Originally Posted By: hikermor
Wow! Knowledge and skills are what count, more so than gadgets and gear....

Yes, the best survival gear is the gear between your ears. wink

However, you can still lose that gear when under stress eek

That's why the Boy Scouts are taught to STOP[1] when things go wrong, so they don't lose that stowed gear.
  • Stop : and calm yourself down, so you don't lose that precious gear
  • Think : rummage around in that survival gear to see what may be useful
  • Observe
  • Plan

While I'm on this metaphor, mnemonics like STOP and catchphrases like "the gear between your ears" are handy containers for the gear between your ears.

I wonder - do we already have a thread on survival mnemonics and catch phrases? Should we start one?

Here are a few: Scout mnemonics that could save a life

On the thread topic of improvised sun navigation devices, there's Finding North with a Shadow Stick and Using an analog watch as a compass.

You are usually far better off with a compass and the knowledge to use it, though.
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A signal mirror should backup a radio distress signal, like a 406 MHz PLB (ACR PLB) (Ocean Signal PLB)