You can survive without food for quite some time, but without water you’ll last a few days only, depending on your environment.

It’s hard to get your head around this but the average western person uses over 120 gallons (460 litres) of water EACH DAY.  If you think I’m way off target, a shower takes about 20 gallons, shaving (with the water running) takes another 10+ gallons, there’s brushing your teeth, washing the dishes and flushing the toilet to factor in as well.  When we go camping we don’t waste water like we do at home.  As a preparatory exercise, watch how much water you use today. Notice every time you turn on a tap, flush a toilet or wash the dishes by hand.  Turn the tap off between uses or halve the water coming out and you’ll understand how much water you can save.

As a matter of responsibility and courtesy to others, make sure your group doesn’t defecate, urinate, wash the dishes or do anything else DIRECTLY IN THE STREAM.  Water is an extremely precious commodity that must not be polluted. You wouldn’t like it if you found yourself downstream from a group that’s polluting it.

If you’re not camped near a stream, use your imagination to find water.  Some tips:

● look for signs of life like animal tracks, green vegetation or human habitation.  You can be sure water is nearby. Bees do not fly more than 3 miles (5 Km) from their nests; flies are rarely more than 330ft (100m) from water.  Ants are always in need of water and you’ll always find pools of rainwater around their nests.

● if lack of water is a problem, minimise fluid loss by staying in the shade and limiting physical exertion.

● there are many ways to trap and store water from overnight condensation, but storage is essential for daytime use.

Eat The Beach: an essential book on coastal survival (safety aspects – tides and weather influences – equipment – rod/line fishing – edible plants – seaweeds – shellfish – recipes)

For the more adventurous “Wild Food” by Ray Mears explores the art of hunting and foraging, covering a wide range of wild foods that can be prepared and eaten.  You never know when you’ll need to know this stuff!

And last but not least, The Hedgerow Handbook: Recipes, Remedies & Rituals by Adele Nozedar may be just what you need in the coming years

Learn from the pros:  Survival advice on food and water

Watch Food & Water clips from YouTube’s SurvivalTips888:

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL03735A292DDB0282&feature=viewall

plus: use banana peels to eliminate heavy metals from water