When you are away from hearth and home there will always be that moment where you are going to ask WWMGD?
I naturally think of backpacking, and camping, however sailing, mountain climbing, and other situations will clearly apply.

What have you done?

Hockey, hockey, & hockey, skating, trekking, hiking, camping, hunting, birding, safari.ing, sailing, skiing, snowshoeing, snowmobiling, baseball, float plane trips, dog-sledding, chainsaw jobs. Was born in a snowbank and have spent most of my life out-of-doors. Although I've photographed several hot-air balloon festivals, will take my first flight next year.

I was unclear, sorry. What sort of MacGyvering have you done in to whilst engaged in these activities?

GoodGawd, let me think about it for a month and I'll get back to you. Seriously, I think there are already a few threads about macgyverisms that we have done and that are already a bit challenged post-wise on the topic without specializing in specific activities. Having said that, I think most of us who've spend a lot of time in the outdoors have removed fishhooks from skin, made splints, got stuck vehicles back on the road, etc ..... which don't necessarily qualify as MacGyverisms .... but in that general direction.

Joe, I think I've done half of those in the past week!!

To be fair, not everyone is as well educated in the art of nature MacGyvering.

I'm not as smart as MacGyver, and certainly don't have that kind of mindset... though I would love to be able to think that way. For me, it just doesn't come naturally - see what I did there? XD

When it comes to communing with nature, I would need someone who is a bit more outdoors savvy. I would be a bit more like Pete in Survivor's when it comes to camping. God help me!

Though, as long as I'm not alone and there are folks familiar with camping, I wouldn't mind giving it a go... give me great opportunities to practice my nature photography. Nothing really beats a nice campfire, roasting marshmallows and telling spooky stories.

I guess you can say... I'm nature curious.

I think I can rub two sticks together to make a fire... other than that, sorry... got nothing.

I'm not as smart as MacGyver, and certainly don't have that kind of mindset... though I would love to be able to think that way. [QUOTE]

I would recommend you find a friend(s) that have gone camping before and do a easy weekend together. You could even pitch a tent your backyard. As far as learning how to outdoors MacGyver there are plenty of videos on Youtube listed under wilderness survival and bushcraft that will give you a fair idea of what is possible. You can also find books at your local library. The most important thing is take it slow and have fun, becoming the person you want to be. Don't try to transform yourself into a wilderness recluse over night. Learning skills takes time. MacGyver is a TV character, they never show all the years it took him to get to the point where he is the best in the world at, ... being him. Take one step and then another, keep moving forward and next thing you know; you're on your way.

If you have any questions I'm sure somebody here will have a answer.

Told ya!!! Okay, Scorpion why not start us off with one of yours!?

Well it's not high tech, but a straight piece of dead fall wood can be a good walking stick which can be used in lots of different ways: as a beam to suspend a pot over fire, or as a pole to convert a poncho into a improvised shelter are just a few of them. If a tarp lacks grommets for tying off a small pine cone or a acorn bunched in a corner can an attachment point. You can use a bandanna over the mouth of a water bottle to filter out the larger particles before boiling it to make sure it's safe to drink. That's just one of the many things a bandanna is good for. Those USB goose knock lamps that plug into the side of laptops used with those small USB chargeable batteries for cell phones make good flashlights. You can use eye glasses to magnify sunlight and start a fire. Hand sanitizer can be used to clean wounds and if it has alcohol as primary ingredient it can be use as a fire accelerant.


How's that?

Whilst you might think eye-glasses might be good at focussing light they are not actually very good at it - most are not curved enough, you are actually better off making a lens out of a bubble of water, or even your own pee at a push in a bubble of plastic and focussing that on some paper with black text on it.

With "Those USB goose knock lamps that plug into the side of laptops used with those small USB chargeable batteries for cell phones make good flashlights." I am tempted to think that if you are carrying a goose neck lamp, and a USB chargeable battery, then you have probably packed or purchased a flashlight anyway, and if you are carrying the laptop that they both use then chances are you are probably not light years from electrical civilisation anyway.

Yes you can make a crude sphere of water in a plastic bag. I just never needed anything more than glasses the times I decided to use sunlight to light up. No, I don't haul a laptop into the the great beyond. I just used the goose kneck lamp and the charge pack batteries as a flash light a couple times because they were rechargeable and they could be wrapped around things or stand on their own. Sorry about the bad spelling earlier, damn auto correct.

I actually used the magnifying glass on my Swisschamp to start a fire not too long ago. The sun has to be bright and high, and the tinder dry, but it works. The mag glass on this particular series of Vic's isn't all that strong, so I was pleased!

When you really need to start a fire, Murphy is standing over your shoulder and the sun is either behind clouds or the horizon. My preferred fire start is a ferro rod. Good technique and finest dry tinder is key.

Ferro rods are great!

Having done it the hard way with a rock and steel, I couldn't agree with you more. With practice ferro rods can be more reliable than matches. Sorry, no ferro rod emoji to share. The best found fire tinder in a urban environment is dryer lint. It helps to pre-char it before using. Stuff it in a Altoids tin, light it up, snuff it out and you are good to go. It's a very MacGyver option. Need some more? Any laundromat will provide you more than you can possibly want.

I've got ferro rods, but I've never taken them out to practice with. I guess I ought to do so as you don't want to learn in an emergency. In terms of emergency tinder I have read that a really useful source is something most men wouldn't consider. Ladies sanitary tampons are said to be really good because they are so compact to pack, yet are absolutely dry and fluff up to many times their original size.

[QUOTE] I've got ferro rods, but I've never taken them out to practice with. I guess I ought to do so as you don't want to learn in an emergency. In terms of emergency tinder I have read that a really useful source is something most men wouldn't consider. Ladies sanitary tampons are said to be really good because they are so compact to pack, yet are absolutely dry and fluff up to many times their original size.



I can't stress enough the need to practice with a ferro rod. Proper technique makes all the difference. Quickly scraping along the length of the rod with firm even pressure will produce a shower of sparks, but first you have to scrape away the black over coat. Until you do it will seem like your ferro rod is defective. Tampons make good fire starter, but I'm not buying them. Something about my Y chromosome getting in the way. Cosmetic cotton cleaning pads are just as good. The cotton in pill bottles that keeps your aspirin from turning into a load of medicated dust is good too.