Creating Shelter: Outdoor Survival Skills

Whether you love outdoor activities or not, you should know how to create a shelter. Because there can be circumstances when you get stuck in the wild where help is not easy to access, you need to know how you can survive by creating a warm and comfortable place to keep safe.

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Sleeping in the wild can be really harsh. Aside from insect bites and wild animal attacks, you can suffer from hypothermia, especially in the mountains. The temperature in the mountains can go really low at night and early morning. Also, the grass or soil can get wet in the early morning, so you can get really wet and cold when you sleep on the ground. It’s vital that you know how to make a temporary sleeping area when you need to take a rest during the night, so you can look for help the next day.

Creating shelter is one of the most energy and time consuming activities you’ll need to accomplish when you get stuck in the wild, so you need to do this properly. Energy is vitally important when stranded in the outdoors, giving you more strength and time to gather food and water.

Creating Outdoor Shelter

Here is a step-by-step guide to creating shelter that can help your survival in the wild:

1. Prepare the ground: Before you set up your “tent,” prepare the ground. Pick up all stones and branches where you’re planning to set up your “tent”. Then, put a lot of dry leaves on the ground. Make the leaves one or two feet high to create a cushion that will protect you from hypothermia.
2. Make the frame of your tent: Find a ridge pole for your tent. This should be longer than your height so your tent can cover you entirely. Set it up by putting one end on the ground, and raising the other end using two sticks leaning on each other. You should have a triangular shape at one end of your tent. This will be the opening of your shelter. Cover your ridge pole with more sticks by leaning branches of trees at both sides of the ridge pole, until it resembles a ribcage.
3. Cover your tent: After making the frame, start covering the tent with dried leaves. If it’s summer, make the “roof” two feet thick. When it’s winter, you’ll need a very thick roof, which can be from four to six feet thick. This means you have to put a lot of leaves on top of your tent frame to make a warm space inside it.

When creating a shelter, make sure that the inside is only the size of a sleeping bag. This will ensure that the inside will stay warm.