I heard about that, too, but my Mom's friend said he always gutted and plucked them, leaving the skin on. But he never mentioned being in any type of survival situation when he used this method. Maybe you could also burn the feathers off?
I wondered about the heat dissapation (sp?) in the soil also. But since he seemed to always be out rock hunting, from what I've seen of WY, it's darned dry, which may also be beneficial.
I've always meant to try this, but haven't done so. But since he had actually done it, I consider it a viable option. I've never been very good at BBQing... <img src="/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" />
Sue