You attitude and mental abilities are at the core of a survival situation. I recall a victim we rescued who was found sitting in a wet, chilly forest, rather despondent. We asked, "How about starting a fire?" His response - "It's useless, the woods are too wet."

We got a fire going quite promptly. The woods weren't that wet. The victim was carrying a fifty pound pack - mostly items he could not use because he was just not in the game.

One thing the mind does is ponder hypothetical situations and prepare in advance. It comes up with lists of items that will be broadly useful in a variety of situations and then somehow those items seem to be at hand or at least recognizable.

When I spent my first unplanned night out in the snow and cold, I was not dreadfully surprised. I knew, from reading and discussing with others, that unplanned bivouacs were part and parcel of mountaineering and that it was a good idea to carry a few essentials. Thus, when I gazed on a beautiful sunset over the icy slopes, and I realized I had traveled about 100 yards in half an hour, I knew I had to prepare some sort of shelter, put on all my clothing, eat something, light a fire, and stay as warm as possible. I did have a gas stove, matches, a cup, and tea, among other things, in my gear.

Of course, it is easy to conceive scenarios in which a prepared mind, with or without gear, will not see you through. You are on the beach and a 100 foot tsunami approaches. Of course, had you been thinking, you might have heeded warnings and not been on the beach that day.....