Indholdsfortegnelse for March 2021 i American Outdoor Guide

(Author's note: This article is dedicated to Marjorie Miller, or "Aunt Marjorie," as I knew her. Born in the 1920s, Aunt Marjorie lived through the Great Depression of the 1930s and the government-ordered food rationing in the United States during World War II.) Home gardening was crucial to Aunt Marjorie's survival for much of her life and was ingrained in her soul over her 90 years on this Earth. I was more than fortunate to be able to absorb a small fraction of what she knew, and I’ll never be able to thank her enough for imparting a bit of her wisdom to me for the last decade or so of her life. I hope to pass on some of that wisdom in this article. Producing your own food provides…

If the past year taught us anything, it’s to never assume things will always be the same ... including, but definitely not limited to, a vast and plentiful food supply. Grocery store and warehouse shelves were decimated, leaving scraps for those who were late to the frenzy, and restocking was slow and, at times, nonexistent. Added to the trouble was the closing of major food plants and processing centers, which further delayed goods from being brought back into markets for consumers. Those who want to avoid such a debilitating situation in the future have a place to turn, and that’s toward long shelf life survival or emergency food products. Whether these preserved foods are dehydrated, freeze-dried or canned, if your cache is full the next time there’s a scramble to…

Every once in a while, a product or company comes along that alters your expectations. I was first introduced to a new company in 2018 while on a YouTube-watching binge. A gentleman from Australia was testing and talking about a “survival” knife from a company named Work Tuff Gear. The design looked compelling, and the reviewer had nothing but good things to say about the knife. However, when I learned it was an Asian import made from D2 steel, I tuned out. Cheap, imported knives made from D2 were a dime a dozen. However, as the months wore on, I continued to follow the YouTube channel (“Bush Camping Tools”) and began to pay more attention as the host showcased different designs from Work Tuff Gear. Each knife looked well-thought-out and…

Name: Black Walnut (Juglans spp.) Description The black walnut is a member of the walnut family (Juglandaceae). The walnut is found all over North America and is often called the “black walnut” when referring to the wild walnut. There are 21 species of Juglans worldwide, including the English walnut (J. regia), which has been planted in farms and yards or is surviving around old farms. The walnut is a full-bodied, native, deciduous tree with pinnately divided leaves that typically reaches 70 to 80 feet in height and a diameter of 2 to 4 feet. There are typically from 11 to 19 leaflets per leaf. Their nuts have a soft, green outer layer, which turns black as it matures and has long been used as a dye. Wild walnut shells require…

Spring has sprung, as they say, and we look forward to crawling out of hibernation and preparing for the warmer, longer days ahead. The sun is shining brighter, and there might even be some green starting to pop up along the trail. Critters are waking up and shaking off winter. Their various calls, whistles and grunts form the soundtrack as we venture down the path to see what we can see. 1 Knog Bilby Headlamp Headlamps have come a long way in recent years. This model is silicone, making it extremely comfortable. Its five LEDs provide lots of options, from a seriously bright 400 lumens to a red light for night use and even downlights that are perfect for reading. On the “high” setting, the Bilby Headlamp will run a…

“MANY THINGS COULD—AND USUALLY DO—HAPPEN ON A FISHING TRIP. FISHING RODS BREAK, REELS FAIL, AND KNIVES GET MISPLACED. IT’S ESSENTIAL TO ALWAYS HAVE A BACKUP.” My survival toolbox is full of items I need to keep my family and me fed and healthy. Knives of all sorts are part of that kit. Some of them include fillet knives, a style of knife that often isn’t what one thinks of for survival (and the focus of this article). Some might say that any knife can be used to fillet a fish, and this is true to a point; but that’s like saying a rock can be used to drive a nail: Although a rock will do the job, the proper hammer will do the job better. The same can be said…

“WITH THE 5.11 TACTICAL RUSH100 BACKPACK, I’VE FOUND THE ULTIMATE WAY TO CARRY ALL THE THINGS I NEED FOR EVERYTHING FROM A QUICK JAUNT IN THE WOODS TO A CROSS-COUNTRY JOURNEY.” I love versatility in my outdoor gear; and I especially value versatility when it comes to how I can carry my gear. There were times when I loaded up a cavernous backpack for a wilderness hunt. I needed the large capacity to carry the supplies necessary to be self-sufficient on a journey that might last just a day or perhaps stretch out to more than a week. I needed the ability to lash large items—an axe or machete and heavy clothing—to the outside. Often, I’d place small essential gear in a waist pack and a shoulder sack and place…

It wasn’t by plan, design or choice, but the prepping community made great strides in 2020. While the year started the same as most, as we now know, it soon began to take on many of the attributes of scenarios a lot of us have spent years planning and preparing for. In a purely academic sense, this was an extended test and validation of the plans, skills, attitude and character of preppers across the country, if not much of the world. Did we anticipate the types of situations we found ourselves immersed in? Some of these included food and materiel shortages, the lack of credible information and its sources, social unrest, lawlessness and the breakdown of government services and, in some cases, the outright refusal to perform perhaps its most…

“IN CRITICAL TIMES, WATERWAYS CAN STILL PROVIDE YOU WITH A VIABLE, SAFE ROUTE TO GET TO YOUR SANCTUARY. AND YOUR BEST MODE OF TRANSPORTATION ON THOSE WATERWAYS WHEN THE SITUATION FORCES YOU TO ‘GET OUTA DODGE’ JUST MIGHT BE A CANOE OR KAYAK.” Early in this nation’s history, before we had the spiderweb of pavement we rely on now, waterways were the highways. The Great Lakes, rivers such as the Ohio, Missouri and Mississippi, and the Erie Canal all served as transportation pathways-of-least-resistance. In critical times, waterways can still provide you with a viable, safe route to get to your sanctuary. And your best mode of transportation on those waterways when the situation forces you to “get outa Dodge” just might be a canoe or kayak. WHY BY BOAT? Every…

“ ... NOT ONLY DID THE RAPTORAZOR KNIVES KEEP UP WITH THE PROFESSIONAL CUTTING EQUIPMENT USED BY THE EXPERTS, IN MANY CASES, THEY WERE ALSO SHARPER AND CUT MORE CONSISTENTLY AND SMOOTHLY ... .” As a writer for American Survival Guide for the past five years, I‘ve put quite a bit of gear to the test, pushing the limits of the various tools and gadgets I was working with to see what they were capable of. Most of the gear I’m sent to work with is tough, effective and quality made. Editor Mike McCourt does a good job of vetting products he considers for reviews in the magazine; and, if they don’t hold up, they don’t make it to the pages of ASG. Chances are very good that by the…

Forest fires rage through the West. The most powerful hurricanes in recorded history ravage the Gulf Coast and the Atlantic. Arctic cold and blinding snows strike the Northeast and the Midwest. What do these disasters all have in common? They all make people—ordinary people—leave their homes, often very quickly, in the name of safety. In order to get your family out of harm’s way, you need a reliable vehicle; one that’s always prepared to move at a moment’s notice. “IN ORDER TO GET YOUR FAMILY OUT OF HARM’S WAY, YOU NEED A RELIABLE VEHICLE; ONE THAT’S ALWAYS PREPARED TO MOVE AT A MOMENT’S NOTICE.” This article discusses items I keep in my vehicles at all times and steps I’d follow in my situation. If something were to happen and I…

As I write this, I think back to January 2020. Life in the United States was normal. The economy was booming, and citizens were going about their business and living in relative peace. At that time, the news outlets were just starting to talk about a strange, new virus taking hold in China. The media and politicians were telling us that COVID-19 was nothing more than a severe case of the flu and that we had nothing to fear from it (as a famous comedian is fond of saying, “Here’s your sign”). I had long wanted to build an AR15 pistol but continuously put the project off. At that time, ammo, guns and parts were cheap and plentiful. However, with red flags of impending trouble popping up on the horizon,…