Sunday 300815 I went out to make a video for my YouTube Channel Survival-Russia (Link to Channel) and to test a cover i recently made for the Saiga 12K. I have an article on the cover on this blog (Saiga 12K Cover).
Well, that day was dangerously close to being my last on this earth. Too close for comfort! So, i decided to make a video on how i cross water like rivers, smaller lakes and such and at the same time testing the Saiga 12K cover. The water crossing technique i learned in the Army. It's a tried and tested method and it saved my life. Had i tried to just swim across i would most likely not be writing this article today....
It goes like this. You take you poncho or shelter/tarp and put it on the ground. We mostly used our poncho's. Using a poncho, one will need to lash the hood closely tight with a boot lace or other cordage. Then you strip off ALL clothing, put on rain gear and then put the clothes on the poncho/tarp, boots first. As shown below.
I was out of poncho's so i used a British Desert DPM Basha. Then lash the top of the tarp tight and you have a "Caramel" which will float. Seen below. For details, watch the video. Link to Video
Nothing wrong with this method. It was all my fault. For this demo and test i had chosen a location i know more than well, less than 500 meters from the Homestead. My own land. It's a channel, pond, swamp area and we swim in the "pond" or small lake area in spring and early summer. Later on, like now in August the water table normally have dropped and become an unpleasant slurry. This summer however have been very wet. Especially July and August. I was not paying attention to my environment....
Normally, the sandbar i am standing on in the pic below, would be totally exposed.
So what happened was, made my preparations slid down the bank into the water and started to ford/swim with the "Caramel" in front of me and the Saiga 12K on the shoulder in the cover. After only a few meters i could feel the undergrowth grabbing my legs. I was at a standstill several times and i had to fight very hard to pull my legs free, using the "Caramels" buoyancy as a counterweight. Without this "Caramel" it would have been very bad indeed! I would have had nothing but the water to "hold on to"....
The problem was i was too laid back and acting on routine because of me knowing the spot so well. However, i was not thinking about i never spent time in the water there in August, for reasons mentioned above. I could of course see the plants and undergrowth and it's also there in the spring and early summer but at that time of year it's not very strong.
Me fighting for my life
Being from Denmark i grew up very close to the sea and am a fairly good swimmer. This was crazy. I have heard stories about sea plants pulling people down but never experienced it and then it happens to me in a small lake in Russia....
It was a great learning experience, to never act on routine in nature, just because i am in an area i know well. Nature can play tricks. This i know but here i was not paying attention. I was not thinking the situation through so to speak. Have i done that i would have put notice to that i have never spent time in that water in late summer. Plant are strong in late summer.
Setting up the cameras, i was thinking about swimming across and put one camera on the opposite bank and one on the sandbar. I am happy i did not do that. I took the long way around the swamp. Maybe Thor or Freya guided me clear of Loke playing tricks on me. I would like to think so.
Get out and Train and Get it Done!
Out
Sunday 23rd of August was a very successful scouting day. Scouting is important up here as the terrain is very tough. It's extreme in it's own way (but more about that in a separate article). One thing is the terrain is very flat with dense forest and wetlands, swamps, rivers and creeks. So knowing where the higher ground and hilltops are is important for setting up semi permanent camp sites.
How most of the lower areas look. May 4th 2015
So basically high ground is important here. However, scouting will provide important information of all sorts. I have begun exploring the forest 1 km North of the Homestead as i have spent most of my time in the South part of the forest which begins only 300 meters from the Homestead.
Straight South
So on my second scout looking for two ridge lines, i found this older logging trail. The rain have swept it clean. Generally i just go through the forest on compass. There are no established walking trails here. Only old and new logging trails. So this was a welcome find indeed. What i learned was that the bears also found this trail useful, which is of course good info as i will set up at least one camp site in this general area.
On the trail i found signs of dog, human foot prints and bear prints. The human foot prints was from some people collecting mushrooms. I spotted them later in my binoculars.
The bear tracks differed in size so there have been more than one. The tracks was also quite new. New enough to for me to think "Where's the bear?". Judging from the tracks it was not huge bears but bears does not have to be huge to be dangerous. Recently a very good friend of mine sent me a link about a bear attack in Siberia. The bear was not big at all but it messed up a woman good and buried her to eat her later. She however survived. Link to article
Some pics of the bear prints below.
So to try and reach some kind of conclusion here, It evidently pays off to put in the time and effort to scout an area and bears do not have to be huge to mess you up.
Next time i head up there it will try and find a camp site for the winter. Thank you for your time and see you until next time.
As always: "Get out and train and get it done"!
So, i have chosen to start writing articles on this Blog. It's a great platform for presenting more "in-depth" material and a great addition to my Survival-Russia YouTube channel. Some topics are just better presented in written form compared to video. On to today's article!
This article is about making and modifying your own gear/kit/equipment. I have chosen this path for several reasons. One is that i live in an area with forests and marshland the size of some European countries. I have 250 km and 450 km to the closest larger cities, with only settlements and small towns in between. Gear/kit is not easily available. Another reason is, that when using a given ruck, set of clothing or whatever, it becomes apparent that they can be improved or made more "task specific". It's of course hard to impossible to buy such customized items. Lastly i will give credit to my friend Ivarr Bergmann for putting me on to this. Check out his site Never Quit
So me and my wife got two sewing machines. One can do the job but an over lock machine is a good thing. The first project was a protective bag for the Saiga 12K. I will explain later the purpose of the bag.
I chose to make the Protective bag from one of my "Plash Palatka's". These are heavy duty canvas poncho's and shelter halves. They measure 180x180cm.
Soviet/Russian Plash Palatka from the 1980's
The fabric is not 100% waterproof but close to. Anyway, waterproof is not that important. The bag is for keeping out dirt and crud, if and when crossing rivers, swamps which are plentiful here. Even it's an AK platform, a clean firearm is always nice! The cover will also be useful when the Saiga 12K is strapped to the ruck. A more low key way of transporting it. I am sure it will be useful in many a situation.
The finished bag with carry loops. The bag will be closed with cordage and can be carried with the sling if needed. Very simple!
A very rewarding first project. Fun and interesting to do. That being said i will have to give credit to my wife. She is a professional tailor and designer and can talk about sewing like a soldier about soldiering. I learned quite a lot on this first project. Making a modifying my own kit also adds to my self reliance. I will of course still need to buy stuff now and then. Kit is an essential part of survival!
Thank you and see until next time. Get out and train and get it done! Out!
