• Leon's Survival Blog | Travel Log

  • SEARCH

FEATURED POSTS

Building an effective snow cave takes hard work and the right tools.

Do you need a machete in your emergency kit?

 533 400 Survival Common Sense Blog | Emergency Preparedness

I carry a machete in my car survival kit, and there are some tasks that a machete is ideally suited for. If you think one of those big South American knives is only good in the jungle or rain forests, think again!

read more

Survival Knives and Gear

Jesse Hemphill custom Damascus, Damascus steel, best deer hunting knife

Can Damascus steel cut it in the deer hunting world?

 600 300 Survival Common Sense Blog | Emergency Preparedness

Damascus steel is REALLY pretty in a knife blade. But how does it work in the field? I took a Jesse Hemphill custom blade on a deer hunt, and used it hard. Check out the review.

read more

Hunting and Fishing

How to: Make jerky from small game meat

 600 300 Survival Common Sense Blog | Emergency Preparedness

Venison or big game jerky is common, but few use small game animals as the basis of that frontier staple. Making jerky is a great way to clean out the freezer at the end of the season and create tasty snacks out of last year’s harvest.

read more

Make Fire

Survival fire making videos: What ignition system should you carry?

 448 325 Survival Common Sense Blog | Emergency Preparedness

Your ability to start a fire can save your life! The inability can cost it! Here are some common methods, and how well they work!

read more

Clothing

deer hunting success, best camo for deer hunting, make camo effective

Eliminate optical brighteners in laundry soap for deer hunting success

 600 300 Survival Common Sense Blog | Emergency Preparedness

Does your camouflage design work? Well, the soap your clothing is washed in may ruin the concealment value. Here’s one way to solve that problem.

read more

Survival Skills

Reality check | Evacuating during the travel nightmare of Hurricane Irma

 599 301 Survival Common Sense Blog | Emergency Preparedness
4

Lisa Marie Gordon of  Welaka, Florida, her husband, four children and three dogs evacuated before hurricane Irma hit. She describes their travel ordeal. 

read more

Survival Gear

compass and GPS, stay found, maintain compass, back country navigation

Take care of your magnetic compass so it works correctly

 600 300 Survival Common Sense Blog | Emergency Preparedness

Compass operation depends on the action of the magnetic needle. Many items can affect the needle. Here is how to prevent compass failure.

read more

Camp Cooking | Storage Food

water containers, store water

How much water is enough to survive?

 480 380 Survival Common Sense Blog | Emergency Preparedness

Without water, our bodies can get into serious trouble quickly – just a matter of days before dehydration sets in. Why do many people keep extra food, but don’t store water?

read more

Emergency Shelter

tarp shelter, survival tarp shelters, make tarp shelter

Five tips for setting tarps for emergency shelter

 600 400 Survival Common Sense Blog | Emergency Preparedness

Tarp shelters can make a rainy campout much more bearable. In some emergencies, a tarp might save your life, Here are a few tips for making your tarp shelter more secure.

read more

VIDEOS | TIPS & HOW TO's

Dutch oven survival kit, dutch oven, make survival kit
Video: What you need to make a Dutch oven survival kit
 600 300 Survival Common Sense Blog | Emergency Preparedness

Beginners frequently ask for a list of tools to get started in Dutch oven cooking. So, here’s a basic, bare-bones list.

build a fire, survival fire making, best fire making tools
Video: Start a survival campfire with gasoline and matches
 600 300 Survival Common Sense Blog | Emergency Preparedness

There is no probably no deadlier combination than gasoline and matches when it comes to causing serious injuries outdoors. But, if there is no other choice, here’s how to use gas and matches safely start your survival campfire.

tarp grommets, tarps shelters, emergency shelters
Video: How to keep your tarp corner grommets from tearing out
 600 300 Survival Common Sense Blog | Emergency Preparedness

A tarp camper can get in a situation where the wind blows hard enough to rip out the corner grommets. Here’s a rope trick to stop that from happening.

Leon Pantenburg writes a survival blog with tips and techniques to help average people survive an unexpected urban or wilderness emergency, using survival skills and emergency preparedness. Topics include survival knives, survival clothing and camp cooking, making a fire, emergency shelter, hunting and fishing, competent survival skills and survival gear reviews.