is basically just plastic sheeting that’s formed into a bag. The most important survival use of a trash bag is to keep you warm. You can pull one over you if you’re stuck in an exposed situation. Staying dry is a prerequisite of staying warm. Ditto for turning one into an over ‘jacket’. Cut holes for your head and arms and away you go. It traps heat next to your body so it is a great item to use to ward off hypothermia. This plastic sheeting can be used for waterproofing first aid supplies, covering a wounded foot with, and even for carrying water. Most rubbish bags are black, and if filled with snow they will absorb heat from a fire from a considerable distance, providing you with drinking/washing water. Your best bet is the simple thick black garbage bags that are used for lawn maintenance. Other uses of a garbage bag are: as makeshift shelter material, as a buoyancy device, as a vessel to hold water, as a sling, as a tourniquet, as a ground cover or as a mattress when filled with leaves and grass and other soft debris. If you tear the garbage bag into strips and start to braid the strips then you end up with a rope that is incredibly difficult to break. Rolled down to form a rim they make excellent rain catchers or temporary water carriers. Tie between branches to form a sunshade…or static umbrella. They make excellent sliders. Thin strips or rolled plastic also makes a passable garrote or covering for a hunting pit.

Rocks

Nature’s most basic tool. Found in various sizes, shapes and weights they ca be used as hammers, wedges, and weapons. Rocks also come in handy for construction of shelters, counter weights or holding things in place, and contain fires and water. They can be weaponized in slings, split sticks, catapults, avalanche traps, bola, or just thrown.

Stick and leaves

Also found in various sizes, shapes and weights as crowbars, props, spears, shelter and camouflage. They can be burned easily for cooking or use as camouflage. You can build bows and clubs.

Animal’s Skins

Hide (skin) The industry defines hides as "skins" of large animals e.g. cow, buffalo; the skins refer to "skins" of smaller animals: goat, sheep, deer, pig, fish, alligator, snake, etc. Fur-bearing animals that are bred and raised on fur farms (or ranches) include mink, fox, marten, and chinchilla. Mink pelts constitute the majority of pelts produced annually, with most coming from mink ranches. Animal can be used for clothing and blankets. As a shelter or to cover a hunting pit. It can be chewed on for nourishment, shaped into shields, and a tote. The most obvious items taken and used were the skins or hides. In cold months these could be frozen and tanned later; otherwise, they were quickly skinned and tanned for clothing, shoes, blankets, teepee covers, you name it. Rawhide (the hair removed) was even more versatile as it could be used for making belts, snowshoes, moccasin soles, water troughs for horses or hide tanning, quivers, shields, buckets, drums and even rafts! Turtle shells were used to make rattles, pots, bowls, calendars and bags. Deer or elk antlers were often carved into buttons and beads, or used as awls.

The castor oil from beavers was prized for making things waterproof. Castor oil was used for moccasins, teepee coverings, and to seal rafts or other items that are used in water. Even some parts that you wouldn’t normally even consider, including buffalo “chips,” were put to use. Dried dung from herbivores, such as deer and buffalo, was collected and used as fuel for fires. Contrary to what you might think, there really is no smell — just the scent of burning grass. Whether it was for clothing, shelter, food or decoration, native people considered their animals as a rich harvest that provided them with everything they could need and more.

Once you have taken care of the meat you can start using the other parts of the animal. Nothing should go to waste.

Fat - Fat is rich in calories and should be included in survival meals. The rendered fat can also be used as a lubricant, a fuel, and to make torches.

Feathers - These can be used as insulation, fletching for arrows, and for dangling from a string above a trap to attract predators.

Hide - Brain-tanned hides can be made into clothing, bags, moccasins, hats, mittens and gloves. Rawhide can be used for laces, straps, pouches, containers, shields, and drum heads. The hair that was removed from the hide can be used as insulation, baskets, fletching for arrows, weaving, and cordage. The ears, tails, and scrotum make good pouches.

Hooves - These can be crushed and boiled into glue and neat’s-foot oil.

Head - The tongue can be eaten. The brains can also be eaten or used to tan hides, and the skinned-out head could be thrown into a stew pot.

Internal organs - These spoil quickly so use them soon. The wind pipe can be used as a blow tube. In areas that are not heavily polluted, eat the heart, liver and kidneys. Intestines can be cleaned out and dried, then used as sausage skins for food storage or twisted and pulled, making cordage for bow strings or thongs. The bladder and stomach make storage and cooking vessels. What little is left can be used as bait for carnivores.

Sinew - This is the strongest natural material and when dried and pounded can be made into excellent thread, fishline, bowstrings, lashing and snare line.

Bones - The fresh marrow can be eaten and the bones made into fish hooks, awls, needles, blow tubes, scrapers, arrowheads, knives, chisels, spear points, and barbs for fish spears. They can also be ground into bone meal. Antler can be used about the same as bone and can also be used for knapping tools.

Mud

Amazingly, mud can be used to create what’s known as a Microbial Fuel Cell. This will produce the electricity you need to power your devices. Mud can be used to construct walls, shelters even cooking ovens. Mud can also be used, with a burnt stick, to make a camouflage. It is a fair exfoliant and seals wounds.

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