I would be exploring with my Camlbak. It has my PSK items and a lot of water.

I would expect to be suffering from fear, uncertainty and doubt. It is also true that as you get hypothermic you get clumsy and stupid. Remembering is probably going to be poor as well as fine motor skills. The biggest problem for me is realizing I am in trouble and I need to stop what I am doing and go into survival mode.

My assumption is that it has started raining and will continue on and off for the rest of the night. There are wind gusts that go along with a rainstorm. To survive the night I need to stay as warm and dry as possible.

I would walk under a tree that looked dry at the base. I would put on my $0.99 poncho and I would take my shoes off and put grocery store produce bags over my socks and put my shoes back on. Thank you Willy Whitefeather! I?d hang my Storm whistle on my neck and give three blasts once in a while.

Stories I have read about Native Americans saying you should take care of shelter first. I would look up and all round for a good spot that was safe and provided the best shelter from the wind. Not at the bottom of a hill, any dead branches waiting to fall on me, etc. I would pull out one of my clear trash bags and start collecting dry pine needles from under trees. I would dump it in a nice big pile to sleep on. I would then take out my Orange, 3mil, Coghlan Survival Bag (84? x 36?) with strips and cord already attached. I would stake the closed end with one of the 4 thin steel stakes I carry with the bag. Then I would roll the bag out over the pile of pine needles and stake the front with the two strips of duct tape with a steel washer in them. Then I would tie the top cord to a pine tree and snug it up with the pre-tied taught line knot. Now I would fill up the clear trash bag again and put it in the Survival Bag. Then I would take out my second clear bag and do the same thing. I should now have an insulated and dry place to sleep. I will slide into the Survival Bag and have the clear bags with pine needles over me to keep me warm. Thank you Hoods Woods!

The next order of business is to get a fire going. When it starts to get dark I?ll put on my Petzl Tikka XP Headlamp. I would find a good spot by my shelter bag and clear the ground around it. I would then look at the bottoms of the trees for tinder and kindling. If there are any stumps around I will see if they have pitchwood. If there are branches that could be used as fuel I?ll use my Gerber Sportsman?s saw to cut them to a usable size. While sheltered under a tree, as much as possible, I will use my Mora and a piece of wood to split the wood into usable kindling. The split wood should be dry. I?ll set up a fire lay like the one in the PSP instructions. A row of sticks for the bottom. A fuel size log for the brace. I will then put what tinder I have found at the base and lay kindling in an ?A? shape over it. I will then put a Coghlan?s Emergency Tinder with the tinder. If I have any pitchwood I will put that with the kindling leaned on the brace. I will then take another Coghlan?s Emergency Tinder and wrap it around the end of a stick. I will light it with the back of my Leatherman saw blade and a ferro rod. I?ll take the burning stick and light the tinder of the fire lay and set it in place with the rest of the kindling. In a few minutes the fire should be big enough to put fuel on. The fire should help me get back up to a healthy core temperature. I?ll take out my 36? x 36? aluminum sheet and fold it into a cup. I?ll take out a tea bag and heat up some tea while it gets cold and dark. I?ll sip my tea and eat a snack bar. I?ll then take out my stocking cap for my head, a bandanna around my neck and put on my leather gloves. I?ll set my Petzl Tikka XP Headlamp to blink and put it somewhere that it can be seen from the sky. Then I?ll take off the poncho and duct tape it around the top of the shelter bag to keep rain from coming in. I'll wrap myself in my AMK blanket. I expect the fire to die out as I am in my shelter bag. If I get too cold I?ll have to get up and get the fire going again.

Any comments or critique would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks! <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />