You are lost in the wilderness in winter, with no tools, no wood, no fire. Temperatures are falling, and it’s getting dark. What do you do?
The scablands in Washington state are windburned, barren, and mostly flat, causing harsh exposure for hunters and outdoorsmen. This is no place for the unsavvy solo hiker in winter. Derrick Ince, 45, was reared in these rugged parts and mostly remembers it being cold but really exciting, particularly deer hunting with his father and his friends.
Mr. Ince’s outdoorsy traits never left him. He stepped them up in his 20s, delving deep into bushcraft. “I wanted to know more about the trees and the plants and edible things,” he told The Epoch Times, “wanting to create things with minimal tools.”
This scarred, rocky region in east Washington isn’t totally flat. Glaciers have carved out lowland channels between basalt ravines all throughout. Mr. Ince arrived in March and found precious little there besides rocks, grass, and dead reeds.
Here was the laboratory for a survival trial he would undertake. The seasoned hunter has gotten turned around before, having to sit on a stump until daylight; this would not be his first rodeo with Mother Nature. How would he fare in the scablands?
First, imagining himself stranded, he pondered, “What would I do?” You don’t want to be up top in the scablands, he explained. The wind and exposure are the real killers. Take cover in the ravine.
But those useless reeds and dried-up grasses over there? They will save your life. The marsh is frozen this time of year while the tule reeds have died and, covered in snow, fallen over to form countless small arches. They are full of good uses.
“The Egyptians—there’s quite a bit of information out there where they use very similar reeds to build boats,” Mr. Ince said.
Today, they will become a premade shelter. It’s important, he adds: only in wintertime when the marsh is frozen will this work. The moist environment in warmer weather will be rife with rattlesnakes and too wet for any use.
“You want it to be very tight,” he said.
You can see daylight through holes everywhere now. These must be plugged with more reeds gathered from outside, which can be cut using a small pocket knife or your hands. He piles them on in bundles, making a roof and walls, until it’s dark inside. It’s cozy indeed.
“You have to use it as a system: your clothing, your sleep gear, your sleeping bag, and your tent,” he said. The shelter will keep the wind and weather out. You can pad the inside with bundles of long, dry grass that will insulate your body heat. The grass will also make a good mattress and plug any gaps in the makeshift door—Mr. Ince uses his backpack.
So, now his burrow is ready and it’s time for beta testing. How would the survival hack shelter fare in a simulated emergency? He would stay overnight and find out. He brought two thermometers—one for inside and one outside—though would ultimately judge by feel, comfort-wise. And survival-wise.
Mr. Ince’s stay at Motel Scabland last March went something like this:
Sunset fell around 6 p.m. as temperatures hovered just over freezing. Mr. Ince plugs himself inside his cubby hole.
“It’s pretty cozy, it’s nice,” he said, video-recording his trial. “I’m perfectly fine right now.” He’s wearing a good hunting jacket and brought food: apples, some dried salami, and homemade cereal bars.
Near 1 p.m., temps drop below freezing with about a 10-degree spread on the thermometers. It’s 18.1° F outside and 27.5° F inside the shelter. He feels just a slight breeze while winds whistle outside. He hears coyotes howling.
“It’s chilly, but the thermometer doesn’t tell the whole story,” he said, adding that he’s warm but wishes for a small blanket. The grass mattress keeps his back and side cozy. He munches on apples and salami.
Temps fall throughout the night, bottoming out around 6 a.m. with still a 10-degree spread. It fell to 10.8° F outside and stayed 20.5° F inside. He slept little, feeling cramped and cold.
But “there’s no frost in here,” Mr. Ince said, mentioning that it’s still fairly warm. “It’s not horrible, but it’s not comfortable.”
The beta testing ends with a breakfast of cereal bars in a frosty landscape at sunrise.
His conclusions? It felt a lot warmer than temperatures showed; protection from the elements, the wind, and snow is key to survival. It was no 5-star hotel but would save you in an emergency. “The big pro to this is that anybody can build it,” Mr. Ince explained.
“The act of building the shelter is going to warm you,” he said, adding one last word for the novice hiker: “When you read the stories of people that don’t make it, they don’t realize they’re in trouble until they’re in trouble.”
You might find yourself turned around in the wilderness. Don’t panic. Don’t wallow in your sorrow. Rather, get out of the wind and take a breather, grab a snack, or drink something warm. Use your head. “Stop, sit down, assess the situation,” Mr. Ince said. “Where’s the sun at?”
Most importantly, though, plan ahead and be prepared. “It’s imperative for anybody,” he said. “Don’t do something without thinking about it—but we do all the time.
“Take a little bit of time to research: what environment and I going into?
“What’s the potential worst that the weather can be while I’m out there?”
