There are a variety of TV programmes that glorify the idea of bush craft featuring bushcraft specialists like Bear Grylls and Ray Mears. These shows are intended to entertain and to a small degree educate. However these men are specialists and have had extensive training, whether it is military or other. Is surviving in the wilderness actually possible for any extended period of time?
In the channel 4 program alone in the wild, Ed Wardle a Scottish outdoor adventurer was dropped into the Canadian wilderness with the intention of showing he could survive there for 3 months. Ed was left in the Yukon armed with only a camera, a rifle and a fishing rod to aid his survival. Prior to the show Ed has made a variety of documentaries in some of the world's most hostile environments including the North Pole and the peak of Mount Everest. He also received training from medical and survival experts. However it was important to note that he was not a survival expert himself.
Ed lasted 50 days in the wilderness before issuing a distress call and being flown out. His condition had deteriorated greatly and he was suffering from severe weight loss and his mental state had also become questionable.
Despite this 50 days is a great achievement but it highlights the point that man just simply isn't made to survive alone. If you're armed with an archery bow and have a great knowledge of survival bushcraft then you will be more capable than most at getting by in the wilderness.
However, living in the wild is certainly not going to be a permanent thing, but if you ever find yourself alone in the wild having good bushcraft skills will definitely help you survive for a while.
Sam Qam has studied survival bushcraft and is a crack shot with an archery bow.
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