Wilderness Survival Weapons

After acquiring shelter and a reliable water source, your top priority in a survival situation is food procurement. While tubers, nuts, fruits and berries can certainly keep you alive, your body will need a steady diet of protein and animal fat. Understanding how to create hunting tools can mean the difference between desperate survival and confident self-sufficiency.

  1. Slingshot

    • Find a strong forked twig that will not break under a high level of strain, yet still provides a measure of pliability. Cut both "tines" to the same length using a sharp knife and cut away the remaining wood so that your handle is approximately four inches long. Cut shallow notches around the tips of both tines and tie a length of elastic material to one of them. Your elastic material might be scavenged from an old tire or rubber inner-tube. Cut two vertical slits in the ends of a rectangular piece of leather and thread the elastic cordage through it. Tie the loose elastic end to the notch on the second tine and slide the leather pouch into the center of your elastic. Load your slingshot with small, round pebbles measuring just less than one inch across. When targeting birds, shoot multiple pebbles at once.

    Running Noose

    • Locate a long, thin branch and cut away any smaller twigs extending away from it. If possible, use a bamboo shoot approximately three-quarters of an inch thick and five feet long. Tie small, thin lengths of cordage outfitted with an exposed open loop around the shaft in one-foot intervals. Run a line of cordage along the shaft through each loop, ending in an adjustable noose. Slowly approach areas of known bird activity, which are typically characterized by white bird droppings and egg shell fragments. Locate a bird and carefully loop the noose around the bird's neck. Quickly yank the cordage to tighten the noose and swing the shaft the ground, thereby stunning the captured prey.

    Fish Spear

    • Fish are usually far easier to catch than birds or land-dwelling game animals, due to their relative captivity within water. Sharpen the end of a long stick for a rudimentary fishing spear, and be sure to harden the tip in a fire before use. Alternatively, latch a four-inch crossbar on the end of a blunt stick. Lash three sharpened twigs to the crossbar to create a trident-style fishing spear with a wider kill-zone. Dam the stream or pool above and below your quarry and approach the water with the sun in front of you to avoid casting shadows on the fish. Aim slightly below the fish to compensate for the water's light refraction.