Description
The Trueways 5 Day Basic Survival Skills course
(open to 16+), in keeping with our philosophy of real skills for real situations, seeks to deliver sensible and appropriate survival training for general settings. This, our flagship course takes clients from `Zero to Hero` in 5 days and incorporates a scenario based assessment during the last 24-30 hours. Throughout the course there is formative assessment of the assimilation of skills and knowledge, with the final summative assessment seeks to build upon the skills taught. This is an opportunity to put into practice and demonstrate the skills that are acquired and results in a formal assessment being carried out by the instructor.
This course is divided into two distinct parts:
A teaching phase where we cover the entire syllabus in detail and have the opportunity to practice those skills taught. We check the rate of assimilation and use all available time to ensure that the important parts are fully digested; at the end of the teaching phase we embark on a scenario based fully immersive assessment phase where we formally assess the abilities of the delegates within a sensible and realistic survival situation. This phase lasts approx. 24-30 hours and covers all aspects attendee's will learn on this course.
This is your opportunity to demonstrate what you have learned and the skills you have acquired.
On completion of the assessment an instructor will formally assess your work and after deliberation and consultation with external validators you will receive a certificate and course report in the post. You will be graded as "satisfactory" - meaning you have been able to demonstrate the key skills and done what is necessary to stay alive and get rescued, or "not yet satisfactory" meaning you have a few areas of weakness that should be addressed before attempting the assessment phase again.
Course Syllabus
This Course will cover the following Subjects:
Protection from the elements:
Environmental medical (physiological and psychological effect of being too hot or too cold).
Understand and take care of your clothing.
Taking advantage of and improving pre-existing natural shelter (Caves, Hollow, Overhangs, Fallen Trees etc).
How to make a natural shelter to provide a safe place in the environmental conditions.
Natural bedding and insulation.
Fire:
Fire Lighting and maintenance with flint and steel.
Use of fire for heating and cooking.
Signalling for rescue including standard international signals and improvised techniques.
Understanding the needs of fire reflectors and heating shelters.
Understanding the various methods of fire lighting.
Water:
Sourcing water and making it safe to use.
Water requirements.
Water sources.
Problems in wild water and medical aspects (dangers of Seawater, Dehydration, Heat Exhaustion, Toxicity, Pathology).
Water Treatment and Storage.
Food:
Acquiring food from the wild.
Understanding our survival nutritional needs.
Medical problems from malnutrition and/or food imbalances.
Toxins and pathogens in wild food and avoiding them.
Flora (Food from Plants, Roots, Tubers, Seeds and Fruit).
Fungi (Food from fungi, if available).
Survival Camp Craft and Routines:
Gear and equipment.
Survival Kits.
Safe use and best practice for knives, axes, saws, fire kits etc.
Making your own resources (cordage,containers,bedding etc).
Navigation:
Understanding your locality.
The 72 hour rule and how it applies to us.
Telling the time and direction from natural indicators.
Safe techniques for crossing unknown countryside.
Best routes to safety.
Day and Night signals.
Passive and active signalling.
Natural navigation methods available during daylight.
Astro Navigation and Sketch Maps.
Equipment List
A full and complete equipment list will be provided along with specific directions once your booking is confirmed.However, as a minimum you will need to bring with you some basic kit such as:
Waterproof Jacket & Trousers.
Suitable Footwear.
Knife.
Torch.
Billy Can or Cooking Pot.
Drinking Cup/Mug.
Water Bottle.
Sleeping Bag.
Bivi Bag.
Basha or Tarp.
Don't worry if you haven't got everything you need, we do hire the less common equipment which is typically a lot cheaper than buying.
