A recent survey asked Americans if they could survive in the wilderness with minimal supplies. The average person in this survey felt that they could survive for 16 days in the wilderness, despite the fact that they were unsure about the specifics of surviving. Below we will list some of the specifics of the survival issues below.
Fire Starting
The survey was conducted by OnePoll. One of the first questions asked in the survey was how confident a person is in starting a fire with a flint and steel. Despite many survey takers believing they could survive for 16 days, only about 17% felt confident that they could start a fire. As many outdoorsmen and survivalists know, without the ability to properly make fire your chance of survival goes down pretty quickly. However, every year we hear stories of people surviving in tough conditions. On top of all that a fire can also keep unwanted predators and bugs away, it also provides a station for survivors to purify water.
Identifying Plants and Food
With so few survey takers being able to confidently build a fire, survival food sources become limited to some fresh fish and plants. However, this was another issue for the survivalists in this survey. Only 14% believed that they could identify edible plants and berries. Likewise, only 35% of survey takers felt they could accurately identify poison ivy. Without fire and the knowledge to identify edible plants, the would-be survivors would be relying on very limited resources of finding actual clean water and edible food that doesn’t require cooking.
Another item that was noted in the survey is that the majority of survey takers have gained a renewed appreciation and love for nature. Likewise, the majority also felt they wanted to take more responsibility for taking care of nature.
What are your thoughts on this survey? How long do you think you could survive under those circumstances? Let us know in the comments!
