masterangler,

Glad you like it. I break more knives than I end up keeping, so the fact that I reccommend it at all is a testament to its durability. The only other knife I can recommend in good conscience is my Leatherman. Never leave home without it.

mastertangler wrote on Nov 26^th, 2010 at 6:51pm:


I am liking this knife more and more. The nylon sheath has a pocket on the outside about the size to fit a leatherman. I had thought to put a fire kit there but thought that would be redundant since I will have a more complete kit afixed to the rear of my PFD. Instead I have discovered that the pocket holds a bottle of Bens bug spray perfectly. A little tight but if you work it a while it slides in and out just fine. Velcro cover.

I don't know about you guys but I never seem to have bug spray when I need it. I always have to go dig it out. Or worse, your walking back on a portage trail and your winged enemy has gathered in your exhaust from the first trip. Now, I'll always have it on me without even knowing it.

Slingshot, and we are all walking predator calls...purse you lips and make like a kiss and a cupped hand will create the curious inflection.

Whack a chipmunk? You monster!

In a survival situation, why not just whack Chipmunks/squirrels with a stout stick?

solotripper,

I tend to refrain from shooting my expensive arrows into the treetops. But my .22 has been known to coax a few squirrels down from their perches. I just enjoy the extra trigger time with the bow, and the local PD frowns upon shooting irons within city limits... it used to be the edge of everything, but now there's suburbia where there used to be corn fields and CRP. So, if I want to shoot on our property, it's got to be with the bow, which is still legal. Not always successful, but legal.

I look forward to seeing how the snares pan out. I'll set some rabbit snares on the ground and make a lean-pole or two, both straight from the survival manuals with visual assistance from YouTube. There's a couple of oak stands that are promising territory... would I be out of line if I set a lean-pole on the bird feeder? 

If you're looking for calories in a survival situation, I'd go for cambium long before I'd bother trying to set up snares (though I will admit my skills in that area are extremely limited).

Cambium (the layer between the wood and the bark in a tree) has lots of nutritional value, is everywhere, is easy to harvest (especially if you have a knife), and doesn't taste awful. It had been a staple food for native North Americans long before the white man came. (FWIW "Adirondack" means "bark-eater" in Iroquois, though in a derogatory sense). I was taught to go for birch or aspen, but I understand most species are quite satisfactory (eg white pine).

All that being said, food-gathering would be rather low on my list of priorities for a Altoid-tin-sized ditch kit. I would see hypothermia and first aid issues as much more serious risks, and would allocate my space accordingly.

Quote:


Akula,

Here's a little trick an old timer showed me. Squirrels are like cats, incredibly curious but cautious too.
Often they'll come in close while your sitting still, but somehow will detect you and move around to the opposite side of the tree. They'll do it after a miss with .22 as well.

Take a shotgun shell, 20-12 gauge works the best. You want one loaded with bird-shot. Open the end and take out the wadding ,leaving only the BB's.  Close up the end, securing with duct tape/wax.

After a miss, or when they go to the other side of tree, you shake the shell gently, just enough so they can hear the rattle. They will more often than not, throw caution to the wind and stick their heads around to see what's making that weird sound.

Not sure how you would manage that with a bow and judo tip?
If you can figure out something, it will increase your odds dramatically  

Preacher wrote on Dec 1^st, 2010 at 6:55pm:


Preacher for you I would highly suggest the Baby house cat in distress call. That will land a full grown bobcat or lynx right in your lap .

I'm kidding! Although they do have such a call and that is usually what is supposed to show up (It never worked for me). The teeny mouse squeaker is compact but I was always partial to the cottontail bunny in distress call. It has been quite some time since I have done any hunting though so I'm not really up on it like I used to be. Hunting just doesn't seem quite the same here in Florida than it did in Michigan.

Preacher wrote on Dec 1^st, 2010 at 6:55pm:




I've had some success using this (You need to Login or Register to view media files and links), though not for calling squirrels. I've learned that calling squirrels is pretty much useless, you're better off just sitting still and being quiet. I'll give it another go when I get back home, now that it's coming up on their mating season it might help draw them in closer (bow with judo-tip arrows = great fun).

But, if you blow in the open end, it mimics a distress call; essentially turning it into a predator call. I got a rise out of some coyotes in the backyard one night, just messing around, but they never came close enough for me to see them. Which was surprising, because our coyote population back home is leaning over the edge of being a problem. They're usually not hard to find.

I'm not sure if any of these calls would have their place in a ditch kit, given the limited space available. But it probably couldn't hurt, provided you have a way to secure an animal that's been lured in. I hunted with wrist rockets when I was a kid, and it's harder than it looks. Be prepared for lots of frustrating near-misses, and make sure the band is in good shape... don't let it break while aiming so it narrowly misses taking out your eye... we had the best luck with ball bearings and taconite pellets, and even some glass marbles "borrowed" from one of mom's fake plant vases. But small rocks work too.

There are lots of electronic predator calls out there, and I don't know anything about them other than they are illegal to use on some places. Which probably means they are effective.