Comment

Becoming Wild

Living the Primitive Life on a West Coast Island
May 01, 2015tfcameron rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
I enjoyed this book. It is hard not to be somewhat survivalist concerning food security for the future. The book is honest, funny and remarkable in that she “just did it”. She had well-honed survival skills such as fire starting and basket making but they were a little short on basic boating, fishing and camping knowledge. The book includes a full list of what they took to Village Island including a dozen reference books. Her library suggests a rather romantic viewpoint of survival with books on animal tracking, trapping and flint knapping. Who would take down and cotton sleeping bags for emergency use on the WET COAST in winter? Many, many people I know have quit camping because of sleeping on the ground and/or in wet sleeping bags. I tell you, a Therm-a-rest sleeping pad and a synthetic hollow fill fibre bag would top my list of survival gear. If one can’t sleep comfortably it is hard to keep on keeping on. Trying to making and using bows and arrows to kill a bear shows a serious lack of appreciation of the true sophistication and skills involved with these weapons. A few chapter titles: Starving on Clams, Trapping Bruin, and “Hi, Mom, I’m Alive give a flavour of the book. I have always wanted to make fire with a bow drill and roasted roadkill venison in on the menu. Now I just have to do it! tfc