Camping Survival Guide: The Worst-Case Scenarios & Resolutions

camping survival guide

Overview

Many of us love taking advantage of the summertime to explore the great outdoors.

Indeed, it’s a perfect time to experience nature and take leave from the hassles of everyday life. 

Just seeing wild creatures and plants in their natural habitat is enough to take your breath away and make your adventure worthwhile.

But first, you need to familiarize yourself with a proven camping survival guide, so that you will know how to handle some of the worst-case scenarios that may happen while you’re out camping.

Prepare For For The Worst-Case Scenarios

camping survival guide

Often, things do not go smoothly as planned or hoped, and camping is not an exception.

While it’s good to be optimistic and hope that nothing goes wrong, you are better off preparing for the worst-case scenarios.

So, below are the worst possible things that can happen while you’re out camping – and what you should do about it.

1. Getting Lost

camping survival guide

Wandering away from the campsite is not uncommon, but the aftermath can be scary.

So, if you have to go far from where you’re camping, ensure there’s someone with you.

Whistles can be very helpful camping gear when it comes to getting lost.

Therefore, make sure you have some with you, and ensure the kids always wear whistles around their necks – this way, it would be easier to find them when they get lost in the wild.

Other camping survival gear to help you find a lost person in the wild include the following;

  • Cell phone – If your camping area has cell signal, bringing phones along can be a lifesaver when trying to locate someone who has wandered off. Don’t forget to store important emergency phone numbers in all the phones before packing them. You will need battery charging sources such as power-banks to keep the phones’ batteries alive while in the woods.
  • Signal flares – While may not always be the perfect solution, especially if you have wandered far away. Also, a cell phone will be useless if there’s no cell signal in the area you’ve wandered to. This is where signal flares become very helpful in alerting rescuers and drawing their attention to where you are. 
  • Compass – It’s also good to bring a compass with you when camping out, especially if you can use it.
  • Binoculars – These are gradually replacing spotting scopes for most hunters and campers. With a pair of binoculars, you can spot potential dangers from afar off and avoid them. They are also great for scouting best positions and routes out of lost situations.

In addition to bringing those camping gears to the wild, in a typical lost situation, you would need to do more.

For instance, you need to spot things like trail marker, access road, cabin, or other human-made objects.

When you do, stick by the side of the object until help comes. 

2. Bears In Your Camp Site

camping survival guide bear

Another possible worst-case scenario when camping is having a bear visit the campsite.

This can be a scary ordeal. But, instead of letting fear get hold of you, focus on the possible solutions.

In order to stay safe from bears, it’s important to remember that bears are primarily concerned about the safety of their young ones, and also what to eat.

So, when you sight bears in your campsite, they are most likely searching for something to eat.

Typically, these big furry animals do not target humans as prey.

Here’s a helpful camping survival guide to deal with bears;

  • Store your food away from your tent or sleep spot – up to 100 yards away
  • You should be aware of some products that may attract bears. Typical examples include soap, wet wipes, toothpaste, cooking utensils, garbage, and birdseed
  • Don’t sleep with clothes that have the smell of food on them – especially the ones you had on while cooking
  • Don’t run when you are face to face with a bear
  • If you happen to spot a bear walking on a trail, start backing away gradually and at the same time ensuring your voice is calm, low and monotone
  • Avoid making eye contact with this big furry animal
  • Wave your arms and make some noisy sounds to scare a bear away when it wanders into your campsite
  • It’s also helpful to take bear-repellent spray with you when camping or hiking
  • In the case of an attack by a black bear, do not relent in fighting back with all your might and anything you’ve got so that you can escape alive. A good spot to target is the bear’s muzzle and head
  • In the case of a grizzly/brown bear’s attack, go flat on your stomach immediately and pretend to be lifeless – but make sure the bear doesn’t roll you over

3. Campfire Out Of Control

camping survival guide

There could be cases when a campfire gets out of control and becomes a wildfire.

This can happen very quickly. If this happens, you should adopt any of the following remedies;

  • Evacuate without any delay
  • Employ effective techniques to see if you can contain the fire

Whichever treatment you choose, don’t forget to get in touch with the local authorities once you are out of danger.

If you choose to contain the fire, do so only if it is a situation you can manage.

One of the ways to attempt putting the fire under control is to use wet towels or shovels filled with sand/dirt to smother it. 

Also, pouring buckets of water on the fire may help contain it, but you should target the perimeter of the fire.

But, if there’s no stream or other sources of water nearby, this option won’t work since you need plenty of water for this purpose.

Don’t forget to evacuate your tents and any other nearby object. Once it is obvious you can’t control the fire, get on the phone immediately and call the fire department or the camp office. 

Before even lighting a campfire, make sure there’s no flammable material nearby. It’s also helpful to limit ember release.

Additionally, if you are planning on cooking, make sure you use proper camping cookware to reduce the chances of fire issues.

These campfire safety tips will help you cut back or eliminate the chances of fire getting out of control.

Finally, emergency medical situations may come up when you are camping out.

If the situation is not what can be resolved with the content of your first aid kit, do not delay to contact an emergency service or the camp office. 

Conclusion

There you have it! A camping survival guide talking about the three worst-case scenarios.

We hope you have enjoyed it, and wish you the best of luck enjoying the great outdoors – hopefully, you will never have to face any of the scenarios on this list!

Make sure you are always prepared and have a wonderful time out in nature!