Unless you happen to get lost in the Land of 1,000 Lakes, one of the biggest problems in surviving in the wild is finding water. The other big resource that has to be found is firewood, which may or may not be a problem, depending on where you are. But water is an issue just about anywhere because finding it is only half the battle. Once you have it, you need to realize that you can’t consume it without purification.
Considering that we can only live about three days without water, finding water is a daily battle when in the wild, unless you have a good camp, close to water, where you are staying. If you’re on the move, you’re best off following water, but if you can’t, you’ve got to be on the lookout for it constantly.
Fortunately, nature provides us with some very real indicators of where water can be found. Everything alive in nature needs water, so if we learn how to read the signs, we can allow nature to show us where to look. We just need to make sure we’re not seeing a mirage or being led astray by our own imaginations. It is possible to read the signs wrong because we want there to be water where there isn’t.
Follow the Land: Rivers and Streams
The first key in looking for water is to follow the land. Water always flows downhill, so if you need to find water, you need to go downhill too. Even if you’re looking around and “downhill” isn’t as obvious as you’d like it to be, your best bet is to figure out how to get downstream from wherever it is you are.
If you’re in the mountains, don’t just head downhill, but rather look for a ravine between the mountains and follow that downhill. When it rains, water will flow down into that ravine and follow it down. Small pools of water may remain in that ravine, especially in shady spots, even if water isn’t flowing. Following the ravine may lead you to those hidden supplies of water.
As you get to the foot of the mountain, that ravine will flow into either another ravine or a valley.
In either case, you want to find the low point and follow it. There may be a stream you can
follow, providing you with a constant source of water or there might be a dry watercourse; either way, following it will give you the greatest chance of finding water.
Let’s say you have no idea where you are, you don’t know where downstream is and you’re completely disoriented. How do you find water?
Follow the Animals
Yes, you’ll follow the lead of anything else that is living around you. Animal tracks are the best way to find water because chances are, their tracks will lead you to it.
Game trails will also lead you to water, even without animals on them. Most game trails end up going to water at some point. Just make sure that you are traveling downhill on the trail, or you will be moving away from the water, rather than closer to the water.
Some creatures need water badly enough that they never move far from it. Bees are like this. If you find bees in the wild, you are within five miles of water at the outside, although you are probably much closer. Mosquitoes will travel a maximum of three miles from water. Even so, a concentration of mosquitoes indicates that you are close.
If you’re bugging out or surviving in a rather barren area, watching the birds can help you find water. Pay attention to their flight path and go in the same direction.
Pair up tracking the animals with trying to get to low ground and you’re sure to find water.
Look for the Green
Plants need water, perhaps even more than animals do. They will always grow the lushest and the thickest in areas where they have access to lots of water. So wherever you are, look around to see where the plant life is the thickest. That’s the place where you are most likely to find water.
This is even true in the desert. There are many places where you can see a line of trees, in otherwise bare ground. That line of trees is probably following a dry creek bed. But if it rains, it will be flowing with water.
Don’t assume there is no water, just because you can’t see it on the surface. These watercourses dry on the surface, even while the ground underneath is still wet. Find a place where there was a pool, where there is still mud at the bottom, even dry cracking mud. Dig down a couple of feet and allow water to seep from the ground into that hole. It will be muddy water, but at least it will be water.
Collect Rainwater
One of the safest and smartest ways to get the water you need is by collecting rainwater. Now you don’t have to worry about bacterial infections and even if you’re bugging out in the city, this water will still contain less pollution and hazards than taking water from a lake or creek.
You have two options when it comes to collecting rainwater. You can set up a container and do it that way or tie some type of tarp to a few trees and leave a dip in the middle so the water can collect.
If you stumble upon the perfect scenario, you could even combine the two methods by placing a series of buckets or bins at the base of a tarp. You’ll need to funnel the water from each bin to the next so when one fills up, the next one starts to fill automatically. This will help you collect a lot of water during a heavy rainstorm without having to babysit the collector.
The downside is, you’ll need a large number of containers to collect that much water and you’ll need some place to put the water where it’ll stay free of bacteria if you can’t boil it.
Look for Fruits and Vegetables
Fruits, vegetables, cacti, trees, and roots all contain water. If you find yourself in a desperate situation where you absolutely cannot find any other source, this could work. Gather up as many of these resources as possible and smash them up into a fine pulp. The result should yield a little bit of liquid and it’s also going to be rich in vitamins and minerals. This will not only help hydrate you but you’ll get a nice boost as well.
If you’re stranded in a tropical area, chances are fruits and dense vegetation are plentiful. Look for green coconuts because the milk doesn’t contain the same gastrointestinal properties of the ripe ones. Ripe coconuts will force you to have a bowel movement which will dehydrate you even more.
Dig a Still
When you’ve exhausted all of the previous methods or you’re trying to create a more reliable source of water, you could build an underground still. This will serve as a much more consistent method of acquiring water and you’ll be able to see how much you’re getting so you can plan accordingly.
You’ll need the following supplies:
- Container
- Plastic sheets/wrap
- Shovel
- Rocks
You want to find the area where you’re camping that gets the most sun and dig a 2-3 foot hole. The size of the hole will depend on the size of the container.
Within the hole, you want to dig a deeper hole to insert the container. It should be flush with the sides of the first hole.
Cover the hole with plastic and secure it in place using the rocks. Put one rock in the center creating a depression and bringing the plastic sheets to a point in the middle over the container.
What this does is creates condensation from the sun’s heat. The moisture in the ground and the condensation on the plastic will create water that will drip into the bucket from the point you created with the center rock.
While this method alone may not create enough water for more than one person, if you can use it in conjunction with some of the other methods, you’ll have more than enough to survive while you figure something else out.
Melt Snow or Ice
If you find yourself stranded during the winter or in a place with harsh weather. You could melt snow or locate ice and melt that. There are still some very specific guidelines that you want to follow here though.
The ice you find needs to have a bluish color and should splinter when you smash it. If the ice looks gray and is difficult to see through that means it’s salty ice and won’t be good to drink.
If you’re in a place that doesn’t have freshwater, you can still harvest it though. Capture some water in a container and allow it to freeze. The salt will accumulate in the middle of the ice block. You can then remove the ice and get rid of the salt slush. The end result will be drinkable water once you purify it.
Don’t ever eat ice or snow directly thinking that you’re doing yourself a favor. Lowering your body temperature will only make survival more difficult. It will force your metabolic rate to speed up to raise your temperature which will dehydrate you more.
Always Purify Your Water
Always assume any water you find is unsafe for drinking, if you haven’t purified it yourself. While it is possible that you will encounter water that is safe to drink, there’s no way of knowing if it is. Therefore, for your safety, you have to assume that it isn’t.
Any survival kit or bug-out bag should contain some means of water purification. This is usually some sort of filter, either a straw-type filter, like the Lifestraw or a bag-type filter, like the Sawyer. Both are useful. The straw-type allows you to drink water straight from a stream, while the bag type allows you to fill your canteen. I’d recommend carrying both with you.
If you know how to purify water, chances are you’re using heat. To do this you’ll need a metal pot or bottle that can withstand the heat. If you’ve been prepping for a while you should have this already set up as one of your essential items to bring with you.
The WAPI (water pasteurization indicator), which was originally developed for use in third-world countries, allows you an easy way to heat purify your water in that water bottle or camping pot. It consists of a wax pellet, inside a plastic capsule. Place it in the water and when the wax melts, the water is hot enough to be purified. Once cool, the WAPI can be used again.
Sedimentation is another way to help the purifying process. If the only water you can find is extremely murky and dirty you’ll want to let the water settle so all of that sediment falls to the bottom. You’ll then harvest the clear water at the top and proceed with purifying it.
Protect and Share the Water
Never forget that you aren’t the only one who needs that water, every other living creature does too. But most of them won’t go near the water as long as you are there. So once you find water, move away from it to make camp, allowing a chance for wildlife to get the water they need. Fifty yards or so is enough. That way, you can always go back to the water to refill your canteen or water bottle.
You should also avoid using naturally found water as your personal toilet. Sadly, the water from our natural streams and rivers are no longer safe for drinking because of people doing that; not animals, people. Many forms of bacteria inhabit our intestines and are evacuated along with our feces. They can live in the water, reproducing. But even though those bacteria come from the human GI system, they can be deadly when ingested.
[Note: This was a guest post.]
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