Bushcraft 101: A Field Guide to the Art of Wilderness Survival

From national best-selling author and retired Navy SEAL Clint Emerson comes the essential guide for surviving today's emergencies - from navigating in the wild to staying alive in any disaster. These 100 skills, adapted for civilians from actual field experiences of Special Forces operations, offer a complete hands-on and practical guide to help you survive in the wild no matter the climate or terrain, be prepared for any crisis, and have the critical life-saving knowledge for staying safe in any hostile environment or disaster.

Inspired by over 25 years of practicing and teaching bushcraft throughout North America, survival instructor Tony Nester recounts backcountry tales of nomadic adventures using traditional skills that have faded from the modern world. Laced with humor, insight, and nerve-wracking encounters with wildlife, sandstorms, flash floods, brutal cold, and unpredictable clients, Life Under Open Skies reveals a rare look into the often misunderstood world of survival.

After her plane crashes, a 17-year-old girl spends 11 days walking through the Peruvian jungle. Against all odds, with no food, shelter, or equipment, she gets out. A better equipped group of adult survivors of the same crash sits down and dies. What makes the difference?

Survival situations often don't start off as such, like a day hike or a fishing trip. It is only when things go wrong that you are suddenly faced with a life-and-death survival situation. Therefore, you want to plan for the unexpected. Before you set off into the woods, take the time to go through all contingencies. Disasters often don't come with advance notice, nor do they send you any early warning signs. So learning how to survive in the wilderness can truly save you and your family's life.

In April 1992 a young man from a well-to-do family hitchhiked to Alaska and walked alone into the wilderness north of Mt. McKinley. His name was Christopher Johnson McCandless. He had given $25,000 in savings to charity, abandoned his car and most of his possessions, burned all the cash in his wallet, and invented a new life for himself.